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Kindle Notes & Highlights
by
K. Loraine
Read between
February 26 - February 27, 2023
Don’t get too close, it’s dark inside, it’s where my demons hide.
No one can know I’m alive. Not even my family.” “What are you running from?” Her expression went grave. “My husband.”
When Asher returned, he was barefoot, wearing a pair of low-slung black sweats and pulling on a Henley in the same shade. His face was scrubbed clean, revealing sharp cheekbones and a jaw of golden stubble. Jesus Forking Christ, he was handsome in person.
“So you asked your husband to . . . fork you. I can just imagine it. ‘Oh, fork me. Fork me harder, Daddy.’”
Then I remembered his number saved in my phone. Me: Are you alive? Me: I’m very drunk and likely about to be sick all over your home. Me: Have I mentioned I get quite nosy when I’ve been drinking? What kind of secrets do you have in this house? Me: Do you have a sex dungeon? Me: Maybe I’ll wait there.
“So you do have a sex candle. But how sad that you’re the only participant.” Just like you are destined to be.
“Careful. My kind works in specifics. You don’t want to give me carte blanche because I will take it, ma petite monstre.”
“You heard me. Give up your body. Your womb. Your chance at producing offspring. And in exchange, I’ll make you into the person you wish to be. The woman no one can find.”
“Don’t cry for him, my dirty little bitch. Cry out for me. I’m the only one who can save you right now.”
“Now”—I smacked her arse—“present for me.” Her brow furrowed. “Present? Like a dog?” “No, like my sweet little bitch.” Oh, but she liked when I called her that. Already the furrow was smoothed out, and her eyes were glazed with lust. Roslyn Blackthorne absolutely loved being bad. “Hands and knees. Now.”
“Once we do this, you’re mine. You understand? My good little slut. You’ll never be rid of the reminders I leave behind.”
shoving in until I pushed against the end of her, pulsing and filling the womb I claimed as my prize. I rode out my climax as my new toy screamed hers, all the while knowing exactly what I was taking. She would be barren, and I would have her . . . always. That last part she didn’t know about, but she would. Soon.
“Rude. Look, I don’t want a fight. You might have little pufflings at home. You look like a good daddy bird. Don’t throw it all away.”
“We’re closed, Asher.” “Door was open.” “The back door.” “You like it when I use your back door.” His cheeks went pink, and I smirked. “So it is you, Remington.” “Remi. No one calls me Remington. You know that.”
“Would you like to come in? I don’t have anything to offer you, but it seems rude to leave you standing in my stairwell like a lost puppy.” My wolf gave a little snarl at the comparison. We were so not a puppy, but if she wanted to rub my belly, I’d let her call me her good boy. “Oh, so it’s yours now?” “I suppose we share custody.” “Do you like to share, Nadia?”
“There are two of you?” The way she said it told me she was appreciative rather than frustrated with the idea. “Allow me to introduce myself.” I took her hand, dipping down to brush a kiss on the backs of her fingers. “I’m Remington Mercer. You can call me Remi. And the grumpy asshole you met earlier is my brother Ben—Bentley. Don’t worry, he’s mostly bark. Just a little bite.” “And you?” “Oh, baby girl, I’m all bite.”
I was chopping wood. Off-limits: Shirtless? Me: I get sweaty. And I was in a hurry. You know, trying to save your life. Off-limits: Do you charge admission? Me: What? Off-limits: To the gun show? I laughed, shaking my head at her flirty message. I had to admit, I was eating it up too. I never got to talk with anyone like this. Least of all women. I couldn’t resist a flirt of my own.
Why? You want to come? Her cheeks burned pink, and then I realized what I’d said and quickly added: Me: Watch me chop wood? Off-limits: What’s the going rate? I don’t have much money. My boss is a cheapskate. Me: I hear he’s a real hero. Took you in. Offered you a job. A place to stay. Even played firefighter. She batted her eyelashes and took a step closer, then glanced down at the phone. Off-limits: A shirtless firefighter who moonlights as a lumberjack. My teenage self would never believe her fantasy has mostly come to life.
Ben was on his feet and tugging me into his arms before I could push him away. “Don’t cry, baby. I love th-that you c-cooked for me.”
“My own s-stupid ones.” He shook his head. “I sh-should have known I w-wouldn’t be able to r-resist you.”
She was hot as fuck when she was angry. But Alexi stood, all six-foot-six of him, and snarled as he lashed out, his open palm connecting with her face before I could get between them. He hit her so hard that she dropped to the floor, and everyone in the space seemed to stop breathing for a moment.
“Ben, you wicked wolf. Eat. Me.” She squirmed in my hold, bringing her cunt even closer. “Please?” I laughed at the frustration tinging her words. She even managed to make her dirty demand sound prim and proper. I had the sudden urge to see what it would be like if I could make her truly lose that last shred of her control.
Why was it men could sow their wild oats and be applauded for it, but single women were expected to be chaste little virgins? No thank you. That was the patriarchy trying to keep us from learning about the power of good sex and demanding it for ourselves.
“She’s important to me too.” Ben’s expression softened, going thoughtful as a truth I was only just coming to understand poured out of me. “I’ve never fucking felt this . . . this pull. I want to be around her all the time. To touch her, to be able to look at her, make sure she’s safe.” Ever since she set foot in the bar and I caught her scent, my thoughts had been consumed by her. I took every opportunity to be in her orbit. But until this moment, I hadn’t realized the truth. It wasn’t a crush or something as insignificant as attraction. It was deeper than that, primal. She was in my blood. I
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“It’s the s-same for me. I w-want her all the time.” “Ben . . . I think she’s our—” He finished my sentence. “Mate.”
“This isn’t any woman, though. She’s our woman.” I shook my head at the novelty of that. “Fuck. We found our mate.” “Yeah.” “Now I see why you’ve been such a grumpy fucker. I swear to God, I thought you were going to tear off Alexi’s arms and beat him to death when we saw what he did to Nadia.”
“Sh-she’s m-mine,” Ben growled, his eyes narrowing in warning, and God help me, my belly fluttered. The intensity in his voice gripped me by the heart and squeezed. He’d laid claim to me in front of them, and I liked it but feared the consequences at the same time.
Meanwhile, my heart did somersaults. “Yours?” I whispered. Ben’s expression softened as he looked back at me, color tingeing his cheeks. He opened his mouth, closed it, and let out a soft sigh before shutting his eyes and steeling himself. Then those blues were locked on mine, fierce and determined as he said, loud and clear, “Mine.” “That’s our cue, lads,” Tom said, slapping the others on the shoulder. “But you . . . you’re cross with me.”
“You can’t be t-trusted to take care of yourself, so I’ll d-do it for you. P-pack your shit. Y-you’re coming home with me.” Eyes swimming with tears, she blinked a few times. “I . . . I just. I’m sorry.”
I pulled her into my arms, holding her tight, resting my cheek on the top of her head. “I d-don’t know w-what I’d d-do if s-something . . . h-happened to y-you.” My words were a mess, my stutter the worst it’s been in years as I battled through the emotion clogging my throat. “I w-was s-so s-scared, sugar.”
But so long as I kept her mindless with pleasure, she’d never see the trap until it was too late. With as possessive as she made me, perhaps I should be more worried about being caught in her snare. She wasn’t mine to keep, but what would happen if I could never let her go?
Everything suddenly went from playful to a pinpoint focus on her as I stared into eyes I hadn’t realized were such a startling gold color. “I would. I’d do anything to protect you.” Her smile slipped, but it didn’t feel like I’d upset her. More like the opposite. I’d taken her by surprise, and she was touched. Or at least I was hoping that’s what the soft mist of tears in her eyes meant. Aw hell, Remington. Now you’re making her cry. Abort. Abort. Get the fuck out of here before you fuck it all up.
“Do you need a daddy, baby girl?” She bit her lower lip, considering. “Perhaps . . . or, is there a more wolfy honorific I should be using?” “Alpha,” Ben growled almost instantly. Fuuuck. The thought of her calling me that did things to me. She gave us each a soft smile. “Yes, Alpha.” We growled in unison, my dick jerking to painful attention. In true horny teenager fashion, I discreetly grabbed a pillow and settled it on my lap.
“For starters, mates tell each other the truth. How can we possibly be mates while we’re exchanging falsehoods left, right, and center?” “We’d tell you if we could.” Remi’s voice caught me off guard. I thought I was alone in the house.
The realization was a punch to the stomach. Instead of closing the distance between us, I reached down and grabbed the remote, blindly turning on the TV and staring at the screen. My heart raced in my chest, the truth hanging between us even as the moment was lost like a balloon floating away. I could see it. It was right there and forever out of reach.
“Wait. Asher, please don’t leave.” Fuck me, her plea hit me hard. “I shouldn’t be here. This is . . . between you three.” “But that’s just it. You should be here, Asher. With me. I can’t say yes to you”—her eyes darted between Ben and Remi—“not unless you understand that I need him too. I can’t explain it, and I didn’t expect it, but I know it deep in the heart of me. I need all of you.”
“Creature number . . . oh.” Her cheeks went pink. “I might hold you to that, Remington.” “That’s right, baby girl. Practice saying my name. You’ll be screaming it once I get this fixed.”
I never said I was the hero of this story. I was one hundred percent the villain, and this time, I’d win.
She melted against me. “Stop being sorry and tell me what’s going on in that head of yours. We haven’t really spoken since . . . everything. Do you even still want me?” “D-do I w-want you? Are you k-kidding?” I spun her around so I could look into her eyes. “I w-want you so bad my chest hurts.” “Even if you have to share me?” She didn’t mention Asher’s name, but I knew that was who she was referring to. “However I c-can have you.”
“Well, the b-bar was p-pretty low after that d-dinner.” “Hey!” She pinched my ribs. “You said you loved my dinner.” I kissed her. “I did. I love e-everything about you.”
“The alcohol gets rid of the bacteria.” Remi’s scent enveloped me as he slipped a hand around my waist. “You have to shake it until it’s foamy first, baby girl.” Asher’s skin turned a sickly shade of green. “Excuse me. I’m going to go die now.” He was up and out of his chair so fast he almost knocked it over. My heart sank. “Bollocks, I thought I had it that time.”
“Hands and knees,” I ordered. “Present for your Alpha.”
Her little intake of breath said it all. I’d won, and she liked it. “Yes, my lord.”
