As Love Shifts (23 page)

Each man had his own style, his own way of doing things and Ever enjoyed all of them completely. Demetri liked to use magic and she moaned to show him her enjoyment. The kiss continued and Ever rolled her hips, forward and back, sliding the touch of his dick against different places within. It was such a distinct feeling against her inner walls and she bent her knees to his sides to get more up-and-down thrust. The bubble around them faded as the motion of her hips took them both into a place of sexual paradise. Her sighing whimpers grew louder, rumbles of shattered pleasure flowing from Demetri’s throat as his hands moved downward to control her ass. It was a rising of momentary bliss that seemed to encompass her. Her low whimpers grew more rapid as they were taken into a singular oneness of harmonious pleasure before it slowly faded out.

He leaned his head back and smiled with lidded eyes. “That was nice.”

“I agree.” He suddenly looked exhausted. “Where are you sleeping?”

“I’ll sleep on the bottom, so Chirrot can sleep beside you.”

“What about Liam?”

Demetri gestured with his head and Ever turned to look. Liam had dragged the recliner back chair that they had brought from the initial house from the living room and had put it beside the bed. He had his feet up on the mattress and his eyes closed. The only ones awake would be her and Chirrot shortly. She got up, giving Demetri a hand to stand. He gave her another quick kiss and then sprawled out across the bottom of the bed. The room had cooled off slightly and she went to the pile of quilts in the corner and took the top two off. She spread one over Demetri and Kris and then draped the other carefully over Liam.

Chirrot had her attention now, and unlike her men, she wasn’t the least bit tired.

Chirrot swept her into his arms, carrying her outside. Ever felt kind of odd considering that they were both stark naked. He carried her behind the house and put her gently to the ground so they were standing between two of the pines trees in the vibrant light of the waning full moon. “Did you have anything to do with that?”

“What exactly are you referring to?”

“Liam, Kris, and Demetri were somewhat quick on the release tonight. Then they suddenly became really tired and fell asleep.”

Chirrot grimaced guiltily. “Did you not enjoy their attention? You seemed to.”

“Yeah. It felt great, but my pussy was reaching climax at warp speed.”

“I guess that it is possible that my desire to be alone with you had something to do with it. I was considering it when Liam was spanking you and I may have relayed my desires into your pussy with my fingers. The energy I used to create the octopus sensation may have lingered, infusing your muscles so you passed it back to the others. I didn’t do it on purpose, but on rare occasions my magic gets away from me. I’m really sorry.”

The comment made Ever wonder exactly how powerful Chirrot was. “Please be more careful with it in the future. I like sex with lots of foreplay and such.”

“I will.” Taking her hands he kissed her fingers. “Your reply earlier was hesitant, so I’m going to ask again. Have you decided whether or not you love me yet?”

“I haven’t had a lot of time to think about it.” She stared up into his beautiful green eyes and it suddenly occurred to her that was why Kris had chosen the sexual position he did. It was so she wouldn’t be staring into his face. That was also a thought far from the subject at hand. Closing her eyes for a second, she allowed her mind to clear, trying to capture her exact feelings for Chirrot. Her thoughts had been plagued with questions that suddenly didn’t really seem to matter. They had their entire lives to discover the nuances of each other’s personalities. For her to think that this man who stood before her could suddenly turn into some despicable version of himself was ridiculous. If nothing else, her other mates would kill him for hurting her. Ever knew that when it came down to it, she did love him and wouldn’t have married him if she didn’t. The feelings were not as strong and secure as what she felt for the others, but Chirrot made her happy and she wanted to be in his life.

“That was not hesitation, but contemplation. I don’t like saying things that aren’t true. The more I consider it, I do love you.”

“That makes me immensely happy. Will you honor me by allowing me to recite our tradition for eternal companions?”

“I would like that.”

He knelt before her, kissing her stomach. “We stand here now under a moonlit sky, together we live and together we die. From this night forth until our end, we shall be love, we shall be friend. Within the nature of this land, our natural power will be hand in hand. Nature’s beauty before my eyes, let tears never fall from our skies. Protect us, keep us, make us strong, let us always remember to who we belong. Seal us now in the ways of ole, by body, by love, by power and soul.”

The words sent a chill up her spine. It was a spell and Ever had a feeling that it was a very powerful one that would literally bind them together. Chirrot got to his feet, his face radiant in the dim glowing light. “The spell you just recited isn’t going to harm what I have with the others, is it?”

“Not at all. They were in my mind while I was speaking and they are already a part of your heart, so it doesn’t matter for them. The words just keep our magic stronger. I have so much that I want to teach you, but it will be easier now because we are more closely bonded.”

“What about my magic with Demetri?”

“What about it? Our magic is all a gift from nature. It can be melded and can also work together with Demetri’s magic. Ever, think about it this way. We can all protect you, but we have different ways of going about it. It doesn’t mean that one way is more or less effective. It is just different. Are you worried that I did something evil with my words?”

“No, I guess not. It just sounded sort of cryptic.”

He chuckled. “Cryptic. Not really. It is straightforward. They are words spoken to the forces of nature to bind us just as the ceremony that was spoken earlier. I just felt the need to give you my version. It makes our union more personal. I don’t want to shut the other men out. I enjoy their company and I know it would hurt you if they weren’t a part of your life also. Why would I do that?”

“I hope you wouldn’t.”

“I wouldn’t. I can’t promise that I will never unintentionally hurt your feelings because it happens. I will never do it on purpose, though. Anything that would harm the other three men, will also harm you, which will in turn harm me. I can’t say as much for Mick, though. I was glad when you said that he no longer has a place in your life. Four men is stressing things a bit, but five…?”

“You think? There is only one of me and I also have four children that demand my attention.”

He smiled. “I know. I love the children also. They are wonderful to be around. I think it is good that you now have four men to help with them. I know that Avia said you need to have babies with Demetri, but what about me? Is there a chance?”

He was really pushing things. “Not right now. Providing that I can still have children, which has yet to be established, I hope there is time to have them with you if you would like. What a weird combination that will be, were, shifter and witch all in a tiny package. Holy shit.”

The sound of his amusement was like music to her ears. “If it’s any consolations, shifters aren’t as prone to having multiples as weres are.”

“That’s good to hear.”

“I suppose, but it also means that our populations are a lot smaller. We also tend to band together as families rather than large clans like the weres have here. I have to wonder how many other bloodlines will be left when nature is done with her cleansing.”

“Cleansing. Do you think that is what is happening?”

“Yes, unfortunately. It may seem cruel to us, but nature has no conscience. It is simply doing away with the human race because it can no longer tolerate the destruction that is being forced upon it. It either changed things or the earth will die. My father speculated about it and my mother has had premonitions about the same thing.”

“That is a sad thought. Was your father a shifter?”

“Yes. He was a loner. The government had taken his immediate family, and my mother came across him wandering around a campground that she was staying at. They moved around a lot. ”

“That must have been hard. What did you live in?”

“A forty-two-foot camper. It was cramped to say the least and had little in the way of privacy.”

“How many people?”

He shrugged. “My mother and her sister, my father, and my grandmother. I have two brothers and a sister and my mother’s sister had two girls. I never knew my mother’s sister’s husband. He was shot by a hunter when he was flying as an eagle. We found his body a few days later and buried him. Over the years, we had aunts and uncles that traveled with us, but they had their own campers.”

“What about your father?”

“He died of natural causes when I was seventeen. He was really old.”

“It sounds like you had a hard life.”

He tilted his head wistfully and then gave her a small smile. “It was at times. It was a good life, though. My mother used to sit us down at the table every day and make us study. She taught us to read and write and do math, but she also taught us so much more than we ever could have learned in school. We know our ancestry and we know how to respect the world we live in. Our father taught us carpentry and masonry. He taught us how to hunt and find food in the wild. When I was fourteen, he took my younger brother and me on a two-week adventure where all we took with us was a change of clothing and a bedroll. It was great. Everything was memorable, right down to the growling hunger in my stomach when my brother and I were in charge of getting the food for two days. We failed so badly.”

He laughed at the memory. “Then our father showed us all the things that were safe to eat that we had never even considered. I felt so stupid, but he didn’t make a big deal out of it. It was a great learning experience.”

It was nice to hear him recall a tale that made him smile. Ever had been brought up in the city where food came from a supermarket and she had never truly been hungry. When the weather cleared, they would plant a large garden because someone had been smart enough to bring along seeds for the crops they traditionally ate. She wished they had more food on hand and there might be a day all too soon that the supplies ran out, but they would make do.

Ever suddenly realized that she had adapted well to living in the clan’s world. Now that world was even more rugged, but it was still far more comfortable than the world Chirrot had grown up in. Her children had their own room and either they would build a bigger house or put on an addition at some point in the future. Granted, her bedroom was a bit full, but that was by choice rather than necessity.

Chirrot ran his finger down the center of her nose, letting it settle on her lips for a moment. “What are you thinking about?”

“Food. My past in comparison to yours.”

“I’m not worried about food. We have Ever magic for that. You can grow crops just like trees and probably animals, too. You could grow a deer that could feed the entire clan if you wanted to. I’m sure the reservoir is still full of fish. Imagine a mammoth trout that weighs a hundred pounds.”

That was an interesting idea. She hadn’t thought of that. “I think we should go find some tomorrow. We can have a huge cookout.”

“I would like that. I, however, have to build a fireplace if we have a storm moving in. Maybe you can go fishing with Kris and Liam. It would give you a chance to make up for the quick fuck they got tonight.”

And Chirrot the joker was back. She backhanded him in the chest. “That sounded so rude.”

“I know, didn’t it?” He crinkled his nose as he chuckled. “I was actually serious. I feel bad now to know that I messed with your enjoyment and theirs. I would send Demetri also, but I need someone to watch the children as I build. I might also need some help.”

“That’s not a problem. We can go fishing some other day.”

“Not if the water freezes for any length of time. The temperature is already dropping and it will get worse as the storm moves closer. It is a good idea to get fresh food when we can.”

“I agree. But I wanted to grow some more trees before the storm. We could use the wind block and the animals could use a place to live. I fear that I’m better to send others to do the fishing.”

“Good point. Do we really need to discuss this now? We both need to get some sleep at some point.”

Yes, they did and Ever still hadn’t discovered what was so sexually spectacular about Chirrot.

* * * *

Grasping her cheeks in his palms, he smiled. “Okay. How do you feel about paying attention to my cock with your lovely mouth?”

“I have no problem with it. Why so serious?”

“Because I would like you to arouse me, but you have to do me a favor. I need to show you something and I want it to be a surprise. I want you to keep your eyes closed and your hands only on my dick and balls. Can you do that?”

It was an odd request. Usually her men liked eye contact while she was sucking their dick. “Sure.”

He splayed his hand out, palm up. “Please.”

Ever knelt, closing her eyes as she lifted his dick into her palm and began to caress it. Chirrot put his hands to the top of her head and she cringed. She really didn’t like it when the men controlled the thrust of her head, because it made her gag reflex harder to control. He didn’t, however, try to move her head. He was simply resting his palms on her hair. As she put her lips to his hardening flesh, Chirrot said, “I am what is known as a changeling shifter. It happens when I’m extremely angry or pleasantly aroused. I wanted to be with you alone the first time because of this. Oh, that feels incredible.”

Ever noticed that his voice seemed to be getting deeper and darker. It was an extremely sexual sound and she built pressure with the seal of her mouth. Ever twirled her tongue up and down the shaft, caressing him with the perfect amount of pressure. His fingers tightened on her scalp, his cock feeling as if it was gaining girth as well as getting harder. It seemed oddly tauter than she was used to, the normal flexibility of the skin lacking.