1 – Elvana

Are you enjoying your bath, princeshë?

I surge upright as Arben’s voice slides through our bondlink like warm honey. A wave of watery bubbles launches over the lip of the tub, but I barely notice as I open my mind to my mate. It’s been nearly two days since he last checked in, and the relief makes me tremble. Which is crazy, I know. He’s mjeku i vdekjes – The Death Doctor. He’s not just incredibly skilled at hunting down our enemies, but he’s also the guardian of our fated pack, which practically makes him a mythical being.

But every time he insists on going dark, as he calls it, I can feel a little part of myself shut down. I’m consumed by my need for him at the best of times, but when I’m denied our link, something else rushes in to fill the void. My human brain wants to write it off as separation anxiety, but my wolf says otherwise. There’s a churning darkness inside me that tastes like hunger, but has little to do with my stomach, and everything to do with ending every last threat to my pack. Because Arben will never truly come home – never truly be ours – until he knows we’re safe.

And that’s not an easy thing to guarantee when it comes to the Starling-Ferrier Pack.

But my wolf is purring now, and I know Arben can hear the smile in my voice as I murmur aloud, “I’ll enjoy it a lot more if you come join me, Alpha.”

I wish I could, princeshë. His need is a frustrated growl, and I bite back my own disappointment. I’m still an hour away. And even then, I’m not in a state to touch you.

He means he’s a bloody mess, which I’ve told him repeatedly isn’t an issue. As far as I’m concerned, every drop of our enemies’ blood should be celebrated by the whole pack. In fact, I’m more than ready to get a little grit under my claws again.

“I want to help more, Arben. You shouldn’t be doing so much on your own.”

It’s not the first time I’ve told him this, and I know the whole pack agrees with me. But until he’s put the last of the Dark River Pack in the ground, Arben won’t rest. And as much as he respects our abilities, he’s used to working alone. It’s beyond frustrating, but the last thing I want to do is add to his burdens.

Will you help me pass the time, princeshë? The road between us is long and dark tonight.

The weariness in his voice pulls at my heart, so I swallow down my protests. He’s reached out to me, and I need to give him whatever he needs.

Anything, Arben.

He growls again, this time in satisfaction. Then kiss our perfect princi for me. I need to feel your pleasure through the bond.

I raise my eyebrows at Kelly, who’s sitting at the other end of the giant tub. Given the grin on his face, Arben must have opened the bondlink to include him in his request. Not that he needed to.

Kelly and I are always on the same wavelength. Which means he’s just as happy as I am to give our mate the pleasure boost he needs. Not that I’m above a little teasing.

I thought you wanted me to serenade you with some ballads, my love. I was just thinking through my road trip playlist.

Arben purrs, the link throbbing with dark promise. Oh, I plan to hear you sing, princeshë. Our princi knows all your sweet spots, after all.

As if to prove Arben right, Kelly takes my foot between his hands and starts pressing his thumbs into my sole. He brushes over the old bite scar, and even though he knows how it got there, his touch doesn’t waver. His focus is completely on my pleasure, and my moans echo around the bathroom. And straight down the bond, because Arben gives a throaty chuckle. Music to my ears, princeshë.

I just roll my eyes and give myself over to Kelly’s clever fingers. He gives both of my feet the royal treatment, massaging out the strain from a long day of endurance training. He then works his way up my legs, kissing and sucking every inch of skin until Arben sighs down the bond. Kelly might be new to the female form, but he’s quickly become an expert at making me fall apart. Doesn’t matter we’re both omegas and there’s not an alpha knot between us, Kelly can still work me into a panting lather. But as his hands slide over my thighs and his body rises over mine in the bath, golden and gleaming, he cocks his head. “You going to give me my orders, Alpha, or am I improvising here?”

I snigger at his pure brat tone. Kelly was raised the heir to a billion-dollar fortune, and it shows in moments like this. But he knows Arben is ultimately in charge of our pleasure. Our alpha never demands control – and there are still plenty of orgasms to be had in his absence – but when Arben’s part of the picture, we all willingly surrender to his direction.

Can you see yourself in the mirror, princeshë?

I giggle, because Rory sweet-talked Arben into putting a new mirror in the cabin bathroom, replacing the one with the bubbled glass and tarnished frame. It’s understandable, since Rory is as pretty as they come, and loves nothing more than to fuck to his own reflection. But Arben is giant sized, and the mirror hangs so high on the wall, I can barely see it from where I’m sitting. It’s a bit of a stretch.

Then up on your knees, my love.

I pout and bury myself deeper under the bubbles. But it’s cold out there.

Oh, I plan to warm you up. The promise in his voice makes me shiver and squirm to the edge of the tub, slowly rising to my knees. My nipples instantly tighten in the cool air, my fingers curling as I grip the edge.

Join her, Princi, and tell me how you look.

There’s a swish of water behind me, and then Kelly’s perfect face appears over my shoulder in the mirror. He looks like a dark fae prince with his gleaming eyes and pale skin, his jaw and cheekbones as sharp as blades. I watch, my heart in my throat, as his lips slide up one of my shoulders and then pin my earlobe between his teeth. His grin sends a bolt of lust through me. “Hello, Angel.”

“Hi, Sunshine,” I whisper, my head falling back to rest against his neck. I can still see us through slitted eyes, and like this we could be a half-formed sculpture. Our skin looks like damp clay, and our hair – his tawny gold, while mine is more silver – lies in dark rivers down our shoulders. Together, in the flickering candlelight, it’s hard to say where he ends and I begin. She is me and I am her.

The words resonate through our bond. Because Kelly and I don’t just look alike. We are two halves of the same soul.

Then why are you not joined in every way?

I hum as Kelly’s hands slide up my hips, feathering across my ribs before they settle over my breasts. He kneads them like I really am made from clay, his long fingers rolling and stretching my nipples. And then I feel the graze of something cold and sharp, two perfect claws glinting in the mirror.

I whine, my wolf on the rise. If Kelly shares my soul, our wolves share one mind. I feel it now, their connection humming in my blood.

Do you know how much my wolf loves you, Angel?” Kelly whispers, his teeth sharp on my ear. “Every single moment of every single day, he’s thinking about you.” His hands flex, his palms cupping my breasts while those claws circle my nipples. “He’s obsessed with you. Can’t stop putting pictures in my head about everything he wants to do to you.”

I moan, my hands slipping from the bath edge to cup his hips and pull him tight. His cock is a ridge of soapy muscle, grinding against my ass cheeks in a perfect tease. “Same here.” I’m almost panting as I press back against him. “Your wolf is the star of all the furry porn in my head.”

We both giggle, while our wolves pace impatiently under our skin. They were running under the moon only a couple of hours ago, but talk about separation anxiety. They’re like a couple of horny teenagers, constantly whining to be let out so they can go meet up in the bushes.

But for now, this moment is ours, and I admire my man-wolf in the mirror. What Kelly’s doing with his claws is even more controlled than a half-shift and isn’t just sexy as hell, but also a sign of how far he’s come. This is man and wolf in perfect harmony, and I feel a burst of pride, even as I moan at the way his claws play me. Winding me up so tight, Arben has to remind us to move things along.

Kelly retracts his claws so he can drop his hands between my thighs, opening me up from both sides. He doesn’t tease me now, his fingers sliding through my folds to my clit, while the swollen head of his cock is notched between my lips. Kelly might be an omega, but his dick is as masculine as they come, the stretch as he works inside enough to rip a moan from my throat. My hips dance, caught between his fingers on my slippery nub and that thick invasion from behind. But when he wraps his other arm across my chest, his lips pressed to my brow, we slip into our perfect rhythm, bodies so close I can almost feel his wolf’s fur brushing my skin.

Candlelight flickers on the bathroom walls as he rocks me against the tub. We’re barely an outline now, the mirror dissolving in the heat of our needy pants. Kelly peppers kisses across my neck and shoulders, filthy promises grunted into my ear as he licks my bond marks. I’m so far gone, it takes me a moment to hear the sounds Arben is making through the bond. “Are you touching yourself, Alpha?”

Instead of answering, he flashes a picture into my mind. My mouth drops open, because it’s even hotter than the furry porn on constant replay. Arben is standing in a dark glade, completely naked from his last shift, head thrown back and hand working his shaft as he rides our pleasure. Kelly groans, Clearly getting the same visual, his hips pounding harder as he pinches my clit. I’m so close, all it takes is the sight of our alpha’s release tearing from his body for me to tip over the edge. Kelly’s cry joins Arben’s roar, his hot cum flooding my pulsing womb as we both collapse against the side of the tub.

Bliss. There’s no other word for the feeling of my mates inside me, buried deep in both my body and my mind. I cling to our bondlink as Kelly eases me around, my legs folded at his hips, and our chests mashed together so I can breathe him in. Now that we’re bonded, his scent is both sharper and fuller, because I can taste all of his mates on his skin. Lightning for Rory, sunlight for Cam, and gun oil for Link. But the one I’m missing most is that wisp of smoky leather… “Arben? Are you nearby?”

Not nearly close enough, he tells us through the bond and I feel Kelly sag against me, our disappointment palpable in the air. Look after each other, and know that I long to be there with you more than my next breath.

I know it’s true. Arben’s joy when he’s with us is the best feeling in the world. But right now that’s bittersweet. Because as satisfying as it is to share our pleasure with him, my needy soul craves more. What I really want is his company. To see him, and touch him, and know, in my bones, that he’s here to stay.

And when his presence fades from our bond, stretched thin both by distance and his need to keep us safe from his deadly pursuits, I shiver.