Chapter Six

The call for lunch broke up the cuddling. Aeryn found herself escorted to the long table and sat at the far end between Sohar and Loken. It was extremely symbolic.

The ladies were drunk and dazed and drinking anything that looked like a cocktail. Sohar nodded to the bartender, and he immediately changed over some bottles.

The bride looked at Mini bracketed between her alphas. “Oh, isn’t that a pretty picture? Your brother would love to see that.”

Mini looked at her. “He actually would. Take the picture and send it. Find out.”

The bride took the picture as Exeter and Ahheel leaned in with grins.

The woman pressed send with a vicious look. “Now, I just need to wait for the response.”

Mini’s phone went off, and she shyly smiled as she answered the message. “He’s going to be here on Thursday.”

The bride blinked. “Why?”

“To meet my alphas. He’s big on family, and if they are mine, he wants to meet them.”

Ahheel looked at the text and laughed. Exeter looked and snorted.

Aeryn smiled and said, “What did he reply?”

Mini held up her phone, Woohoo! You go girl. That’s my little sis. They look nice. I am on my way, and see you tomorrow so I can grill them. They need to deserve you.

Her sister-in-law looked furious. “He didn’t!”

“Yeah. He did. He’s always supported my alternative view of the world.”

Ahheel laughed. “I am up for it. He’s a beta?”

“Yes.”

“I will be gentle with him.”

“Don’t be. He’s scrappy.” She smiled and looked at her phone. “He’s happy for me.”

Exeter kissed her temple. “He should be.”

The bride was fuming.

The variety of fish was brought out, and Aeryn smiled as she got her battered nuggets.

Mini looked at her wistfully. “Are there any more of those?”

The crewmen nodded, and a platter was set near her.

There were grilled fish, poached, baked, and even a tureen that boggled the imagination.

Thera laughed. “Aeryn shopped hungry.”

Aeryn’s half of the table laughed.

Sohar smiled. “Nothing like a good provider in the family.”

Loken chuckled and got a serving of grilled fish. “I will hunt on the land; she can hunt in the sea, and you can pay for everything else.”

Sohar laughed and took samples of everything. “My mate caught it, and I am going to eat it.”

Loken’s thread of the link was fading again. She wrapped herself around it and tried to make the link stronger.

“Aeryn, we can work on the links after lunch.”

He had used the plural, and she shivered a little. The fish nuggets were tasty, and the tartar sauce they had made was good. “The cooks are really good.”

“Chefs. We have two chefs. Calling them cooks makes them cranky.” Loken chuckled.

Sohar nodded. “And if you do that, all you get is oatmeal for all meals for a week.” He grimaced.

She giggled. “Noted.”

Thera thought of something. “Hey, Aeryn, Sohar, and Loken and Mini, Ahheel, and Exeter, I want you on the deck for photos. It is so rare to see links before they are locked in.”

Sohar grinned. “That is a great idea. Will you also do photos when we have completed the link?”

“Absolutely. I need practice to build a portfolio.”

Amby grinned. “We are working on making a wedding venue out here. I think I am going to drag my guys in to do the first ceremony when we get the venue set up.”

Orc asked, “What’s the deal with weddings? It seems so much fuss when the importance is the bond.”

Mini piped up. “Betas don’t get the bond. They don’t get a link at all. It is just two people agreeing to live together, hopefully bound by trust and affection. Tricia, be happy. This at least means I won’t be at your wedding.”

Tricia paled. “No. You have to be there. He said he won’t marry me if his family isn’t there.”

Mini blinked in surprise. “Then why are you such a bitch to me?”

“Because you aren’t right, you idiot!”

“I am not an idiot. I am just wired a little different. If I were an idiot, I wouldn’t pull in six figures.” She smiled with a shrug. “I guess I don’t have to pay for the wedding now either. Cool.”

The bride stared at her. “No. It wasn’t you.”

“Oh, it was me. Don’t worry. I had already made arrangements to be elsewhere during your wedding and notified my brother of my decision. He was good with it.”

Tricia blinked. “What?”

“Yeah. I cut off funding for the wedding, so my brother was taking a loan for it. You will start your married life with debt.”

“But... he just bought that house and that car.”

Mini frowned. “I bought those for him. They were not extravagant, and he needed a car after you took his.”

Her thumbs started tapping, and there was a response in text. “Oh. That’s unexpected.”

Exeter read over her shoulder and laughed. “Well, I can’t say I am sorry about the outcome, but as I will not have to see her again, it is a relief.”

“Mini, what did your brother say?”

Mini held up her hand for silence. Tricia’s phone binged, and when she looked at it, she started screaming.

Sohar got up. “I would like four crewmen to take the launch back with the bridal party. There’s a hefty bonus in it for you.”

Aeryn understood, and Tricia clambered over the table and tried to grab Mini. Aeryn caught Tricia in a wind column and walked her out the door and down stairs until they got to the launch. All the bags and towels were gathered and placed on the launch, and the bridesmaids all settled on the boat, waiting for the crew.

The men nodded. “Thank you, miss.”

“No problem. I can hold her for a few hundred yards, so you will hear two ticks before I let her go. I believe she will either jump into the water or sit sobbing. Not too much in between.”

“We are betas, miss. And we have sisters. We’ve got this.”

She smiled. “Thank you. I think the rest of the day will be a lot calmer.”

They laughed and cast off the launch, backing away and then turning back toward the biggest island of the Wonder chain.

Amby was working on her cell phone. She looked up when Aeryn returned. “I am just sending Ohno a message to move Mini’s stuff to a safe room.”

Ahheel smiled. “I am doing the same.”

Exeter looked at Mini. “Oh, Amby will be your sibling via bond twice over. She is mated to my brother and Ahheel’s brother. So, you are sisters.”

Amby grinned. “That also makes Haravin your cousin by extension, and the child she is carrying a niece or nephew.”

Mini blinked. “Oh, that’s a lot.”

Thera nodded. “It absolutely is. Now, come outside so I can take your photo. This is a moment to capture.”

Aeryn blinked. “You are obsessed.”

“I always have been. Now that I have people to play with, it is so much more fun.”

So, it began that Thera lined the first trio up against the endless backdrop of the ocean, and she got one of the cameras out and began to take photos.

Mini looked at each of her alphas in turn before there were photos of kissing. The sweetest image was one where Ahheel had one arm around Mini’s waist and was holding the extended hand, and Exeter’s hand was over theirs, and he kissed Mini’s temple.

It was cute and sweet, and Mini had a thoughtful expression when Thera chortled and released them from the pose.

Aeryn wasn’t hopeful when Thera aligned them with the sunlight, and she did a lot of couple shots before she lined them up by height. There was a lot of weird dignity in their shots.

Thera lowered her camera. “I want to do a moonlight shoot on Sohar’s island with everybody in their other forms.”

“I don’t have another form.” Aeryn shrugged.

“You mix wind and waves. That’s close enough.”

Ahheel grinned. “I have just the outfit back at the shop.”

Thera checked her phone. “Tonight’s the full moon, so it should be tonight.”

Sohar blinked. “Then, we shall return to the village and get what we need, including some supplies for dinner. I believe Thera’s mates will want to accompany her on a jaunt to the open ocean.”

The crew pulled up the anchor a few minutes later, and Loken took Aeryn’s hand. “We have an hour before we are back; let’s see to those marks.”

She nodded and followed him down into the living area of the yacht. He opened a door that led to a room with a lot of head space, and she swallowed as Sohar followed them.

When Loken’s hands touched her ribs and belly, she realized she had gone the whole afternoon in her swimwear.

He slid a strap down and kissed the heavy mark left behind. “Your poor skin.”

“Normally, it doesn’t bother me.”

Sohar pressed against her from behind. “But I am here, so you are vulnerable.”

“Yes. The energy is making a lot of intuitive leaps,” she muttered as Loken licked the strap mark. The tiny link between them tingled and sparkled like it was excited.

Sohar murmured against her ear, “Loken will mark you first, and then, I will seal us together. That way, all links are protected.”

Loken sucked at her neck, and her toes curled. He moved over the expanse between ear and shoulder until he started to make hungry grunting sounds, and then, he bit.

Sohar turned her head as she yowled in pain, sealing her mouth with a kiss, and as Loken hung on, heat began to spiral from her shoulder to her sex. Even her knees felt warmth.

The link between them went from a silken whisp to a wide silvery ribbon. She felt attraction, arousal, and smugness through the newly formed connection.

Sohar supported her as Loken’s bite continued until she drooped in his arms. Loken released her and backed off. “I’m sorry, I should not have gone so long.”

Loken licked at the very deep mark and shuddered. “Oh, I can feel you, Aeryn.”

“I can feel you, too, Loken. Body and soul.”

He sighed. “I am regretting doing this with guests on the vessel.”

She moaned as the soft flicks of his tongue made her knees buckle, but she could feel his venom being sealed beneath her skin.

Sohar eventually lifted her away from Loken and settled her on the bed, coming down on top of her. She grunted, but he ignored her, nuzzling at the strap and then shearing it with his teeth. “Hey!”

He chuckled. “It hurt you, so I punished it.” He did the same kissing and nuzzling on her neck that Loken had done but on the other side, and with his body pressing against hers, the effect was far more telling. It told her that she wanted Sohar very badly despite her avoiding him for years.

He murmured against her skin, “Why did you hide from me, Aeryn?”

“I wasn’t done yet, and I knew that contact with you would make my progress stop.” She felt herself squirming under him. “I have skills now, and I know what I can do and what I am.”

He crooned against her skin, “What can you do, Aeryn?”

He slid a hand between her thighs and stroked her through the tight fabric of her suit.

She chuckled. “It’s like being pet through a suit of armour.”

Cool air rushed in as the fabric was cut away with his fingertips.

She looked at him. “You could have asked.”

He smiled. “I know you have other clothing on board, so that was just fun.”

“Fun? Ooh.” She moaned as his fingers stroked between her thighs. Her left knee flexed and tried to open to his touch.

“See? Fun.” He chuckled against her skin and continued his slow tenderization of her flesh while his fingers explored, slipped, and slid until he got a digit inside.

She shuddered and bit his shoulder. Her hips rolled against his hand while his thumb caressed her clit, and when she was vibrating with tension, he bit down.

She came, but it was lost in the maelstrom of sensation that now connected them. He was a lot. There were colours in their link that didn’t have names, and it wrapped around Loken’s as if protecting it. Loken gasped and settled next to her to hold her hand. She wove her fingers with his and waited for the link-storm to ease.

When Sohar finally lifted his head, her blood was in his mouth, and his ghoulish smile was bright. He licked his lips and dove down to clean up after himself.

“That was an image that is going to stay with me.”

Loken chuckled. “Sohar bloody from chewing on you?”

“No, him happy like a five-year-old who just discovered popsicles.”

Sohar snorted but kept working to seal her skin and the link between them.

When he was done, she was dizzy, but they were both venomous so that was to be expected. When Sohar was finally satisfied that he had done what needed to be done, he leaned up on his arms and looked down at her. She didn’t know when his hand had left her, but he absently licked his gleaming fingers as he had a thought.

He grinned at Loken. “My brain is moving faster. Intuition is taking hold. It is an amazing feeling.” He leaned down and kissed her slowly. “You are an amazing feeling.”

She had been pulling back, but when he kissed her, his attention was on her, and she felt his pleased happiness through the link.

Loken kissed her knuckles. “I will go locate your clothing.”

She looked down, and there was nothing left. “Damn.” Shreds of the fabric were under here, but nothing solid was left.

Sohar pressed his forehead to hers. “I wanted to touch all of you.”

The door closed softly.

She sighed. “No more running.”

“No more running. It started too long ago, and it stops now.”

She repeated it. “No more running. Your other form isn’t up to the chase.”

He chuckled. “It is slow, but I am determined.”

She stared into his eyes, and understanding caught on. “Oh. My. Goodness. Floating island, indeed.”

He smiled. “I only have to shift a few times a year and only for a day. Every decade, I have to spend a week in the water, and people always die. Silly buggers try and grab jewels from my surface.”

“Which slices and poisons them at the same time. How did you get the gemstones for me and Loken?”

“Oh, I just suck the venom out. Tastes like grape.” He shrugged.

She giggled. She couldn’t stop it. He looked so serious.

He eased to her side and tucked her in against him. She was warm, her body was dealing well with the venom, and the wrapped cable of a link was pulling her tightly to him.

“I am glad you aren’t tiny. You have no idea how much I have a terror of tiny women.”

“That is comforting.”

“That I find tiny women to be like screaming children? Mini’s sister-in-law was horrifying. I wanted to punt her off the yacht.”

“Is that how you react to all screaming children? I am sure that if we eventually have one, they will make noise.”

“Any child of ours can make as much noise as it likes. And if I punt it off the boat, you can catch it and bring it back.”

She snorted. “If you punt a child off the boat, you are the next thing to go over.” She had a thought and whispered, “Why is Loken a dinosaur?”

“The gem I used for him was one of my older ones. He ended up in a shape very close to the age of my other form.”

“Right. Someone shot him, too?”

“Yes. I set the emerald in him before you got me into the car and drove me for help.”

“Where you got me and pressed the stone into me before the gurney arrived.”

He sighed. “And the kiss that you pulled away from was supposed to let me find you, but it wasn’t strong enough to hold the connection.”

She reached up and caressed his squarely cut cheek. “I fought the link hard. I thought you did it as an accident. It wasn’t until I felt you following that I panicked. I am carrying twenty carats of diamond in my body. I was pretty sure I would die if you took it back.”

He frowned. “You thought I was coming for the diamond?”

The expression on his face said that he was baffled.

“I hadn’t actually met you at that point, and I was growing quite a bit. I was terrified most of the time. And I was carrying a three million dollar gem under my skin.”

“Fifteen. It is worth fifteen million. I was getting it appraised that day.”

She froze. “That makes it so much worse.”

He frowned. “Why? I can get you a bigger one if you want to be really nervous.”

She was saved by Loken coming in with the bag and her backpack.

“Okay, I think I am going to get dressed now. Stay.” She put her hand on his chest and eased back from him.

“Why do you have to get dressed?” He whined and sat up.

“Because if we are doing a full moon photoshoot, I need to be in shape to move.”

Loken chuckled. “She has a point. Plus, if we haven’t mated yet, it will be a lot more fun to chase her down the beach.”