Chapter 34 Morpheus
Morpheus
“You haven’t tried to kill me yet,” I say as my cousin walks in with a towel against his wet hair. “I consider that to be a sign this might actually work between us.”
He snorts. “You’re not the one who fucked Serapina and marked her.” His dark gaze cuts to Maliki, who is lying naked in the bed with me, his arms around our freshly bathed mate.
“I warned you that if I joined the mate-circle, my focus would be on her. Not you. As for marking her…” He trails off, his gold eyes drifting down to our sleeping female. She hasn’t stirred since her magnificent climax, her body replete from our ministrations.
Fuck, she’s stunning, I think, somehow even more attracted to her now than ever before. Maybe because I watched the Goddess inside her bloom during our bedroom play.
Or perhaps I’m just falling that much more in adoration with her.
“I’m not sorry,” Maliki murmurs, his palm trailing up her arm to pause at the indents his teeth left on her shoulder. It’s not healing, suggesting it is more than just a marking—it’s a claim.
Which is interesting, as… “I didn’t realize Corpse Fae claimed their mates with a bite.”
He smiles. “I’m more than just a Corpse Fae.”
“Clearly,” I reply, amused.
Hades simply grunts, obviously not as entertained by this development.
“Are you going to punish me, my lord?” Maliki asks conversationally, the formal title one that has Hades’s jaw clenching in response.
It’s an intriguing physical reaction, considering he seemed to like Serapina referring to him as such. But Maliki is obviously doing it now to irritate him.
“I should,” Hades informs his enforcer. “But I told you to ensure my wife’s satisfaction, and, well.” He looks down at the sleeping beauty. “You succeeded.”
“You also instructed her not to come,” Maliki points out. “So you’d better not be planning on punishing her for disobeying your order.”
Hades huffs at that. “I don’t think I could ever punish Serapina. Fuck, I’m not even sure I knew how to properly punish Persephone.”
I arch a brow, surprised he just admitted that aloud. “This labyrinth says otherwise, Hades.”
“I’m trying to fix it,” he mutters.
“I know.” I can feel his magic all over the maze, shifting form and re-creating the walls with more life. Though, it’s not something he can truly manifest. He needs our mate to help him.
However, Serapina is still mostly human.
Mostly, because, well, a human would not have survived what Maliki and I just did to her. But she’s not exactly an Omega yet, either. She’s existing in a strange hybrid state, one I hope will be fixed once she goes into heat.
“When she wakes, she’ll be ready to run,” Hades says, changing the subject slightly. “And I suspect she’s going to want all three of us to chase her.”
I study him. “Are you going to allow that?”
He stares back at me. “I let her fondle your knot.”
“You did.” My gaze drops to where his hands have balled into fists. “Which took significant restraint.”
“Yes,” he agrees, his fingers flexing as he tries to forcefully relax.
Which, naturally, doesn’t work.
“It’s okay to feel possessive,” I tell him, my eyes slowly returning to his smoldering irises. “That’s part of who we are, Hades.”
“Yet you somehow seem to be completely at ease,” he mutters.
“I’ve mastered my instincts over several millennia, Cousin,” I remind him. “Knowing I’m fulfilling my mate’s wishes… helps.”
Hades nods like he understands. Or maybe he’s choosing to see that point of view. Perhaps it’ll help him.
Regardless, his effort is noted.
“I want to finish what I was doing in the maze,” he says, looking down at her again. “I’ll return when she wakes.”
He doesn’t wait for us to respond, simply mists from the room.
Maliki chuckles under his breath, then focuses on our resting mate. “Can you see what she’s dreaming about?”
I run my fingers through her hair. “She’s currently floating in a lagoon with two moons shining overhead.” It’s the same place I found her in the other night when I joined her in the water. “Want me to wake her?”
He shakes his head. “I just want to make sure she’s safe.”
“She’s secure in my dream world. Whatever Hades did to fix the barrier seems to be holding, but I’m definitely keeping a mental eye on our mate.”
Maliki leans in to kiss her cheek, then settles onto the pillow beside her. “Good. Wake me if anything changes.” The words are a sign of trust, his faith in me to guard our female a compliment of sorts.
However, his shadows seep out of his skin to wrap around Serapina’s sleeping form, his natural inclination to protect her overriding his commentary.
Though, I wonder if he even realizes he’s doing it, because he’s already falling asleep. I sense him in my dream world, searching for Serapina.
With a smile, I link them, showing him the lagoon and encouraging him to go play. He casts a smile upward, one I see on his face in bed, too, and I leave him to play with our Omega in the land of imagination.
It doesn’t take long for Serapina to release a soft moan, her fantasy trickling into reality as she clenches her thighs and rolls toward Maliki.
“Hmm,” I hum, settling against her back as she presses her breasts against Maliki’s arm. “You keep sleeping, little dreamer. And I’ll make sure you get where you need to go.”
She pushes her ass against my groin like she understands what I said.
Maybe she did.
Or perhaps this is just my Omega reacting the way she should.
I trace my fingers up the side of her thigh to her hip and kiss the back of her head. Then I linger, inhaling deeply as the scent of her infiltrates my lungs.
She smells like decadent chocolate, her natural fragrance encouraging me to lick, nibble, and bite. But I hold myself back and simply continue skimming my hand upward.
Serapina shivers.
Then her sweet little rump pushes back into me again as another moan escapes her.
I smile into her hair, my palm curling around her hip. Maliki turns toward her in his sleep, his cock hard and ready against her lower belly.
“Well, that looks fun,” I say against her ear. “I wonder, is he inside you right now? Fucking you to oblivion?” Because her hips are certainly moving in a manner that suggests she’s enjoying his erotic vibrations.
And the way his tattoos are swirling all over her implies the same.
Yet she keeps pressing back against me like she’s inviting me to play, too.
“Such an eager Omega,” I whisper, kissing her neck and then her shoulder. “You want all your mates to pleasure you, don’t you, little dreamer?”
Her lips part on a pant, her nipples beading as I admire the view of her writhing between me and Maliki in her sleep.
“Fuck, sweetheart, you have no idea how often I’ve fantasized about this—playing with you while you dream.
” My hand slides to her belly, the back of it brushing Maliki’s hard cock as I glide my touch downward.
He releases a subtle growl, no doubt sensing my presence.
But he doesn’t wake. He stays in the dream with Serapina, just as he should, while I allow my fingers to slip downward.
However, I pause just before I reach her cunt.
And curl my hand into a fist.
Because we haven’t discussed her boundaries in a sleep state yet.
This might be my kink, but I don’t know if it’s hers.
Swallowing, I force my hand to return to her hip and bury my head in her neck. “The restraint I have to show around you is borderline painful,” I admit. “But I’ll suffer another eternity of agony if it means pleasing you, Serapina.”
She’s mine to cherish. For always. And I refuse to hurt her faith in me.
So I hold her while she begins to pant.
Kiss the back of her head as she seeks friction against Maliki.
Bite back a growl when her ass meets my knot.
Then I purr when I feel her come apart between us, her dream having sent her body into a feverish climax that causes her eyes to open in shock.
Maliki is right there with her, his golden orbs heavy with lust as he stares at her and then at me. But as Serapina begins to truly awaken, her lips part on a gasp, drawing our focus back to her.
She studies Maliki for a moment before looking back at me.
I smile. “Hello, gorgeous Omega,” I say, recognizing the dilation of her pupils. “Ready to test your mates?”
She swallows. “I… I don’t know.”
I arch a brow. “You don’t know?”
“I feel strange.”
“Like you’re about to combust even though you just came whilst asleep?” I suggest.
She shudders. “That was real?”
“The sensations, yes,” I murmur. “How you got there, though, was a dream. I did my best to respect your boundaries, which was rather hard with your delicious ass pressed up against my knot.”
Her eyes widen and she rotates toward me, her gaze running over my naked body to my throbbing cock. “Oh,” she breathes. “Oh.”
“Yes, you made noises similar to that while you slept.” I reach out to tuck her hair behind her ear. “It took significant effort on my part not to reach between your legs and help you along.”
She stares at me. “You didn’t touch me?”
I shake my head. “Only held your hip, little dreamer. And kissed you a few times on the neck and head.”
“Nice show of restraint,” Maliki interjects.
“Consent is important,” I reply, my words for him and for Serapina. “I would love to fuck you while you dream, sweetheart, but only with your permission.”
Her lips part, her pupils seeming to throb. “Yes,” she tells me. However, a frown follows her affirmation. “But not right now.”
She sits up, the movement so sudden that she sways a little.
Except, before I can reach for her to steady her, she’s already moved up onto her knees.
And then she faces us both.
Her nose crinkles. “I still feel weird.”
“Like you want to run?” I guess.
“Maybe?” Her brow furrows. “I… I don’t understand.”
Maliki goes up onto his elbows, his long legs crossing at the ankles. “Do you feel antsy?” he asks.
“A little.”
“Aroused?” he presses. “Ready to fuck again?”
Her cheeks turn a pretty shade of pink. “Maybe.”
He smirks. “ ‘Maybe’ isn’t good enough, trouble. Or did you forget your lesson on communication?”
“We could remind her,” I suggest, glancing at him.
He meets my gaze. “We could. We should.” He looks back at her, a threat lingering in his tone as he adds, “We will.”
She scrambles off the bed, her eyes widening. “Not yet.”
“Why not?” he asks.
“Because…” She trails off and looks around. “Because I’m not ready.”
His eyebrow wings upward. “To be fucked?”
She shakes her head. “Not yet.” She takes a step backward. “I just… I need a few minutes?”
“Only a few minutes?” he counters, clearly having fun playing this game with her. Because he can see as well as I can that she’s already starting the chase. That’s why she’s inching toward the door. “Or would you like a longer head start?”
“And maybe some clothes or shoes?” I offer, manifesting some for her that she stumbles over as she reaches for the knob.
She gapes down at the stretchy black pants and tank top, as well as the running shoes and socks.
Without looking at us, she bends to scoop them up.
Then darts out of the room.
Maliki considers the doorway for a moment before glancing at me. “Will she do this every time she goes into heat?” he asks conversationally. “Or is this a one-time experience?”
I shrug. “Depends on her mood, I think. But typically, it’s an initial chase that leads to a claim. However, if she likes it, then this may become a normal occurrence in our lives.”
“Hmm, I think I might enjoy that.” His thoughtful tone holds a deep note of interest, one that echoes through me as well.
Only, neither of us moves.
We lounge in the bed, giving our Omega time to collect herself. To dress. To run.
It’s clear in her scent that her heat cycle has officially begun. She’s not lost to lust yet, though. That’ll come in time.
First, she runs.
Once she’s caught, she’ll set her rules. Provide her choices. Give us boundaries to play within. Tell us if we can claim her. Rut her. Breed her.
And after that… we fuck.
For days.
Maybe a week.
But only if we win her.
Which requires pursuing her.
I listen for the tell that she’s ready—the slamming of the front door.
Then I roll off the bed to find some clothes. Maliki follows me into the closet, taking his cues from me, and gets dressed.
Hades arrives the moment we reenter the bedroom, fully dressed in another one of his fancy suits.
He looks over my slacks and dress shirt, then takes in Maliki’s choice of sweatpants and tennis shoes.
“I’m giving her five more minutes to run and hide,” he tells us, a clock manifesting on the wall. “The moment the countdown ends, we hunt.”