Masquerade Read online

  She laughed and in her heart she knew without a doubt that they would love her through thick and thin. They were life mates and even though trouble was threatening, nothing would get between them or break their bond. She hated the fact that a thought of Vernon, the Acadia pack leader, worried her men. Her guys weren’t wrong often; she would keep her eye on Vernon when the pack came to their home.

  Chapter Four

  Don’t speak of it…

  Cocooned between the warmth of Alex and Dominic, the vision started with darkness and those words.

  “Don’t speak of what?” she asked as she tried to find her way through the pitch black. She could feel the damp grass beneath her bare feet but could see nothing. Then scenes began to flow past like pictures, a slide show of things to come. Halloween, costumes, smiling faces and then blood. The screams were so loud she covered her ears, but then the silence came so abruptly she stumbled backward and looked around wildly. The air turned cold and she stopped as an image came into view and it moved. She was then running, as fast as she could through the woods, the cold wind beating at her face. She looked behind her and stumbled over a thick root that grew out of the ground. She heard the snarl of a wolf and then two low howls. As she struggled to get up, a wolf’s eyes came out of the darkness and they didn’t belong to her mates. This wolf, coming slowly into view, was a mangy gray that had splotches of dark fur that seemed to be painted haphazardly all over his body. He snarled and came at her in a predatory way.

  “Submit.”

  The voice was in her head, echoing, and she knew it was Vernon.

  “Never. I belong to them!”

  She heard herself answer emphatically, and then watched as the scene played out in front of her while she shivered and her teeth chattered in the cold. Her wolves came out of the darkness, teeth bared in a snarl and without any hesitation the battle started. She heard the snapping of jaws and angry growls as the three wolves fought.

  “Tempest, Tempest, wake up!”

  She felt arms on her shoulder shaking her gently and she sat up with a gasp. She met the worried gazes of Dominic and Alex.

  “Jesus, you scared the crap out of us,” Alex said.

  “Why, was I screaming or something?” she asked.

  “No, you began shivering and then the temperature in this room dropped until we could see our breath,” Dominic replied. “Shit, when did your dreams start manifesting?”

  She laughed shakily. “Trust me, this is very new. This has never happened before, that I know of.”

  “Care to tell us about it?” Alex pulled the extra blanket they kept folded at the bottom of them bed over them and she relaxed between them soaking in their warmth.

  Don’t speak of it. The words echoed in her head and she knew without a doubt that this was something they did not need to know. Not yet. It had to happen without intervention.

  She smiled and shook her head. “It’s already fading.”

  “Liar.” Dominic chuckled.

  She felt him take her hand and lace his fingers with hers and Alex did the same with her other hand.

  “You don’t have to tell us, sweetheart, but we need to figure out if your visions are going to keep manifesting in certain ways,” Alex said. “In case we need to take precautions.”

  “Okay.” She turned on her side and snuggled close to Alex, and Dominic came up behind her and curved himself around her. Tempest sighed and then whispered, “I love you.”

  “We love you too,” they answered and it made her smile as she slipped back into a dreamless sleep.

  The next day it was back to work, Alex and Dominic went back to fixing up their home. When they bought the plantation it was old, crumbling and since they had moved in they were bringing it back to life. The inside was completely renovated and now it was time for the outside to flourish. They were working on rebuilding the walls that wrapped around the property and fixing the old, dilapidated gate. She baked, prepared the inside for the party, and mixed candy in a big, smoking cauldron by the door.

  She wondered why they didn’t just buy a new gate, but they wanted to revitalize the old one, which meant the grinder could be heard all the way up to the house. Her dream worried her. The mangy, gray wolf, who was he? Was it really Vernon? Why would it be chasing her through the woods, but then Alex and Dominic coming to her rescue? What did it all mean and when would it happen? All of sudden, she felt a sense of panic like her life was spiraling out of control. Danger seemed too close, breathing down their necks and whatever peace they were trying to find would always be out of reach.

  The telephone ringing brought her out of her troubled thoughts and she crossed the tiled kitchen floor to grab the phone off the wall. She loved the old style phone with the long spring cord that she could still maneuver while talking. It gave her warm feelings of home, reminded her of when her family was together and the holiday would come around. Mom would be on the phone talking and laughing with family in other states while she baked. Tempest could still see herself sneaking bits of sugar cookie dough and her mom smiling at her. Good memories, she thought as she picked up the phone.

  “Wakefield and Cross residence,” she said into the phone.

  “We’re coming.” The voice was harsh and she could hear anger, excitement, and malice all blended into one.

  “Who is this?” She tried to keep the tremor of fear from her voice and failed.

  The voice laughed. “You should be afraid, little girl. We almost ate your man. Gonna spend some time with you. Yeah, you’ll be like a mouse that I play with.”

  “Try it. They’ll kill you and yours,” Tempest said angrily. Knowing that this person was one of the ones who injured Alex fueled her rage. “You come, we’ll kill you all. I’ll take pleasure in putting a bullet in your head.”

  He laughed hard. “I like you, might keep you to be the momma of my cubs.”

  “I’d rather die,” she snapped. “I’m warning you. Turn around now and leave because you’ll only find your end in Acadia.”

  “We’ll see. We will see.”

  The phone clicked and she hung up the receiver before leaning her head against the cool wall.

  Another ring startled a cry from her and she picked it up instantly. “If you call here again, I will personally be the one who shoots you in the head.”

  “Dang, Tempest, how much do you hate me?” Lorna asked.

  Tempest rolled her eyes. She would’ve preferred to have talked to creepy wolf guy again. “What could you possibly want?”

  “I’m giving you the opportunity to give me that invitation to your party tomorrow night,” Lorna said. “Without me, the town will of course choose to forgo your lil’ shindig.”

  “Really?” Tempest drawled. “It seems all the ones who called to RSVP yes may not have been privileged to that information. Lorna, why do you want to come to my home? We’ve never been friends or even civil to each other. It’s like you’re in high school again and you want what you can’t have. You are not stepping across the threshold of my home.”

  “Listen to you, trying to be fancy. You can’t make a purse out of a sow’s ear. We all know your upbringing. You ain’t special because you got two men in your bed.” Lorna’s voice took on a nasty tone.

  Tempest sighed. “Lorna, I never claimed to be. I’m proud of my upbringing just like I’m sure your daddy loved knowing that you spent your teenage and, well, most of your life with your legs behind your ears.”

  “Bitch, I’m going to make you suffer,” Lorna yelled. “You’re just mad because I got what you can’t have. Bubba never wanted you.”

  “Right, and you’re still not coming to my home,” Tempest said. “Have a fabulous Halloween.”

  “Oh, I’m going to be there,” Lorna snapped. “You can’t stop me.”

  Tempest laughed. “And you’ll get a surprise you never expected.”

  “What does that mean?”

  “It means show up at your own risk,” Tempest said. “Goodbye, Lorna.”
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br />   She hung up the phone just as Alex and Dominic walked into the kitchen.

  “Who was that?” Dominic asked as he opened the fridge. He threw a bottle of Brisk Iced Tea to Alex who caught it easily.

  “Lorna threatening to come to the Halloween party and said that if she can’t none of the town will,” Tempest replied.

  Alex laughed. “Does she know that even her father is coming?”

  Tempest grinned. “It’s killing her that she’s not a part of it.”

  “You’re getting some kind of perverse pleasure out of her misery, aren’t you?” Alex said.

  “Me? Oh, no.” Tempest smiled and then held up her fingers. “Well, maybe this much.”

  “We came in for a bit of a break and some lunch. The west wall is completely done and the gates are working just fine,” Dominic said.

  “I had another call. A male with a snarly voice threatening me and both of you. I’ve been slated for breeding it seems,” Tempest said as mildly as possible, yet both Dominic and Alex’s heads snapped up.

  “What?” Dominic’s voice was low. Alex growled and bared his teeth.

  “I think it was one of the guys from that pack,” she explained. “They’re going after Acadia, aren’t they?”

  “They will not be here,” Alex said harshly. “The one that called to threaten you, he’s going to be dead.”

  “Oh, Alex, no, I don’t want to ever see you hurt again.”

  He slammed his drink on the counter and looked up at her. His eyes had become the wolf. “So you want me to lay down for those fuckers, let them threaten you, Dominic and our home?”

  “No, baby, I’m not saying that.” Tempest moved toward him and put her hand on his heaving chest. “Calm down. I’m just scared…of losing you both.”

  He cupped her cheek and kissed her hard. “You won’t lose us, but don’t try to collar us either. If we have to fight, we fight. This will not end with us playing peacemaker or being passive.”

  “I understand. I just want you to be safe,” she whispered.

  He rested his forehead against hers. “We will, I promise.”

  Dominic came up behind her and she was sandwiched between their warmth. “There’s nothing that would keep us from coming home to you. The devil himself couldn’t hold me in hell.”

  She reached back and cupped his neck. “He’d have me kicking in his door to come get you.”

  “We still have the pumpkin bouncy house and all those inflatable things to put up.” Alex’s hand ran down her legs before he pulled her to him. “Maybe we can have a small break.”

  “Nothing about you is small, Alex Wakefield,” Tempest replied and moaned when Dominic began to kiss the back of her neck. “The Acadia pack will be showing up tonight.”

  “We’ve got some time. Pretty please,” Dominic murmured before giving her a nip with his teeth.

  She gasped. “Okay, but when I’m a puddle in the bed and can’t move you’ll have to explain my absence.”

  “Honey, you don’t have to explain a damn thing.” Dominic threw her over his shoulder and Alex held the swinging door open so they could walk through.

  They could always get her off task with little effort. Who could say no to being loved by two of the sexiest men in Louisiana? Upstairs, in their room, Dominic placed her on her feet and began kissing her until wetness and want pooled between her legs. Alex’s big hands massaged her shoulders and she felt a moan of pleasure slip from between her lips. He had such wonderful hands. Alex could caress her into a frenzy, but could also soothe her aching body.

  Right now, he trailed heat wherever he touched. His hands continued kneading the muscles of her shoulders and sucking the sensitive skin of her neck. His mouth sent delicious shivers through her and she arched so he could gain better access to the sensitive flesh. She opened her eyes when she felt Dominic pull his pants off and move closer. He cupped his hand around her neck pulling her away from Alex before kissing her until her senses swam. His tongue tunneled between her lips, tasting her with such thoroughness that it left her reeling.

  Alex’s hands were at the edges of her sweater and Dominic let her go just long enough so that his friend could strip it off. The cool air hardened her nipples instantly before Dominic’s hot mouth closed around the pert tip. This was one of the reasons why not wearing a bra at home was a huge benefit. Alex took over kissing her and Tempest moaned into his mouth in response to the onslaught of sensations. Until she met them she never knew that her body could feel like this. Dominic’s hand had moved down her body and he cupped the mound of her pussy through her pants before he began to peel them, along with her underwear, down her body.

  “My legs feel weak, you two,” she gasped.

  “Then, baby, let’s make sure you don’t fall anywhere but on us.” Alex swept her up into his arms and took her to the bed before placing her on it gently.

  Dominic pounced on her like a hungry wolf ready to feast. His lips roamed down her body, tasting every inch of skin, until he lifted her hips roughly and buried his lips against her pussy. A cry escaped her as his tongue delved between the delicate folds. He gave a rough sound of pleasure and licked hungrily at her clit. Tempest shuddered when he sucked the bud into his mouth. His fingers spread the lips of her pussy so he could get better access to the delicate pink flesh between them. Alex practically ripped off his own pants before taking control of her lips, kissing her fiercely while massaging the full globes of her breasts. She reached out and circled her hand around the long length of Alex’s cock and began to stroke him. He groaned roughly and deepened the kiss, penetrating her mouth with his tongue to the rhythm of her hand. Tempest reveled in the feeling of his thick rod in her hands and began stroking him harder. Her hips lifted against Dominic’s lips, urgently seeking release from the pleasure that was building inside.

  “Make me come,” she moaned in desperation.

  “Alex will do that for me,” Dominic gave a husky laugh.

  Alex’s voice was rough with need. “You’ll come hard for me, won’t you, baby?”

  “Yes, oh, yes!” she gasped out.

  She felt Dominic and Alex exchange places and she took Dominic’s cock in her hands, stroking him until he groaned.

  “Take daddy into your mouth,” he commanded.

  His order, the words he used, excited her to no end. Tempest opened her mouth willingly and wrapped her lips around the smooth tip of his shaft. Dominic’s breath hissed between his lips and he flexed his hips in pleasure. She took his cock deeper into her mouth sucking him feverishly and moaned as he slid his rod even deeper between her lips.

  She could feel Alex’s breath on her pussy while pleasuring Dominic. Tempest was almost crazy with anticipation because as soon as Alex’s lips touched her, she would be in a frenzy striving for release.

  “You smell so good. God, I can scent you anywhere. I can wake up and know where you are inside or outside.” He inhaled deeply. “I have to taste you now.”

  When his lips pressed against her pussy, he devoured her. While Dominic had sampled and took her to the edge of release, Alex sank his fingers deep inside while his tongue licked along her folds and sucked at her clit. He fucked her hard with two digits until she screamed his name in release. She vaguely heard his muffled moan as she gasped for breath while he continued to lick at her wet sex. The two men switched again quickly and this time it was Dominic who sank himself inside her.

  “Ah, fuck!” The guttural cry escaped his lips. She wrapped her legs high around his waist as he began to move inside her and closed his mouth over one of her tight nipples.

  “Oh, yes, Dominic!” Tempest could feel him deep inside her and with each thrust she grew wilder.

  She opened her eyes to see Alex watching them with raw lust written on his face, his cock hard and erect. “I want to taste you,” she said.

  Alex turned her face roughly and she took his rod deep into her mouth. She moaned as Dominic lifted her hips higher and pumped himself inside her, picking up spe
ed. Alex pulled out of her mouth and Dominic pinned her hands above her head as he fucked her. Her body began to shake as her orgasm took hold and sent her over the edge on a gasping cry. She called his name over and over again at his frenzied unrelenting pace as he made her come again.

  “Damn, baby, you’re so tight,” he muttered.

  Alex lay on the bed and Dominic helped her to straddle him before he slipped his cock inside. Tempest’s body still shook from her orgasm. Alex began to nibble on her breasts that hung above him. She moaned and whimpered his name. He pushed her hips down on his cock, filling her to the hilt and she cried out.

  “You are so damn hot.” He kissed her thoroughly and began to piston in and out of her.

  Tempest undulated on his rod, taking control for just a moment to tease him with her body. Alex moaned and gritted his teeth in response and she felt his hands tighten on her hips.

  She felt Dominic’s chest against her back and he kissed her neck urgently. Dominic’s hands cupped her breasts and plucked at her nipples while Alex fucked her from beneath. Dominic’s hand ran down her stomach to her pussy and began to rub her clit. She arched and cried out and Alex ceased his movements as Dominic continued to manipulate her clit. Alex gave a guttural groan. She pushed down on the thick shaft buried inside her. She writhed and pumped down on him hard.

  “Please move. You’re making me crazy!” she cried out and Dominic kept slowly and torturously rubbing her clit. “Alex, please, I want…I need to come!”

  He held her still and looked over her shoulder to Dominic. “Get inside her. I don’t know how much longer I can last.”

  For a moment, Dominic moved away and then she felt his hands against her back. His arms wrapped around her and Alex kissed her gently. His tongue forayed into her mouth while she felt Dominic spread lubricant on the crease of her ass.

  They both caressed her and brought her back to a frenzy with their touch. Dominic’s cock was pressed against the tight button of her ass and Tempest felt him slowly begin to penetrate her tight anus. His hand came around her front and his finger rubbed her clit slowly and she moaned into Alex’s mouth. By the time he was buried to the hilt inside her, she was quivering with the intensity of the pleasure assaulting her body.