“I love you, too,bella. Do you remember that night we first met? When you were debating stabbing that knife into my heart? I don’t think I’ve ever been as infuriated and enthralled by anyone in my life. And then I discovered howbrave and fierce you were, and that was it. I was head over heels.”
I buried my face in his shoulder. Gabriel Dominico did not fall head over heels in love with anyone, least of all me.
“Except I did,” he murmured against my cheek.
I realized I must have said that out loud,and I was seriously going to go into hiding forever.
“I’m in love with you, Emberline, and I don’t have a single regret except that I didn’t tell you sooner. So, the question is… what are we going to do about this?”
“I don’t want to hurt any of you,” I said miserably. “And no matter what I do, it seems like someone always gets hurt.”
“What if it didn’t need to be that way?” Lips ghosted across my head. “What if the four of us found a way to make this work? The family you want, all of us together? Could you love all three of us?”
“I already do.” I couldn’t bear to open my eyes. “I love all of you, and I can’t stop. I’ve tried. I’ve tried so hard, but the longer we’re together, the worse this gets, and I can’t fix it.”
“We don’t need fixing.” The bed dipped on my other side, and Nico was there, leaning in so I couldn’t hide. “What we have is perfect, just the way it is. We love you. You love us, and happiness is as simple as that.Familyis as simple as that, the four of us, together, loving each other honestly, not caring about what anyone else thinks.”
Wrapped in Gabriel’s arms, staring into Nico’s eyes, it almost sounded possible. This future they dangled in front of me, like a golden carrot. Happiness and love and all the men I cared for together under one roof.
Too good to be true.
I eased out of Gabriel’s arms, swallowing. “But I’m married to Dante.”
“And we’llcontinueto be married,” Dante growled possessively from where he sat, “until death do us fucking part. But we’re offering you the family you want,tesoro. A family that will protect you and love you and keep you safe. None of us has ever had a real one, so let’s build our own. What do you say, Emberline?”
“You’re all…finewith this?” I scanned their faces. “Just a few days ago, I thought everything was falling apart, and now…” I bit my lip.
“Let’s just say we’re working our way through our reservations.” Dante knelt beside the bed and took my hands. “We pulled our heads out of our asses and realized we had it all wrong. You are the heart of us, Emberline.” My husband’s eyes strayed over to Nico, and they shared a secret smile. “You are the tie that binds us together. Without you, we are nothing.”
“A king without a queen,” Gabriel murmured, pulling me back into his arms.
“A soldier without something to fight for.” Nico kissed my knuckles, exactly as he had in my dream, and the breath stuttered out of my lungs.
“And a fighter without a purpose.” Dante smiled, a real smile that made him look young. Carefree. “Loving you is the only thing that makes me whole. Everything pales in comparison to what I feel for you.”
“Yes.” I nodded, wondering if I’d lost my mind. “Yes, I want to make this work.”
“Good girl,” Dante murmured, watching my face as I shivered again, my nipples hard, every inch of me sensitive, aware.
Aware there were three vampires in my bed, two of them on either side of me, I let myself imagine—just for a second—howthis worked.
All I could picture was them unleashing a storm of tongues and lips and fingers on my body and… I blew out a long, shaky exhale.
“We’ll go slow,” Nico said gently. “You tell us what you like, and we’ll continue. You tell us to stop, this ends. This is all about you, Emberline. Especially this first time.” He pressed his lips to my shoulder, to the mark that was still there. “All about you.”
“I’m going to watch.” Dante released my hands and slid back into his chair, his erection tenting the towel to astronomical proportions. “Now do what my brother says, and let them make you feel good,la mia bellissima moglie.”
Something broke loose in my chest and soared.
Nico nibbled at my lips, urging my mouth to open for him. A gentle, probing kiss, one meant to worship, not take. His fingers slid into my hair, cradling the back of my head, while Gabriel’s arms tightened to hold me in place.
Had they done this before? Did I care?
Nope. Not when I felt treasured, protected, like I was right where I wanted to be, and everything was finally perfect.
60
EMBERLINE
