by Scarlet Day
Paige obeyed him without question and retrieved a small package from the drawer. She climbed onto the bed and knelt next to him, before rolling the condom over his hard cock. Her touch against his hypersensitive skin made him suck in his breath through his teeth.
“Get on top of me.” His balls ached with need. He needed to be inside her now.
Paige climbed on top of him and positioned herself over his stiff cock. He gripped her waist with one hand and his dick with the other and then slammed her down on him, impaling her on his full length. She cried out, and her head fell backward as she took him, causing her breasts to jut out. He knew he could stare at her like this forever and be a very happy man.
He spread his hands around her waist and hips and pulled almost all the way out of her, but then thrust his hips upward and plunged into her again. She felt so good, so tight and hot around him. He wanted to keep pounding into her, to come hard and fast, but he waited. He wanted her to come unhinged before he had his full pleasure.
He nodded at Dylan, who had been standing to the side of the bed, watching them. Dylan had already retrieved another condom and the lube from the side table and had been waiting for Matt’s signal. Dylan stripped faster than Matt had ever seen him strip before, and then he climbed on the bed behind Paige. Matt almost laughed at his friend’s eagerness as Dylan prepared Paige.
Matt tried to stay still while Dylan moved into position, but it was almost impossible once Matt felt Dylan enter Paige’s ass. Paige’s groan, combined with the added pressure and friction, was all it took to deplete Matt’s patience. He needed to move, and he thrust into Paige again, timing his movements to Dylan’s.
Paige was beautiful and breathtaking as she took everything they gave her, their groans and heavy breathing combining to drive Matt into a frenzy. She looked down at him, her hair cascading around her flushed face and brushing against his chest, and he could see the total surrender in her eyes. That surrender would be his undoing, and he knew it with every fiber of his being.
The heat and friction between them became so intense, Matt thought his body might burst into flames if he didn’t let himself come. But he wanted, needed, to watch Paige come apart first.
He stared up into Paige’s trusting eyes. “Come for me, kitten.”
He thrust hard into Paige and rubbed his thumb against her clit. She clamped down hard on his dick and cried out, which was all it took to send him over his own edge. His balls contracted, and he unloaded everything he had, rocking against her as spasms rolled through him. He heard Dylan’s strained grunt and knew all three of them were caught up together in release.
Matt’s cat growled from deep inside his head, one thought repeating over and over again. Mine. But it was a two-way street. Matt knew Paige had also claimed him. His mind, heart, and body were hers. She just didn’t know it yet.
Chapter Sixteen
Paige shifted in her seat and tried to keep a neutral expression on her face, but she wasn’t sure she was succeeding. Maybe coming to talk with her uncle while she was wearing a new butt plug hadn’t been the best idea. The damn thing was currently digging in and making her want to squirm. She just hoped Tucker wouldn’t pick up on her discomfort and ask her if something was wrong. Not that she particularly minded wearing the plug. In fact, she’d moved up two sizes since Matt and Dylan initiated the rule that she would use one whenever she wasn’t with either of them. It just had the effect of making her perpetually horny, which she was certain was the intended result the two men had in mind. The sneaky bastards.
The corner of Tucker’s mouth twitched and Paige wondered if he suspected the sexual nature of her discomfort. If he had picked up on it, thankfully he was at least trying hard to keep it to himself. The last thing she wanted was for her newfound uncle to know she’d turned into some sort of sex-crazed she-cat, even though that was exactly how she felt. Over the last ten days she’d spent every chance she could in the back rooms of the club with Matt and Dylan, learning how to be their sub. She had even started eyeing the wall of floggers with curiosity, rather than fear, though she wasn’t ready to try them out yet. So far, Matt and Dylan had only punished her with deprivation of pleasure, rather than with anything that would be painful. She had opened up about the abuse she had endured from her father, and they were taking things slow. She knew both men worried about pushing her too hard and driving her away, but she wasn’t going anywhere. At least, she hoped not, which was why she was currently sitting in Tucker’s office.
“All I need to know is if you’re happy here.” Tucker leaned back in his chair. “Do you want to stay?”
Paige shifted again, wincing a little this time as the butt plug dug in deeper. “Yes, it’s just…” She had never asked anyone for anything before and was finding it hard to get the words out.
“You need a job?” Tucker’s knowing smile spread across his face.
Paige sat there with her mouth open. “How did you know?”
“I heard you talking to Traci yesterday at the front desk.” Tucker keyed up a screen on his computer. “Is that a position you’re interested in? We’ve been swamped lately, and Traci has been working a lot of overtime, so I know she’d like some help. I can go over the job description, salary and benefits, if you’d like.”
Paige’s mind raced, trying to keep up with the speed of the conversation, which was light years faster than she’d expected. Her money was going to run out soon if she didn’t get a job, but she’d been uncomfortable approaching Tucker about it. Dylan and Matt had told her they would be more than happy to help, but she needed to do this for herself. “It’s just…I don’t want to impose on you. I understand if you don’t need another employee or if you don’t think I’m—”
“Paige, stop.” Tucker’s voice changed to that same dominant tone Matt and Dylan used on her when they were in Dom mode. It was a voice that invited no argument. “You’re my family. Even if you weren’t, you’re still a member of this pride. I told you before there will always be a place for you here, and I meant it.”
Paige swallowed hard, trying to force down the emotions threatening to surge to the surface. She still wasn’t used to being treated with a possessiveness born out of kindness and sincere concern for her well-being. There were times, like now, when it threatened to overwhelm her.
She nodded. “Yes, sir.”
The corner of Tucker’s mouth twitched up again. “I’m glad that’s settled, then. I’ve watched you interact while you’ve been here, and I think you’d do well at the front desk, so we’ll try you out there, if that’s okay. If you decide you don’t like it or would like to try something else, we’ll move you around until you’re comfortable.” He pulled up another screen on his computer and then his desktop printer whirred. “I’m printing out the details of the job and pay schedule. I’ll work on your schedule tonight, but why don’t you start shadowing Traci tomorrow?”
Paige nodded, fighting back tears of relief and gratitude. “Thank you, Tucker. Really, you have no idea how much this means to me.”
“Oh, I think I might.” Tucker pulled the papers off the printer and handed them to her. “Which brings me to something else I wanted to talk to you about.” He leaned back in his high-backed leather chair again and studied her. “Next to Colt, Matt is one of my oldest and best friends.”
Paige’s insides clenched with dread and panic. Was Tucker about to tell her he didn’t approve of her being with his best friend? Matt had said Tucker was okay with it, but she hadn’t heard it directly from Tucker. Maybe he’d changed his mind. She squirmed under Tucker’s intense gaze, feeling as though she might as well have had a laser beam directed right through her.
“I never thought he’d find happiness again. I’m glad he’s finding it with you.” Tucker’s unexpected words washed over Paige. “I’ve already spoken to both Matt and Dylan. None of you need my permission, of course. But I just wanted all of you to know you have my blessing, both as your uncle and as pride leader.”
; Paige tried to suppress the tears that sprang to her eyes. She failed as one escaped and slid down her cheek. “Thank you, Tucker. I’ve never felt so accepted—” A sob choked off the rest of her sentence.
Tucker sprang from his seat and then pulled her out of her chair, wrapping his arms around her in a hug. “Shh. I’m just glad you came to us. And I’m really glad you’re staying.”
A muffled shout pulled them out of the hug. Tucker bolted to his office door and yanked it open, allowing them to hear the voice making all the racket from the direction of the lobby.
“Where’s Paige? Where’s my fucking daughter, dammit?” The man’s shout sent ice cold dread through Paige’s veins. Her cat cowered in the corner of her mind, just as she felt like cowering under Tucker’s big wooden desk.
“Oh my God, it’s my father.” Her voice was a hollow whisper in her own ears. “He found me.” She tried not to panic, but her breathing sped up into shallow gasps.
Tucker spun around to look at her. “I’ll handle this. Try to stay calm.” Tucker grabbed a rifle from the rack on the wall and then turned back to her. “Stay here.” She opened her mouth to protest, but he cut her off. “That’s an order, Paige. Do you understand?”
Paige nodded, recognizing the low timbre that only a very strong Dom and an alpha pride leader could possibly possess. He would take no argument.
Tucker raced out of the room, slamming the heavy wooden door behind him and leaving Paige’s feet rooted to the floor in fear and dread.
Chapter Seventeen
Matt took the stairs up from the club three at a time, having just received a call from Traci at the front desk telling him there was big trouble, and he’d better get his ass to the lobby, pronto. When he reached the top of the stairs and rounded the corner, he almost came to a screeching halt at the sight in front of him.
Tucker stood in the middle of the lobby, pointing a rifle at another man. And that other man was pointing a shotgun back at Tucker. Matt approached slowly, torn between not wanting to make any sudden moves and wanting to rip the head off whoever dared threaten his pride leader with lethal harm.
“Where is she?” The angry voice of the unknown man roared through the lobby.
“Lower your gun, Nate. Then we can talk about this rationally.” Tucker’s words sent a chill through Matt.
Nate. Nate Matthews. Paige’s father.
“Like hell.” Nate spat the words at Tucker. “I want my daughter out here right this fucking minute.”
“Why?” Matt stalked toward the man, no longer caring that he was holding a gun. “Why do want her? So you can abuse her some more?”
Nate turned the gun on Matt. “Stop, or I swear I’ll blow your fucking brains all over this nice floor!”
Matt stopped, but what he really wanted to do was rip the bastard’s heart out with his bare hands.
Nate swung the gun back to Tucker. “She’s mine. You’ve got no right to keep her here.”
“How do you even know she’s here?” Tucker’s voice held a calmness that Matt knew his friend wasn’t feeling.
“You think I can’t smell my own daughter? Her scent is stinkin’ up the whole range. She thought she could throw me off her trail by makin’ me think she went to Denver, but I finally figured out she wasn’t there. By the time I got back home, I could smell her. Little slut. Who’s she been screwin’ here?”
Matt bolted forward. “You son of a bitch—” He stopped when the gun turned on him again.
“No!” Paige’s voice cut through the room as she ran across the lobby and then threw herself in front of Matt, standing between him and the barrel of her father’s gun.
Tucker growled. “Dammit, Paige, I told you to stay in my office.”
Paige glanced at Tucker. “I couldn’t stay in there. I just couldn’t.”
Matt reached for Paige’s arm, intending to pull her behind him, but she shrugged out of his reach before he could get a grip on her.
“So you’ve been screwin’ Matt, have you?” Nate scoffed and narrowed his gaze at Matt. “Yeah, I remember you. You, Colt, and Tuck hardly ever went anywhere without one another. It’s a damn shame you all weren’t out on the run that night.”
“And how is it you survived when everyone else died?” Tucker’s steely voice told Matt his friend was reaching the end of his patience. Someone was about to get hurt, and Matt would put money on who that someone would be.
Nate spat on the floor. “Damn hunters. It wasn’t supposed to be everyone. It was just supposed to be your bastard father.”
Shock blasted through Matt’s mind. He glanced at Tucker, whose jaw tightened.
Tucker’s face had hardened into an expressionless mask. “What the hell is that supposed to mean?”
Nate laughed, a hard, humorless sound. “I paid a hunter to take down your father so I could finally take over the pride. Your stubborn son-of-a-bitch dad refused to accept my challenge for the pride when I mated his sister. Never did like me and treated me like shit. I finally got tired of it. But the damn hunter got drunk and brought a bunch of his drunk buddies with him. As soon as they saw the pack, they started shooting. Bunch of fuckin’ morons.” Nate spat again. “By the time they got done, I knew there wouldn’t be enough of a pack left to lead. Just a few of you snot-nosed kids, and I’d be damned if I was gonna put up with all of you. So I took what was mine, your aunt and Paige and Devon, and left.”
Matt felt as though all the blood in his veins had turned to ice, but then heat slowly began to work its way through his veins, turning his vision red with rage. His mate, all the other pride members, had died just because of one selfish bastard. His vision blurred around the edges. He knew he was close to shifting and ripping Nate’s head off with his bare fangs, but Paige still stood in front of him, right in Nate’s line of fire. He reached out and grasped Paige by the wrist. He tugged hard, wanting to move her behind him. She resisted again and jerked her wrist out of his hand.
He glanced to his right and saw Dylan with a furious expression on his face, his body in a semi crouch, apparently just as close to shifting as he was. He knew this standoff couldn’t last much longer. Someone was about to get hurt, and he’d be damned if that person was Paige.
“Paige, get behind me.” He used his Dom voice, just so she knew he wasn’t in the mood for argument or rebellion. “Now.”
She shifted her weight from one foot to the other, but otherwise didn’t move. Matt fumed. She was so getting a spanking when this was over.
“I’ll go with him.” Her voice was almost a whisper.
Matt wasn’t sure he’d heard Paige correctly. “Excuse me?”
“Dad, I’ll go with you. Just don’t hurt anyone here.”
Matt’s anger exploded. “Like hell you will!”
Paige turned on him, pain and anger on her face. “I’m not going to let anyone get hurt for me.”
Matt reached out and gripped her by the upper arms. “You aren’t going anywhere.” He picked her up and spun around, depositing her directly behind him. He dropped into the most domineering voice he had. “Don’t move. I mean it, Paige. Do not challenge me on this.”
Paige’s eyes went wide, and she opened her mouth, likely to protest. But then she dropped her gaze and Matt recognized the submissive stance her body slid into. He turned back around to face Nate, careful to keep his body squarely in front of Paige.
“Enough of this.” Tucker’s harsh words drew everyone’s attention. “She’s not leaving Nate, but you are. You can walk out of here and never come back. Or not. Your choice.”
No one moved. Matt doubted anyone even breathed. He certainly didn’t. The lobby was so quiet, his ears and eyes completely focused on Nate for the slightest movement as he stared down the barrel of Nate’s gun.
And then it all seemed to happen at once and in slow motion.
Matt saw Nate’s finger tighten on the shotgun’s trigger, the mechanism clicking as he pulled. At the same time, Dylan’s shape blurred and sprang toward Nate.
His clothes flew off him in shreds as he transformed in midair. Matt spun and grabbed Paige, throwing both of them sideways as he dove for the floor. The sound of rifle fire rang out at the same time the shotgun blast ripped through the air. A quick flash of pain shot through Matt’s side, but he kept moving. He wrapped his arms around Paige, his body covering her completely by the time they hit the floor.
As fast as it happened, it was over. Matt raised his head and looked around. Nate was on the ground, Dylan on top of him in his cat form with his teeth sunk into the side of Nate’s neck. Nate wasn’t moving. Matt looked down at Paige, who was staring up at him with wide eyes and a combination of shock and fear on her face.
“Are you okay?” His eyes skimmed down her body, but he didn’t see any obvious damage.
“I–I think so.” She shifted under him. “Might be a little bruised. What about you?”
“I’m fine—” But Matt flinched as he started to roll off Paige.
“Matt, stay still. You’re bleeding.” Tucker’s concerned voice grew closer as he approached Matt from behind. Matt felt his friend’s hands on his back and felt his shirt being pulled out of his jeans and lifted up over his back. “It’s not bad.” Tucker sighed heavily, relief evident in his voice. “Looks like a few buckshot pellets, but they only grazed you across the lower back. We’ll get you cleaned up and bandaged.” Tucker offered his hand, and Matt let him help pull him off the floor.
Matt pulled Paige up with him. Her stare was directed at the crumpled figure under Dylan.
Tucker walked over to Nate’s prone body, where Dylan still had a death grip on Nate’s throat. He leaned down and put his hand on Dylan’s shoulder. “Dylan, son, you can let go now. It’s okay. It’s over.”
Dylan blinked several times and then withdrew his fangs from Nate’s neck. Blood ran freely from the teeth marks and pooled on the floor under Nate, mixing with the blood from the head wound plainly visible from Tucker’s well-aimed rifle shot. Matt wasn’t sure which had actually gotten to him first and killed him, the bullet or Dylan’s assault on Nate’s jugular vein. Dylan slowly backed away, his snout covered in blood. He cast what appeared to be an apologetic look to Paige and then circled around behind Matt, disappearing down the main hallway.
