by Kamryn Hart
“Fuck,” Aerre breathed, trembling underneath my touch. “Give a guy a warning.”
Caspian grabbed my waist from behind, ripping me away from Aerre. I responded by rubbing my butt against his erection. I whimpered.
“Our princess is sick of waiting,” Caspian growled.
“To the bed?” Aerre asked.
“To the bed.”
Caspian let me go and yanked off the dusty duvet covering his old bed, revealing the untouched white mattress underneath. Aerre stripped bare. This was the first time I had the opportunity to enjoy seeing him naked, and my eyes went straight to his half-hard cock. I wanted to drink him in, but Caspian picked me up again and playfully dropped me onto the bed. The mattress was soft and bouncy. I laughed as I spread out wide on my stomach. Then warm hands rolled me over onto my back and Aerre was hovering over me. I tugged at his braids, and he leaned down to kiss me.
“Aerre, let me see,” I growled.
“Demanding.”
He moved back onto his knees, and I sat up to enjoy the golden sight of him. He was gold even in the cold blue light. With my eyes, I followed the lines of his muscled stomach to a thin strip of gold hair below his bellybutton that led to his swollen cock. Then I traced that same line with my fingers, softly touching bulging veins all the way down to an engorged head dripping with precum.
“Satisfied?” he whispered and shuddered.
“Not yet, but I’ve never seen anything more beautiful than my werewolves.”
Caspian seated himself behind me, locking me into place as Aerre reached forward and kissed me silly. I couldn’t think with both of them there, front and back, warm bodies, hard muscles. I twisted around so Caspian was at my front and Aerre was at my back. I needed to kiss Caspian, too.
Aerre grabbed my hips, forcing me to set my hands down on the bed to hold myself up as he positioned my knees wide and pulled back. Caspian managed to follow my lips all the way down. I broke away from our kiss and gasped when Aerre touched the slick heat in between my legs. I reached out for Caspian’s cock, gripping him with a hand and rubbing down his shaft. He knelt high on his knees and shuddered while simultaneously giving me better access. I touched everywhere, feeling him out, gently squeezing his balls.
“Gods,” he gritted out. “Sorissa, you’re going to undo me.”
“She already has,” Aerre said. “And she’s slowly been putting us back together.”
I yelped when Aerre licked my slit, long and slow. And it gave me an idea. I carefully lapped up the bit of precum leaking from Caspian’s erect cock. He whined, hands suddenly on my shoulders, fingers digging in. I liked the tiniest hint of this salty taste.
“Should I do it again?” I asked.
“Fucking yes please.”
I did and took it a step further. I carefully gathered him in my mouth, making sure not to cut him with my teeth as I worked out how to take him as far as I could.
“Hold on tight, and don’t bite down,” Aerre said with a dark chuckle. He spread my arousal, dipping a finger shallowly inside me, then farther, and then two fingers, coaxing my pussy wider. In and out, he spread my wetness, circled a pleasure point at the top of my sex and dove back in. My body was clenching and unclenching at sporadic intervals, begging for more. He hadn’t been kidding when he told me to hold on. I froze with Caspian in my mouth, breathing heavily through my nose as I tried to clear my head enough to continue what I was doing.
I took him farther, stopping just before Caspian could hit the back of my throat and cause me to gag. I sucked carefully, sliding my mouth back and forth against him, coating him with my spit. His grip on my shoulders tightened, and he clenched his teeth, squeezing his eyes shut, softly begging my name, pleading. I was acutely aware of Aerre angling my butt higher, spreading my knees wider, his cock pressing against my folds, and then he speared me. I couldn’t scream. It was a mangled sound stuck in between my throat and Caspian’s cock. It hurt, but the pain washed away when Aerre thrust into me again, over and over. He hunched over me, instinctively searching for the perfect place to bite me, but he’d have to wait.
I worked Caspian’s cock in a similar rhythm. Over and over, wetter and wetter with my spit. Just when I was sure I couldn’t take any more, Caspian’s balls drew up tight and he froze for a split moment before he shot his hot seed into my mouth. I swallowed every last salty drop before releasing him from my mouth as I arched my back, offering my neck to Aerre. His teeth grazed my skin, hot saliva trickling down, the need to bite overwhelming. His teeth dug into my flesh just as my own body seized and exploded around Aerre. I screamed, flickering between pure pain and pleasure. Aerre kept thrusting. Then he paused too, for a split second, shouted my name, and filled me to overflowing. He continued to hold my hips even as he trembled on his knees.
When I had the strength to look up, I noticed Caspian had collapsed onto his back, lying in a haphazard position so he wasn’t shoving me one way or another off the bed. His chest was slick with sweat, rising and falling. His eyes were closed. I could feel him reliving the sensation, slowly coming back down. When Aerre pulled out, I felt that same sharp pain I had after my first time with Todd. I was bleeding again.
“Shit. Is this normal?” Aerre asked as he gently rubbed my lower back. “Cor, help me. Lureine, whatever God would be helpful—I can’t believe I bit you, too!”
“What?” Caspian asked, sitting up, eyes open.
“I’m okay,” I insisted. I sunk down onto my stomach, too tired and in too much pain to hold myself up any longer. I squeezed my eyes shut for just a moment. I needed to gather myself. I didn’t want to freak out on them like I had Todd. The pain was damn near excruciating, like a rampant fire roaring through my entire body, but it would extinguish soon. The Mate Claim changed a werea’s body on a fundamental level, quickly and painfully. But Todd had been right about the second time being much better than the first. I hadn’t experienced any pain when he took me in the shower. It had been pure pleasure.
Aerre reached over me and carefully licked the bite he placed over Todd’s. His tongue soothed the pain there. “Gods, I’m sorry.”
“I’m not,” I said. “I’d gladly do it again.”
Caspian moved and gingerly touched the blood running down my inner thighs. “It’s normal,” he murmured. “Wereas bleed when they’re sealed because of the change their bodies undergo. I haven’t heard a werea’s side of it, but werewolves write it off as a bit of bleeding and nothing more. A werea should only experience it once, only when she’s sealed. Then again, there are four of us. Are you in pain, Sorissa?”
“I’m fine,” I said. “I was prepared this time. It doesn’t hurt much.”
“So, wereas don’t bleed monthly like women?” Aerre asked.
“Nope,” Caspian replied.
I could sense Aerre’s worry regardless. “I… How is it even possible for a tethered to seal a werea?”
“No idea,” Caspian said.
“Lie down with me,” I said. “Hold me.”
They lay down on either side of me, arms crossing over my back, cocooning me in their reassuring warmth and protection, all three of us touching. I closed my eyes and concentrated on their breathing. We inhaled and exhaled at the same time. I swore I could feel our hearts beating as one through the mattress, too. We were a sweaty, messy pile of naked skin, flesh, and blood. But it felt right.
“We should sleep like this from now on,” I said as a sudden wave of tiredness washed over me. “I like your skin on mine.”
“Too many of us,” Aerre teased. “I don’t want to touch dicks with Rodrick.”
Caspian laughed. “I could be wrong, but I’m pretty sure Rodrick feels the same way.”
“Fine then,” I said, laughing as well as conceding. For now.
“It’s getting late. We need to prepare for the Full Moon Banquet.” Caspian looked out at the balcony. “I wonder how many heard us outside. I forgot to shut the doors.”
“I don’t even care,” Aerre said, face solemn. “
That felt like farewell sex. Right before the Alpha Challenge. Right before all hell could break loose.”
“No, it was a promise of more to come,” I said. “The second time is better. Much better.”
Aerre kissed my forehead. “I need to see Trace and my mother before the banquet.” He rolled out of bed, took a quick trip to the bathroom to wash away my blood, and hurriedly got dressed. I would have preferred him to stay by my side. It was cold where he had lain down beside me, but there was no time to waste. I understood his urgency, his need to see his family before the Alpha Challenge.
He said in a rush, “Sorissa, will you be okay getting Caspian ready on your own? Hell, but I shouldn’t leave when I—”
I cut him off. “Yes, I’ll take care of him. Go to your mother and sister.”
He gave me a doubtful look but ran for the door. Then he came running hastily back and gave me a gentle kiss on the cheek. “I love you,” he whispered. “I’ll make this up to you. I swear I will.”
Shivers broke out across my body in response to the surprisingly chilly breeze that blew in from the balcony. I closed my eyes, breathing him in. “I love you, too.”
“Take care of her, Caspian.” Aerre hesitantly placed his hand on Caspian’s neck, near his shoulder. His eyes were brighter than I had ever seen them. Maybe moonlight was mixed in with the natural blue of his eyes, but I wasn’t sure.
“I will,” Caspian said.
“Don’t die. I can’t… You can’t die.”
“I won’t, Aerre.” Caspian grasped his forearm.
Aerre hesitated again. I knew he wanted to say more, but I didn’t know what. I was pretty sure he didn’t either. “You better not,” he said after a weighted silence. Then he left, the door clicking softly shut behind him.
Caspian gathered me in his arms and simply held me in his lap. He knew this kind of touch was what I needed right now. It was the perfect balm for the wounds left by the Mate Claim. I smiled into his chest. Werewolves were a violent species, but they somehow balanced it out with soft moments like this. At least, mine did.
“Caspian?”
“Yes?”
“I think Aerre wants more.”
Caspian grinned and shook his head. “Doubtful. He’s the one who sealed you.” He gently touched my thigh, worrying over my bleeding.
“Didn’t you see the way he looked at you? Didn’t you feel it?”
Caspian bit his lower lip and shook his head. “I can’t think about it right now.”
I rubbed his chest, trying to calm his pounding heart. “Time to get dressed?”
“Cleaned up first. How long did you bleed with Todd?”
“Only a few minutes.”
He nodded. “A few more minutes. Then we’ll go, all right?”
“All right.” I nuzzled that space between his pectorals.
“Tonight, everything is going to change, but I’m going to make sure it’s a good change. That’s a promise, Sorissa.”
“Together, Caspian. Don’t forget: You’re not alone.”
CHAPTER 31
CASPIAN
THE NIGHT WAS FILLED with boisterous laughter and shouting. The Full Moon Banquet had started without the king. The Alpha Challenge had been set, and that was for the kingdom to enjoy—the werewolves. It was an old tradition for a pack to celebrate like this before the Alpha Challenge, and it hadn’t died. No matter how the Alpha Challenge turned out, it had to be a good thing for the pack. If the old alpha died, the new one was better suited to the task anyway. The strength of a pack’s alpha determined the pack’s safety and status.
The king and I were sequestered away, alone in a clean-cut grassy clearing of the gardens closed off by a border of spring-colored deciduous trees. None were allowed past the trees. The moon was almost aligned, and we would be the first to get our fill. We wore nothing but thin dark-blue robes that could be taken off or replaced with a quick tie of a sash. It was quicker to absorb moonlight if the body was left entirely exposed; it was almost instantaneous—though we would still be compelled to hold still with the rush of energy. Normally, speed wouldn’t matter much, but we were to fight in the courtyard while everyone else relaxed and watched on in drunken merriment.
The hairs on the back of my neck and arms prickled as the moon drew closer, and inconsequential drops of moonlight tickled my core. I wanted this whole damn thing over and done with. It took all of my discipline to stay standing still in the grass, mirroring the king—except the king was relaxed, eyes closed as if in meditation. I would have tried meditating myself, but Babaga wasn’t here to whack me on the head with her evil cane, and I didn’t have enough willpower to do it. I wanted to talk.
“Are you that confident you’ll win?” I asked. I couldn’t take another moment of silence like this, not when there was so much left unsaid between us. This could be the end.
Gods, this could be the end.
“Confidence only gets you so far. I count on nothing because nothing is absolute,” the king said as his eyes remained closed.
“Are you angry? Disappointed in me once again? Do you even care anymore?”
He ran a hand down his thick black beard. “I’m tired, Caspian. Old and tired.”
“What does that mean?”
“It means I hope you’re prepared for whatever comes of this.”
I sunk down, balancing on the balls of my feet as I curled up and gripped the dark curls of my hair. I resisted the urge to pull and tear out clump after clump. I couldn’t let him get to me like this, not when my pack was counting on me. Not when they cared about me.
“Did you do it?” the king asked.
“Do what?” I rasped.
“Seal the Lost Princess. I can’t tell.”
“I didn’t. Todd and Aerre did.”
“Always finishing last.”
I looked up, expecting the king’s eyes to still be closed, expecting him to have his hand on his sash, ready to disrobe in a few short minutes. But he was staring at me. I stood, ashamed of my disgraceful conduct.
“You remind me of your mother.”
I blinked.
The king looked up at the full moon shining down on us and gripped his sash. The buzz intensified. It was time. I followed him, and we both shed our robes at the same time, faces reaching up toward the moon as power seeped in through our skin in the form of warm, comforting moonlight. For most of my life, the full moon had been the only thing that reminded me of what true warmth felt like. It was the only thing that resembled my mother’s embrace. But I had found more than that in my pack. I found more than I could have ever hoped for.
It’s time to finish this.
It was time. The king and I walked into the merriment of the Full Moon Banquet. Werewolves were basking in the full moon, drinking in their fill of moonlight. The king and I were already carrying as much as we could, and we arrived in nothing more than our thin robes. I felt out of place, naked in the crowd, especially when we drew the attention of all the werewolves here like a massive wave. It started as a ripple, a few heads turning and then spanning acres worth of bodies.
I couldn’t have imagined what it would have felt like if the entire kingdom had fit inside the courtyard because I was already overwhelmed. The “most important” werewolves were here, our eldest mated wereas and the youngest werea cubs included. There were smaller celebrations held throughout the kingdom with their own banquets in honor of the full moon for werewolves unable to attend, so the courtyard wasn’t packed in without any room to move. Most humans were likely in their homes or at the barns asleep. But all I cared about right now was my pack.
Where are they?
I searched the crowd, scanning faces as quickly as possible.
“Here, Caspian.” Sorissa’s voice reached out to me, cutting through the crowd easily thanks to our bond.
Relief flooded inside of me when I saw them. They were standing together, dressed up in the fancy formal-wear everyone was expected to show up in. I hadn’t often seen Soris
sa in a dress, but they did look beautiful on her. She was wearing the same dress she had worn during the last full moon, the one she had made sure not to rip when she shifted and fought the intruding werewolves from Paws Peak. The fabric was made to resemble the pearly surface of lunalite. The dress was elegant without too many frills. It hugged her body in the most delicious way; I loved how her back was on display. This body I was privileged to touch… Gods, I wanted to get back to the bedroom and seal her. I needed to seal her, but I kept fighting it.
Why did I keep fighting it? Because I was scared. Because I was confused.
I risked staring at Aerre. He, like the rest of Phantom Fangs, wore a crisp black uniform different from the formal-wear we wore on the last full moon since that had been so disastrous. Unlike our Phantom Fangs’ uniform, these were only pulled out for special occasions, like when they king actually wanted to showcase us. They still had combat belts and guns attached. The suit hugged Aerre’s large muscles but left enough room to feed the imagination—except I didn’t need to imagine anything.
I stole glimpses of him before when we had shifted together. It was never anything but glimpses, never anything I thought about until he kissed me in Howling Sky.
I tried to see the boy I was drawn to at five years old, the boy who had everything I wanted, the boy who wasn’t a werewolf, the boy who was different from me in almost every way. Maybe it was a fluke that I singled him out, that I picked him, but that didn’t matter. We were here. He was with me all these years later. We hurt and used each other, but we also grew to care about each other. The pain Aerre felt for me the night Gala slit my throat was proof of that. I couldn’t deny that anymore. I could dare to hope.
Sorissa was my moon, the thing that centered me as a werewolf, the thing that centered all of us, bound us, tethered included. But Aerre would always be my sun.
Tensions were high as all faces glowed brightly in the moonlight. No one was actively using it, but the soft blue glow surrounding everyone made it look otherwise. This seemingly passive light floating around in shifting shades of blue, it was ours as werewolves. Who was the worthiest among us? Who could take this moonlight and lead these werewolves as their alpha?
