“You’ve mentioned it once or twice.” I shivered. When I performed the collaring ceremony to bind us together, they both marked me the way that bears mark their mates - by sinking their fangs into my neck. The marks scarred, and now I had one on each side of my neck.

  His hand slid up underneath my skirt slowly. “I love seeing them.” He growled lightly, pressing his tongue to each mark with a slow lick. “I love knowing that anyone that sees them knows you’re taken.”

  His fingers danced lightly across my panties, tickling my skin through the thin silk. “So wet, aleni, you must be thinking very wicked things.”

  “Always,” I promised, tipping my head back while he kissed my neck, drawing my skin into his mouth and biting gently. His fingers slipped beneath the flimsy barrier of fabric and two sank into my hot depths and I groaned, biting my lip and closing my eyes. His fingers were perfect. Talented. Wicked.

  He leaned me back slightly as he kissed down my neck and nuzzled the bare space of my chest visible from the low neckline of my top. His fingers twisted and curved inside, searching for my softest place that would send me tumbling over the edge.

  He bit down on my breast through my top, sending little flares of seductive lightning through my body as his fingers found my soft as velvet spot inside and rubbed over it again and again. I tangled my fingers in his hair and moaned softly, trying to keep one ear trained on the hallway outside the door.

  Close. So damn close. I panted for breath, my body shivering with need, and Ash’s voice broke my concentration, “No, Mistress Elizabeth is occupied at the moment. Is it an emergency?” My eyes popped open and I saw that Ash had opened the door only enough for his body. I tried to get up but Axe squeezed his arm around me tighter and began to work his fingers faster inside me.

  His voice was a dark whisper in my ear, “You’re not going anywhere until you come, baby.”

  I whimpered softly, knowing he would hold me right there until I came, and the longer I fought it the longer he would work to make it happen. I trusted Ash to not let anyone see me in such a compromising position, so I relaxed completely and gazed up at Axe’s eyes.

  A sinister smile curved his lush mouth and he growled, the sound rumbling in his chest as his fingers worked and twisted and pounded into me. The orgasm crashed down on me and I ground my teeth together to stop from screaming out my pleasure as he slowed his furious movements inside me and drew me down slowly from the heavens. I went limp with a groan and he laughed softly, adjusting my panties and pulling his hand from under my skirt.

  I peeked at him and he grinned, swiping his tongue across his wet fingers with a happy growl. “You taste like candy, aleni. Sweet, wicked candy.”

  When I could wriggle off his lap and stand up I said to Ash, “Who was that and what did they want?”

  “Vivi needs help with a healing balm for a client.” He held out his hand to me and I took it after turning back around and kissing Axe on the lips. “You’re pretty wicked yourself, my sweet husband.”

  “Praise from Caesar, baby.” He laughed as Ash and I walked out to the front of the store.

  Vivi was an unnatural witch who manned the storefront a few hours a day.

  “Do you still need help, Vivi?” I asked, coming around to the front counter. The young woman looked up from where she was counting small pretalia leaves into a glass container for the client and froze. She stared at me with an odd look on her face. It took me a moment to realize she wasn’t staring at my face but at my chest. I glanced down my pale blue silk shirt to see a very large wet spot over one nipple, the material stained dark.

  “Oh for fuck’s sake,” I hissed, crossing my arms over my chest while Ash tried to stifle a laugh and my cheeks heated with blush. Clearing my throat I said, “Vivi? Did you still need me?”

  “Um, yes, mistress, thank you.”

  After helping Vivi put the balm together while keeping one arm across my chest, I stalked back to the office and exchanged the ruined top for a spare from the armoire in the corner. I always kept several changes of clothes in the office for all of us, from dressy to casual. You just never knew when you might need jeans or a gown. This was one of those times I was glad I planned ahead. Axe didn’t apologize for loving me so inappropriately in the office, but he did promise to replace the top, and that was enough for me.

  When we arrived home that night, Ash cooked dinner for us of meat lasagna and a fresh salad. Afterwards we tumbled into bed together, a delicious tangle of arms and legs, our cries of pleasure melting together as the moon rose in the sky, until sheer exhaustion called to all of us.

  As I woke up, I stretched and groaned, my body pleasantly aching from the previous night’s activities. They’d never worn me out so very thoroughly, and that was saying something. I still had that nagging sense of foreboding, but it was dull by comparison to other mornings. My brain had clearly been fucked beyond all reason to conjure up the bad dreams.

  I blinked at the sunlight streaming in the windows and sat bolt upright. The clock said 10:17. I was late for work! I jerked out of bed and stumbled out to the kitchen naked where I heard Ash and Axe talking quietly and demanded, “Why the hell didn’t you wake me up?”

  “You’re not going to work today, aleni,” Axe said, straightening from where he was bent over a knapsack.

  “What?”

  “We told your grandmother that you were taking a long weekend to relax and we let you sleep in. When you get ready, we’re going to eat and then get going.”

  I opened and closed my mouth a few times, half relieved that I didn’t have to go to work and half pissed off at them for once more making caveman decisions for me without the courtesy of a discussion.

  While I crafted a reply I looked them over. They were wearing hiking boots and worn jeans. Ash wore a soft green flannel shirt and Axe wore a dark blue long sleeved cotton shirt. They had tied their long hair back in low ponytails and two more knapsacks sat by the one Axe had been looking through.

  “Where are we going?”

  “It’s a surprise.” Ash said with a smile. “Now go get cleaned up. I laid clothes out for you on the dresser.”

  “You’re dressing me?” I asked incredulously.

  “You don’t know where we’re going.” He shrugged.

  I opened my mouth to protest and Axe said, “Elizabeth...get going or we’re going to take you out of here naked and hungry.”

  I narrowed my eyes at him, trying to decide if he would actually take me outside in public naked but the look on his face dared me to try him. Assuming that Ash made sure that no men were around, I was certain that Axe would sling me unceremoniously over his shoulder and haul me wherever he wanted to take me. Clothed or otherwise.

  “Fine.” I gave up and went back to the bedroom and peeked at the clothes Ash had laid out for me. Carefully folded on top of the smooth cherry dresser were a pair of jeans, a white tank, a wine long sleeved button down shirt, a wine thong, and white socks. On the floor was a pair of my hiking boots. A hair tie on top told me they wanted my hair in a ponytail, too.

  After showering and drying my hair, I dressed in everything, noticing that he’d not laid out a bra for me so I didn't put one on. When I walked out in the front room, Ash was on his cell in the kitchen and Axe was looking out one of the sliding glass doors that overlooked the backyard.

  He put his arm around me and kissed the top of my head. “Did I ever tell you that I really like the view here?” He smiled down at me before returning his gaze to the lake.

  “I like it, too.” Being a corner in the coven gave me some privileges and one of them was that I got a lake-side home in the coven owned cul-de-sac. I especially loved to watch the sunset on the water. There was something very magical about watching that big golden orb melt into the water.

  He tipped my chin up and when our eyes met he smiled. “I’m sure I wouldn’t like it nearly so much without you. You definitely improve the view.”

  “Aw, you’re making me blush.” I laughed.

  Ash called us to the table and we ate breakfast. They talked about everything but why they thought I needed a three day weekend or where we were going. I had a sneaking suspicion that they were worried about me and were going to try to get me to share what was troubling me. But there wasn’t anything to share. I didn’t know what was wrong, I just felt like something was coming that wasn’t going to be good. Even though they were supernatural creatures themselves, they didn’t quite understand my wicca stuff. And telling them that I was having bad dreams I couldn’t remember and waking up with a sense of evil looming over me like a knife blade poised over my throat wouldn’t really make sense to them. Bears had a sixth-sense about danger; but only physical danger, not abstract. I was certain they would tell me to not worry or that they would protect me. And all I’d do is worry that much more and try harder to hide it from them.

  After breakfast, I helped Ash with the dishes and then Axe called me to him in the middle of the family room. He wrapped his arms around me and squeezed tightly, and my whole body melted at his touch. “Love you, baby,” he whispered huskily.

  Before I could respond, Ash said, “Ready.” Axe released me and I turned to look at Ash who had come to stand behind us. He held a blindfold in his hands.

  “Alright, what are you guys up to?” I demanded, noticing their carefully blank faces but bright, eager eyes.

  “You have to wear this.” Ash said.

  “Why?”

  “Because we don’t want you to know where we’re going.” Axe supplied.

  “Why not?”

  “Because anticipation makes the reward that much sweeter.” Ash grinned and slipped the blindfold over my head before I could ask anything else. It was satin and made so that no light peeked from the edges. I couldn’t see a damn thing.

  Axe said, “I’m going to carry you, aleni, okay? Wouldn’t want you to trip or hurt yourself.”

  “I trust you both. I know you wouldn’t let me get hurt.” My stomach nearly flipped over as Axe swung me up into his arms. I rested my cheek against his shoulder and hugged my arms around him. “I love you.” I said, settling into my temporary blindness.

  “I love you, too, baby. And you know something? Your trust in me, in us...it’s so precious. I love that you trust us. I covet it. And your love.”

  I hugged myself tighter to him as he walked me out of the house. Axe was not the most sensitive man on the planet, but he was damn romantic when he wanted to be. My curiosity was piqued about the weekend, and the need for a blindfold, but I wasn’t going to ask any questions yet. Whatever they had in store for us, I knew that it would be amazing and perfect and wonderful. Just like them.

  I heard a door creak open and Axe carried me up a few stairs and turned to the left. My foot knocked against something and he apologized. After a dozen steps he leaned over and laid me down, and I felt a quilt under my fingertips and a firm mattress under that. It was a bed.

  I felt the bed dip as Axe climbed in with me, settling on his side. After a few quiet moments, a very loud engine rumbled to life and we rocked on the bed as what I figured was an RV of some sort lurched away from the curb.

  “Can I guess?” I asked.

  “You can do anything you like except take off the blindfold, aleni. Although, I wouldn’t recommend walking around blind.”

  “So you’ll answer me?”

  “I didn’t say that.”

  “Oh.” I knew I was making a face because he chuckled and pressed his fingertip to my jutted bottom lip.

  “I love the hell out of you, baby. Truly.”

  “Okay. I don’t really want to know, but I can guess we’re in an RV. I’m up for a road trip. But I have a request.”

  “Sex?” He teased.

  I laughed and turned onto my side, snuggling against him. “Tell me a story.”

  “Ah, a story? What kind of story?” His arms snaked around me and he curled me into his chest with a contented sigh.

  “Tell me...something from your childhood.”

  “Curious about what I was like?” He chuckled.

  “Of course.”

  He took in a slow breath and when he let it out, he began to share stories from his childhood. As the time melted away from us, we laughed and talked, and I mostly listened while he told me about his childish exploits. The RV stopped moving and the engine turned off just as he was finishing telling me about the first time he shifted into a bear and got lost exploring and wandered into a hunting camp site.

  When we’d both stopped laughing at his description of the hunters screaming and running away, he said, “So you liked my storytelling?”

  “Very much.”

  “Someday I’ll tell our children all about mine and Ash’s exploits.” He sounded almost wistful and my heart clenched in remembered worry.

  Ash moved back to wherever we were. “We’re here. I’m going to make sure everything is ready.”

  I felt Axe nod but I was too lost in the twirled thoughts in my mind to say anything. The desire to carry a child for my husbands was great, but I was too worried to even consider it at the moment. All I wanted to do was figure out why worry blanketed me like a quilt.

  We lay in silence while I mentally flipped through my spell book, wondering if there was a way to manifest a dream. I hadn’t figured out anything by the time Ash came back into the room and climbed up next to me, pulling me away from Axe and cuddling me into him. He kissed me, drawing his leg over mine and snugging me close. “You like the blindfold, or not?”

  “Depends.”

  “On what?” He laughed.

  “On the reward that was mentioned earlier.”

  “Ah.” He chuckled and the blindfold was pulled off slowly. I squinted in the brightness of the room and when my eyes adjusted, I saw I was indeed inside a small bedroom in an RV. Through the open door I could see a kitchen area and the driver’s and passenger’s seats at the front.

  “We’re going to do something unusual. We brought you to this special place and we have clothes to change into, too. For all of us.” Ash said, smiling down at me.

  “Yeah? For what?”

  “Because you shared an important ritual with us when you did the collaring. Axe and I want to share something important that’s not about our bear nature but our family.”

  I kissed him lightly. “As long as there aren’t any brands involved, I’m good.” They both laughed, but I was dead serious. The day after my collaring ceremony, they both took brands with the symbol for my tribal name Alisiquete over their hearts. I loved the gesture and seeing them when they went shirtless, but that was a level of pain I wasn’t into by a long shot.

  “No pain. Promise.” Ash kissed me and got up, hefting one of the knapsacks I’d seen earlier onto the bed. He pulled out buckskin clothing that had been dyed black. Pants for them with thick fringe on the sides and what looked like a long skirt and corset for me.

  Axe sat up and began to undo the button of my jeans while Ash untied my boots and placed them on the floor. I lay passively while they stripped me and then Ash pulled me gently to my feet and unfolded the skirt and helped me step into it. The soft buckskin skirt reached my ankles and was split up both sides high up on my thighs. The corset was plain and just wide enough to cover my breasts. It tied at my back and made me think of a tube top.

  They stripped themselves and donned the black trousers. I noticed that the front of the trousers had a triangular shaped panel of leather sewn into it, with a leather tie at the side.

  I pointed to the panel. “That looks interesting.”

  Axe’s gazed darkened considerably and it made my body tingle. “You’ll see later what all this is about.”

  I couldn’t help but grin. My curiosity was blazing and I had no idea what was going to happen. We all put moccasins on and then Axe took my hand and led me towards the door. Ash took my other hand and followed closely behind. When I stepped out of the RV, we were deep in the woods. The trees were so thick around us that the afternoon sun barely penetrated.

  I glanced around and saw the narrow path that the RV had traveled on, cut through the woods so that the trees on either side of it made a wall. The older model RV sat in a small circular clearing. A man knelt in front of a fire pit, lining it with stones. When he looked up at us, I recognized him immediately as their grandfather Quanah. I met him at our official marriage ceremony in June and we traveled to his den in July to visit. He was king of his den that was located in the lush mountains of West Virginia. At one time, he had been king of the den in Northern Ohio. But had stepped down to start another den in West Virginia, wanting to live in the mountains. Their tribe had lived on the land for many generations. I looked around for his mate and their grandmother, Naeyli, but didn't see her.

 

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