I might not survive the night.
They’re going to have to be very, very careful to ensure I do.
The thought has a borderline hysterical laugh bubbling up, but I clamp my jaw shut to keep it inside. Malachi crosses to me, and I appreciate he’s walking human-slow instead of blurring. I don’t think my nerves can handle being startled right now.
He takes my shoulders and smooths his thumbs over my collarbones. “Rylan says condoms will affect things.”
I blink. Of all the things I expected, that wasn’t on the list. “What?”
“There’s magic even in our semen,” Rylan says from his spot next to the window. “It can’t hurt to add it in, along with the blood.”
I blink again. “That sounds like one hell of a line.”
Did he smile? It’s hard to say. Wolf nudges him with his shoulder. “You’re playing fast and loose, old friend.”
“No, I’m not.”
Wolf laughs. “Whatever you have to tell yourself.” He turns to me. His eyes are already crimson and his smile is more than a little deranged. “You ready, love?”
No. I’m not even close to ready.
Malachi steps between me and the other vampires. “Breathe, Mina.”
“I’m breathing.” I sound more like I’m wheezing. This is a mess. How am I supposed to get to some point of magical orgasm-to-end-all-orgasms when I feel so skittish, I’m half a second from turning around and running out of this room like my hair is on fire? I look up at Malachi. “Bite me?”
His eyes widen just a fraction and it’s as if my nerves trigger something in him. The strange expression he’s been wearing since Rylan showed up disappears and he gives me a slow smile. “Where’s the fun in that, little dhampir?”
It seems like it’s been forever since he called me that, but I can’t help leaning toward him in response. “This isn’t fun. This is serious.”
“I’m going to kiss you now.” He makes no move to close the distance between us farther. “And then Wolf is going to touch you. And then Rylan. Okay?”
Is he asking permission now? I’ve already agreed to this. There’s no reason to walk me through this like I’m an innocent. Except I am damn near an innocent when it comes to this kind of stuff. Having sex a handful of times does not prepare one for whatever this is supposed to be. “Okay,” I say softly.
“If at any point you want to stop, we stop.”
Behind him, Wolf laughs. “She won’t want to stop once we get going.”
Malachi ignores him. “Do you understand?”
Does he understand by constantly putting this in my hands, he’s stripping me of the ability to fully let go? I can’t pretend I’m just a butterfly being swept along before a gale-force wind, praying that it doesn’t rip me to pieces. It’s so much easier when you don’t have a choice, and Malachi insists on giving me one, over and over again. I kind of hate him for it. I kind of love him for it, too.
I take a shaky breath. “Yes, I understand.”
Instead of pressing me farther, he leans down and brushes a light kiss to my lips. And then another one. I’m so tense, a soft touch might make me shatter, but the third kiss comes with a hint of his teeth against my bottom lip. I jump and the motion presses me to his chest. He wraps his arms around me, and I relax into what’s becoming a familiar sensation of being held by Malachi. He’s so fucking big. He makes me feel weirdly fragile in a way that isn’t entirely unpleasant. Maybe it’s because he’s so careful with me, careful with our respective differences in strength. I don’t know. I just know I whimper against his mouth and slide my hands up his chest.
That’s when I feel Wolf behind me, lifting my hair off my neck. His lips are cool as he kisses the newly exposed skin, and I shiver when his fangs lightly scrape me. Malachi shifts his arms a little and then Wolf’s gripping my hips in the newly created space. They buoy me between them, until I feel pleasantly dizzy from Malachi’s drugging kisses and Wolf playing with the sensitive skin at the base of my neck.
Malachi tenses and the scent of blood teases me. He breaks our kiss and leans his head to the side, barring his neck. I catch sight of a long cut and of Rylan behind him, holding a knife. It’s almost enough to jar me out of my pleasure-soaked state, but Wolf uses his body to press me closer to Malachi, uses his mouth on the back of my neck to guide me to the fresh cut.
I moan at the first taste. Rylan’s blood might be more powerful, but I don’t think I’ll ever get tired of the way Malachi’s zings through me. I drink from him until the cut closes and then I can’t quite help giving his skin one last lick. It feels like my nerve endings are sparking and I lean up to try to catch Malachi’s mouth.
He turns me in his arms and then Wolf’s there. He kisses me before I can fully register they’re moving me around like a toy between them. Malachi coasts his hands over my sides and around to my stomach. He cups my breasts through my robe, lightly pinching my nipples.
I moan against Wolf’s mouth and his fingers clench harder onto my hips. Not hard enough to really hurt, but the faint ache grounds me in a way I desperately need. I nip his bottom lip the same way Malachi did to mine, enjoying how he jerks a little in response.
For the first time since Rylan put forth this plan, the nerves settle a little. It will be okay. As long as we keep touching, everything will be okay.
Malachi traces the opening of my robe, tugging it until it falls open. As if they planned this, Wolf kisses his way down my neck to my newly bared breasts. He makes a sound of appreciation and then he pulls one nipple into his mouth while Malachi keeps up that delicious light pinching with the other. I stare down at the sight of Wolf’s mouth on me, of Malachi’s hands on me at the same time. It’s just like before, when they drove me to orgasm together, and yet it’s entirely different.
I never want it to stop.
Movement behind Wolf draws my attention. Rylan sits on the bed, idly toying with the knife in his hand, his attention entirely on us, his eyes fully silver. I tense, but Malachi uses his free hand to cup my jaw and urge me to bend backward so he can kiss me again. I know it’s a distraction technique, but I eagerly arch to accept his mouth.
Wolf uses his mouth to keep parting my robe until he gets to the tie and yanks it open. The blood pounds through my body, but I don’t think he’s to blame. It’s this situation, it’s Malachi’s blood inside me, still sizzling through my veins. The feeling has settled a little, as if I’ve absorbed it. It must be what’s happened before, but I’ve never felt the transition as acutely as I do right now. “More.”
Both men pause. Malachi lets out a slow breath. Wolf looks up at me and grins, flashing fang. “You heard the lady.”
Malachi moves first, pulling the robe off my shoulders and tossing it aside. He lifts me into his arms and starts for the bed.
Wolf snorts. “Things were just getting interesting.”
“You can have your turn later.” Malachi sets me on the bed on the opposite side from Rylan, and there’s no way it’s coincidence. I’m still uneasy about Rylan, and even more off-center because of my reaction to him. I don’t like him, but I can’t deny part of me is drawn to him. It’s uncomfortable and I don’t like it, but ultimately he’s right. This is just sex, and the purpose of it tonight is to somehow awaken my theoretical magic. The orgasms are just a convenient side effect.