Page 5

Lilith

When I get done healing myself, I go to the bathroom and clean my face. I caught it right as I got a nosebleed, but I can’t stop once I have started. It cleared up quickly, fortunately enough. I hate when I let it get that far because nosebleeds are inconvenient. I’ve managed to avoid one for months now.

I go to the dresser in my section of the closet and hide my bag underneath some clothes in the bottom drawer. I don’t suspect they will snoop, but I do a simple masking spell so that if they do open the drawer, it looks like everything else. That should last a few days, and I can just redo it before it wears off.

I bet there’s a library in this massive mansion. I’d like to take a look and see if they have any older witchcraft books. I don’t know nearly as much as I want to know, and I suspect that as their mate, it will require me to know much more. I’m going to be in the public eye a lot when the country finds out I am their mate, so I know I can’t keep the truth hidden forever. I have to be able to protect myself when they come after me.

I take a look around to make sure that I have my belongings put away. Once I confirm that everything is neat and orderly, I open the bedroom door and go downstairs.

When I get to the bottom of the stairs, Daemon, Callum, and Kael are staring at me. Callum smiles when he sees that I actually have clothes on now. I’m not used to people smiling when I have clothes on; usually it’s when I’m naked.

“Why are you all staring at me?” I frown.

“Just trying to picture what you would look like at your funeral,” Kael says flatly.

“I don’t know about that, but I can show you what you’ll look like at yours,” I smile.

“You’re obnoxious,” he says.

“And you have a stick up your ass,” I say.

“What do you want for dinner?” Daemon asks.

“Why are you asking me? It’s your house. I’m just the maiden,” I say.

“What do you want, Lilith?” he asks again as he stands up.

“I’m fine with whatever you three want me to cook,” I say.

“Why would you cook?” he asks.

“Because I’m the maiden,” I say, furrowing my eyebrows. “Are you new to this?”

“Lilith, you have one job as a maiden, and that is to come when we fuck you. You are also our mate, so you do not cook, and you do not clean. You get to just sit there and look pretty while we fuck you,” Daemon says with a sultry tone that makes my insides melt. He stops walking when he gets within a few inches of me. “Think you can manage that, witch?”

“Yes, sir,” I breathe. Fuck, why does he have to look at me like that? Sex has never been anything more than a job to me; it’s just something that I do. Sometimes, I enjoy it, and other times I’m bored out of my mind while some sweaty man grunts in my ear telling me how my pussy is the best fox pussy they’ve ever had. If they knew it was just because I’m a witch, they’d choke my ass out on the spot. After they finished, of course. They always get theirs, come hell or high water.

“What do you want to eat, Lilith?” Daemon asks again. His face is inches from mine, and I can’t breathe.

“I’m not hungry,” I whisper.

Right as he opens his mouth to say something, my stomach betrays me and growls loudly, begging for sustenance. Daemon narrows his eyes, and a smile creeps onto my face.

“What. Do. You. Want? If I have to ask you one more time, I’m going to take you into that kitchen and feed you something myself. What do you want for dinner, Lilith?”

“You don’t have to go all the way to the kitchen to do that, Daemon,” I say with a sweet smile, and Callum laughs.

“Gods, you’re going to be a handful,” Daemon says with a sigh as he rubs his forehead.

“I’ve had the same meal three times a day for five years, Daemon. I don’t know,” I say softly. “I can cook anything you want, but I don’t remember what anything tastes like.”

“What?” Kael says, frowning.

“Not torturous enough for you?” I ask with an attitude.

“What did you eat then?” Daemon asks.

“Uhm. It’s almost like oatmeal, but no flavor,” I say. “I learned how to make it into something like a granola bar so I could eat and clean.”

“Maidens aren’t required to clean,” Callum says.

“It was that or get passed around the pack like an offering plate at church, so I opted to clean. I could handle Zypher letting the pack do all that to me once a month, but daily would be something from a nightmare. If I wasn’t cleaning or hiding, he was fucking me,” I say.

“Hiding?” Daemon asks.

“Well. I was not really hiding. My magia is nature-oriented. Sitting in the sun helps me feel closer to nature,” I say. “Look, it’s not a big deal. Zypher was intense, but I handled him just fine.”

“How about this?” Callum says as he walks up to us. “Go sit on the side patio, and we will make dinner. That’s the last place the house gets sunlight, so go be with nature, or whatever, and we will be out there after a while.”

“Okay,” I smile. “How do I get out there? This house is massive, so I will get lost if you don’t give me directions.”

“You’re a witch. Can’t you just get directions?” Kael asks sarcastically.

“What do I look like to you… MapQuest? That’s not how magic works, Kael,” I say. Daemon and Callum chuckle and shake their heads at me.

“I’ll show you,” Callum says, motioning for me to walk with him. I trail behind him happily, and he leads me into the kitchen. We step out of a sliding glass door onto the patio, and he points for me to sit.

“Thank you,” I say.

“You’re welcome,” he says. “Don’t leave this patio, okay?”

“I won’t,” I say.

“The grounds are expansive, and if you don’t know where you are going, you’ll get lost,” he says.

“I’ve got it. Don’t run away,” I say as I sit down.

“It’s not about if you run away,” he says. “I’d rather you not get mauled by an actual bear out there.”

“Are you not an actual bear, Callum?” I ask with a smile.

“Stay on the patio, Lilith,” he says with a smirk.

“Yes, sir,” I smile and sit back in my chair. Callum pauses for a second before walking back inside and shutting the door behind him.

I close my eyes and bask in the evening sunlight. I soak up all of the warmth and remaining sunlight that I can. I haven’t been able to sit out in the sun in a few days. I miss the feeling. I am hoping the sun comes in the window beside my bed the way I think it will. It would be wonderful to wake up with the sunlight pouring into the room and shining on me every morning.

Living with Zypher, my room was essentially the darkest in the house all day long. It was depressing, so I didn’t spend much time in there, and I didn’t want anyone fucking me in my bed, so staying out of there meant no one had the chance. If I fell asleep on the couch reading, I would always wake up to Zypher being inside of me. When he would notice that I was awake, he’d shove my face into the couch cushion and power-fuck me for at least an hour. It is not fun cleaning come off of that couch. Sometimes, I’d catch him before he’d push my face down and get him to move me to my knees in front of the couch.

I am interested to see how things are with Daemon, Callum, and Kael. Kael, I already know is going to hate-fuck me, and I am here for it. He hates me, and I hate him, so we can bond over that. Well, I don’t hate Kael, but he does piss me off. I am going to push every single button that he has until he breaks. Maybe if he fucks me, he will chill out a bit.

Daemon and Callum are a mystery to me. They’re either extremely tame or extremely feral. There will be no in-between. My gut is telling me that all three are going to be overwhelmingly intense, and honestly, I can’t wait. I like the intensity of sex, which is why when Morwen attempted to hurt me, it made me come. It takes a lot for me to get there, or maybe I’m insane and need someone to try and hurt me for me to get off. I don’t pay it any mind, though. It doesn’t really matter what I am into and what I am not into. I won’t complain if the guys fit the mold of the overwhelming intensity that gets me there. At least, it will make me forget that they don’t want me here if they make me come every time they fuck me.

As I am sitting here, I sense a presence around me. A presence that I’m convinced is trying to call out to me. It’s as if I can almost hear it, but there’s no sound. I snap my eyes open to look around but find nothing. When I try to close my eyes again, I get the same feeling. I scan my surrounding area again to still find nothing.

“Ready to eat?” Daemon says as he, Callum, and Kael come out to sit with me at the table.

“Yeah,” I say happily. “It smells good. What is it?”

“It’s just a roast with a cream sauce. Also, a salad, because you look like the type.” Callum says.

“The type of person who eats more than just meat? Yeah, I guess I am,” I laugh.

“That surprises you that we eat a lot of meat?” Daemon asks, raising an eyebrow.

“No. Not at all. I cooked for everyone when I lived with Zypher. All shifters eat a lot of meat. I am more surprised that you all can cook,” I say as I take a bite of the roast. Explosions of flavor go off in my mouth and tingles dance across my skin as the flavor of the beef and the richness of the sauce mingle together, perfectly. I groan in approval of the food, and they all laugh.

“I assume that means you like it,” Daemon says, grinning.

“Oh, my Gods. Yes,” I say. “This is amazing.”

“Kael made it,” Callum says.

“Should I be worried that mine’s been poisoned?” I ask Kael.

“Only a little,” he says with a smirk. “Ya know… for flavor.”

“If I die… I die,” I say as I take another bite. For the first time since I met him, Kael smiles and it is genuine. I am silent while we eat, but the guys are talking about how to handle the fact that they are mated to a witch. Even if they want me around, it will cause an uproar if they didn’t kill me, but then all hell would break loose if they did.

For now, it’s best we just keep to ourselves, and everyone just sees me as a maiden, until we know how everyone will react at least. They talk as though they want me to stay, but Kael has made it clear that he doesn’t want me here. I’m not sure what to think anymore. They are so hot and cold with their words and actions. Realistically, they need a mate. They’re almost thirty-six years old and most have been married to their mate for a decade already. Although we haven’t had a mated queen in generations. I don’t know why they didn’t just look for their mate; for me, I suppose. They also took everything over at just nineteen, when their fathers died. I’m not sure what the story with their mothers is, though.

When I finish eating, I sit back in my chair with my eyes closed and enjoy the last few minutes of sunlight while they all talk. I sense the presence again, only it’s louder now. My eyes fly open, and I look around to try and find the source. At first, I don’t see anything but a small figure darts through my vision toward the garden. When it stops at the entrance, I see that it’s a soft, whitish gray, will-o-wisp. It is floating about three feet off the ground, and I can sense the warmth emanating from it. Looking at it makes me feel like I am being hugged by sunshine. It’s almost… nurturing.

I jump up from my chair so fast that it tips back and crashes to the concrete. “What in the hell is wrong with you?” Kael asks.

“Do you see that?” I ask, pointing to the Will-o-wisp.

“See what?” Callum asks as he stands up and turns to see what I am looking at.

“That,” I say, pointing to it.

“No. There is nothing there, Lilith,” he says with concern in his tone.

“Oh, great,” Kael says. “Our mate is a witch and crazy.” I ignore his remark and walk toward the wisp. The closer I get, the more it moves down the garden path. “Where the fuck do you think you are going?” Kael says as he grabs my arm, but I jerk away from him and step off the patio.

“Lilith,” Daemon barks at me. Normally, I would respond and comply, but I need to follow this thing. It wants me to follow it.

I continue to ignore them and take a few more steps, keeping my eyes focused on the wisp. It’s been trying to get my attention; I just couldn’t see it while it was still light out. “Lilith,” Kael growls at me.

“I have to follow it,” I say, still watching it.

“I swear to God, if you run, I will catch you and kill you myself,” Kael says with clear anger in his voice.

A smile grows on my face, and I turn slightly to look at him. “Here, kitty kitty,” I say as I tut at him, calling to him as you would a pet. Callum bursts out laughing, but Kael instantly shifts into his panther and takes slow, steady, quiet steps toward me. “Oh fuck!”

“I’d run if I were you,” Daemon smirks.

I turn and sprint toward the garden and the wisp takes off before I can get to it. I know Kael is on my heels because I can feel him close by. The garden is like a maze, but the wisp leads me through each turn. It doesn’t get too far ahead of me, so I know it’s wanting me to follow. It’s going fast enough that Kael doesn’t pounce on me.

When I start to sense that he is about to catch me, the wisp cuts through a bush and I leap over it, throwing Kael off. When I hear him growl, I know that he almost caught me.

The wisp continues to lead me through the winding pathway when suddenly everything opens up at the back of the garden. The wisp moves towards the direction of the woods, and now I know all three men are coming after me. I sense that Callum has shifted but he isn’t quiet with his chase. If Daemon had shifted, I’d already be caught. When I step into the woods, I hear Kael growl again.

Everything is wide open as the wisp leads me down a path that’s already been cut out into the otherwise dense woods. When I enter a massive field with a building in the center, I abruptly stop. What the fuck is this place? The stone building looks like it’s the oldest thing on this property.

I realize just then that I have forgotten I’m being chased, right as Kael tackles me to the ground. He is no longer shifted, but he is certainly pissed . He places his large hand between my shoulder blades and pushes me into the soft earth, as his other hand rips off my shorts and underwear from me. His aggressive approach causes me to gasp. I want to fight him just as much as I want him to win. I want him to take me in these woods right here, right now. I am not his maiden and I am not just some witch he hates. I am his mate; his queen.

Kael pulls me up to my knees and surges into me, stretching me beyond anything I have ever felt. A scream naturally tears from my throat and I claw at the dirt, as he ruthlessly pounds into me. I can feel the barbs on his cock dig into me. I try to pull away to test his hold on me and he is locked inside of me. When I try to pull away, the pain brings waves of pleasure over me. “Never run from me again,” Kael growls in my ear as he tightens his grip to stop me from moving. “You never run from your mate. Do you understand me, witch?”

“Yes,” I moan. “Oh, Gods. Yes.” Pleasure is powerfully punching through my gut, and everything feels warm as he ruthlessly fucks me into the dirt. Every inch of my body feels electrified, and my moans are ragged. I tighten my muscles and push back against him, needing more of him. He snarls and pulls out of me. Right as I am about to curse him for stopping, he lies down and pulls me over top of him. I’m growing impatient waiting for him to slam back into me, so I take the initiative and force him back inside of me, earning a moan as he tightens his grip on my waist.

I sense Callum is close right as he fists my hair, yanking my head back to look at him. Kael starts to thrust into me again with enough force to make my insides ache beautifully. Callum grabs me by the throat while Kael keeps his tight hold on me. He keeps our eyes locked as he slams into my ass with as much force as he can conjure up and I immediately start to come. My body is tense, and I am digging my nails into Kael’s forearms as they fuck me. All of these sensations are building to an even stronger peak. Just as a blinding pulse of energy bursts out of me, Callum presses his lips to mine and kisses me hard. I bring one hand up to meet his face as they draw the remainder of my orgasm from me. Both men moan and pump into me faster as they fill me with their come.

When Callum pulls out of me, Kael grabs my face and pulls me down to his chest. “Don’t ever run into these woods again without us. You could have gotten hurt.”