Protecting the Pack

by Tabitha Conall

  Her heart broke. She knew he’d had to fight and he’d done it for them as much as for their pack, but it hurt to see him in so much pain.

  “It probably will,” Ben said. “But then we’ll get upstairs and you’ll be in bed and the pain will be over.”

  “For a while,” Chris said.

  “Until morning.” Ben moved behind Chris and put his hands on Chris’ hips. “I’ll help you as much as I can, but there’s not room for us to go up side by side. Just take it one step at a time.”

  Several minutes later, Chris stood at the top of the stairs, a sheen of sweat on his brow. “Sophia might be right about a few days of bed rest.”

  Alex could barely believe he was even admitting he hurt. He hated to show any weakness; if she knew anything about him, she knew that. But they were his mates. He trusted them. A warmth spread through her chest.

  They undressed Chris and put him to bed. Alex knelt beside him and stroked his hair until he drifted off. Then she went downstairs.

  Ben was in the family room watching television, sprawled on the couch. He patted the seat between his legs. “Come sit with me.”

  She sat down with her back to his chest and rested against him. “It kills me to see him like that.”

  Ben wrapped his arms around her, resting his cheek against hers. “Me too. But he’ll be okay.”

  “I know.”

  “At least Brett’s gone for good.” A hint of something—smugness?—tinged his voice.

  “And we’re safe. And we’ve found each other.”

  “And everything’s good.” His hands rubbed her belly. “You know, just because Chris can’t have sex tonight doesn’t mean we can’t.”

  “But doesn’t that seem wrong, to leave him out? Won’t he be hurt?”

  “Do you feel hurt that Chris and I had sex that first night?”

  She hadn’t even thought about it that way. “No.”

  “I figure we’ll mostly have sex together, all three of us. But that doesn’t mean we always have to. Just like we’ll have a relationship with all three of us, but also between each of the two of us. And that’s okay.”

  That’s how it was with her parents. Not the sex part—she didn’t know about that—but the relationship part. They even went out on dates and stuff, just two of them at a time. Although she partly thought that was so the third one could stay home and babysit.

  Ben slid his hands under her shirt, rubbing the skin of her belly. “Sound okay?” One of his thumbs brushed the underside of her breast.

  “Yeah, it does.”

  “Good.” His hands covered her breasts completely. “Just keep watching TV. We’re going to do this nice and slow.”

  She laughed. “A man’s greatest fantasy—TV and sex at the same time.”

  “Damn straight.” His fingers tugged at her nipples through her bra. They beaded in seconds, becoming tight points of need that he flicked with the edge of his fingernails.

  Alex squirmed a little as her pussy became wet. If he was going to do this to her, it was only fair she tease him right back. What could she do?

  She drew her nails up his thighs, but figured he probably didn’t feel it that much through his jeans.

  “Relax,” he said in her ear. “Let me do the work.” One of his hands roamed down her body to settle between her legs.

  She had jeans on, too, so she figured she wouldn’t be able to feel anything. But he suddenly closed his hand over her, gripping her tightly, then letting go.

  Her pussy gushed. Somehow he’d hit her exactly where her clit was, and hard enough, hard…wonderfully hard.

  But he moved his hand away, bringing it back to her tits with the other one.

  A commercial came on the television. Ben immediately shifted her, one hand coming out from under her shirt and tipping her head back so he could kiss her. His tongue stroked hers. Alex held on to his shoulder, squeezing him, trying to hold him in place.

  They kissed for a few minutes and then Ben lifted his head. “Commercial’s over.”

  “What if I don’t want to stop kissing?”

  He gave her a peck. “There will be more of that later.” He rearranged her back to where she’d been before and slid his hands back under her shirt.

  “Is there going to be intercourse at the end of all this?” she said.

  His breath felt warm against her ear. “Do you think man’s greatest fantasy wouldn’t end in an orgasm?”

  She chuckled. This was perhaps the strangest sex she’d had yet, but it was fun. And her mate was happy.

  Ben unbuttoned and unzipped her jeans. He left them like that and returned to playing with her tits.

  “You’re a tease,” she said.

  “Today I am.” He kissed her under her ear. His fingers pulled at her bra, tugging the cups down until they sat under her breasts. Then he pulled at her nipples. Not enough to hurt, just enough to feel good. Good, and super-sensitive.

  Another commercial came on.

  Ben flipped her around so she lay on her back on the couch. He lay on his side beside her, one leg resting between hers. In seconds, he’d pushed up her shirt to bare her breasts and latched his mouth onto one nipple.

  Alex threaded her fingers through his hair and moaned. “Good.”

  While he sucked and licked one nipple, he played with the other, still pulling at it, stretching it, then releasing it.

  Alex rubbed his shoulders but when she tried to reach down and stroke his cock through his jeans, he pushed her hand away.

  “Not time for that yet.”

  “You’re not hard?”

  “I’m hard as a rock. But I want to draw this out.”

  She’d said he could be in charge. For today. “Okay.” She leaned back, just running her hands over his shoulders and head.

  This time when the show came back on, he didn’t stop. After a few minutes, he switched breasts, lying more fully on her in the process. She loved the feel of him heavy on top of her like that.

  After a while, he rose above her to run his teeth over her marks, not biting down, just teasing.

  “Are you trying to make me come?” Because playing with her marks was a surefire way to do that.

  “Soon. Not yet.” He rolled off her enough so he could push her pants down to her upper thighs. His hand settled over her mound on top of her panties, lightly rubbing and tapping at her clit. “I can smell your arousal.”

  She smiled. “So can I.”

  Ben laughed then kissed her, pushing his finger hard against her clit at the same time. Her hips bucked but she didn’t come. Yet. He went back to that light rubbing—not quite enough to push her over the edge, but plenty enough to tease.

  Such a tease.

  She noticed he hadn’t looked at the television in quite a while.

  “Would you like me to go down on you?” he said.

  Alex wrapped her arms around his neck. “You’re asking? I thought you were in charge today.”

  One edge of his mouth tipped upward. “That’s right, I am.” He nodded. “I’m going down on you.”

  “You know you don’t need to ask. Ever. That’s something that I will always say yes to.”

  “Oh, yeah?” His hand left her pussy to trace up her side, almost tickling. “What if we’re in public?”

  “Then no.”

  “Or in the car in a parking lot somewhere?”

  “Are there people around?”

  “What if there are other people in the house?”

  “Okay, almost always. I’ll almost always say yes.”

  Ben grinned. “I’m going to put that to the test.” Before she could answer, he grabbed her jeans and yanked.

  He probably meant to pull them off her legs in one smooth move, but they were tight and she was lying down and it just didn’t work quite right. He wriggled one way then the other, pulling at them. Alex started giggling, covering her mouth so she wouldn’t wake Chris.

  “Oh, so that’s how it is?” Ben jerked her jeans off the rest o
f the way. He put one knee on the couch and leaned over her. “You’re laughing at me?”

  Chapter 17

  Alex took big breaths, trying to stop laughing.

  Ben tickled her side. “You’re laughing at me. Go ahead, keep laughing.” He brought his other hand into play, tickling her on both sides of her belly.

  “Stop!” She couldn’t catch her breath.

  “Are you sorry for laughing at me?”

  She gasped in air, unable to stop laughing. “Yes, yes!”

  “All right, then.” His hands skimmed down her hips, hooked in her panties and yanked them down her legs. This time the move worked flawlessly.

  Still trying to breathe, she lay pliant as he spread her legs wide, draping one foot over the edge of the couch.

  He gazed down at her. “That’s what I want.” After kneeling, he tilted her hips up and spread her even wider, pulling her pussy lips apart.

  Alex lifted her head. “What are you doing?”

  “Just looking. This is my pussy now.”

  “Really?” she said. “Are you going to do the periods and childbirth too?”

  Ben chuckled. “Fine. It’s not mine. I’m just borrowing it.”

  She didn’t know if that description was any better but decided to let it go. There was a grain of truth in it, after all. No one other than Ben or Chris would touch her pussy for the rest of her life. She liked that idea.

  Ben settled himself between her legs, his mouth hovering over her. He started with a light kiss against her lips, then touched just the tip of his tongue to her clitoris and waggled it up and down, the strokes getting longer then slipping between her lips to slide down the strip of clit that sat between them.

  His tongue slipped into her pussy a few times but he concentrated on licking her clit for several minutes before sucking it into his mouth.

  Her hips bucked. “Yes.”

  Ben pushed down on her thighs to hold her in place, continuing to suck on her clit while lightly rubbing it with his tongue.

  Alex ran her hand over his head. “Coming,” she whimpered.

  A few seconds later, she rolled into an orgasm that undulated through her body. Ben held on the entire time, continuing to massage her clit with his mouth. The orgasm finally stopped, but Ben didn’t.

  Alex looked down her body at him. “It’s finished.”

  “I’m not.” He licked her some more, pressing one of his thumbs into her pussy while still sucking on her clit. His finger slid in and out of her in a wet, steady rhythm.

  He kept it up for a few minutes as her body slowly warmed up again, picking up speed, steaming toward another orgasm. She fell over the edge into a well of shaking shuddering pleasure even more intense than the first time.

  This time Ben licked her gently, his pace slowing as her body eased. He stayed there a moment, his finger sliding up and down her clit. “Ready for more?”

  “Dunno.”

  “Good. Turn over. I want to fuck you from behind.”

  “Don’t you want me to go down on you?” she said.

  Ben paused for a second. “No, not this time. I want to be inside you now. So get on your hands and knees.” He helped her up, stripping off her top and bra at the same time, then arranged her with one knee on the couch and one foot on the floor. She leaned forward on her elbows, which meant her hips were high up behind her.

  At the shushing of clothing behind her, Alex peeked. Ben had pulled off his t-shirt and shucked his jeans as she watched. What a beautiful body he had, all muscles and hard male. His cock jutted out, long and thick.

  As he settled onto the couch behind her, Alex canted her hips so he’d have easier access to her pussy. Without a word, he slid the head of his cock over her pussy lips and then pushed inside.

  Ben squeezed her hips as he thrust all the way inside her. “So good.” His balls slapped against her clit on every stroke. Leaning forward, his chest pressing against her back, he said, “Wanna come again?”

  “Yeah.” At this rate, it wouldn’t take much.

  He reached under her and found her clit, rubbing the slippery nubbin as he continued to thrust into her. “Feel good?”

  She moaned in reply. She heard herself making little cries and whimpers as she got closer and closer, and buried her face in her hands to muffle the sound. Didn’t want to wake Chris.

  Ben alternated rubbing with pressing hard against her clit. Within seconds, she came. Her legs shook so hard she nearly bucked him off. He sat up straight, dug his fingers in her hips and kept going.

  Then he pulled out. His fingers slid inside her a few times and then he pressed his cock into her. She couldn’t figure out what he was doing until he rubbed his slick fingers over her puckered hole.

  “You seemed to like the anal.” He pushed a finger into her.

  Did he mean to do that now? “Yes.”

  “Then you won’t mind if I play with you a little.” His finger slid in and out of her at the same tempo as his cock.

  She was having trouble catching her breath. “I don’t mind.”

  “One day very soon I’m going to fuck your ass,” he said. “Me and Chris both.”

  “Not at the same time.” There were limits.

  “Of course not. Someone has to be in your pussy.”

  She chortled, her forehead hitting the couch. “Ben—”

  ”You gonna come again, honey?”

  “Yes.” Her voice sounded all breathy.

  “Good. And then I’m going to come too.” He increased his tempo.

  She couldn’t hold on. “Ben—”

  He quickly leaned forward and bit her shoulder hard, right where he’d marked her.

  Her body exploded. She no longer had control, didn’t remember to be quiet, couldn’t control the clenching, shuddering, pulsing waves that moved through her.

  With a loud moan, he pushed deep, deeper, and then she felt his body tighten around her as he came.

  At length, he removed his teeth from her shoulder and maneuvered the two of them onto their sides, facing the television. He kissed her shoulder as he held her tight against him. “Too bad we can’t rewind the show. I think I missed a few things.”

  ***

  Two days later, Chris sat at the kitchen table while Alex fixed dinner.

  “After dinner, we’re going to the bar for an hour or two.” If he didn’t show his face at the bar soon, his pack might realize how injured he was. They’d seen the wounds but they didn’t need to know how much it hurt.

  “You’ve got to be kidding,” Alex said. “The wounds are still oozing.”

  He winced. “We’ll put a new bandage on before we leave. But my pack needs to see me. No choice.”

  Ben walked into the kitchen. “Here’s the milk you wanted.”

  He’d gone to the grocery. With three people in the house instead of just one, they went through food a lot faster than Chris was used to.

  Alex swung around brandishing her spatula. “Chris wants to go to the bar tonight.”

  Ben pressed his lips together. “I’m not sure that’s such a good idea. You’re not healed yet.”

  “They need to see I’m not hurt,” Chris said.

  “I feel safer with you here,” Ben said. “They can’t get at you here.”

  “They’re my pack. They don’t want to get at me.”

  “Really? You don’t have a single pack member who’d like to be Alpha?” Ben pulled groceries out of the bags he’d carried in and set them on the counter. “Now would be the perfect time to challenge you. And they all know it. They’ve stayed away because they know Alex and I won’t let them see you.”

  “That’s why I haven’t had any visitors?” Chris had wondered.

  “You had a few on the first day. We told them you were sleeping,” Alex said.

  “All day.” Ben opened cabinets until he found the one with food in it.

  “I’m not an invalid,” Chris said.

  Alex snorted and waved her spatula at him. “That’s exactly
what you are. An invalid.”

  “I figured we were staying in,” Ben said. “I got movies out of Red Box.”

  Chris was starting to feel railroaded. Or coddled. Or something. “You know I’m the alpha in this relationship.”

  Both Ben and Alex turned to look at him, but neither said anything. Then they turned back to what they were doing.

  “What movies did you get?” Alex said.

  Did he really think they’d both just submit? And yet, he couldn’t generate much anger about their attitudes. His back hurt.

  “Check them out.” Ben pushed the two movies across the counter to her.

  “Nothing?” Chris knew he was being peevish. “You have nothing to say to me?” Chris wanted to lean back in the chair but he didn’t dare. He was lucky he was sitting and not flat on his stomach.

  Ben opened the fridge to put more of the groceries away. “There’s no doubt you’re more alpha than either of us. But would you really respect us if we let you run roughshod over us? This is a relationship, not a pack. You may be more alpha, but you aren’t our alpha in the sense that your word is law and we have no say.”

  He agreed with Ben. Mostly. But he still wanted to hear what he had to say. “Right. If it doesn’t mean that, then what does it mean?”

  Leaning his arm on the top of the open refrigerator door, Ben said, “Don’t be like that. You know what it means. You’re the primary protector. You proved that the other night.”

  “And the primary provider.” Chris liked that idea.

  “For now. But I’m not going to hold back on my salary for fear of upsetting you,” Ben said.

  “Me either.” Alex pulled the pan off the stove.

  Three salaries. What couldn’t they do with three salaries? And Chris made good money. If one of his mates succeeded in making more than him, they’d all be flush. Maybe being alpha in the relationship wasn’t as important as he’d thought. “I’m okay with that.”

  Alex put plates of food on the table. Pork chops, little red potatoes and broccoli. “Dinner’s ready.”

  Chris waited until after dinner to get back to his original point. “I should go to the bar tonight. Just for a little.”

  While Ben cleared the table, Alex took Chris’ hand in hers. “Wait until tomorrow night. Please?”