“She sure does have a pretty—oof.” Caspian elbows Xavier, cutting off what was sure to be a rude comment.
“Can I go for a ride on your back, Mama?” Jack asks, throwing his arms around my neck and trying to haul himself up.
“How about we go for a picnic instead? We can go to the bio level and run around in the big open space there. There is even a pond with some fish. Maybe we can feed them,” I suggest, which does the trick of distracting the children. They jump up and down on the spot, cheering even though I’m pretty sure they don’t even know what a picnic is.
“What’s a picnic?” Ghosie asks, and I turn my attention to him.
There is just something about the man that makes him seem so sad and lonely. I want to gather him into my arms and pet him and tell him he’s pretty. My hands involuntarily make grabby motions, and I have to shove them between my knees so nobody sees them.
I also can’t touch him without wanting to hump his leg like a dog. I would totally be fine with that. He’s dad bod sex on legs, and I am so here for it, but he did what he set out to do, helped us with grandma, and I guess he probably wants to return to his life instead of being shanghaied into becoming one of my mates. Let’s face it, if I get my hands on his fur again, I’m going to let it do its thing and ride that train all the way to the station. We’ll be five mutual orgasms in before you can say, “Lila’s a whore,” and Ghosie will be sealed and mated to me permanently.
“Lila?” I blink away my fantasies and return my attention to his previous question. I hear Xavier chuckling. The damn man can feel my emotions and knows how turned on I am by the bear. I’m sure my shifter mates can also smell the same thing. I don’t dare look at any of them.
“Oh, ah… um, a picnic. It’s when you take food, usually in a basket but we may have to be creative, and a blanket to sit on, and you find a nice spot to eat outdoors and enjoy the sunshine and fresh air while you have your meal.”
I can see him thinking it over. “That sounds like fun. Would it be alright if I came along too?”
I push off the ground and swipe my hands over my dress to smooth it out. “Of course, everyone is invited. We need to get out of this room and take a moment to relax. We’ve been on the go nonstop for weeks now with more to come.”
“It’s a great idea, Lila.” Link stands up and stretches, his shirt lifting and exposing his shiny six pack. I feel drool gather in my mouth. He winks at me before tugging it back down. “I’m going to stick my head in and check on Liliana, but I don’t anticipate any change, otherwise I would have heard about it. I’m going to send Zeydan up to join in the fun. He needs to get the full idea of what he’s in for, and herding three rambunctious krakens at the park should be a crash course in being a daddy.”
The others all chuckle evilly, but I just roll my eyes. “I’m sure he will be fine. He’s a god, so in his very long life, I’m certain he’s had some interaction with children.” I figuratively cross my fingers.
“Then I’m going to go check on Nikos. I worry he’s lonely.”
Shit, the guilt I feel is real, and my smile drops.
“Don’t feel guilty, Lila.” Xavier stands, shaking his head at me. Damn warlock emotion thief. “He knows you have a lot going on. Maybe after you’ve spent some time with the children, you can have a swim with him. It might relax you too,” he suggests.
“That’s a good idea. We will take the children. They love swimming with him and are excited about their new siblings,” Caspian agrees.
“That’s if they aren’t too worn out by the picnic,” Saxon cautions. “You know how they get when they are overstimulated and tired.” Echo and Max shudder, and I bite down so I don’t laugh at their misfortune. Echo especially watches the children more than most of the others. Although I know he loves it, it is hard when the three of them are on a rampage together. We need to look at hiring some help. I’ll add it to the to-do list.
“I’ll let Nikos know that he will have visitors this afternoon. Maybe they can have a nap before,” Link suggests, “and then I’ll join you on the bio level.”
“I’m going to see if Broderick needs a break,” Silac says, not meeting my eyes. Damn it. It’s like we take one step forward and two steps back. I know he wants to sort out the situation with his fiancée before we start anything, but I need him to stop running away.
“Oh no you don’t.” Tirrian clamps a hand onto the naga’s shoulder, not letting him move. “You are going to forget about your drama for a moment and enjoy the bio level. There’s enough room for you to shift and sunbake if you feel like it. I know it’s been a while since you felt the sun on your body, and snakes enjoy that kind of thing. I’m going to shift and fly, and I may even join the others for a swim too.” He turns his attention to me, his eyes heated. “And maybe Lila can see if she can shift into the water dragon form as well.”
“Do you think it’s possible?” I ask, feeling excited. Although I really don’t need another voice in my head, it’s almost become normal. Hell, you might as well call me Kevin. I almost have as many voices as that character from that movie.
“We won’t know until you try,” he answers, but he’s excited at the prospect, so I will give it a go for him. I can always mimic his form if it doesn’t work… or I think I can. I haven’t mimicked an animal before, only a sentient being.
“Come on, kids, let’s change into something that can get dirty.” Brannock kneels down and gestures for Jack to get on his back. Jack quickly does what he tried to do to me, and squeals with delight when Brannock stands up. He holds out his hands for Cally and Cordy who both eagerly take them. Together, they wander off to the children’s room to change them out of their pj’s.
“That’s going well.” I nod in their direction, and Caspian chuckles.
“They love both of their new daddies. They already have him and the dragon wrapped around their little fingers.”
Tirrian snorts, smoke drifting out of his nose, but he doesn’t deny it as a small smile creeps across his lips.
“I’m not going to come for the picnic. I need a nap,” Echo says, rubbing his small belly. “You two kept me up all night,” he complains halfheartedly, and Maxsim smirks smugly, proud of our achievements. We really did spend most of the night fucking, and it was awesome. My body is fully recharged, but I could use a drink. I can wait until after the picnic though.
“I think I’ll stay with Echo. Although we have the charms from Xavier, I still prefer the cold, plus I’m kind of tired too.” Maxsim yawns and stretches, his eyes drooping with fatigue.
The poor alpha was worn out by his omegas. Can’t say I’m not preening at that. We did, however, talk about Link maybe playing with us one day. He has the ability to create a knot at the base of his cock, which could help us through our future heats.
“Shall we all meet back here in half an hour?” Xavier suggests. “Saxon and I can organize some food while you take a shower.” He looks at me when he says this. “While we all enjoy you smelling like sex, I think it’s going to be more distracting than anything else, and with children around, an orgy in nature is not on the cards.”