The Secret (9 page)

Declan kept his gaze on Sunny as his cock slid in and out of her hot, wet cunt. Her eyes changed, glowing like they did in her lion form, growing dazed and heavy-lidded with the heat the three of them generated together. So fucking beautiful.

“You want more, baby?” he whispered. She opened her mouth, but no words came out. She gave him a jerky nod instead. “Touch yourself, then. Show us how you like your pretty nipples handled.”

She cupped her breasts, lifting them like an offering, then splayed her fingers so they surrounded but didn’t touch her nipples. He groaned. It was his turn to demand more, but it wasn’t necessary. Never taking her gaze from his, she took each nipple between thumb and forefinger. She rolled them until she panted, tilting her hips to catch his cock on each withdrawal. Then she squeezed, her touch no longer teasing as her nipples turned a rosy red.

Bending his head, he took one between his lips, sucked it hard against the roof of his mouth. She cried out when he bit her. Her pussy spasmed, milked him, as he slammed into her and Carlos into him.

The werelion came first, with a roar, nipping Declan’s back before rolling to the side. He came up on one elbow, watching them, reaching a finger out to stroke them where they were connected. Declan gritted his teeth against the urge to come now.

Sunny protested when he slowed his strokes, her soft murmurs almost like a choked cry. He lifted her legs over his shoulders and caught his breath when he looked down at them. Her pelvis was raised off the bed, her thighs spread wide for him. The view was intoxicating. Next to him, the lion purred and reached between them, stroking Declan’s cock a moment before finding Sunny’s clit.

She grew slicker around him as Carlos heated her body up again, drew pleasure from her with each stroke of his thumb. Her eyes glazed over; her face flushed. Declan’s thrusts grew hurried, then frenzied as the wolf inside rose, demanded the submission, the total surrender, of its mate.

Between his thrusts and Carlos’s attention to her clit, Sunny didn’t stand a chance. She came, screaming in pleasure. Her cunt clamped down around him, holding him inside her when he came, filling her womb with spurts of cum.

He let her legs down and fell on top of her. Sunny didn’t know how long she lay under him, but when her mushy brain started to function again, she looked around for Carlos. He came out of the bathroom, rubbing a towel over his wet hair and holding a damp washcloth in his hand.

With a long lick on her neck and a whispered promise to return, Declan stood, kissing Carlos as they passed each other and he entered the bathroom. She heard the shower turn on and considered getting up to join him, then dismissed the idea with a sigh. No way were her legs getting her that far yet.

Carlos knelt between her thighs on the bed and leaned forward to wipe her brow with the cloth before moving down her neck, over her collarbone. Lingered on her breasts. His cock grew hard as she watched, and she groaned.

“Honey, there is no way…”

She cut the words off when he gave her that slow, teasing smile, her heart hammering in her chest. But he didn’t push her. He cleaned her, moving the cloth down her belly and finally between her thighs. It stroked, rasped over her sensitive skin, and after a moment he tossed it aside. He lay down next to her, his chest to her back, and slowly ran his hand down her body.

“Sleep,” he whispered, promised, his hand moving to cup her sex. “I’ll be right here when you wake up.”

She drifted to sleep and woke with him moving in her. Slowly. Leisurely. She tried to twist around to face him, but he held her still, lifting her leg over his hip, cupping her breast, teasing her nipple while he licked her neck with long, wet strokes. With a moan, she let him have his way.

He never hurried, never rushed, even when Declan lay down in front of them and wrapped his hand around his cock. She moistened dry lips as she watched him. He stroked his cock in a long, slow twist that kept the same pace as Carlos’s thrusts in her pussy. She had a hard time deciding which was hotter.

She could see the pleasure build on his face, and hers rose in tandem. When cum pearled on the head of his cock, he rubbed his thumb over it and lifted it to her mouth. Keeping her gaze on his face, she sucked the digit into her mouth and rolled her tongue over the drop, groaning at the salty, masculine taste. With a shudder, he rolled to his back, his hand pumping his cock harder until he jerked, his cum shooting across his belly.

“Oh God,” she whispered, unsure if it was the vision Declan made sating himself or Carlos’s long, deep, slow strokes that pushed her into orgasm. He buried his head in her neck when he followed them, his big body tense and shaking at her back.

“Sleep now,” he whispered, and she couldn’t remember the last time she’d slept so well.

Chapter Ten

Sunny woke alone, her body pleasantly sore and her soul content. She took a deep breath, taking her mates’ scents deep into her lungs, and listened for activity in the house. It was too quiet. She didn’t even hear Jaz. Scowling, she got up and pulled on the first clothes she grabbed from the closet. She didn’t bother with shoes, but put on heavy wool socks. The wood floors were cold.

She checked Jaz’s room first and, finding it empty, went downstairs. No one was there either. Her sister had been free a week, recovering with the swiftness of most weres, and had started to venture downstairs and even outside. Maybe the guys had taken her for a run?

Not likely. Not without letting her know. Where the hell had they gone? Opening the back door, she stepped out in the chilly December morning. It had snowed overnight, and a set of footprints led from the house to the woods. Not a problem, but the other set, from the road cutting across the yard, were alarming. She crossed to where they disappeared into the woods and caught a familiar scent, one she’d hoped never to smell again.

Burns wasn’t dead after all, and like Carlos had feared, he’d tracked them down. One set of prints must be his. The other, smaller and narrow, could only be Jaz’s. Shit. Where the hell were Carlos and Declan?

She ran back to the house for her weapons and boots, but paused before heading back into the woods to follow Jaz. She took a moment to try and call them on their cell phones, but was shunted straight to voice mail. They’d be furious if she went looking for Jaz without backup, and they were right. It was foolish to go alone. But she couldn’t leave her sister unprotected, couldn’t risk Burns kidnapping her again.

She went. A few feet into the trees, the tracks split apart. She wanted to follow Jaz but suspected Burns was trying to get in front of her for an ambush, so she peeled off to the left and followed him.

She jumped when her phone vibrated in her pocket. Thank God, she’d turned it to silent last night and hadn’t thought to reset it today. Carlos’s name was on the display screen, and she answered, hoping like hell her voice wouldn’t carry too far.

“Where the hell are you?” she snapped.

There was a pause, and she could imagine his eyes narrowing at her tone. He might even threaten to punish her later. She shivered, remembering the paddle he’d shown up with a few days ago. Who’d known what a turn-on that would be?

“On the way back. We went to debrief Julian and grab some supplies. What’s going on?”

“Burns is here. Somewhere in the woods stalking Jaz. And I’m a tracker, not a fighter, remember?”

He snarled. “Do you mean to tell me you’re out there alone?”

“I can’t abandon my sister.”

A twig cracked nearby, and she crouched down, looking around carefully.

“Get your ass back. We’re turning down the drive now.”

He hung up before she could protest, but truthfully, she was relieved. She wouldn’t leave her sister out here to fend for herself, but she knew they needed help. She heard movement again, and the breeze shifted enough to bring her Burns’s scent. He was between her and the house.

She took her bearings, terror and adrenaline flooding her system as her body prepared itself for flight. She’d have to try to circle back to the house. She could do it. She was fast and agile. With her feline abilities, she should be able to outrun a wolf. Except this was no ordinary wolf.

She heard a lion’s roar in the distance behind her and knew it was Carlos’s order to get moving.
It’s now or never, Sunny.
Ignoring the shaking in her limbs, the racing of her heart, she moved in the opposite direction of the house. When she reached the clearing, she took another path that wound back to the house and picked up her pace.

She sensed movement behind her, could swear she felt hot breath on her neck. Glancing over her shoulder, she saw nothing, and with straining ears heard nothing, but she snapped forward again when she caught rustling in the brush. Slowing to a walk, she edged closer with care, cursing the wind that blew from behind her. She nearly jumped out of her skin when Jaz peeked around a thick tree.

“Oh thank God,” she said, walking forward, gaze panicked. “He’s here.”

“I know.” She took her sister’s hand and urged her down the path. “Carlos and Dec are hunting him. We need to get back to the house.”

They ran, and Sunny was relieved when she could see the house through the trees. They were almost safe, but where were Carlos and Declan? They must have gone into the woods after her. Then they were on the lawn, running for the porch. They were halfway there when Burns in human form and two gray wolves came around the corner. Shit. Burns had brought backup for the hunt, and she and Jaz were the prey.

“You’ve caused so much trouble I might not let you live.” He addressed Sunny with an evil smile. “And you, my dear,” he said, turning to Jaz, “think of all the pain you put yourself through, and your secret is unveiled anyway. Now you’ll have to be punished again, of course.”

Jaz cringed, and Sunny pulled her close to her left side, reaching for the butt of the pistol strapped to her right.

“It’ll go worse for you if you try that,” Burns said. “Now move to the van.”

The wolves at his side growled and split up, moving toward her and Jaz. When they refused to move, one of the wolves leaped forward, his teeth clamping around her calf. Sunny cried out when it broke her skin and she smelled her own blood. The wolf didn’t release her. It pulled until she fell to her ass, then starting yanking her toward the waiting van. Desperate to get free, she kicked it with her other leg, smiling at the satisfied crunch when her boot connected with its skull, but it still didn’t let go.

They drew closer and closer to the van, and she squashed down her rising panic, fought back the tears threatening to spill. She just needed to slow the wolves down. Carlos and Declan would come. They’d never allow her to be taken. With a curse at her stupidity, she freed the gun on her side, took aim and fired. The punishing grip on her leg was gone in an instant as the wolf fell dead.

It hurt like hell when she forced herself to her feet, her gaze desperately seeking out her sister. Burns was dragging her to the van, the remaining wolf protecting his flank. Fuck. She couldn’t risk shooting. She might hit Jaz. But what choice did she have? There was a third man inside the vehicle, motor running, ready to take off. She would not let them take her sister. She’d failed to protect her once. Never again.

Then Carlos was running toward them in human form, Declan’s huge black wolf at his side. Burns snarled and threw Jaz at them before jumping into the van with the wolf. It squealed down the drive. She sagged in relief. It had been too damned close.

She opened her mouth to thank them, but snapped it shut when she got a look at their expressions. They were furious. At her. She didn’t protest when Carlos ordered them all to pack, but it wasn’t until they were all piled in the Excursion and were on the road that she spoke.

“Where are we going?”

“My pride.” His tone did not invite conversation. Well, too damned bad.

“You think we’ll be safe there?”

“Yes,” he said curtly. His knuckles were white from gripping the steering wheel so hard. She sighed. Didn’t look like he was getting over it any time soon. “Get the boxes, Dec.”

Declan pulled two small jewelers’ boxes out of the glove compartment, handing one to her and the other to Jaz.

She gasped when she opened it. Inside lay a gold ring, encrusted with emeralds and rubies. She’d never seen anything so lovely. She glanced over to see what they’d given her sister. Hers was a simple silver band with one ruby and one emerald.

“What are these for?” Sunny asked, taking the ring from the box and sliding it on her right ring finger.

“
Left
hand, kitten.” Carlos was watching her in the rearview mirror with an intense expression. Of course. Being mated was more than marriage. Most weres didn’t bother with the human ceremony, but most mates wore wedding bands anyway. “It shows everyone who you belong to. Gold for my mate. Silver for anyone I take under my protection. Like your sister.”

“It would be better if I went my own way.” Jaz’s voice was bitter. “I got caught because I trusted the wrong person. I won’t make that mistake again.”

Declan shook his head. “No. You stay with us. Your father was right. There are men hunting you. You both need protection.”

“And we already know what you are,” Carlos added. “As do Asa and Fisher.”

“He tried to…wanted to…protect me. Fisher. I could see it in his eyes,” Jaz whispered.

Sunny could no longer interpret Carlos’s and Declan’s expressions, but she knew they were keeping something from her. She didn’t attempt to hide her worry. What would be the point? They knew her too well.

“It’s going to be okay, kitten. Trust me.”

“Do we have a choice?” she whispered. She could see the longing in her sister’s eyes. For safety. To belong somewhere. She shook her head. “Guess not.”

“Merry Christmas, kitten,” he said softly, gently. He meant it. He wanted her to be in his life, wanted to make a life with her. For the first time in a long time, she absorbed those words without a snarl, with hope instead of self-pity.

She leaned back in her seat, distracting herself by studying the glittering ring. No one spoke, and several hours had passed when they pulled off the highway and onto an unmarked dirt road. A few miles later, it dead-ended in front of a large colonial. Actually, after she gave the building a critical eye, mansion would be the best descriptor. She thought she saw others like it through the trees.