Szereto, Mellanie - Two from the Triangle [Bewitching Desires 7] (Siren Publishing Ménage Amour) (5 page)

Not one of them?
What did she mean? Owen hated the helplessness in her voice, but he couldn’t even feed his need to console her. His best friend had usurped that duty.

Pushing aside his fantasies of her waking up in
his
arms and showing gratitude for chasing away her bad dreams, Owen added a piece of wood to the fire. As much as Heath and Heléna snarled at each other, the basic mutual desire couldn’t be missed. Stepping back was Owen’s only choice. With a few days left to live, he wouldn’t jeopardize a life-long friendship for a woman—no matter how badly he wanted her.

Flames licked at the bleached limb, expanding the ring of illumination. Night descended quickly as the sun set on the other side of the pines, bringing an eerie dusk to the island. The moon hung on the edge of the horizon, only a tiny sliver of the round orb peeking above the ocean. Without it, they would’ve been steeped in darkness. Winter in the Bahamas boasted mild temperatures, but nightfall came early. If he could see his watch in the dim light, it would probably read about five thirty or six o’clock.

“You!” Heléna’s accusation and a scuffle told Owen she’d finally awakened. “Don’t touch me.”

Not in the mood to play referee, he waited for the inevitable exchange of insults. He resisted turning around when more rustling sounded behind him.

“Fine, I won’t touch you.” Heath stalked to the fire, sitting across from Owen. His fierce frown spoke loud and clear about his displeasure at her demand. “Women.”

“What did you say?” She came to stand within the halo of light, her fists perched on her hips. The long flowing skirt now hid her body from the waist down, but her stiff nipples poked at the thin fabric of her top.

Shaking his head, Heath sighed. “What the hell did I do wrong this time?”

Her tongue snaked out to wet her lips. “You said ‘women.’”

“If you knew what I said, why’d you ask?”

She crossed her arms in front of her perky tits. “Did you mean it? Because you didn’t call me ‘doll’ or imply I’m just a child.”

Ah, the crux of her issues with Heath.
The question was whether or not the fool would mess up the progress he’d made by opening his big mouth and inserting his foot again.

Heath raked his fingers through his hair. “Um, yeah?”

A laugh escaped before Owen could censor his reaction to the response. “I think you won that round, Heléna. Why don’t have a seat and have some supper? You like fish, don’t you?”

She nodded, but her eyebrows furrowed as she stared in Heath’s direction. “So you won’t treat me like a brainless little girl anymore?”

Heath rolled his eyes. “I never said you were brainless.”

“You also never said you wouldn’t treat me like a child anymore.”

Owen had to give Heléna credit—when she cleared the air, she didn’t leave any unfinished business.

“Okay, I won’t treat you like a kid, but I reserve the right to—”

“Oh, no, you don’t. No qualifications or conditions.” Settling on the ground, she grabbed her sweater and slid her arms in the sleeves. “I know perfectly well when I’ve made mistakes. I don’t need you to tell me.”

Heath opened his mouth and then closed it, evidently thinking twice about offering a rebuttal. He gripped his hands together, squeezing the fingers of his right hand before alternating to the left. “That shark almost had you for lunch. You can give me some leeway on overreacting.”

Her pretty bowed lips curved downward as she reached for the fish Owen passed to her. “All right.”

“That’s it? A thank-you would’ve been nice.” Heath went back to eating his dinner.

“Gads! Thank you. Are you happy now?” Shaking her head, Heléna tucked a bite of fish into her mouth.

“Relatively speaking, yeah.” Heath’s chuckle and grin drew a glare from her. “I wouldn’t mind having a way off this pile of sand, though.”

Owen tossed his own glare at Heath for bringing up their dire circumstances. Ignoring their predicament beat the hell out of dwelling on a problem that had no immediate solution—with possibilities beyond their control.

She didn’t answer, seeming to concentrate on the barest of sustenance. When she’d eaten about half, she handed the remainder back to Owen. “I’m full. Do you want the rest?”

He shared a look with Heath. She couldn’t have filled her stomach, even as tiny as she was. “Are you sure?”

Her nod had to suffice for tonight.

Tossing skin and bones into the fire, Heath set aside the roasting stick. “I’ll see if I can catch three fish tomorrow.”

His avoidance of another sparring match with Heléna surprised Owen. Had Heath finally realized that getting along was to their advantage since they’d have to depend on each other a great deal over the next few days?

Peeling the last bit of flaky flesh from the skeleton, Owen dropped the scaly remains into the flames. “Sounds like a good plan. I’ll check the other side of the island for palm trees in the morning. Maybe we’ll get lucky and I’ll find some coconuts.”

“Good idea.” Heath stretched his arms over his head as he yawned. “God, I’m beat.”

Exhaustion crept over Owen, and he struggled to keep his eyes open. “Me too. Heléna, you think you’ll be warm enough? After the storm today, the temperature’s probably going to be in the fifties overnight. You can borrow my jacket if you need it.”

Her jaw tightened almost imperceptibly. “I’ll be fine in my sweater.”

Certain she’d only refused the offer because she didn’t want to come across as weak, he debated making another suggestion.
What the hell do I have to lose?
“Another option is you can sleep between Heath and me to conserve body heat since we don’t have any way to make a tent or sleeping bags.”

She blinked at him like she was considering the suggestion. “I guess. Do either of you snore? I’m a light sleeper.”

Her flimsy excuse didn’t fly. He and Heath had a rather loud exchange while she slept, and she’d barely moved. The dream had been the culprit in her waking.

Heath gave an indignant grunt. “Hell, no, I don’t snore.”

She glanced at him and then at Owen.

“Me neither. We’ve camped out together plenty of times, and I can vouch for Heath.”

Her shoulders slumped in what was most likely defeat. “Okay.”

The second she agreed, a very important fact occurred to Owen. Lying next to her while she slept was a surefire trigger for a hard-on. Would she notice his cock standing at attention if she happened to wake with her cute backside cuddled up to his crotch?

He shoveled sand over the low fire with his foot, taking care to put out the flames. Heath had already moved to the area near the trees, running his palm over the ground. The slowly rising moon lit up a rock, and he pitched toward the beach.

Within a couple minutes, the three of them lay side by side. Staying just out of touching range of Heléna, Owen willed his body to relax. Her breathing was deep and even, but he didn’t dare open his eyes to see if she was awake. Her sweet face cast in moonlight would set him on a course to sexual frustration.

The soft shush of the waves on the shore lulled him into unconsciousness.

* * * *

Staring up the breathtaking view of countless stars and the huge glowing moon, Heléna rethought her doubts. From this highest point on the cay, she’d spotted Pegasus and Cygnus on the northwestern horizon moments before she, Owen, and Heath had retired for the night. Draco peeked at her now from the same direction. Was the trio of flying constellations a sign? An omen to guide her?

Jupiter—Lord of the Sky, Rain god, and Cloud-gatherer—watched her from above, his bright presence giving her goose bumps. Had the ancient shifter, Kazmer, cloaked his shape to spy on her? His legendary control over natural disasters could’ve caused the storm that had downed the plane flown by her pilot companions. Had he tried to cause their demise because he suspected Heath and Owen were the men she sought?

The elder of the Black Triad had made many attempts to prevent the matings of Macska witches over the past year or so. Helena’s own sister, Rebeka, had been a victim of his meddling, as well as two cousins that the evil shifter had almost killed. Rebeka’s sister-in-law and her Protectors had only survived a pirate shipwreck by a miracle.

What if Heléna
hadn’t
made a mistake in sending herself aboard the failing aircraft? The Bermuda Triangle, the night sky, and a threesome of castaways could all be indications that she’d found her destiny—her triangle. The Fates worked in mysterious and seldom-erroneous ways.

Are Owen and Heath my mates?

If she hadn’t spelled herself to them, they wouldn’t have a chance of getting back to civilization unless someone had heard their calls for help on the radio. Was she meant to take them with her when she returned home?
If
she managed a proper charm to get herself there.

Heath rolled from his side to his back, letting out a muffled groan. Sand beat sleeping on rocks, but it didn’t begin to compare to a mattress. She held in a sigh, resisting the urge to rest her head on his shoulder.

An arm looped over her side, pulling her against the outline of a swollen cock. Sweeping desire almost had her arching into Owen’s wonderfully hard form. Her racing heart echoed in her ears as the hormones that had nearly driven her mad yesterday struck again. Heat spread through her limbs, and moisture gathered between her thighs, readying her to mate.

Drowning in the need to take pleasure from these men, she moaned.

Owen’s palm slid upward along her ribs to cup her breast, adding to the surge of desire. As she closed her eyes to savor his touch, his palm brushed over her nipple, sending adrenaline to every cell in her body. Her eyes flew wide at the rush.

Heath shifted to face her, his fingers tracing her thigh to her hip, plowing her skirt higher and higher. Slipping beneath the fabric, he dipped low enough to cradle the curve of her bottom. A sense of rightness swam through her veins. If she didn’t belong here between them, the Fates had abandoned her.

Giving in to her passion, she pressed the crease of her ass to Owen’s erection and hooked her hand behind Heath’s neck, drawing him close enough to mold her lips to his. The moon reflected off his pale gray irises when his eyes blinked open. His tongue came out to tease the seam of her mouth, ratcheting her need up another notch.

The palm on her breast changed to fingers plucking at her nipple. The hardening of the tip sent a spasm to her pussy. Warm breath caressed the side of her neck a second before a nibble intensified the flames racing to her clit.

Don’t stop. Don’t ever stop.

Chapter 5

Kissing was an experience beyond Heléna’s comprehension. Her sex manual had given instructions, but without actual practice, she’d been caught completely unaware. She hadn’t expected the meeting of mouths to stoke an inferno inside her. Experiencing orgasms brought satisfaction. Exploration of a man’s lips brought a
new
kind of want, a
stronger
sense of passion.

Caught up in the joy of sexual haze, she thrust her tongue past Heath’s teeth, delighting in the taste of his masculinity. He met her strokes with forceful glides of his own as he took the kiss from his mouth to hers. Sparring with him sent a rush of moisture to her cunt, soaking her panties. Anticipation rolled along her nerve endings. His low moans vibrating along her jaw assured her she wasn’t alone in her desire.

Reaching behind her, she grasped the back of Owen’s pants-clad thigh to pull him closer. He ground his cock into her ass, seeming as out of control as her spiraling need. His fingers still teased her sensitive nipple, and the intense ache spread from her inner muscles to her clit to her lower belly. Pressure built as he rolled her tight bud back and forth. She sucked Heath’s tongue as the pleasure swelled, and finally, she had to come up for air.