Over the span of two hours, there is plenty of conversation, laughing and ribbing to go around. They seem a little more human, a little more real. Not like some random kidnappers or treacherous strangers. The relaxed conversation and glimpses of their personalities eases my fears. Their friendship is so strong and the bonds so thick they’re practically visible to the naked eye. I feel like an outsider, but a small part of me that I don’t want to acknowledge wonders what it would be like to be part of their group. To be accepted and wanted and cared for without strings. That is what’s truly dangerous about staying here. They can make me desire things I never allowed myself to dwell on before.
The only one who doesn’t contribute to the conversation is Sage, but the other guys seem content to leave him out.
I WAKE WITH a start as someone slides into the bed with me. When I try to sit up, hands push me back down.
“Shhh. It’s Nato.”
“What ar—” I can’t get the rest of the question out because Nato kisses me. Just like in the diner, it is all consuming. He pushes me into the bed while running his hands possessively over my body. Starting at my waist, his palm glides up to cup my breast. He squeezes almost to the point of pain but loosens up at the last second. Through the haze of my sleepy brain, I realize he’s shushing me so none of the other guys hear us. I’m down for a little midnight nookie. This doesn’t have to be anything more than satisfying our mutual attraction. Lord knows I need it after the fire Egan started in the woods.
One hand travels down and around to grip my ass. His fingers sink into my flesh as he melds my hips to his. There’s just enough moonlight for me to make out Nato’s features. He’s harsh in this soft light, the clenching of his jaw standing out in stark relief. His eyes burn from a fire within, making the golden quarter of his iris glow. His desire is a living thing that he has no problem communicating with a look alone. Although he doesn’t take any chances since he has me pinned with his body.
He falls on top of me and captures my lips. Devours me. Forcing his tongue into my mouth, he slants his head to go deeper. He pulls back to tear off my underwear and tugs my sleep shirt over my head before I even know what is happening. Damn. He’s like Speedy Gonzales over here. I lie completely bare underneath him and grip the silky hair at his nape as he climbs over me and spreads my legs. Nato kisses down my neck, biting along the way before stopping to suck and soothe the marks.
Nato kneels between my legs. His hands start at my inner thighs before moving toward my knees. Spreading my legs straight outward, the only movement he allows is to bend my legs at the knees as he settles right over my center. I gasp as his hard cock rubs against my throbbing clit. He must have climbed in my bed naked, the dirty devil.
I fist my hands in the sheets and arch off the bed from the sudden contact.
He keeps up the rhythm, sliding back and forth on my clit, spreading my moisture around. He finds my mouth again just as he grinds down hard against me. With that stroke, I lose control.
“I’m coming,” I moan.
Waves of pleasure crest over me. I try to close my legs The pleasure he is wringing from me is too intense and I need to…do something. He grips me tighter, holding me open.
I wrap my arms around his back and dig my fingers into his skin, holding him tightly. Nato keeps sliding against me as I pulse and shudder. He slows down to raise on his knees and moves his hands to pull mine from around his back. He links our fingers and settles them up next to my head. He lies flush against me, our naked skin damp with sweat. The slickness of our skin rubs erotically as I catch my breath in gasping inhales.
“Say yes.” He kisses me again. “Say yes.”
“Yes,” I whisper.
Drawing his hips back, he lines his cock up with my opening. He surges forward and pushes inside. The friction pulls another uncontrollable shiver from me. He pauses once he is fully seated and moans. I want to move my hands that he has trapped in each of his by my head, but he tightens his hold almost bruisingly.
He starts thrusting in a continuous, strong undulation that causes pleasure to build again. I wrap my legs around his waist and pull him into me. Nato picks up the pace, and our moans grow louder. He bites my lip so hard I wince at the sharp pain. He slides his tongue back in my mouth, and I taste the sharp, metallic tang of blood. Instead of turning me off, my temperature rises and my walls flutter around him.
His hard, punishing thrusts lose their rhythm. He falters and then picks back up again. Just when I think I can’t take anymore, I contract around him in an unsteady beat. Milking him until he is forced to join me in our shared pleasure. His hot seed jets inside as he lets out a guttural groan.
He collapses on top of me as my mind starts to work again.
“Nato. I’m not on any birth control!” I whisper-shout at him. I’m not sure how thin the walls are, and this is definitely not a public conversation.
“Don’t worry about it. Our people have ways to prevent pregnancies until we’re ready,” he whispers back. Releasing my hands, he rolls us sideways and wraps himself around me while I’m facing him. I find myself copying his movements and hold him to me as well. I sigh. The human contact brings me a peace that I didn’t realize I was missing.
“Sleep,” he says. I find it impossible to disobey.
A RHYTHMIC SCRATCHING pulls me from sleep.
I’m so relaxed my limbs are like jelly, preventing me from getting out of bed. After trying unsuccessfully to go back to sleep, I flop onto my back. Opening my eyes, I search for the sound that woke me. At the window, a branch gently scrapes over the glass. The pale gray sunlight coming through the window gives the room a soft glow. It must be early morning. I stretch, releasing a groan, and think back to last night.
My muscles are deliciously sore, and I feel amazingly content this morning. All of this seems too surreal.
People of the Fae. Oh sorry, I mean Fennin people, where tales of the Fae originated. Marks to represent different houses and powers. There are so many questions still unanswered, but I was happy to remain naive yesterday. Today, not so much.
As much as I would like to continue in ignorant bliss, it’s time to get some answers. Continuing that thought, I have been unusually docile here. Just what are the nuances of Nato’s power—does that include emotions?
Rolling out of bed, I collect my discarded sleepshirt and underwear. Last night definitely wasn’t a dream, but Nato must not have stuck around long, because the spot beside me is already cold.
After completing my morning routine with a toothbrush stolen from under the counter, I venture out to see who’s up. In the kitchen, I find Jari leaning against the counter, sipping freshly brewed coffee. The corners of his mouth tip up in a warm welcome.
“Good morning.” He greets me gruffly, at odds with his content expression. “If you want to go outside today, make sure you go early. There’s a storm coming.”
My confusion must have shown on my face as he laughs and continues.
“House of Levan, remember. We have affinity with nature, and weather is included in that. That means I know things.” He grins playfully.
I swat his arm playfully and roll my eyes. I nudge him with my hips, stepping around him to get my own cup of coffee.
As soon as I am beside him, Jari tenses and pulls my chin around to face him full on. Jari, the fun-natured soul of the group, sports an expression that is far from his usual happy demeanor. His brows slam down, and thunderous wrath rolls over his eyes, turning the blue sky to a stormy gray.
“Tell me you know something life changing happened last night?” He stares at me so hard I start to rub my hands up and down the front of my thighs. From the way his brow is scrunched down and the tightness around his eyes, I gather that whatever he is talking about is incredibly important.
It’s probably bad timing, actually the worst timing, but I take advantage of the close-up view of his eyes. The deep chasms of gray in his blue eyes are absolutely mesmerizing, and I find myself leaning int
o him.
“Iss. Tell me.” His fingers on my jaw gently shake to get my attention.
“What?” Oh! Life changing, his question. “I have no idea what you are talking about.”
He lets his hand fall and steps back from me, fiercely grinding his jaw back and forth. Suddenly, he turns toward the hallway and stomps to each bedroom, banging on each door along the way.
Coming back into the kitchen, he leans back against the counter with his arms crossed.
“Jari, what’s going on?” Getting anxious to learn what was so life changing, I implore him with my eyes for an answer.
“As soon as everyone is out here, we will discuss it,” he grits out.
It doesn’t take more than a few minutes for everyone to join us in various states of disarray. Egan yawns and runs a hand over his unruly hair. Sage scrubs his hands over his face in an effort to be more alert.
Nato pulls up the rear, the only one who shows any sort of emotion: wariness.
This has something to do with Nato slipping into my bed last night. I am torn between embarrassment that my sex life is about to be discussed out in the open and anger at whatever information being withheld from me.
“Look at our Isolde and tell me what you see,” Jari demands.
I feel all eyes drawn to me as they peruse my body for whatever has forced them out of bed so early. Whatever they’re looking for, Egan sees it first, and a flash of anger lights his eyes.
Sage is slower to find it, but he exhibits more shock than anything else, whipping his head around to Nato with his mouth agape.
Nato’s wariness makes room for a smug glint in his eyes. A smudge on his cheek catches my attention. I move closer, and I’m overcome with lightheadedness.
It can’t be. I gasp and lean closer, certain the sight before me is some kind of sick joke.
On his left cheek—his right and my left—is a new mark. He referred to it as the Zen mark, or was it Zien? The mark is identical to mine, only his is blue instead of the purple hue of my mark.
“The fuck?” I whisper.
“That sweets, is the mark of a bonded male,” Jari throws out in a light voice, before dropping low again in displeasure. “Nato, why? Why would you do this without her permission?”
Nato tenses. “I had permission. I asked her to say yes. She said yes.” He balls his hands into fists at his side.
Oh no he didn’t.
“What the hell, Nato? You asked me to say yes to sex. SEX! I said yes to sex!” I’m screaming and gasping at the same time. I run my hands through my hair and pull at the roots as I pace the kitchen.
An idea pops in my head. Running up to him, I lick my thumb and try to rub the mark.
I had doubts, but this can’t be faked. There is no possible way they could stage this, and even if they could, what would be their end game? Looks like I boarded their crazy train for good on a one-way ticket. And threw away my passport.
“What did I say yes to, Nato?” I scream across the kitchen at him.
Nato’s smugness wavers. He takes a step forward and stretches out his arms.
“Beautiful, don’t be upset—”
“Upset?” I’m breathing heavy, and I feel more than see the men step back from me, even Nato. “I don’t know any of you. I have literally exchanged less than a handful of words with all of you. I agreed to stay because I felt safe with you all. I felt it here that I could trust you guys.” I thump my hand over my heart. “Tell me why I can’t trust you now.” By the end, my voice makes its way back to a normal tone.
“He bonded you,” Egan says. Egan gently takes my hand and pulls me over to the microwave. In its shiny stainless steel, I see the mark on my cheek is the same. Or almost the same. The size and shape hasn’t changed. However, leaning closer, I see that the mark is no longer a deep violet. It now is a pale blue the same exact shade of the one gracing Nato’s face. I must be the most oblivious person ever not to have noticed in the bathroom. Either that or I brushed my teeth with my eyes closed, which is a very real possibility since I hadn’t really wanted to wake up in the first place.
“I don’t regret it.” Nato shakes his head. “Egan, you were going to bring others of our kind around her, and she was bonded to no one. I did what I had to do. Now you can bring anyone here to meet Isolde, and it won’t matter. Or at least not to the Zien.”
“I don’t understand any of this bullshit, and someone better start explaining fast.” I hate the way my voice trembles. I lock my gaze on Nato. “Why?” I all but whisper.
Nato sighs and drops his head. “Let’s all go sit down, and we will explain the best we can.”
We all traipse into the living room, our heavy thoughts hanging solemnly in the air. Nato goes directly to the recliner he commandeered yesterday. He tracks the frown on my face and the clenching of my fists. He doesn’t reach out; maybe he can tell from my body language I wouldn’t be receptive right now. How odd that I’ve known these men less than forty-eight hours and they are starting to know my moods already. Or they know to avoid riling up an already upset woman. We can be savage when we need to be, dammit.
Jari ushers me to the couch, and he and Egan sit on either side of me, acting as silent sentinels.
“All right, Isolde. I think it will be easier for you if we start with a history lesson. Yesterday we explained that there are four houses within our people, and each house represents a different form of power. We also said that everyone is born with the mark of their house. What we didn’t say is that our people carry only one mark. The mark of the house they were born into, which also represents their powers.” Nato is all business now.
Egan and Jari each take one of my hands in theirs as I listen to Nato.
“When a time arises for great change, some beings are born with the mark of every house. While there may be multiple beings, all female, in the world at the same time with marks of all houses, only one will bring about the changes the realms require.
“The majority of our people cannot bond with one another because we come into our powers with maturity. Biologically, there is no need to bond because the purpose of the bond is sharing power. Mazzas, those with the marks of each house, have no power of their own. They only receive power through their bonded mates, essentially gaining the power of all four houses.”
“What does bonding mean exactly?” I narrow my eyes at him.
“Bonding is the process of taking a life mate. It is done by sex and blood exchange. You are now bonded to me.” He clears his throat uncomfortably and drops his gaze to the side. “I will be able to find you wherever you are, and you will have access to the powers I wield. I’m unsure what level of control you will be able to achieve. It’s been several lifetimes since the last Mazza was needed.”
“We are mated for life?” I ask in a voice completely devoid of emotion. I am rather impressed with my ability to stay calm after finding out I’ve been mated. Who does he think he is?
“Yes.”
“What does that mean exactly? We are, what, like husband and wife and can never have any other bed partners?” There goes my voice higher. Damn. I thought I had it under control. “You said there can be other Mazzas. You don’t even know me or if I am the one who can absorb power! Why would you tie yourself to me?”
By the end of my tirade, I’m gripping Jari’s and Egan’s hands tightly and leaning so far forward my chest almost touches my knees. I slowly sit back up, panting and trying to get my breathing under control.
“No, I will never take another partner.” He brought his eyes back to meet mine, and it almost seems as if he’s trying to lay down some information that I’m just not picking up. “You, however, will take three more.” He pauses and lets that settle in.
“The fuck? You’re telling me your people are polyamorous?” I shout.
“No, we are not. You are the exception instead of the rule. And as for tying myself to you, from the moment you jumped into our car the night before last—” Nato tries to suppress his smile. F
ucker. “I knew that you were the one that we had been looking for. Call it a mentalist’s intuition.”
There’s another long pause. In the silence, I soak up everything he said. The others watch as Nato tries to dig himself out of this mess he created.
“And you think you four are my fated mates?” My left eyebrow rises of its own volition.
“Actually, no. You could bond to anyone. The only limit is that you can only bond to one person of each house.”
“You are okay with taking my choice away? I only agreed to get to know you all. Is this permanent?” I’m pretty sure this is what shock feels like. I can’t get a read on my real emotions. It’s almost as if I am watching this unfold through a bubble where emotions can’t penetrate.
Something like pain flashes in his eyes, and I feel a sting of regret at my words. No, that’s the bond. There is no way I would care about hurting his feelings right now.
“It is permanent. I’m sorry that this upsets you, Isolde, but I’m not sorry I bonded with you. You don’t have to like me, and you certainly don’t have to love me. The Mazzas in our history generally bond for strength and advantage. That way they have a better chance of achieving whatever they need to do.” Nato sinks to the floor and walks over to me on his knees. When he gets right in front of me, he places his hands on top of my thighs and slides his hands halfway up my legs. “But Isolde, I think we could be happy. I think we could build something beautiful together. Do you not feel what I feel when we touch?” Nato softens his voice and pushes his hands even higher on my bare thighs.
The thing is, I do feel it. I’m not as outraged as I should be, as though some part of me knows that we would be good together. Great even. I blow out a breath and close my eyes.
“I think, Nato, that I need some time alone. I want someone to take me back to my apartment.”
“I’m sorry, Issy, but we can’t take you back there.” Egan squeezes my hand still in his. “The wrong people could have seen us go into the diner yesterday and know, or at least suspect, that we have you.” His deep baritone brushes over me, and I kid you not, I shiver.
Marks of the Mazza: Reverse Harem (Mazza Series Book 1) Page 4
