by Marla Monroe
Gaston stood up and stretched. “I need a run, frère. Watch over our mate for me. I’ll be back in a couple of hours.” He leaned down and kissed her tenderly on the lips then stripped out of his clothes without an ounce of self-consciousness and became his panther. The sleek-looking feline nudged her foot before leaping off the porch and loping across the open to the safety of the trees and swamp.
“Time to go inside and get ready for bed, mate. I think I shall enjoy my time by making you come until you beg me to stop,” Beau said with a wink.
There were several cat calls as he stood up with her still in his arms. No doubt he had easily been heard due to the amazing hearing the shifters had. Heat burned up her neck into her cheeks. Damn her fair skin.
When he stepped into the house, she felt the playfulness dissipate as his male libido rose to the forefront. She sensed the change in him even as his arousal called to her own. In no time, her panties grew wet as her juices leaked from her pussy in reaction. Even her nipples stood at attention, aching to be toyed with, sucked, and nipped.
“Beau! What are you doing to me?” she asked in a breathy whisper.
“The same thing you are doing to me, boo. Driving you insane with need, and I need you, right now.”
She had no time to replay when he picked her up and threw her over his shoulder, heading toward the bedroom. Then Shayla wasn’t about to complain. She liked the idea of spending a little quality time with Beau. Maybe they’d talk some, too.
Chapter Thirteen
Gaston walked back into the house only minutes from midnight. The short run had turned into much more than that when one of the pride had caught up with him to talk about something he’d overheard. It proved to be very important, so he’d changed his plans and gone to investigate. Sure enough, the other cat had been right. Now he needed to talk to Beau about the entire situation while their mate was asleep. He didn’t like keeping things from her, but until she was more familiar with their way of life, he didn’t want to upset her.
He’d no more than crossed the room when Beau walked in with a questioning look in his eyes.
“I was beginning to wonder what was going on when you didn’t come back after two hours. Is something wrong?”
“Roux overheard something that concerns us and our mate. We need to talk, Beau.” Gaston lead the way to their office. He didn’t want their mate or anyone else to overhear what he had to say.
Gaston closed the door to the office and took the chair behind the desk while his brother sat across from him. Beau obviously knew something was going on since he’d been awake and waiting on him to return home.
“Roux was in town yesterday at one of the bars out near the wharf and heard two men talking about the preternatural war and how things were about to change. He said one of them was definitely a practitioner, but he didn’t believe the second man was other at all.”
“Humans are not supposed to be allowed to know anything about us or what is going on,” Beau said, shaking his head. “What was this person doing sharing our business like that with a human?”
“The odd part of that is that Roux said it was the human telling the other man about it all. He seemed to be filling him in on what had been going on for a few weeks, as if this other man had been out of town or something. It seems that all of the preternatural community is growing tired of fighting. Evidently they know that we’ve found our third in the royal line and something else is going on with all of the other groups here.” Gaston sat back in the chair.
“What do you mean? With the vampires, witches, and demons?”
“Yes. I’m not sure exactly which groups, but the vampires are backing away from the fight now. They’ve been the ones leading it for so long it makes me think something major has happened among them. The demons seem to be warring among themselves for some reason, and no one knows what is going on with the witches because they’ve all but disappeared. I couldn’t even locate Arial when I went by to talk to her about it.” Gaston ran a hand over his mouth.
“How did they know about Shayla unless someone in our pride is feeding them the information?” Beau mused.
“I’m sure the demon that has been fooling around our lands, frère, is the one who spread the news,” Gaston said.
“Non, I don like this. There are too many who would harm our mate. If this demon has spread the word of her being of royal blood and someone knows about the prophecy, her life could be in danger from more than just the demons now.”
Gaston nodded. He’d thought the same. But what could they do? Their home was here, and their pride couldn’t move to another place they knew nothing about. Besides, whoever decided to come after her would follow them no matter where they went.
“I don either, Beau. But it is a problem we always knew we would have should we find our mate. Granted, we never expected to find one of royal blood, but I wouldn’t change anything about her.”
“Oui, I agree.” He tilted his head back and stared up at the ceiling before blowing out a deep breath and looking at Gaston again. “So what do we do?”
“The other thing Roux heard the human say was that he’d heard the rumor that all of the others were going to be summoned to meet soon. It wasn’t to discuss the war or to negotiate a cease-fire, but for another reason. This human figured it would still result in one anyway.” Gaston watched his brother’s face. Beau had always been very expressive when they were alone. He didn’t disappoint him now.
A knowing smile grew as he put two and two together. He had come to the same conclusion that Gaston had. With the talk of a cease-fire and the planned meeting that had nothing to do with a cease-fire, it was obvious that something was going on among the different groups, and the only thing that might alter a vampire’s thirst for war was finding their Eternal Love.
“Right, frère. I think either the vampires or the demons have found their version of a mate, as well. It is the only thing I can think of that would come before the vampire’s quest to kick us all out of New Orleans. Protecting their female would be the most important thing for either a vampire or a demon. It makes sense. We’re in the same situation.” Gaston smiled.
“If this is true, New Orleans will be much safer for everyone, including humans. It would keep the human police off our backs, as well as stop the witches from constantly causing trouble since they wouldn’t have anyone to hire them to make mischief.”
“I’m hoping that our finding our mate as prophesized was merely a portent of the changes coming. To think that by joining with her we are evoking the prophecy instead of completing it, worries me,” Gaston said.
“I don’t think so,” Beau said, shaking his head. “I think that we’re just the sign before everything changes. There wasn’t anything else in the prophecy. I don’t think we need to worry after all. I think that our only worry is one any leader has when a mate and eventually cubs are present. This could be the beginning of a much better way of life for our pride, Gaston.”
“It will all depend on if we get some sort of summons to meet for some reason. All we can do now is wait. Until we know more, we must stay diligent in watching over her. I won’t relax until we’ve talked with the others and come to an agreement I feel comfortable with. If they have a mate at stake like we do, there is a good chance it will all work out.” Gaston stood up. “Let’s get back to our mate before she wakes up and finds us missing.”
“Well, you were gone for a long time. I’m hoping I wore her out enough so that she sleeps till dawn,” Beau said with a self-satisfied smile.
Gaston punched him in the arm good-naturedly. “Don’t get cocky, frère. I’ll get my time alone with her and make her forget all about your wimpy attempts at exhausting her.”
He grinned when Beau stuck his tongue out at him then raced to make it to the door first. He hadn’t seen his younger brother this carefree in a very long time. As his second, Beau had a lot more responsibilities than most would think. Plus, he was the one to handle discipline, and with his softer p
ersonality, it tore at him sometimes. To see him smiling and teasing as he was now was a simple joy Gaston treasured, and it was all because of their mate, Shayla. She brightened their world just by existing. He would move heaven and earth to make her happy.
He knew one thing that would make her happy, and that was to see her friends before they left New Orleans. He would see if he could find them and arrange a rendezvous. It would probably be the last time she ever saw them again since she would no longer age at the same rate and they could not know about her mates being shifters. They could continue to talk or exchange letters for a while, but she’d have to say good-bye to them at some point.
As he slipped into the room behind his brother, Gaston pledged to see to her happiness above his own. There would be many things she would not be able to do anymore, like go shopping alone or with human friends. He’d find other ways to make it up to her so she wouldn’t be sad. Giving up her freedom wouldn’t be easy, but since she’d kept apart in her home for so long while she’d been afraid, maybe it wouldn’t be too difficult for her to adjust.
As he settled beneath the covers on the other side of his mate, she snuggled in next to him and hummed in pleasure. No doubt she’d gotten a bit chilly without at least one of them in bed with her. He smiled and treasured the way she’d rubbed her ass against him before falling deeper asleep again.
He closed his eyes and prayed that he and Beau were right that things were changing for the better and that one if not all of the other preternatural groups had found their mates, the only thing he could think of that might give them the incentive to back away from the wars that had been going on for so many stressful years. With that thought, Gaston allowed his mind to still, and he fell asleep.
* * * *
Shayla woke well before dawn to a pair of mouths tormenting her nipples. Even before she’d fully opened her eyes, her pussy was dripping wet. Both of them growled around their feasts as they sensed that she was with them now. She chuckled and slid her fingers into their hair, pulling lightly on the long strands. They nipped a little harder on her tender buds before licking and sucking on them again. The stimulation had her clit swelling, as if begging for the same attention. Shayla had no doubt one or both of them would take care of her there, as well.
“Someone is up now, non?” Beau asked with a broad smile before he dipped his head again and took all of her breast that he could manage into his mouth at one time.
“Good morning, cher. How are you feeling?” Gaston asked, staring at her over the torrid peak of a very pink and engorged nipple.
“Oh, God! Fine. More than fine. That feels so good, Gaston.” She wanted to dig her nails into their scalps but didn’t want to hurt them.
“I’m glad you are finally awake, boo. We were beginning to think you were never going to join us,” Beau teased.
“I could get used to this,” she panted with a smile.
Gaston tugged at one nipple with his teeth, causing her to bow up in an attempt to soften the slight pain. Then he let go and proceeded to lick away the hurt. His raspy tongue was both soothing and stimulating at the same time. She felt pulled in two different directions.
“I think I shall have my dessert before breakfast this morning,” Beau said as he slipped farther down the bed beneath the covers.
He pressed her legs apart then slipped between them, spreading them wide until his hot breath blew across her pussy lips. Anticipation sprang up the instant he’d pushed her legs apart. By the time he’d finally touched her pussy lips with his tongue, Shayla was already well on her way toward an orgasm. She had no doubt it would be an amazing one since her mates couldn’t do anything halfway.
“You taste like sunshine and honey, mate. I would die a happy cat to lick your sweet nectar every morning of my life,” Beau told her.
The raspy quality of his voice built her arousal even higher. She loved it when they talked like that, as if they were so involved, so moved that they lost their voices. She even loved it when they talked dirty to her. The naughty words only seemed to make her hotter.
Beau separated her pussy lips before dragging his tongue down her slit and back up to circle her clit. He alternated between licking her pussy lips and teasing the hooded bundle of nerves. When he finally slipped a finger deep into her cunt, she nearly screamed with pleasure.
“I love how your pussy sucks at my finger, boo. I can’t wait to sink my cock deep inside of you and feel you squeeze it just as tightly. I’m going to fill your cunt with my cum while Gaston fills your mouth.” Beau’s voice had gone deeper. She loved how he looked with heavy eyelids that nearly covered his eyes.
“God, you’re teasing me, Beau. Don’t keep me waiting. I need you inside of me. Please,” she begged.
Gaston had moved from sucking and nipping at her breast to licking up her neck until he had her earlobe in his mouth, nibbling it. When Beau added a second finger to her pussy, Gaston bit her earlobe then began licking on her neck. He went back and forth between her neck, shoulder, and ear, until she felt almost dizzy with all of the different stimulation.
Beau rotated his wrist, and his fingers found her sweet spot. She nearly came off the mattress when he began stroking it. Her pleasure built to the point of pain. She wanted to come, but he never gave her quite enough pressure to send her over the edge.
Gaston whispered some of the dirty things he wanted to do to her in her ear. They divided her attentions then conquered her body with their devious attacks.
“Next time we take you together, cher, I’m going to fuck that tight, hot ass. I’m going to fill you full of my dick and make you come before Beau even buries himself in your wet pussy.” Gaston’s husky voice had her straining to hear him. She whimpered at the picture he painted in her mind. “Then we’re going to rock you between us, my cock filling your ass and Beau’s pumping your cunt until you beg us to let you rest. Then you know what we’re going to do? We’re going to start all over again.”
“Please, Gaston. Please, Beau. I need you inside of me. I can’t take anymore!”
Gaston chuckled but pulled away as Beau removed his fingers from her pussy and helped her roll over so that she was on all fours. Then Gaston knelt in front of her and threaded his fingers through her hair, gripping it and directing her mouth toward his straining dick. It was already dripping pre-cum, and she surged forward to lap at the beading drop about to fall.
“That’s it, sweet chat, don’t waste even one drop. Lick me, cher. I want to feel your tongue on my cock.”
She leaned forward and swiped her tongue down his shaft then curled it around the base before dragging it back up again. She teased beneath the large bulbous head then sucked on the raised vein there.
“Holy fuck!” Gaston broke out in Cajun French while Beau chuckled with his mouth back at her pussy again. “Just like that, cher. That’s so damn good.”
When she tongued the slit at the top, he hissed out a breath much like a cat and kneaded her scalp with his nails. It nearly drove her insane. She wanted more of that. It sent chills all down her spine. She made it her mission to find out every little touch that would make him do that and repeat them often.
When she finally took his cockhead into her mouth and sucked, he threw back his head and groaned. It was the sweetest sound to her. She ran the tip of her tongue around the rim of it then slowly sank down on it, taking nearly all of him into her mouth and throat. When she’d taken all she could manage, she swallowed around him and lightly scratched his balls with her nails.
He yelled out, digging his nails into her scalp, then pulled her off of him and leaned away from her.
She frowned, afraid she’d hurt him. “Are you okay? Did I do something wrong?”
“Non, t’chat. Fuck no! It was too good. I don’t want to come so soon. I hadn’t expected you to curl my toes like that, cher,” he admitted with a rueful smile.
She grinned up at him, having to roll her eyes up to be able to see him. She loved the dark flush of his skin that was
because of her. His eyes were dark with passion and the lids heavy, giving him a very masculine look. It so did it for her. She licked her lips then lifted one hand and held it out, asking him to let her have him again.
He grinned and slowly leaned forward again before grabbing a handful of her hair. He used his other hand to guide his engorged dick back into her waiting mouth. She sucked him, running her tongue up and down the hard shaft. She loved the power she seemed to have over him in this one thing. It made her feel strong and feminine at the same time.
Beau stopped licking and sucking her pussy lips to kneel behind her and prod her slit with his big cock. The thick head pressed into her slit, made wet by his teasing tongue and her juices. It easily slipped in as he thrust forward, driving it in deeper than before. This position gave him more freedom to move and a better angle for pumping in and out until he hit her cervix with almost every pump of his cock. The slight pain it caused was swallowed up by pleasure so warm and inviting that she soon lost sight of any pain at all. It was a lot like anal sex with them. The good overwhelmed the little sting and burn that always started out.
“Yes!” she hissed out when she’d pulled off of Gaston’s cock. “Feels so good.”
She sucked Gaston’s cock back into her mouth and kept still as he held her head and pumped his dick in and out of her mouth. He never went so deep as to choke her or moved too rough that he might bruise her, but the grip of one hand in her hair and the other holding her chin had her pussy seeping juices around Beau’s shaft. Her nipples ached for more than they were getting at the moment. She balanced herself on one hand, trusting Gaston to keep her steady, and used her other hand to pinch and twist her nipples, going back and forth between them.
“Fuck, Beau, she’s playing with her nipples. You should see this, frère. She’s twisting them and pinching them so nicely. They’re red and swollen now.”
