Brae leans down and presses a slow kiss to my stomach. “You look so hot with him fucking you,” he says, dragging a finger across my clit. “So wet. And I didn’t get to taste you this morning.”
Heat flings itself through my body, and I have to close my eyes. Urien does not miss a single stroke, driving up into me with enough force to make my gasp. Even when Brae’s mouth meets my clit, tongue adding to the sensation and sunlight magic mixes with starlight magic beneath my skin he doesn’t stop, arms locked around my waist.
Tiny strokes of Brae’s tongue match Urien’s pace thrust for thrust, and pleasure flies up through me and out like a wave. I crash into a dizzying orgasm, ecstasy sharp and bright and fizzy. My voice echoes off the ceiling, and a Kent’s mouth crashes down on mine, swallowing my cries. The expression on his face is one that I’ve never seen before, hungry and dark. “Tell them how much you like to be fucked,” he says, voice low and rough.
“Yes,” I say.
Kent shakes my head, and I can barely focus on his face, the next climax rising steadily like a wave. Magic has started to glow beneath my skin, swirling together, nighttime and daylight, contrasting and making every inch of me tingle and shiver. Now that I have nothing left to heal, the magic isn’t consumed by a curse. Instead it bounces around inside, warming me up and increasing my capacity for perfect ecstasy.
The curl of Brae’s tongue and the graze of his teeth make me tighten everything. Urien makes a low sound of desire, and fucks harder. Faster. I can’t breathe, just on the edge of falling apart.
“Tell them,” Kent says again. “You can do better than that.”
“I can’t,” I breathe. “Too close.”
He smirks. “Tell them, or I’ll tell them not to make you come.”
Brae smooths a hand up my stomach, magic easing my body as his mouth slows, and Urien kisses my neck, and he slows down too. Damn it, they’re in it together. I close my eyes, trying to focus through the haze of pleasure enough to find my words. Where is the air? My voice? Anything besides the friction of cock hitting me at just the angle I need to explode.
Kent’s hand cups the back of my neck. “Kari.”
“I love being fucked,” I say, forcing the words out, utterly breathless. And now that I’ve found the words they don’t stop. “I like the way you feel inside me, stretching me open. Your tongue makes me wet, and I don’t want you to ever stop.” I can’t breathe. “Please.”
Brae laughs with his lips sealed firmly over my clit, sucking me deep and I arch away from Urien only to have Brae hold my hips in place so they both can resume their frantic pace. Kent is still kneeling beside me on the bed, eyes fierce, stroking his already hard cock. Aeric is with him now, and he drags his mouth across the skin of my breasts. Just adding fuel to the fire.
My orgasm is a supernova. All I see is white, and I’m lost to the fire of it all. Drowning in it. I told the truth. I don’t want it to stop, and I’m telling them that. “Don’t stop. Don’t stop. Don’t stop.” I’m begging them. Pleading.
Urien yells, thrusting deep and coming, wave after wave of heat and magic spilling through me and carrying me higher before I’m left limp and gasping under Brae and Aeric’s mouths. Urien strokes my waist, kisses my neck, and doesn’t move. His cock is still deep in me, filling me up and more.
“We’re not ever going to stop. You’re stuck with us, Kari.” Kent says. The, he grins down at me, eyes sliding down my body to take in the wonderland of pleasure. “And there’s no bond to seal with me.”
My eyes drop to his cock, and my mouth waters. I know what he’s saying and I want to taste him again. The way Brae is sucking my clit in long deep pulls—even though I don’t think my body can take anymore—has ripples of magic ebbing and flowing and my mind melted to nothing but desire and need. Aeric’s lips tease my nipples, pulling them to taut peaks that ache from more of whatever he’s offering.
I open my mouth, and Kent presses his cock between my lips, hissing with the pleasure. He’s so hard, I already know that he’s not going to last long, and neither am I. Brae is driving me towards another climax, and I don’t think that I can. But if I’ve learned anything about these men and their magic, it’s that I always underestimate their ability to tip my body over into light and freefall more times than I thought possible.
Kent’s hand, still holding my head, guides my mouth deeper onto his shaft, and I love the feeling of his skin on my tongue. The light flavor of salt and mist that’s uniquely him that I will probably crave forever. He groans, and I suck harder. That cocky smile is no longer on his face, instead his mouth falling open into moans that make me wetter under Brae’s tongue.
“Fuck,” he curses as I turn my head to take him more fully, swirling my tongue under the head of him, and his shaft jerks between my lips. Kent’s hips thrust forward, pushing him deeper into me, and I don’t stop licking. I use my tongue in time with way Brae is using his on me, and suddenly I’m on fire.
I cry out around Kent’s cock, coming, mindless with sensation and powerless to do anything but let it roar through me. Rapture that intoxicates and overwhelms and shines. I hear the sound of Kent’s yell, and I’m flooded with the taste of him. Goddess, I love the taste of him. I try to swallow it all, still lost in the throes of my own climax.
My heart is pounding when I can finally speak again. “You all are trying to kill me.”
Brae smirks. “I think we’ve shown that we’re going out of our way to make sure that that doesn’t happen.”
“Well it’s going to, if you keep giving me orgasms like that.”
Urien slips out of me and pulls me down beside him on the bed. “That’s a non-negotiable part of this, I’m afraid.”
I try to scowl and fail completely. “I guess I’ll just have to get used to it then.”
“Yes,” Verys says, from where he’s standing by the bed. He’s clearly aroused, desire clear in his eyes and the lines of his body, but he makes no move to touch me. “And before we forget, you should look in a mirror.”
“Why? I’m probably a mess.”
He smiles at me gently. “I think you’ll want to see this.” I narrow my eyes. What could he possibly want me to see? I don’t really like looking in the mirror right now. “Trust me,” he says, holding out his hand.
He helps me off the bed, and when the light in my closet glows warm, I gasp. I’m me.
I was right—I am a mess. The remnants of pleasure are on me, and I look thoroughly fucked, but I have color. My hair and skin and eyes are all back to what they were before. If anything they seem more vibrant. Even my lips, swollen from kissing, look normal. Who would have thought I missed the color of my lips that much? It’s hard to admit how much I depend on my reflection, but having it back is everything. “She gave it back?”
“Maybe,” Verys says. “Perhaps her power restored something in you.”
“Thank you.” I look over my shoulder and grin at him. “I’ll trust you when you say you want me to look in the mirror now.”
“Good.” He says it sternly, but he’s smiling too.
I notice that there are suitcases in the corner of the closet now. “Guess the house knows I’m going on a trip? I’ll need to pack some things.”
The glances that are shared don’t slip by me. They’re concerned, but not saying it. Brae nods. “Pack whatever you need. We’ll make sure we’re ready.”
CHAPTER EIGHT
________
KENT
The letter is where I left it on the desk in my bedroom. It’s a resignation letter. I figured we’d be going back to New York at some point, and I’m not going back to live there. My life is here now, wherever Kari is, that’s where I’m going to be.
It’s not like it’s going to be a huge hardship to leave New York behind. I don’t have family anymore, and though I enjoyed my job enough, it’s not something that I lived for. It’s good that I have the job I do, otherwise I’d be stepping back into the city with an NYPD manhunt on my hands. Bu
t the Magical Crimes department has always been a little more lenient, and dropping off the map has happened before. I can spin a story that makes enough sense that won’t have the cops freaking out about a rogue fae roving through Manhattan. Now that Ariana is fixated on Kari, I’m sure that she’s not a danger to the rest of the city.
I’m also very sure that the murder-spree of magic users I was tracking before all this started was because of her. The very crimes that I had warned Kari about the day she was attacked.
If I could go back alone and take care of things, I would. But she would never forgive me. She needs to go back, if only to see that she belongs here with us. It’s going to be important for her, even if it’s terrifying. I’m not used to having this kind of fear. But that changed the moment I thought she died. It’s still in the forefront of my mind every goddamn day. I dream about it and wake up sweating. It’s hard to process that that was only a little over a week ago.
I’m going to have nightmares about that day for the rest of my life.
For the second time today, Brae steps into the doorway of my room. This time he’s accompanied by Aeric and Urien. Verys is still with Kari while she packs, and though none of us has said it out loud, none of us want her to be alone after her visit to the temple. Or ever, really. If we thought that she’d let us hover, all five of us would still be in that room with her.
“What’s going on?” I gesture for them to enter.
Urien is the one who speaks first. “I wanted us to ask for insight about what might happen tomorrow, and what you think Kari is looking for by going back?”
I shake my head, and sigh. “She’s looking for normalcy—any semblance of her old life. Probably seeking some kind of comfort that the rug hasn’t been entirely ripped out from underneath her. But you know that. I’m not going to pretend to know her every thought. And if she thought you were trying to go around her instead of just talking to her she’d hand you your ass.”
Aeric smirks, but Urien shakes his head. “You know that’s not what we’re doing, Kent.”
“And I know that there’s something you’re not telling me.” I’ve enjoyed getting to know these men over the past few days, but we’re certainly not at the stage where we go to one another’s rooms to hang out. They’re here for a reason.
“Two more attempts on the wards,” Aeric says. “Unsuccessful, obviously. And they were weak enough that I’m convinced they were just testing the boundaries.”
I hold myself still intentionally, trying to temper my reaction. Fear and anger and the need to take action immediately spring up. But there’s nothing to be done at the moment. Nothing has happened. But it could. “And you’re worried that when we leave the grounds we’ll be vulnerable.”
“Not worried,” Brae says. “We will be. She will be. And we’d be fools to think that Ariana is not watching.”
Scrubbing my hand across my face, I stand and pace across the room to the bookshelf that’s in here. It’s filled with books on plenty of topics that I’ve been interested in over the years. The magic that fuels this place is truly remarkable. I turn just as Verys steps into the room.
I don’t like puzzles that I’m unable to solve. It’s one of the reasons I became a detective. That, and the memories that I quickly push aside. And the fact that we still don’t know why Ariana is coming after Kari grates under my skin like dried sand. But in spite of the danger, this is necessary. “We can’t make her stay here. She needs this. You know she does.” I aim the comment towards the man who just entered, even though I’m itching to go make sure Kari is all right, he wouldn’t have left her if she wasn’t.
“She does,” Verys agrees. “And I want to stay near her if I can. I know what it’s like to suddenly be invaded by magic that’s unfamiliar and unwanted.”
I nod. He’s made allusions to that before, though I don’t know the full story. “So what precautions can we take?”
“Are we going to run into problems with human law enforcement if we’re armed?”
There it is. “You shouldn’t,” I say. “As long as you don’t carry the weapons in the open, and you don’t use them on humans.”
Brae nods. “We can do that. Obviously we have no interest in harming humans.”
I let my hand fall on the letter I was writing. “I have some things to take care of while we’re there. But they can be taken care of within a day.”
“Do you think that she’ll be ready to come back after a day?” Urien asks hopefully.
Shaking my head, I sigh. “No, I don’t.” I know why they’re asking. It’s that same sickening fear. Kari will never understand what it was like to watch her nearly die so many times. The thought of voluntarily escorting her into danger makes my stomach clench with nausea. But this won’t be the last time that we have to do that, or the most severe. Even I could feel the magic rolling off her earlier.
“Is there a way to make a decoy?” I ask.
Aeric stretches his arms above his head and starts to pace back and forth, like he can’t stand to stay still any longer. “That’s what we were thinking. I don’t know how bold Ariana will be in the human world, but given how we met I’m not taking any chances. We’ll create a trail of portals that might buy us some time.”
“Good,” I say. “But you have to tell her. About that, and about the wards.”
“I will,” says Verys. No one argues with him. His quiet steadiness will help with that news. “And I’ll start working on the decoy trail,” says Brae.
“Where can we go that’s not here?” Aeric says. “If Ariana is trying to breach the defenses, she might seriously try. And maybe more importantly, where can we go that’s just as secure but she won’t know to look?”
I have no idea. My knowledge of Allwyn is limited—and most of it will be unhelpful in this situation. “It seems like we’ve created a pretty defensible place here, but other than that, I don’t know.”
“The Lunar Court.” The words sound like they’ve been pulled from Verys by force, and Brae looks like he’s seen a ghost. “Are you sure?”
“It’s the last place anyone would think to look.”
There’s a tense silence in the air, one that’s filled with years and layers of information that I’m not privy to.
Finally, Urien breaks it. “Will you be welcome?”
“That’s unlikely, at least not by all. But hospitality will apply, if we really need it. They may not like it, but I can trust them not to harm Kari, and that’s enough.”
Brae shakes his head. “Your mother will be happy to see you at least.”
Verys sighs deeply. “I’m sure she will. Hopefully we won’t need to go there.”
“Hopefully not,” I say.
“Last resort,” Brae adds.
There’s nothing left to discuss, and everyone disperses as quickly as they gathered. Taking a deep breath and releasing it, I sit down on the bed. Some day, when all this is over, I hope that all this will become normal—that we can become the kind of cohesive family that I’ve heard the fae describe. But it’s hard to worry about that when we have bigger problems. All I can do is believe that we’ll be able to survive long enough to focus on the little ones.
CHAPTER NINE
________
KARI
Verys comes back into my room as I’m putting the last of the clothes I’ve selected into my suitcase. It feels a little weird to be packing clothes to go home, but that’s the way it is. I’m looking forward to going back to New York, even if it’s only for a few days. I want some things from my apartment and from the shop—keepsakes that I don’t want to lose if I’m moving my life here permanently. Things like pictures of my family and my first pair of toe shoes. A few of my favorite decorative potion bottles. The pair of yoga pants that I’ve broken in so well they fit like a second skin and are so comfortable I used to live in them.
“Almost done?” he asks.
“Yeah,” I say, pulling him closer. “And I wanted to ask if you’re okay. Nothing…happ
ened earlier. With you.”
Verys smiles, and it makes my heart skip a beat. It’s not the most common sight and every time he smiles like that—wide and open—it takes me by surprise. “You can say that we didn’t have sex, Kari.”
“I know.” I make a face. “I’m not sure any of you realize how weird this is, or that unless you’re drinking with your girlfriends at a bar, you don’t just talk about your sex life.”
“Not even with the people it involves?”
I sigh. “It’s just going to take getting used to.”
“You seem to be used to the sex and orgasms pretty well,” he says, tucking a strand of hair behind my ear as I blush. “But I understand more than you think. In the same way, it’s going to take me time to be open enough to participate with the others in that way. But don’t ever think that means that I don’t want you.” He leans closer. “I need more private exploration before I will feel confident enough.”
I like the sound of that. “You can explore me any time.”
“I look forward to it.” He hesitates, and I wait, because I can see that he’s trying to find the right words. “There are things you need to know before we leave.”
“Oh?” For the first time since earlier, that tiny spark of magic inside pulses, waking up. And it seems strange, but now…it feels more like me. More like mine.
“There have been attempts on the wards. Small ones. Testing it. The others think that she might follow us to the human word. We’re going to be armed, and we’re going to use decoys when we leave. Take every precaution. But it might not be enough.”
I fight the dizzy feeling in my stomach. There’s the residual taste of rotten orange and ash on my lips, along with the deep dread of disappointment. It’s not like I didn’t know. But somewhere in my brain I had myself convinced that I could go back and just open the shop and everything would be fine. Of course it’s not. I can’t ignore what’s happening even if I want to. “Okay,” I say. “But I still need to go. I need things from the human world, and I need to tell people that I’m alive.”
Euphoria: A Reverse Harem Fantasy Romance (The Carnal Court Book 2) Page 6
