Davies, Corinne - Claiming Destiny [Midnighter Seductions 1] (Siren Publishing Ménage Everlasting) (19 page)

“Yes, sir.” She was desperate to get back to her men and her new home. She knew it wouldn’t be easy, but hard work had never scared her before. She hoped that Rock and Jag would forgive her.

Crossing through the portal was much easier when you had a six-foot-five-inch warrior to hang on to. Wolfe was like a rock she clung to and it didn’t feel as if she was drifting away into oblivion this time. Falcon passed through the portal first with the intention of making certain that the other side was safe.

Where Destiny had fallen backward and become completely confused, it was much easier going through face-first. She could see the end of the portal rushing up as it stretched out and then suddenly it pushed them out into the other side. She clung tightly to Wolfe as the spins made her dizzy.

“What is going on here?” Jag’s voice permeated the fog that had settled around her thoughts. “What are you doing with our
Atan
?”

Falcon stepped in front of her. “Your
Atan
? From what I understand she left. That breaks any claim you have on her.”

Destiny stood up to say something, but Wolfe pulled her off-balance and the force of her hitting his side forced the air from her lungs. He gave her a squeeze and whispered a quick “shush.”

“She is not yours, Falcon. Let go of our
Atan
, Wolfe, and both of you step away from her.”

“Are you sure that is what you want?” Falcon asked over his shoulder. Destiny answered by jabbing him in his kidney.

“Perhaps we need to have an
ook’at
?” Falcon continued, “I don’t want there to be any questions later.”

“What’s an
ook’at
?” she asked Wolfe, but it was Rock that answered.

“It’s a completely unnecessary ritual. We know you’re ours and you know it, too.” Destiny could hear the anger in Rock’s voice and for the moment was happy she could hide behind Falcon. She peeked between him and Wolfe and caught the intense blue and green glares.
My men?

An hour ago she was sick with worry that she might never see them and now she was hiding from them. That didn’t make any sense at all. “Listen.” She stormed out from behind Wolfe and Falcon. “I’m not some trophy wife. I have a brain and if you had taken the time to explain some of your customs instead of ordering me to obey then I might not have taken them the wrong way.”

“Are you saying it’s our fault?” Jag stood in front of her, his arms crossed and his green eyes narrowed in a frown. She wasn’t used to this kind of reaction from him. Rock was always the serious one, not Jag. She swallowed and continued. “Yes, you both need to accept some blame in this situation. You say I’m your
Atan
,
but you’ve been treating me like a
Raxka
. I’m not much more than a bath toy for you to amuse yourself with, and then you want to hide me away from everyone while you go do your job. That’s not fair.”

“Lives are rarely fair,
Atan
,” Rock responded, his voice level as if he was speaking to a child having a temper tantrum. “We will not risk your life for anything, including your pride.”

“My pride!” Damn she’d hooked up with some arrogant men, but she knew deep down that if she backed down now, they’d treat her like a possession for the rest of her life. “That’s rich coming from you.” She reached down and scooped up the backpack with the personal pepper spray devices in them. “I’m going to hand these out to the villagers. Don’t bother coming along. I can take care of myself.”

She strode past them and toward the entrance to the hall. When Rock and Jag let her pass without stopping her she felt her heart pinch. She made it to the top of the stairs and had to swallow.
It didn’t seem this steep when I climbed up.
Taking a deep breath she sat down and dropped her legs to the second step. She might look like a toddler going down on her ass, but it made her feel safer. She eased herself down to the second step and pulled the backpack along with her. Four steps later it felt as if it was taking forever. She glanced up but none of the warriors were checking on her. “Protective my ass,” she muttered. “‘Look pretty, but don’t have an independent thought. We know what’s best for you.’”

Slipping her arms though the straps, she eased the backpack onto her back and then slowly turned herself around and climbed down. Gravity certainly made it easier to go down than up, but she didn’t want to take any chances. With hands and feet on the stairs she felt more secure. She was about halfway down when she felt a shadow pass over her. Jag had caught up with her and was stepping down the stairs at the same pace she was moving. “Don’t let me stop you. Go ahead.”

“No, I like watching your ass wiggle in the air as you move.”

She shot a glare up at him and felt her breath catch at the smile on his face. He looked lecherous and she wondered what had caused this drastic change in attitude. Looking back at her hands and feet she tried to ignore his presence, but put a little extra sway in her hips as she moved. She’d be lying to herself if she said she didn’t want to crawl into a bed with him, but after what was said up at the top she didn’t know if they would even want her anymore. Rock was nowhere in sight.

“Why don’t you go back up there with Rock and the four of you can glare at each other. Have a pissing contest off the back edge of this thing and leave me alone. I remember where the market is and I can get there on my own.

“You’re not going to the market,
Atan
.”

“Stop calling me that.” She was tired and sweaty and didn’t want to have this argument right now. “Go get your pretty Raxka to hump your chest again.”

The petty jealous words were out of her mouth before she could call them back. A second later Jag had her picked up and tossed over his shoulder.

“Jesus Christ!” the backpack slipped and smacked her in the back of the head. Destiny gripped handfuls of the back of his shirt. “Don’t drop me.”

A shadow blocked out the sun and she looked up as best she could but only saw Rock’s waist and groin. His cock was pressing against his pants and she was hard-pressed not to lick her lips.

“Let go of his shirt, Destiny.” She felt the weight of her backpack lifted off the back of her head. “I’ll take this.”

“No, it’s for the market people.”

“I understand that and we appreciate you thinking of them. I swear to you they will be distributed to everyone. The sun will set before you get to the bottom at this rate.”

* * * *

Rock wondered if their
Atan
would ever stop surprising them. Wolfe had told him of her insistence at buying as many little weapons for the people of the market place as she could carry. After today’s attack, he was sure they would love her for it.
I do.
How could he not? She was independent and wanted to think that she didn’t need their protection, but she did. If attacked, she wouldn’t hide behind him as many would. She would demand to fight next to them or protect those who were unable to protect themselves.

Wolfe and Falcon hadn’t been impressed by the small delicate canisters that looked as though they would be of better use as projectiles. They’d discovered a much larger weapon that used the same substance. It had been made for a warrior’s hand.

Falcon had made their point crystal clear. In order for the people to completely accept her as his and Jag’s Noonsa
Atan, they needed to have an
Ook-at
and then
Cha’an
. It would be a chance for his warriors to feel that they had attempted to attract a mate and there would be no question later about who she’d really been meant for. He still felt a bit of anxiety at the thought of all their warriors attempting to enthrall her, but he trusted that she would choose him and Jag. As soon as they seduced her to their side. Right now she was mad enough to deny them on principal.

Falcon and Wolfe had gone down the other stairs to the main house to let the staff know about the coming celebration. Knowing IxChel, she’d probably been planning this ever since they’d brought Destiny over with them. No matter. They would still have this night together and this time to prepare her for what was to come and her part in it. He wasn’t going to leave anything to chance this time and he wanted her to understand the importance of what was happening.

Jag slid his hand over Destiny’s upturned ass and gave it a smack.

She gripped his shirt tighter and locked her knees. “Stop that! You’re going to make me fall.” Her eyes were squeezed tightly shut as Jag navigated the steps. Rock kept pace with him, watching her reactions. She was obviously scared, but the scent of her pussy burned in the air around them. Jag and he exchanged looks and he smacked her ass again.

“Hey! I said stop. I’ll get you back for this, I swear.”

“You keep threatening, but I think that you like it,” Rock commented and she turned her face in his direction and stuck her tongue out at him.

They reached the bottom and Destiny braced her hands against Jag’s back and pushed herself part of the way up. “Okay, you can put me down now.”

“I don’t think so. I like having you here where I can touch you.” This time Jag stroked his hand over her ass, ending between her legs. She jumped and smacked his back lightly.

“This isn’t fair. I have to go to the market.”

“We’ll take you to the market to distribute your gifts,
Atan
.” Rock reached out and cupped her cheek, stroking his thumb along her lower lip. “But, first we have some details to discuss.”

“At least let me walk.”

“You’re not wearing any shoes.”

Destiny growled and narrowed her eyes. “Fine, I’m sick of arguing about it anyway.”

They went straight to their rooms, and it wasn’t until they were in their bedroom with the door locked that Jag let Destiny’s feet touch the floor. She rubbed her tummy as she made her way over to the large windows before turning to face them. “All right, let’s talk then.”

Rock felt his lips curl up into a grin at the defiance in her stance. If she thought that standing in front of a large window would save her from seduction, she was completely wrong. He saw her actions as a challenge, one he was more than happy to accept.

“Why did you run away?”

She blinked, obviously surprised by his direct questions. He watched as a flush came up her cheeks. “Okay, you want direct, fine. I didn’t want to be locked up like some prisoner when I hadn’t done anything wrong. I didn’t come here, you brought me here. I was never asked or my feelings taken into consideration with any decision that’s been made.”

“You want a choice, fine, you’ll get one.” Rock moved closer to her and she stepped to the side. He didn’t like that she was moving away from him, but under the circumstances it was understandable.

“But to make a choice I think that you should see what we both have to offer.” Jag stepped around a chair and cut off the path she was angling toward. She immediately took a step toward Rock only to look back and forth between the two of them.

“I never said I wanted to choose between you.”

“Then what choice are you talking about?” Rock stepped closer to her and she backed up closer to the window.

“I was talking about the choice between coming here or not. You made that decision for me and then expected me to follow your rules.”

“We could’ve left you in the desert with a skull fracture,” Jag countered. “What choice would you’ve made?”

“All right, I’ll give you that. But you want me to be some helpless woman locked up in a tower waiting for her hair to grow long enough for her to escape.”

Rock paused. She’d lost him with that one.
It must be some Earth reference.
“You don’t have to grow you hair if you don’t want to,
Atan
. That’s a choice you have.”

“Funny guy, I’m talking about your archaic, sexist rules.”

“The same rules that keep our women safe? Do you know how many times we have to face a raid like the one we had today? Do any of the women in the market look scared or terrified to leave their houses? It’s because they know that they will be protected by any man close to them, regardless of age or appearance. We live by our customs and legends.”