Page 39 of Brutal Reign (Shadowed Heirs #5)

39

S parring with Ace is always top tier. I have no idea how we were lucky enough to be paired together for this morning’s training exercises, but you won’t hear any complaints from me. I’m thoroughly enjoying every second of it.

When the other recruits spar against me, they typically fall in one of two camps. They either hold back because they’re scared, or they go all out, bound and determined to prove that they can go toe to toe with an Alpha. Either way, the involvement of emotion makes their technique sloppy, never presenting a real challenge. On the flipside, Ace isn’t afraid of me, and he’s got nothing to prove. He’s as skilled as I am and matches me blow for blow.

He just landed a solid kick that almost took me down. Almost . I stumbled, but I didn’t fall, recovering quickly enough to go back on the offensive. My Beta grins in morbid delight as I launch myself toward him, winding up to strike.

I land a punch to his ribcage, but strangely, I’m the one who feels a hit of pain. Not anywhere on my body that I can pinpoint, but deep in my chest, almost like it’s coming from…

Ace and I both freeze, exchange a look before simultaneously jerking our heads in River’s direction and taking off when we see that she’s down on the ground. She’s clutching her outer thigh, the sight of blood seeping between her fingers immediately sending my wolf into a panic. He shoves forward, clawing at my mental barriers as Ace and I rush across the field to get to our mate.

We’re not the only ones. The other recruits are already drifting toward her to see what’s going on, the squad leaders snapping into action. Ares crouches down beside River to assess her injury while Archer questions Nate Hines, her sparring partner, about what happened.

I already wasn’t happy they were paired together to spar, but if he contributed to causing her injury, I’ll show him no mercy.

“She fell on that branch,” Nate pants as he points to a stick on the ground, the sharp edge of it stained crimson.

“Must’ve come down in the storm over the weekend,” Archer mutters, bending to pick it up.

“Shit, this is bleeding pretty bad,” Ares grumbles to River, using the hem of his t-shirt to smear the blood away so he can examine her wound properly. “Must be deep. You’d better get it checked out at the infirmary.”

“We’ll take her,” I cut in as Ace and I make our approach, shoving past the other recruits to get to our girl.

Ares glances up at me as he slides an arm around River’s waist and helps her to her feet. “I’ve got it, you guys should stay and train,” he replies curtly.

“Get your hands off my mate, Raines,” I warn, folding my arms over my chest and staring him down.

He immediately yanks his hands away from her body, rolling his eyes as he lifts them in surrender. “Easy, bro, I’m just trying to help. If you wanna take her, then be my guest.”

“I’m fine,” River grits out, trying to play tough like usual– but judging by the steady flow of blood trickling down her thigh, she’s not fine. If it were just a superficial wound, it’d already be healing. It must be a lot deeper than it appears.

“Better safe than sorry,” I grumble as I step closer, scooping her up into my arms before she can protest any further. With one arm behind her back and the other beneath her legs, I carry her like a bride toward the doors to the complex, Ace jogging ahead to pull one of them open for us to enter.

“I’m not going to the infirmary,” River insists as I carry her over the threshold.

“The fuck you’re not,” I snort.

“Seb, stop,” she huffs, squirming in my grip. “Put me down!”

Though I grind to a halt, I keep my grip firm, refusing to let her go. “You need to get checked out,” I say sternly, not taking no for an answer.

Her dark hair swishes around her face as she shakes her head adamantly. “No, I don’t . It’s not serious, it just needs time to heal.”

“Then you can give it time in the infirmary,” I growl.

“ I can’t, ” she hisses, her eyes widening in panic as she fists the front of my t-shirt.

“What’s wrong with your shifter healing, Riv?” Ace interjects. Though it’s posed as a question, his low, monotonic voice is eerily calm, as if he already knows the answer.

She whips her head around to look at him, her throat bobbing as she swallows thickly. “Sometimes it’s just a little slow,” she rasps. “I’m not sure if it’s because my wolf isn’t fully integrated, or because I repress her so much, but I’ll heal if I give it time. It has to be away from prying eyes, though, or else…” she trails off before finishing her thought, but both Ace and I understand the implication. Her troubles with her wolf are a well-guarded secret. If it were to fall into the wrong hands, especially right before the challenge, the consequences could be dire.

We exchange a long glance, Ace stepping aside as I start forward again.

“Hey, where are you…” River starts to protest, snapping her mouth shut when I hook a left into the recruit barracks. We won’t force her to go to the infirmary, but you bet your ass we’ll be by her side until she’s healed. Striding down the aisle of bunks, I head for the open door to the lounge at the end, careful not to jostle her too much as I begin ascending the stairs.

The lounge is as empty as the barracks below, and I settle River onto one of the big couches in front of the TV, Ace swooping in to tend to her wound. He evidently grabbed a towel from the locker room along the way, and he starts right in on getting River cleaned up, pulling her over onto his lap and gently wiping the blood away from the gash on her thigh.

“Maybe repressing your wolf is preventing you from integrating,” I murmur as I watch Ace work, hating that I can’t be of more use myself. This is his wheelhouse– he’s always been so damn tender with Riv. I’m just a fucking brute.

“That’s the reason I repress her, because she won’t integrate,” she huffs, wincing as Ace applies pressure to her injured leg.

“Well maybe initially, but have you tried lately?” I question.

River cuts me a glare, narrowing her eyes. “You think I haven’t tried everything possible to try to integrate?”

“You haven’t tried sealing your mate bonds,” I grit out, gaze flickering to Ace’s hand rubbing soothing circles against River’s back. “Have you thought about who you’re going to try to bond with first? Because ordinarily, if a wolf is already bonded, that’s it. One and done.”

She purses her lips, squinting up at me. “Isn’t the whole point of having two bonds not having to choose?”

My jaw tightens as I stare back at her. What she’s not saying is that if it came down to it, she’d pick Ace. Looking at the two of them now– how comfortable she is on his lap, how attentive he’s being to her needs– it’s clear that he’s the obvious choice.

“Not if you can’t seal both,” I murmur.

River flinches back, scrunching her nose. “Why are you being like this?”

“Like what?” I scoff, stuffing my hands in my pockets and lifting my chin. “I’m just pointing out the obvious, babe.”

“You’re being a dick.”

I roll my eyes, glancing toward the door. “Whatever,” I grumble. “Ace clearly has this handled, so I guess I’ll just head back out there and deal with Nate. He needs to be taught a lesson about what happens when he fucks with what’s mine.”

“The hell you are!” River objects, her plush lips twisting in a scowl. “It was an accident, and even if it wasn’t, what’d I tell you about letting me fight my own battles?”

I swing my gaze back on her, throwing up my hands. “If I can’t protect you, then what good am I to you?” I snarl. “Ace is the nurturer, I’m the protector. But if you won’t let me do that, then maybe you don’t really need me at all.”

Her hazel eyes widen in shock, copper flecks shimmering to the surface. “Where is this coming from?” she asks, her voice wavering.

I don’t even know. Maybe it’s the pressure of everyone knowing about this bond now that it’s out in the open, paired with the uncertainty of whether it can even work. Or maybe it’s the realization that for the first time, I’m so jealous of my best friend that I can’t even fucking see straight.

“Hey look, it’s healing,” Ace interjects, and my eyes ping down to River’s thigh as he lifts the blood-stained towel from her skin. It’s knitted itself back together, the wound sealing over. “Good thinking, Seb, riling up her wolf worked,” he declares, as if there was some ulterior motive behind my downward spiral.

I stare at the way he’s gripping her thigh, my eyes glazing over as his fingers flex around it reassuringly.

“Yeah? I know another way to get her wolf riled up,” I mutter, leaning in and snatching River by the wrist. Pulling her up off his lap, I yank her body into mine, a little puff of air escaping her lips as our chests collide. The moment she lifts her chin to look up at me in question, I dive down and crush my lips against hers, swallowing her little gasp of surprise.

“Hey, don’t be rough,” Ace protests.

Flipping him the bird with one hand, I sink the other into the back of River’s silky dark hair, pulling her in even closer and licking against the seam of her lips in demand. She opens for me with a soft moan, her arms sliding up to loop around my neck and her tongue gliding against mine.

Even in the face of my aggression, she gives as good as she gets. River always meets my fire with a blaze of her own, and I’ve quickly become addicted to the burn. Twisting my fingers in the strands of her hair, I tighten my grip and pull her head back, our lips parting with a wet pop. She blinks up at me breathlessly, her eyes clouded with lust.

“She likes it rough, don’t you, Riv?” I drawl, drinking in her dazed expression. Even if I couldn’t scent her arousal right now, just one look tells me all I need to know. She’s putty in my hands. I may not be able to pull off the sweet and tender shit that Ace does, but I can make her come so hard she forgets all about her injury. Not so expendable now, am I?

Sliding one hand down to grip around River’s hip, I tuck my thumb beneath the waistband of her shorts, rubbing it back and forth over her soft skin. “Take these off and bend over the couch.”

“ Seb ,” Ace warns.

“What?” I scoff, flickering him an annoyed glance. “Our girl doesn’t want to be treated like she’s breakable right now, she wants to get fucked. Hard .” My eyes bounce back to hers. “Don’t you?”

Her lips pop open on a soft gasp, those hazel eyes turning molten as she slides her arms from around my neck and trails her fingertips down my chest. “You talk a big game, Walker,” she breathes, leaning in to brush her lips against mine as she grabs my hard dick through my athletic shorts. “Let’s see if you can back it up.”

I grunt as she tightens her grip, then releases it, bringing her hands to her hips and shoving her shorts down. They hit the floor with her panties, her eyes never leaving mine as she steps out of them and struts over to the side of the couch, bending over the armrest and wiggling her pert little ass tauntingly.

Fuck, this girl is gonna be the death of me. Leave it to River Jacobsen to meet my challenge with one of her own, leaving me with no choice other than to follow through; to show her exactly what I have to offer that Ace can’t. She may like it when he’s sweet and gentle, but she also loves it when I’m rough and unforgiving.

Stripping off my shorts and shirt along the way, I prowl over to take my place behind my girl, swatting her bare ass with an open palm. “Even Alphas can submit, right baby?” I murmur, gripping my cock as I step in closer to drag the tip through her slick folds.

She whips me a glare over her shoulder in response to my taunt, hissing in a breath through her teeth as I start rubbing the head of my dick against her clit. Then I drag it back up to press against her back hole, her body clenching instinctively.

“Maybe I should fuck this tight little ass of yours,” I muse. “You think I’ll fit?”

Ace clears his throat, and I glance up to find him watching River’s face intently, squeezing his dick through his gym shorts. “Need lube for that,” he chokes out, the muscle in his neck straining as his eyes flicker up to meet mine. “She wants it, but you should make it good for her.”

“Fair point,” I sigh, sliding back down to line up at the hole I’m already well-acquainted with. “Next time.”

River cries out as I snap my hips forward, burying myself to the hilt in her tight heat. Her inner walls flutter around me, gripping my shaft like a damn vise as my eyes roll back and a groan slips from my throat. Her pussy is too damn good. It fits me like a glove, strangling my cock as I drag out and thrust back in even deeper.

“Fuck, Seb!” River gasps, going boneless against the arm of the couch as I set a savage pace, fucking her like I’ve got something to prove.

“Use her mouth, Ace,” I grit out as I piston my hips. “Our dirty little mate needs to be stuffed full of cock.”

“Is that what you want, babygirl?” Ace drawls, shoving a hand into the front of his shorts as he rises up on his knees and shuffles closer. “You want me to fuck your throat while he fucks your pussy?”

She responds by opening wide and sticking out her tongue, Ace’s pupils blowing wide at her silent invitation. He yanks his hard cock out of his shorts, shifting closer and guiding the tip to her waiting mouth, slapping it against her tongue.

River seals her lips around his shaft, hollowing out her cheeks to suck him into her mouth as I continue railing her from behind, forcing her to swallow him deeper with every hard thrust.

“Fuck,” Ace chokes, grabbing a fistful of her hair. “That feels so damn good, babygirl,” he praises, using his hold on the strands to guide her mouth over his cock. “Look at how well you take both of us. You’re such a good girl for us, aren’t you, Riv? Our perfect little mate.”

I feel the way she responds to his praise, her pussy getting even slicker with desire, muscles slackening in surrender. Sinking my fingers into the flesh of her ass cheeks, I find a new rhythm, alternating my thrusts with Ace’s. I drive forward when he draws back, the two of us working in tandem to satisfy our mate while chasing our own pleasure.

“Rub her clit,” Ace directs, meeting my eyes. “Make our girl come.”

As much as I don’t want to take orders right now, pleasing the goddess beneath me takes priority over my own selfish pride. Which is why I don’t hesitate to shove a hand between her hip and the arm of the couch, my fingertips meeting her center to dance against her swollen clit.

She moans around Ace’s cock as I work her up, the two of us still moving in perfect synchronicity as we fuck her from both ends. It isn’t long before she’s coming undone, gushing all over my cock and setting off a chain reaction. I bury myself deep as I explode, Ace grunting as he, too, finds release.

It’s so intense that everything’s a little hazy after that. Somehow, we all wind up in a pile on the couch, River’s head resting against my chest and her thighs stretched over Ace’s lap. Moments like this are when I have no doubts over whether the bond can work between the three of us. We’re all completely in sync, our hearts beating as one.

The two of them seem to trust fate wholeheartedly when it comes to this bond.

I wish I could have the same faith they do.