Twelve

Moon

W e’re sharing one room. It’s freaking massive, which is wonderful. Crow and Tristan even brought in a second bed and pushed the two of them together so we could all share.

Given the size of the men I’m sharing a bed with, it still might not be big enough, but Tristan assures me they can bring in a third mattress if needed.

I’m currently sitting on one of the four extra-long sofas that they brought into the room as well. “I’ll go first,” I announce, as Cato hands me a drink, then he and Odas sit on the bed on either side of me.

“All I can think about is breeding you,” Cato suddenly growls low in my ear, making the hair on the back of my neck prickle.

Clearing my throat, I ignore his words because we need to talk…

“Warrior, do you mind if I tell everyone your story? I won’t if you–”

“I trust you and them,” Warrior says.

“Okay. Warrior was taken from Kili when he was a baby. Their mother’s best friend is a Necromancer. She revived him and uses his name carved into his heart to control him. For some reason, being close to me keeps her out of his mind. We met in the games during the last trial. After he won the games, he used one of his Elven crystals to save Daire’s sister.” I pause, looking into the eyes of the men around me, before focusing on Warrior. “We’re going to hunt her down and set her on fire before feeding her to alligators or something else equally gruesome. She’s the one who scarred my mate and made him believe he wasn’t worthy of love because of it. I want her to die slowly. Warrior doesn’t want to be a part of it. He never wants to see her face ever again.”

“Moon has promised to protect me. And I, her,” Warrior adds, and all my men make sounds of agreement.

“I can help provide the fire,” Cato snarls, his eyes reptilian. I lean over and press a kiss to his cheek.

“So sweet of you.”

“I learned that the guard who used to take care of me, Steve, is my fucking father,” Fenrick throws out there, and my head snaps to him. I stand slowly and make my way over to him…

“No fucking way… Oh, god… I see it…” My eyes grow wide as I take in his features. “Holy shit on a stick. Your dad is the guy I thought was my dad! And my dad is the guy you thought was your dad!” I shake my head, “That's just fucking nuts… I have so many questions.”

“Well, Steve kept Lust as collateral. He didn’t believe you would come back to kill the Queen if we took him too. It was either save these two and leave Lust or risk all our lives,” Silas tells me, and I resist the sudden urge to blow something up.

“Hey, Cato, baby?” I say sweetly.

“Yes?” his Dragon growls back in response. Any second now, that man is going to lose control and start fucking me right here in the middle of this room.

“Think you can spare a little fire to set the Fae Queen ablaze as well?” I bat my eyelashes at him, but the grin he sends me lets me know he’s on the same page.

“Personally, I’d like to strap them both to a table and dissect them the way the Queen used to pluck Cato’s scales.” Kili is a very dangerous man, and sometimes I forget that. Now is not one of those times.

“Don’t worry, man. I chopped my own father’s head off, so you’ll be alright,” Tristan says to Fenrick, who just shrugs.

“My mother is the reason I went most of my life without a physical connection to another living soul. I think I’ll survive her death,” Fen says, not seeming the least bit bothered. I’m a bit worried about the overall mental state of the entire lot of us.

“We need to get Lust out of there…and we need to deal with–”

“Evangela,” Kili supplies the name of Warrior’s abuser, and the sight of him flinching at the sound of her name has me growling it with so much venom that I might just start breathing fire alongside Cato.

“Evangela,” I hiss.

“We need allies if we’re going to take on the Fae Queen,” Crow says, looking between all of us, and I nod.

“Okay, new plan,” I announce. “We gather allies, and along the way, we hunt down a Necromancer.” I pause. “And maybe enlist the help of my mother. That woman has a lot of explaining to do. Chaos Goddess? Daughter of the cuckoo King?” That's when I remember the last time I tried to get answers out of her. She choked on her own blood. “Slight problem. She chokes on blood when she tries to talk to me, and her presence makes me severely ill.”

“I can fix that,” Silas says, walking over to me. “I can feel the Dragon’s desperation… I will not be able to control myself a second time. I will go to your mother and break the curse she is under,” Silas vows, and I pout.

“I don’t like when you leave,” I admit, and he inclines his head.

“I do not like leaving you, my precious Goddess, but for this, you must stay far away. Enjoy your mates’ return. I will bring you your mother. Our time will come.” Silas presses a kiss to my forehead and then transforms into his smaller snake.

“Mine!” The loud, aggressive growl is followed by me being tackled to the ground. I brace for the landing, but Cato cushions me.

“If any of you doesn’t wish to watch, you’ll want to leave now,” Odas announces, and I blush brighter than a tomato.

“I’m staying,” Crow, Arlo, Tristan, Fenrick, Warrior, and Daire say in unison, making me giggle.

“I am going to check on my sister and patrol the grounds. Maybe I’ll return before the grand finale,” Kili says with a chuckle. He squats down to press a kiss to my forehead.

Cato cages my body in with his, and as soon as Kili walks away, he starts rubbing his face all over me.

“Scent marking her? Really?” Tristan chuckles. “She’s already yours.”

“Help me with this,” Odas says to one of the others, but I can’t see what he’s doing. Cato blocks my view, but he’s also very distracting.

“Have my baby,” he grumbles, and my eyes go wide. I freeze, panicking.

“I don’t even know how Dragon babies work,” I whisper, as Cato drags his face down my body and presses it to my stomach. “I don’t think I’m ready to be a mom. I’m not ovulating…” I am, however, rambling.

“I carry the egg for you,” Cato mumbles, and I squeak.

“Egg?”

“Baby stays in the egg until Dragon fire hatches it.” Cato is more Dragon than man right now.

“Do I lay the egg?” I ask, and Cato nods his head, pressing kisses to my belly.

I think about the size of Cato’s Dragon, and panic steals my breath.

“Small egg. Like chicken,” Cato murmurs as he starts to undress me. I search the room for Odas, and when I spot him losing it in the corner, I glare at him.

Help me , I mouth at him, and he just keeps laughing. I flip him off and look at Crow for help. He looks away immediately. Nice. Really helpful.

“Can we practice making the baby and hold off on actually making one for a little longer?” I ask, and Cato nods.

“Can’t make babies here,” Cato says like I should have known that all along.

“But you…” I trail off, looking back over to Odas. “You knew, that's why you’re laughing! Ass,” I grumble.

“Nest is ready, Cato,” Odas says, pretending he didn’t hear me.

These men will be the death of my sanity.

Odas

I watch my best friend lift our mate off the floor and carry her to the bed. I arranged the blankets and pillows in a way I know he likes. His Dragon has been restless, but the second Moon arrived, I could tell he was hanging on by a thread.

When he asked her to have his baby, I nearly fell over from laughing so hard. He could impregnate her here if he wanted, but I know he wants to take her to his horde first. To show her all the things he's been collecting over the years.

I just want to be with my mate. Having an audience of seven other men isn’t a concern. They’re her Heart Bonded. They belong here just as much as Cato and I.

I’ve noticed a unique tension between Warrior and Daire since we arrived. Cato and I are close, but we aren’t that close. I love him like a brother and a best friend. I have no desire to fuck him.

Moon, however, is more than beautiful. She is the sun, and we are the planets trapped in her orbit, happy to spend our lives in her gravity.

My desire for her is stronger than anything I’ve ever felt before. I climb onto the bed, watching as Cato removes his clothing. Moon is already undressed, Cato having stripped her while she was still on the floor.

She seems entirely comfortable with us. The thought fills my chest with pride.

“You are the most beautiful woman I have ever seen, Moonlight,” I tell her before taking my shirt off and then my jeans. When Cato and I arrived, we showered and changed into clean clothes. We were only here maybe twelve hours before Moon arrived.

“Thank you, Odas,” she whispers, reaching her hand out to me. I take it, moving across the bed to get closer to her. I kneel beside her as Cato leans over her body, his knees between her spread thighs. He claims her lips in a slow kiss that none of us can seem to look away from.

“Is this supposed to–”

“Turn you on? Any time our mate is with one of her Heart Bonded, and we’re watching, yes. But Moonlight could turn us on just walking into the room,” Daire explains to Warrior, and I smirk. It’s true. Just the sight of Moon is enough to make me want her. I want her even when I cannot see her.

“You don’t have much experience, huh?” Tristan asks Warrior, but before my feisty mate can scold him, Daire shoots him a glare.

“No, he doesn’t. Is that a problem for you? He was the prisoner of a wicked woman using Kili’s love for his presumed dead brother to control him, so he didn’t have a lot of time to get his dick sucked, unlike spoiled princes,” Daire growls at Tristan, and Moon breaks her kiss with Cato.

“No fighting. Tristan is just a smart ass. No one tease Warrior about his past.”

“Stop distracting her,” Cato rumbles, and the other men chuckle.

“I’m not distracted. Promise.” Moon pulls Cato back down for more kisses.

“They’re going to fuck her together,” Daire murmurs to Warrior. I glance over and see that the Vampire is sitting side by side with the newest member of Moon’s Heart Bonded.

“How?”

“I’ll tell you what they’re doing.”

“My turn with our mate, Cato,” I say to my best friend, needing to get my hands on her before I go insane. Cato grumbles, but he moves to allow me to take his place. He lies beside her, keeping his hands on her body. I don’t mind. It soothes him.

Rather than moving between her legs, I lie on her other side. Cato looks over her and catches my eye, smiling. He doesn’t need to tell me what he's thinking.

As one, we lean in. I kiss one side of her neck, and he kisses the other before we make our way down to her chest. Cupping one breast, I caress the skin, circling her nipple. Moon’s breathing picks up, and she pushes her hand into my hair. I press kisses to her skin, then drag the tip of my tongue lightly over her nipple.

“Oh,” Moon whispers as her back arches. She’s trying to push her breast further into my mouth, so I pull back, making her huff. “I could turn you into a goose, you know?” Moon threatens.

Cato chuckles, and Moon hisses. Cato bit her nipple and is now soothing the pain with the flat of his tongue. He sucks it between his lips, and I lightly lick her other one.

“You’re driving me mad,” Moon moans, but neither Cato nor I move any faster. We’re going to take our time teasing her, turning her on… I want her gushing for us.

“What are they doing?” Warrior asks Daire, and Moon leans up so she can look at her other men. They’re all seated on the couches, which make a U shape that faces the bed. They have the perfect view of what we’re doing to our mate, and she can see them.

I wonder if she notices the way Daire leans into Warrior.

I wonder if Warrior notices it too.

“Teasing her. Foreplay. They want her wet and desperate. Begging for their cocks,” Daire explains.

“You like him?” Moon whispers so quietly that only Cato and I can hear her. I frown for a second until I realize she’s speaking to the Vampire with superior hearing.

Daire inclines his head, and Moon smiles.

“Warrior, do you want Daire to show you something new?” Moon asks gently. Cato and I release her nipples and wait. This feels like an important moment, and sucking her titties feels like something we should pause.

I watch Moon while she watches Warrior. Gods, she is so beautiful.