McKenzie, Cooper - Autumn Healing [Welcome to Sanctuary 4] (Siren Publishing Ménage Amour) (9 page)

A moment later, she was plucked out her chair and pulled into a strong chest. Arms of steel wrapped around her back and held her tight, containing her easily despite her wiggling to get free.

When a second hard body pressed against her back, she tensed for a heartbeat until she realized who it was. Her fear of being trapped in a crowd did not seem to kick in when securely sandwiched between her men’s hard bodies.

“Oh, sweet Autumn, it’s going to be all right. You are not alone. We’re here for you. No one will ever again lay a hand on you, not even our brothers. We love you too much and will never let you be hurt again,” Evan said. He hugged her from behind as Frank rubbed a hand up and down her side.

“You love me?” she asked, trying to look into their faces.

Though she’d known them less than twenty-four hours, she recognized the love that flowed through her. She was surprised that they felt the same way. After all, weren’t men supposed to be the ones who balked at commitment and saying the L-word?

“Of course we do. Shape-shifters have one mate, and the challenge of their lifetime is to find the person that Fate has destined them to spend their lives with. We would rather cut off our own arms before hurting our mate. We will protect you from anything and anyone who tries to harm you, even if that person is yourself.”

“I think I love you two, too,” she admitted softly.

Her words caused her men to shift even closer together. Their arms wrapped even tighter around her. She enjoyed it for a minute until she realized she couldn’t breathe.

“Can’t breathe,” she gasped.

They immediately eased their hold. Feeling brave since they hadn’t run at her confession, she voiced the fears that had silently nagged at her since seeing her sister’s pregnant belly.

“What if I freeze again? What if there are complications? What if I kill Spring and her babies?” Autumn began to sob, burying her face into Frank’s shirt.

She felt a soft hand touch her cheek. Opening her eyes, she turned her head and met Bridget’s serious, though loving, gaze. “I’ll be right there beside you. And if need be, Thomas and Michael can step in and take over. They had to deliver all of our boys. But that won’t be necessary because you’re going to do just fine,” Bridget assured her.

Just then, a door squeaked, and someone stepped out onto the porch. “Spring says she needs to see Autumn.”

The men reluctantly dropped their arms, allowing Autumn her freedom. Then they each kissed a cheek before they stepped back, releasing her completely.

“You two need to finish then you can come and join the party,” Bridget said to her sons. She then took Autumn’s hand and led her into the house.

“You’ve got them well-trained,” Autumn said as they walked through the living room.

As they did, she made a quick note of the beautiful antique furnishings and decorations. Though a bit fussy than she liked, she wondered if she should consult Bridget when it came time to decorate her new home.

“It’s taken a lifetime. Before the wedding, we’ll sit down, and I’ll share the secrets of how to handle Sullivan men,” Bridget said with a wink and a smile.

Bridget led her to an open doorway just off the kitchen. Autumn paused in the doorway and found the small room was painted a soft peach. The only furniture was a large brass bed in the center of the room and a table in one corner.

Spring was in the middle of the bed, propped up on pillows with a sheet covering her from waist down. Brock and Adam reclined on either side of her murmuring softly. Each man had a hand on her belly, rubbing circles as they panted with her, breathing through a contraction.

Before approaching the bed, Autumn stopped at the table and checked the supplies piled there. A stack of towels and an empty basin. Turning to Bridget, she said, “I need the large red bag from my truck. It has everything else I’ll need.”

“I’ll get it,” one of the fathers said before leaving the room.

“What can I do?” the other asked, looking uncomfortable.

“Could you boil some water, please?”

“Sure, no problem,” he said, heading for the door. At the last moment, he turned back. “How much water do you need?”

Autumn smiled gently. “A quart or so should be enough.”

“Okay,” the man said before disappearing.

“Coffee?” Bridget asked with a raised eyebrow.

Autumn shook her head with a grin. “Tea. I gave coffee up after…you know.”

Just then, her mates hustled into the room. Evan carried her red medical bag in one hand. “Dad said you need this?”

Autumn nodded with a smile. “Thanks,” she said, taking the bag and setting it on the table. “Now go help your father boil the water.”

Chapter Thirteen

As Spring’s contractions quickly grew stronger and closer, Autumn found herself growing more and more nervous. Having to deal with her two mates who were more anxious than their brothers didn’t help any.

Though Adam and Brock never left her sister’s side, she kept finding reasons to send Evan and Frank away. She didn’t want them to witness things if she failed to deliver Spring’s babies successfully. And after sharing her story, she felt fully exposed and wasn’t sure she could face them.

Had the story of her failure changed their minds? Did they not want to be mated to her anymore? What would happen to her then? Would they run her out of Sanctuary? Or do something more drastic to end the mating?

It was just after noon when Spring began pushing. Autumn found herself forcing away negative thoughts to maintain her professionalism as the first twin made his appearance. Adam cut the cord and Autumn handed the squalling infant to Michael, who stood at the ready with a towel.

Almost as soon as she’d handed him off, the second baby slipped free from his mother’s body. Brock cut the cord, and she then handed the baby to Thomas. For the first time all day, she was glad for their help. That way she could focus on taking care of her sister.

After the grandfathers cleaned them up in accordance with yet another ancient Sullivan family tradition, the husbands carried the still-crying babies out of the room. The rest of the men followed, allowing Bridget and Autumn to get Spring and the birthing bed cleaned up.

All too soon the men returned en masse. Adam and Brock laid the babies in Spring’s arms then settled on either side of her, just as they had been during her labor. Michael and Thomas took Bridget’s hands and led her out of the room without a word, but with expressions that said they would be spending the afternoon behind locked doors.

When Evan and Frank took her hands to follow their parents out of the room, she planted her feet and held firm. “I can’t. I need to be here. What if something happens?”

Evan wrapped his arms around her and kissed the top of her head. “Shhh, you’ll wake the babies. Nothing’s going to happen. You did it. You brought two new souls into the world, and everything went perfectly.”

The awe in his tone went a long way to healing her shattered spirit. He was right. She had done her job and done it well. She deserved a little playtime.

“Besides,” Frank said softly, leaning in to kiss her cheek, “Mom and the dads are upstairs. We won’t be far away. If something happens, they’ll ring the bell and get us back here. Right now, your mates need you.”

She looked into his eyes and saw the heated glow of hunger and immediately her clit puffed up and her nipples stiffened in response. All at once, all she could think about was having her mates together. She pulled out of Evan’s arms and headed through the house as fast as she could without running.

Once they were outside and alone, she turned to look at her men. They were so good-looking and had been so patient with her this morning, doing everything she asked without a single grumble of complaint. Her face burning, she asked, “Will you take me together? Like you talked about this morning? And bite my neck again?”

The brothers blinked and their expressions went totally blank. “Is that what you really want?” Evan asked, sounding hesitantly.

Autumn nodded. “I want us all to be together. I love you both and need to show you. Please?”

“Of course, ladybug. Anything you want,” Frank said.

Before she could move, Evan bent and put a shoulder into her middle before standing again. Before she could complain about being carried like a sack of grain, he took off running and all she could do was grab his belt and hang on.

Instead of heading to their cabin, they took off in the other direction into the forest that surrounded Sanctuary. They moved faster than a normal human, but Autumn’s body did not appreciate hanging upside down.

“Evan, you’ve got to put me down,” she begged.

“Hang on, sweetness, we’re almost there,” he said.

Autumn closed her eyes, but that only made the disorientation worse, so instead, she opened them and stared at Evan’s denim- covered ass. Releasing his belt, she slid her hands down and began to fondle the muscles as he walked. That elicited a growl from the man holding her. When she slid one hand down between his legs, cupped his cock and balls, and slowly tightened her grip, he stopped.

“All right, all right, I get it,” he said as he bent and set her on her feet. “Besides, we’re here. I told you it was just a few minutes more.”

When he straightened and stepped away, Autumn gasped. They were on a small outcropping of rocks. Turning a circle, one side of the small space looked out over a valley and the shorter mountain peaks beyond. On the other side of the cliff, the mountain went straight up and out of sight overhead. There was a wide, shallow cave where she saw a pile of blankets and a picnic basket.

Turning to her men, she asked, “It’s beautiful. Where are we?” Autumn turned and threw herself at Frank, who caught her and hugged her.

“This is our special place. All the brothers have staked out their own places around here. We come up here to think or get away and be alone,” Frank explained.

“I love it. Thank you for sharing it with me.” Autumn turned and hugged Evan.

“Of course we’d share it with you. You are our mate,” he said, embracing her solidly before she stepped back.

“You know, there’s one thing you haven’t shown me,” she said, planting her hands on her hips.

“And what’s that?” they asked in unison.

“You’ve never shown me what you look like in your other form. Will you do that for me?”

“After you eat some lunch,” Evan promised with a grin.

“Yeah,” Frank added, “because once we get naked, our minds won’t be on anything but pleasing you.”

At that promise, a shiver of heat and awareness raced down Autumn’s spine then out until she felt feverish. “Then let’s eat ‘cause I’m starving…and for more than just food.”

She winked at her mates then turned toward the cave. Before she could do anything to set out their picnic, her men were already there, spreading blankets, opening the basket, and laying out the food. All she had to do was sit down and enjoy.

After the previous evening’s dinner, she wasn’t expecting much more than a peanut butter sandwich and would have been happy to have it. When Evan handed her a fork and a plate with chicken salad, pasta salad, and a colorful coleslaw on it, she was shocked.

“When did you have time to cook?” she asked as she started eating, suddenly ravenous.

Her men looked sheepish. “We didn’t. The dads did. As you saw last night, we’re not really much on cooking,” Evan said as he and Frank filled their plates as well. “Mom tried, but we’d rather be making furniture.”

That led Autumn to ask a few of the “get to know you” questions she had been collecting since meeting the two men. She also answered questions, finding that she felt more comfortable with them than she had ever felt with anyone before. By the time they’d finished, she felt more happy and relaxed than she had in her entire life. Though tempted to take a nap, she also found herself horny and needing to be with her mates in the most intimate way three people could be together.

Once the food was gone, the brothers quickly packed everything away then began undressing. There in the sunlight, out in the open, Autumn marveled again at the perfection of her men’s bodies as they came into view.

Before she could touch either of them, the air around them shimmered. She gasped when they disappeared and in their places were two of the biggest, hairiest dogs she’d ever seen. They stood across the blanket not moving, waiting for her to react.

“Oh, wow,” she said as she stood and slowly took the few steps that separated them.

As she did whenever meeting a new animal, she held out her hands, palms down, for them to smell. She’d always loved dogs—the bigger the better. Instead of sniffing at her hands, the two dogs stepped forward and nudged them until she began petting them.

“That’s amazing,” she said as she began to scratch behind their ears. Every dog she’d ever met had loved that sort of attention, so she figured they would as well.

She giggled as the dogs made happy sounds in response to her touch. Knowing these beasts belonged to her turned her on, even though she’d never have sex with them in this form. Everything in her tied to sex pulsed, and all she wanted was to fuck her men.