by Jane Jamison
Finn didn’t believe her. Not if the way he looked at Liam was any indication. “You mean like a man who can turn into a werewolf but changes into a bear instead?”
“Exactly.” It wasn’t the reaction she’d hoped for, but at least he hadn’t mocked her. “Do you believe that shifters are real?”
He stumbled as he tried to answer. “Sure. Why not? Stranger things have happened.”
At least his answer had a ring of truth to it.
She eased closer to the cage, then stared straight into the bear’s eyes. “I know what you are. Why don’t you just tell me? Or better yet, show me?”
Did the bear understand? Could the man understand while in his animal’s form? Or did the mind change along with the body?
What if he changed right then? Perspiration dotted her forehead. What would she do? Turn him loose? Run? Just because he was a shifter didn’t mean he wasn’t dangerous. Suddenly, she wasn’t sure she wanted to know the truth.
Still, she had to try.
“Look, I don’t mean you any harm. I just want to know that what I saw was real. And to have my sister see so she doesn’t question my sanity. No one else will know.” She glanced at Finn and Liam, who stood by, their hard looks focused on her instead of the bear. “Except, of course, the McGarrett brothers. But they promise not to tell a soul, don’t you, guys?”
“You bet. This is a secret we don’t ever want to get out. I promise you we won’t tell anyone.” Then, as in an afterthought, he added, “That goes for Connor, too.”
Liam’s promise was heartfelt. That much she was sure of.
The growl that erupted from the huge beast sent her shuffling backward. Alarm pricked goose bumps along her skin, and if Liam hadn’t caught her, she would’ve fallen.
Was he angry at her for caging him? Would he want to hurt her? Either as a bear or as a man?
She waited, watching the bear closely. At one point, she was sure he understood her, that as he turned to face her, he was considering shifting. Then the moment, the glint in his eyes that spoke of human intelligence was gone. She was both relieved and disappointed.
“How about showing me the house, Brynn?” Finn made a face when his stomach growled. “And maybe feeding a starving man?”
Getting to know Finn was a definite must. Especially after what she’d done with his brothers. Would he want her, too? With or without his brothers? She hoped he’d like sharing like Connor and Liam did. If not, she wasn’t sure what she’d do. Ending up with only two of the three brothers would be like getting to eat two of three pieces of chocolate, each with a different filling. She’d spend the rest of her life wondering how good that third chocolate would’ve tasted.
“I think I can scrounge up some leftovers.” She was torn. On the one hand, she wanted to stay and try to coax the shifter into changing. On the other, the compulsion to be with Finn was overwhelming, leaving her heart racing and the ache between her legs starting to pound again.
“Great. I’ll be there in a sec.”
Damn, but Finn has a sexy grin.
In the end, her own craving sent her back into the house. Finn stayed behind to talk to Liam about ranch business. She wasn’t sure why she couldn’t hear that discussion, but she didn’t argue the point. There was too much else to worry about.
* * * *
Brynn had just closed the front door behind her when Connor threw his large body against the cage. The loud noise startled them, but it was Liam, not Finn, who jumped onto his brother. He had to keep his brothers under control while he figured a way out of their predicament. One that wouldn’t end up with them losing Brynn.
“Knock it off, Connor. I don’t know what went on in here, but she’s seen you already, so you’re staying put.”
Connor flexed his paw and took a swipe at Finn through two bars. He kept his growl too low to be heard inside the house, but there was no mistaking the fury behind it.
“I still don’t get it.” Finn seemed unperturbed that Connor was so angry. “Why don’t we just tell her the truth? Don’t you hate lying to our future mate? She’s going to have all three of our heads when she finally finds out.”
Connor shifted, transforming back to his human form. “I hate like hell to admit it, but I think our asshole of a brother is right for once. Even though he started this whole mess.”
“We can’t. As much as I’d like to, as much as I know it’s got to happen sooner than later, now’s not the time.” Liam could admit to himself that they made sense, but his usual cautious nature still prevailed, telling him to take more time.
Connor and Finn were on the same page against him.
“Why not?” asked Finn.
“Do you remember Peter Isler?”
“Yeah. What’s he got to do with it?” Connor gripped the bars of the cage, looking for all the world like a convict in jail.
“Peter met his mate and didn’t take the time to get to know her. The connection was there, drawing them together. But he decided to reveal his bear before taking her to bed.”
Connor groaned as he turned around and slumped against the cage. “And she took off faster than a jackrabbit with a fox on its tail.”
“Damn. You’re right. I remember now.” Finn slipped his fingers through his hair. “Even after he found her again, she wouldn’t have anything to do with him. She was scared out of her wits and started telling everyone about seeing a werebear.”
“And where is she now?” He had to make them see his point. Especially since Lizzy already doubted her sister’s word. If she really began doubting her sister’s sanity, who knew what might happen?
“The last I heard was that her family made her take a long vacation.” Finn was finally getting his point.
“A vacation at a funny farm.” Liam was ready to seal his argument. “And she’s still there. He revealed himself too soon and now he has to wait for them to declare her ready to be on her own again. Do you want that for Brynn?”
That brought silence to both of them. At least for a while.
“But Brynn’s different. She believes in shifters and she’s seen me in all my furry glory. I don’t think she’d freak out.” Finn paced to the barn’s entrance. “We’re just wasting time. Time we could be spending in bed with our mate.”
Liam ached to tell Finn he was right. But as their older brother, he had to think with his head and not with his cock. “Maybe. But finding out that we’re werebears is one thing. Telling her that she’s had sex with men who can change into animals takes things a big step further. What if that makes her run? What is she thinks it’s revolting? Naw, we need more time. She has to get to know the men before she’ll accept the animals. Proving to herself and her sister that shifters exist is all well and good. Saying she’ll be their mate? That’ll be harder for her. Much harder.”
“Damn it. He might be right. Although I don’t think she’s going to like that we lied to her.” Connor leaned against the bars. “Either way, we’re taking a big risk. I just hope we haven’t already fucked it up.”
“Once she’s fallen for us and we’ve explained why, she’ll forgive us for lying.” He had to believe she would. If not, he’d never forgive himself for losing their mate.
“Okay, I’m with you.” Finn strode to the entrance, his back to them as he stared at the house. “So we give it a little longer. And you’d better be fucking right about her forgiving us.”
“I am.”
He turned back to Liam. “How can you be so sure?”
“Because she has to.” At least he hoped she would. By then the connection should have grown even stronger. If she still wanted to leave once she knew, it would take incredible strength for her to break away. Most mates couldn’t do it. Most mates wouldn’t want to do it. But Brynn was different. She was strong-willed and a fighter. If anyone could ignore the connection after having sex with them, after falling for them, she could.
“I’m going to get something to eat.”
Liam knew what Finn was hinting a
t. They’d had their time with her. It was only fair that Finn had his chance. “I’ll stick here with Connor. But after you’re with her, we’re even.”
“Sure, bro. Anything you say.”
Finn swaggered across the yard toward the house. Liam had to give it to his brother. He got into trouble, but somehow he always managed to come out unscathed.
* * * *
Brynn could sense Finn before he was in the bedroom. She was through playing games. Why should she? She’d already had sex with his brothers, so why play hard to get? She wanted all three of them and she was going to have them.
When he opened the door without knocking, she understood that he knew why she’d skipped feeding him and gone straight to the bedroom. His eyes grew wide and he came to a stop, taking in her naked body.
Humor gleamed in his green eyes. “So you knew.”
“Yeah. I did.” She cupped her breasts, rubbing her thumbs over her nipples. “You’re hungry, all right, but it’s not for food.”
He yanked off his T-shirt, tossed it aside, then started undoing his jeans. By the time he’d made it across the small room, he was already undressed.
She couldn’t wait to have his hands on her, finding every inch that was aching for his touch. But when he brought his mouth to hers, it didn’t matter that his body didn’t touch hers in any other place.
The kiss started tenderly at first, with his tongue teasing her lips, his teeth taking hold and tugging on them. He groaned as the tenderness changed into a hungry crush. She let out a sigh, sending her warm breath to meet his. His fingers slipped into the hair at the back of her neck as he bent her head back to plunder her mouth.
She was on her back and couldn’t recall how he’d taken her there. The kiss was her lifeline to him and she was afraid to let go in case he left her. It wasn’t her breath she needed any longer, but his.
He found the small of her back and lifted her body to his. His kisses, returning to their former gentleness, traveled from the corners of her mouth along the slope of her neck. He paused, and for a moment, the image of him, fangs flashing then sinking into her skin, came and went.
But he was Finn and not a bear. She wanted the man.
Arching her back, she offered him her breasts, silently urging him to take them and devour as much of them as he could. He continued the kisses along her shoulder, then answered her plea when he flicked his tongue over her nipple.
The quick hint at the skill of his tongue was enough. Her nipples hardened, swelling for his pleasure and hers. Clutching his hair, she pulled him to the other breast, demanding equal attention.
His hands were everywhere, exploring every curve, every mound of her body. His cock teased her pussy with its length and width, giving both a promise and a torment. Wrapping her legs around him, she opened wide. She was his for the taking. All she had to do was wait for him to accept her invitation.
“Finn.” More words were unnecessary, as he layered wet tracks between her breasts then eased his body lower.
He nibbled at her ribs, his hands cupping her buttocks. His tongue found her belly button, proving that it was an erogenous zone she’d learn to appreciate. She skimmed her hands over his hair, letting the spikes of his blond hair tickle her skin.
Yet when he caressed her legs, moving past her mons to feather them with his kisses, she almost groaned out a complaint. But her protest was gone in the next instant when he lifted one leg and kissed his way down her inner thigh, over her calf, and onto her foot.
With a wicked grin, he eased his body between her legs. She gripped the bedspread, preparing herself for the first kiss between her folds, but nothing could have prepared her for the lightning bolt of energy that ripped her apart. He was the fire starter and she was the kindling.
She cried out, clutching the bedspread until her hands hurt from the effort. Her mind grew fuzzy, then cleared when he eased aside the curtain to her sheath and dragged his tongue over her, running from her pussy up to her clit. Another jolt hit her when he lashed his tongue over her swollen organ of desire, driving her to the point of insanity.
He dove into her like a man possessed with the need to take all her juices. She bucked, not wanting to get away, yet unable to withstand the delicious attack. Sucking, nibbling, sighing his breath against her, he claimed her as men have claimed their women throughout time.
She was his and he had yet to give her his cock.
The first orgasm took her before she had time to take in a breath. It rode her like a tsunami over a defenseless shore. Rid of any control over her body, she couldn’t cry out, couldn’t speak, couldn’t even moan. Her body reacted on instinct, squirming as she reached out for him, begging him for more.
The shudders broke her, bending them to their will, but he remained determined to have it his way. Easing his body off the end of the bed, he brought her to a sitting position and put her hands on his shoulders. Without a word, he put his face to her pussy again, flicking his tongue here, then there, over her clit to destroy her, then plunged it into her pussy. She was reduced to whimpers, too caught up in his taking to do anything more.
The faces of his brothers came to her and she sank into the fantasy. She imagined Connor with his mouth on one tit while Liam offered her his cock. Digging her fingernails into Finn’s shoulders, she watched as his head bobbed up and down, licking, stroking, nibbling. Her body responded again, the whirlwind of another climax riding on the winds of the strange energy that was the mainstay between her and all the McGarrett men.
All at once, he rose, then flipped her over. He helped her get onto her hands and feet. The sting of his hand against her butt cheek stilled her heart for a second, and just as she was about to complain, he hit her again.
The sting was gone, replaced by a new sensation, one she’d never experienced. She bowed her head and thrust her rump at him. He answered, not with just one spank, but several, coming one after the other until she could visualize the imprint of his hand on her flesh.
She whimpered again, and was thrilled when he struck out, putting his other hand to her other cheek. He spanked her again as he leaned over her, snaking his arm around her leg to find her pussy.
A spank followed the thrust of his fingers inside her pussy.
Another one joined the pinch of her clit.
Sensations, feelings that were rough and raw, shoved all rational thought away. She didn’t need it. Not when everything she was experiencing was so much more.
If anyone had said she was crazy, she would’ve agreed. But that kind of crazy was a wonderful thing, the type of insanity that came only once in a lifetime. And yet, it had come three times for her in the faces of three amazing men.
“I’m going to have you.”
She lost her answer when he moved her onto her side, then wrapped her leg around his waist. The sizzle of the power between them zipped stronger, becoming more aggressive, transforming into an entity that encompassed her everything.
His cock was as big as his brothers’ and like theirs, curved at the end. Holding her leg, he slid his palm along its length, then added another quick spank.
She met his eyes and saw the primal lust in his eyes. A lust that matched her own. “Please, Finn. I can’t stand waiting a second longer.”
His expression, intense and focused, changed. Bits of golden amber, much like she’d seen somewhere before, brightened his eyes. At first she froze, remembering the people in Forever. But the way he looked at her, with a combination of tenderness and need, pushed the fear tightening her limbs away.
He slid his cock inside her, driving it to the end of her, like a spear piercing her, claiming her as his prize. She laid back her head and screamed. Hers was a trumpet of victory.
He pummeled her, his hips moving back and forth in a steady rhythm. Their bodies slapped together, making small sexy sounds that accompanied her quick bursts of exhalations. Just watching his muscles work, delivering pleasure to her, was enough to send her over the edge again. But when his cock gra
zed the sweet patch of skin inside, her world broke apart, spinning her round and round. She cried out again and reached for him, digging her fingernails into his skin.
Her cream flooded out of her, running between her butt cheeks and around his cock. Tremors rivaling an earthquake shook her as she gave up trying to hold onto him and clutched her breasts instead.
His movements grew faster, his eyes brightening even more, until he froze, then sent her a wickedly smug grin before turning his release free. The sound he made as he plunged into her one last time was nothing less than sinful, unyielding carnal lust.
He fell on top of her and finally she was able to take him into her arms. Their bodies shuddered, working at times together, then each as an accompaniment to the other. Perspiration made sucking sounds as he shifted his body, then slid to her side.
“My brothers are going to kill me.”
She rolled onto her side and flattened her palm against his chest. Should she tell him? But why hadn’t they told him that she’d already slept with them? “Um, I would’ve thought they would have mentioned this to you, but, um—” Would he think she was a slut?
He chuckled, the rumble of it felt under her hand. “That you already made love with them? Yeah, I know.”
Made love? She was blindsided by the way he’d phrased it. Not sex, but love. She’d thought of it that way, but hadn’t dared to believe they would. “Then what are you talking about?”
He blinked at her, and that’s when she noticed. Where had the flecks of amber gone?
“Never mind. We have more important things to discuss.”
Aw, crap. Is it ever a good thing when a man says that? But she didn’t let him see the quick dive of her emotions. “Okay. Let’s discuss.” How could he go from calling what they’d done making love to dumping her? Or was she jumping to conclusions?
“I don’t know what my brothers told you, but I’m going to say it outright. Even if Liam’s his usual overly cautious self.”
