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At the first glimmer of tears in her eyes, Simon hauled her onto his lap and crushed her against his chest. Dex shook his head, but it pleased him that she submitted to Simon’s hold. Then again, she wrestled to pull the hem of the shirt down to cover her ass. And from what he could tell, it was one hell of an ass. Juicy enough he couldn’t wait to sink into her tight hole.
Simon slid his fingers through her hair and kissed the top of her head. He wasn’t calling Simon a softie, never that because he was brutal when provoked, but it wouldn’t take much for Celia to wrap him around her pinkie finger. It would never do for her to think she could dominate a bear. Of course, they’d been waiting a decade for a woman to join them, so he also understood the need to coddle her.
Simon met their gaze over the top of her head. “Your father won’t touch a hair on your head.” The look in his eyes said he’d tear the heartless bastard apart before Daniel would get within a hundred mile radius of her. Might even dismember him for the joy of it at this point.
Who knew, Dex might help Simon. The instinct to protect her was real, so strong his chest grew tight and he suffocated on inexplicable rage toward her parent. He’d never felt this type of protectiveness toward Simon or Nick.
“I gotta go.” She tried to wriggle off Simon’s lap, but his bear made a throaty growl, and she froze.
“You’re not going anywhere, sweetheart.”
At Dex’s statement, she gave him an owly-eyed gape. “But Nick said—”
“Nick doesn’t call all the shots.” Nick scowled at Dex letting his displeasure speak through his scowl. As alpha, at the end of the day Nick made the final call on all things. “Your dad put a bounty on your head.”
“You know the reward is a bounty?” That seemed to surprise her.
“Yes. Which means walking out of here is stupid.”
“You calling me stupid?” A blush of anger hit her cheeks, and she shoved against Simon’s chest. Dex’s buddy made him proud and held firm until she gave up the struggle and sat in Simon’s lap, glowering at Dex as if he physically restrained her and not Simon.
“I’m sure you’re plenty smart, but you’re emotional so you’re not thinking rationally.” She narrowed her gaze on Dex as he spoke, which resulted in his cock straining against his jeans. “Irrational behavior leads to stupid decision making.”
“Dex is right.” Nick crossed his arms over his chest and gave her his alpha stare, which failed to intimidate her. “I thought you’d be reasonable when reminded of the danger you’ve put yourself in.”
“You know nothing about my danger.”
“I know enough to recognize you need protection. Since you’re our mate, our twin flame, you’re precious. Important to our survival, and we protect what’s ours.”
Dex watched her features shift between emotions. From awe, to surprise, and ending with flat-out disbelief. Guess he couldn’t blame her skepticism given her parentage.
She scoffed. “Bullshit. You spin some insane tale about twin mates or some bullshit and expect me to be naïve enough to believe it. A human? I’ve been on my own long enough to know when—”
Celia squealed as Simon tumbled her to her back, grabbing her wrists and pinning them to the mattress on either side of her head. His hips settled between her spread thighs, and Dex envied his position. Holy fuck he envied his position. The imprint of Simon’s bear over his human form resulted in her going motionless beneath him, gaping at their ink master.
Everyone underestimated Simon; they always did. Yeah, Simon was smaller than them, but in the bear world size didn’t matter. Of the three of them, Dex was the largest and a submissive, with Simon the smallest and the most brutal.
“I could fuck you right now, and you wouldn’t complain.” Simon lowered his head like he intended to kiss her, and she must’ve thought so too because her lips parted. “Could pass you off to Dex and Nick afterward, and you wouldn’t complain.”
Her mouth closed with an audible snap of her teeth, and she notched her chin at a rebellious slant. “What’s that prove? I’m easy? I could’ve told you that. I’ve had more cock than a Red-light district whore. One-night stands are my specialty. Daddy wanted me virginal so I fucked everything I could, fucked two at a time because anal is a sin, and even had my share of women too.”
“Did you like anal?”
“What?” The question seemed to perplex her. “I did it to piss him off.”
“You’ll like anal with us.”
She rolled her eyes.
“Was that confession supposed to shock us?” Dex asked. “Or disgust us?” That’s what he bet. Silly girl. Far from being disgusted, he couldn’t wait to fill all her holes and fuck her until she screamed her pleasure.
She shot Dex a sidelong glare as Nick said, “She doesn’t know us very well if she thought it’d disgust us.”
“Were you as wet for them as you are us?” Simon slid his palms down her arms and along her ribcage to clasp her hips. He rocked his pelvis against hers as he tilted her upward to meet his.
Celia’s mouth fell open on a gasp, but she recovered quickly. “Hate to break it to you, my fuzzy-wuzzy teddy bear—”
“Not all that fuzzy-wuzzy,” Dex chuckled, charmed she criticized their fiercest bear with a childish slur.
“A fuzzy-wuzzy teddy bear wouldn’t eat you until you scream. A fuzzy-wuzzy teddy bear wouldn’t fuck you until your legs are too weak to hold you up. That’s not a boast but a fucking promise. How’s that for fuzzy-wuzzy?”
Her small pause led Dex to contemplate what thoughts went through her mind.
She managed to hold Simon’s penetrating stare before whispering, “I’m not all that wet.”
“Try again. I can feel your wetness through my jeans. That’s not ordinary lust.”
“Lucky bastard.” Dex adjusted his hard-on.
A lopsided grin hit Nick’s mouth. “To be fair, Celia, you should know Simon has an uncanny ability to discern lies from truth.”
“I can scent a lie,” Simon explained. “So I repeat, were you as wet for them as you are us?”
“Yes.” The word emerged in a mulish tone. “I love cock so much I always get this wet.”
Dex shuddered at the word ‘cock’ rolling off her tongue. If she said the word too many more times, he’d be tempted to put his cock on her tongue... and then down her throat.
He couldn’t take his gaze off her and couldn’t stop admiring the way she defied Simon. The girl possessed gumption. She’d need it in a household full of bears.
“Liar.” Simon challenged. “I should wash your mouth out with my dick.”
That’s what I was thinking.
“No,” Nick’s tone brooked zero defiance. “I have another punishment in mind.”
“The fuck you will punish me!” Celia scanned the room as if she sought a weapon or an escape route.
Simon sat back on his heels, and Dex noticed the wet spot darkening his blue jeans. Fuck, but he begrudged his buddy’s proximity to her even more now. Simon skimmed his fingers along her pubic bone. “She shaves... or waxes.”
She smacked at his hands, but Nick’s, “Dex,” had Dex moving to hold her arms down over her head once again.
Restrained, Celia peered into Dex’s face. “Please.”
As an answer, he grinned. They wouldn’t force her, but resisting a newly discovered mate wasn’t uncommon either. Even bears were reluctant to give up their freedom.
“We have zero tolerance for lies, Celia.” Nick folded his arms over his chest, watching her as if gauging how to proceed.
“You lied to me when you said I could leave.” Celia sucked in a harsh breath, and her eyes snapped shut.
Dex peered down the line of her body to spy Simon’s fingers trailing about the inside of her thighs, dangerously close to her cunt. No matter how much any of them wanted to be inside her, Simon wouldn’t penetrate her. Not yet. Not until Nick gave them the go ahead, but even then she’d have to relinquish consent.
“I did lie,” Nick agreed. “Dex can punish me while you watch.”
Her eyes jerked open, and questions lingered in her gaze. As a reply, Dex blew her a kiss.
Nick went on. “Dex and Simon are going to move away from you. Then you’re going to strip the shirt off.”
“I won’t.”
“You will.” Their alpha’s voice went deceptively soft. “If you don’t comply, I’ll turn you over my knee and spank you until you obey.”
With a front row seat to her expressive eyes, Dex watched as they dilated. “She’ll like the spanking.”
“Good to know,” Nick sounded all business-like, but he knew their leader was just as aroused as they were. He couldn’t wait to pound Nick’s ass while she watched.
“Been erotically spanked before, love?” Simon pushed one of her knees toward her belly, and her pussy opened for them.
“You’re not hitting me.” Her eyes slid closed again, and she bit her bottom lip.
Everyone ignored her. It was evident the threat of being spanked aroused her.
Dex groaned at her scent and the sight of her glistening folds, and was surprised she made no attempt to halt Simon’s investigation. “Maybe you should spank her pussy instead, Nick.”
“I’ll do it!” Celia’s eyes went wide, and she twisted to get free.
Simon held her long enough to bend his head and kiss her directly on her clit. She gulped at his forwardness, but then Simon pushed up and away from her.
Reluctant, Dex retreated as well.