“That makes sense. So did you get into a fight or something?” I ask, returning my gaze to Gem, who winces.
“Ah, no, the opposite actually,” he says cagily, and I think about what the opposite of fighting would be, and then it clicks.
“Oh…” A wave of jealousy floods me, but I push back at my creatures. These guys had a life before me just like I had one before them. I can’t get stabby over past actions. It’s the future ones that count.
“It was my first threesome, and the Sanderson twins were kinky as fuck,” he argues. “They liked fucking the same person. You try holding in your powers when you’re being railed from behind while someone is trying to suck your soul out of your cock.”
My eyebrows jump in surprise. I automatically assumed he had been with two girls, not two guys.
“Didn’t you burn all of Bella’s hair off her head? It took her ages to grow it all back.” Hunter snickers in front of us.
“And Blade had third-degree burns on his chest. Dad had to pay their family compensation.” Gryffin sounds as jealous as my animals feel.
“The twins were male and female?” I ask, and Gem winks at me.
“Told you they were kinky. I’m pretty sure Blade got off on watching his sister. It was kind of uncomfortable when I realized what was going on, but by then, it was too late. I didn’t get laid for a good six months after that. No one would come near me, too worried that I would lose control again,” he grumbles.
The bond group bursts into laughter, and this time, Micah and I join in. We spend the next hour getting to know each other better. I find out that all of them attended college before joining the watch or the military like Micah. They all have degrees, and I am blown away to find out Liam is actually a qualified elementary school teacher but has never used his qualifications, moving straight to the watch with the other guys instead.
My heart is full and my mind is distracted from the interaction with the feral when Micah and Hunter stop abruptly in front of us. Micah pulls out a flashlight from one of the backpacks and shines it on the wall to the left. “I thought I saw something. It glows slightly, kind of like some of the phosphorus corals near my family’s sea home.”
The spotlight illuminates a symbol that isn’t familiar to me. It’s eight arrows in a circular pattern kind of like a sun. When Hunter puts his hand against it, there’s a grinding sound, and then the wall slides back, revealing another tunnel. This one is slightly smaller than the one we’ve been traveling in, but still wide enough to walk three abreast. Unlike the previous one, though, that seemed to cut straight through the mountain and was cold and clammy, this one appears to slope downward, and the farther we go, the more it warms up.
Sweat starts to pool between my breasts, and my hair begins to stick to my face. “Is it me or is it getting hotter in here?” I ask, fanning my face. Gem and Hunter don’t seem to be affected, but the others have a sheen of sweat on their faces as well.
“The tunnel must be connected to the thermal pools and underground springs that run under and through this mountain range, or at least adjacent to them. It’s too warm for it not to be,” Hunter says, pulling out a canteen of water and passing it back to me. The others follow his lead and pull theirs from their backpacks.
“I think I can see light a little further up.” Brodie squints down the tunnel, beyond Gem’s flame, which has kept us out of the dark yet again. “Do you think we are almost there?”
Micah frowns. “No, we’ve only been walking for about two hours. Lena said it would take at least four.”
“This walking crap is bullshit,” Liam grumbles.
“Apparently they have an ATV and electric carts they use, but because this trip was unexpected, they couldn’t arrange for anyone to have them waiting in the tunnel,” Hunter tells his teammate who perks up.
“So we can use them on the return journey?”
Hunter rolls his eyes but nods. “Yes, Liam, you lazy fucker.”
Liam flips him off, and we continue on our way, but Brodie was right, and the tunnel does get lighter the farther we go. I’m excited, although I feel a little claustrophobic knowing there’s a massive mountain range on top of us, but instead of an exit, the tunnel opens into a huge cavern with a shimmery pool of water and a small waterfall trickling prettily over rocks. The light comes from a weird moss-like plant that glows brightly.
“Oh, wow, this is amazing.” Gryffin sighs as we look around. There is more than one tunnel leading away on the other side of the grotto.
“Which one do we take?” I ask, pointing at the exits.
Hunter hurries over to them, studying the edges of each tunnel. He runs his hand over something on the one on the left. “This is the Chaos Kingdom’s symbol again, so this one. The others have the other kingdoms’ symbols. We will be fine. Shall we keep moving?”
Micah is distracted by the shimmering pool of water, though, and the throbbing desire inside my body has kicked into overdrive. It’s always been there, but the walk and the conversation were enough to keep it contained. Now that there is a body of water nearby, however, the need to finish the mating bond with Micah is screaming at me.
He squats down and runs a hand through the liquid before lifting it to his mouth to taste it.
Gem cries out, “Wait! What are you doing? You don’t know if it’s drinkable.”
Micah rises to his feet and turns and smiles. “It is. It’s fresh with some minerals, but it’s fine. I knew you could heal me if it wasn’t, plus Colbie’s hydra bit me, so I would be okay,” he replies, and Gem sags with relief.
“Oh yeah, it’s going to take a while to get used to that.”
Brodie throws himself on one of the thick bits of moss covering the ground, puts his hands beneath his head, and closes his eyes. “I’m just going to take a nap while you two go do your thing,” he mutters, and the rest of the guys spread out, pulling out canteens, granola bars, and jerky. I ignore all that and focus on the shifter in front of me who is slowly removing his clothes, his eyes bright with desire as he gestures to the water.
