Snark gets up to sit on her other side and runs his fingers through her hair, teasing her scalp. “He cares. He just won't say it. But believe him when he says he's going to look out for you. Hawk's a lot of things, but he's no fucking liar.”
Well, I’m not letting them have all the fun. Getting up on the bed, I settle behind her and put my hands on her sides. She’s soft, curvy, and I love caressing her. She lets out a sigh and leans into it. “I fucking love hearing you say you’re ours. But give him time. He's had a raw deal.” And it’s true. He just needs to get his head out of his ass, so he can appreciate Alessa for who she is, not this horror show he’s conjured up in his head.
As always when Alessa’s around, it’s impossible to keep anything platonic. I start stroking all the way up onto the underside of her breasts. Viking’s exploring down into the back of her pants, and Snark’s buried his fingers in her hair, capturing her locks rather than just stroking them.
“Um, guys. Where are you going with this?” she asks breathlessly.
21
ALESSA
“Commitment is fucking sexy,” murmurs Bear closer to my ear than I expected. I jump at his breath ghosting over my skin.
“I clearly heard you say that you're ours,” adds Snark. He pulls my head back so I'm looking up at him. He's close enough that it would only take him a little nudge forward to kiss me.
I meet his lips with mine, loving the feel of their roughness, before I pull back. “Wait.”
“Why?” asks Viking, his voice a needy growl in the back of his throat. The sound raises goosebumps on my arms, and the hairs stand up on the back of my neck. How did we go from commiserating to predator and prey so fast?
“Izzy. She's right there.”
“She's asleep.” Bear's hand slips underneath my shirt, and his searching fingers are back to teasing the underside of my breast, with only the thin fabric of my bra between us. Skin to skin feels pretty good right now.
“She won't be for long with what you guys are planning.” But I lean into him anyway and let out a frustrated sigh when he cups me and teases my nipples with his thumbs.
Snark flips out his phone. “I got this.” A moment later, “Emily? You need babysitting practice right? Just an hour or so.”
“Wait, we can't just—mmmf”
That's as far as I get before Viking covers my lips with his own. His one hand slides down the back of my pants while the other comes around the back of my neck, pulling me closer. The way he takes charge, like he owns me, makes my heart race.
Snark grins. “Actually, two hours.”
When Viking lets me up for air, I try again. “But what about Hawk? Maybe we should wait for—” I squeak as Bear sweeps me right up into his arms like I weigh nothing at all. Instinctively, I cling to him, my fingers grasping to find purchase on his massive arms. He laughs and the rumble goes right through me like an earthquake.
Viking gets to his feet. “Hawk knows what walking away means. You know as well as we do that life’s too short to wait for things to be perfect. I hope he gets his head out of his ass before it’s too late, but I know what I want. Do you?”
The door opens and Emily pops her head in, holding a guitar. “What's such a rush that you need… oh.”
“We’re going to my room for a bit. Keep an eye on Izzy, yeah?” Bear asks.
Emily grins and comes right in. “Sure, take your time. I've got my Kindle, and I've been practicing lullabies for my own little guy. I've got this.” She eyes the changing table. “I think.”
“There's milk in the beer fridge. Remember to warm it up first,” calls out Bear over his shoulder as he carries me over the doorstep. “And she’s a girl, so wipe front to back.”
Emily rolls her eyes. “Thanks, that’s brand new information.”
I snicker as the guys rush me out of the room and down the hallway. Viking pushes open the fourth door, and the first thing I see is a bed that takes up half the room. Bear’s space isn’t as big as Viking's, but it’s immaculately clean and instead of battle axes and drinking horns, there’s just an impressive set of weights over in the corner and a dresser covered in small pictures in frames. He did mention coming from a large family. I wonder if I’ll ever meet his siblings.
“Welcome to my cave,” Bear says with a laugh, and then tosses me right onto the center of his very firm mattress.
I sit up as the guys tear off their clothes, revealing tattoos and ropy muscles. And some very large, very hard cocks. I wet my lips and swallow, mouth watering already. Why was I resisting so much?