Chapter One Hundred and Four

Havermouth, Present Time

Heath and Cameron arrived as they did, and June met Aislen’s eyes. “I have to go,” June decided. “Before I collapse in a hormonal heap. I’m used to dealing with primary school students, and not smoking hot men. In one day, I’ve been up close and personal to two more than any other average day. Anymore and I’m not responsible for my actions. How you can stand it, I don’t know, but I am totally envious.”

Aislen snorted. “When they start bossing you around, their prettiness loses its shine,” she replied. “Believe me. By the way, do you know a teacher, third grade, I think, named Liam?”

“Liam,” June repeated. “Not at my school.”

“Oh well, I’ll have to introduce you some time, if I see him again,” she added. “So, not tomorrow but the day after, at ten?”

“Ten,” June confirmed and waved, as she made her way out to the street.

Fuck, Aislen added to herself. She needed to find something to wear.

She sighed as she turned towards the house and the Triquetra, who had unloaded the contents of Rhett’s boot and Cameron’s Ute and stood on her porch, looking down at the graffiti scrawled across it.

“Yeah,” she said, as she joined them. “Someone’s a fan.”

“This is not good,” Heath said softly. “They broke into your home, Aislen. What if you had been here at the time?”

“Then we would have tussled, and someone would have gotten hurt,” she said with more bravado than she felt.

“Is this because of the past, or the present?” He wondered.

“Does it matter?” She asked. “They’ve fucked up my house.”

“Yes,” he reached out, his hand cupping her elbow. (But what would they have done to you?)

She shuddered.

“Understanding their motivation would help us to narrow down who was behind this,” Heath continued. (The pack? Had August or Abigail given consent?) “Triquetra’s whore… Are they your enemies or ours? Is this about your return and the Secret Keeper, or about our history?”

“Who knows?” Rhett asked her. “Who knows that you are the Secret Keeper?”

All three fixed their concerned gazes on her and she swallowed hard. “You,” she said. “The florist, Lauren. June. Leighton Richard suspects.”

“Fucking Leighton,” Rhett half laughed the words. “He wouldn’t be a threat. What about your vampire?”

“Yes,” she said softly. “Talen knows.”

“Well, fucking great,” Rhett rolled his eyes. “What have you told him?”

“Talen isn’t…” She said slowly and swallowed. “Talen isn’t a danger to me.”

“He’s a fucking vampire, Aislen,” Cameron said, a muscle ticking in the corner of his jaw. “They drink human blood to survive.”

“But I’m not human,” she pointed out. “I’m not human,” she repeated, when all three of their gazes locked on her. “I’m not. I don’t know what I am, but we all know what I’m not. And, yes, before you ask, Talen knows that too, same as he knows what you are. Which I don’t think will be a surprise to you, as you know what he is, so I’m assuming you can sense each other.”

“Aislen, that doesn’t mean that you’re not in danger from him. Vampires often lose control and kill their blood slaves,” Heath said matter-of-factly.

“I think that’s more myth than truth, Heath, because Talen is possibly the most controlled person that I’ve met,” she replied. “He is friends with his blood slave, Tyler, and the way he talks about him… I just can’t see Tyler being in danger.”

“Aislen,” Rhett trailed off and frowned. “He has a blood slave here.”

“Tyler, yes,” she nodded, but knew that he would not leave it here. “No, I’m not his blood slave,” she answered the question in his eyes. “I’m not his blood slave… I’m his mate. He is my mate, and I am his,” she clarified, firmly, feeling her heart leap with excitement.

They stilled, barely even seeming to breathe, and her eyes flicked between them. Heath looked away.

Finally, Cameron made a restless gesture. “He can’t be,” he said to her. “You are our mate.”

“Heath knows,” she wasn’t letting the blonde alpha off the hook.

Rhett and Cameron both looked at Heath, who heaved a sigh and shrugged. “She told me this morning,” he admitted. “All that I can think is…” He gestured helplessly. “Either she is meant to choose between us or…”

Heath flushed and Rhett rocked back on his heels. “Ah,” he sighed out, his eyes narrowing. “Heath?”

“Fuck,” Heath grumbled. “He’s a fucking…”

“A towering mountain of a man,” Aislen smirked, knowing the source of Heath's discomfort. “All muscle and blonde hair and beard, tatted and pierced, with a daddy kink, who made Heath come in his trousers after grabbing him by the collar of his shirt.”

“Fuck,” Heath’s colour increased. Both Cameron and Rhett stared at him with slack-jawed fascination.

Rhett blew out a breath slowly and met Cameron’s eyes with a slight shrug. “A vampire?”

“There’s nothing in the history books,” Heath muttered. “It’s unheard of.”

“Like a polyandrous bisexual werewolf Triquetra with a not-so-human mate?” Aislen asked.

Rhett’s eyebrow raised, his eyes still on Heath. “That’s a very full bed.”

“You’re making assumptions,” Aislen pointed out. “That you three get to be in my bed.” All three of them looked at her, their expression becoming predatory, and Aislen felt her breath catch in her lungs. “No,” she held up a finger. “You are here to paint, not to fuck. I am still mad at you three, and you have a long, long way to go until I…”

Cameron silenced her with his mouth, pulling her body flush with his own, his thoughts vivid with images of the four of them fucking together as they used to. Fuck, his visualizations never failed to turn her on, she thought, as her fingers tangled in his hair. He lifted her thigh to his hip, pressing his cock against her.

“I’m still mad at you,” she said against his lips, as he lifted her and stepped towards the door. “And I am not agreeing to be your mate.”

Rhett proceeded them into the house and opened the master bedroom door. “Holy fuck,” he exclaimed. "I'm beginning to like this vampire of yours. This bed is… awesome.”

“We’re supposed to be painting this room…” She started, as Cameron released her.

“There’s a toy cupboard,” Rhett said over his shoulder to Heath, as he opened the armoire. “Look at this! This vampire is your kindred spirit, Heath. Fuck me, he’s got toys in here that… What does this even do… Oh, fuck yeah,” his grin was wide and his eyes bright as he turned to show Heath the thrusting vibrator that he held in his hands.

“Oh, god,” Aislen covered her face with both her hands as the Triquetra gathered around the armoire in fascination. “This is too much. Out, out, out. Paint, or leave.”

Heath turned his wolf in his eyes, a contraption of leather straps in his hands. “Oh, we’ll paint,” he purred. “But first, I want to see you in this.”

“I don’t even know what that is or how it goes on…” She realized that she was backing up when her calves hit the mattress.

“That’s okay,” he stepped towards her with Cameron and Rhett flanking him. “We’ll show you.”

“Hmm-mmm- hmm,” Talen’s hum was a laugh through his nose as he closed the bedroom door behind him. He held a bunch of flowers in one hand. “Well, this will be fun.”

The Triquetra’s heads jerked to where he stood and then to each other.

“Fuck,” Rhett said, under his breath.

“Daddy,” Aislen grinned. “You’re home early. I’m so happy to see you.”

“These are for you,” Talen presented Aislen with the flowers and she lifted her face for his kiss. He cupped her jaw and kissed her tenderly before straightening, his eyes scanning over the Triquetra.

“Thank you, daddy,” she admired the flowers. “They’re beautiful.” She flicked her eyes up to where the Triquetra stood, stunned into silent stillness by Talen’s unexpected appearance. “I think you broke them,” she smirked, as she sat on the end of the bed.

“Aislen needs to be warmed up to this,” Talen took the straps from Heath’s hand and walked to the armoire, replacing it within. “This,” he passed Heath a handful of rope. “We can work with, however. Perhaps when she trusts you, she will consent to that, but start small, young cub. And this, for you,” he placed a cock ring into Cameron’s hand.

“That is a good choice,” he said to Rhett, who looked down at the vibrator that he held and then looked up with a slow smile.

“We have not been formally introduced,” Talen’s smile was wicked as he began to unbutton his shirt. “I am Talen Gawaine, of the Concordia. And you are?”

“Heath Gale, Cameron Edison, and Rhett Salem of the Les Guerriers Sanctifies Triquetra,” Heath had recovered sufficiently to respond with his normal aplomb. He lifted his chin. “We have an accord with the Concordia.”

“I know,” Talen shrugged out of his shirt, and reached up to tie back his hair with a delicious display of muscle. Aislen saw Cameron’s Adam’s apple move as he swallowed. “In accordance with the accord, I have already visited your pack’s leaders, August and Abigail, in order to deliver my respects.”

“You have them spellbound, daddy,” Aislen murmured, leaning against one of the bed poles, enjoying the sight of the Triquetra mesmerized. “What magic is this?”

“We have a…” Heath looked over his shoulder at Aislen. “A situation.”

“Do we?” Talen arched his eyebrows. “And what situation is that young one?”

“Aislen is our mate,” Rhett answered for Heath.

“Ours,” Cameron put his hand on Heath’s shoulder. “Our Triquetra.”

“And how is that a situation?” Talen undid his belt. They all watched the slow slide of the leather through the belt loops as he removed it.

“Aislen says that she is your mate,” Rhett replied softly, turning slightly to look at Aislen.

Talen’s hands paused on the button of his jeans, and he looked up at Aislen. “Did she now?” He smiled at her.

“I guess I did, daddy,” she blushed and looked down at the flowers that she held.

“Hmmm,” Talen was pleased. “And that is a situation because?” He released the button.

Heath’s eyes lifted from the straining fly, up Talen’s heavily muscled torso, and met his eyes. “What do you propose, Talen Gawaine of the Concordia, that we do about the fact that your mate, is also our mate?” He asked.

“Well,” Talen rose to his full height and straightened his shoulders. “I would suggest that we ask if Aislen would care to get undressed, to start with.”