Page 23 of Cherished by the Sinners (Sinners Never Die #4)

Magnus

M agnus had to hold himself back from reaching for Darlene. Again.

He’d feared her reaction to the truth, to the strange horror that was their life.

He and his brother had managed to stay sane by focusing on keeping their family safe.

They’d added their employees to the safe list, which also helped.

But in recent years, Mason was having more and more trouble keeping his temper in check. He was having the same difficulty.

Then they’d met Darlene. Her refusal to look at the world with cynical despair, who looked at them with admiration and kindness, had changed their perception of life.

She’d become their center, their focus, and their reward.

If she refused them, they’d likely need to be put down by Bazyli.

The expression on her face, the raw hope, gave him the faith to keep talking.

“Yes, like you and Nika, and Sam, and Evan.”

“Oh,” she said, lowering her gaze. He’d have been worried, except a blush crept up her neck to add pink to her cheeks. “Am I a... pet, or a friend, or...”

“Are Nika, Sam, and Evan pets?” Mason asked.

She thought about it for a second. “No.”

“Neither are you,” Mason said.

“We... want you. In our lives and in our bed,” Magnus added.

“Why did you spend so much time just watching me? I thought you were just being kind, pitying the poor prostitute.”

“We were afraid of scaring you. You have been through so much abuse, and we wanted to let you set the pace of getting to know you.”

She sighed. “Well, I didn’t know that.”

Magnus looked at his brother. “We’re idiots.”

“Yes,” Mason agreed. “We are.”

Darlene giggled.

“Do you... want us, Darlene?” Magnus asked.

She stopped laughing and nodded. “You’ve been driving me crazy with your long stares and polite hellos, when what I wanted was...”

“What?” Mason asked.

She gave them a helpless shrug. “This.” She looked between the three of them. “Us.”

Magnus was afraid to believe her. The last thing he and his brother wanted to do was scare her, and if he read Mason’s face right, he was terrified of doing the same thing.

Darlene giggled again. “Okay, I see it now, that expression right there.” She pointed at them. “I thought that face meant you were determined to be kind no matter what, but that’s not it at all. You two were scared to say something.”

“It was torture to see you every morning,” Mason said. “To be close enough to touch, but holding back until you made the first move.”

“Do I still need to make the first move?” she asked.

“Yes,” said Magnus.

She leaned toward him, then stopped. “You understand that I want you equally, right?”

They nodded.

She leaned closer to Magnus, until they were just a couple of inches apart. “Kiss me,” she whispered.

Magnus swallowed hard, released her hand so he could cup her face with both of his, then gently pressed his lips to hers. Soft, gentle, safe . He repeated the words over and over in his head so he didn’t devour her. He wanted to, he wanted to taste all of her at once.

Instead, he pulled back, but Darlene sucked his bottom lip then nipped it before letting him go. The tiny prick of pain rolled through him with the power of a thunderstorm. Lightning lit up his muscles, the air around him, and his sin-filled soul.

Could he hope that she wanted him and his brother?

“Magnus,” she said with a sad little smile that made him want to conquer the world for her. “I want to feel wanted. What you just gave me was a handshake.”

Her words released him from the bonds he’d put on himself. He growled as he surged up and took her mouth with the desperation he’d been feeling since the moment he met her. Her lips parted under his, her tongue teasing his as he tasted her. She tasted so good. Like happiness and home.

She made a noise, a groan that ended in a squeak.

Magnus pulled back far enough to see that his brother hadn’t stayed idle. He’d managed to wrap his arms around her from behind so he could kiss her neck.

Had that sound been fear?

“Darlene?”

She didn’t answer.

“We can go slow,” he whispered. “You’ve been hurt enough. We won’t add to your pain.”

“Your happiness is our priority,” Mason murmured.

She was breathing hard and Magnus was sure it wasn’t all passion. Fear would likely be a foe she fought all her life.

“I think I know what to do.” She winced. “At least I think it will work.”

“What?” Magnus asked.

She looked around. “Is there a bed?”

“Yes.” Mason slid his hands around her and carried her to their bedroom like a bridegroom.

Darlene laughed when they entered. “That’s not a bed, that’s a small island.”

Magnus tried to see it from her perspective. It was large, but he and his brother were big men. “We might need a bigger one for the three of us.”

“Do you... share?” she asked.

“We have, in the past,” Mason answered. “It’s been many years since we indulged in anything... intimate.” He put her on the bed and she crawled to the middle of it.

She waved at them and smiled. “Take your clothes off.”

Magnus looked at his brother, then at Darlene. “Are you sure?”

She nodded. “I need to be in charge. At least, that’s what I think I need.”

That made sense. Magnus nodded, so did Mason.

Both men removed their suit jackets. Slowly. Then their ties, unbuttoning their shirts and shrugging them off.

Darlene’s eyes dilated and her breathing sped up again. “Wow.”

Magnus paused. “Too much?”

At his words, Mason paused as well. “Too fast?”

“No,” she said, a blush warming her cheeks. “I can’t wait to touch both of you.”

“Pants on or off?” Mason asked.

“Oh,” she breathed out, clearly uncertain.

“We are in no rush, remember?” Magnus said.

A smile lit up her face. “Right. Well, if you don’t mind, keep them on.” She patted the bed.

“One of us on either side of you?” Mason asked.

Darlene nodded.

Mason got onto the bed, while Magnus went around to the other side and did the same. They both lay down on their backs and put their hands behind their heads, as if they were lying on a beach somewhere watching clouds go by.

Darlene knelt between them, her bottom lip caught in her teeth. “I don’t know what to do first.”

“Whatever you want,” Magnus said.

“We crave your touch,” Mason added.

Darlene put her hands out and slowly lowered them until she rested them on their chests.

Her touch made Magnus shiver and catch his breath. He closed his eyes and savored the light, soft press of her hand on him. She skimmed his chest, pausing to press harder before moving on again.

Mason growled. “That tickles.”

Darlene giggled.

Magnus opened his eyes to see her flick her gaze between them, a huge smile on her face and a blush on her cheeks.

She looked pleased and with not a care in the world.

She stroked one side of the line of muscle that led down into his pants. This time it was he who growled.

“You’re not ticklish,” she said, her voice high and quick.

“No,” he answered, letting his desire for her fill his face, his voice. “I want to lick my way over your body until I get to your clit. Then I want to spend hours giving you orgasm after orgasm.”

“Yes,” Mason said. “An excellent plan.”

Somehow her blush got redder. “Can I tell you a secret?”

“Of course,” Magnus said. “We would never repeat anything you’ve told us unless you give us permission to.”

She bit her bottom lip again and Magnus had to force himself to stay still.

“I’ve never had one.”

For a moment, he couldn’t connect the dots, then his brain caught up and he had to use all his control not to swear up a storm.

“Never?” Mason asked.

She shook her head, then bowed a little so her hair covered her face.

“Darlene,” Magnus said. “Look at us.”

She raised her head and glanced between them.

“We’re identical twins,” Magnus told her.

“But we’re not entirely the same,” Mason finished.

“I know,” she said. “I can tell you apart. You have different...” she paused.

“Energies. I’m probably not making sense, but Mason, you’re so intense.

I can feel it against my skin when I stand close to you.

It’s dangerous, but it also makes me feel safe.

Magnus’s energy has a patient quality. He figures everything out before he moves.

You two are both dangerous, but for different reasons. ”

Magnus stared at her with his mouth open.

His brother did the same. “How did you—?” Mason asked.

“You have always watched me. I know, because I watch you two. I pay attention to what you do and say.”

“It took a hundred years for our family to figure that out, and you did it in a couple of months,” Magnus said.

“Your family has many responsibilities. I’m focused on you.” Darlene said.

Magnus took Darlene’s hand and brought it to his lips. “Every day I learn something new about you. Something wonderful.”

She pulled her hands away to wipe her face.

“Darlene?” Mason sat up to cup her face. “What’s wrong?”

“Nothing,” she told him with a watery laugh. “These are happy tears.”

“May I kiss you?” he asked.

She laughed again and leaned down to kiss him. Even as she hung on to his brother with her right hand, she reached back toward Magnus with her left. He curled around her, careful to stay away from her back, leaving tiny kisses all along her neck.

Darlene moaned.

Magnus let himself relax, enjoy her sunny scent and the shivers each kiss he feathered over her skin caused. The pleasure of it, the simple joy, warmed him from the inside out.

Someone knocked on the door to their suite.