Page 152 of Veil of Blood and Bone

“I missed you,” he whispers into her sweat slicked hair.

When I finally come down, she’s smiling, her palm pressed flat to Forest’s face.

Nicholas crouches on the edge of the bed with his face tilted down. Hidden.

A wave of my hand wipes my own cum from the messy white arcs I drew on the floor. Forest presses a kiss to her forehead and then hoists her up, sliding free, his seed leaking down her thighs with the motion.

“You were made for us,” he insists. “Nothing has changed.”

“You might think so, but it’s been so long since I...” Helene trails off, glancing away. Her gaze falls on Nicholas and his thunderous repression. “I’m not used to this.”

“You will be.” I slide a finger along her inner thigh, smearing Forest’s desire and hers against her throbbing core.

Her eyes darken, and I mark her reaction as I push the cum inside of her.

“You’ll take us all. Again, and again.”

Hours later, after more stolen moments nestled at the apex of her thighs, magic washes her clean. The sex had been wild, untamed, but it soothed out some of the worries written on her face.

Once she's emotionally regulated, I settle her in my arms, Nicholas pressed tight to her side.

Aftercare is equally important to erotic dominance.

Everything in life wants to exploit Helene. Except us. Because she doesn't realize how steep the emotional cost is.

Chapter 31

Helene

They’ve branded themselves inside of me.

My body remembers everything, each invasion and tiny death.

Sleep leaves in whispers. My senses come alive first, before my eyes have pried open to greet the day.

I’m sore in the best places. The ones that haven’t been touched in too long to remember. Nicholas was right.

There are certain things only three men can accomplish.

I slap my palm to my forehead because seriously, what the fuck am I doing?

I’m messing up beyond belief. Now is the time to come to my senses instead of losing them.

But no. I just come. Plain and simple.

Although there’s nothing simple about what happened last night. Nicholas had warned us about danger, and I hadn't known what he meant. Something piqued my curiosity, a challenge, and outside of unpacking new books from estate sales at the store, nothing like that had happened to me in a long time.

The sound prompts a groan from Forest, his muscular legs trapping both of mine to the bed.

And that’s not a pillow behind me. My head nestles on Nicholas’s lap, his back propped up to the wall and his eyes shut tight to combat the glow of morning. It filters under the door and my breath catches.

How long were we out?

Or better question, how long did we play?

Pieces of our night return now, like I've stumbled on a secret by mistake.

Wren’s shadows are silent, sleeping. He rests on my other side, not thrown across me like Forest, but touching. His hand is settled over mine, and his face is near my breast. Possessive.