A grin spread over his face. His step lighter than it had been since he’d found his mates, Ben went in search of something to feed his mates.
~/~/~/~
Roused by the vibration of his cell phone in his pocket, Ben went to move to reach for it, only to find a warm, furry body stretched out beside him. He chuckled, immediately figuring out who it was by their scent, Teilo.
Ben had laid down on the couch after he’d finished dinner when his mates offered to clean up. He must have dozed off. The long flight and spending hours—days caring for his mates, seemingly, had caught up on him.
Fully dark outside, a soft breeze came through the open doors carrying the scent and the sound of the sea. The lamp in the room’s corner illuminated the panther lying on the floor guarding the couch and both mates. Ben’s heart swelled with emotions. His eyes burned, and he sniffed quietly.
The cat pressed against him as if sensing something, lifted his large head and moved to lie directly over Ben’s heart. Teilo’s eyes remained closed as if still asleep, but Ben suspected otherwise. His heart thudded steadily as he stared down with affection at the now purring cat.
The buzzing in his pocket continued, but Ben didn’t move. He wanted nothing to interfere with the moment. Taking the call would surely do that after the emails he’d sent to Todd to ask him to dig deeper into who ran the Paraguay assassin program.
When it stopped, his eyes drifted shut as he inhaled his mate’s scent and simply enjoyed the closeness. His one wish as he drifted back off to sleep was that Nico was there with him and Teilo.He’ll come to us when he’s ready.His panther’s whispered words were the last thing he heard.
Chapter Ten
Ben
Hot sun bathing his face woke Ben for a second time. His body sweaty and aroused, making him take a moment to assess the situation. His wish from the night before appeared to have come true. Somehow, Nico had managed to wedge himself behind Ben on the couch. A large paw lay protectively around Ben and lay on Teilo, whose eyes were open and staring at Ben.
“Morning,” he rasped past the dryness in his mouth. His morning wood and full bladder competing for attention. Carefully he ran a hand over Teilo’s fur, up his neck and to his ear where he scratched, knowing that was a particular favorite place he enjoyed when he allowed anyone to touch him as a panther.
The purring was loud and instant, stirring the cat behind him. A head bunted against his shoulder and Ben grinned, twisting his head to look at Nico. “It’s hard to twist like this.” Ben’s body was facing Teilo’s so he couldn’t reach back with his right arm under him. “If you move out and come lie next to Teilo, I’ll be able to touch you both.”
Those intelligent eyes moved to Teilo, who continued to purr, even though Ben had stopped. Next thing, Nico was on the floor, nudging Teilo. Ben moved until he was lying flush against the back of the cushion on the couch. Teilo followed him, making room for Nico. Ben was grateful that most of the Thalassa brothers were big and had a couch that was made to accommodate them. The last thing he wanted to do was suggest moving the cuddling to the bed and ruining the moment, irrespective of how his bladder felt like it might burst.
Nico joined them, his head resting on top of Teilo’s shoulder. This increased the sounds Teilo was making.
By the time Ben figured out a comfy position to reach and touch both cats, he was more sitting than lying as he listened to both his mates make joyful purring noises. If not for the fact he needed to pee, he could have done it all day long. The sounds they made left his panther panting in his head and him chuckling when he stopped for a second and received a menacing growl from Nico.
“I’ll need to use the bathroom soon. Neither of you, I’m sure, is into a golden shower.”
Teilo’s head popped up and Nico’s nose wrinkled, his whiskers twitching.
“I’ll explain another time.” Ben came forward and kissed each cat on their noses, then winced. “Sorry, I need to go to the bathroom.”
It was several seconds before they moved to let him up and he was positive there were grumbles of complaint as he strolled away, smiling wide enough for his cheeks to ache.
~/~/~/~
Nico
The urge to stay in his cat form was so strong, even as Nico knew he couldn’t fulfill any of the urges he had in his furry shape. Nico’s insides were a mass of emotions as he thought over the events of the past twenty-four hours. It was unsettling, as Nico didn’t think he’d the words to explain what was going on to Teilo and Ben.
The sunset… sitting shoulder to shoulder with Teilo on the sand, was truly epic. Seeing the dying light of the sun’s rays cast streams of colors across the white caps—pink, yellow, and deep oranges. Teilo’s whisper, “This was what I dreamed freedom would look like with you,” resonated deep in Nico’s soul. It had been his dream, too.
But even as they had sat on the sand and soaked up the last part of the day, Nico was acutely aware of the man in the kitchen, who was clanging around and cooking for them. Providing for them. Was that a mate thing? Nico hadn’t been sure, and that was frustrating because there was so much he didn’t know.
The mate kisses were something else again. In his cat form, Nico had to close his eyes as he remembered them, his fur mingling with Teilo’s as they lay on the couch. He’d originally kissed Teilo on his forehead because he’d wanted to taste him—to get the essence of him on his lips. To see Ben kiss Teilo on his lips—lip on lip—why had I never thought of doing that before?
Nico remembered a party he’d scouted out once, hiding in the bushes, waiting for a chance to get at his mark for the evening. A couple, clearly drunk, had come outside, near to where Nico had hidden, and they had been sucking and slobbering over each other’s mouths. Nico had wrinkled his nose in distaste at the time, his senses filled with smells of booze and perfume. It was not pleasant. What Ben did…
Teilo purred and draped his paw over Nico’s back.To be so close and be able to touch is a luxury.Nico had never wanted to be close to anyone in either form, except Teilo. And now that had changed, too.
Nico replayed watching Ben kiss Teilo in his mind’s eye. At the time, he’d thought he’d be angry—he’d always been possessive over his cage brother. What he’d been feeling Nico didn’t have a name for, but it came with the idea of more, more, more.More what?All Nico knew was he had an ache deep inside of himself and he wanted more of something.
“You’re thinking so hard my brain is hurting.” Teilo had shifted, his handsome features Nico knew as well as his own, looking lighter and happier than he ever had been.
