by Lynn Tyler
D’Arik’s finger sped up, forcing her closer and closer to orgasm, when she suddenly felt a rush of urgency that didn’t seem to be coming from her. She tightened, unsure as to what she was feeling. “It’s okay,” D’Arik said in her ear, nipping at the lobe before he continued. “You’re just feeling Varin’s emotions, and he just really wants to be in your mouth when you come.”
The words seemed to shake a whimper from Varin, who was holding on to the base of his cock tightly, as if trying to hold back his own climax. “Please,” he breathed, stroking that shaft until drops of pre-cum began dripping from the tip.
Satisfied with his plea, Jacy leaned her head forward and captured his plump head in her mouth and suckled gently. She couldn’t really take any more of him at this angle, but it didn’t seem to matter. He groaned and threw his head back as he spilled more pre-cum on her tongue, and she lapped at him. Oh, damn he tasted good. Slightly salty and just a bit sweet, as if he’d been eating watermelon. She sucked on him harder, determined to taste him again.
A hand slid under her head, the rough palm supporting her neck before she even realized that she was uncomfortable. This whole sharing-feelings thing, while a little freaky, certainly had its benefits.
D’Arik suddenly pinched her clit and jacked it between his two fingers as if he were stroking a minipenis. She’d never felt anything like that before and instantly came, her orgasm slamming into her with the force of a truck. She cried out, unable to stop herself, and the sense of excitement doubled. The bottom of her spine began to tingle, and an urgent anticipation washed through her. She suspected she was feeling the men’s emotions and even their physical sensations. She could tell they were both close to that edge and, frantic for more, she tightened her vaginal muscles and increased the suction around the dick in her mouth simultaneously.
The two men shouted in unison, and a second later, Varin yanked himself away from her just in time to spray her lips with creamy spurts while D’Arik poured himself into her. Her orgasm, which had started to wane, slammed into her again, this time magnified in intensity. Her vision started to blur with the intensity of what she was feeling. She didn’t pass out, but it was a close thing.
She lay on the bed, D’Arik’s cock still in her, twitching every once in a while, and concentrated on slowing her heart down. She didn’t even move when Varin left the bed and came back with a warm, damp cloth and began cleaning her face gently. “Do you think we killed her?” he asked, his amusement plain to hear.
If she’d had the energy, she would have stuck her tongue out at him. Instead, she settled for cracking her eyes open and glaring at him. His chuckle did funny things to her heart, as she didn’t think he laughed very often. Before she could think about it even further, D’Arik pulled out of her, dragging one last ounce of pleasure from her exhausted body. He supported her leg while Varin moved to clean between her thighs and then eased her leg down and snuggled up behind her. “Thank you,” he whispered in her ear.
The mattress dipped as Varin lay on the other side of her. He lay on his side, facing her, and slid his arm over her hip, resting his hand on D’Arik’s waist so that he was essentially holding them both. The two men craned their necks and kissed each other over her head.
God, why did she feel so lost? She was surrounded by four hundred plus pounds of warm, hard muscle. She should feel safe, not forlorn. But the love the two men so obviously shared reminded her sharply of the fact that she was simply here to produce children, not to be included in their love.
Varin sighed and stroked her hair away from her face, even as D’Arik kissed the back of her shoulder. “You’re overthinking, lira, and you’re broadcasting your emotions quite loudly. We’ll work with you tomorrow to help you learn to shield them. For now, just relax and sleep. There’s nothing that won’t keep until the morning.”
Still, she stayed stiff as a board until a calming sensation began to wash throughout her. She allowed herself to relax, and the feeling got stronger until she was almost asleep. But the feeling felt foreign, as if someone was influencing her thoughts. Her eyes, which had drifted shut, popped open with sudden understanding. “Get out of my head!”
D’Arik kissed her shoulder again and stroked her arm. “We’re not in your head, Jacy. We’re just pushing out soothing feelings to help you relax.”
Eventually the warmth and the calming feelings they kept pushing at her, along with the stress of the day, took over, and she fell asleep.
Chapter 11
Varin held both of his mates in his arms as he dozed lightly. Something about Jacy’s earlier panic had disturbed him enough to prevent a truly restful sleep, though he was hard-pressed to put his finger on exactly what had disturbed him.
He gave up on sleep and opened his eyes, glancing over at the two people he shared a bed with. Even looking at her face now, it was clear that Jacy was still caught in the throes of some unpleasant emotion, even in sleep. Her eyes were screwed tightly shut, and every once in a while she would clench her fists hard enough that he could see the nail marks in her palms when her hands finally relaxed again.
D’Arik was tossing his head restlessly, his hand clenching and unclenching on Jacy’s hip. Varin knew from experience that it was only a matter of time before D’Arik woke and went out to sit at his desk and pour over whatever reports had come in during the few hours he’d had the vidscreen turned off. It killed him to know that his mate suffered with so much stress, but D’Arik had shrugged off his offer of comfort more than once, enough to make Varin question whether he should offer any at all. It wasn’t that he was upset with D’Arik by any means. If he was in charge of trying to save a dying species of people, he would reject most offers of comfort, too. It was just that D’Arik always felt so guilty when he sent Varin on his way.
A sudden rush of awareness pulsed through Varin as D’Arik woke up and transmitted both his physical state and mental state to Varin through their bond. Varin quickly closed his eyes and threw up a shield to mask any of his own emotions from the mate bond. He didn’t want D’Arik to stay in bed because he felt obligated by the fact that he was awake. And then they would lie here awkwardly, struggling for something to say to fill the uncomfortable silence, each unsure what to say to make the other feel better.
D’Arik had so many conflicting emotions all the time now. Guilt, anger, fear, and depression battered around in D’Arik’s head, and Varin had no idea how to comfort him. So he lay there with his eyes closed, pretending to sleep, the shame of it welling up inside of him until he thought he’d burst.
D’Arik’s hand slipped off Jacy’s hip and slid down to cup her lower belly. Longing and desperation were added to his already swirling emotions, and it was all Varin could do not to open his eyes and demand that D’Arik shield himself better. The only thing that stopped him was the fact that D’Arik was probably shielding himself to the best of his ability, and Varin didn’t want to worry him or add to his stress in any way. The fact that stray emotions were leaking through D’Arik’s defenses worried him, though, and he wondered how much more stress D’Arik could take before it would be too much.
Varin felt D’Arik’s fingers brush over his abdomen in a soft caress, and he had to concentrate on not opening his eyes and giving himself away. He regulated his breathing, keeping it slow and deep as D’Arik continued to pet him in long strokes. He could tell that the king’s leisurely caresses were not meant to arouse. D’Arik just wanted to touch him for a few minutes. Varin could feel how much it calmed the other man, and so he simply relaxed further into the mattress and soaked up the attention. It had been so long since D’Arik had touched him simply for the pleasure of touching him, and he wasn’t about to ruin that by “waking up.”
D’Arik finally sighed and rose from the bed. Varin opened his eyes and could just make out the outline of D’Arik’s nude body as he fumbled in the closet for his robe. The addition of Jacy’s wardrobe had meant that they’d had to cram their clothes even closer together, but the sp
itfire in his arms was worth it. If anyone could shake D’Arik out of his current state of mind, it was Jacy. And damn it, he had already started to bond with the hellcat. There was nothing, absolutely nothing he wouldn’t give to her.
The door closed softly behind D’Arik’s retreating back, and Varin wished to all the gods that there was some way to reassure his mate that everything would work out. But reality was that even though they had finally found a species that was capable of producing Helan children, it was conceivable that it was too late to save them. He was a coward, and he knew it. He didn’t know how to get through to his mate and was terrified that he was losing D’Arik. They could never by physically separated, as the mate bond ensured that they could not go without the sexual connection for more than a few days or they would suffer a very painful withdrawal, but he could feel D’Arik distancing himself from him, even as D’Arik lost control of his emotional barriers. He should get up and try to make things better for his mate, but he didn’t know how, so he stayed where he was.
He had no idea how long he held Jacy, but a sleepy voice interrupted his thoughts after what must have been hours. “Where did he go?”
He stroked her hair, loving the silky feel of it between his fingers, and used his other arm to pull her closer. Gods, he’d bonded with her so fast. He’d never felt the need to hold someone close to him like he did with Jacy. He’d never even felt such a strong need to hold on to D’Arik before, which disturbed him just a little. He suspected, though, that his intense need to be close to Jacy stemmed not only from the fact that they had already begun to form a mate bond, but also because of the fact that he was so worried for D’Arik. How fucked up was that?
“Varin?” Her soft question made him remember that he hadn’t actually answered her first question.
“He doesn’t sleep well when he’s stressed or worried. He got up so he wouldn’t disturb us.”
Jacy lay quietly in his arms for a few minutes, obviously absorbing what he’d just told her. He was just about to check and see if she had fallen asleep when she spoke again. “What is he worried about?”
Varin considered his answer carefully but decided that, as his mate, she deserved the full truth. “Things are worse than they seem, lira. Our statisticians and scientists agree that it may already be too late to save our species. D’Arik is having trouble reconciling the fact that we must essentially force another species of females to mate with us when it has been ingrained in us to treasure a female, to give her whatever she wants, and he’s nearly out of his mind with stress.”
She seemed to considerer his answer carefully before speaking again, proving just how intelligent she was. “How many human women would your people have to mate? And how many children a piece do your statisticians estimate we would need to have?” She nuzzled her face into the hollow of his throat and reached around his back to play with the ends of his hair, and he wondered if she actually realized what she was doing or if she was always this affectionate when she first woke up.
The slight tugging on his scalp as she pulled lightly on the ends of his hair sent tingles up his spine, and he had to rearrange his lower body so that she wouldn’t be able to feel the steel-hard erection prodding her lower belly. Resisting the urge to rub against her like a giant cat, he cleared his throat and lay as still as he could so he wouldn’t scare her away. “That actually all depends on numbers,” he said, shivering as she continued to fool around with his hair. “The statisticians predict that a minimum of three thousand children need to be born within the next generation to make a real go of it. Of course, that also depends on the number of girls born.”
She nodded her head slightly, her nose still buried in his throat. She was taking deep breaths, and he had a feeling that she was smelling him. He tried not to smirk but failed miserably. Another sign of a mate bond was the mate’s attraction to the other’s scent, kind of like a pheromone thing. D’Arik had once told him that he smelled of leather and limes. It was the comingling of scents that warned other males away from mated men. He took a deep breath and smiled at what he scented. D’Arik’s scent was heavy in the air, of course, the spicy cinnamon and musk that never failed to drive him wild. Jacy’s more delicate scent, something that reminded him of wild flowers and spring rain, was just as appealing. Yep. They were definitely bonding as mates, though far faster than he had ever imagined. The only thing about that that worried him was that he wondered if D’Arik was feeling the mate bond with Jacy yet, and if he wasn’t, what would happen to them?
Jacy took another deep breath, pushing her nose as close to Varin’s skin as possible and inhaling his intoxicating scent. At least she knew where the scent of leather and limes came from. God, it made her dizzy with lust. The thick scent of cinnamon and musk lingering on the pillow under her head just pushed her desire higher.
Varin’s chest expanded, as if he, too, were breathing deeply to try and catch some kind of scent on the air. She was starting to get the feeling that the severity of their population situation wasn’t the only thing they had left out.
It was almost physically painful to pull away from him, but she managed to extract herself from his arms and scramble off the bed. She hurried to the closet and yanked out the first thing that looked like it would cover her, which happened to be some sort of short bathrobe obviously made for her.
Shrugging it on, she turned back to the bed and nearly laughed out loud at the sight that greeted her. Varin had flopped over onto his back and was stretched out full length on the mattress, his feet hanging off the end by a good six inches. She slapped a hand over her mouth to smother the laughter but was unsuccessful. The man was just so big, and the mattress was far too small for him, and the whole thing was rather ridiculous. She dissolved into a fit of giggles, giving up on smothering them and wrapping her arms around her middle to keep herself upright.
Varin growled and leapt at the bed, rushing her and sweeping her off her feet. She could feel his playful mood through their crazy-as-shit bond, so she continued to laugh. “You think it’s funny that I hang off the bed, lira?” He swung her around once before setting her gently on her feet, looking shocked that he had behaved in such a way.
Eager to keep the playfulness going, she poked him in the gut, though her finger didn’t so much as sink into the rock-hard muscles. “It does look kind of funny.”
He growled again and bent slightly at the waist to lay his lips on hers. Instantly, flames flared, and she ran her hands over his body, desperate to touch every inch of skin that was on display.
He pulled his mouth away from hers, but before she could protest the loss, he fastened his mouth on her neck and began sucking aggressively, even scraping his teeth over her sensitive skin. God, she loved it. There was something so primal about how he was marking her. The only thing that would have made it better would have been D’Arik marking her neck on the other side.
Varin growled again, this time sounding turned-on rather than playful. She hooked her knee around one of his legs and began rubbing against him, frantic for some kind of friction to relieve the sharp ache in her pussy. He cupped her ass and lifted her so that he could slide into her, supporting her against the wall. He pounded into her without mercy, the angle of his penetration forcing his cock to peg her G-spot with every thrust. She could feel herself creaming copiously, and Varin seemed to love the rush of wetness that greeted him with nearly every thrust.
The desire to climax was becoming paramount, but she just needed something else. She slid her hand between them and began grinding her own finger against her clit, loving the grunt that Varin issued when he realized what she was doing. Suddenly, she couldn’t hold back anymore. “Gonna come,” she whispered. She threw her head back in her pleasure, hitting the back of her head so hard into the wall, she saw stars. The pain didn’t diminish the intensity of her climax, and she was pretty sure she forgot to breathe somewhere along the line.
Her inner muscles clamped down on him, and she gloried in the feeling of convuls
ing on him until he yanked himself out of her and sprayed creamy-white jets on the wall behind her. That one action had the same effect as a bucket of cold water, and she wriggled until he placed her on her feet again.
She looked down at her feet with embarrassment and fiddled with the ends of the tie on her robe. They had been in such a rush to get at each other that neither of them had actually taken the time to untie the damn thing. Varin had simply hiked the robe around her waist so she could wrap her legs around him.
“Hey,” Varin said, stooping down so he could look her in the face, “I can feel your distress. Tell me what’s wrong.”
She averted her eyes and pulled her robe closer around her breasts. That was the question, wasn’t it? She had been taken from her home, mated to two men, and had wild, monkey sex not once but twice with men she hardly knew. What really disturbed her was that she wasn’t upset about any of those things right at this moment. She was far more concerned about the fact that he hadn’t wanted to come in her. How fucked up was that?
Varin moved back into her line of vision, still peering at her with concern. She just couldn’t bring herself to say what was really bugging her, but she glanced over her shoulder and watched the splashes of semen drip down the wall.
That one small action seemed to tell Varin exactly what was wrong, and he cleared his throat, sounding uncomfortable. “Lira, we have slightly…unique…circumstances within our mating, as we are mated to the high king. The first child you bear will be the heir to the throne and must be of D’Arik’s bloodline, not mine.”
The reason was so simple, so logical, she found herself nodding her head. She caught herself and abruptly began shaking it. “So you won’t ever come in me?” Her lower lip pushed out, and she was well aware she was pouting, but damn it, she wanted to feel Varin’s seed inside of her.
