I peer down at his face, then trace a finger across his bottom lip. “You don’t have to hide from me,” I murmur, then kiss his lips quickly before he feels like he needs to respond. I just want them both to know I can handle being with them, that Iwantto handle all the things that come with being with them.
Griffin palms the back of my head and takes the kiss deeper when I would have retreated. “What is it with you always trying to seduce my girl on the couch, vampire? We have a bed big enough for all of us right through here,” Evan remarks.
I break our kiss and look over my shoulder. Evan is leaning against the wall near the hallway. His face is much more relaxed than it was just a few moments ago, and his gaze is heated, traveling over my body. Griffin’s lips trail down my neck, but I keep my eyes on Evan. The scruff on his jaw is heavier than usual—he didn’t shave today—and my fingers itch to feel it. His hair is pulled back in a haphazard bun that women spend hours trying to achieve.
Evan is handsome, ruggedly so. His features are masculine and heavy, but when put together, he makes the perfect package. “What are you looking at, Quinn?”
“My mate,” I answer, giving Evan the words that echoed in my mind as soon as he asked the question. Though they feel foreign on my tongue, they feel right as soon as I say it out loud.
Evan’s eyes widen, and he staggers off the wall. I’m pretty sure I just shocked him.
“If you want a new wardrobe, just tell him. You don’t have to tease the bear into shredding your clothing,” Griffin murmurs against my neck, never once pausing his kisses.
“I’m not teasing or looking for a new wardrobe.”
Griffin chuckles against my skin, and it irritates me. Does he think I’m being coy? That thought raises my hackles. Just because I’m not supernatural doesn’t mean I can’t feel the same way they do. I curl my fingers in the back of his hair and tug his head back so I can look down into his eyes. His mouth is open, exposing his fangs, but his eyes are locked on mine. “Don’t do that,” I warn softly. “Don’t make me feel silly for how I feel. I would never do that to you.”
Griffin doesn’t look away from me, but I feel his arms slide down until he’s bracketing my hips. “Sweetness, there are a great many things you could accuse me of, but making fun of you isn’t one.” Swiftly, he stands with my legs still hooked over his hips, my knees still bent around his sides.
“You laughed.” I curl my arms around his neck, remembering I was supposed to object to being carried around, but I don’t want to.
After reaching the bedroom, Griffin lowers me down his body until my feet touch the floor. Eyes still on mine, he says, “Yes, but not at you. I laughed because even when you don’t mean to seduce us, you do. You don’t even know you’re pulling us deeper into your web with every look, every word, yet here we are. It’s intoxicating.”
I open my mouth, but I don’t know how to respond to that. Evan nudges his way closer until he’s standing at my back. Having their heat surrounding me causes new emotions, and surprisingly, it’s not sexual.
I feel safe, content, and cared for in a way that’s eluded me my entire life, but I didn’t even realize I was missing it until this moment. Loving Evan and Griffin, even when they make me mad, is as effortless as breathing. What I’ve been feeling for them finally made sense when Alice told me that we shared part of our souls. How else could I love and accept them so quickly any other way? We were made for each other.
It’s why I’ve always found Evan’s presence comforting, even when I convinced myself he was intimidating, and why I’ve been drawn to Griffin from the moment we met. Fate. It must be the same reason he feels like I’m seducing him when I’m not trying. I’m not going to argue with his feelings, because I feel the same way.
Evan
“My mate.” Quinn murmurs the words softly, confidently, and my entire world shifts on its axis.
If it didn’t fill every fiber of my being with a purpose, I would be falling to my knees. Her acceptance, her absolute willingness to learn an entirely new way to live and be by our side makes me feel damn near unworthy.
If the tables were turned, and I had to give up so much of myself to be with her, would it be so easy? I’m so overwhelmed, I can’t even respond to her. I knew she accepted my bond, but she didn’t even really understand what she was getting herself into at the time. Hearing her say it now, out loud, humbles me.
Griffin scoops her into his arms and carries her into our room. Their hushed conversation is lost to me as I replay her words over and over in my head. The devastating desire to claim Quinn is replaced with a fierce sense to love her, cherish her. I don’t need to own her, she already owns me.
I make my way around Quinn, and she leans her head back on my chest. My hands, which have always felt hurried and rushed, skim slowly up her sides, and I can feel her breath leave her body as she exhales. I lower my chin and brush my lips over her neck and shoulder, tasting her skin and savoring our mingled scents.
Quinn lifts her arms in the air, and I slip her shirt up and off, dropping it to the floor the moment it’s free of her hands. Her entire back is bare, and my eyes are drawn to my mating mark on her right shoulder. When I trace the raised scar with my fingertips, she looks over her shoulder with a small smile on her lips.
“I’m starting to think you only have something against my clothes.” I’m confused for just a moment, and then I realize she was wearing Griff’s shirt and she thinks that’s why I didn’t rip it off her. She isn’t right, but I don’t need to tell her that now. I lower my head and brush my nose against hers in a nuzzle. Quinn’s eyes close, and she grabs the back of my neck, pulling me down for a kiss.
She turns slowly, and I feel her lean up against me, her soft curves molding to my frame. Griff grabs her hips and tugs them back, then reaches between our bodies so he can unbutton her pants. Quinn’s kisses grow deeper, needier, as he pushes her jeans down her legs, leaving her naked in front of me. Having a second set of hands can be so very helpful.
I want to feel her skin against mine, so I break the kiss long enough to slip my shirt off and drop my pants. My dick is already hard, but when Quinn lowers her eyes to look at me, I ache. She wraps her cold fingers around my length, causing me to let out a small curse from the erotic sensation.
As much as I want to take my time with her, I’m still eager to be inside her. I hope at some point, I won’t feel like I’m going to come as soon as she touches me. That would get pretty fucking embarrassing. I’m tempted to reach for her hand and stop her, but I don’t have the mental strength, so I just grit my teeth.
When her other hand comes up and cups my balls, I think I’m about to swallow my tongue. “Didn’t you want a bed next time?” Griff is reminding Quinn of her whispered wish when we were in the security room. I don’t know if it’s to help me or not, but Quinn releases me and shoos me with her hands, giving me a second to collect myself.
“You heard him. We need a bed.”
My dash to the sheets could probably be considered comical, but laughing is the last thing on my mind when Quinn climbs in right behind me and prowls up my body. I forget how to swallow when she runs her tongue up my neck and throat. I tilt my head back, exposing my most vulnerable spot and giving her better access. She nibbles on me like I taste fucking delicious and moans as she drags in lungfuls of my scent.
My entire body feels like it’s shaking from the inside, like I’m about to burst apart at the seams all because this tiny creature can’t seem to get enough of me. Her slick heat comes into contact with my lower stomach as she straddles me. My muscles contract, driving my hips upward even though she’s not on my dick.
