27. Lorna

Chapter 27

Lorna

I sat at Nathan's dining table sipping a cup of fresh-brewed coffee and smiling like a kid at Christmas. I felt absolutely amazing! I'd woken up about fifteen minutes ago, snuggled up next to my vampire, with a smile on my face. I was pretty sure I fell asleep with a smile on my face.

I would've stayed in bed, but my bladder had other ideas. Once I woke up, I was awake for good. The clock on Nathan's wall said it was five-thirty. I had to assume it was evening, not morning. We'd gone to bed just after sunrise.

My smile widened at the memory of Nathan's sleepy grin. He was so cute when he saw the heart on my chest. I almost teased him about it, but it was perfect! Just like I'd told him.

He was sexy, not cute, Mir said.

Yes, he was, I agreed.

I'm pretty sure he would have tortured us forever if his own desire hadn't gotten in the way. She huffed, but I could feel her amusement. He's a worse tease than Elliott .

I laughed. Yeah, and he wouldn't let you be in charge, either.

Mir snarled at me, but it had no bite. Damon will let me.

I shook my head and sipped my coffee. Nathan and I hadn't bitten each other after sharing blood in the guys' training room. I was more than a little surprised that I wasn't even tempted.

I was tempted! Mir said. He's just really good at distracting me.

Yes, he is . I couldn't express how grateful I was that we could be together without the vampire-dhampir dynamic getting in the way. Maybe over time we'd be able to be together without any preparations.

Now that I thought about it, my cravings for him had already started slowing down. When did that happen? Was it my self-control, or was it because Damon had been feeding me?

Maybe I should over-indulge with Damon before we spend time with Nathan, Mir suggested.

Her version of over-indulging made me laugh. Of course it involved more than just feeding.

A girl can hope. Mir pouted, and I laughed again.

I'll certainly make the suggestion. I don't want my time with Nathan to be predicated on everyone else's availability to disperse our magic. That's expecting a whole lot from the guys.

Yeah.

I finished my coffee just as the elevated doors slid open. Elliott, Damon, and Kenrid strolled into the room. All three of them looked right at me, then rushed my way. A second later, I was surrounded by three of my favorite people. All of them wrapped me in their arms and their magic.

The intertwining of their magic brought tears to my eyes. It felt so right, in a way I could never explain.

"You feel good," Damon said.

"I swear you can read my mind. "

Elliott laughed. "I accuse him of it all the time. He's right, though. You feel good."

"Your magic feels good," Kenrid said, the first to step away from our group hug and look at me. "I'm guessing everything is okay between you and Nathan."

"Yep." I wanted to say more, but it felt weird talking about one of my lovers to my other lovers. And Nathan wasn't awake to say whether or not he wanted anything shared with the guys.

Elliott kissed my forehead, pinched my butt, and headed for the kitchen. "I'm cooking. Who else is hungry?"

"I'm starving," I said, making a point to not look at Damon, who still held me.

Are you okay? I asked Mir.

Weirdly enough, I'm not hungry at all. Not that I'd turn Damon down if he offered.

"And?" Damon asked.

I swear he could read my mind, damn it! "We're fine."

Damon released me and led me back to the table. "Nathan should be up soon, and we have a lot to talk about."

As I took my seat, I studied Damon's face. He didn't seem upset or worried, so it couldn't be bad news, right?

"Before Nathan shows his face," Elliott said, leaning on the counter with a smirk on his face, "I want to see what kind of mark he left."

I wasn't sure if I should show them. Nathan was really self-conscious about it, but it wasn't like I was going to hide my boobs from them. They would see it eventually.

I'd put on the same tank top from yesterday—I didn't wear it long enough to get it dirty—so it was easy to pull the strap to the side and reveal all four marks on my chest. Elliott circled the table and stood behind Damon's seat. Kenrid did the same from the other direction .

Their scrutiny had me blushing, so I focused on my marks. My connections to the guys I loved. The bold red of Nathan's bleeding heart stood out on the top as the only one with vibrant color. Kenrid and Damon's protection runes sat side by side right beneath it in shades of gray. Elliott's howling wolf was centered just below them, creating a diamond-shaped ensemble.

I loved it, and I loved them for not frowning or wrinkling their noses, or any other negative response.

"I'm a little surprised that Nathan's isn't black," Elliott finally said.

I jerked my head up, getting ready to tell him off, but his grin stopped me.

"I'm just teasing." Elliott blew a kiss my way, then headed back to the kitchen. "It's completely appropriate for his bleeding heart."

Damon chuckled, and Kenrid shook his head. I fixed my shirt.

"I'm glad to have your approval, Elliott," Nathan said.

I twisted in my seat with a great big smile for my vampire. His smile didn't fade as he crossed the room. "I should've known you'd be here."

Nathan leaned down, giving me a quick, passionate kiss that left me breathless.

"Did I hear you say there was more to talk about?" Nathan asked on his way to the refrigerator.

"Yes, but Kenrid should be the one to break the news," Damon replied.

Kenrid took the seat next to me and laid his hand on my thigh. "Nearly a third of the Exiled fae have left," he said. "I'm not sure where they went, but the council is gone as well."

Nathan turned away from the refrigerator and looked at Kenrid with raised eyebrows. "What did the others say?"

"Most of them wouldn't talk about it." Kenrid sighed and gently squeezed my leg. I wondered if there was bad news about me. I slid my hand beneath his and laced our fingers together as he continued. "They asked me to come back to lead those who are left behind. I told them no. They need to find a way to govern themselves."

"They didn't tell you why the council left?" Nathan asked.

Kenrid looked at me then Nathan. "According to the fae I spoke with, Alyssa convinced them that Brance was behind it all and she was merely a victim of his deception. Those who left feared retaliation. Those who stayed knew nothing of Brance's plans."

Nathan put a glass of what I assumed was blood on a warming plate before giving Kenrid his full attention. "I understand your reluctance to be part of the governing body, but we will need someone to monitor them."

Kenrid squeezed my fingers, and I realized where his nervousness was coming from. He'd already said he didn't want to stay with the Exiled.

"I'm not asking you to go back to them, Kenrid," Nathan said when Kenrid didn't respond. "But it would be best if you helped them establish their new council. I'd like to assume that the remaining fae don't want to go back to their home realm. Is it possible that everyone who wanted to find a way into Fairie left with Alyssa?"

"Possibly. I hadn't considered that." Kenrid glanced at me, and I could almost see him thinking. "Would you be willing to help with that? The only governance the fae know and understand is a monarchy. We've all studied the democratic system, but it might carry more weight to hear it from someone who was raised here, rather than reading it from a book."

I thought about Kenrid's request for a moment, as well as Nathan's. It'd be really nice to have something to do with my time, especially if I got to spend it with my favorite fae.

"I don't mind at all," I said. "It would be a good opportunity for us to find out if Nathan's right about who's left behind. If the dissenters did leave, it'll make everything easier for the fae who really want change."

Kenrid smiled at me, his relief obvious .

"I'm not about to let you go by yourself," I teased. "You're too irresistible."

Kenrid's face flushed, and Elliott laughed from the kitchen. The smell of cooking bacon made my mouth water. The sight of Elliott at the stove cooking—for me—warmed my heart.

"You want eggs?" Elliott caught me staring at him and winked.

"Sure. I don't care how you cook them," I replied with a grin. "Whatever everyone else wants."

"Scrambled it is, then." Elliott waved his spatula in our general direction and turned back to the stove.

"Because he always breaks the yolks when he tries to do over-easy," Kenrid said.

Damon and Nathan both chuckled. I smiled, but I wasn't about to tease Elliott about it. I couldn't make fried eggs, either.

"I wanted to talk to all of you about an official job for Lorna." Nathan made his way to the table and sat down next to Damon. He took a sip from his glass and scowled.

"You didn't let it expire, did you?" Kenrid asked, cutting his eyes at Nathan's breakfast.

"No." Nathan stared at the glass like it personally insulted him. "It just tastes different." He closed his eyes and shook his head, then looked up at me. "What do you like to do? Professionally, I mean. We have several businesses that always have job openings."

I frowned and glanced around the table at my guys. I didn't know what I wanted to do. I'd had the same job for the last decade, but I couldn't go back to Maxwell Securities. I wasn't sure I wanted to go back.

"Could she help the AAAE team get organized?" Kenrid asked. "They're really good with the public facing side, but their organizational skills are lacking. "

"Good idea." Nathan raised his cup to his mouth and wrinkled his nose. His reluctance was starting to worry me.

"I'd love to have her join my crew to get our scheduling organized," Elliott said, drawing my attention from Nathan. "None of my folks know how to use a damn calendar. And they certainly can't coordinate security events and people."

My mouth fell open. I knew they did stuff to make money. We all did. But I hadn't even thought about the career options available to me.

"I can take you on a tour, if that helps," Nathan offered. "Now that I'm reasonably sure the fae queens will leave us alone for the time being, we should have time to get you settled into a somewhat normal routine."

He lifted the glass to his lips and stopped. The look of disgust on his face was cute, like a child who didn't want to eat their broccoli. The reality was concerning, though.

"What's wrong?" I needed to know, even though I was pretty sure it was my fault. It had something to do with my blood.

Nathan sighed and met my gaze. "You are too delectable. Everything tastes like cardboard compared to you."

"Oh."

I wasn't sure what else to say. Apologizing for being tasty seemed stupid. Nathan and Damon were both a tasty treat for me.

"I can't ask you to be my blood donor," Nathan continued before I could make the offer. "I hate being a parasite. I don't want to make you feel like I'm only using you for your blood. You mean so much more to me than that."

I smiled, remembering a similar conversation I'd had with Damon. My demon cleared his throat and both Nathan and I looked his way. Damon smirked at me but didn't say anything.

"What's so funny?" Nathan's frown turned into a growl.

"Damon's my tasty treat," I replied, grinning at my demon before giving Nathan my full attention. "He convinced me that there was nothing wrong with what I am, and that he thoroughly enjoyed his part in taking care of me. How could I not offer the same to you?"

Nathan looked from me to Damon and back again. I could see when he put two and two together. I was no different from a vampire. Mir needed blood to stay healthy. Damon was happy to do that for us.

Maybe Nathan would be okay with a threesome? Mir projected an image of me ‘tasting' Damon and Nathan ‘tasting' me in the most sensual way possible.

I blushed, and all the guys groaned.

"Oh my God! You didn't see that, did you?"

Damon and Kenrid both laughed. A ring of red circled Nathan's irises, and a smile pulled at his lips. I slowly turned to see Elliott's response. He stood halfway between the kitchen and dining table with two plates of bacon and eggs. His face flushed a pretty shade of pink.

"That was a projection from you?" Elliott asked.

I nodded, not really sure if he was blushing from embarrassment or something else.

"Damon told me about it, but damn. You've got a very vivid imagination." He strolled over and set one of the plates in front of me. He gave the other to Damon. "I keep expecting my wolf to get pissed off, but he isn't. I just need to accept that he's not going to act like an ass." He leaned down and gave me a quick kiss.

I covered my mouth to stop the giggles that threatened to overcome me. I hadn't expected that response from Elliott. The other guys' amusement didn't help. Mir might be ready for all that, but I didn't know if I was.

Stop lying to both of us! Mir exclaimed. We've already had a threesome with Damon and Kenrid several times.

Yes, but I'm not ready to take the risk of hurting Damon's beautiful cock, I argued. What if it doesn't heal as fast as the rest of him? If we draw blood, would you really be able to stop sucking on him?

Mir didn't answer my questions, but I could feel her uncertainty. We weren't ready for that yet. But we could definitely accommodate Nathan.

"I need to think about it," Nathan said before I could voice my own concerns. "I don't want to be completely reliant on you, Lorna. I should be able to stomach the same blood that's sustained me for years."

"Okay." I understood, but I needed him to know how I felt, too. "Let me know when you're ready. I have no objections to helping you."

Nathan pressed his lips into a thin line, but I noticed the way his jaw flexed and his eyes glistened. He lifted the glass and downed every bit of it. I had to give him credit for his stubbornness. Damon shook his head, then started eating his own breakfast. Elliott handed a bowl of fresh cut fruit to Kenrid, then sat down with his own plate of bacon and eggs.

A lump formed in my throat and my eyes got misty. I had a family who loved me. Even the parts of me that everyone else struggled to accept. My parents never put caveats on their love, but I knew how hard it was for them to deal with my oddities. But my guys seemed to enjoy my weirdness, as much as they enjoyed the rest of me.

For the first time in my life, I felt like I belonged. I had a future with four amazing men and a new career of my choosing. What could be better?

Don't forget about me! Mir quipped.

I grinned and wiped away my tears. How could I possibly forget about you?