Page 74 of Fated Exile

I laugh a little, my heart thudding a bit at the thought of mythirties,which seem so far away and yet so close, with this gorgeous, ridiculous, sexy and charming man at my side. Somehow the passage of time didn't enter into my thoughts last night when I was solidifying my mate bonds, but if we pull this off and defeat Delphine, we'll have our whole lives ahead of us.

Lives we have to share with each other, andtheyhave to share me, too. Which means I should probably discourage Finn from his brash playfulness, even though he brings a smile to my eyes each time he makes lewd comments.

"How about we start slow, and work our way up to things?" I suggest, sliding my hands down to his hips and grinding against him. His eyes flutter half-closed, eyelashes casting shadows across his beautiful brown cheeks. "If I think one of the guys will be into it, I'll let you know. It's not like they can hide their arousal from me now, after all. And Lance, right now, is..."

"Thoroughly fucking annoyed? Not aroused even one bit?" Lance's voice is pitched to carry, making it clear he's heard most of what Finn and I have said despite our low bedroom voices. "If you two are going to go at it on the front porch, let me know. I'll start patrol without you."

Finn grins at me and calls out to Lance, "One of these days, Clay, I'll win you over with my devilishly good looks!”

"No chance, and no such thing," he parries back, though I can sense his resigned amusement through our bond. We both know Finn teases only because hecan,and I have to wonder what he'd do if Lance actuallydidreciprocate his suggestions. "If you're going to try to get one of Delilah's other mates to share with you, I consider starting with the one who jerked off while you were in the Mating Circle with her last night. Somehow, I don't think Bastian will have any trouble getting into it with you in the room. As for me—I don't share my girl. Not likethat."

I don't doubt it, because I feel the streak of fierce possessiveness from Lance, even though I know he'd never try to control or own me. He wants me to himself in the bedroom, and while he's willing to let other mates have me, he doesn't intend to enjoy it. If he could have, he would've mated with me five times last night—and let the others watch with envy, not feeling bad about it one bit.

"We'll get our alone time," I promise him, sliding away from Finn—who groans a little, still aroused—and skipping down the porch steps to stand next to Lance. "The calendar idea isn't a bad one. We already have patrol assignments most of the way worked out, and I'm sitting down with Roarke to discuss council meeting and alpha duties. Kerry wants me to do more magic lessons, too. A schedule may be the only way to handle it."

Lance sighs, rubbing his short-cropped white hair with an air of resignation. "I'm going to have to share you with everyone, aren't I?" I start to apologize, but he shakes his head, an amused smile on his face. "It's fine. I'd rather share the best woman I've ever known than not have her. A schedule it is, then—and my time with you will bemine."

The last word is cast at Finn with a growl, as the other man walks stiff-legged down the porch steps, fighting the arousal we started on the porch. He only grins in response, adjusting his pants a little, our mating bond sending me a few of the thoughts he's having:cold water, moldy bread, that time I put my dick in the—

"I don't want to know!" I shout, pulling away from the bond and waving my hands in the air. "Let's go on patrol, shall we?"

Lance glances over at Finn, brows furrowed. "What was that?"

He just grins in response. "Nothing, really. Just me trying to sort some things out before we head out. Shall we?"

Together, we shift into our wolf forms. My she-wolf settles on me easily, her large, white fur like a coat. Behind me, Lance shifts into his similarly white wolf, followed by Finn into his dark one.

And I hear a yip of displeasure, followed by a sigh of disgust—before Lance races off towards the border, his mind firmly displeased.

What was that?I ask Finn telepathically, only to glance over and immediately get an answer to my question. Rolling my eyes, I huff and run off again, telling him,You should try to get rid of that.

A peal of laughter flows towards me.But then, how would you ride it?

You really are incorrigible.

It's not my fault that fur doesn't cover several inches.He catches up to me then, a sly expression on his wolf face.Don't worry. All this running hot-blooded and naked in the woods will take care of it.

Or maybe a vampire with a fetish will.

He laughs in my head—the sound abruptly cut short when I send him a telepathic mental image of what I imagine the vampire might do to his exposed anatomy.

A moment later, the problem is solved.

And we head out on patrol together, two white wolves and one dark, searching for evil in the spattered sunlight of the forest overhead.

* * *

Evil that we find with surprising ease.

As we run together towards the eastern border, past sparse houses, older apartment buildings, and a small quick mart, I feel the rustle of wind in my fur... going the wrong direction. It sets my teeth on edge and makes my hackles stand up. The guys sense it, and they hang back to run close beside me, keen eyes peering into long shadows that stretch as the day wears on.

Keep an eye out,I warn them.Something is amiss.

We spot nothing, though we look for enemies. I raise my muzzle to the air as we pass into a stretch of trees, scenting the breeze. There's a smell that raises my hackles further, so I steer us towards the north, leaping over a fallen log that rots against the muddy earth and streaking past underbrush that smells like newborn wild rabbits.

The mystery scent moves in and out of my awareness, there and not there at the same time. When I catch a good, hard whiff of it, I push forward faster, not wanting to lose it again.

It takes only a few seconds to catch up to the source of the scent, but they stretch on like an eternity. My heart beats faster and faster, convinced I'm about to stumble on Delphine or a terrible trap. I wish for the traveling charm, even though I'm glad I can't use it, because it would mean leaving Lance and Finn behind.

---