by L. V. Lane
He hadn’t knotted me yet. Ethan had, and I wanted it again.
It had hurt; a good kind of hurt, the kind that I craved. Through half-lidded eyes, I watched Ethan line the blunt tip of his cock with the slick coated entrance to my pussy…and thrust.
His big hand tightened over my throat, arching me back into the nest and my legs fell open wide. Leaning down, he pressed his lips close to my ear and snarled, a filthy, feral sound that stamped over my tenuous control and sent a flood of slick pooling between my legs.
He fucked me with deep, brutal thrusts, each one driving me on toward a delirious high. Pain and pleasure warred. My pussy fluttered wildly, feeling the abrasion of his partial knot with each thrust.
“Come for me,” he said. Only he wasn’t speaking out loud, and the words echoed inside my head. I felt invaded—inside and out. His cock, his mind, and his presence forced me to submit.
And I submitted willingly.
I came, shattering, and my cry of pleasure turned into a scream as the knot lodged into place. There was too much of him. Too much presence, too much cock and there wasn’t room for the knot.
“My greedy, little princess wants more,” he growled, trailing soft, sinful kisses along the column of my throat that contrasted with the stretch of his monstrous knot.
I didn’t want more. Was already being taken and stretched beyond comfort, but he rocked, working it deeper, and filling me so completely with jets of cum that I felt my stomach swell.
“Ask me for more,” Ethan demanded.
I shook my head.
His fingers bit deeper into the delicate muscles of my throat, and he began to pull out.
Panic invaded my haze at his threat to remove his cock while still knotted. However much this hurt, removing it would rip me in two.
“More.” My words were little more than a croak.
His lips twisted in a cruel smile, as he ground his cock deeper, setting the knot back into place, and bathing my womb in another gush of cum.
When the knot softened, Ryker took his place. The more I had, the more I wanted. I could not bear to be separated from either of them, even for a moment.
My body was like driftwood subject to a raging sea. Hot walls of muscle enclosed me, gripping hands, biting teeth, thick cocks filling—and blood. Slick, heated skin slapping together amid growls of pleasure. My mind was lost to the carnal place where only insatiable need could be found. They fucked me while I was awake, and when exhaustion dragged me into sleep, they chased me into my dreams and fucked me there again.
CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX
THE FAINTEST CLICK of my office door opening was all the warning I got.
“Where’s our daughter?”
I glanced up from the report I was reading and did a double-take finding Eline standing on the other side of my desk. Hands on hips, her chin lifted in a defiant jut, and her expressive amber eyes flashed holy death. My office, indulgently large and classically styled with views across Chimera, was my sanctuary. No one was allowed in without prior appointment…and notice.
Leaning out, I looked around her toward the door—now closed—and got slowly to my feet.
I was an Alpha, a member of the governing council, but I needed every advantage I could get where Eline was concerned.
“Lyus,” I said. No point in pretending otherwise, she wouldn’t be here unless she had caught wind of events. Lying to her would rouse her considerable temper further. I shot another scowl at the door. How the fuck had she gotten in past my security? I would sack every one of the useless bastards for letting her enter without a sniff of warning!
I sighed. One had only to look at her to understand how this debacle had happened. Time had been kind to her. She was still a beautiful woman, with a graceful dancer’s body and an abundance of charisma. We first met when she charmed her way onto the diplomatic glider where I’d been hosting an event. I hadn’t been alone in noticing her. Men and women alike would turn when she entered the room.
She was tenacious before our daughter came along, and a million times worse after where Lilly was concerned.
“Lyus?” Her amber eyes narrowed—eyes she had bestowed upon Lilly. I never could look upon our daughter without also seeing Eline. “What is she doing on Lyus?!”
Bracing myself for the fallout, I said, “Erison Tsing, the recently deceased viral Program Director, had her taken there.” I’d had to do some fast work when he reported she had been suppressing her heat. Half the Omegas in our Empire suppressed their heat by means legal or otherwise. There was an unofficial policy to turning a blind eye to such activity, and thankfully the agency had brought the report directly to me.
“What kind of madman would do such a thing? I hope he died a slow, painful death.”
I nodded. Knowing Ryker Sherwin, I imagined the death had been spectacular beyond her wildest nightmares. But, she didn’t need to be troubled with the details.
“How could you let this happen?”
I was an Alpha and a governor. Absolutely no one but Eline would get away with talking to me like this. I thanked the soundproof walls and was glad I’d had the presence of mind to switch the security cameras off when I realized who had entered. “She defied her Controllers.”
Her fists clenched at her side. “What kind of incompetent Controllers did you select?” Her voice dripped with venom. “I met one a few weeks ago. A great brute of a man. He couldn’t watch one little Omega?” Her scoffing noise was dismissive. “And defied? Really, Victor, you make it sound like she was the one at fault.”
I raised a questioning eyebrow. “Lilly certainly didn’t get her poor behavioral choices from me.”
The little minx dared to growl at me! “I assume they called upon you to sort this mess out.”
“They did not. I picked them for a reason, and I trusted them to handle this, which they have—admirably. I’d have been disappointed in them if they contacted me at the first sniff of trouble.” Admittedly, I had expected them to contact me once I understood the full magnitude of the situation. Black had warned me more than once about the Uncorrupted’s Alpha programs. He had even flagged the terrorist organization Salvation as a go-between passing them viral information. I had to shoulder some of the blame for Lilly’s situation.
In my defense, we had many such leads, and it was difficult to ascertain, which represented the most urgent call to action. I’d gotten it wrong; it wouldn’t be the last time, I was sure. Still, the fallout had been rather more personal in nature this time. “Her safe extraction depended on this being kept quiet. Hard to do that if I went in guns blazing.”
“Quiet? I don’t give a damn about quiet where Lilly’s safety is concerned.”
I loved my sweet, bonded-Omega Clarissa, but Eline still had an impressive ability to bring out my worst. “Quiet is best where her safety is concerned. Don’t presume to question my ethics regarding Lilly.” My eyes narrowed in warning.
She lost a little of her steam, and in true Eline-style went hunting on a different track. “You did say you picked both of them?”
“I did.”
“Personally, you picked both of them?”
“Yes,” I said. Where was this going?
“Two Controllers! For our daughter? What kind of lunacy would drive you to such a decision?!”
She was building up quite a temper. I was doubly grateful this was not live-streaming to my security team. “She has been at risk since the day she was born. My security team has tailed her every move since she left home, and let me tell you it’s been a nightmare when she’s so—” I gestured toward Eline. “Independent. Her Controllers have impressive skills individually. Skills, which I might add, are highly complementary. I’ve been monitoring the situation—I had the fleet and a team on standby. She’s safe now. They will be returning within the week.”
She surprised me by bursting into tears.
“Fuck,” I muttered. Rounding the table, I coaxed her into my arms and offered her the gentle rumble she used t
o love. It wouldn’t have the same impact on a Mu as it would for an Omega, but it was the best I could do.
“She’s our baby,” she said, sobbing.
“I know,” I replied. I loved all my children, but I’d always had a soft spot for Lilly. Parents weren’t supposed to have a favorite—I was confident we all secretly did. “I’d tear the universe apart if I thought it would help. But I picked them for a reason. Had I interfered, there was a danger I could have made the situation worse. Her Alphas stirred up a storm without any help from me. I swear Black has more contacts than the government. And Sherwin has some—interesting skills.” Eline didn’t need to know what Sherwin had done to Tsing before his death. Cold and creative—it was quite a combination.
“Promise me it’s over. And Lilly is really on her way home.”
“She is,” I said simply.
CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN
I KNEW HER heat was over when I woke the next day, since my first thought was hunger. Fucking remained a close second, but it wasn’t all-consuming.
Her impromptu nest was a mess, I couldn’t work out which way round I was facing for a few seconds. The bare walls and dull light hanging from the ceiling were no more welcoming, but it had served its purpose, and more importantly, it was safe. Pheromones clogged the air, but it was not the debilitating level from before, and sticky bedding pressed against me from all sides except the top.
Seeing her tiny, warm body draped over mine brought a deep, pervasive sense of peace despite the fucked-up setting. Her hair was a knotty mess, crusted with cum—like the rest of her. My cock was still inside her hot cunt. The knot had subsided, but I was still half-erect. Gripping a handful of her ass, I thrust up, grinding her against me, and she moaned softly in her sleep.
I rolled, taking her under me.
“She needs to shower and eat,” Ryker said.
I growled, tightening my fist on her arm until her pained squeal roused me from my temper. “Fuck,” I muttered. “Let’s get you cleaned up.”
Weakness invaded my limbs as I rose to my hands and knees above her. My stomach was hollow, and my skin tight over muscles. I didn’t carry much body fat, but what little I’d had was gone.
If I was in a bad way, Lilly was a thousand times worse.
“I want to sleep,” she said yawning.
I swallowed, seeing her wasted body was enough to bring bile to my throat.
“You’re getting clean, and then you’re going to have something to eat and drink.” There had been supplies here, but there had been little appetite for anything beyond fucking…and blood.
She tried to wriggle over and go back to sleep, little brat.
Steeling myself against the weakness, I gathered her against my chest and carried her into the shower room. “You need to go?” I asked, nudging my head in the direction of the toilet.
Her face flushed red. “What’s wrong with you men asking if I need to go! Please allow me a modicum of dignity.”
“She needs to go,” Ryker called from the other room.
I set her on her feet beside it and waited to see if her legs could take her weight. They did, and she glared at me.
I turned my back. That was the limit of my concession.
After she was done, I took her to the shower and cleaned us both. She complained. I didn’t care. She was weak as a newborn kitten, and if she’d seen herself, she wouldn’t be making so much fuss.
“I’m a mess,” she said softly.
Hot water pelted over both of us. The tiny shower room had seen better days, but it was clean, and the water was plentiful and soothing.
I stroked my fingers through her tangled hair that formed long caramel-colored tendrils. “It’s nothing a few days rest and food won’t fix.” My hands smoothed over shoulders that were little more than skin and bone. I didn’t recall what she had looked like when I took her from the cage. I’d been lost under a red haze of blood and rising rut, but I thought she might be worse now. “How is your flush?”
I tipped her chin so I could inspect her eyes. Amber, thank fuck because I thought it might destroy me if I had to take from her to ease her flush.
I flicked the shower off and urged her out so I could dry her off. The towel was shabby and threadbare but soaked up water all the same.
She had been left alone for seconds so I could dry myself when I heard the first sob. She was staring at her reflection in the cracked mirror.
I froze, damp, ratty towel caught between my fists where I’d been scrubbing my back. “Stop crying.”
A heavier sob tore from her lips and her whole chest heaved.
“Ah, fuck.” Dropping the towel, I picked her up. Her arms and legs wrapped tightly around me, and her face pressed against the side of my throat. When I carried her into the other room, Ryker leaped to his feet. Seeing my warning glare, he sat back. It might have been nice to get some food in her belly before she had a meltdown.
I sat at the table, turning her around, so she sat sideways on my lap, and pressed her cheek against my chest where my deep rumble tried to offer comfort. She sighed and snuggled closer—I was a lost fucking cause.
Ryker was grinning like he’d seen right through me. I nudged my head at the bottled water, and he snapped the lid open and passed it over.
“Drink it all,” I said. Ryker passed me another one, and I gulped the contents down.
I eyed Ryker, who was dressed in his mismatch armor. “How did you end up so fucking perky?”
He rolled his eyes. “I didn’t fight for a start, but mostly, you’re a greedy fuck and don’t share very well. I figured I’d keep my strength up, ready for when you passed the fuck out. But you’re a greedy fuck even when you sleep.”
Chuckling, I ripped open a ration bar and placed it in Lilly’s hand. She had drunk half the water, and I put it on the table while she ate her food. The ration bars weren’t the most appetizing form of sustenance, but they got the job done.
“Did you check in?” I asked Ryker.
He nodded. “Everything is ready.”
“Do you think I might be pregnant?” Lilly asked. Her hand pressed over her stomach, which was hollowed out and set me in a temper just looking at it.
“No, I don’t think so.” Given the state she was in, I thought the chance of her catching unlikely. I tipped her chin so I could see her eyes. “Do you want to be?”
“Yes.”
My heart rate quickened at her admission—I heard Ryker sharp intake of breath.
“How often do you go into heat when you’re not blocking it?”
She tried to pull away, but I kept a firm hold on her chin.
“We’ve already talked about this—how long until the next one?”
“Every twelve weeks.”
“Better make sure you’ve got some reserves before the next one,” I said, giving her ass a squeeze.
My lips twitched at her affronted expression, although what the fuck she had to be upset about was beyond me. “Princess, you’re a bag of bones. If you hadn’t been in heat neither of us would have touched you, but now that we have—and now that we’ve marked and mated you it’s hard to be rational. When we found you were gone—I’m just glad to have you back. The things Ryker did to Tsing to find out where you’d been taken churned my fucking stomach, and I have a strong constitution. I can only wonder how you stirred his cold, dead heart to such a frenzy.”
Ryker grunted. “I’m right here, asshole.”
She shot a quick look at Ryker.
“He protects what’s his. We both do. You’re ours now—both of ours.”
I pressed a kiss against the bite mark. It wasn’t deep enough for my liking, but that might have to wait for next time. “Better show Ryker some gratitude too, or he’ll start carving things up. He can be surprisingly artistic with a knife—as Tsing found out.” A knife…among other things.
I helped her off my lap, and she went eagerly to Ryker and buried herself in his arms as I got on with getting dressed. I fought back a gr
owl. Ryker was right, I was a greedy fuck.
“Do you know why he did it?” She asked softly, and I shared a look with Ryker.
I thought about lying to her. She didn’t need to know Tsing’s reasons, and I thought the details would only cause her to worry. But I’d kept things from her once before, and I had lived to regret it.
“He wanted to take control of the Empire from the Alphas,” I said dragging my pants on, and reaching for my undershirt. “He was working with the Uncorrupted via Salvation toward this aim. You were one of many pieces. Given who your father is, you would have always been a target. But the unique nature of your singularity, and your relationship with Tsing made it easy for him.” And you went alone to his fucking house. As soon as you’re well enough, you’ll be getting the punishment of your life!
She fidgeted on Ryker’s lap, tucking her face against his throat and sniffing.
There was a lot for us to explore regarding the psychic connection. My words weren’t a shared dream, nor that warping of reality that occurred during her heat, but I got the impression she understood the dark direction of my thoughts.
“Was he working alone?”
Yes, she would ask that.
“I don’t know,” I answered honestly, shoving my feet into scuffed boots. “But I expect an investigation will begin soon, and after, we’ll know more.” I met Ryker’s eyes over the top of her head. “Make sure she finishes the rest of the ration.” Ryker smirked like he knew what I was thinking. No point in deluding ourselves we weren’t going to spend the entire trip back to Chimera fucking her. But this time we could make sure we fed her in between.
CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT
SUBTLE CHANGES HAD been made to the room that was once more my office.
The bold artwork Tsing had favored was gone, replaced by a collection of smaller pieces by an up-and-coming student. I had high hopes for the young Mu woman; a life path that would lead her to create many more such beautiful works.
