Wanted

by Annika James

  “Crap,” I mumbled between clenched teeth. I looked at Conor, both of us still crouching. “I did it earlier today. I know I did.” My eyes grew hot with threatening tears. I would not break down in front of these people. I. Could. Do. This.

  He didn’t respond, just leaned in and pressed his lips to mine, kissing me in front of his family and other Council members. He pulled me up with him.

  “I know you did, Ash.” His voice was comforting. He glanced over my shoulder, to where Matt was standing. I turned in a daze and swiped at my eyes; the world came to a slow halt as realization slammed into me.

  Matt.

  Matt was the key.

  I met his blue gaze. There was a tangle of emotion in his eyes. He smiled and genuine joy lit his face. He was okay with this.

  As he walked forward, I noticed he had the book in his hand. He placed it on the table. He met Conor’s eyes over my head, questioning. Conor must have approved because Matt looked down at me, his fingers traced my cheek, my jaw. “We can do this, Ash. You can do this. We’ll face the consequences together. All of us.” His eyes met Conor’s again.

  Conor nodded and repeated Matt’s action on my other cheek. “We’ll deal with whatever happens. All of us,” he repeated firmly.

  Okay. My spirits lifted at the show of solidarity, even if I was a little confused at the words Matt and Conor spoke.

  I faced forward. The Council watched us curiously, expectantly. No one said a word.

  I found my center again and focused on the book. I exhaled and made it rise off the table. It held steady. Conor leaned in once again and put his lips on my pulse. My heart lodged in my throat, my mouth opened on a gasp. The book trembled.

  Matt’s hand came around my forearm, a band of heat that instantly calmed me. My breathing slowed and I relaxed. The book steadied. Conor’s fangs grazed my neck. The book remained steady, although I was panting. I could feel Matt’s comforting presence filling me, calming my power. We remained entwined for at least twenty seconds, Conor using his lips, teeth, and tongue—damn him—to distract me, but the book steadily floated three feet above the table the entire time.

  Gasps came from the Council members. Finally, I released the book with a sigh and met Vivian’s eyes. She was no longer smiling, just studying the three of us. Behind her, the Council members muttered amongst themselves. Conor’s mom narrowed her eyes at me, her mouth pulled into a scowl.

  Conor faced the Council. “She has passed the tests. May we proceed?”

  The elders all started speaking at once, throwing questions and protests on top of one another. I couldn’t make out much of what they were saying. I knew it involved Matt and Conor and me.

  A silver-haired woman stepped forward, turning to look at Vivian with shocking violet eyes. “Vivian, if I may?”

  Vivian’s eyes narrowed as though thinking. “Yes, please, Grace. Interesting thought.”

  At Vivian’s nod of approval, the woman came to stand directly in front of us, her violet eyes shrewd as she examined all three of us. With Matt’s hand still calming me, I simply stood there and let her look for whatever it was she searched for.

  “Is there a bond there?” Vivian asked.

  The woman in front of us smiled and turned to address her leader. “Oh yes, there is a bond between Ashlinn and Conor. However, there is also a bond between her and Matthew.”

  My heart jumped. What kind of bond? Was it just the bond Matt and Conor had been talking about on the walk here? To my right, Conor had gone eerily still. Matt jerked in surprise and turned wide eyes on me and Conor.

  Across from us, the elders mumbled amongst themselves again. A bond?

  “What? What kind of bond?” I squeaked.

  “The familiar kind,” the woman answered simply. “The three of you are joined.” She turned back to the elders. “They are a triumvirate.”

  Her announcement set the elders talking.

  My gaze ping-ponged between the guys. “Triumvirate?”

  Conor’s face drained of all color, his eyes stared blankly ahead.

  “What the hell’s a triumvirate?” I asked Matt, since Conor still hadn’t moved.

  Matt let go of my arm like it was a hot potato. His gaze found Conor over my head again. “Conor, I had no idea. I’m so sorry. I thought it was just because she was comfortable around me and because I saved her. I didn’t know, man, really.”

  My face scrunched in confusion as I turned to Conor.

  “I know.” His focus lingered on Matt. “It’s not your fault. I honestly suspected this from the first night I tried to bite her and you rescued her, again. You are her savior, Matt.” His gaze drifted to my face, his eyes so tender and full of some emotion I couldn’t identify. “You get your wish.” His mouth pulled down at the corners.

  I shook my head in confusion. “What wish? Conor, what is going on?”

  His hand cupped my cheek. “You get both of us, forever. Neither of us can leave you now.”

  “What?”

  A sharp clap cut off anything else we were going to say, and our attention snapped to Vivian. She looked at me with her shrewd green eyes. “Well, Ashlinn. Not only will you be Conor’s familiar, but Matthew’s as well. You will join in a blood bond with both of your young men, forming the first triumvirate in over a hundred years.” She smiled. Behind her the rest of the elders looked excited, like this was a good thing.

  “Blood bond?” I squeaked.

  “Yes, of course,” she replied. “You will have their blood and they will both bite you to complete the bond. You will be joined.”

  Joined? All three of us? What would that mean for me and Conor, or for that matter, me and Matt? Were we some weird vampire threesome now? Had the room grown warmer? Why, why didn’t the floor swallow me up like I wanted it to? My heart dropped to my stomach, taking permanent residence down there.

  “Shit,” I muttered.

  Chapter Nineteen

  The elders were still talking to each other. Matt and Conor remained stoic, each lost in his own thoughts. I grabbed an arm of each and shook, earning their attention. I pulled a little, forming a triangle, so I could look at both of them at the same time.

  “Shit,” I exclaimed. “Right?”

  Matt’s face was red. “You don’t have to be so grossed out, Ash.”

  “No, it’s not you.” I tried to backtrack. “I.” I looked at Conor. “What does this mean for us?” My heart raced in my chest.

  He breathed in deeply. “It means Matt will be with us. Always, which is a good thing. The three of us will be powerful. Maybe even rule the Council one day.”

  I turned to Matt. “What about you?”

  He shrugged. “I get to be with you, like Conor said. You and Conor will be consorts. I’ll be your protector. It’s happened before, just not in recent history.”

  They were both resigned to this already? They both seemed so nonchalant. I looked toward Vivian, who watched us. “Do we have to do this tonight? Now that we know, can we wait?”

  She thought over my question, her head cocked to the side. “We will have to discuss this. You three may return to the party for the time being.”

  She turned back to the remainder of the elders and they gathered in close to her. Conor’s mom glared at me. Matt’s dad shot us a smile, as did Conor’s. At least the dads were behind us. Conor’s mom was probably upset she wasn’t going to get to use me.

  I had to talk to my boys. My boys. Plural. So weird. I grabbed their hands and pulled them from the room. Once in the hall, I paused.

  “Where can we go to talk?” I looked at Conor. His eyes were distant, like he was lost in thought. With a small shake of his head, he cleared his throat and met my imploring gaze.

  “Ah. Um. We can go to any open room. There should be one just down this hall.”

  I started moving before he’d finished and practically dragged them into the first open door I found. A small den, good. There was a couch, better. I pushed them both toward it and they sat. I st
ood before them, arms crossed.

  “Okay.” Their gazes rose to meet my stare. One the color of emeralds, the other the color of the Caribbean. “You guys suspected this, didn’t you?”

  Conor sat straight on the edge of the couch. “I did. I don’t know if Matt did.” Matt shook his head. “When Matt calmed you enough that your power remained under control today, I thought he must be the key, I said so. I didn’t know it would go as far as a triumvirate. I knew he would probably have to be there for you. I wanted it to not be true.” His eyes looked at Matt, apologetically. “No offense. I want Ashlinn all to myself.”

  Matt just shrugged. Conor continued. “The night he rescued you from me, I could see…I don’t know, a connection. I thought it was just because you were such good friends.”

  I glanced at Matt, whose gaze lingered on me. His lips pulled into a small smile when my gaze met his. I couldn’t help but respond in kind.

  “It’s probably because he gave you his blood,” Conor went on. “You’ve been bonded this whole time, and the only reason you weren’t his familiar is because he never took your blood.”

  Looking back at Conor, I saw pain in his eyes. This hurt him. I went to him and kneeled on the floor, my dress pooling around his feet. I grasped his hands, which hung useless between his knees.

  “Conor, I care about you. I really, really do. You are in my heart, in my soul. You have to know that. Remember when you had me look inward? I felt our hearts beat together.” I paused and recalled the moment with a clear head. “Remember something was missing? You thought it was just the familiar bond, but it’s not, is it? It’s Matt.”

  Conor nodded, heat in his eyes. “You and Matt are connected. You and I are also. You are a part of me, Ashlinn. I know your love for Matt, and his for you. I told you we were in this together, and we are. I won’t get in the way of your bond. But I will make sure you never forget ours.”

  He let go of my hands, slid his fingers around the nape of my neck, and pulled my face to his. His kiss seared my lips. Our embrace filled me with everything he was feeling. Urgent and needy, he took from me everything I had and I gave freely, my heart filling with joy and acceptance. He was okay with this.

  The sound of gagging pulled us apart and I gave Matt a sheepish smile. He rolled his eyes at me and grinned. I moved to him next. “Matty…”

  “Stop,” he commanded softly. He took my hands and pulled us to standing. He looked down at me, eyes almost drinking in every detail, like he was trying to memorize me.

  “First, you look absolutely effing amazing tonight.” His grin was wicked. I laughed and glanced at Conor. He was smiling. Okay, so he was not so much with the jealousy. What a relief.

  “Thank you, again.”

  “Anytime. Second, I love you. Period. You know this. And love means wanting you to be happy no matter what. I have been your protector for ten years. I will be your protector for as long as my body is able to defend yours. Period.”

  “Matt…”

  “Let me finish.” His hands squeezed mine. I was so worried his heart was breaking and here he was smiling down at me, eyes full of joy. I shut up.

  “You and Conor are meant to be together. That’s obvious. But you and I are also bonded, and that kind of kicks ass. No offense.” He turned toward Conor, who held his hands up from his position on the couch.

  “None taken,” Conor said.

  “So,” Matt continued, turning his shining eyes back to me. “I’m going to take what I can get. That means I get to spend forever by your side, making sure you’re okay and happy? Then I’m all for it. Yeah, I’ll have to watch you and Con make googly eyes at each other and practically swallow each other whole. I’ll deal with it. If it makes you happy, it makes me happy. Maybe, in a hundred years or so, you’ll get tired of him and want something different. I’ll be there.” He grinned.

  Conor coughed and Matt turned.

  “Just kidding, buddy.” His eyes were wicked when he turned back to me.

  I threw my arms around his neck, going up on tiptoes. His arms encircled my waist, strong, comforting.

  “Thank you,” I whispered. I breathed him in and relief washed over me. I got to keep him. Forever. I didn’t think I’d ever tire of Conor, but Matt would be there, always. Maybe he’d even get over me someday and find love somewhere else. As long as it wasn’t Victoria.

  Matt buried his face in my neck, inhaling deeply and then exhaling with a shudder as he pulled back, releasing me. I held onto his hand and reached for Conor, pulling him up to join us.

  We were linked by my hands. Me and my boys. Matt on my left, Conor on my right. I looked between them, happier than I’d ever been. They both smiled down at me.

  “So, we’re in this thing together, and we’re all okay with it.” I felt a reassuring squeeze on both sides.

  “Together,” Matt affirmed.

  “Together,” Conor repeated.

  “Together.” My heart was full to bursting as I looked between their smiling faces. I didn’t know when we’d do the familiar ceremony. I didn’t care. As far as I was concerned, we were bonded from that moment on. We would face whatever came our way in the coming hours, days, years.

  Together.

  About the Author

  Once upon a time, Annika believed her dreams had ended. It took awhile, but she realized no one could take her dreams away from her, and if she worked hard enough, she had the power to make those dreams come true. Getting published is proof of that. She lives in a small, Midwestern town with her husband and two beautiful children, and continues to turn her dreams into reality.

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  Also Available at MuseItUp Publishing

  Sapphire Moon

  Young Adult Sci-Fi Fantasy Romance by Andrea Cothern

  It’s been two weeks since the murder of Beth Stewart’s mother. Two months since the fateful trip to Salt Lake City where the murderer found Lizzy Shelton. Six months since Beth first met the Sheltons. One year since the Sheltons came to Earth. Now the time has finally come to leave; to find the spaceship in Nevada that’ll take them back to Evelon to fight Tanduc and release The Unity of the Greater System from his control.

  That’s what Beth wants most…to leave behind the memories of sorrow and death and forge a new life for herself with the Sheltons. But first she must confront the demons within her—a goal made much harder when she finds her mother’s diary. As the pieces of the past come together, the present starts to fall apart. Does she have the ability to find her mother’s murderer without endangering the Sheltons? And if she does find him, does she have it within her to mete out her version of justice? Can she become like the man she’s hunting…a murderer?

  Prologue

  The room was nearly bare; the lights dim on the slate walls and floor. A long, curved wooden desk on the back wall and a small table in the center were the only furniture.

  Despite its length, only three men sat behind the long desk. The one in the middle had obvious seniority. He sat a little higher than the two younger men at his sides. They stared at the little table and the man cowering behind it.

  He was in his forties with dark blond, closely shaved hair, and a crescent-shaped scar above his right ear. He was pleading, his hands clasped under the table in supplication. He shivered from the chill in the air and in his heart.

  “Just give me one more chance. I know where they are now.” His eyes bulged with exasperation and desperation. Sweat beaded on his forehead as he strained forward over the table.

  “You already had your chance and after what you’ve done to the mother, I believe you should have a mental evaluation to guarantee you’re locked up for life.” The man on
the right side spat out the comment. His dark eyes were filled with a malevolence that seemed to bore through the center of the man in front of them.

  “I didn’t have a choice. She charged at me!”

  “That incident is not the one I was referring to,” the man on the right replied through gritted teeth.

  The man on the left chimed in. “You deserve to be locked up for—”

  “Gentlemen, please,” the man in the middle protested. He looked between the glaring men before settling his gaze on the man in the front. “This council is not here to judge on prior events. This council is here to determine if the accused is guilty of attempting to contact persons he has been restrained from contacting in his attempt to apprehend the E.T.'s. You, sir, are lucky you’re not still in a cell with your head bandaged as you've been for the latter part of this year. I believe a mental evaluation is in order, but judging by your service history, we will forego that and give you one…” He held up his index finger. “…more chance. Since we have no evidence that they are indeed in Blanding, Utah, you are not to go back there.”

  “But that fire! The man himself was burning. I couldn’t make that up! They’re there, I—”

  The senior man put his hand up. “You are not to enter Blanding under any circumstances. You are to continue your search. If you locate the E.T.'s, you are to follow and observe only. You are to find out where they are going next and you will only apprehend them when you have new information regarding others of their kind. And to make sure you do as you’re told, we will be sending Curtis…” He pointed to the man on his right. “…with you. If you can manage to redeem yourself and can bring us a specimen, you will not stand trial for your past and present errors. However, if you fail, you will face court martial and will almost certainly be spending the rest of your days in the ten by ten cell you've come to call home…smaller, and with no windows, if I can help it. Bailiff, if you please.”