Adding Fuel to the Flames

by Cree Storm

  Rhys sat there fiddling with his cup as he looked down. Ethan was so scared. What if Rhys refused them? Ethan loved Day more than his own life, but he didn't know what he would do if Rhys refused their mating.

  "As you both witnessed, my father and I don't exactly see eye to eye. We were never super close." Rhys scoffed before continuing, "Heck, I rarely ever saw my father. He was either in his lab working, or out and about doing errands for Uncle Destrain. I would be with a nanny in the court area and see Desdain...I mean Twix, playing with his fathers. Twix would be laughing with them and smiling as Clove and Destrain danced with him and played." Rhys raised his head with his eyes closed tightly. "By the Gods, I wanted that. I begged my father to play with me, but he would say he had to do something else and to remember to be a good boy and listen to my nanny. As I got older, the anger built inside me. Soon the nannies were gone and my father moved me to another section of the palace. This time the focus was on education. I was to learn every section, rule, and know the entire history of not just the pixies, but the fairies, and elves as well. There was to be no stone unturned."

  Ethan's heart hurt just listening to the sadness and pain coming from Rhys. When he lifted his head and looked at Ethan and Day, tears were rolling down Rhys' cheeks. He went to move, but Day held him back.

  Wiping his eyes, Rhys continued, "The first time my father came to my rooms, I was so excited. I thought, wow he's actually seeking me out. Finally, he wanted to be with me." Rhys let out a watery laugh. "I should have known better. That was the day I knew that my father never really loved me. Hell, he didn't even like me. He only came to test me. He drilled questions at me over and over, and I had only seconds to answer. If I got an answer wrong, he would scream and throw things."

  Rhys set his cup down and stood up. "When I was sixteen, my father sent me to this realm. I had one guard and that was it. The man about wet himself when we got here and it didn't take him long to run home."

  "Wait, you were sent here at sixteen and left alone? For how long? How did you survive?" Day asked barely holding back a growl.

  Ethan could feel his mates anger and hurt just as Ethan knew Day could feel his.

  Shrugging, Rhys replied, "I don't know...maybe a year."

  "Why didn't you just use a portal to go home?" Ethan asked in confusion.

  "Because I hadn't hit eighteen yet, Ethan. Pixies are much like shifters in that area. Where you must hit puberty, we have to be eighteen before our abilities start to come to us, and we are not guaranteed that creating portals is one of them."

  Rhys went back to his seat and sat down. "Anyway, I did okay. This really nice person named Candy found me trying to find food and asked me how old I was. I told her I was sixteen and she took me to her place. Imagine my surprise when she pulled off her hair, and I found out Candy was really Carl."

  "Oh, Rhys, she didn't hurt you, did she?" Ethan gasped.

  Shaking his head, Rhys quickly replied, "Oh no, quite the contrary. In those days being gay was a serious not happening thing. Candy told me that men paid good money to have sex with men and that's how she paid for her home and food."

  "She turned you into a hooker?" Ethan hissed in astonishment.

  Rhys pursed his lips and his eyes turned down in anger. "Of course not! Why are you so keen on making her out to be such a dreadful person? Candy would work and I cleaned, cooked, and did laundry. She would let me try on her dresses and wigs and showed me how to put on makeup. She said when I was older, I'd be a natural."

  Rhys became really quiet and Ethan could see him trying to swallow so he could talk. Rhys drew in a shaky breath and let it out slowly. "I really loved her. She was the only father, or mother, and friend I ever really had."

  Day quietly asked, "What happened to her?"

  Sighing heavily, Rhys rasped, "One night Candy didn't come home. I got worried so I went out to find her. I heard people whispering to each other about the vile creatures caught having sex and how wonderful it was that the people took care of disease like that. I asked what happened and I was told that Candy and one of her men got caught and they were both hanged at the church. I rushed there, and...and…"

  Rhys quickly grabbed his cup and took a drink, then said, "Well, I went back to Candy's place. I rationed the food and used the money Candy had shown me she put away in case of emergencies. It wasn't until I ran out of money and the man who owned the place kicked me out that I got scared. Luckily by this time, Destrain had discovered I was alone and he came to get me."

  "Destrain discovered you were alone? I don't understand," Ethan replied.

  “Twix went to my father asking when I would return. My father told him that Dorstin and I would be returning when the time was right. Twix was confused by that answer, so he went to Destrain and asked if Dorstin would be returning with me, then why wasn't I back? Destrain supposedly rushed to my father and they called on Dorstin. When asked what he was doing there without me, he told them he had never stayed with me. He told my father that he had gone to his lab and explained he could not go to the other realm and he would need to find someone else. It seems my father either didn't hear him or didn't care."

  "I am going to fucking kill that man the next time I see him," Day murmured under his breath.

  Ethan hissed low, "Only if you can get to the bastard before me."

  "Before I left, Uncle Destrain allowed me to get a bunch of supplies for my makeup and dresses and wigs. Father was pissed the first time he saw me dressed in women's apparel. He ordered me to remove it all immediately. That was the day I finally defied the man. I didn't care. It made me feel good. It…It..."

  "It made you feel as if Candy was still with you," Ethan finished for him.

  Rhys nodded. "Other than how I dressed and looked, things went back to how they were before. Alone, reading that tomb of books over and over again, for hours and hours. I wished for the times I had with Candy. I felt myself growing more and more despondent. I didn't want to get out of bed many days. I literally had to force myself to try and function. It was harder each and every day."

  "You were in mourning, and then with the seclusion, deep depression set in," Ethan explained.

  Shrugging, Rhys replied, "Maybe so. I don't know. However, it was my Uncle Clove that gave me hope. It was Twix's eighteenth birthday. I had gone to his rooms. I had painted him a picture I wanted him to have. My gift to him. We were laughing and talking when Uncle Clove came in and told Twix how proud he was to have a son so wonderful, but that now they had to talk about matings. I listened to every word he said. That's when I said, I wanted that. I wanted everything Clove was describing. I wanted someone that would love me for me. They wouldn't care if I wanted to wear makeup or have long hair. My mates would accept me as I am. I wanted the love he spoke of and the connection it would bring. I wanted to know that I would have people in my life that actually wanted me and would love me."

  "We want you, Rhys. Hell, there isn't one thing I would change about you," Day whispered.

  "Rhys, I can guarantee you I feel the exact same way, and although I can't say I love you now, I know I will be able to very soon. Hell, I'm over half way there already," Ethan replied.

  Rhys looked at Ethan and then Day, rasping, "That's why I am trying to explain to you why I am the way I am. Why I went around kissing everyone. I was so desperate to find you both. There is no way I would deny my mates. I want my mates. Please, make me your mate."

  CHAPTER 7

  Rhys got up and moved to where Ethan and Day sat side by side on the sofa and knelt on the floor in front of Ethan. He placed his hands on Ethan’s knees as he looked into his eyes imploringly. “I don’t want either of you to think I’m a slut, or that I’m desperate, because I am neither of those things. But I have dreamed of my mates forever and now you’re both here, and you’re both the sexiest men I have ever seen, and you’re both so nice, and sweet, and caring. And both of you sitting here, listening to what I say and not judging me, is like my dreams have finally co
me true, and I just want to grab onto you with both hands and not let go.

  “The thoughts that have been flashing through my head since the moment I met you both had me upset because I shouldn’t have had them. You are both mated and I shouldn’t have had those thoughts about mated men, but now that I know I didn’t do anything wrong and it’s because you are my mates, it just makes me happy. Because you should be all hot and horny about your mates, right?”

  Day smirked and gave Rhys a heated look. “So, you’ve been having naughty thoughts about us, sweetheart?”

  Rhys met Day’s gaze. “Well, duh. I mean hell, have either of you looked in a mirror lately? You’re both so fucking sexy. And now that I know that you’re my mates I just want to jump on your laps and hump you until my eyes roll to the back of my head and I pass out from ecstasy,” Rhys replied in a breathy, longing voice.

  Ethan reached out and cupped Rhys’s cheek, bringing his attention back to him. “Are you sure we should move this fast, Rhys? As much as me and my phoenix want to just rub all over you and take you to bed, I wonder if we should wait a little longer. Get to know each other more,” Ethan said gently.

  Rhys sat up straight on his knees and slid his hands up Ethan’s thighs, stopping just before he reached his groin. “Is it because I look too much like a woman, that makes you hesitate? Or is it because you just don’t want someone getting in the middle of what you and Day already have? I know you have been together for a few years now and all I have heard from everyone is how much the two of you are so perfect together, and how much you love each other. I don’t want to ruin what you have. But I don’t want to give up my mates either. I know it’s too soon to declare our undying love for each other, but―”

  Rhys was cut off when Ethan sat forward and captured his lips with his, kissing him softly. Rhys whimpered and leaned into the kiss, opening for Ethan. Their tongues slid together, entangling and caressing. Ethan cupped the back of Rhys’ head and pulled him closer, tilting his head, and deepening the kiss.

  Rhys was lost in the pleasure of the kiss. His head spun and he felt like he was floating. It was the most sensual kiss he had every experienced and he wanted more. Rhys was hungry for so much more. He shifted and raised up, climbing onto Ethan’s lap, and straddled him. Rhys slid his hands over Ethan’s chest and around his neck, never breaking the kiss.

  Ethan’s hands gripped his hips and Rhys felt his hunger grow, as Ethan’s cock hardened beneath his ass, pressing against his crease. He started squirming, rubbing his hard cock against Ethan’s stomach, trying to ease his suffering with the friction it caused. Everything felt so good and he wanted more. He moaned into Ethan’s mouth and Ethan took his desire into him, swallowing it down.

  Ethan slid his hands up Rhys’ back, then his sides, and cupped his face between both hands almost desperately. They slowly pulled back from the kiss and their gazes locked, as they both panted heavily.

  “Fuck, you’re so damn sexy, Rhys, and you kiss like a vixen,” Ethan said breathlessly.

  “You kiss like a god. And your cock pressed against me is delicious. It’s a lot bigger than I would have expected from a man of your stature. Not that you’re small, but compared to our other mate who is built like he bench-presses houses,” Rhys replied with a shrug.

  Ethan chuckled. “Yeah, he does have that whole Greek god look about him, doesn’t he?”

  “Mmm, gods, yes. I bet he fucks like one too.”

  “Oh, hell yes. Day fucks like a dream,” Ethan agreed on a moan.

  “Well, thank you both for that. You’re great for my ego, but I need a taste too. Watching the two of you kiss like that was so fucking hot,” Day spoke in a deep voice as he reached over and grabbed the back of Rhys’s neck and pulled him closer, than attacked Rhys’ lips, kissing him fiercely.

  Rhys whimpered into the kiss, loving every second of it as Day dominated him with his tongue and lips. A hand pressed against his hard cock and Rhys wanted to scream from the pleasure. He thrust his hips against the hand, loving the pressure.

  Warm lips kissed the side of his neck and nibbled up to his ear, a warm, wet tongue drawing the lobe between soft lips. Large, strong hands ran up his back, giving him the feeling of safety and protection.

  Day pulled back from the kiss and pressed his forehead to Rhys’s brow. “Fuck, sweetheart. I just want to lay you out and explore every inch of you.”

  “Okay,” Rhys agreed breathlessly.

  “Is this a good idea? For us to go this fast? I mean, fuck, if I don’t want to just make love to you both, but is it okay for us to move this fast? I don’t want you to think we just want sex, Rhys, because that’s the furthest thing from the truth. We want all of you. To know you, all of you,” Ethan questioned, but his hands continued to caress Rhys almost desperately.

  Ethan’s words told Rhys that he was trying to be a good mate by making sure they were all on the same page and Rhys wasn’t feeling pressured, but his actions were telling Rhys the truth of Ethan’s desire for him. “I think that we all feel the heat between us, and we all want the same thing. We want to go into my room and fuck like animals and claim each other. You’re very sweet to want to make sure that I’m okay with this, mate, and the answer is, hell yes. Unless you’re afraid because of your mating with Day?”

  “No, baby. I know you wouldn’t come between me and Day, you would only enhance what we have. As you said, we have been together for a while and Day and I know everything about each other and I am confident in what we have. Adding a wonderful man like you to what we already have would only make us both luckier than we already are,” Ethan explained lovingly.

  Rhys could see the sincerity in his eyes and hear it in his voice. It made him fall in love with Ethan a little more. Rhys looked to Day hesitantly, afraid he wouldn’t agree with his mate, but Rhys was pleasantly surprised when he met Day’s gaze and saw the same look in his eyes as he saw in Ethan’s.

  “I completely agree with our mate. What Ethan and I have is perfect for us. It’s wonderful and I feel so blessed having him as my mate. We never even thought of another in our lives or hearts and were both content with our life together, but now knowing we have a third, we both feel that we weren’t totally complete. Meeting you, and knowing what a wonderful man you are, only showed us that we were missing something. You will only enhance our lives, Rhys, and we hope to enhance yours. I know it all seems fast, but I don’t care. We’re the ones in this relationship and it’s up to us, no one else. If either of you want to wait, then I will abide by your wishes. But I have to say that me and my dragon just want to claim you and make you mine. Make you ours. Mine and Ethan’s.”

  “We have a lifetime to get to know everything about each other. And I have complete faith that fate knows what she’s doing when she creates our mates for us. I know she makes mates perfect for each other and what they each need. I’m sure we will have a few hiccups along the way until we really get to know each other, but I don’t want to wait. I want to belong to you both,” Rhys replied.

  They both looked to Ethan expectantly. Ethan met Rhys’s gaze, then turned and looked to Day. A small smile tipped the corners of his mouth as his eyes filled with heat. “Let’s go claim our mate, babe,” he said to Day.

  In the blink of an eye, Day moved and stood, as he lifted Rhys from Ethan’s lap in the same motion. Rhys squealed and wrapped his legs around Day’s waist, and arms around his neck as he held on tight. Day quickly walked them through Rhys’ apartment and down the hall.

  “Last door,” Rhys whimpered.

  Day threw the door open, stepped inside, then his lips came down on Rhys’ again in a hot, claiming kiss, full of passion and desire. Rhys was barely clear headed enough to hear the door close, then he felt a warmth at his back. Hands slid up under the back of his shirt, gliding over his skin. A shiver raced through him, causing his need to double. He had finally found both his mates, and they were here, and they both wanted him. Rhys’s heart filled with joy and the wall he had built arou
nd it to protect himself from the world shattered.

  Rhys wrapped his arms securely around Day’s head as the kiss continued, deepening, becoming more demanding. His heart beat pounded in is chest, and the ache in his balls grew painful. He needed release.

  Day pulled back slightly, gripping Rhys’ ankles and peeling him off Day, then Day lowered Rhys’ feet to the floor, but held him steady as the kiss went on. Hands grabbed the hem of his shirt and lifted. Their kiss was broken momentarily as the material was drawn up over his head, but then Day was back, sliding his tongue in deep.

  Rhys felt hands on his bare skin at his hips as they slid down slowly over the swell of his ass and down his thighs. His pants pooled at his feet and he kicked them aside, then stepped closer to Day once more. His naked skin pressing against Day’s clothed, hard body was delicious, causing a new wave of desire to rock him.

  A soft kiss landed on his shoulder, making a path across his heated flesh to his neck as small hands wrapped around his waist from behind and flattened over his abs, caressing and pulling him back toward the other hard body behind him.

  Rhys’ mind was in an erotic fog that he never wanted to leave. Two sets of hands explored, each touch causing tingling and zapping sensations throughout his body from head to toe. A hand moved lower, pressing against his hard cock. Rhys moaned into the kiss and pulled away, needing air and to cry out his pleasure.

  He dropped his head back on his shoulders as he panted heavily, eyes closed, as he just let the experience consume him. No thoughts could be found or formed, only the touches and what these two wonderful men, his mates, were doing to him remained.

  Distantly he heard ruffling and a zipper, but couldn’t open his eyes to see what was happening. The heat of Day’s large form moved away from him and Rhys thought he would melt to the floor, but Ethan’s hold around him kept Rhys on his feet. Then Ethan wrapped his delicate hand around the base of his hard cock and began to stroke him slowly. Delightful explosions went off behind his closed lids, and Rhys needed more.