Finding Trix (Felines of Furyne Book 3)

by L. M. Brown

  Delta cooed to the two babies as Trix purred to the third.

  Farron meanwhile, hurried to put together somewhere for each of the babies to sleep safely. This time Trix didn’t bother to argue about going into the other room. If he needed time to himself, he was sure he could find somewhere on board. The ship was a fair size and from what he had seen on his brief tour, free of cargo at the moment.

  He glanced over his shoulder at the bed. It was a decent size. Almost as spacious as the one he had had on the Pleasure Station. There was plenty of room for the three of them.

  The thought of sharing a bed with Delta and Farron again caused a stirring of his cock that wasn’t entirely unwelcome. After sitting so close to Delta and Farron, it had soon become apparent that giving birth might have put his female parts out of action for a while, but his cock was far from tired.

  He caught a heated look between Delta and Farron that didn’t help. It wasn’t the first such exchange he had observed since they had come for him, and he could almost feel the desire sparking between them. He wondered what had happened since the last time the three of them had been together. He would have to find out. He suspected Farron would tell him anything he wanted to know if he just asked.

  Suddenly a vision flashed through his mind and he saw Farron on his hands and knees, his arse a rosy red. He gasped and the image receded, leaving him back in the bedchamber.

  “What is it?” Delta asked. “You went very pale, and now you’re all flushed.”

  “I don’t know. It was strange, I thought I saw something.”

  “What?”

  “Farron, but not as he is right now.” Trix stood and went to the new cribs and placed his youngest child in it. Farron took their son from Delta and he and Delta deposited the other two babies into their own makeshift cribs.

  “How did you see me?” Farron asked.

  “Um.”

  Farron chuckled. “You’re blushing.”

  Trix ducked his head. “It was probably just my imagination.”

  “I doubt that,” Farron said. “True mates, like we are now, share everything. Sometimes that includes thoughts and memories.”

  Trix’s face heated even more.

  Delta nudged him. “Now I really want to know what you saw.”

  They obviously weren’t going to let him avoid answering. “I saw Farron, on his knees.”

  “Is that all?” Delta asked. “I thought it was something much more…”

  “Interesting?” Farron supplied.

  “Well, yes.”

  “His buttocks were all red,” Trix added. “Like he’d been spanked or something.”

  It was Farron’s turn to blush, and Delta laughed again.

  “What?” Trix asked.

  “Definitely a memory,” Delta explained. “Our Farron has been exploring his sexual needs and he’s discovered the pleasure to be found in a burning arse.”

  Farron dropped to his knees before them. “Not just pleasure. It calms me when Delta takes control of me in such a manner.”

  “Why would you need calming down?” Trix asked. “You’ve always seemed rather level-headed to me.”

  Farron shrugged. “It seems to be related to our bond. When you were on the Cage, I could feel your desperation and panic. This helped me.”

  Trix smiled. “I can’t say I see the allure of it myself, but seeing you like that was definitely arousing.”

  Farron grinned up at him. “How arousing?”

  Delta’s hand settled over Trix’s kilt. “From what I can feel, I’d say very.”

  Trix sucked in a long deep breath before shaking his head, a little regretfully. “I’m sorry, it’s just a little too soon.”

  “Of course.” Delta removed his hand. “You must be tired.”

  “Exhausted,” Trix agreed.

  “Then how about you crawl into bed and get some sleep? You too Farron, I know you haven’t slept properly in days, what with worrying about Trix and whether we would make it to him in time. I’ll go back up on deck and set a course for the nearest spaceport.”

  Delta left for the flight deck and Trix crawled into bed. Farron was right behind him and before Trix could think of protesting, Farron had his arms wrapped around him, holding him secure in his embrace.

  Trix closed his eyes recalling how he had felt on the Cage, with Farron’s spirit with him. The same feeling of warmth encompassed him now as he drifted off to sleep.

  Chapter Thirteen

  Trix recognised the spaceport as one he had visited before, during his time moving from one to another after he had parted ways with Yori’s ship. He inched closer to Delta as they left the ship and headed for the shops. They each carried one of the babies and top of the list of items to purchase was carrying baskets for them.

  “Stop worrying,” Delta said.

  Trix drew in a deep breath. “I’m trying not to, but the guards here might recognise me from my last visit.”

  “It doesn’t matter if they do. You’re with me and Farron, and we’re just refuelling and buying things for our new babies.”

  “And it’s not as if you’re hungry,” Farron added. “You fed before we left the ship, so it’s not like you’re going to be breaking any of their stupid rules.”

  “I know you’re right, but I still feel strange being here again.”

  “Just try to relax and enjoy yourself. Shopping is fun.”

  Trix caught Delta’s quickly smothered grimace. He had a feeling the canine’s opinion of shopping was similar to his own.

  “There’s a baby items store, over there,” Farron chirped. He quickened his pace and was through the door before Delta and Trix were halfway there.

  By the time Trix entered, Farron had already enlisted the help of one of the assistants, an avian with a bright smile and a gleam in her eyes that told Trix she worked on some sort of scheme where she was paid more dependent on how much she sold.

  Farron waved them over. “Come see this one, it has a built in recording monitor that the ship can be configured to display.”

  Delta snorted. “You think Trix is going to be letting them out of his sight any time soon?”

  “Well, no, but one day he might.”

  “I suspect they might be a little big for those baskets when he does,” Delta replied as he pointed at another model. “What about this one?”

  Trix let Farron and Delta ask the questions of the assistant, and soon noticed that neither of them were asking the most important question, that being the price.

  Back on the night they had met, Trix had wondered at how Delta could just throw away six thousand credits on a whore. Then there was Farron, who might not be from one of the richest avian clans, but the swans weren’t the poorest either.

  Trix himself knew the exact number of credits he had at any given time. It was with that in mind he drifted towards the cheaper models, those without the fancy additional functions.

  “What are you doing over there, Trix?” Farron called. “Come see these, they have special visors that protect babies from the sun, and they’re self-heating if it gets cold.”

  Trix forced a smile and pointed at the wheeled device beside him. “What about these?”

  Farron joined him and looked over the list of features on the sign beside it. “It’s pretty basic, Trix. It doesn’t even have the ability to expand as they get bigger.”

  Trix checked the details and nodded. “You’re right. We’d have to buy more within a cycle. It would be better to invest in ones that will last longer.”

  Delta stepped closer and rubbed Trix’s cheek. “The cost is not something you have to worry about.”

  “But I can’t let you and Farron pay for everything. I have most of the credits you paid me before.”

  Delta chuckled. “If Farron thinks he’s paying for anything, he’s also mistaken.”

  “Hey!” Farron squawked. “I’m not destitute, you know. As part of the swan clan I have access to our communal funds.”

  “Why didn
’t you use those to get home from the Pleasure Station?” Trix asked.

  “Because my access was blocked at that time. It’s part of the tradition.”

  Delta rolled his eyes. “I still say that you swans have some very odd traditions. And I’m paying for what we need, so no arguments from either of you.”

  Trix held his tongue rather than ask if Delta had the funds, but Farron had no such tact.

  “Are you rich?”

  Trix gaped at Farron. “You can’t just ask someone that.”

  Delta laughed. “Of course he can ask, he’s family, just as you are. And to answer the question, yes, I have credits, lots of them. I might not be from a clan that pools its funds like the avians do, but I have more than enough for us to get the best of everything for our family.”

  “How?” Trix asked. “You give away thousands of credits to whores. That’s not the action of someone who’s good at saving.”

  Delta grinned. “Those credits were what I won at the card table that night. Farron might be good at games of skill, but I’m good at reading people, and I did well that night.”

  “And you gave it all away,” Trix said.

  Farron nodded. “Trix is right. And you haven’t answered the question about how you have so many credits. I didn’t think couriers earned that much, not non-avian ones anyway.”

  “Yes, the avians do tend to dominate the business, largely because they’re the ones who build most of the ships and set up the cross-space services, but I have a contact at the depot who gives me good runs. Or he used to. I’m not sure whether he’ll continue to do that once he finally accepts that I’m never going to take him as my mate. Anyway, contrary to how my actions the night we met might say otherwise, I’m quite good at saving my credits. The last time I even made a big purchase was when I bought my new ship, a few runs before I stopped at the Pleasure Station.”

  “Ships are really expensive,” Trix said. “That must have cleared out most of your savings. Are you sure you can afford all the baby things now?”

  Delta rolled his eyes and smiled. “Yes, Trix, I can afford to buy the best of whatever our babies need.”

  Farron coughed. “I should be the one paying the most, after all, I’m the one who got Trix pregnant.”

  Delta shot Farron an annoyed glance. “We’re a family. What’s mine is yours, so stop arguing. If I want to spoil the two of you and our babies, I will.”

  “But—”

  Delta raised his hand. “If you want to check my account, I’ll give you access as soon as we get back to the ship. In the meantime, our babies’ needs come first. Now, let’s take a look at the new range of hover-cribs.”

  Trix shrugged at Farron. “I guess we should trust him?”

  Farron nodded. “I already do, but I would still like to know where he gets his credits from.”

  Trix was also curious, but he wasn’t going to push his luck by asking. He still wasn’t sure that Delta wouldn’t change his mind if he thought Trix and his babies were a noisy nuisance like the last felines he had taken on board his ship.

  They spent several hours at the spaceport, shopping for items for the babies, and also clothing for Trix, who Farron was appalled to discover had only the bare minimum.

  Farron also found himself with a much more varied wardrobe after Trix had pointed out that he too had very little on board. Despite having a huge selection of clothes back on Cygon, Farron had left with very little when he had set off to find Trix.

  By the time they returned to the ship, Trix wasn’t sure where they would fit everything.

  Farron deposited his purchases and glared at Delta. “Now, let me see your account, and if I see you’ve cleared it out with all this spending today, I’ll transfer you the credits from mine.”

  Delta shook his head and sat at the flight deck. “You do realise that outside of the bedchamber, you’re becoming quite forceful and bossy?”

  “Stop stalling.” Farron stood over him until Delta called up his account details.

  Trix tried not to pry, but curiosity got the better of him. Delta definitely had enough funds to cover their purchases fifty times over and still have credits to spare.

  Farron, who appeared to be studying the account a little closer than Trix, pointed to an obscenely large deposit some time ago. “What sort of job were you doing to get that sort of payment for it? It wasn’t something illegal, was it?”

  Delta laughed and shook his head. “Of course not. No, that was an unauthorised deposit into my account from the high noble feline who I gave a ride to, along with his mates.”

  “You charged them how much to give them a ride?”

  Delta gave him a dirty look. “I didn’t charge them anything.”

  “Really?”

  “Very well, I told them I would, but in the end I didn’t. Ty gave me some of their credits to cover their rations, but we left it at that. Cal, one of his mates helped with my cargo by way of payment for their passage too. After I dropped them off, I didn’t expect to hear from them again. Then one day I checked my account and saw that deposit, along with a note from Ty. He said it was what he deemed to be sufficient to cover passage on a private vessel. I messaged him back and told him it was too much, but he refused to take it back. He even blocked my account from transferring credits back to him. He just said that what I had done for them was priceless, and if I tried to argue with him he would send another deposit of double the amount.”

  Trix had always known the high nobles were rich, but he hadn’t imagined they had access to that amount of credits.

  Delta closed down the account screen. “So, as you can see, I have more than enough to pay for what our family needs. Between my work, my luck at the cards, and the funds from Ty, we can all live comfortably for many cycles to come. One last thing, I believe Ty would very much approve of my using his credits on the two of you and our babies.”

  Trix nodded and offered a tentative smile. “I guess I don’t need to worry that you’re spending all your credits on us.”

  “No, you don’t.”

  Reassured that they weren’t going to clear out Delta’s account, and that the canine wasn’t doing something illegal to obtain his credits, Trix went to set up the new cribs for the babies, Farron close at his heels with the instructions to hand.

  Delta remained on the flight deck, checking his messages before they prepared for departure.

  * * * *

  Delta swore as he read the message from his father. He didn’t want to return to Lupalia just yet, but he didn’t see that he had much choice.

  He would much rather have gone home with his two mates fully claimed and their relationship settled. Instead, he was going to have to detour now, while things were still unresolved. He hoped Farron and Trix didn’t mind.

  Rising from the flight deck, he went to track down his two lovers to break the bad news.

  “What is it?” Farron asked as soon as he saw Delta’s face. “Is something wrong?”

  Delta sighed. “Not wrong exactly, but I’ve just picked up a message from my father. He sent it to all spaceports in the network, just to make sure I got it.”

  “That must have cost him a fortune,” Trix commented. “What’s the urgency?”

  “Word has reached him of my tracking you down and he wants to meet you before I claim you as my mate.”

  Trix frowned. “We’ve not really talked about canine claiming. I’m not sure I’m ready for that yet.”

  Delta sat beside him and laced their fingers together. “I know, and I hope you don’t see this as a way of my forcing a claiming upon you. I’d never do that to anyone.”

  “I know.” Trix gave his hand a quick squeeze. “What do you think, Farron? A detour to Lupalia will delay our journey to Cygon.”

  Farron shrugged. “I’m in no hurry to return home, and Lupalia isn’t that far out of our way.”

  “Are you sure?” Delta asked. “I should warn you that my parents’ views on taking more than one mate are rather rigi
d. They hate the idea.”

  Farron and Trix exchanged worried glances.

  “No harm will come to either of you,” Delta assured them.

  Trix gave a firm nod. “Then let us set a course for Lupalia.”

  Farron agreed and Delta returned to the flight deck to chart the new course. He didn’t realise that Farron had followed him back until he took the co-pilot seat.

  “What aren’t you telling us?” Farron asked. “Is it just that your parents don’t approve of multiple mates, or is there something else?”

  Delta smiled. “You’re very astute.”

  Farron gave him a hard stare that was worthy of a hawk in its intensity.

  “My mother is even more opposed to felines, than she is to multiple mates.”

  “Ah.” Farron glanced behind them, but Trix was nowhere in sight. “What’s Trix’s reception likely to be like?”

  “I don’t know,” Delta admitted. “I would hope that my parents would at least be polite, but I wouldn’t be surprised if the welcome from my mother is frosty.”

  Farron tapped his fingers on the dashboard. “I won’t allow your parents to upset Trix. He’s been through enough.”

  “I agree.”

  A bleep from the system warned Delta that his departure time from the spaceport was approaching.

  “What do you suggest?” Farron asked.

  Delta turned to the flight deck to make ready to depart. “I suggest that we make sure we’re ready to leave Lupalia at any time.”

  Farron nodded and turned his attention to the flight deck too. Delta grinned at the way Farron helped him without even being asked.

  Lupalia awaited them, and Delta intended to make sure their visit was short and didn’t upset either of his mates. They might not be claimed in the manner of canines yet, but he would protect them just as thoroughly as if they were.

  * * * *

  The Cage hadn’t been close to Lupalia and it took almost two months to reach Delta’s home world.

  During that time, Delta and Farron took very good care of Trix and helped him with the babies so that the new father could relax and enjoy the journey.