Everyone leaned in and Tara said, “I told you, there are things on there I’m not sure about.”
“Well, they said she,” Mak pointed out and Hope nodded and looked back at the paper.
“Narrows it down to about four women, we already know the ones who arrived here and would know if any of them were firebirds. Which leaves only a few choices and if there are only two girls under the symbol, it stands to reason it would be one of them,” Gio said and then everyone nodded.
“So the first group who will go out is Anthony, Vincent, and Tamera. There are about four people in the area you are looking for. If you do find her, bring her back immediately. Get ready to go, Hope and her mates will help you,” Marcus said.
“We really need to figure out these symbols,” Tara muttered and looked at her mates who nodded in agreement. “We will be going there for the rest of the day, if we find something we will let you know.”
“Okay,” Quin said to the people who were gathered in the diner. “So from here on out, we see them we are polite but we are not going to give them any more info. They are at the point where they need to do this on their own. If we interfere it could cause something else to change. Hopefully they will figure it all out.”
“Or Diavolo will get the package and understand it’s meaning, but if not, I am sure when we get to the last package he will know for sure.” Kira ground out.
They had been making sure Rebekka didn’t die until they were ready for Diavolo to know they were coming for him. Then he would get the last of her thrown at his feet. Kira looked at Cloe who grinned as well. She had made sure Rebekka survived and would survive until they were ready.
Jo looked at Cami who was lost in thought as she looked out the window. This was taking its toll on all of them and it sucked. The bell over the door clanged and they all turned to see who had come into the diner. Cami smiled and jumped up and went to hug the woman she had not seen in a long time.
“Grace!” Cami yelled and the woman chuckled.
“Oh my dear,” Grace said with a smile in her voice. “How I have missed you.”
“Ma,” Argus said and leaned down and kissed Lena on the cheek. Seila was smiling as well and hugged Jacob when he got to her and Skye was folded into their arms when the guys stepped back.
“I hear you had a good time in Vegas?” Skye teased and the woman laughed loudly.
“Oh you know, we have been holding off any traveling for so long, and we don’t know when we will be able to go again so we figured why not,” Grace shrugged and then winked at the two ladies who laughed.
“What did you do?” Argus asked Lena who shrugged.
“What happens there, stays there, you know that,” Seila said.
“Well, at least you are finally here, I think there are only a few still on their way. We need to make sure everyone gets here before the end,” Quin said.
“I don’t understand that, boy,” Grace said and pointed at him. “Why do we all need to be together?”
“That is my fault,” Kira said, holding up her hand.
“Another one?” Grace frowned and shook her head. “I will never understand that whole thing.”
“Neither did we,” Jaden said. “Until the last time when it wasn’t like Kira saw and everything went sideways. Now, we do things down to the letter of the vision.”
“Hey!” Jeremy yelled from the kitchen loudly. Casey turned to see the man who raised her slap his spatula down on the little bell loudly. He had decided when he arrived and they were just getting Drake up to speed, he would work the diner. “Are we closing? Since you locked the door and no one can come in, you should open the door or let me go home.”
Cami rolled her eyes. “Jeremy, I told you, we are having the meeting and then opening.”
“Yeah, well, I am too old to be sitting around here wasting my time back here in the heat,” he grumbled and walked out of the swinging door. “That stove is hot as the dickens right about now.”
Lena smiled and held out her hand. “Hello there.”
Jeremy paused and then looked at her hand and backed up. “Hi, you hungry? If you are, tell me now before I sit down.”
“Oh well,” Lena said and looked at Seila who shook her head and then Grace who was currently frozen, staring at the older distinguished wolf who had aged very well.
“Grace?” Lena said and she didn’t move. Jeremy looked at the woman who was standing behind Cami and took a deep breath.
“Holy shit,” Jeremy muttered and took a step forward. Grace seemed to come unglued from her spot and she lunged forward before any of them could do or say anything.
It was a good thing Jeremey was still fit as a fiddle because he caught the woman in his arms and without provocation, she bit him in the neck.
“Oh my gods,” Cami yelled.
“Grace!” Quin yelled.
“Dad!” Casey said.
“Well then,” Jaden smirked for the first time in a week, if Cami hadn’t been so focused on Grace and her strange behavior, she would have been relieved.
“What the hell are you doing?” Lena screeched and reached to pull Grace off Jeremy and the older wolf growled, well more like snarled, he snarled at Lena and everyone else.
Grabbing Grace by the waist and holding her tight, he swung to the side, protecting her from everyone. “Mine,” he growled and everyone froze.
“What?” Casey whispered.
“Back,” Devon said in a deep voice, pulling his mate back behind him.
“But, Dad, wait,” Casey said.
“Jeremy,” Devon said calmly. “Wanna tell us what’s going on.”
Grace finally pulled away from Jeremy’s neck and looked up and grinned. “Sorry about that, I guess waiting to find my mate for so long made my wolf a little cranky. She, uh, didn’t want to wait.”
“Mate?” Quin said and frowned. “But you must have seen each other.”
“Over the years?” Jeremy drawled. “I am pretty sure I would have remembered seeing my mate before.”
“Well yeah,” Quin said slowly and then Cami laughed and clapped her hands.
“Finally a reason to celebrate! We have a new mating!” Cami cheered and the guys groaned and put their hands to their face.
“I will make sure I put a sign up closing the bar up for the night,” Bryan said, shaking his head and looking at her mate. “But I can’t help you with them tonight. I am already stretched training some new deputies.”
She laughed and said, “I wouldn’t expect you to, it looks like for the first time in more years than I care to count, we are having a full blown Ladies’ Night at the Bar!”
Cami howled loudly and the others laughed. It had been a long time, a very long time. They hadn’t lied when they had spoken to Hope and her mates. These last years they have been almost afraid to move. Seeing how fucked up the future was and is, compared to the past, they knew something big was needed to fix it.
They had looked at every single event in their lives, and tried to see where they had gone wrong, but to no avail. The years had been filled with figuring out how the hell to fix it. At first they had all tried to figure it out. Every time it came back to one thing, their children. Their powers were different than what they really expected. They were so much, well more. So they waited, and watched, and finally when the time seemed right, they left the notes and prayed.
“Maybe not tonight,” Grace said and looked at Jeremy who was already taking off his apron and throwing his spatula on the counter.
“Definitely not tonight, tomorrow, or the next day. Who knows, we will keep you updated,” Jeremy said and grabbed Grace’s hand. “Come on, I have plans.”
Grace giggled, yes she giggled, and Cami could only smile. When they had cleared the door and the place was empty, Casey stepped up and shook her head.
“Just saying, I am not going to be interrupting them at all. I am already scarred for life since I walked in on Reggie, Levi, and Ruby last week when they said they were tired and neede
d a nap. This time, I am waiting.”
Chapter Fifteen
Tara tried to move away from Nian, but he held her chin tight, and his mouth captured hers for a deep kiss. A shiver of anticipation ran over her. Her hands started to push him away, but forgot what they were supposed to do. Her fingers brushed across the soft hair on his chest and teased his nipples.
Nian reached behind her to unsnap her bra. He pulled it over her head and off. Then he carried her to their bedroom and threw her to the middle of the bed, while she squealed and laughed—he was growling at her.
“See how much we want you. You want us. I can smell your desire. Your nipples are swollen with longing for me to tease them,” Nian said and laughed when her eyes grew big as Reese joined him at the end of the bed.
Holy shit, they were dangerously fuckin’ handsome. She couldn’t stay mad when she was just as aroused as they apparently were. Damn fucking sexy bastards, this sucked, she wanted to stay mad. They had been assholes, and they had also tried to tell her she wasn’t allowed to go with them when it was their time to find the lost children of the Chosen. It was too hard to think of them as friends right now. To raw.
His words ratcheted the heat level inside her to on fire.
Nian straddled her body and looked down. She almost felt him touch her with his intense stare. “Pinch your nipples. I want to see you,” said Nian.
Reese laid down next to them so he could watch. “I wanna see it too, sweetheart, now go on, before you add some more punishment to your total,” Reese said huskily. He kissed her passionately before pulling back and waiting.
Nian’s command had her shivering with excitement. Her hands cupped her breasts while her thumbs stroked her nipples. All the muscles below her waist clenched tight as she watched his eyes turn to liquid silver. She turned her head and looked at Reese who was staring intently at her fingers.
“Move one hand down and grip my cock,” Nian’s husky voice brushed across her skin like warm silk. She gripped him firmly and began to move her hand up and down. The muscles of his face drew taut with desire.
“Oh, sweetheart, you are fuckin’ amazing. Reese, her hand has the magic touch.”
Nian leaned down to her chest and brushed her hand aside. His mouth covered her taut nipple and sucked on her breast. Like a line pulling tight, she felt the tug at her core. Tara could feel all thoughts leaving her head except for the one that mattered, YES! He went back and forth between each breast, giving each one attention.
Tara rubbed across the top of his cock again as he paid his attention to her breasts, along the sensitive underside her finger glided slowly, teasing him a little like he was her. He groaned and his tongue flickered around and over her nipple more quickly.
Nian raised his head and caught her chin in his warm hand.
“You are mine. There is nothing in this world I would not do for you, including protect your crazy ass even when you don’t need it. We need it. I need you to be safe, without you there is no us,” he said huskily.
His impassioned words speared through her heart. Nothing in the world? Her body throbbed with need and burned with the fire he’d kindled inside her. She was wet with the juice from her desire. Her pussy ached to clamp around his hard cock. She tried to think clearly, but her mind screamed to take him inside her.
She pulled his head down close to her lips. “I don’t want to go anywhere without you. I just want to know that we are a team, all of us. Please?” she whispered the words.
He bit her lower lip and whispered back, “Only if you follow directions, this is gonna be your test.” He spread her legs wide and plunged deep. Her body arched with the intense pleasure. She pulled his hips tighter, pulling him in even more. All the time an unseen wire connected their eyes.
“How is that?” she taunted him.
“Very good.” His sizzling grin sent a tremor of response rippling across her skin. Pulling her legs up to his wide shoulders, he sank as deep as he could go. Then just as suddenly, he moved out. He bent his head to suck her clit and taste her sweet honey. His mouth and teeth teased, tasted, and sucked all along her pink folds and across her nub.
Tara screamed for him to take her, but he only laughed and continued to torment her, bringing her to the edge, backing down, and then doing it again. Finally, when she thought she’d explode, he moved to her opening and slid back in. This time he moved slow and easy. Her pussy clamped around him, and her inner muscles trembled against his hot cock.
“We can never lose you, do you understand, I can’t,” he said as he went in all the way, and she split apart with the deep ecstasy of her orgasm. From a distance, she heard his shout of release.
“Damn, that was sexy, are you ready for me?” Reese grumbled.
Tara managed to turn her head in the direction of Reese. They both knew she wasn’t quite used to having two men, even though she was eager, he wasn’t going to hurt her. She was theirs to take care of, theirs to love.
Nian rolled off her and smiled across at Reese. “She is all yours, we just need to make sure tomorrow she remembers her lesson.”
“I swear, I understand. I mean, it has been a week since that first time, I promise I won’t do that again.”
Both men stared at her, but Reese said as he rolled closer to her and pinched one of her nipples, making her squirm, “I know you won’t, because if you do, I promise you will not sleep for a week if you do something like that again.”
“You can’t fuck me into submission,” Tara said stubbornly.
“Sure we can.” Nian had moved over and pulled her with him. Reese leaned down and kissed her. “Sweetest kisser.”
“Stop being sweet when you are trying to yell at me,” Tara said sarcastically.
Reese looked across her to Nian. “I don’t think she quite understands what it means to have two mates who will do anything to make sure she is safe.” His lips covered hers again, and his hand moved down along her neck to her breast. He barely brushed the palm of his hand over the tip of her nipple.
She didn’t think her body could move after what she’d just experienced with Nian, but her breast seemed to swell right in his hand, and a sizzle went straight to her pussy. His tongue slid inside her mouth and licked along the top and sides. She hadn’t realized she’d turned toward him until she felt Nian’s hands rubbing her back and cupping her backside. His lips nuzzled at her neck.
Their sexy scents and warm bodies enveloped her, and her head and body responded immediately. Her every nerve more sensitive than they’d ever been to a touch or a kiss. Her insides wept with moisture. She felt her pussy pulse with a craving to have one of their hot, hard cocks inside her.
Reese’s mouth traveled down her body. At the juncture to her thighs, he separated her pink folds and rubbed his thumb across her clit. She moaned. Nian had moved to her breasts and suckled one while he teased the nipple of the other. A tremor started inside her pussy and traveled to every nerve. She had a voracious hunger for her two men that both thrilled and frightened her.
Her legs were spread wider. Reese quickly lined up and placed his cock at the entrance to her pussy. He began to move in slowly as Nian kissed her mouth, and moved his tongue in and out to match Reese’s rhythm below. Nian still rubbed across her taut nipples and Tara was sure at any moment she’d explode with the tension building inside her.
“Let go, sweetheart,” she heard Nian’s voice in her ear. Reese moved faster and deeper, and a tide of pleasure shook her and sent her over the edge. She heard Reese groan out his release.
The inner walls of her pussy clenched around his cock and held as soft ripples continued to roll through her. She savored the feeling of being held close in their embrace, a warm, sexy cocoon to rest in and catch her breath. But as she did, reality intruded.
“See how nice we are, now, let’s talk about your blatant disregard of our need to protect you,” Reese said, flipping her so quickly she felt dizzy. He smoothed his hand over her ass and she yelled.
“Do
n’t you dare, I swear on all that is holy, if you spank me I am gonna kick your ass.”
She had apologized all week long, all week. When the hell were they going to get over it, damn.
“Listen, I get it, I should have waited for you before going into the shop to see if Chase was working, I should have. But you were busy with the Enforcers and I figured we just needed to know if he was there. Getting everyone set up to move him out of there fast without fuss, we needed to know if he was there first,” Tara snapped and then speared a French fry on her plate and shoved it in her mouth.
“Let’s pretend for one second that ignoring our explicit request to remain with us until we were sure none of the Prentiss were there. Walking into a restaurant without back up could have turned out very differently. You heard the man, they had a ton of protection in the place since the Prentiss had already been hounding him for days. His pack was ready to rip you apart, they don’t know you, and Chase, he was in the back of the restaurant and wasn’t there to explain he knew you. They could have killed you when you began just walking into the back.”
Tara rolled her eyes. “I know, I know. However, you do realize I was an Enforcer before I was anything else. I love books, don’t get me wrong, but I have been trained by Cassandra herself. No one was going to get the drop on me.”
“Sweetheart, we know, we do. But still it is like you don’t want us to be your partners,” Reese said.
Tara’s voice softened and lowered and she said, “I have been with Sabrina for a long time.”
Both men nodded and adjusted her on the bed so they could both see her. They looked at her closely. Sabrina hadn’t been allowed to join in the search because they were still hunting her. Sabrina’s face had been plastered all over the place a week ago when the Drekinn assumed they finally realized that she was no long under their thumb.
“You know why,” Nian said softly and she nodded miserably.