Chapter Three

Cari

Stretching out against the cool sheets, I sigh against my pillows. I snuggle in, thankful it is a Saturday, and I have nowhere to go and nothing to paint. I just want to lie in this bed.... wait ...what?

"How did I get in bed? What...what happened last night? Am I...am I naked?" I gasp, yanking the comforter up to my throat.

Not that my sisters or anyone else would be here to see me all... nekkid . Last night I was feeling more alone than usual. I had spent the day with my sisters and their men. Seeing them being so loved, being downright adored, mixed me up. I am so glad they found someone to worship them the way they deserve.

But I mean...can't I aspire to be worshiped too?

Coming home to an empty cottage again triggered me, I guess. I tore off my clothes, poured myself some wine, and grabbed one of my smuttiest monster books. And then...well, then I got down to some self-worshiping.

"It was good," I whisper to myself now, chuckling at how uninhibited I had been.

Closing my eyes, I lie back in bed, letting my hand slide over my bare body. It was so good, in fact, it felt as if I was not doing it alone. As if there was someone there, watching me, urging me on, daring me to please myself. There was a moment where I felt...well, I swear I felt a tongue licking between my legs.

"He was with you," a voice whispers inside of my head.

"Who was with me?" I wonder, not at all bothered that I have a voice in my head confirming I was not alone.

"He is here for you. Your mate," the voice answers.

Throwing the comforter off me as my body gets hot, I sit up. Was I not alone last night? Shaking my head, I try to dig past the fuzziness of the wine and personal pleasure party. Was there someone here with me? Did I let someone in while I was drunk and horny?

"No," I affirm, shaking my head. "Not possible."

Falling back with a sigh, feeling a little silly that my crazy is showing, I shake it all off. I was alone. I was buzzed, and I played with myself while I imagined a big, brooding monster had come to please me like no one else ever could.

Thinking about that monster, the one from that book, I smile. He was beautiful in my visions of him. Dark gray skin, almost marble in its finish. A sharp jaw and dark eyes, horns that I could grasp onto as I rode him. His tail wagged when he was happiest, and I imagine he could do...other things with it.

"Perfect. I am a monster pervert now," I mutter with a laugh.

Getting out of bed, I go to take a shower even though I have zero plans to leave the house. As I am drying off after a nice, long, hot shower that leaves my skin flushed, I stop. Staring at my figure in the mirror, I frown. Between my thighs there is a mark. Two marks on either side. They look...well, they look like handprints on my thighs.

Bruises, as if some beast was holding my thighs open.

As I think it, a shimmer of pleasure roils through me. It is so intense, I grab hold of the vanity as my knees give out. Snapping my head up, I watch my chest fall as my breathing becomes wild. My nipples tighten and bud up as I imagine a tongue licking at them as a thick tail wiggles between my thighs.

"Holy shit," I gasp, watching my body flush in the mirror.

Warmth spreads over my back, bracketing my entire body. I am caged in by something. Unable to move. Not that I want to. I press back against the warmth. I welcome it. I gasp again as hot, wetness flutters between my legs, over my sex.

"Oh my," I whimper as my gaze drops, as if I will see a tongue there licking at my heated flesh.

Nothing is there, of course. Pleasure still rockets through me. I shudder as warmth slithers down the side of my neck, over my shoulder, down my spine. I even tilt my head, as if to give easier access to a lover, my hands clutching at the wall desperately.

I can see the edges of an orgasm. Bright and shining, it floods the entire room, lighting me up from the inside out. It is better than last night, bigger, swelling inside of me. Just as I think it will overtake me, I hear the front door open and close.

"Oh shit! Luci," I pant as I recall her reminding me she would come by today to grab a few things.

"Another time," something dark, raw, heated whispers.

Gasping again, I turn, expecting.... what? To see some huge, beautiful monster who wants to devour me in the best possible way? Of course not, Cari. Sighing, I yank my robe on and tie the sash with trembling fingers before rushing from the bathroom.

"Sorry I am here earlier than I said," Luci's voice calls down the hall. Rounding the alcove that leads to her former bedroom, I smile when I see her.

Luci is just about floating across the hardwood floors as she tosses things into a bag. This is the fifth time since she met Gareth that she has come to gather some of her things. She claims he offered to buy her new, but she wanted her things. He barely let her out of their bedroom to let her get those things.

"No worries, babes," I tell her with a wave, leaning against her doorway as I work to calm my raging heart. Raging hard-on? Can women have blue balls? Because what is happening to me?

"I know you don't mind. You're the best big sister ever. Cari...I... I miss you," she stops in the middle of the room, her face crumpling in tears. Rushing to her, I gather her in a hug.

"I miss you too. I miss Bessi. We're still here, together. Even if I am the last one standing here," I tease, chuckling when she pouts up at me. Swiping at her tears, I shake my head. "I love you. Both of you are the very best things mom and dad ever gave me. I am lucky to have you to go through life with. I am so happy for you two. I miss you and I am jealous that I have not found my knight in shining...what? What is it? Is something wrong?"

Pulling her to her bed, I sit her down beside me. Even with her tears, she is glowing. Happier than I have ever seen. Gareth has been good to her, but he has been good for her as well. Her confidence is higher than I ever remember, she is writing her heart out on a new book series, and I love him for that.

"No. Nothing is wrong. Everything is right, it is so right, Cari. I just feel...I hate that you're alone now and we're off..."

"Living the dream, a dream we all have. To find love. To be loved. You both found it and I am so glad. So proud of you."

"Cari...we're having a baby. I am having a baby," she shouts it suddenly, her face filling with joy as she smiles so big it lights up the entire room. As in the entire room brightens, the lights hum as she floods the space with her pure joy.

This is not the first time something...magical has happened to Luci. Ever since we were children, she has made things happen, as if she willed them to happen. Since meeting Gareth, a witch, these things have become more common, more powerful.

There is something magical about all the Mills sisters.

"A baby! Oh, my gosh! That is...that is amazing! I am going to be an auntie. You've got a little boo baby in there?" I gasp, my hands going to her little belly.

"Yes! I am so excited. I wanted you to know first. You have always taken care of us, always been the best big sister in the world to me and Bessi. Would you...will you be my baby's godmother?"

All at once, I am hit with a wave of happiness, of pride, and of absolute love. We've always been close, the three of us, and I think there is something special about our bond. Her having a child, a new generation of Mills babies, will create a new sort of bond. I even hope Bessi and Edon will have pups soon.

"Me? You want me to be the godmother?"

"No one else would do, not even Bessi. You're our north star, Cari Bear. You kept us on track, you kept us happy, you kept us who we were. I want the same thing for my baby."

"Yes, I will be her godmother. I will love her more than I love either of you," I tease, rubbing my hand over her belly.

"You think it's a girl? Gareth does, he wants a little girl. Said he would absolutely a tiny me," she admits with a giggle.

Blinking at her, I shake my head before I nod. Yes, I think she has a little baby girl in there. Closing my eyes, I can almost see her with my hand still on her stomach. A cute button nose, huge blue eyes like her father, and a dark swath of hair.

"Yes, I do. A beautiful little girl, just like her mama," I tell her with a huge smile as love fills me up.

I am thrilled she is having a baby, and a little girl at that. If Bessi could get pregnant soon as I thought earlier, it would be perfect. I might never get to have kids or a husband, but I will always have them. Becoming an aunt is exciting enough.

"You will have babies too," Luci whispers, as if she can read my thoughts. I often believe all three of us have this bond that allows us to read feelings or thoughts. "You will have a devoted husband who adores you because you deserve to be adored."

"I am not sure there is someone out there for me. No men have ever...I don't know, held my attention, I guess. I've never felt what you two have felt with your husbands. I am a little envious of it, sure, but if I never get it myself, so be it."

"You will have it as well. It will find you."

This is not my sister's familiar voice assuring this. It is the same voice I heard before. Not at all familiar. Yet, I trust it. I am not sure why I do, or why I want to hear what it has to say, but I do. Who could the strange voice, with its stranger promises, be?

Somehow, I know it is tied to how I wound up in my bed, that sensual, sexual feeling earlier after my shower, and most certainly to the soul-shattering orgasm I gave myself last night. Whoever—or whatever—this voice is part of all of these things.

"Something wrong Cari Bear?" Luci asks with concern.

"No, no nothing is wrong," I tell her, meaning it. "I am excited. I want to start going baby shopping! This is exciting!"

Luci lets me get dressed before I get dragged in to helping her pack up her last few things. It is a somber moment, but not sad. I am glad she is in love, married, with a baby on the way.

We promise to keep our Sunday dinners, and she calls Bessi to set up lunch to announce the baby. I hug her goodbye and tell her I love her. Back inside, I linger inside her room, recalling the laughter and tears, good and bad times we shared there.

Settling back on my favorite fluffy chair by the fire, I grab my book after pouring myself some tea. Opening the book up to where I left off last night, I am smiling as I read about sinfully sexy hookups between a monster and his mistress.

Hit with a sudden brush of heat, I sit up with a gasp. "He was here last night. He was here, and I was not alone. Was it...was it him?" No voice answers, not one in my head, the voice I heard earlier or whoever I think was here last night.

Am I crazy or is some magic going on that I cannot see?