by Emma Dawn
“Okay, I gotta ask. How the hell has no one ever said ‘hey, you ever see that castle out in the forest?’ because this is a bit ridiculous for even me to believe.” I swept my hand toward the castle.
Ralph grunted. “The warlocks help us out with that. They set up boundaries that keep the humans from seeing anything, and that help repel them if they get too close.”
“Warlocks?” The word popped out of my mouth and my eyes bugged. Half my brain chided me for being dumb. If there were vampires and werewolves, it made sense that there could be more supernaturals too. The other half just couldn’t handle it. “Like as in magicians?”
“If you want. But I wouldn’t call them that,” Havoc said with a half-grin. “They are a bit on the moody side.”
My lips twitched. “Okay, no teasing the warlocks, got it.”
Havoc gave me a sidelong glance that held more than a hint of humor in it. “This is the Haven. The main structure is large enough to house all the wolves of our pack, though some, like Ralph, choose to live on the outskirts for privacy or because they can’t handle being in such close quarters with others.”
“Or because they’re going to cause trouble,” Ralph grumbled. I looked back at him.
“You cause a lot of trouble, do you? I mean other than being preoccupied with your little friend.” God, I tried to keep a straight face, but I couldn’t do it. Havoc snorted and looked away from me, and I made myself stare right at Ralph, grinning.
His lips twisted but I could see the blush under his dusky skin. “Snot-nosed brat.”
I let the grin slide further over my lips. “You going to tell me who is causing problems?”
“You going to fix it all at once?” Ralph shook his head. “I doubt that. You’re about to be seriously preoccupied. Once you choose a mate, we can go about dealing with the grumblers. There should be no major issues until then, anyway.”
We were almost at the base of the castle. A wide sweeping staircase led us up to an opening that could be called a drawbridge if there had been a moat. But no moat, so just a big doorway, I guess.
Along the side of the stairs climbed a variety of plant I’d never seen. The dark purple flowers sharply blended in against the black stone. I frowned. “Why is there no snow on the steps?”
“They are heated from the kitchens in the lower levels of the castle.” Havoc held his hand out to me, and I tried not to stare because he was still buck naked, seemingly unbothered by that or the cold. We walked up the stairs together, then through the doorway into the main courtyard, which happened to be full of people—werewolves, I corrected myself.
“Took me the long way, did you?” I arched an eyebrow at Havoc.
He nodded. “I did. This is ceremonial, to a degree, and we need to do it right for everyone to accept you and the process this next week.”
Ralph stepped forward ahead of us. “I bring to you the first Alpha female of the Windrun pack. Will you claim Cassandra as your queen?”
Holy shit. Was this really happening? My knees locked and I couldn’t move. I couldn’t take a single step. Because I didn’t want to be a queen. I wasn’t entirely sure I wanted to be a woman with seven men competing for her heart. Okay, that last was a bit of a lie, but still. This whole thing was overwhelming. Crazy.
Madness.
And yet, I didn’t want to stop it.
I let my eyes slide over the crowd in front of me. At the front were the men I assumed would be vying for my attention. Six besides Havoc. I let my gaze settle on each of them, one at a time. A pair of twins with mahogany hair and skin that matched and looked so velvety and soft I had to clench my fingers tightly to keep from moving toward them.
Tarack was next, and he gave me the subtlest of nods and touched his fingers to his lips. Just that and I felt the pressure low in my belly, deep in me, that wanted him inside me. Next to him stood a blond, and to his right was another blond, though his hair was a darker shade. I could see their eye color even at this distance, but I chose not to look too closely. Each of them tightened my desire to be there, and to be with them.
The last man in the lineup had bright red hair and eyes that seemed to match. A strange combination, because his eyes weren’t truly red. His grin was wicked and sharp and it made me take a step back.
I did not want him anywhere near me, despite the cut of his body and the way his muscles stretched his shirt. His physique did not help him woo me.
“Who is that?” I tipped my head toward the redhead.
“Raider? He is one of your seven,” Havoc said.
“Nope. He’s not.” I shook my head. I already knew it: that one would give me nightmares, not lusty daydreams.
Havoc tightened his hold on my hand. “Leave him to the end. Perhaps you’ll know who you will choose after six days then.”
“Good,” I said, and yet I had a feeling it wouldn’t be that easy. Raider’s eyes followed me, touching me like an unwanted caress. I kept my back straight and my eyes forward as Havoc led me to stand beside Ralph. The distraction of the man with the red hair had blinded me to what was happening. Ralph was intoning something.
I looked at him as he brought out a wide silver knife from his belt. “From her blood to our hearts, let her strength protect us and her wisdom guide us.”
“Wait—” One word was all I got out before the knife sliced down and through my open palm that Havoc held out.
The blade cut deep enough to bring blood, but not so bad that I felt it. I stared at the welling blood. Ceremony. This was ceremony. And they were making me their queen. A trembling fear started low in my belly. I was no queen. I was a fighter, a wild one. Ally was the queen. She’d been a queen before she’d ever been pulled into the Hive. She ruled her life with grace and smarts, and pure love.
I pulled against Havoc’s hold on me but he didn’t let me go. “Trust me, Cassie. This is going to be okay. You are meant to be here, and even if you don’t choose me, I will stand behind you in all you do.”
My eyes shot to his, a welling of tears catching me by surprise. I had no words. His support meant everything to me in this craziness that was suddenly my life. Ralph was talking and then the crowd dispersed. Except for the other men.
My seven.
No, that wasn’t quite right. There was an eighth that hung back. I looked at him, taking him in. Long black hair that was twisted here and there, with eyes that were just as dark, and skin that was tawny as though he spent a good deal of time in the sun.
“That is Wilder,” Havoc said, noting where my eyes rested. “He will be your guard, and your help over the next seven days. He’s not an Alpha, so be nice to him.”
I glanced at Havoc. “You think I would be mean?”
He shrugged. “I think I know you, Cassie. I hope I am right. But if I am wrong, I want to protect those who have been in my care for years.” He tugged me forward. “Come and meet the others.”
The others.
The twins were Keenan and Brennan. One had light green eyes, the other light blue, and they all but glowed against the darkness of their skin. They both nodded to me but were quiet, neither speaking.
Next was Tarack with his amber-gold eyes, and who, of course, I already knew.
Then the first blond, Lyric, whose eyes were a cornflower blue that sparkled when he smiled at me.
The one with the dirty blond hair was Colt. His eyes flashed with a storm-cloud gray that said it all. This was the one with the temper, but it wasn’t directed at me. His eyes flicked to the last man in the lineup.
Raider.
The only one who spoke. “My queen, I hope you will find your stay here most pleasurable.” He reached for me and Havoc let out a low growl.
“You are not to speak to her until it is your turn.”
Raider glared at Havoc, his eyes narrowing. “You have more than spoken with her, as has Tarack. You both have a leg up on the rest of us.”
My jaw flexed and danced with the implication. “If you think I will not give the
others a fair chance, you are quite wrong.” I spoke softly, but with the force I had earned as I’d worked my way through the degrees of karate.
Raider’s eyes widened and then narrowed once more. “It is as you say then.” He paused. “My queen.”
“Enough of that shit,” I said. “My name is Cassie. Or Cassandra, if you prefer. I’m not any better than anyone else here.” I rolled my shoulders and glanced at Havoc. “Is there an order to this?”
“I will take the sixth night,” he said. “As the strongest Alpha, it is my right to choose where I will take my time with you. The rest is up to you.”
I knew what he was doing. Giving me the buffer to hopefully keep Raider out of my bed. I bit my lower lip. “Raider, you will go last.”
He snarled and stalked away before I could say anything else. Colt looked at me with a new level of appreciation. I sensed he wanted to say something, but he kept his mouth shut. I gave him a soft smile.
Holy shit, I was doing this. I was actually going to hand myself over to these men for the next seven days.
A delicious thrill of anticipation rippled through my limbs. Seven days, seven men. This was going to be epic on a scale I knew I wasn’t truly grasping yet. And I suddenly knew why Ally had done what she’d done. This was the dream I would never have spoken out loud, to be pleasured at the hands of men who wanted nothing more than to make me scream as I climaxed, to make me come at their command, and be able to let go with an abandon the world at large would see as something dirty or wrong.
Another shiver rolled through me and more than one of the men gave me a wicked grin. Almost like they knew what I was thinking.
“Can they read minds?” I asked Havoc.
“Nope, but they can smell you, and right now you are rolling with lust every time you look at one of us. So maybe you can tone it down?” His voice was tight as though he were in pain. I looked at him, and dared a glance at his crotch.
His cock was standing straight up, at attention. Maybe he was in pain.
I couldn’t resist. “You sure you want to go last?”
Chapter 5
I stood in the main courtyard of the Haven, surrounded by six men who I was going to get to choose from. Six men who I would get to fuck myself silly on. I arched an eyebrow at Havoc. “Did you change your mind about the order of the men in my bed?”
Havoc laughed and shook his head. “I won’t be going last; you will have one more after me.”
I nodded. “Yeah, you will. Because there is no way I’m letting Raider touch me.”
The other men seemed to relax, as if I’d just blown away a weight I didn’t even know was on them.
“Can I talk to them? Are they allowed to talk now?”
Havoc nodded. “That is up to you.”
“All right. So, all you think Raider is a dickwad too?”
Colt burst out laughing. “Thank the goddess she is smart enough to see through that cum smear.”
I grinned at him. “I thought you were going to punch him when he spoke.”
Colt rolled his wide shoulders. “Thought about it. But rules are rules, and while they can be fun to break, I do my best to behave.”
One of the twins, Keenan I thought, gave a grunt. His light blue eyes flickered with amusement. “Please. You never behave unless you get caught.”
Colt snorted and shook his head. “You’re giving her the wrong impression of me.”
I watched them banter back and forth. They were friends. They were not at all jealous that I would choose one of them over the others. This was their way of life and they accepted it fully.
“How will you choose who goes with you each night?” Brennan asked, his green eyes intense despite how pale they were.
I bit my lower lip, thinking. I could do this in terms of who was the strongest, but that would be demeaning to them, I was sure. Age maybe?
“Line up from youngest to oldest. Please.” I added that last bit, so I didn’t come off as a bitch right off the bat.
More than one pair of eyebrows shot up and Ralph gave a low chuckle. “I like her already. Fair, without putting you boys down.”
A flush of pride slid through me. The men lined up slowly, even Havoc. Lyric was on my far left, then Keenan, Brennan, Colt, Tarack, then Havoc. Fitting, then.
“That’s the order,” I said. “Best I can do.”
They turned to each other, slapping one another on their backs as if they’d just won the prize. Which maybe they thought they had. But I knew it was me who was going to get the fun part. I was about to get six prizes that I would never have dreamed of in a million years.
Lyric took a few steps to me and held out his hand.
Now? This was already happening?
Shit, this was happening. I looked around and the other men were ghosting away. Except for Wilder.
I looked to him and he gave me a nod. “You only have to call, Cassie. I will come to your aid.”
His voice was gravelly as if he’d had an injury to his throat. “Thank you.”
He gave me another nod and folded his arms over his chest, waiting. I looked to Lyric. He still had his hand out, and I slowly put mine in it, feeling like this was some sort of dream. Surely, I would wake up when we touched?
Nope, the touch between us set off a shower of sparks under my skin that felt like musical notes cascading up and down a piano on a melody only I could hear. The notes plucked at my nerves, tickled along my nipples and cascaded against the edges of my belly, creeping to my very awake and achingly wet pussy.
“Holy shit, that is stunning,” I whispered, knowing my eyes were wide as wide could be.
Lyric was breathing hard, and his cornflower blue eyes were on the wide side as well. “You can hear the music?”
I nodded, feeling the orchestra inside me swell with a crest that brought me to an edge I didn’t think possible. “Is this magic yours?”
“No.” He stepped closer and slid his arms around me. “No, but it is a music I thought only I could hear.”
I pressed my face into his chest. He was taller than me by almost a foot, and I felt tiny in his arms. Not something that was easy to make me feel at 5’10” myself. I shuddered. “Take me somewhere that is special to you, please.”
He turned and walked me out of the castle, down the stairs and into the forest. I glanced back once to see Wilder following. He gave me a nod. He was with me, protecting me in case something happened.
Relief flowed through me. Not that I thought Lyric would hurt me, which was weird because I’d only just met him, and yet I knew as I had known that Raider was on the no-fly zone. Lyric’s touch was gentle, and the music ebbing and flowing between us was too beautiful to have a dark edge to it.
The crunch of day-old snow under our feet echoed in time with the music. “I can’t believe no one else can hear it,” I said.
“It’s not all the time,” Lyric said softly. “But it keeps me out of the castle a great deal. Each person has their own song. Sometimes it meshes with mine, as yours is doing right now, but often they clash and that can be downright painful.”
I tightened my hand on his as we stepped out around a clump of trees to see what looked like an old-school amphitheater. With four rows of seating, and columns holding up the domed roof, the wind whipped through it.
“You live . . . here?” I stared at the place that was surrounded by snow and couldn’t be anything but bloody freezing in the winter. The wind whipped between the pillars, bringing with it flakes of snow from the ground and low-hanging branches around us.
Lyric looked around us. “I sleep out here, not all the time. But it is my place. The other wolves are not drawn to it like I am, and they leave me here knowing I struggle with being in large groups.”
We stepped between a set of pillars into the amphitheater. The music burst over us in a crescendo that dropped me to my knees, gasping. “Can we turn the volume down at all?”
Lyric let go of my hand and the music eased, but the loss of his to
uch was a physical pain. “No, don’t let go,” I amended.
The pleasure in his face was immediate. “Cassandra.”
There was a moment where we just gazed at each other and slowly, I became aware that we were not going to move forward without me taking the reins.
“Take your clothes off,” I said.
He laughed. “That won’t make the music fade.”
I stared at him, an instinct in me I barely understood pushing me forward. “Maybe the music wants to climb with us. Maybe the song isn’t done, isn’t complete, and that’s why it is so insistent. Maybe once we finish the song, then you won’t be so stuck in large groups.”
His blue eyes grew solemn and full of wonder. “You understand it like no one else ever has.”
I shrugged, a little embarrassed. Maybe they didn’t screw up by making me queen after all.
That was still something I wasn’t sure of, but I didn’t think he needed to know that. He started to let go of me and I shook my head.
“No, don’t let go of me. That isn’t the song.” Still holding one of his hands, I used my other to tug off his clothes. Laughing, we worked at each other’s clothes, and with difficulty got them peeled away. Our laughter swept up through the music’s dance around us, like the tinkling notes of a cymbal that added an extra layer to an orchestra.
His body was a hard, muscled playground with a dusting of hair down his chest that trailed as it dropped lower. The V that ran from his hips downward in a perfect invitation to my hands was not something I could deny.
I let my fingers trail over his skin, watching it jump and dance under my touch. “Lyric, this feels like a dream.”
A smile on his sweet mouth made the music spike. “It is a dream, Cassandra. One that holds us all. Life is a dream. And we choose what we would make of it, of the notes we would sing.” His voice caressed me, the words a song on the edge of the music. I sighed softly, a tremble cascading over me.
Peace was not something I thought I needed, or was even searching for, but it settled on my shoulders like a warm blanket. It was only then I realized I was doing all the touching.
