Neither man was asleep, and the situation didn't call for conversation.
It was a wonderful time for both of them. Almost like a time-out from their ordinary lives. Each absorbed every morsel of contentedness that Nicole radiated, and, together, they appreciated having their mate so close to them, willingly sharing herself and trusting them to keep her safe.
It was a big deal for both Byron and Hugh to be gifted with her trust, for no woman could sleep so soundly and deeply unless she trusted the men she was with. Indeed, the way she lay in the bed seemed to signal how much freedom she allowed them with her body.
Never had they been so close, physically and mentally, to a woman, and it was a shock for both men. It affected Byron more than Hugh though. Being the younger of the two he'd never really witnessed the closeness a mate-bond created between two people. Hugh had seen his parent's relationship and other mate-bonds in the pack flourish. But Byron had been far too young to understand.
In a way, Hugh had been glad for Byron's ignorance. Until he'd met Nicole, he'd always felt as though a part of him had been pining for that one woman who would complete him, for that one woman who was meant to be his and his alone.
He'd been relieved for Byron that he hadn't felt that. Or, if he had, Byron had never disclosed it to him. Perhaps he'd never been able to put it into words, but, now that they had Nicole, Hugh realized the extent to which she completed them, both of them.
It still came as something of a surprise that they were sharing her. It didn't overly perturb him, as it was something they'd done in the past. And while he was possessive where Nicole was concerned, especially with her ex, that possessiveness didn't cause any problems when all three of them were together. In fact, he enjoyed watching them together. What had happened earlier was a perfect example of that fact.
He had enjoyed seeing Byron's fingers opening her and spreading her for his hungry eyes, had enjoyed watching Byron fuck and pleasure her.
It was quite a conundrum, but Hugh was very happy with his lot. He imagined a future of lazy afternoons ahead of him, with Nicole spread over him like a blanket and Byron cuddled up to her like an overgrown teddy bear.
Indeed, he was very happy with the train of his thoughts until the knock on the door progressed to hammering followed by shouts of anger, that is. Until that moment, he'd been happy to ignore it. He'd been happy to let Nicole use him as a pillow and to enjoy a lazy do-nothing afternoon and evening.
He tilted his head to one side so that he could look at Byron who was frowning back at him. It was difficult to hear the words that were being mumbled behind the door, even for their werewolf hearing. They could sense the person's aggression however and began to slip away from Nicole as quietly as they could, not wanting to wake her. They both began to curse silently as she awoke, her limbs stretching on the sheets as she uncurled herself like a luxurious cat, purring and curling against the bed.
Hugh felt his cock twitch at the sight and knew that Byron's reacted in the same way, as his brother began to grumble and reach for his jeans. They both began to dress. It wasn't until Nicole sat up straight that they stopped to just look at her. With her breasts bobbing and her movement in the bed affording them small glimpses of her perfect pussy, she was like a sex goddess. The thought that she was theirs made Hugh's cock even harder.
As the hammering on the door became impossibly louder, Hugh growled and stomped out of the room to deal with whoever the hell was out there. He timed it so that when he opened the door, the person banging on it would fall forwards.
Byron, right behind him, grinned as Hugh's plan worked.
A furious Joe Durst fell flat on his face as the door whipped open and the momentum of his banging fists flung him forward and over the doorstep.
"Greetings, Durst," Hugh said, his voice an angry rumble.
Quickly scrambling to his feet, Joe moved into Hugh's personal space and shoved his chin forwards aggressively. "You fucking bastards. I told you to leave her alone."
"Yeah, and I chose not to listen, schmuck."
"You're messing with the wrong guy here, Jakman. I've warned you …."
"Fuck off, Durst. Go and spout your shit at someone who gives a damn," Byron ground out through clenched teeth as he took in Joe's bright red face.
Hugh spun around as Nicole's delicious scent came nearer. He had to hold back a groan as she walked into the hallway wearing nothing but a sheet. Her hair was mussed and her neck pink from their kisses and love bites. Her lips were red and looked slightly sore from their ceaseless caresses. She looked like she'd just been thoroughly fucked. The sheet covered just enough to stop her from exposing herself to Durst but enhanced her looks so that she appeared to be the sex goddess he and Byron knew her to be.
He watched Durst's eyes widen in shock and had to hold back a growl of possessiveness at the bastard seeing his mate so humbly attired. Byron jerked his head forward in warning before he could act on his possessive feelings, and Hugh subsided to glaring at the bastard who dare lay his eyes on Nicole. It didn't matter that she was previously married to the man, she was no longer Durst's, and the sooner everyone realized that, the better.
"Joe?" Nicole said in a husky voice. It was the voice of someone who had just been screaming out in climax, and all three men knew it.
Any doubt that Joe might have had that she hadn't just been fucking Byron and Hugh disappeared.
Hugh watched in amusement as Durst's hackles rose. His held back a chuckle at Durst's latent feelings of jealousy. He knew that it wasn't helped by the fact that Nicole genuinely sounded as though she were shocked to see him. Her appearance, her body language, everything added up to make Joe Durst feel like shit, like something easily forgotten, and Durst's ego did not like that at all!
"Joe? What are you doing here? Why were you knocking on the door?" Nicole repeated her question with some confusion and hefted her sheet higher so that it covered her some more.
Hugh realized that she was genuinely uncomfortable in her ex-husband's presence. It soothed his wolf somewhat, and he determined to stay out of it unless Nicole needed him.
"You fucking cunt. You slut," Joe spat angrily
Immediately, Hugh's resolve to stay out of it was spent. He grabbed the man and pinned him to the wall with his hand at Durst's throat.
"You think you can speak to my woman like that, you fucking bastard?"
"Your woman?" Durst laughed wheezily.
The laugh sounded forced, which Hugh supposed it was since he was letting minimal air supply through to Joe's lungs. "Yeah, my woman. You fucking insult her again and you'll be lucky if I let you go home with your cock attached."
"What are you doing here, Joe?" Nicole's voice had risen with her discomfort at the situation.
"You fucking whore!" Joe replied wheezily, his eyes bulging as Hugh increased the pressure after this latest comment.
"I warned you . . . ."
"Hugh! No!" Nicole ran over to him and grabbed at his hands, trying to weaken his grip and allow Joe to breathe.
That she defended Durst only served to increase his ire, until she declared hoarsely, "Joe, either tell me what the hell you want or I'm calling the police. You can't come around here insulting me and my boyfriends! I'll report you, and don't you think for a second I won't! Just think about having your name splashed around the local papers! Just think about that for a second. What I do is my own business and none of yours. Never forget that!"
Hugh released his grip on Joe's throat but continued to hold him in position. The bastard was too quick on his feet for Hugh to let him go. If Durst hurt one hair on Nicole's head, Hugh would have to kill him.
"You bitch. Flaunting it on fucking camera. Who the hell do you think you are?"
"Who do you think you are? Pervert! You don't have to watch."
"Fuck off back to your precious baby doll and leave us the hell alone."
"Tell caveman here to let me go, and I'm off."
"Let him go, Hugh. Joe knows that I'll
call the police on his sorry ass. It wouldn't be the first time I've done it, would it Joe?"
Joe flipped them all the finger and stalked off back to his car.
Byron looked at Hugh for a second then turned to Nicole thoughtfully, "Has he hurt you in the past?"
"When he drinks, he can get real nasty with his fists," she admitted reluctantly.
Byron shook his head and exhaled loudly. "Well, at least he's gone. That's something!"
"Yeah, he went a little too easily, don't you think?" Hugh pointed out quietly.
Byron hummed his agreement. "Yeah, but if he's low enough to use his fists on a woman then he's probably too much of a pussy to fight us. Especially with your hand around his windpipe! He's a snake. He just slithered off to fight another day!"
"Yeah, that's what concerns me," Hugh murmured coldly.
"What do you mean, Hugh?" Nicole asked, her voice troubled.
Hugh silently cursed himself for bringing the topic up in front of her. "Nothing, sweetheart. I'm seeing monsters in the shadows. You bring out my protective instincts, that's all," he drawled, his voice low and gravelly. He saw the pleasure in her eyes and stalked forward to her, flicking a warning glance at Byron to cease the discussion until later.
Turning back and wrapping Nicole in his arms, he lifted her up and allowed the sheet to fall to the floor in the hallway. He cupped her butt and motioned for her to spread her legs and let him carry her. The feel of her soft bare pussy rubbing against his lower belly, just above the waistband of his jeans, was enough to stir his cock to a full erection.
The whole situation had his blood pumping with adrenaline and he had to make himself handle her with care because all he wanted to do was drop her to the floor, turn her on to her knees, and fuck her from behind. And he would do that but in a more genteel manner. He wouldn't prevent that bastard from hurting her only to do so himself!
He quickly stalked through the ground floor and headed towards her bedroom. He released her above the bed and let her drop onto the mattress with a bounce. He watched her laugh, watched her breasts bob up and down, and growled possessively. His mate didn't buckle or scramble away from him, though. Her eyes lit up and he saw the hunger that equaled his own blaze fiercely in her glistening orbs.
Grabbing her hips, he spun her over so that her butt was in the air. He bent down and stuck his nose against her slit and breathed in deep as he unbuckled his belt and released himself from his pants. Her scent calmed him down, despite the adrenaline still coursing through his system, because he knew that she was his and Byron's and that not a trace of Durst was there on his mate.
His cock was hard by now and throbbing hungrily. Once more he grabbed her hips, but this time he slammed her on to his cock, impaling her in one fluid motion.
She moaned hungrily at his savage possession.
He began to pump faster and faster into her. The bed began to squeak and shake at the speedy tempo of his thrusts.
Her elbows gave way, and she couldn't gain purchase on the sheets.
Rather than let her get back up and support herself, he let her lie there, at his command.
Reaching down low, he grabbed her breasts. It was an awkward position, but he didn't care. His cock was being caressed by his mate's warm, juicy cunt and his hands were filled with Nicole's breasts. What more could a man ask for?
His hips began to thrust faster, his hands squeezed and pinched her breasts, and when he felt a hesitant hand glance over his cock, his heart began to beat furiously at his chest wall.
In his mind's eye, he could see what they looked like. He was crouched over her like a beast. She was lying supinely on the bed with her face pressed into the sheets and her hands between her legs, pleasuring herself.
The combination of the physical pleasure and his imagination set his cock to spurting his seed into her welcoming womb.
* * * *
Hugh tapped his fingers against the armrest on the truck's door. His mind was engaged in trying to understand what the fuck Joe Durst was up to. He was a wily character, and, if it hadn't have been for Nicole, then he would have totally regretted getting mixed up with the bastard. He was difficult to pin down and difficult to work with. The adjective summed him up entirely-difficult.
Not only that, but Hugh knew that he was a manipulative bastard and Nicole's disclosure that he was handy with his fists merely enraged him and deepened his distrust even more. It was hard to concentrate on what the fuck the man was concocting when all he wanted to focus on were ways and means of beating the guy up.
Hell, his wolf wanted blood. He didn't like being at the mercy of his wolf, but, where his mate was concerned, he doubted there was any other option. She was more precious than gold and had to be treated and protected as such.
But he couldn't shake the feeling that Durst was concocting something. This morning, he hadn't thought anything. His mind had been focused on work and his mate. But now, after this afternoon, something had teased a memory into life, and he remembered Durst asking him how safe the house was in case of a fire.
At the time, it had seemed like an ordinary question. They'd been discussing making the house safer and bringing it up to date to modern standards, bringing it up to code. But now, after learning that Durst wasn't averse to beating up his wife, the question took on nefarious intent. It frightened him that Nicole could be in danger, but, at the same time, he had no proof that Durst was an arsonist in the making!
"Durst is rich, right?" Hugh asked Byron, concern evident in his voice.
His brother frowned when he answered. "Yeah, I think so. He looks flash and he's spent a fortune on the house when only the bare minimal was really necessary. The pneumatic blond must cost a lot. Her clothes are definitely designer, as are his own. That new Merc he was driving must have cost him a bundle, too. So, yeah, I assume that he's rich."
"Yeah, but that kind of lifestyle must cost a lot of money to keep up, right? I mean, what does the guy actually do? When he was at the house and Nicole and he were still together, he didn't actually go out to work, did he? Not only that, but Nicole doesn't act as though she's got a lot of money does she? If anything, she looks as though she's trying to save money!"
"No," Byron said slowly. "But, he did fly off to places, remember? Maybe that was business? She's his ex, and thank God for that, but maybe it means that he's not providing her with any alimony."
"It just seems a bit shady and dubious to me. There are too many questions in this god damn situation and not enough answers!"
"Yeah, but maybe the man just knows how to make a quick buck. Maybe it's nothing deeper than that."
"That's what frightens me."
"What's all this about, Hugh?"
"Remember that time he asked about the fire safety of the house?"
"Yeah, I do," Byron answered with a thoughtful frown. "What's that got to do with anything?"
"Don't you think that was an odd question to ask?"
"No, not really. It was in context at the time anyway."
"Hmm, but was it really? We would have told him if the house was dangerous. Hell, we would have told them that they couldn't live there for starters! Wasn't it obvious that it was safe?"
"I suppose so. What are you getting at?"
"I don't know, Byron. I just don't trust that bastard, that's all."
"And you think I do? I'd trust a god damn python before I'd trust that weasel," Byron said, laughing darkly,
"You don't think Nicole is in any danger, do you?"
"I don't think so, no. Why?"
"Maybe I'm just being paranoid, but it doesn't help that I've just found my mate and can't claim her!"
"I've never known you to be paranoid, Hugh. I don't know if that clears your mind any …. Tell me what you're thinking. Maybe it will help if I can say yea or nay to whatever's on your plate."
"Durst looks like the type to spend money like it's going out of fashion, as does the pneumatic blond …. We're still in a recession. Money is tight. What if
his businesses, whatever the hell they are, aren't doing well? What if he's maxed the insurance out on that house and by setting it on fire he makes a claim and recoups any losses the economic downturn has caused him?"
Byron frowned but said nothing, pursing his lips in concentration.
"Well, what do you think? Am I being paranoid?" Hugh asked impatiently.
"What worries me is that what you're saying sounds plausible. But it all depends on whether or not Durst has lost a lot of money, and there's no way of knowing it. But, I agree with you on one thing wholeheartedly, he is acting odd. I mean, he's got a whole new life, so why does it bother him that Nicole is with us now?"
"I'd say jealousy, but Durst doesn't strike me as a man to get overly jealous. His ego has been dented that she's not mourning his loss anymore, but he looks like the type that moves on to the next after he gets bored, which is what he'd done with Nicole. I don't like this situation at all, Byron."
"No, me neither."
* * * *
"Is it all arranged then?" Joe asked nervously in a quiet voice. He had to constantly remind himself to lower his voice so as not to bring Tracy running into the room to ask questions. She wasn't as stupid as she looked and he didn't want her asking questions.
"Yeah, all set."
"When for?" Despite his struggle to maintain his normally confident veneer, sweat beaded on his brow. He didn't like not being in control of the situation. It went against the grain to pay someone else to do his own work, especially when the hired bastard could blackmail him at a later date! This whole situation was making him feel nervous, and he didn't like it one bit.
"Two weeks from today."
"I'll have to call you to confirm. The house is taking longer to finish than I expected. It has to be completed before the full insurance policy kicks in. Don't do anything until I contact you again, alright?"
"Yeah. You know where I am."
The sound of the dial tone met Joe's ears and he breathed a sigh of relief. He wasn't sure who he was speaking to. No names had been exchanged, just details, but those details could incriminate Joe, and that made him antsy.
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