September Moon (Alexa O'Brien, Huntress #8)

Shaz grasped my foot and began to massage the sore arch. He flashed me a sly grin, and his touch became unbearably sensual. Oh yeah, if I was going to die, I was going to do my damndest to die happy.

Leaning against Arys, I stretched out on the bench between them. Naughty desires formed as Shaz ran a hand up my calf. With a brow raised flirtatiously and a teasing smile, I encouraged him. My gaze fell to the pulse beating steadily in this throat. I wanted much more than that though.

“The new Jeep Cherokee is supposed to be pretty bad ass,” Coby was saying. His eyes were bloodshot, and the scent of beer clung to him. He was joyful though, and I savored it, knowing I could face the following night when those I loved were happy and safe.

“I like the new Dodge Ram, but I’m not sure I need a truck that big,” Shaz replied, playing with the amulet tied around my ankle.

“Of course you do.”

Arys had little to contribute to the conversation. Being stone cold sober had him trapped in reality. I had to put a stop to that.

I ran a hand along the inside of his thigh, pausing when I felt him tense up. With a gentle push of power, I touched him metaphysically, drawing his gaze to me. I gave him my best innocent expression, knowing I failed miserably when he grinned.

I giggled when Shaz tickled the bottom of my foot. Clapping a hand over my mouth to stop the girlish sound, I protested when he didn’t stop.

“I suppose I’d better find my wife. We have a flight to catch in six hours,” Coby announced, standing up and knocking over his beer bottle in the process. Beer soaked the table, running in a steady stream until it spilled over the side in a bubbly waterfall.

“Maybe you better let her find you,” I suggested, finding it hilarious when he had a hard time stepping over the attached bench.

“Holy crap,” Coby muttered, rubbing a hand over the stubble lining his jaw. “I can’t believe I’m married. It feels surreal.”

Mumbling to himself, he wandered over to one of the lounge chairs on the other side of the patio and passed out face down. I erupted into more annoying drunk-girl giggles and searched for a phone so I could take a picture.

Forgetting that I’d left my phone in the house, I settled for swiping Shaz’s. After taking several out of focus photos, I accepted defeat. The noise had started to die down as people either became wolf or passed out.

“Shall we take this party upstairs?” Shaz asked, a hunger in his eyes that I knew I might never see again.

What if he didn’t want me after it was all said and done?

Arys looked to me for a response. It had been quite some time since the three of us had shared a bed. The past few months had been filled with drama, pain, and poor choices. Looking at them both, I was enticed by the prospect of being nestled between them again as we fed our illicit hungers.

“Yeah,” I said, clutching the whiskey bottle as if it were my lifeline. After one last swig from the bottle, I thunked it down on the table. “Let’s go upstairs.”

I was far too drunk to be nervous. Had I been sober, I would still have eagerly taken them both to my bed. I was a dead wolf walking. I needed to feel alive while I still could.

Arys was quiet, lost in thought. He hung back, ensuring nobody took a drunken fall down the stairs. When he stepped into the bedroom and closed the door, I clasped his hand in mine, sighing at the familiar spark that leaped between us.

‘No worries. No thoughts. Just here and now.’ I pushed the thought to him, willing him to be in this moment with me rather than already living in tomorrow.

I didn’t give him a chance to stay lost in the future. Slowly I began to unlace my dress. His midnight-blue gaze was locked on me as I disrobed. Satisfaction thrilled through me when his desire ignited.

Shaz approached from behind, slipping his arms around my waist. His mouth was hot against the back of my neck. I reached to touch the side of his face, but my eyes were on Arys. With the other hand, I beckoned him to me.

I let the dress fall to my feet where it created a big pink puddle of soft material. Standing there in my underwear, I let the succubus force inside me spill forth to capture both men in my spell.

Arys shrugged out of his jacket and tossed it on top of my dresser beside the TV. For a moment he stood stiff, as if reluctant to touch me. Then he came to me and captured my lips in a kiss that conveyed everything he was feeling.

The force of his emotion washed over me. Fear, worry, relief, love. All of these things and more crashed through him, in turn crashing through me. My gasp was the only sound. The intensity of Arys’s emotions promised that he would burn hot in every way. And I couldn’t wait.

The sensation of Shaz’s lips and tongue on the back of my shoulder was rivaled only by Arys’s tender kiss. My vampire kissed a path down the side of my neck while my wolf’s warm hands slid along my spine, causing me to tremble.

Shaz hooked a few fingers in my skimpy black underwear and dragged them down my legs. I stepped out of the pile of clothing and climbed onto the bed.