Paired Pursuit (9 page)

“Twins,” Gareth mused. “Funny how nature has a mind of its own. The scientists initially tried to breed
us
in litters. More bang for their buck.”

“I bet that made you feel real good, like a human instead of an animal.”

Gareth laughed. Actually
laughed
. “I like you, Patrice.”

“Yep, well, I'll see if I like you after I scarf down one of your muffins.” But she smiled.

Finn breathed out in relief. Gareth could be more than touchy when it came to the topic of how Twins had been created. The scientists who'd created them hadn't thought twice about screwing with DNA, essentially creating superhumans who were physically superior to normal people. Those scientists tended to totally disregard any emotions the Twins expressed, viewing them as born soldiers who were bred to take commands with nothing more than stoic acceptance.

That attitude was mostly over. Mostly. Vestiges of it persisted, with the Twins still tightly controlled in some areas.

A smell of warm muffins filled the house as Gareth laid them out on the kitchen table. Finn's mouth watered. They hadn't eaten much last night since they'd been too busy searching for Mari. Instinctively, he turned to seek her, looking through the small kitchen-diner door toward the steps.

“Maybe we should wake her,”
Gareth sent.

“No, I think that's too much, too soon. She wanted space
.
”

“Don't tell me you're getting cold feet.”

“I don't want her to bolt
.
”
Finn met Gareth's eyes in silent warning. “
We need to handle this right.”

His brother sat, albeit reluctantly, and tucked into a muffin studded with dried fruit. Patrice flicked a gaze toward Tank and chose a seeded one.

“Take one for the dog too,” Finn said, and she cast him a grateful gaze, biting into her chosen muffin immediately.

“Good call, otherwise she would have shorted herself again
.
”
Gareth's comment was tacit apology, one Finn accepted with a slight nod. Finn looked over at his brother as he ate, and caught the instant his Twin stiffened, head coming up like a panther scenting prey.

Finn followed his gaze and saw Mari standing uncertainly on the stairs. Clad in a thin nightgown, barefoot and with tousled hair, she looked like a sleepy angel. His cock immediately twitched to life.

“Now who's being too hasty?”

Finn ignored his brother, smiling at Mari. “Come down and have a muffin with us, sweet girl.”

“I—I should get dressed.”

“Eat first. Would you like a blueberry or a raisin muffin?”

Mari placed her foot on the next step, as if drawn toward them by a magnet. “There's blueberries in that muffin?”

“Dehydrated, maybe, but it tastes like sheer heaven,” Patrice said through a mouthful. She patted the chair beside her and that seemed to be all the remaining impetus Mari needed to come forward.

Finn slid her a blueberry muffin and tried not to stare as she nibbled its edges, closing her eyes in bliss. For a few minutes, everybody concentrated solely on eating. A decent breakfast, something he had taken for granted pre-Invasion, was now a luxury. Gone were the days of toast, bacon, sausages and other standard breakfast fare. You ate what you had on hand, or you went hungry.

Occasionally, a looter would uncover a bottle of maple syrup and trade it to the Compound. Then they would cook French toast, a rare treat these days. Finn's gaze went back to Mari, who was taking the last bite of her muffin with evident satisfaction. She closed her eyes for a few moments, giving him—and Gareth—the opportunity to blatantly stare their fill.

Her red nightgown was modest, covering her to the neck, mid-arm and past the knees. The material, however, was thin, affording them a glimpse of her nipples pressed against the fabric. She was naturally curvy, although she could certainly stand to eat a few more solid meals.

Turnips
, Finn thought in disgust, and quickly averted his gaze when Mari opened her eyes. She squirmed, dividing a curious look between him and Gareth.

“She totally caught us staring,”
his brother sent.
“She's blushing.”

“Guess we're not too slick.”

“No, but I hope
she
is.”

Finn hid a grin, then sobered as Patrice stood. She reached for a cane that hung on a peg behind her chair, leaning on it as she walked toward the Rottweiler. Finn was willing to bet that the cane had a blade hidden inside—there was a subtly placed lever on the side that probably triggered a concealed knife.

Bending to feed the dog his muffin, Patrice straightened and regarded the Twins for a moment. “Would you mind housesitting for an hour? I haven't been out of here since my last lodger. Didn't want to leave this place unattended.”

“When did your last lodger leave?” Mari sounded horrified.

“Oh, last week. I only take trustworthy-looking people on, which is why I called out to you when I saw you walking past.” Patrice clipped a leash to Tank's collar as the dog finished sniffing around for the last crumbs. “I have a friend who lives a few streets over and I stockpile food, so I'm never in any need. But it's nice to get out and about sometimes.”

“We don't at all mind sticking around,” Gareth said. To his credit, he didn't even glance at Mari, but Patrice's face wrinkled in amusement all the same.

“Have fun,” she said. “Thanks for the muffins.”

The door closed behind her, leaving an expectant silence. Across the table from them, Mari moistened her lips, carefully keeping her eyes on the table. “I should get dressed.”

“We pushed you a little hard last night, baby. Do you need us to slow down?”

Gareth
was being diplomatic for once? Finn nearly goggled at his brother.
“You're really falling for her.”

“Double penetration the second time we had sex
was
moving kind of fast. Even I can admit that. Although it was glorious.”

“I don't know what I need…not from a relationship, I mean. I thought I had my life figured out, but…”

“Then you ran into us,” Finn supplied. “Now what?”

She raised her chin to meet his gaze, her dark brown eyes apprehensive. “I need to tell you something. The man you're looking for, Jorge Aquino, is—was—my father.”

Finn sat up straighter, pleased she'd come clean with them. He hadn't been looking forward to telling her they'd run her name through their databases, prying into her background.

“Yeah, we found that out,” Gareth said. “Explains why you were pretty shifty when we mentioned our mission. Why didn't you tell us Dr. Aquino was your father?”

“The device could be valuable,” she said, looking down. “I…was hoping it would bring me enough money to live on until I found a suitable job. I'm not cut out for scavenging. Since I couldn't make the rent in Flagstaff any longer, coming here was my last resort.”

Finn and Gareth stayed silent, waiting her out. Both of them sensed she had more to say, and neither wanted to give her an easy out. After a solid minute of silence, she placed her hands on the table, tapping her fingers lightly, anxiously. She opened her mouth, closed it, then finally spoke.

“I think searching for Dad's device might involve leaving the City walls.”

“Then we'll go with you,” Gareth said instantly.

Her shudder of relief was profound, leaving Finn no choice but to go to her. He lifted her, placing her in his lap. “Hey. What's the matter?”

Mari grasped his shirt as if she couldn't help herself. Her gaze was fixed in the near distance, as if she were seeing something terrible.

“Mari.” Gareth knelt in front of her, taking her face in his hands.

“Carter,” she blurted. “Carter went into the barn. He—he didn't come out.
They
were in there.”

Ah, so she had witnessed—or near enough—her friend's death? Finn stroked her back, running his fingers along the smooth, slightly worn material of her gown. “Is that why you're so nervous?”

She nodded, a quick jerk of her head as Gareth released her chin. “I heard them. Killing Carter.”

Finn took a breath, inhaling the scent of her clean hair. “Wherever it's dark, they'll lurk. We've lost some good friends to those fucking aliens.”

Mari didn't flinch at his language, merely nodded again. “After Carter died, I was too afraid to take another job outside the walls. I… I'm a coward.”

“You're not a coward,” Gareth said instantly. He reached for her again, raising her chin with one large hand. “Look at me, Mari. Didn't you board the train to Scar City?”

“Yes, but that was out of desperation.”

“I don't think so. I think it was duty.” Finn felt her body tense as Gareth spoke, and smoothed another caress across the thin gown.

“You knew your father left something here,” Gareth continued. “You thought it might be important, and you came to find it. That's not what a coward would do.”

“If he left the device inside a house outside the walls, I won't have the courage to go in. I'll have a hard enough time walking through the gates. I-I'm scared to leave the City.”

“We'll be with you the entire time,” Finn promised.

Gareth backed that up with a nod. “But first, I want to hear you say it. Say you're not a coward. Because from where I'm standing, you're coming across as a brave woman, and damn sexy to boot. Takes a hell of a woman to deal with both of us too.”

“I guess I'm not a coward, in that case,” she whispered, and Gareth's expression softened. He leaned forward, pressed a kiss to her lips. Mari immediately deepened it, lacing her hand in his short black hair for a moment before she pulled away.

“Like that, do you?” Kneeling between her spread legs, Gareth tugged her back for more, and she made a little sound of agreement against his lips. Already half-hard, Finn's cock jumped to attention, and he shifted a little in the chair, settling Mari in a more comfortable position.

Underneath the nightgown, she wore no bra, no underwear. Finn slid the material up, parting her legs farther as Gareth continued to kiss her. He skimmed an exploratory caress up her inner thighs—her skin was so unbelievably smooth there—and briefly lingered at her pussy, long enough to test how wet she was.

Not that he or Gareth planned to fuck her right away. Both of them were in a playful mood, wanting to tease Mari, get to know her likes and dislikes. They hadn't done near enough playing with her, save for those few superb hours aboard the train before it had broken down. Finn could feel her stiffness, born of self-consciousness, and resolved to soothe it away.

He savored her shudder as he began to toy with one of her breasts, enjoying the way it filled his palm, her nipple peaked with desire. Between her legs, Gareth got his own share of caresses in, until Mari's breathing was ragged, her hips bucking. Suddenly, she pulled away.

“Not here…please.”

“Upstairs, then.” Gareth's green eyes were intense, focused. “Just so you know, though, we can hear Patrice's cane thumping from a fair distance away. We would never have let you be seen naked.”

“Oh.” She let out a little
eek
as Finn got to his feet, sweeping her up with him. Half-naked, she pressed deliciously against him. “I can walk.”

“But I don't want you to.” What Finn wanted was to place her against the wall and ram into her. Yet anticipation would heighten his eventual pleasure, and besides, he wanted to seduce her slowly this time. Slower than last night at least, he amended.

“In there,” she whispered, pointing to a closed door at the top of the stairs. Gareth followed, his boots thumping on naked floorboards. The bedroom Mari occupied was simple, but thankfully the bed was queen-sized. He placed Mari in it, taking the opportunity to slip her nightgown completely off.

“Now that's a gorgeous sight,” he murmured, raking her with his gaze. “Don't try to hide yourself, baby.”

He tugged her arms down when they went to shield her breasts.
“Plump the pillows,”
Finn sent.
“I want her propped up, but at my mercy.”

“I'd rather
be
the pillow.”
Gareth climbed behind Mari, cradling her upper body as she reclined against him.

“That works.”
Finn parted her legs. Anticipation had whetted his senses to a keen edge. How long had it been since his last woman?

Long. Too long.

“And never like this, with both of us taking part,”
Gareth agreed.

Finn only smiled as he bent forward.

Mari writhed as Finn pressed a kiss to her inner thigh. She might have felt afraid, self-conscious, had Gareth not been supporting her, his large, warm hands roving over her body with a possessiveness that surprised her. A little jolt ran through her at the thought of being his.

What would it be like to live with these two men as their wife? Would they always be so attentive, or would their affection dim…or worse, be diverted elsewhere?

She was aware of Gareth's cock pressed against the small of her back as he acted as the most comfortable pillow she'd ever known. Lazily, he traced his way to her breasts, his breath warm against her neck as he supported her. She was aching at this point, begging to be touched. Finn breathed out against sensitive skin, prompting a little moan from her.

“Our girl wants more,” Gareth said.

Mari wasn't quite at the point of begging, but she gave an agreeable wriggle. Who knew sex could be this fun? She'd thought it was yet another perk destroyed by the Invasion, since a whole lot of sex these days resulted in procreation. Birth control simply wasn't available on the mass market anymore.