by Davis, Lia;
How much more of his skin is tattooed?
She jerked her gaze away.
I don’t want to know.
“Sorry I invaded your space, I—”
“It’s your space now too.” Dex sat on the bed near her feet.
Celia pulled her legs toward her body and tried not to note the way Dex’s black shirt stretched across his wide chest. “Pardon?”
“This”—he turned his wrist toward her and tapped at the weird mark on his skin—“makes you ours, and us yours.”
Confused, she frowned before realizing she rubbed at something stinging the flesh of her wrist. She lifted her thumb and gasped at the identical mark etched onto her skin.
“Might’ve been better not to lead with that.” Nick glared at Dex, but the larger man gave him a lopsided grin without a stitch of remorse. Celia held her breath as Nick released the buttons on his shirtsleeve and rolled his sleeve back to show her an identical design on his wrist.
Simon held his arm out, and sure enough he also bore the symbol. On him, a detailed tattoo encircled the mark, as if to highlight the unique pattern.
“You tattooed me without my permission?” How had she slept through that?
“No.” As she rubbed her temples, Nick attempted to explain a confusing story about twin flames and cosmic destiny.
By the time he finished his tall tale, she gawked at him. The crazy talk scared her more than calmed her. And they stared at her like they expected something from her. Surely not excitement because—wait, if she was one part of a cosmic four, did that mean… “Does that mean you think I’m part of a foursome?”
“You are.” Dex shrugged. “We can take shit slow, as long as you need until you wrap your head around it.”
“Means you’re our mate.” Nick rolled his shirtsleeve back down and buttoned the material encircling his wrist.
“I’m human. We don’t have animalistic matings.”
Simon snorted, a sound that came across as a half-laugh-half-choke. He ran his fingers through his hair. “Human or not, that mark proves you’re ours.”
Celia laughed, but she wanted to run as fast, and as far away, as she could. What the hell had she stumbled into? “This is a twisted bear prank, right? Because I invaded your space without your permission?”
That was the only logical answer. She’d done two guys at once, but never three. Holy shit! Given their size, three at once scared her, seemed complicated too, and downright implausible. And they acted like that twin flame story was normal, everyday knowledge.
“Sorry, love, but this isn’t a joking matter.” Simon sat beside her on the bed, causing the blankets to tighten about her and the mattress to dip in his direction. He tucked hair behind her ear, and she resisted the sudden urge to lean into him. She made the mistake of breathing in his scent.
Nirvana in the air and it matched the scent of the sheets.
The bear smelled better than candy tasted. And she was an enormous junk-food fan.
She met his blue eyes and swore they glowed for a heartbeat, a well-timed reminder bears probably played with their food before they consumed it. “I think it’s time I left.”
“You’re free to leave any time you want, Celia.” Nick’s gaze pinned her in place. From the corner of her eye she caught Dex’s scowl in his direction. The lumberjack bear did not agree with Nick. “We can’t guarantee your safety if you leave.”
Her breath caught in her chest. She hadn’t identified herself, but they knew who she was. That proved their bogus intentions. Perhaps they toyed with her because they reviled her father. He’s my enemy too. But they didn’t know that. And what better way to get back at him than to go for his ‘beloved’ daughter? It was a sound move. Too bad Daniel would probably give them the five-million-reward even though he hated them.
He hates me more.
Chapter Seven
Dex
At the first glimmer of tears in her eyes, Simon hauled her onto his lap and crushed her against his chest. Dex shook his head, but it pleased him that she submitted to Simon’s hold. Then again, she wrestled to pull the hem of the shirt down to cover her ass. And from what he could tell, it was one hell of an ass. Juicy enough he couldn’t wait to sink into her tight hole.
Simon slid his fingers through her hair and kissed the top of her head. He wasn’t calling Simon a softie, never that because he was brutal when provoked, but it wouldn’t take much for Celia to wrap him around her pinkie finger. It would never do for her to think she could dominate a bear. Of course, they’d been waiting a decade for a woman to join them, so he also understood the need to coddle her.
Simon met their gaze over the top of her head. “Your father won’t touch a hair on your head.” The look in his eyes said he’d tear the heartless bastard apart before Daniel would get within a hundred mile radius of her. Might even dismember him for the joy of it at this point.
Who knew, Dex might help Simon. The instinct to protect her was real, so strong his chest grew tight and he suffocated on inexplicable rage toward her parent. He’d never felt this type of protectiveness toward Simon or Nick.
“I gotta go.” She tried to wriggle off Simon’s lap, but his bear made a throaty growl, and she froze.
“You’re not going anywhere, sweetheart.”
At Dex’s statement, she gave him an owly-eyed gape. “But Nick—”
“Nick doesn’t call all the shots.” Nick scowled at Dex letting his displeasure speak through his scowl. As alpha, at the end of the day Nick made the final call on all things. “Your dad put a bounty on your head.”
“You know the reward is a bounty?” That seemed to surprise her.
“Yes. Which means walking out of here is stupid.”
“You calling me stupid?” A blush of anger hit her cheeks, and she shoved against Simon’s chest. Dex’s buddy made him proud and held firm until she gave up the struggle and sat in Simon’s lap, glowering at Dex as if he physically restrained her and not Simon.
“I’m sure you’re plenty smart, but you’re emotional so you’re not thinking rationally.” She narrowed her gaze on Dex as he spoke, which resulted in his cock straining against his jeans. “Irrational behavior leads to stupid decision making.”
“Dex is right.” Nick crossed his arms over his chest and gave her his alpha stare, which failed to intimidate her. “I thought you’d be reasonable when reminded of the danger you’ve put yourself in.”
“You know nothing about my danger.”
“I know enough to recognize you need protection. Since you’re our mate, our twin flame, you’re precious. Important to our survival, and we protect what’s ours.”
Dex watched her features shift between emotions. From awe, to surprise, and ending with flat-out disbelief. Guess he couldn’t blame her skepticism given her parentage.
She scoffed. “Bullshit. You spin some insane tale about twin mates or some bullshit and expect me to be naïve enough to believe it. A human? I’ve been on my own long enough to know when—”
Celia squealed as Simon tumbled her to her back, grabbing her wrists and pinning them to the mattress on either side of her head. His hips settled between her spread thighs, and Dex envied his position. The imprint of his bear over his human form resulted in her going motionless beneath him.
Everyone underestimated Simon; they always did. Yeah, Simon was smaller than them, but in the bear world size didn’t matter. Of the three of them, Dex was the largest and a submissive, with Simon the smallest and the most brutal.
“I could fuck you right now, and you wouldn’t complain.” Simon lowered his head like he intended to kiss her, and she must’ve thought so too because her lips parted. “Could pass you off to Dex and Nick afterward, and you wouldn’t complain.”
Her mouth closed with an audible snap of her teeth, and she notched her chin at a rebellious slant. “What’s that prove? I’m easy? I could’ve told you that. I’ve had more cock than a Red-light district whore. One-night stands are my specialty. Daddy
wanted me virginal so I fucked everything I could, fucked two at a time because anal is a sin, and even had my share of women too.”
“Did you like anal?”
“What?” The question seemed to perplex her. “I did it to piss him off.”
“You’ll like anal with us.”
She rolled her eyes.
“Was that confession supposed to shock us?” Dex asked. “Or disgust us?” That’s what he bet. Silly girl. Far from being disgusted, he couldn’t wait to fill all her holes and fuck her until she screamed her pleasure.
She shot Dex a sidelong glare as Nick said, “She doesn’t know us very well if she thought it’d disgust us.”
“Were you as wet for them as you are us?” Simon slid his palms down her arms and along her ribcage to clasp her hips. He rocked his pelvis against hers.
Celia’s mouth fell open on a gasp, but she recovered quickly. “Hate to break it to you, my fuzzy-wuzzy teddy bear—”
“Not all that fuzzy-wuzzy,” Dex chuckled, charmed she criticized their fierceness with a childish slur.
“A fuzzy-wuzzy teddy bear wouldn’t eat you until you scream. A fuzzy-wuzzy teddy bear wouldn’t fuck you until your legs are too weak to hold you up. That’s not a boast but a fucking promise. How’s that for fuzzy-wuzzy?”
Her small pause led Dex to ponder what thoughts went through her mind.
She managed to hold Simon’s penetrating stare before whispering, “I’m not all that wet.”
“Try again. I can feel your wetness through my jeans. That’s not ordinary lust.”
“Lucky bastard.” Dex adjusted his hard-on.
A lopsided grin hit Nick’s mouth. “To be fair, Celia, you should know Simon has an uncanny ability to discern lies from truth.”
“I can scent a lie,” Simon explained. “So I repeat, were you as wet for them as you are us?”
“Yes.” The word emerged in a mulish tone. “I love cock so much I always get this wet.”
Dex shuddered at the word ‘cock’ rolling off her tongue. If she said the word too many more times, he’d be tempted to put his cock on her tongue… and then down her throat.
He couldn’t take his gaze off her and couldn’t stop admiring the way she defied Simon. The girl possessed gumption. She’d need it in a household full of bears.
“Liar.” Simon challenged. “I should wash your mouth out with my dick.”
That’s what I was thinking.
“No,” Nick’s tone brooked zero defiance. “I have another punishment in mind.”
“The fuck you will punish me!” Celia scanned the room as if she sought a weapon or an escape route.
Simon sat back on his heels, and Dex noticed the wet spot darkening his blue jeans. Fuck, but he begrudged his buddy’s proximity to her even more now. Simon skimmed his fingers along her pubic bone. “She shaves… or waxes.”
She smacked at his hands, but Nick’s, “Dex,” had Dex moving to hold her arms down over her head once again.
Restrained, Celia peered into Dex’s face. “Please.”
As an answer, he grinned. They wouldn’t force her, but resisting a newly discovered mate wasn’t uncommon either. Even bears were reluctant to give up their freedom.
“We have zero tolerance for lies, Celia.” Nick folded his arms over his chest, watching her as if gauging how to proceed.
“You lied to me when you said I could leave.” Celia sucked in a harsh breath, and her eyes snapped shut.
Dex peered down the line of her body to spy Simon’s fingers trailing about the inside of her thighs, dangerously close to her cunt. No matter how much any of them wanted to be inside her, Simon wouldn’t penetrate her. Not yet. Not until Nick gave them the go ahead, but even then she’d have to give consent.
“I did lie,” Nick agreed. “Dex can punish me while you watch.”
Her eyes jerked open, and questions lingered in her gaze. As a reply, Dex blew her a kiss.
Nick went on. “Dex and Simon are going to move away from you. Then you’re going to strip the shirt off.”
“I won’t.”
“You will.” Their alpha’s voice went deceptively soft. “If you don’t comply, I’ll turn you over my knee and spank you until you obey.”
With a front row seat to her expressive eyes, Dex watched as they dilated. “She’ll like the spanking.”
“Good to know,” Nick sounded all business-like, but he knew their leader was just as aroused as they were. And Dex had every intention of pounding Nick’s ass while she watched.
“Been erotically spanked before, love?” Simon pushed one of her knees toward her belly, and her pussy opened for them. Her eyes slid closed again, and she bit her bottom lip. Dex groaned at her scent and the sight of her glistening folds, and was surprised she made no attempt to halt Simon’s investigation. “Maybe you should spank her pussy instead, Nick.”
“I’ll do it!” Celia’s eyes went wide, and she twisted to get free.
Simon held her long enough to bend his head and kiss her directly on her clit. She gulped at his forwardness, but then Simon pushed up and away from her. Reluctant, Dex retreated as well.
Chapter Eight
Nick
It was a good thing Celia had no idea how hard she had them all. If she figured it out, she could lead them around by their dicks. Simon’s last move, kissing her clitoris, had shocked even him. Bold as far as moves went, the ink master was lucky he didn’t end up with her knee wedged in his eye. Then again, a black eye would be worth the pain of getting that close to her.
With a sassy huff, she sat up, yanked the shirt over her head, and flung the tee into Nick’s face. She crossed her arms over her breasts, hiding her nipples from their gaze. Nothing could totally hide the heavy, rounded globes of her ample tits. Somehow she twisted her legs in such a way her pussy was no longer visible either. Only the softness of her belly and bent legs remained on display.
“For that,” he said as the garment slid away and fell to the floor. “You’re not allowed any clothes for the next forty-eight hours.”
“Fuck you. You’re not the boss of me.”
“I am alpha. I am the boss of everyone.”
They engaged in a silent eye-battle of wills. He could sense the alpha inside her. No leader wanted a pushover for a mate, and he’d have to earn her respect. Each of them would. Nick welcomed the challenge, could not fucking wait to engage her. Her body already recognized them as her mates. Getting her mind on board with her body would be the tricky part.
“You’re the boss of bears.” Celia’s expression defied his rank.
Silence from Simon and Dex as they waited for his reaction. Averse to demonstrating his strength, he decided she probably required a heavy hand forcing her to submit, or she’d never respect him.
Nick grabbed her wrist and dragged her out of the bed and to her feet. Amidst her slurs, he turned her around to face the bed, and used his right palm on the back of her neck to force her to bend over. The moment her face hit the mattress, all her screeching settled down, and he pried her feet apart with his. Ass up, chest on the bed, feet spread wide, her pussy and ass saluted him in the most beautiful way.
He spanked her ass twice on each cheek.
“Ow!” she made to jerk back, but he added pressure to her neck to hold her in position.
His palm stung, so he knew she felt the slaps, but they were delivered left-handed, and he’d intentionally softened his deliverance. Nick brought his palm down over her pussy, and she pitched forward. Her fingers curled into the comforter as he rubbed his hand back and forth over her wet, intimate lips.
“In this house, I am alpha. Do you understand, Celia?”
She shifted, going onto her tippy-toes and then flat-footed again, so that his fingers scrubbed against her clit. An ingenious move Nick respected. She moaned at the contact. It was the sexiest sight he thought he might’ve ever seen and heard.
“Fuck, that’s hot.” Dex squeezed his dick through his denims. “I might blow i
n my jeans.”
“Don’t be a juvenile.” Evidence of Simon’s bear deepened his voice, but he also adjusted himself as he stared at Celia’s pussy where she masturbated herself on Nick’s fingers.
Nick slapped her pussy again, and she whimpered, trying to push back against his touch as he withdrew his hand. “Am I your alpha, Celia?”
“Yes.”
That one word impacted him in a way none other ever had. It was the first time since his youth he grappled for control of his bear.
“But only because I give you control, Nick.” His bear roared in his head at her defiance, but it was a roar of approval. “The moment I think you’re wrong, I won’t hesitate to challenge you.”
“Simon and Dex are your alphas too.”
“Gawd, yes, Nick, anything you want, just let me come.”
“Anything?” He brought his hand back to her core and circled her opening with the tip of his finger. She shuddered just enough he caught her reaction. “Agree you’re our mate.”
A moment passed before she spoke. “I can say it, but I’m guessing you want me to mean it, and I wouldn’t.”
“She’s right,” Dex said. “It’d be like her saying she loved us when she didn’t.”
“If I sensed the lie over that…” Simon clenched gobs of his hair on top of his head. “I’m not sure how my bear would react.”
Nick agreed and dropped his touch. “Stand up and show us our body.”
Celia turned her head to peer at him over her shoulder. “What happened to my orgasm?”
“Not happening right now, minx.” He adored the way her forehead furrowed detailing her displeasure.
“Fine.” She flipped over and hoisted herself off the bed, walking straight for the bathroom. “I’ll shower and handle it myself.”
