Chapter 12 #2
“I don’t know.” Kaelan met his eyes. “That’s the problem. I don’t know if I’m paranoid or if I’m finally seeing the truth.”
“We’ll figure it out together,” I promised him. “But you don’t have to be alone.”
Kaelan’s eyes moved to Dare, then back to me. Jealousy flickered across his face, but I could see the moment he chose not to let it control him.
“I’m not angry you ran to him,” he said, as if he were trying to make those words true. “I realize I was being an ass.”
“You have every right to feel what you feel,” I said. “You just don’t get to use it as an excuse to push us away.”
“Or to murder us,” Dare added.
Kaelan’s laugh was rough. “Fair.”
We stood there, the three of us, with the dark water rushing past and the wind cutting cold. Everything unsaid hung between us, fear and desire and the desperate need to not be alone in this.
“The goddess scares me too,” I confessed. “But she’s far away when we’re close.”
Kaelan’s gaze lit with understanding.
“Tell us what you need,” he told me.
“I need you both.”
Dare’s arm came around my waist from behind, steady and warm. Kaelan’s thumb brushed across my cheekbone, his eyes searching mine.
“Tell me if it’s too much,” Kaelan said. “Tell me if you need to stop.”
“I will.”
He kissed me then, soft and careful and full of everything he hadn’t been able to say. I felt Dare’s lips on my shoulder, his breath warm against my skin. Between them, I felt safe.
Not a weapon. Not a vessel. Not even the future queen. Just a woman with the men she loved.
Dare’s hands were warm on my waist. Kaelan’s fingers threaded through my hair. And between them, I felt the goddess recede.
“I’ve got you,” Dare murmured against my neck. His hands slid beneath my cloak, bracketing my thighs.
“You’ll be too cold out here, summer.” Kaelan’s lips dipped to mine.
“I think we can keep her warm,” Dare disagreed.
Dare unbuttoned my sleep shirt with a deftness born of thievery, lips curled in a private smile. Kaelan pressed close, his hips against my ass. When my shirt hung open, Kaelan skimmed his hands up my ribs and over my breasts, thumbs circling until I arched into him, shameless.
Dare bent and closed his mouth over one nipple, tongue a hot stripe, and Kaelan’s hands kept me in place while I shuddered against them both.
Kaelan drew my hips back, pinning me between the railing and his body. His hard length pressed against me. He made a noise, low and needy, and his hands trailed down my stomach, finding the fastenings of my trousers. He undid the buttons one by one, the brush of his knuckles against my skin.
Dare gripped my chin to turn my face to his for a long, hot kiss.
Then Kae hooked his fingers in my waistband and yanked my trousers down, exposing my bare ass to the midnight chill.
I whimpered. He nipped at my throat, kissing and sucking, as Dare’s tongue danced with mine.
Kaelan’s muscular body against mine kept me warm, and the cloak provided cover—though anyone who ventured on deck with any imagination would’ve known exactly what was happening.
At the moment, I didn’t manage to care. I was shaking now, but not from the cold. My thighs pressed together, knees buckling with anticipation.
“Hold her,” Kaelan said, and Dare obeyed instantly, hands clamping on my thighs. Kaelan knelt, knees thumping the deck. He spread me open with his thumbs, pressed his tongue to the seam of my pussy, and I nearly went to pieces.
“Fuck,” I gasped. Dare kissed my shoulder in silent approval, his cock teasing against my ass while Kaelan tongued me, slow and deliberate.
He was always patient, savoring the taste, humming when he wanted more.
He sucked at my clit, then slid two fingers inside, curling them until I moaned.
I tried to squirm, but Dare’s grip was iron.
“She’s perfect,” said Kaelan, voice hoarse now. “She’s soaking.”
Dare groaned, deep in his chest, and it vibrated through my body. He kissed the side of my neck, then my ear, his breathing gone ragged.
Kaelan worked his fingers harder, and the coil in my belly wound tighter. I wanted Dare to fuck me, wanted it so badly I couldn’t form the words. I tried, and only a whimper came out. Kaelan licked me through it, his other hand massaging my ass, thumb straying closer to forbidden places.
Dare couldn’t wait. He undid his own trousers, the sound sharp in the night, and when he pressed the head of his cock to my entrance, I pressed into him needily.
Kaelan pulled away, eyes alight as he looked up at us, and held me open so Dare could thrust in, slow and thick and so good I saw stars.
I was wet enough that it didn’t hurt, but the stretch was shocking, and Dare groaned again as he bottomed out.
They both stilled, letting me breathe. Then Kaelan got up, gripped my chin, and kissed me hard. Dare’s hands slid up to my waist and held me steady, moving in shallow, slow thrusts that got deeper with each pass. The railing bit into my stomach, but I didn’t care.
“Beautiful,” Kaelan whispered, nipping my lip. “You take him so well.”
Dare fucked me harder, each thrust slamming me into the rail, and Kaelan never looked away from my face.
He stroked my hair, tucked a piece behind my ear, and kissed my cheeks, murmuring my name as if he felt as undone as I did.
His hand snaked between my legs, found my clit, and rubbed in tight, perfect circles.
“Come for us,” he said.
The pleasure rose up like a wave, sharp and hungry, and I choked out their names as I shattered. My legs gave way, and only their hands kept me from collapsing. I heard Dare snarl, felt him slam in and come with a shudder, burying his face in my neck to stifle the sound.
We sagged together, and Kaelan wrapped us in his cloak before the wind could steal all our warmth. He kissed the top of my head, his lips feather-light, and Dare’s arms circled my waist, holding me close even as his breath slowed.
For a long moment, the world was nothing but the sound of our hearts, and the slow, rolling hush of the sea.