by Marla Monroe
“Um, Gabby?” Ariel’s voice didn’t sound normal.
Gabby turned to see what was wrong only to find Kindle and Galen standing next to the tiny woman. Ariel’s face held no hint of fear, but her eyes flashed.
“We need to go. Right now,” Ariel said.
Chapter Thirteen
Nothing was said on the drive back to Gabby’s cabin. The four little females squeezed into the back without complaint as Kindle and Galen watched without saying a word. Aaron and Levi exchanged grim smiles as Levi backed out of the drive outside the clinic. Levi had ordered Kindle and Galen to guard the clinic until they were able to protect their land from magic. The two men didn’t seem happy about the order, but they didn’t protest either.
Gabby had a feeling the two wolves had something against the Sylphies. She didn’t know what it was, but they had better get over it. The three females were risking their lives for them. They didn’t deserve their anger. She was going to tell Levi and Aaron as much when they were alone.
It didn’t take long to reach her cabin, and as soon as she climbed down from the truck, Aaron escorted her inside to the bedroom.
“What?” she asked, confused at why he was all but shoving her inside her bedroom.
“Levi is going to make sure the bed gets delivered for the other female. I’m glad the Sylphies don’t mind sharing with her,” he said.
Gabby frowned, then narrowed her eyes at him. “Are you trying to keep me away from her? What is wrong with you? She is not a danger to me.”
“Until we know for certain, we aren’t taking any chances with your safety, Gabby. Please don’t push us on this,” Aaron pleaded.
“What is going on with Galen and Kindle? Why were they growling at the Sylphies?” she asked, changing the subject.
“I’m not sure. Levi will find out, though. We can’t afford for them to feel uncomfortable here.”
Gabby sighed and stomped over to the bed to sit down. She’d had more than enough of the male wolves’ attitudes lately. She was already overwhelmed with the mating heat and not knowing where things stood with the three of them.
“Why don’t you get ready for bed, honey? Levi and I will be back soon. We need to get everyone settled down for the night.” Aaron cupped her chin in one hand and bent over to kiss her. The softness of his lips against hers was comforting.
“Hurry back, Aaron. I am so tired. I just want to be near you and Levi. My soul aches,” she admitted softly.
Aaron’s eyes told her that he felt the same ache their incomplete mating caused. He nodded and turned toward the door, crossing the short distance in two long strides. He didn’t turn back to look at her before opening the door and walking through it. The soft click of it shutting seemed much louder than it should have to Gabby. She felt as if it was echoing the barrier that seemed to be between her and Levi.
She shivered at that thought and hurried to shower off before they returned. They would need the shower as well, and she didn’t want to delay their coming to bed if possible. She needed her mates to hold her, make her feel as if everything would work out in the end. It had been a little while since she’d felt her wolf stir inside of her. That worried Gabby.
When she climbed beneath the covers to wait for her mates, Gabby wondered again what was going on with their brothers. Galen and Kindle had always been easy-going wolves. They tended to tease mercilessly at times. Tonight hinted at none of their usual playfulness.
She heard the front door open and close with lots of grunts and curses several times, then the cabin grew quiet for a while. She kept waiting on the men to return to her, but according to the clock, nearly two hours had passed and it was close to one in the morning now. She yawned and climbed out of the bed to pull on her robe. She wanted to know what was going on and why they hadn’t returned yet.
When she walked into the living room, there wasn’t a soul around. She checked the kitchen and even listened in at the spare bedroom door, but no sounds could be heard from the other side. Gabby walked to the front door and peered out the window at the side of it. Levi and Aaron stood out front next to a truck talking to Galen and Kindle. By the looks of their faces and the way everyone had clenched fists at their sides, it wasn’t going well.
Gabby stepped back so they wouldn’t know she was there. She seriously thought about going out there to find out what was going on, but she knew it was really none of her business. If it affected her, she hoped they would tell her. Instead of going back to bed, she huddled on the couch, pulling a throw over her. She wasn’t sure how long she lay there before she heard the front door open and close.
“What are you doing out here?” Aaron asked.
She looked up to find her mates staring down at her with frowns, Levi’s a bit more serious than Aaron’s.
“I was tired of lying in bed alone. I know you have things that have to be taken care of, but I couldn’t just lie there any longer. Is everything okay now?” she asked.
Levi drew in a deep breath and let it out in a long sigh. “I don’t know if anything will ever be okay again. I’m calling the shower first, Aaron. We all need to get some sleep. I’ll hurry.”
Gabby watched him stride off without saying anything more to her. It hurt. Even Aaron seemed to notice his brother’s abrupt dismissal of her. She refused to see pity in his eyes. Instead, she stood up without taking his offered hand and walked to the kitchen. She needed a drink of water to calm the quivering in her throat. She would not break down and cry once again. She wasn’t like this.
Aaron followed her as far as the kitchen doorway but stopped there. He didn’t say anything either, but his presence helped calm her erratic pulse. She didn’t know what to think or what to believe anymore. Once she’d finished the glass of water, she set it in the sink and brushed past Aaron to return to the bedroom. She turned off the lights and climbed into bed, turning her back to the closed bathroom door.
It was a full minute before Aaron walked into the room. He didn’t sit on the bed, but Gabby heard him moving around. She figured he was undressing to be ready to shower when Levi finished. She hoped there would be enough hot water left with so many people staying in her small cabin. Of course, it had been a good two hours since anyone had showered last.
The water cut off in the bathroom, and a few minutes later the bathroom door opened, a waft of steam escaping into the room before grunts were exchanged and the door closed once again. A few seconds later, Levi sat on the outside edge of the bed but didn’t attempt to lie down. Instead he just sat there as if waiting for something. Maybe he was waiting for Aaron so that he didn’t have to lie next to her alone. Another crack formed in her heart at the thought.
* * * *
Levi sat on the side of the bed, his elbows on his knees as he thought over everything. How had he not known his emotions were missing? Right now they threatened to choke him there were so many of them and so strong. What in the hell was he going to do? He had a mate, yet didn’t. Galen and Kindle were mated to a Sylphie and didn’t want to be. It was obvious that Ariel didn’t want them, either.
Hell! What the fuck is going on? I can sense Aaron’s distress, but I can’t feel my mate’s.
Aaron said she was hurting and, worse yet, her wolf had retreated from her. She would go crazy if they didn’t do something, but what was the right thing to do? He would talk to Ariel first thing in the morning. It couldn’t be put off any longer.
They had to try everything possible to rid him of whatever was holding back the mating heat from him. It had to be something magical, and if it was, there had to be a way to undo it. Allowing his mate to be in any type of distress was unacceptable regardless of the circumstances. They had to do something before Gabby’s wolf died or retreated beyond their reach.
Knowing that he was the cause of her pain and would be the cause of her eventual death only made it harder to focus on everything else going on in the pack. The stress had him second-guessing everything he did or said, and he had a hair trigger with h
is temper.
The bathroom door opened, admitting a shaft of light that quickly disappeared when his brother clicked the switch to turn it off. Levi leaned back and slid his feet under the covers as Aaron slipped in on the other side. He was careful not to touch Gabby for fear of waking her up. He wanted to hold her, but he figured that wasn’t a good idea. Instead, he kept his back to her and held on to the slim hope that Ariel would know what to do and not be too pissed with his brothers to help him and his mate.
Several long minutes crept by without any hint that he would be able to fall asleep. He ached to turn over and pull Gabrielle into his arms. That would be a mistake though. He wanted her too badly, and she needed the completion of the mating to feel whole. It would be more than a mistake. It would be a disaster. He sighed out loud without meaning to.
“What’s wrong, Levi?” Gabrielle asked softly.
He stiffened when she placed her small hand on his shoulder. She must have felt it because she snatched it back. He couldn’t do anything right. Turning over, he stared into the darkness, his keen eyesight able to pick out her outline.
“I’m sorry, Gabrielle. I’m your mate and I should be able to fix whatever is wrong, but I can’t. I don’t know what is going on with the mating heat. I don’t know how to help you in a way that won’t ultimately hurt you,” he said.
“It’s not your fault, Levi. Whatever is going on was done to you. We’ve just got to figure out how to fix it. Hopefully Ariel will be able to figure something out,” she whispered back to him.
“It’s all we have now, baby. Hope. I’m scared that’s not enough, though.”
“Hold me, Levi. It hurts that you don’t touch me. I need your touch,” she said.
He groaned inside, unsure what the answer was. When he heard her soft sigh and felt the bed move as she turned away again, Levi’s resolve broke and he reached out to pull her back into his arms. The instant her cool skin touched his, arousal surged through his bloodstream. The feel of bare skin where her sleep shirt rode up her back had his balls heating to a rolling boil in less than a heartbeat. Levi buried his face against her neck and breathed her in. Why wasn’t his wolf going wild? He sure as hell was.
She moaned, the sound going straight to his already engorged cock. He couldn’t help pressing it against her ass. He wanted to bury it deep in her hot pussy.
“Levi.” Gabrielle’s breathy voice saying his name was music to his ears. The only thing better would be for her to scream it as he covered her, filling her with his seed.
“I’ve got you, baby. Sleep. I’m right here,” he promised.
She turned in his arms and pressed kisses to his neck and chest. Her hot, wet mouth felt so good on his hot skin. Her fingers explored his body as she nipped and licked her way across his chest before discovering his nipple. Gabrielle licked it, then drew it into her mouth while her teeth nibbled there. She released it and licked her way across to its twin where she sucked and bit at it as well.
“Hell, baby. You’re killing me. We need to stop, Gabrielle. I can’t take much more,” he rasped out.
Levi’s heart was beating hard enough he worried it would thump its way out of his chest. He couldn’t catch his breath as his mate gnawed her way down his body. If she touched his straining cock, Levi had no doubt he’d lose it. He had to stop her, but it felt so good to have her hands and mouth on him.
“Levi?” Aaron’s voice intruded into his personal paradise. “What are you doing?”
“Nothing,” he managed to get out.
“Gabby, honey. This isn’t a good idea,” Aaron said.
“I can’t take it anymore, Aaron. I hurt so badly. My wolf is gone. I feel so empty inside.” She punctuated each sentence with a wet kiss to his overheated skin. “I need, Aaron.”
Her tongue rasped over Levi’s swollen cockhead, shattering what little control he’d held onto. He rolled over, pulling her on top of him, and buried his aching dick in her sodden cunt. She felt delicious as the crown of his cock breached her pussy lips to slide deep thanks to her wet juices. He groaned her name out loud.
“Gabrielle. Sweet heaven.”
“Fuck! Levi.” Aaron cursed before turning on the bedside lamp.
Levi stared up into the too wide eyes of his mate as she threw her head back and sank all the way down on top of his shaft. The sight of her body engulfing his dick tightened his throat. His hands were clamped at her waist, helping to lift her off of him then shoving her back down on his stiff cock.
Evidently Aaron realized the futility of trying to stop them because he moved behind Gabrielle and wrapped his arms around her to fondle her breasts. His big fingers plucked and pulled on her erect nipples. His mouth watered with the need to taste them. Aaron seemed to know what he wanted because he offered one to him. Levi surged up and sucked the taut bud into his mouth.
“Yes! Oh, God, Levi. Yes!” Gabrielle ground her pussy down on his cock while she held his head to her breast.
He released the swollen nub and lay back once again. Aaron pushed Gabrielle’s body down to his, giving him more room to work to prepare her sweet ass for him. They were doing this. They were really going to claim their mate. Levi was sure this was all he needed. It would be fine now.
He could hear his mate moaning as Aaron played with her ass, adding lube and stretching her so he could fuck her there. They would fill her with their seed and bite her, marking her as theirs. She would mark them later, and the mating would be complete. Hope surged as he rubbed her back in soothing circles.
“She’s ready, Levi. Hold her still so I don’t hurt her,” Aaron said in a strained voice.
“I’ve got her.”
He felt it when his brother began pushing into their mate’s tight ass. Her hot cunt contracted around him.
“Relax, baby. Breathe for me. Let Aaron in,” Levi soothed.
“So, tight. So fucking tight, honey,” Aaron ground out.
“Too much! It’s too much,” Gabrielle cried out.
Levi was about to tell his brother to back off, that he was hurting her, when suddenly Gabrielle’s pussy squeezed down on him as his brother surged forward. The pressure was unbelievable. She’d been tight before, but now she was exquisitely tight. He groaned as his brother cursed.
“Gabby. Baby. Are you okay? Fuck, you feel so damn good. Hot and tight, honey.”
Their mate didn’t say anything at first, just panted against Levi’s chest. He stilled, afraid they were hurting her.
“Baby, are you okay? Do we need to stop?” God he didn’t want to, but he didn’t want to ever cause her pain.
“I’m good. Move, Aaron. Please, move,” she said.
“Are you sure?” he asked.
“Dammit! Move!” She shoved her body back, drawing her tight cunt down his cock, then she surged forward, enveloping him once again in her hot, wet pussy.
Aaron got the message, and between the two of them, they moved her back and forth until they could no longer keep a workable rhythm. Instead, instinct took over and they fucked their mate, intent on hearing her scream in completion. When she suddenly growled then screamed as her body tightened around them, Levi knew she’d reached her climax. He felt his brother’s hand between them, working her clit with his fingers.
Levi had no choice but to follow her over as she milked his cock with her contractions. He roared out his release and bit down on her shoulder even as he heard Aaron do the same. Pulse after pulse of his seed filled her womb, marking her on the inside as his. As he slowly relaxed, Levi released his mate’s shoulder and licked over the wound. But there was nothing there but the indentions of his very human teeth. His wolf had not claimed her.
Aaron’s eyes met his as he licked the blood from Gabrielle’s other shoulder. Levi tore from beneath them and howled with anger. Fur erupted from skin and bones cracked as his change overtook him. He howled and growled through the change before stalking toward the bed, intent on marking his mate. Aaron stood in front of Gabrielle and held out his hands.<
br />
“No, Levi. Not like this. Calm down. We need to talk and figure this out. Don’t do this, brother.”
“Levi?” Gabrielle’s tear-tinged voice reached him behind his brother. He growled at Aaron, baring his teeth.
“Stop it, Levi. You’re upsetting her. Go run. Calm down,” his brother and bond mate told him.
Levi paced back and forth. He wanted to mark her but realized once again that it wasn’t his wolf that wanted to mark her. That was the whole problem. He stilled then backed away. When he got to the door, Levi surged up and pulled the lever down, thankful that all pack houses had levered door handles and pet doors. He ran for the door, mindful that the Sylphies were standing in the kitchen with worried expressions on their faces. He dove through the pet door and ran toward the trees. His wolf was happy to be outside, but the other side of him was hurting inside. He’d failed yet again to claim his mate or protect her. Instead, he’d opened her up to even more danger with a true incomplete mating.
Chapter Fourteen
Gabby couldn’t stop sobbing as Aaron rocked her in his arms. It was all her fault. She’d pushed Levi into making love. He’d wanted to wait and figure out what was wrong, but she’d needed her mate so badly that she hadn’t stopped to think about the consequences. Now they would all pay for her foolish, selfish mistake.
She’d sentenced Aaron to the same miserable fate by seducing Levi into having sex. Now Aaron would probably suffer from an incomplete mating just like she was. Levi would go crazy with the two of them affected this way. How could she have been so selfish?
“Please, honey. Calm down. You’re just making yourself sick. He’ll be back, and we’ll figure this out. I promise, Gabby.” Aaron rubbed her back as he held her in his arms.
“Don’t make promises you can’t keep, Aaron. His wolf doesn’t want me. There’s no way to change a mating. He doesn’t want me,” she sobbed.
