Chapter 7
Titan
It was hard, but Titan kept himself from bursting into tears again. This time they would’ve been from joy, but he really didn’t want to cry anymore.
“You want us to stay together?” he asked, scared he’d misunderstood Beatrix’s statement. “As in a throuple? As in soul bonded?”
Arthur’s body tensed as the two of them waited for her answer.
“Yes,” she said.
“Just like that?” Arthur asked. He sounded a little fearful, and Titan could understand. It would be difficult to walk away from Beatrix before they all bonded. It would be literally impossible after they shared souls.
Beatrix flattened her palm over her heart.
“Everything inside me says this is the right choice.” She shook her head with a little chuckle.
“Getting to meet everyone helped. Listening to them talk about their relationships was familiar and comforting. Did you know that Pike sings to his tomato plants? Memphis talks in his sleep. Carter will stretch out and take up an entire king-size bed if no one is there to cuddle. All their stories were adorable and charming. There wasn’t a single story about being hurt and threatened by their partners.
Not a single one. Not even a verbal fight. ”
“Our world can be dangerous,” Arthur warned her. Titan wished he hadn’t said that but understood.
“Oh, I know,” she said with a little snort.
“The girls didn’t spare any details. There seems to be a lot of abduction in your world.
” She held up a hand before either of them could start talking.
“What was important to me was that all the threats were from the outside. None of these people had to deal with violence within their relationships. Even when Kimble was feral, he was gentle with Cora and Pike.”
“I’d rather die than hurt either of you,” Arthur said. “And I’d die to protect you.”
“How about none of us dies?” Titan suggested, making Beatrix chuckle.
“I second that,” Beatrix said.
A smile spread across Arthur’s face. “I’ll work very hard on that.”
“We all will,” Titan said.
“Do we do the soul thing now?” Beatrix asked, suddenly looking nervous. “Cora said it didn’t hurt, but Briar didn’t remember hers because she was dying.”
Titan noticed she’d left someone out. “What did Mila say about when she soul bonded with Gio and Carter?”
Beatrix blushed. “She said it was hot as hell.”
Arthur gave her a knowing look. “It can be an intimate experience.”
She nodded and held out both her hands. Titan grabbed her left hand, desperate to touch one of his mates. The instinct to be constantly close to them was going to be a problem when he needed to care for the animals or pick up a stray. Maybe he could talk Beatrix into working with him.
A mental picture of strapping her to his back while he did chores popped into his head. Her small body would always be pressed to his. Her scent in his nose all the time. He could pull his Beatrix-backpack off at any time and kiss her. There was no downside!
Beatrix made a curious sound.
“Why is your aura suddenly super bright?” she asked.
Arthur gave him a smirk. “It didn’t just get brighter. Do you see that shimmer? That’s lust!”
Beatrix gave his hand a little squeeze. “Whatever you're thinking, maybe we could do it later?”
Titan snorted. “Probably not.”
Beatrix raised an eyebrow. “Now I’m really curious!”
He shook his head. There was no way he was going to tell her about wanting to wear her like a backpack.
“Can we do the soul thing, please?” Titan begged. “My wolf is desperate to tie us together.”
“Close your eyes, Titan. I’m going to exchange with you first,” Arthur murmured as he shut his own. “This will feel strange, but I’ll make sure it doesn't hurt.”
Titan didn’t hesitate to close his eyes, excited to live a life full of love.
Beatrix
With her heart pounding, Beatrix watched Titan’s face closely for any sign of discomfort or pain. Neither appeared, he seemed perfectly relaxed, as if nothing was happening. She jumped when he suddenly sucked in a sharp breath, then moaned.
“I can feel you,” Titan whispered, eyes fluttering open. “You love me so much. And you want me. You think I’m beautiful."
Arthur’s eyes popped open. “That’s all very true.”
“Are you reading Arthur’s mind?” Beatrix asked.
Titan turned his eyes to her. “It’s not that clear. It’s more like strong feelings and whispered words.”
“Our bond is surprisingly strong immediately,” Arthur said. “It usually takes years for a flock's bond to be strong enough to feel this clearly. This is a good sign.”
Beatrix didn’t like the sound of that. “A good sign? What’s a bad sign?”
Arthur gave her a gentle smile. “I misspoke. It’s a sign that our bonds will become exceptionally powerful. It won’t be long before we’re able to have full conversations without speaking a word out loud.”
Beatrix was intrigued. “Is that limited by distance?”
Arthur tilted his head. “Do you mean does our bond weaken the further apart we are?” She nodded her head, and he continued. “Only in the beginning. As our bonds become stronger, distance won’t be an issue. No matter how far away we are, I'll always be able to know if you’re fearful of something.”
“Will I be able to feel Titan, or will this bond only be with you?”
“My soul will connect the two of you,” Arthur explained. “You’ll be able to feel him as strongly as I can.”
Bone-deep need made her squeeze Arthur’s hand. “Then I’m ready. I want this!”
“Close your eyes, love,” Arthur urged. She shut her eyes and focused on keeping her breathing even.
Nothing he could’ve said would’ve prepared her for the sensation of a ghost hand pressing something into her chest, the heat making her skin flush.
The same hand tugged something loose from deep inside her and drew it out. She gasped when the bonds snapped into place, flooding her with love from both Arthur and Titan.
“I can feel you,” she whispered, opening her eyes. “I can—”
Sharp, blinding pain streaked down her back on either side of her spine. Screaming, she fell forward, her vision wavering from the agony.
“Beatrix!” Titan cried out.
“I didn’t expect this,” Arther said. His voice was calm, but she could hear the fear. “Titan, use your claws. Get her shirt and bra off now!”
Titan pulled his hand free from hers, and she heard ripping fabric. Cool air hit her back as searing pain made her cry out again.
“Am I dying?” she sobbed.
“No, love, you’re not dying,” Arthur reassured her. “More of your pixie side is coming out.”
“What—”
She couldn’t finish asking what that meant; she was too busy trying to breathe as another wave of burning torment was accompanied by the feeling of her skin ripping apart.
“Can’t you help her?” Titan asked. She felt a wave of fear and concern and knew it was from Titan.
“There’s nothing we can do, but it’s almost over,” Arthur said.
As if his words had power, the pain vanished. Her back felt strangely heavy, but nothing hurt any longer.
“They’re so beautiful,” Titan breathed.
Feeling shaky, Beatrix sat up and looked at Titan. “What do you mean? What happened to me? Why didn’t you feel any pain when Arthur exchanged souls with you?”
“Because Titan didn’t have pixie wings emerging from his back,” Arthur said. “What Sopek started, we finished with our joining.”
“Wings?” she whispered. Titan jumped up to grab a mirror hanging off the wall and brought it over.
She gasped and reached out to touch her reflection. “I have wings!”
“I’ve never seen such beautiful pixie wings,” Titan said.
Dragonfly-shaped wings extended out of her back. Unlike the mostly see-through wings of a dragonfly, her wings shimmered with iridescent shades of emerald and jade green.
“Can I fly?” she whispered, withdrawing her fingers from the mirror and craning her neck around to see them.
“Probably,” Arthur said. “We can test that later, but I wouldn’t try them so soon after they’ve emerged.”
She twitched a back muscle, and one of the wings moved forward. “Oh, I can control them.”
“It would be hard to fly if you couldn’t,” Titan teased. She felt relief coming from him and Arthur.
She closed her eyes to focus on their bond. So much love flooded into her that she wanted to cry. “This is so beautiful.”
When she lifted her eyelids, Titan had set the mirror aside, and they were both watching her, exuding happiness.
They didn’t ask what she was talking about, they could feel her emotions just like she could feel theirs.
“I wish everyone could know how wonderful this is,” she whispered, holding her arms out. She felt their agreement as they both moved to press in close to her.
Skin to skin contact felt more intense than before. It was as if sensations bounced between them, making each touch so much more.
Then Titan ran his fingers down her wings. Sensation exploded inside her, making a small scream burst out of her.
A low, evil chuckle she never would have expected came out of Titan. “I’d hoped your wings were as sensitive as I’d heard.”
As if they’d planned it ahead of time, Arthur wrapped his arms around her while Titan ran his fingers up and down her wings. Wave after wave of intense pleasure washed through her, soaking her panties with slick. Her pussy clenched with the desire to be filled.
“I can smell how wet you are,” Titan said.
“I can feel how needy you are,” Arthur said.
Their words made dirty images fill her head. No sooner did she think those naughty thoughts than both men sucked in sharp breaths.
“Yes, we can do that,” Arthur said, pulling off the scraps of her shirt and bra, then cupping her breast. “We can do everything you’re imagining.”
She moaned, turned on and embarrassed. “Don’t judge me.”
“Never,” Titan said.
“Anything you want, we want also,” Arthur said. He got to his feet, taking her with him. The vampire was basically supporting all her weight because her legs felt too shaky to keep her up. Looking down, he spoke to Titan. “I’m going to keep her standing, you take off the rest of her clothing.”