One Four All (7 page)

Kepp reached for a small, pert breast, cupping it with his palm. He lifted his head from the soft bed and closed his mouth around her nipple while his other hand sought her clit. Beneath his fingers, he found Red’s cock pressed against her opening, and he couldn’t resist. He slid a finger into her just as Red thrust inside. Fuck, she was soft as silk, hot, wet, and tight. The woman sucked in a breath at the sudden intrusion but then her lips were taken by Wat, who had moved to lie on his side behind Kepp.

“You are cream, woman,” Kepp purred, lifting his mouth from her puckered nipple, “pure cream.” He pulled his finger out of her and wove his way back to her clit, rubbing small circles around the full bud. He listened to the soft mewing noises she made, the noises Wat muffled with his thorough kisses. Her thighs moved rhythmically against his as Red pumped into her. Fuck, he wanted a turn with her. His cock had never felt so bloody big. He ached to bury himself in this woman’s sweet heat. The warm scents of spice and musk and cum swirled around them like a cloud of enticing, delicious pheromones. The smell alone had him strung tight with lust, ready to burst.

“I can’t wait, man, I have to come,” groaned Red. “She’s so fucking tight, God in heaven. Make her come, Captain. Now.” Kepp felt Red’s thrusts deepen, forcing the woman’s body forward, closer to his own stomach and chest.

Kepp’s fingers circled her clit in a sure, steady rhythm. The thumb and forefinger of his other hand tugged on one nipple while his tongue played with the other. Within seconds, her tiny muscle contractions began, and Kepp slid just the tip of his finger inside her again, eager to share the satin of her body with his friend. In the darkness, he looked up and could just barely make out the shape of Wat’s hands threaded in her hair, holding her still for his kisses as he swallowed her screams of pleasure.

Just like the first time, for a few moments, no one had the strength to move. Kepp felt the woman’s arms begin to shake.

“Let me have her,” he said. Red withdrew from her in a gentle motion, and Kepp drew her to him. She collapsed onto his chest. Her head lay against his, her glorious hair splayed about his shoulders. He caressed her back and her buttocks with his fingertips. A fine sheen of sweat covered her velvety skin, and Kepp couldn’t resist. He licked her, wanting to taste the salt of her, inhaling the sweet musk of her body.

The woman’s legs rested across his thighs, his cock pressed against her belly. Although he tried to restrain himself, he gave in to his desire and pulled her higher, sliding his erect penis through her wet warmth. He was surprised and pleased when her hips moved against him in response. Her teeth nibbled a delicate path along the sensitive tendons of his neck, driving him wild. His friends had stretched out on either side of them, the heat of their bodies washing over him, and he was aware of their presence. But as he felt her tongue taste his skin, the same way he’d tasted her, it seemed to Kepp as if only two people occupied the bed. He was one, the woman who lay sprawled atop him, the other. Now was not the time to hold back. Despite her body’s initial resistance to the size of his erection, he entered her in one smooth motion. He’d waited his turn. He hadn’t been the first, but, by God, he would be the last.

His deep thrust had her moaning with pleasure. Kepp groaned in response. He wanted nothing more than to flip the woman over so he could spread her wide and pound into her, but he held back. Wat and Red had already taken her, and he worried about the bruises on her back. No way in hell would he do anything to hurt her.

“Kiss me, Tanner,” she whispered in his ear. “Kiss me as if we are the only two people in this world.”

So she feels the same thing I do.

Her soft, sweet lips brushed along his jaw as her hips met his, thrust for thrust.

“Kiss me,” she sighed, her breath warm against his mouth.

Kepp’s hands slid along her rib cage, and he lifted her with gentle pressure so that her breasts with their erect nipples swept over his chest. He brought her mouth to his, biting her love-swollen lower lip, forcing her to open for him. His tongue plundered her warm, willing mouth, tasting her sweetness. He swallowed her ragged cries before they could escape those luscious lips.

Kepp’s focus was all on the woman. Nevertheless, he felt Wat step between their legs, and he knew his friend wanted to take her again, to share her, to fuck that succulent ass of hers. Kepp tore his mouth from hers.

“No,” he growled at the man. “Not now. She’s mine.”

“My finger, at least,” Wat begged. “Give me that much.”

The woman in his arms whimpered, and he thrust up, deep and hard, as if to emphasize his ownership of her body, at least for now. But Wat would add to her pleasure and, above all, Kepp wanted this woman pleasured.

“Anything but a finger, and I cut it off.”

“Yes, captain.”

Kepp heard Wat suck on his finger, and in another moment, he felt the woman jerk in his arms as she impaled herself even deeper on his cock. She gave a little squeak.
Good lord in
heaven
.
Holy fuck
. Kepp half expected the top of his head to explode. Maybe both heads. Her body gloved him like tight, hot, wet satin. He could feel the pressure of Wat’s finger pressed against his cock, and if his ears were still working right, it sounded like both his friends were jacking off. He knew they’d come on her back or her ass. The thought didn’t bother him. On the contrary, it turned him on even more. He understood their aching need for the woman he held in his arms as she rocked her hips up and down, riding him like she rode a horse, a big fucking horse.

The pace of her breathing increased. Hearing her moan once more, Kepp lifted her higher, his hands under her breasts, his thumbs rasping over her sensitive nipples. He took her mouth again to stifle his roar as he pressed up, hips rising high, burying himself inside her. As his orgasm began, he could feel her inner muscles tremble and contract around him. Her hands gripped his hair, her tongue sucked his, and she came in complete silence, milking him for all she was worth, milking him dry. Kepp had never come so hard in his entire life. As she fell over him, he heard Wat and Red grunt with their nearly simultaneous release, and the two collapsed back onto the bed, one on either side of him.

When his brain began to function again, Kepp pulled out of her, taking care to keep his movements slow and easy. He knew she might be sore, and the last thing he wanted to do was add to that. Her body released him with reluctance, and he heard the tiniest whimper escape her throat as he withdrew. Kepp scooted up in the bed, carrying the woman with him. Red and Wat joined them, and the four slid under the quilts, chilly now that the sweat began to cool on their bodies.

The woman came to him, curling her body against his without hesitation as though she belonged there. Kepp pressed her head into the hollow of his shoulder, caressing her thick hair with a gentle hand. Wat lay on his back on one side of Kepp, his arms folded behind his head, while Red stretched his long body on the other side of the woman, draping himself over her like a blanket.

When their breathing had resumed its normal rhythm and their hearts had slowed to steady thumps, Kepp lifted his head and cupped the woman’s chin with his hand. He brought her mouth to his. With a motion that was both lazy and enticing, he rubbed his lips over hers and pressed the tip of his tongue against her teeth. He lay back down with a satisfied sigh. Now, he decided, was the perfect time to begin.

“Tell me, princess, how did Regnan steal you, and why does the son of a bitch call you his wife?”

* * * *

Lira lay against the man, sated, her mind drifting, thoughts hazy. The pleasure pavilions had not prepared her for the raw intensity of the real thing, the bonding with three chosen consorts. Every nerve ending in her body still tingled with excitement and arousal. It was as if these men had turned on a switch inside her, one that could only be turned off by death.

For the first time in two months, she felt safe and protected, and her heart filled with hope. These men would die to keep her from Regnan and Speth and men of their ilk. She felt it in her bones. They were men of courage and honor. She opened her mouth to ask them how they came to be assigned to protect her when Tanner Kepp, the one who seemed to be the master of them all, spoke up. His words made it clear he knew who she was, so it followed that all three men must know the truth. If they knew and they’d taken her with full knowledge of her identity in their minds and hearts, then that meant they would accept their roles. Whether they realized it or not, they had become her official, legal consorts according to the constitution of Zhinshu.

Lira lifted herself on an elbow and rested her head on her hand. Her other hand played with the hairs on Tanner’s broad chest, smiling at the goose bumps that rose beneath her fingertips. She reached across his body to touch Wat and then swung her arm behind her to include Red.

“I am not Regnan’s wife.” She tried to keep some of the venom from her voice. “I am his prisoner. He forced me here, tried to make me accept him as consort. He wanted a child so he could control both nations. Only a child conceived with consent of the heir to the throne can rule.” She willed herself to be calm. “Regnan tells me it must be this way so Battarq can rule both nations. He claims he acts in the general’s interests.”

“But now, because of what we’ve done, Regnan can never have me, and Speth can no longer beat me to try to force me into submission. I am bonded tonight, to the three of you. My body is my pledge. I belong to all of you.” Lira raised a hand. “It is the way of my people.”

All three men bolted upright.

“I tried to tell you, Captain,” said Red with a snort. “If the heir to the throne of Zhinshu willingly and deliberately takes three men to bed with her at once, they become her legal consorts.”

“And you didn’t think to stop us?” Tanner’s voice sounded incredulous. He reached across her to give Red a shove. “We’re loyal soldiers of Kuhbak.”

Red gave another snort in response and fell back onto the bed.

From the other side of the captain, Wat spoke up.

“Guess we’re married loyal soldiers of Kuhbak.” He laughed. “Hold me, Captain.”

“Damn it, woman,” Tanner grabbed her by the shoulders and gave her a shake, “you tricked us.”

Lira winced at the pain she felt from her injuries, but mostly from his words. The man seemed to realize what he was doing because he released her.

“I did not trick you,” she countered, anger in her voice. “And you, Captain Kepp, are not thinking clearly. As my consorts, you are under my protection. Speth and these other men,” she swept an arm towards the door, “they are already dead. They are dead and buried. My Zealots will see to that, but you three will be spared. Even as loyal soldiers of Kuhbak, you will be honored above all others. I want to end this war of attrition. The three of you can help me do that.”

“Besides,” she softened her tone, “by Red’s own admission, he was aware of the law. He could have spoken up. And it did not seem to me as if any one of you was an unwilling participant. I showed you just how much I trust you. I would never have stepped through that doorway if I had any doubts about your honor.”

Tanner rubbed his jaw.

“You’re right about one thing, you didn’t force us.”

“Oh, I don’t know,” said Red, his hand vanishing beneath the quilts. “I’m feelin’ a might coerced right now. I think it’s the way you smell.” He turned Lira around and kissed her. “Like sex on a stick. You up for another go-round, wife?”

Despite her anger, Lira found it impossible to stifle her grin.

“Get off her, Red.” Tanner shoved him aside, his irritation obvious. “We need to talk about this before we get in any deeper.”

“I don’t know,” said Wat, “I can get it in pretty deep. I’m up for more if you are.”

“This isn’t a joke.”

From the way his muscles tensed behind her, Lira knew she’d pushed the captain too far. She needed to diffuse the situation.

“Captain Kepp, please, I beg you to listen to me for a moment.” She reached for him, scooting up on her knees so that she knelt by his side. “I was brought here against my will. For two months, I’ve searched for a way out or for a way to contact my people. Until you three arrived yesterday, I had no hope of escape. When you,” she brushed the captain’s shoulder with her fingertips, “knocked Mr. Speth through my door, I knew you were the ones I had prayed for. The possibility was plain to see. As plain as the nose on your face.”