Page 22 of Emergence of Fire
“It’s not all gone,” Gale says to her. She looks at him for a moment as he pulls something from his back pocket and hands it to her. Cordelia removes her hand from his and stares down at what he has given her.
“How did you get this?” She asks, her thumb strokes the picture reverently and a small smile graces her face, making her eyes light up.
“I took it off the wall in the sitting room when we were rushing to get out before Thaddeus descended on the house,” he says in reply. Torin and I both look at Gale, we both nod in appreciation for what he’d done. At the time I thought he was being ridiculous wasting time to get a photo off the wall while our enemies were at the door. Now, even though it was just a small gesture, her face says it means the world.
“It’s not much. I only wish—” He doesn’t get to finish as Cordelia leans over, then wraps her arms around him, hugging him tight. She doesn’t hesitate to put her lips to his. Gale’s eyes go wide from the contact then he relaxes as she kisses him sweetly. I don’t think he expected her to kiss him, but by the way he smiles against her lips, he is enjoying it. She breaks the kiss and pulls away, taking Gale's hand in hers, pulling it into her lap. Cordelia holds the picture tight in her other hand, not wanting to put it down.
“Thank you. You don’t know how much this means,” she whispers and lifts Gale's hand and kisses it. Her smile lingers just a few moments longer before she puts the picture in her pocket.
She sighs and looks down, as if in defeat for a moment then gathers herself and her thoughts. “Nothing about my life was actually true. My parents didn’t die the way I was told. My aunt is not my aunt. My parents were murdered.” She pauses again. She looks at Torin, then at me, her free hand rubs up and down her leg nervously. I can tell she is struggling with her thoughts. I want to tell her we understand but I know that it won’t help console her right now. She just needs us to listen. Sometimes you have to say it out loud, get it off your chest, so you can accept what has happened and move on. Easier said than done. I can’t say I’ve applied this sage wisdom to myself. Maybe I should. I think about all that I have lost, my mother and sister taken from me at such a young age. The rage I have always held on to as I remember them being slaughtered in front of me. I think about how I am still angry and how it has shaped the man I am today. I have never really come to terms with my own shit.
"Then there’s you three. I don’t know what I’m going to do with three mates. But here we are. I feel more than just a connection now. I feel everything. I was so eager to see you and it was like a dream seeing you all flying high in the sky as you approached me. I could feel her, and for a moment.” She points to her chest and continues, “I thought if I let go, she would take over and I would shift.” We all share a look, but she doesn’t ask us to explain. She twists her hands in her lap and looks down for a moment. It is almost out of character for the woman we just met. “How can I be a queen when I can't be the queen?”
She looks down again, taking a deep breath before she looks around at us and continues, “Am I broken? I felt your emotion when I touched you. I felt your apprehension, your anger, and your excitement among other things.” She points to us individually. “Maybe I’m thinking too much about it, but I feel as if you were waiting for me to shift as well. So why didn’t I?” She looks at Torin, directing her last question at him.
“We think you need a few more days in a realm that isn’t suppressing your magic to see what will happen. We need to give you time to adjust. Until then, we will take you out and shift to see if it will trigger her. Your magic has evolved, you can reach for it like no one else of our kind can. I am sure with a little help from Twyla you will be able to call it forth at will.”
I look at him in surprise, he didn’t share that with us earlier. Cordelia hangs on Torin’s every word. She needs reassurance that everything will be ok. She is trying her hardest to be strong, but it is clearly overwhelming her. No one would be able to go through what she has and say that everything is fine. They would by lying.
“You are not broken.” Torin stands and closes the distance between them. He leans over her, bracing his arms on either side of her body. The energy in the room immediately shifts. Her breath catches at his closeness. I quirk my eyebrow at Gale as we share a look with each other. Cordelia doesn’t move, as if she is waiting for Torin to make the first move. I can feel her warring emotions through our bond, she needs a distraction and if this is going where I think it is, I am all for it.
“We won’t let you fall, sweetheart. This is new territory for us all. We will protect you.” His lips brush over hers gently as he teases her. “I promise you that everything will happen when it’s supposed to.” He runs the tip of his nose across her cheek and she practically chases his lips. Torin pulls back and she groans. “We can’t give back what you’ve lost but we will spend the rest of our lives building something new for all of us. For our Realm.” Cordelia reaches up and grabs Torin around the neck, holding him still. She locks eyes with him, searching for the truth of his words, and when she finds what she seeks there, she pulls him towards her, their lips crashing in a brutal kiss. I shift in my seat.
I am rock fucking hard right now.
CHAPTEREIGHTEEN
GALE
Well, I am going to be honest. I didn’t see that coming. I love a woman who isn’t afraid to take what she needs from a man. In this case three men. I watch Adrian shift in his seat at the scene playing out next to me. Cordelia moans into Torin’s mouth as he devours hers. I can’t take my eyes off them as she writhes underneath him. I go to stand for a better view but Cordelia’s hand shoots out lightning fast to hold me in place. Damn, she’s getting stronger that’s for sure. She pulls her mouth away from Torin, her lips swollen from the force of their kiss, panting to catch her breath.
“Stay.” She looks at me, then leans over to look at Adrian. Torin doesn’t stop his ministrations as he kisses down her neck, sucking and biting his way down her body. Cordelia moans, her need scents the air, and my dick strains against my zipper, making me groan.
“Oh, gorgeous, I couldn’t leave you if I tried.” I lean over her, wasting not a second as I kiss her. Our tongues dance together in a slow languid kiss as I swallow her moans. I watch Torin out of the corner of my eyes, his breathing is heavy, by the look in his eyes his Dragon is not far from the surface, he tracks every sound and every move she makes as his fingers tease her pussy through the seam of her jeans. Adrian joins him, bringing Cordelia’s legs up to his thigh and slowly unlaces her combat boots. The sounds of her boots hitting the floor, and her zipper being pulled down only spurs me on. Cordelia’s hands tangle in my hair pulling me closer, the top half of my body draped over hers.
“What do you need from us, Cordelia?” Adrian’s question has me breaking our kiss, his voice sounds deeper, and huskier with desire. Cordelia’s pupils are blown, her hair has worked its way out of her hair tie, and her lips are colored like cherries, red and delicious. Shit, she tastes like them too.
“I need to forget,” she pleads. As if we would deny her anything. “Just for a moment, I just want to feel. I want to feel everything.”
“What do you want to feel?” Torin finally speaks as he tugs her tight jeans and panties down her legs and tosses them across the room. Adrian smirks at the question because he knows Torin is winding her up, making her focus on her pleasure and nothing else. Naked from the waist down Torin steps between her legs and she wets her lips in anticipation.
“Three dicks.” She raises up on her elbows and pushes herself from underneath me, giving herself space to move up the bed. “I want to feel three big ass dicks.” She smiles playfully, biting her bottom lip and we all groan in unison. She waits for our reaction. If she wants all three of us, then we will oblige. “If you keep teasing me, I will have no choice but to please myself while you watch. Time is ticking boys; we have a dinner to go to and I am going to need at least three orgasms to get me through a public engagement.” She smiles, spreading her legs for us and I stare, I’m mesmerized by how wet she is.
“She said at least three.” I look over to my brothers and jump off the bed leaving a trail of my clothes behind me. They both nod in understanding as they follow suit. Cordelia watches us, taking in our bodies for the first time, and by the way she’s rubbing her thighs together I think she likes what she sees. She sheds her shirt and bra, tossing them to the floor and immediately starts playing with her nipples as she waits for us. I try not to come prematurely from the vision of her laying naked in the middle of the bed teasing her own body in preparation for us.
“You are a fucking wet dream, Cordelia.” Adrian growls as he joins her on the bed. Cordelia instantly takes charge and climbs on his lap and straddles him. She takes his face in her hands and she kisses his lips softly.
“I can feel your love for me, Adrian.” She grinds her hips down on his cock and he groans. I can’t help but stare in shock at how she has taken control of this situation. I look over at Torin as he crawls up behind her until his body is pressed up against hers. He begins to stroke his cock while his fingers trace lazy circles on her ass. Cordelia moans in approval. I stand beside the bed waiting with my dick in my hands, and my balls aching for release.
“I can’t deny it, Cordelia. We’ve always loved you, even when we thought we’d lost you forever. Here you are, beautiful, independent, and strong, and it’s fucking hot as shit that you know exactly what you want.” She leans forward and kisses him again, reaching down between her legs she grabs Adrian’s cock and he hisses at the contact. She lines herself up and sinks down, slowly, until he fills her to the hilt. Both their heads fall back with a moan. The connection between us intensifies. I can feel her pleasure and it’s intoxicating. Torin grabs Cordelia around the neck, turning her face toward him as he claims her mouth. She raises up slightly and slams back down on Adrian’s cock, rolling her hips as she takes what she needs from him.
“Fuck,” Adrian calls out as he grabs her hips spreading her legs wider, pulling her deeper. Skin slapping together and moans echo around the room. The mingling scents of musk, lavender, and sweat fill the air and it’s intoxicating. I pull my cock harder, willing myself not to come. Adrian raises up into a seated position and takes her nipple into his mouth, sucking hard, then biting down, causing Cordelia to break her kiss off with Torin.
“Yes! Adrian,” she shouts. The scene before me is so erotic I am stroking my dick in time with each thrust. Before I come all over my hands, I join the three of them on the bed.
“Gale, come closer.” Cordelia barely gets out as Torin pushes her forward, causing Adrian to fall back onto the bed. He grabs her ass and spreads her cheeks, swirling his tongue around her asshole, and she whimpers and gasps. Holy shit, this just keep getting better and better. Cordelia is panting and breathless from the sensation, and it is glorious to see her come apart.
“Have you ever had this pretty ass of yours taken, Cordelia?” He bends forward and bites her ear as he waits for her reply.
