The Claiming. Justin felt the same. The urge to complete the bonds had been nagging in the back of his mind since the day he saw her for the very first time. For every Azurian chatharnak, the rite of their adulthood wouldn’t be complete until they officially claimed their mate. “Mother has arranged the preparation for the rite. Once we return, we could…”
There was a knock on the door and before Justin could answer, it burst open and Anna’s smiling face emerged. “We’re back!”
Justin’s mouth fell open when he saw their mate’s new dress. She had left with Ralph earlier wearing a simple tee and jeans, and now Anna was wrapped in a French maid outfit. The black bustier wrapped the sheer peasant blouse underneath deliciously, and the short frock barely covered her ass when she walked. The black lacy stockings she wore contrasted against her creamy pale skin. The outfit came with a frilly apron and matching headdress. Suddenly, Justin felt his cock hardening.
Anna put the shopping bags on the floor. She strutted towards Matt and gave him a kiss on the cheek. He was also as speechless as Justin was. She then came to him and also gave him a peck on his cheek.
“Like it?” Anna flaunted her outfit. “We were passing a costume store on the way back and we couldn’t resist playing dress up.”
Ralph closed the door. He had dressed in a three-piece pinstripe suit with a cane and a high hat. “I’m supposed to be a nineteenth century wealthy businessman and the lovely Anna is my personal maid.”
“Ralph, you look like a pimp,” Matt noted with a snort.
“I might be, but my maid is hot.” Ralph took a seat in a chair with exaggeration. He snapped his fingers and drawled in a false British accent, “I am fatigued from the long walk. Mademoiselle, fetch me a cup of tea, would you?”
Anna curtsied. “Yes, sir.” She giggled and sauntered to the kitchenette in the adjoining room. Her curvy hips swayed deliciously as she walked and the short frock offered a glimpse of the white panties she wore.
Matt hissed. “Screw Azura. I want her now.”
Ralph gave him a funny look. “We can’t claim her here. The magic—”
“Still valid if we take her home before midnight,” Justin interjected. He didn’t think he could wait until Azura to claim their mate properly. According to Azurian law, once the exchange of liquid lust between the bonded mates was initiated and the joining commenced, a chatharnak had six hours to bring his human bride home so his mate would be granted a long lifespan just like most Netherfolks were.
“In that case.” Ralph took off his hat and shrugged out of his long-tailed coat. “I have special things in mind for my pretty maid.”
* * * *
Anna waited for the water in the kettle to boil. She caught her reflection in the cabinet’s glass and grinned. The past few days had been the happiest times she had experienced in years. No more Koleniskov and the syndicate. No more living under false pretence and guilt. She was reunited with her father, found her true mates, and the prospect of her future couldn’t have been brighter.
So, the men she ended up with weren’t entirely human, and after midnight, she would never see the world she knew ever again? She had decided it wasn’t a big deal. Anna wouldn’t miss it. Her old life had never been kind anyway. Besides, Azura sounded like a whole new adventure. Spending the rest of her life with Justin, Matt, and Ralph there, and she wouldn’t have to worry about losing her father because of his declining health anymore. Ralph had healed him. And somehow, Ralph’s magic had given his father back years of his youth as well. Her father was no longer a frail sick man, but the h
ealthy, vigorous person she once remembered. With the unexpected turn of events, Anna felt like she had won a jackpot.
She had to admit she’d freaked out after she’d learned the truth for the first time. Never in her wildest dreams had she imagined she would be claimed by three gorgeous, walking talking wet dreams. She had never thought that mystical beings really existed.
For a while, Anna felt as if she had been stranded in the Twilight Zone or something. She was always a logical person. Science freak. True sceptic. Being confronted by the fact that the men who had been her lovers for the past couple of weeks were actually warrior nymphs threw out everything she had believed. But she’d snapped out of it eventually.
Ralph had a long talk with her while Justin and Matt went back to New York to recover her father. What had touched her the most was that he and his brothers promised to love her and take care of her forever.
Love her forever. For better or worse. Always by her side.
She then realised that nothing else mattered. When a man, or in her case, three men, pledged to love her forever, she knew she had better take the offer. It didn’t matter if they were human or half-nymphs, true love was hard to find.
Anna had faced another dilemma when she had to break the news to her father. To her surprise, he had given her a cool acceptance, saying if that was what would make her happy, then he’d be happy as well. At first, she had a hard time with why her father was so easy to accept the whole thing. She had expected some kind of chastisement or scorn. Her father was quite old school. She hadn’t calculated that he would accept her ménage relationship with her mates quite so easily. But then her father had confided later on that he had always regretted he wasn’t able to provide a good life for her, and she had been in hardship all these years. And if Justin and his brothers could give her all the happiness she deserved, he was at peace with that.
The kettle whistled.
Anna poured the boiling water into the cup. She steeped the tea and dropped in two cubes of sugar and stirred it again. As she brought the cup to Justin’s office, she felt giddy. Her heart skipped a beat when she saw her mates, feeling surreal. Sometimes, she still had to pinch herself to remind herself she wasn’t dreaming. Who would think a plain gal like her could get hot guys like them? She was the luckiest girl in the world.
“Your tea, sir.” Anna set down the cup on the coffee table. “Is there anything else you need?” She had discovered that she loved role-playing.
For the past week, Ralph had taught her how to have fun and enjoy every moment in life at its fullest. She admitted she had always been a stiff-assed workaholic and never allowed herself to stop for a moment and smell the roses. But everything had changed now.
“As a matter of fact, I do. Please surrender your panties, you won’t be needing them,” said Ralph.
“Oh?” Her eyes widened. Ralph was up to no good.
“It’s my brother’s wish.” He waved to Justin.