Paired Pursuit (5 page)

He laughed, and Mari felt another pair of arms slip around her. Gareth. His erection was thick against her back, sending a jolt of excitement shooting to her core. Lingering adrenaline from the attack made her shaky—and very much in need of something to remind her she was still alive. So she let herself lean back, drawing on his strength to steady herself.

“Alien blood is poisonous, in case you're wondering,” Gareth said. “I can assure you that none of it got on us.”

“That's good.” The art of small talk had temporarily deserted her. Not that it mattered with these men, since they seemed to be fascinated by anything she said. Maybe it was their—very effective—way of flirting, or perhaps it was down to their lack of exposure to normal human conversation.

Gareth continued to hold her against him, brushing a caress down her thigh that nearly made her jump. Her residual terror from their near-miss with the aliens was seeping away, rapidly being replaced with a kind of wild desire she'd never experienced before.

Now that was far preferable to giving way to a panic attack.

Finn tilted up her chin with one insistent hand, leaning forward to kiss her. She melted a little, closing her eyes as he gave her expert attention, his tongue demanding entrance. Behind her, Gareth's hands pulled up her skirt, dipping into her panties as she let out a soft moan. She was wet already—far wetter than she'd ever been.

Then again, masturbation had
nothing
on these two men. The orgasm Gareth had given her earlier—that
both
of them had given her, she corrected herself—blew all previous experiences out of the water. This easily eclipsed magazine articles and their ice cubes too.

And, she reminded herself, what did it matter if she slept with these men? Back in Flagstaff, she'd had to keep her magazines hidden, all desire primly tucked away so that she didn't incur Tim's wrath. But Tim wasn't on this train, and Mari was on her way to a whole new life. There would be no fallout, no repercussions. She could let herself be free for once.

When Gareth withdrew, she made a little gasp of disappointment, but Finn pulled back to reassure her. “It's all right, baby. He's just getting comfortable.”

“What?” She turned, finding Gareth pulling out the seats to form a bed. “Oh, I didn't know they could do that.”

“Seatbeds aren't all that practical at a hundred miles an hour, since you'll jounce right out of them. At thirty, they're perfectly safe. And they conveniently fit all three of us.”

Yes, but would she fit
them
? Doubt assailed her, but Finn bent to kiss her so thoroughly that her head was spinning by the time they came up for air. Despite his take-charge attitude, he held her lightly enough that she was confident she could pull away if necessary. Instead, she walked toward the bed.

Gareth was already lying there, watching her with half-lidded green eyes. His hand was at his cock, but he hadn't unzipped his fly. Wondering at her own forwardness, Mari reached over and did it for him. As her fingers caressed his bulge, Gareth breathed in one sharp breath and shucked off his jeans and leather jacket.

He twitched the curtains closed before turning back to her, clad only in a black, short-sleeved shirt. His erection was enormous, a bead of moisture clinging to its head. She'd borrowed a copy of
Playgirl
once, but that didn't hold a candle to the real thing. Mari had been half-embarrassed, half-intrigued, flipping through all those pages of naked men.

Here, there was no room for embarrassment. The thought was freeing, invigorating. She wouldn't have to marry either—or both—of them, wouldn't have to face any disapproving comments about premarital sex.

Behind her, Finn teased off her blouse, unhooking her bra and tossing the clothes over into the next set of seats. As he worked on her skirt and tights, Gareth came forward to kiss her.

His erection settled against her bare stomach, nearly in the valley between her breasts. She closed her eyes again, losing herself in the moment before the memory of the alien attack could rise up and choke her. Behind Mari, Finn peeled off her tights and settled his own erect cock against the small of her back, toying with her breasts as he kissed the nape of her neck.

“We're protected, so you know,” Finn told her. “Twins are immune to STDs. Gareth and I took a male contraceptive shot last year, so that's covered as well.”

Gareth's lips still lingered on hers, preventing her from responding beyond a bare nod. Disappointment cut through her arousal—if they were taking contraceptives, that meant she was merely one woman of many for them, nobody special.

But no, they'd said she was the first one for both of them. That had to mean something.

And losing her virginity—to Twins, no less—was something she was totally fine with. Of course they wouldn't commit to her—nor she to them. Mari didn't ask for that. Besides, she'd always known that she had to make her own way in life. So why not have a little fun while she could?

And after that scare, Mari sure needed to feel an emotion other than terror.

Finn's hands went back to her breasts, the rough pads of his thumbs brushing sensitive skin. It was hard to believe that these skilled fighters could be so gentle, but they were consummate gentlemen, taking things slow and easy. Almost too slow and easy, for when the train lurched, panic nibbled at the edges of her libido.

When they lowered her to the bed, she was more than ready to go along with it. Stomach-down, she complied as Gareth positioned her rear-end-up with her knees under her body. Doggy-style, according to some magazine she barely remembered. Mari quivered as he ran a finger along her sex, drawing a long, protracted circle around her clit.

Finn situated himself at the top of her body, kneeling so that his erect cock was inches from her mouth. She knew what he wanted—and she was more than willing, daring to lick him first, lack of ice cube be damned. His groan spurred her on even as Gareth eased the tip of his cock against her entrance, holding her hips firm.

Mari opened her mouth further as Finn stroked her hair, tonguing the head of his erection before she closed her lips around his smooth skin and slid downward. He let out a load groan.

“Ah, baby, you feel so good. What a sweet, tight mouth you have.”

He liked that? Mari felt an irrational rush of pride accompanied by an electric surge of arousal, and Gareth used the opportunity to penetrate her. She gasped around Finn's cock, writhing a little against the not entirely unexpected sting.

“Easy,” Gareth said. “Just breathe.”

She did, her tongue lapping against the base of Finn's cock as she grew used to Gareth's girth. Hands braced against the bed, she pulled back, letting Finn's hands guide her head where he wanted it. He fucked her mouth as Gareth began to move, and Mari fought to concentrate. God, that felt so good. There was no room in her mind now for anything but pure pleasure.

“I'm not going to last,” Finn ground out.

“At this rate, neither am I,” Gareth muttered. He slowed, running a caress across Mari's buttocks. She arched against his hand, needing his touch to ground herself.

Finn tensed, his cock going absolutely rigid in her mouth. “Now,” he said, and held her still as he jetted in her mouth. Her throat muscles worked as she struggled to swallow, but he quickly brought a tissue to her mouth, wiping off the excess semen as he crooned gentle endearments.

As soon as Finn was done, Gareth withdrew, guiding her onto her back with her head in Finn's lap. Then Gareth slid back inside her, and she gasped at the new angle of penetration. Finn heightened her pleasure by leaning down to suckle her breasts, his tongue doing wicked things to her nipples. She breathed in his masculine scent, reaching up to wrap her arms around his neck as she hovered on the edge of an orgasm.

“Please,” she whimpered.

Gareth thrust hard, pushing her over. She cried out against Finn's chest, trembling as he continued to lick and suck. Nestled against Finn, she felt safe, cocooned and utterly pleasured.

Gareth came moments later, his groan of satisfaction prolonging her own pleasure. He gripped her thighs hard as he spent his hot seed inside her. Then he withdrew, and she felt him press a cool, damp tissue there, cleaning her gently.

Finn pressed one last kiss atop her breast and lay back, his green eyes smoky. “Come here, baby. I need to snuggle you.”

With some effort, she managed to wriggle into his arms. Gareth followed, sandwiching her in between both of them. Content, exhausted and wholly calm, she rested her head on a convenient shoulder and closed her eyes. Lulled by dual heartbeats and the movement of the train, worn out by stress and emotion, she fell asleep.

* * * * *

Gareth opened his eyes, expecting to immediately recall his most recent nightmare. But he'd had none, and that was highly unusual. He blinked down at Mari, who still snoozed contentedly.

Strange. For the first time in decades, he had slept soundly and peacefully.

That was a welcome change from the nightmares he often had, where his scientist “family” perished over and over again in gruesome alien attacks. No matter that he'd only come across the aftermath, seeing the woman who'd been to all intents and purposes his mother with her throat torn out. He still imagined the attacks as if he'd been there.

Finn told him he often tried to fight in his sleep, shredding sheets and pillows as he strove to drive the Barks away. It didn't matter that in real life, he
had
driven them away, working with the rest of the Twins to drive them right out of Chicago. In the end, their area received far fewer casualties than most places.

That was small comfort in the nights to follow. At least Twins didn't require as much sleep as a human. They could get by on two to three hours a night—less, sometimes. Right now, Gareth felt totally recharged. He figured
that
had much to do with the woman lying next to his brother.

Mari. He smiled as he studied her sleeping face. What a woman, and what a piece of luck for him and Finn. Gareth hadn't been as quick as his brother to mark her as theirs, but Finn had seemed to realize from the very beginning that Mari was special.

He shook his head, sitting up to pull his clothes on. Love—or pheromones, whatever—at first sight? He'd never believed in it, had scoffed at the pair of Twins who vowed their belief in that sort of occurrence.

We looked once
, the two men had said,
and we knew she was ours.

As he pulled on his boots, Finn woke. Very carefully, he dislodged Mari's head from his shoulder and re-tucked the blanket over her. While his brother dressed, Gareth drew the curtains, blinking in the midmorning sun. By now they were entering the former suburbs of Reno, rolling slowly through abandoned, rotting houses, long ago pillaged of any valuables.

Many of them had their roofs knocked off too, either for building materials or to prevent the Barks from setting up their daytime camp inside. Gareth touched his wrist at that thought, slipping his UV-saber off to recharge in the bright sunlight. Finn did the same, then visited the bathroom to wash up.

By the time they were both washed and presentable, it was time to wake Mari. Gareth did so with relish, stroking her silky hair from her peaceful face. “Hey, wake up. Time for breakfast.”

Her dark lashes fluttered, and she groaned. “Five more minutes.”

“In five minutes, we'll be nearing civilization again,” Finn said. “And you're buck naked. Not that I'm complaining, but if we pass any farmers, they'll get a very nice eyeful.”

At that, Mari sprang up, spreading her appalled glare equally between them. Gareth grinned as she dove for her suitcase, breasts bouncing in a way that made him instantly hard again. He watched her with a possessiveness he'd never before felt, wanting nothing more than to coax her back onto the bed and have his way with her.

That particular pleasure would have to wait. He set out breakfast, making sure Mari had a portion as well. Despite their many flaws, the scientists who packed their food had done a good job with tucking extra provisions into their bags.

Finn pulled Mari into his lap as they ate, cupping her ass with one proprietary hand. Gareth enjoyed the sight while also making sure he kept an eye on the terrain outside. Unlike in some Cities, there were no rogue settlements outside the walls here, no shanty towns against the wall itself. That suggested that the alien attacks were frequent and vicious.

“Eat your granola bar,” Finn urged Mari.

“Are you sure I'm not making you go without?” she asked, her brown eyes serious.

“Nope. Besides, feeding you is the least we can do after this morning.” Finn bent to kiss the top of her head, so he missed the fleeting, uncertain expression that crossed Mari's face.

Gareth considered her. “Are you okay, honey? Not hurt?”

“No—I'm fine.” She smiled, setting his heart at ease. Still, he resolved to keep a close eye on her, make sure she was truly okay with having a relationship with them.

The train slowed as it approached Scar City. They rolled through the gates, over which someone had crossed out
RENO
under the
Welcome
to
sign and written SCARCITY.

As Mari ate the last bite of her granola bar, the train came to a halt. Gareth folded the makeshift bed back into seats again and set their suitcases near the door. They were here later than scheduled, and he felt strongly that they ought to be making up for lost time.

“Do you really think this City is living on such borrowed time?”
Finn asked.

“Yeah, I do. Last time I was here, there were at least a handful of humans living outside the walls. Now I see no sign of them.”

“I'd like to see if we can find some, speak to them. Maybe one of them knows where Jorge Aquino went—and why.”