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Alaric groaned against my ear. He pulled my panties to the side and slid a finger through my heat. “So wet for us.”

A mewling cry escaped me as I writhed under their teasing hands. Rami shuffled himself further down the bed until he was level with my breasts. He kissed the underside of one while his fingers traced a wide circle around the peak of the other. Alaric was just as coy, his fingertip tracing my opening but never dipping inside. My breath rattled out of me in short pants, my skin feverish, and the pressure kept building.

I was ready to beg, to cry, to curse in frustration when Rami finally closed his lips around my nipple, sucking gently, at the same time Alaric slipped his finger into me. I choked on a gasp, hands clenching the bedsheets.

“Fuck, you’re so tight.” Alaric nipped at the shell of my ear, sending shivers all the way to my toes. “I forgot that your body is still a virgin.” He slowly withdrew his finger, curling it as he did, before thrusting it back even deeper.

“Let’s make our little bird sing,” Rami rasped, his breath hot on my oversensitive skin. Alaric hummed in agreement and pulled his finger out completely. My mouth fell open in protest, but then he dragged that finger up, spreading my arousal, until he reached my clit.

The feeling was so intense that my legs snapped shut around his hand and I let out a strangled cry. Rami growled and moved his hand to my thigh, prying them back open. But his hand didn’t return to my breast. It slid up the inside of my thigh until it joined Alaric’s. While his brother made fast, tight circles over that sensitive bundle of nerves, he sunk his thick finger all the way in. I sucked in a stilted breath and dug my heels into the mattress, the coil getting tighter and tighter as they moved in tandem.

When it released, the world flew apart in a cascade of stars.

Alaric’s mouth found mine again, and he swallowed my scream. They stroked me through the waves of pleasure that continued to crash over me, until I was twitching and breathless. Ric rested his forehead against mine, and Rami pressed a kiss to my collarbone before he straightened my panties and pulled the shirt back down. My heart was pounding, soaring, filled to the brim.

“Kulta, you’re crying.” My gentle giant sounded pained. “Did we hurt you?”

Alaric tensed, but I grabbed each of their hands and pulled their arms around me.

“No.” My lungs hitched on the intense emotion swelling in my chest. “That was perfect. I just never…I never thought…” I tried to beat back a sob and did a lousy job of it. Both of them shifted closer, surrounding me in warmth and a perfect mingling of their scents.

Ric kissed away a tear that slipped from the corner of my eye and took a shaky breath of his own. “You are perfect, Pixie.” His and Rami’s heartstrings burned brightly within me, declaring the truth better than words ever could. “Sleep a little longer.”

Rami pressed his own kiss to my temple, and a familiar gentle rumbling started up in his chest.

“You’re purring again,” I giggled, turning to lay a hand on his chest. Then my eyes popped wide. “Oh my god! Because you turn into a giant cat!”

The sound morphed into a growl, and even Alaric laughed. “I do not turn into a cat,” Rami groused.

“Fine,” I sighed, chewing on my lip to contain a grin. “Don’t let it ruffle your feathers.”

Alaric snorted and buried his face in my hair, shaking with silent laughter.

“Sinä pikku kakara.” Rami lightly pinched my hip, but he couldn’t hide his smile. “Go to sleep.”

I didn’t think I could still be tired after fifteen hours, but being here between these two men filled me with a peace I’d never felt before. There were so many unknowns around me, but I was certain of one thing: I was coming alive for the first time.

And I wanted more.

40

CORDELIA

I was alone in the king-size bed the next time I woke up. The room was brighter now, golden sunlight slipping through a gap in the blackout curtains over the windows. It reminded me of the glimpse of hope and happiness I’d gotten with Rami and Alaric. But all it would take to snuff out that light was a simple shift of the fabric. A mere twist in circumstances.

After all, that’s what had brought us together. A twist of Fate.

Fate was why I’d felt so connected to them after only a few weeks. Fate was what decided that we were meant for each other. I could have been upset about that, could have felt like I’d been robbed of my choice and that nothing we felt was real. But of all the things that had been stolen from me since the moment I was born, I couldn’t bring myself to regret this one.

Even without my magic’s urging—this divine entity inside me—I knew I would’ve been drawn to them. There were holes in my heart that only they could patch up. I felt them inside me, each of their heartstrings, and knew this was always how it was supposed to be. Most of them agreed, and I could sense that they saw our bond as something sacred and beautiful.

One still believed that I was a curse, and that was a little hard to bear.

I scrubbed my hands over my face and sighed. “I don’t even know where to start.”

“Could start with breakfast.”

Bellamy startled me from the open doorway. “Bel!” My throat grew tight around a lump of relief.