Page 13 of Mastering their Maiden

“And you need to stay away from them.”

Zander’s voice came from behind me, and I turned, finding him standing over my bed, the basket I kept for my clothing in front of him. He was digging through it, pulling out garments and shoving them into a bag.

“What are you doing? Those are my clothes!”

I stalked across the room, shoving him away and snatching up the basket. Kicking it under the bed, I glared at him, then grabbed at the clothing he was stuffing in a bag, my eyes widening when I realized what he’d taken.

My panties.

Every single pair of my panties.

“Give those back!”

“You don’t need them,” he said simply.

“They’re mine.”

“And you’re ours,” he countered, glaring when I scowled up at him. “And we decided that you no longer need them.”

There was a challenge in his eyes. A dare for me to defy him. Try it, he said without words. Fight me.

I scowled, not in the mood to give him the satisfaction of provoking me today. Instead, I turned to Dex and stared wide-eyed at him, wondering what he had to say about this since he’d only just arrived in our village.

“This was a group decision?” I asked, folding my arms over my chest. “You decided over the evening meal yesterday that Aria no longer has a need for panties? You’re just going to leave me open to any sort of violation? Deny me protective clothing?”

“Since you’re no longer going through the fence, you don’t need protective clothing.” Dex smiled and walked closer, looking me up and down as he rolled his lips. “And no one will violate you, Aleria. Not under our watch.”

“No, you’ll just do it yourselves,” I grumbled.

“It won’t be a violation when we take you. You’ll be begging for it.” Dex picked up a lock of my hair that had fallen free from my braid, lifting it to his nose. “You’ve been out in the woods again.”

“What I do on my own time is far less concerning than you stealing my panties.” I turned to Zander, gesturing to the bag at his side. “What happens when I get my monthly blood? What am I supposed to do then?”

“Ask us for supplies.”

Zander’s gold eyes darkened, and he moved so quickly I didn’t have time to react. He wrapped an arm around my waist, tucking me into his side as his eyes scanned over my face. Then he lowered them, staring at his hand when he splayed it over my lower belly. “That won’t be a problem for long. I told you yesterday. We’re going to fill you full of our cum. You’ll be pregnant with a son very—”

I wrenched myself free of his hold, horrified, so desperate to get away I ran headlong into Dex, who barely budged when I crashed into him. I shoved him back, but he took hold of my biceps, gripping them tightly as he shushed me.

“Let me go.”

He shook his head, grasping both my wrists in one hand as he looped the other arm around my waist. “None of us are going to hurt you, Aria.”

“My jaw still aches from having three cocks shoved into my mouth,” I snapped. Dex frowned, and Zander moved behind me, burying his face into my hair as he encircled me with his thick arms, taking hold of my wrists so Dex could lift his hands to my jaw. His touch was hot. Almost too hot. I tried to pull back, but he shushed me again as Zander held me tighter.

“Such soft skin,” Dex murmured, his thumbs sweeping over my cheeks, the burning heat softening to a warmth that I fought not to lean into. “So, so pretty, Aleria.”

“Ar-ia.”

“Aleria is Kavarian for princess,” Dex explained. “It suits you.”

“I’m not your princess.”

“Your sister is essentially an Aralen. A queen. One of several. That’s what we call maidens after they give birth to our children. Our queens. So that makes you…” Zander kissed the shell of my ear, tracing his tongue along the edge and making me shiver. “Our princess.”

“I’m not yours.”

“But you are,” Dex cooed, and I flinched when he leaned in, his body so close it pressed me back into Zander’s broad frame. The latter kept my wrists in his hands, and Dex slid his hands from my face down my neck, his heated palms forcing my shoulders to relax. I’d been so tense that my body sagged, actually sagged, against Zander’s, and he chuckled softly while Dex smiled. “And we protect what’s ours.”

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