Chapter 19 #2
"Look at them, Princess," he whispered, his lips brushing against my ear.
"Look at how beautiful they are together.
This is what surrender looks like. This is what it means to give yourself over to pleasure, to trust." I couldn't tear my eyes away from the scene before me.
Ryder's mouth working over Cole's length, Cole's hands tangled in Ryder's hair, guiding him, controlling him even in this position of apparent submission.
There was a power dynamic at play that I didn't fully understand, but it resonated with something deep inside me.
Logan's hands began to move, sliding up from my hips to my waist, then higher still, brushing the undersides of my breasts through my thin t-shirt. I should have pushed him away, should have run from the room, but my body felt heavy, my limbs leaden with a strange, reluctant arousal.
"You could have this too, Princess," Logan murmured, his thumbs now circling my nipples through the fabric, making them harden against my will. "You could have all of us, caring for you, pleasuring you. It doesn't have to be a battle every time."
"I don't-" I gasped as his teeth grazed my earlobe, sending shivers down my spine. "I don't want this."
"Your body says otherwise," he countered, one hand sliding down to press against the juncture of my thighs.
Even through my jeans, the pressure was enough to make me bite back a moan.
"Being ours isn't as bad as you think, Princess.
It could be good. It could be so good for you, if you'd just stop fighting it. "
On the bed, Cole's breathing had grown ragged, his hips jerking up to meet Ryder's mouth. The raw intimacy of it, the trust and pleasure evident in every line of their bodies, was mesmerising. And terrifying. And after weeks without my own release, it was possibly the hottest thing I had seen.
"You're already halfway there," Logan continued, his voice a hypnotic purr in my ear. "You're already watching them, already responding to my touch. Why keep fighting? Why not just give in? Let us take care of you. Let us protect you."
"Protect me from what?" I managed to ask, my voice barely above a whisper. Logan's hand squeezed my hip, his touch almost bruising.
"From things worse than us, Princess. From people who would hurt you in ways we never would. Being our Consort, truly our Consort, is your best option. Your only option, really."
His words confused me, hinted at dangers I didn't understand, but I couldn't focus on them, not with his hands on my body, not with the scene playing out before me. Ryder had picked up his pace, Cole's moans growing louder, more desperate.
"Watch them," Logan commanded, his hand now working to open the button of my jeans.
"Watch what happens when someone surrenders to pleasure.
To us." I couldn't look away as Cole's body tensed, his hands tightening in Ryder's hair as he came with a strangled cry.
Ryder took it all, his eyes closed in apparent bliss, his own body trembling with need.
The sight sent a wave of heat through me so intense I nearly doubled over.
I knew I was in danger, that I needed to get away from this before I was the one who broke the rules.
Or worse, gave in to these men, gave them exactly what they wanted.
Logan's hand slipped inside my jeans, his fingers finding the damp spot on my panties with unnerving accuracy.
"So wet already," he murmured, sounding pleased.
"Just from watching. Imagine how it would feel to be part of it, Princess.
To have all three of us focused on your pleasure.
" His fingers slid beneath the fabric, finding my clit with practised ease.
The touch was electric, drawing a gasp from my lips that I couldn't suppress.
On the bed, Cole was watching us now, his mismatched eyes dark with desire despite his recent release.
Ryder had turned as well, still on his knees, his lips swollen and wet, his expression hungry.
"Look at them," Logan whispered, his fingers circling my clit in maddening, teasing strokes that brought me to the edge without pushing me over. "They want you too. We all do. Not just as our Consort, not just as a symbol of our status. We want you, Cadence. All of you."
The use of my full name, something that only Logan seemed to do, despite me telling him not to, sent a jolt through me that had nothing to do with his skilled fingers.
There was something in his voice, a sincerity that cut through the manipulation, that made me wonder if there was truth in his words.
"It would be so easy," Logan continued, his fingers dipping lower, teasing at my entrance without penetrating. "So easy to just let go. To stop fighting us. To let us take care of you, protect you."
"From what?" I gasped again, desperate for an answer, for understanding. "What are you protecting me from?"
Instead of answering, Logan pushed his thumb against my clit again, sending sparks flying through my eyes. I gripped his wrist, partly to stop him, but also partly to hold on, to not fall over the edge into the oblivion that they were inviting me to.
"From the alternative," he said cryptically. "Trust me, Princess, you don't want to know what that looks like." I was panting, trembling, my body betraying me completely as I leant back against his chest for support.
"That's it," he encouraged, his voice thick with desire. "Let go, Princess. Just tell me to make you come, tell me you want this, give me the permission that you so need me to have. Show me you understand."
The command snapped me back to reality like a bucket of ice water.
This was what they wanted, my submission, my surrender.
If I came now, under Logan's skilled fingers while Ryder and Cole watched.
If I gave in and gave him this permission.
It would be a victory for them. I would lose, and I would belong to them.
With every ounce of willpower I possessed, I wrenched myself away from Logan's touch, stumbling backward toward the door.
"No," I gasped, my body screaming in protest at the denial of release. "I won't. I can't." Logan's expression darkened, frustration and something like desperation flashing across his handsome features.
"Cadence, you don't understand what's at stake here."
"Then tell me!" I demanded, my hand fumbling for the doorknob behind me. "Stop with the cryptic warnings and just tell me what you're so afraid of!" For a moment, it seemed like he might. There was a battle playing out on his face, a war between revealing some truth and maintaining his control.
"Logan," Cole warned from the bed, his voice rough. "Not yet." The moment shattered. Logan's expression closed off, the mask of the controlling Regent sliding back into place.
"You need to decide where your loyalties lie, Princess," he said, his voice cold once more. "And you need to do it soon. Time is running out."
I didn't wait to hear more. I yanked open the door and fled down the hallway, not stopping until I reached my room.
I slammed the door shut behind me, locking it, though I knew it would provide little protection if any of them truly wanted entry.
My heart was racing, my body still humming with unfulfilled desire.
I pressed my back against the door, sliding down to sit on the floor as tears of frustration and confusion burned behind my eyes.
I wrapped my arms around my knees, trying to steady my breathing.
The image of Ryder on his knees before Cole, of the raw intimacy between them, was burned into my mind.
And worse, the memory of Logan's touch, of how close I'd come to surrendering completely.
They were wearing me down, bit by bit, chipping away at my resistance.
And the most terrifying part was that a small, traitorous part of me wanted to give in.
Wanted to know what it would be like to belong to them fully, to experience the pleasure they promised without the constant battle of wills.