Melissa's Acceptance (15 page)

“Was I supposed to let him get away with insulting you?” Luke asked, glaring at her.

“You could have handled it without violence, Luke.” Melissa sighed. She was not a submissive female, at least anywhere other than the bedroom, and her men were very dominant. She just didn’t see how their relationship would survive if they were going to take over and fight her battles for her. She knew there would be times when she would be grateful for their intervention, but not all the time. She and her men would be arguing constantly if they tried to rule her life.

“It’s our job to protect you, Mel. Your life and happiness are to be placed above all things. If you’re happy then we will be happy, too. We can’t allow you to be insulted or hurt in any way,” Luke stated quietly.

“I’m not one of these women who can be pushed around. Can’t you see that? I am more than capable of protecting myself if the need arises. I won’t be told what to do. If this relationship is going to work we are all going to have to learn to compromise.”

“Please try to understand that it is our wolf’s instinct to protect our mate. If you are in danger of any kind, be it physical or verbal, we can’t simply stand back and watch you get hurt. I’m sorry if that makes you angry or uncomfortable. We can’t change who we are just because you’re used to doing things for yourself. You have us to help you and we can’t just stand by and watch while someone insults you. You need to be able to compromise as well, baby,” Damian quietly spoke, his voice resonating through the small place.

Melissa stared out the kitchen window as she pondered what they had said. She had been critical of them, but she had said “we” in the sentence she’d used the word “comprise” in. She thought that maybe Damian and Luke thought she was trying to change them. But that hadn’t been it at all.

She turned to face them and raised her eyes to her mates and looked from one to the other. “You’re right, we all need to compromise,” Melissa said. “I’m just so used to being by myself, it’s going to take me some time to get used to having two men to protect me. I guess I’ve just become too independent. I wasn’t trying to change who you are, I’m just not used to depending on anyone besides my sister and myself. Please forgive me?”

“Come here, baby,” Damian commanded, holding out a hand to her.

Melissa walked over to Damian and took his hand in hers. Damian snagged his other arm around her waist and pulled her down to his lap, where he tucked her securely into his big, muscular body. He nudged her chin up with a finger and looked at her with such hunger her breathing and heartbeat picked up pace. And then he bent his head to hers until his lips brushed hers in a gentle, teasing manner.

Her lips quivered under his an instant before she opened to him. Damian took immediate advantage. He tilted his head and plundered her mouth with his tongue, pushing it into her mouth, and her groan joined his when she responded.

He and Luke made her so hot. She couldn’t get enough of them. He ravished her mouth as he slid a hand under the hem of her shirt until his large, warm palm slid across the skin of her belly. Slowly he inched his hand up until the tip of his fingers rested on the underside of her breast. Melissa shifted, trying to get him to touch her where she ached, but all he did was caress the lace near the edge of her bra.

She arched into his palm, giving her unspoken demand, and moaned low in her throat at the exquisite sensation of having her breast kneaded with his warm palm when he finally enveloped her breast with his hand. He flicked her hard nipple with his thumb, brushing back and forth across the tip through the material of her bra. The feeling was enhanced as the lace rasped across the pebbled peak, making her whimper with need. She arched more fully into his touch. She nearly cried out her denial when he gentled the kiss and brought her back down to earth.

“We need to stop, baby. There’s not enough time for us to love you the way we want to. We’re supposed to be at your sister’s in half an hour.” Damian panted as he rested his forehead against hers.

Melissa closed her eyes, gasping for breath, trying to get her arousal under control. Thank goodness Damian had the control to stop, otherwise she didn’t think they would have made it to her sister’s at all. She was so aroused all she wanted to do was have her mates make love to her all night long.

Opening her eyes again, she stared deeply into Damian’s and saw the love and hunger in their depths, but he was right. They didn’t have time. She let him see her love in return and finally sat up, and looked at Luke to let him see how much she loved him, too.

Damian and Luke smiled at her and their grins lit up their whole faces, and she knew she would never be lonely or alone again.

“We need to go, honey.” Luke took her hand and helped her to her feet. “If we don’t leave now I don’t think we’ll make it to your sister’s at all.”

Melissa stepped away from Damian and Luke and breathed deeply to regain control of her arousal.

“Let’s go,” she said as she grabbed her keys and purse from the table and led the way to the door.

Melissa was feeling decidedly agitated as she waited for Sara to open her front door. When she heard her sister’s footsteps approaching, she took a deep, steadying breath and pasted a smile on her face.

“Hi Sara.” She smiled at her sister and then watched her sister’s face as she looked over her head at her mates. “I’d like you to meet Damian and Luke Aerth. Damian, Luke, my sister, Sara.”

Her two men put Sara at ease right away. They each extended their hands, shaking hers in greeting, then set about charming her with their wit and confident personalities. They spoke of inconsequential things such as Sara’s work while they ate their meal of Chinese takeout.

“Would you like something to drink? Tea, coffee, or soda? Sorry I don’t have any beer to offer you at the moment,” Sara said as she and Melissa cleared away the plates.

“Coffee’s fine thanks, Sara,” Damian and Luke answered in unison.

“Could you give me a hand please, Mel?” Sara asked, and they took the plates to the kitchen.

Melissa followed her sister and set about filling the sink with hot water and detergent, leaving the dishes to soak while Sara put the kettle on and retrieved some mugs from a cupboard.

“Where did you really meet Luke and Damian, sis?”

Let the interrogation begin.

“At the inn I drove to last weekend. I already told you that on the phone.”

“Melissa, what were you thinking? You picked up strange men from a bar? Are you crazy?” Sara asked in an agitated whisper.

“Sara, I can’t explain everything to you right now, but please just trust me to know what I’m doing. Those two men would never hurt me. In fact they would give their lives to protect me if needed.”

“I don’t understand you, Mel. Less than a week ago, you were here crying on my shoulder about your date and now you have two men vying for your attentions and you’re playing along with them? You don’t even know them, Melissa. You’ve let them into your apartment, brought them to meet me, which you have never done before, and didn’t I mention there were two of them? How can you be dating two men at the same time? What gives?” Sara asked, staring at her with her arms folded beneath her chest.

Melissa knew that stance. Sara was not going to back down until she had been answered to her satisfaction. She raised her eyes to the ceiling, knowing she would have to explain to Sara but not knowing how to go about it. The matter was taken out of her hands completely when she smelled Damian and Luke walk into the kitchen behind her.

Luke walked up behind her and wrapped her in his arms from behind and pulled her against his hard, warm, muscular body. Damian stood next to her and placed an arm around her shoulders. He bent down and kissed her on the cheek.

“I think we can answer any of the questions you have, Sara. You probably won’t believe us or like what we have to say, but I want you to listen with an open mind,” Damian said as he waited for Sara to acknowledge his statement.

Melissa nodded and held her breath for a moment before exhaling slowly. Her muscles were taut with tension and she was starting to feel a headache coming on.

“Okay.” Sara sighed. “I’ll listen to you without interrupting and try to listen with an open mind. Before we do get down to the nitty-gritty of things, how about I make that coffee? Then we can adjourn back to the living room where we’ll all be more comfortable.”

When they were ensconced in the living room with Melissa on the sofa and her two mates seated on either side of her, Sara sat in an armchair across from them and looked at Damian, her, and Luke expectantly.

“We met your sister at the Shifter Inn under unusual circumstances, as I am sure she has already told you. We took her back to our home where she stayed and recuperated from the concussion,” Damian began.

“Why didn’t you call me, Mel? I would’ve been there like a shot to come and get you.” Sara stared at Melissa.

“Sara, please. You promised not to interrupt,” Melissa reminded Sara gently.

“Continue,” Sara said with a sigh, waving her hand in Damian’s direction.

“We took Melissa back to our cabin, which is only a half hour away from the Shifter Inn, and took care of her until she was well again. The scent of your sister was overwhelming to us. She smelled so sweet and we couldn’t seem to help ourselves. We didn’t want to leave her side. Her scent drew us to her, like a moth to a flame.” Damian paused and began speaking again when Sara stayed quiet.

“We fell in love at first sight, but when she wanted to go home, we let her. Melissa didn’t get very far and she decided she didn’t want to be away from us and came back to our cabin. We love your sister very much and want to marry her. She’s our mate.” Damian glanced at Luke.

“Sara, we need you to know we will do everything within our power to make Melissa happy. She completes us in a way no other woman could ever do. We love her.” Luke spoke with such emotion it brought tears to hers and Sara’s eyes.

“Wait.” Sara raised her palm up, “What the hell is a mate?”

“We’re werewolves, Sara. Your sister is our mate, which also means that she is our wife,” Luke said.

“Melissa, I want you to come into the kitchen with me right now.” Sara almost shouted her demand.

“You’re going to have to show her, baby,” Damian said.

Melissa stood and began removing her clothes, and from the look on Sara’s face she thought that she had a screw loose.

“Melissa, you stop that right now. What is wrong with you?”

When Melissa was naked, she closed her eyes to envisage her wolf and let the power roll over her body. Her bones started cracking and popping. Fur erupted on her skin, covering her arms, legs, and torso, making her flesh tingle. Then she was looking at her sister from knee height.

Sara had lifted her legs from the floor. Her hand covered her mouth as she hyperventilated. She looked at Sara and saw the awe mixed with fear in her sister’s gaze.

“Oh my fucking gawd. Melissa, is that really you? How can this be possible? What did you two do to my sister?” Sara sounded a little hysterical, so Melissa changed back to her human form and got dressed again. Sara just stared as if she was frozen in place.

“Sara, Damian and Luke didn’t want to change me into a werewolf. They had no choice. I was shot by a madman and the only way to save my life was to change me, to be the same as they are. I would have died, Sara. I was dying. I could feel my life slipping away. Please don’t hate me. I’m still the same person I was before this happened.”

“I could never hate you, Mel. God, how could you even think that? You’re my sister, for crying out loud,” Sara said with a sob. She then rushed to her and wrapped her in a tight embrace. When they had themselves back under control, Sara surprised them all.

“Are there any more single men who look like you two? I think werewolves must have something in the genes that make you all hot.” Sara smiled at Luke and Damian.

“As a matter of fact, there are quite a lot of single men in our pack. You’ll have to come out and visit one day, Sara. It would be great if you found mates of your own,” Damian said. “We look after the females in our family, little sister, so if any of the men take your fancy, you let us know and we’ll see what we can do. We can’t guarantee that you will find your mate though, that seems to be a gift from the gods.”

Damian grinned as he pulled Mel onto his lap.

“Don’t you worry, I have every intention of visiting. Does that mean you’re going to be moving away, Mel?”

“Yes. We came back so you could meet my mates and to pack up all my things,” Melissa said around a big yawn.

“It’s time we were going,” Luke said. “It’s only been a few days since Mel was changed and recovered from that gunshot wound. She needs to rest.”

When they had said their good-byes to Sara, Luke escorted Melissa to the car by placing an arm around her waist, and she leaned into his side.

“If you hurt her, you’ll answer to me,” Sara called out to her men.

“As we would expect to.” Damian looked into Sara’s eyes and Melissa could see both her sister and her mate were weighing each other up. Sara didn’t seem to be the least intimidated by the fact her men were werewolves and could probably snap her neck with their fingers.

Melissa, Luke, and Damian arrived back at her apartment within fifteen minutes of leaving Sara’s unit. Melissa went directly to the kitchen, filled the kettle and put it on to boil. She was surrounded from both sides by her two mates. They turned her toward them so she was leaning back against the sink, her back to the window.

“What are you doing?” Melissa whispered as she looked from one to the other.

“We want to love you, honey. We want you in our arms and to give you pleasure. Will you let us do that for you Mel, please?” Luke asked quietly as he leaned down to inhale at her neck, nuzzling, licking, and kissing her skin.

Melissa tilted her head to the side, giving Luke better access to her, silently agreeing to let them make love to her. Damian moved to stand in front of her. He leaned down and devoured her mouth. Tilting his head to the side so his lips could cover hers with a better fit, he thrust his tongue into her mouth, tasting and exploring all of her.