Page 52 of Hell Gate

“Escape,” he urges, his low tone fraying. “I won’t go easy on you and let you go.”

An insistent pulse echoes inside me.

Slow down. Make her beg for it. Don’t stop until she’s crying.

My lashes flutter as I try to clear my head. Licking my lips, I rein myself in. The car was a fluke. It was the pressure of life on the run living in close proximity with them blurring the line. A dirty fantasy come to life that we’re not likely to repeat. I should focus on what he’s teaching me instead of getting horny.

The problem is that I don’t want to get out of his hold, enjoying the feel of his firm chest plastered to my back.

I barely let myself look at other boys growing up, too worried of how much deeper their rejection would cut. I have no defenses against this deep well of desire I’ve uncovered in myself, too addicted to these stolen touches healing years of isolation that have left me starved for any touch.

“Do it, Lily,” he orders roughly, as affected by our proximity as I am.

Gulping, I get it together. His directions run through my head. I fake dropping my weight, then drive my elbow back hard. He grunts. I doubt I actually hurt him, but it’s enough of a distraction to catch him off guard when I drop a second time. Crouched low, I charge my shoulder against his knee until he stumbles backwards a few paces.

I freeze, a smile breaking free. Getting up, I launch at Alder. He catches me and I hug him. “I did it.”

“You did.” He hesitates, then returns the hug with crushing force. “Well done, sweet blossom.”

A laugh bubbles out of me. “Let’s do it again.”

He releases me and I turn around.

My concentration is occupied by repeating the moves he showed me. I don’t hear the swift footsteps moving through the trees until Matthias appears before me with a mischievous smirk. Before I react, he pushes me back against Alder’s chest, pinning me by my shoulders.

“What are you going to do, Lils?” he murmurs. “Now you’re trapped between the two of us.”

My brain short circuits, everything Alder showed me flitting away as they press against me, sandwiching me between them.

“Hold her,” Matthias says.

Alder growls in warning, yet he grabs me by my upper arms with more strength than a moment ago. Escaping this hold is too difficult. I don’t attempt it, not interested in moving from between them, drowning in their smoky scents blending together. An intense throb thrums in my clit.

Matthias swipes his tongue along his lip, then kisses me. It’s not sweet or soft. The kiss is urgent and sensual, scorching me in a matter of seconds with each slide of his tongue against mine. He owns me with it, reminding me I’m his. He doesn’t let up, sweeping his palms down my sides, pushing beneath my shirt to caress my skin. I forget about training, chasing his wicked tongue for more.

“Mm, petal, I love it when you smell like this. So fucking delicious, so needy.” His touch skates down, nudging between my legs, cupping me beneath my skirt. “You have no idea how much I want to feast on you until you can’t stand without Alder holding you up.”

A hoarse cry escapes me. I feel Alder at my back, grinding his hard cock against me at the dirty picture Matthias paints of him on his knees before me while I melt against Alder’s embrace. I struggle for air. He feels even bigger than Matthias is.

“Oh, damn. You just got wetter,” Matthias murmurs against my lips as he teases between my legs. “Is that what you need right now? Alder helping you ride my face until you make a gorgeous mess?”

I blink as shock filters through my arousal. It’s almost like he wants me to be with Alder, too. Is he serious? If he is, could it mean he wouldn’t be mad if my heart was pulled in another direction than only him? My pulse speeds up at the possibility.

“You want that?” I push out.

“Baby, I want everything,” he croons. “I know you’d look so beautiful coming apart, submitting to your pleasure. Just like earlier while he watched. You liked that?”

I nod, my stomach dipping pleasantly. “Yes.”

His eyes flare. “I want to give you all of that. Let us take care of you. Both of us.”

Both. My head swims from the force of the bond trilling in my chest.

Alder stills, then presses against me more insistently. My head tips back and he dips his face to my neck with a feral sound, his touch searing with a divine heat that spreads across my body. I arch as Matthias kisses a path down my throat.

“This isn’t defense training.” Valerian’s cutting tone penetrates the sensual fog of desire I’m lost to. If Alder wasn’t supporting me, I’d tip over and collapse. Valerian steps out from behind a tree, jaw clenched. “Enough. Time for her to rest. Matthias, you’re on watch.”

Matthias pulls away, smiling at me unapologetically as he tucks my hair behind my ears. “I’ll finish this later.” He plants a quick kiss on my lips. “Sweet dreams, my pretty girl.”

---