A Twin Valentine [Moonlight Shifters 8] (Siren Publishing Ménage Amour)

by Morgan Fox

  “What?”

  “I wanted to marry you, blockhead. I wanted to have babies with you. I wanted to be your wife. I’ve wanted that for as long as I can remember. I didn’t think you and Luken wanted anything more from me than—”

  “Don’t say it,” Luken muttered in a guttural tone, standing in the doorway. “You’ve always meant more to us than just a fuck, Tabitha. You had to have known that.”

  * * * *

  Tabitha frowned, her eyes widening as Luken entered the room. He caught her scent as he ran, almost ignoring it for fear he was wrong. He couldn’t handle the disappointment. But as he approached the house, he heard her voice and prayed he wasn’t dreaming. Now as he stared at her, heard the words parting from her lips, he was more furious than he’d ever been.

  “You two never once said anything to me about our future together,” she argued, stepping back as they crowded her.

  Luken laughed harshly. “Did we really have to?”

  “Yes,” she shouted, tossing her hands in the air as the frustration they all felt filled the room. “I needed to hear it. I needed to see it. I was sick of watching everyone we knew marry and pop out babies while we stayed stagnant.”

  “Content,” Luken corrected. “We were content, but we still wanted a forever with you, Tabitha. That doesn’t change with or without a wedding ring or vows.” He closed in on her, practically bumping her with his bare, sweat-covered chest. “I wanted you to be mine forever.”

  “Wanted…as in past tense?”

  He blew out a burst of air. He wanted to tell her forever meant forever, but he couldn’t. He turned from her, more anger firing his blood. “I need a damn shower,” he muttered, moving into the bathroom.

  How had things gotten so skewed between them? How had they lived as mates and been perfect strangers? The difference between men and women would forever stump him.

  He washed the dirt and sweat from his body and tensed as he heard the door to the bathroom open and close. Her scent immediately filled his nose and he closed his eyes briefly, praying he could remain calm and speak with her with a level head.

  He glanced down at her fingers as they gently brushed over his arm. Standing outside the shower stall, she said, “Please don’t be angry with me. That’s not why I came home.”

  “Why did you come here, Tabby?” he snapped. “I heard Ryken ask you if it was to collect your things or not. If it is, get on with it. This talking shit is torture.”

  He turned back around and let the water cascade over his face. The rushing water filled his ears, but it was the sudden charge of his heart that sent him spinning to face her. He looked at her and swallowed hard.

  “Ryken,” Luken shouted. “Get in here.”

  Ryken entered the bathroom, still wearing a towel around his hips. “What?” he barked.

  Luken turned off the water and reached for a towel, draping it around his hips. Looking at his mate, he told her, “We’re together now, so talk. You can start by telling us why you’re wearing our engagement ring.”

  Chapter Nine

  Tabitha swallowed the nervousness that choked her. Staring at both Ryken and Luken was difficult. Especially since both men only had towels covering their well-muscled, very tight, and more-than-sexy bodies. She moistened her lips, her breath more erratic than it should be.

  God, I missed them.

  “Let’s talk in here.” She moved into the bedroom and waited for them to join her.

  Ryken and Luken both had the same arched brow as they stared at her. She couldn’t believe how hard it was to speak. She’d rehearsed her words a dozen times.

  Okay. This is it. It’s time to tell them the truth of what’s in my heart.

  “I’ve accepted the position on the board of my aunt’s cosmetic company.” Ryken growled, Luken’s jaw ticked, and Tabitha couldn’t breathe. “But I have every intention to marry you if you still want me.” Ryken’s eyes rounded, Luken furrowed his brow, and Tabitha couldn’t breathe. “Please tell me you still want me and that I haven’t ruined everything.”

  Ryken took a step toward her. “I don’t remember asking,” he said harshly, making her take a step back.

  She gaped at him. “Wait. You gave me this ring just before you left Seattle.”

  “I put the box on the table,” Ryken corrected coldly.

  Staring down at her ring finger, her eyes watered. “Is this not an engagement ring?”

  Luken drew near, his gaze menacing. “How will you be on the board if you live here?”

  She paused, shifting her attention to Luken. “I’m keeping the house, and I’ll be traveling there once a month for work. Otherwise, I can teleconference when needed.”

  “So you want to live with us at McCarthy Ranch, then?” Luken asked.

  She nodded. “Of course, I do,” she said matter-of-factly. “It’s my home.”

  Ryken said nothing as he stalked from the room. When she found him, he was sitting on the sofa with his face in his hands. She sat on the coffee table in front of him and slowly peeled his hands away. His eyes were glistening with tears. He stared at the engagement ring she wore as he took her hand in his, brushing his fingers over her skin.

  “I put it on the night you left, and I haven’t taken it off since. I don’t ever want to take it off.” She placed her free hand on his cheek. “Am I too late, Ryken? Have I messed up our chances at a future together?”

  He chuckled, shaking his head. “I’ve been asking myself that very question since the day you left for Seattle.”

  She smiled shyly. “I’m sorry you and I are so stubborn. We really know how to screw shit up, don’t we?”

  He released a breathy laugh. “We sure do.”

  She squeezed his hand. “I’d say we make quite the pair.”

  “Or threesome,” he corrected, with an arched brow.

  “I like that too,” she told him, smiling.

  Ryken slid from the sofa and dropped to his knees in front of her, took her hand, and pressed it to his chest. She gasped, feeling the pounding of his heart. “Marry me, Tabitha. Spend the rest of your life with me. Have babies with me. But please don’t ever leave me again.”

  “Ryken,” she whimpered, wrapping her arms around him in a fierce hug. “I’ll never leave you again. I promise.”

  Luken scoffed. “Seriously? You asked her without me?”

  She laughed. “You two are never going to make things easy on me, are you?”

  Luken knelt beside her, taking her other hand in his. “No. Never.”

  “Marry us,” Ryken said, “But marry me first.”

  “Hey,” Luken breathed, shoving his brother. “She wanted me first, remember?”

  “The way I remember it, you were too slow to do anything, and I had to go in and show her how a real lycan—”

  Tabitha cleared her throat, waving her hand at them both. “Um, I’m about to say yes to a marriage proposal. Do you think you could give me a second to do that before you go off on each other?”

  “Then say yes,” Ryken ordered. “I’m ready to start celebrating our engagement.” She laughed as he hauled her up in his arms. “I’ve missed my mate.”

  “Then yes, I’ll marry you.”

  He tossed Tabitha over his shoulder and took her back into the bedroom. Lowering her feet to the floor, he stripped her in seconds, letting everything pile up on the ground beside them.

  “We really do have sex like rabbits,” Tabitha said as Ryken placed her on the bed.

  He rolled his eyes at her. “And your point?”

  “We haven’t used protection in…I can’t remember when, and I’ve never gotten pregnant. Maybe I can’t.” Her heart pinched as she considered a life without having children with them.

  The corner of Ryken’s mouth quirked upward. “I’ll try harder.”

  She grinned, appreciating his playfulness, but still knowing he was serious. Her stomach rolled as she considered another reason. “What if I’m the problem? What if something’s wrong with
me?”

  He cupped her face in his hand. “We’ll go to a specialist. We’ll do what normal people do when they try to get pregnant. Tabitha Burns, one way or another, you, Luken, and I are going to have a family. I won’t rest until it’s done.”

  She smiled, feeling the dip in the bed as Luken joined them. “There’s also Brie. She can probably work some kind of fertility thing and magically make you have a litter.”

  She laughed harder, the idea of a dozen pups tugging at her was not exactly what she had in mind. “Let’s not do that, then, okay?”

  Her mates chuckled. “I say we stop talking, make love, and then tell everyone the good news. I’m sure Brie will be eager to help you start planning the wedding.”

  “I don’t need anything extravagant. I just need you. Forever.”

  Luken shook his head. “Babe, you had us the second we saw you.”

  The warmth of the smile that moved across her face had the breath parting from her lips just a bit faster. She spread her legs for Ryken to slip between them, welcoming him as he slid inside her. Luken kissed her, driving away all the madness they’d faced over the last week.

  Then Luken fisted his hand in her hair and held her firmly. She gasped at the sharp pull. His eyes were more intense than she’d ever seen them.

  “Before we do anything, I need to say something. Don’t ever do that to us again. Next time you have fears, doubts, or concerns, whatever it is, you talk to us. Do I make myself clear?”

  She nodded.

  Ryken groaned, eyeing his brother “Feel better now?”

  “Much,” Luken said, grinning.

  “Good. Now I’d like to see about impregnating my soon-to-be wife if you don’t mind.”

  She laughed, loving the two men that were chosen to belong to her forever. She didn’t want to waste another moment. Reaching up, she gripped Ryken behind the head and drew him down for a kiss, a kiss that had her toes curling and her heart revving faster. Then she turned her attention to Luken who stole her breath as he took possession of her mouth.

  They made love for days, only coming up for air and food. This time together was different for the three of them. This time her heart was full of not only love, but of a commitment that would last forever.

  “By the way, we’re getting married today?” Ryken said, slipping from the bed.

  “What?” Tabitha asked, surprised he actually wanted to leave the bed and thinking he was kidding.

  “I want you as my bride, Tabitha. I want it very much and nothing will stop me from having what I want.”

  She let out a girlish giggle as both Ryken and Luken pulled her up from the bed. “Do you have something to wear?”

  “You’re serious, aren’t you?” She looked from Ryken to Luken.

  Luken nodded. “Sebastian will host the wedding for our pack. Everyone’s already arrived.”

  “Wait. How did everyone already know—” Tabitha furrowed her brow, and then she sighed, realizing that Brie had somehow figured it all out. Her best friend was full of surprises.

  Ryken arched a brow. “Brie did that magical weird shit and spoke to me after you arrived. She said that when we finished we should go to their house.”

  “And?”

  Luken took Tabitha’s hand. “Get dressed and let’s go find out.”

  * * * *

  Ryken, Tabitha, and Luken entered Sebastian’s home and were immediately greeted by all of their friends—Jonah, Tiffany, Zane, Dominic, Megan, Reyes, Ryder, Bianca, and Brody. After a million hugs Tabitha finally had a second to look at all that Brie had done for them. The house was aglow in candlelight and white tulle. White and red roses were placed on all the tables and the floor was blanketed in rose petals.

  A perfect Valentines wedding.

  Tabitha’s eyes watered as Brie approached her. “I can’t believe you did all this,” Tabitha said, hugging her. “I don’t know what to say.”

  “‘I do’ sounds about right,” Brie said with a wink. “You look lovely, by the way.”

  Tabitha smirked. “Thank you. Somehow this dress magically showed up in my closet.”

  “Hm, how cool is that?”

  She hugged her best friend again. “You’re amazing. Thank you for doing all of this for us.”

  “Are we about ready?” Sebastian asked, taking his position at the front of the room.

  “You better get up there,” Brie said, eyeing Ryken and Luken who had their hands outstretched for Tabitha. “Looks like your mates are eager to have you join them.”

  She kissed Brie’s cheek and moved up the aisle to stand between them. She wished she could’ve said she remembered every detail of the night, every word spoken, but she didn’t. What she remembered was the look in her lover’s eyes as they said their vows, promising her forever. She remembered the feel of their hands pressed against hers and the connection that ignited between them.

  Once again the mating bond was present, merely suppressed by her fear and doubt. She had no fear anymore and no reason to doubt that her future wasn’t going to be exactly how she’d always dreamed it would. She had a new career, and a bit of independence, but most of all, she had the love of two men—men who wanted her as much as she wanted them.

  As Ryken and Luken took turns kissing her, she quivered. The excitement of being their wife coming true as Sebastian announced them as a married, mated pair. Ryken and Tabitha McCree. Luken and Tabitha McCree. They were hers and she was theirs. The moment was perfect.

  The celebration began. Music played. Food was eaten. Wine shared. As the laughter and joy of the night swirled around her, making her feel light as a feather, her mates approached her. Their eyes were trained on her in a way she’d seen a million times before.

  She wrapped her arms around them, taking turns kissing them. “Hello, husbands,” she said, a warm burst washing over her.

  “I like the sound of that,” Luken said, kissing her again.

  She purred, savoring his lips a bit longer. “Me too.”

  “How about we go home and start working on building our family?” Ryken suggested, already leading her toward the door.

  She laughed, holding their hands and brushing a finger over the rings she’d placed on their fingers. Her heart leapt, overcome with the need to be with her lovers, her mates, her husbands. “I think that sounds like a wonderful idea.”

  And it was.

  THE END

  WWW.MORGANFOXAUTHOR.COM

  ABOUT THE AUTHOR

  Morgan Fox currently resides in Texas and has been writing romance for as long as she can remember. As a teenager she wrote dozens of short stories about love, loss, danger, and of course the seductive bad boy.

  A graduate from the University of Texas at Dallas, she was raised in Florida but navigated to Texas as quickly as she could. Most days, you can find Morgan on her computer, diving headlong into her fierce imagination, where anything can happen.

  When not writing, or thinking about writing, she enjoys cycling with her husband and reading all kinds of romance novels. Finding time for all things she loves can be challenging, but with a supportive husband, all things are possible.

  For all titles by Morgan Fox, please visit

  www.bookstrand.com/morgan-fox

  Siren Publishing, Inc.

  www.SirenPublishing.com