3013: GENESIS (3013: The Series Book 11) (13 page)

His
large body came down over hers, covering her back with his front. She was
caged, captured by him as one of his arms wound around her holding her tight to
him while his other hand held onto the edge of the pool next to hers. She moved
her hand over his, connecting them together as he rode her hard, thrusting deep,
faster and faster until she began to shake beneath him.

His
hand moved lower, seeking the swollen bundle of nerves with his clever fingers.
He rubbed her clit hard, pushing her over the edge and into madness. Stars
burst behind her eyelids as she clenched them shut. She screamed out his name
as she came, squeezing his cock tight as her body convulsed.

This
powerful male had made her his, had taken her over so that there was no denying
that she belonged to him. Satisfaction filled her as she heard the wild roar of
her name. Her own release had triggered his, milking him so that his seed shot
into her hot and hard. She would have collapsed if his arms didn’t band around
her, holding her safely within his embrace as the rolling waves of ecstasy
swept through her.

“Mine,”
he whispered harshly against her neck as he continued to fill her, his large
body surrounding her.

“Mine,”
was her answering declaration.

They
belonged to one another now, and Mya had never been happier.

* * * *

“Your
cousins are driving me crazy.”

Mya
glared at her three friends as they laughed at her statement. If she’d been
expecting a little sympathy, apparently she’d been wrong.

“Well,
that didn’t take long,” Kahla said with a grin. “What have they done now?”

“I’m
surprised she hasn’t killed one of them yet.” Reva commented. “And do males
need a reason to be annoying? I thought that just came naturally to them.”

“True,
and they seem to excel at it,” Pia grumbled.

Kahla
chuckled. “Are you fighting with your bonded again?”

 “Not
exactly. It’s just that with all the people that have been arriving, they’ve
gotten even more protective. Hell, they wouldn’t even let us have dinner
without coming with, and they’re just mad when I refused to allow them to sit
with us.”

All
four females shifted in the chairs to look at Ryland, Mikal and Tavius, who
were sitting at a table across the room. They were close enough to watch over
them, but not listen in on their conversation. As if sensing they were under
scrutiny, Ryland and Mikal glared at Pia, while Tavius only raised an eyebrow
as he met Mya’s gaze.

From
the beginning, Tavius had gotten along with Ryland and Mikal, and during the
construction of her store, Daimon had become friends with the human men. The
only one of the brothers that still remained guarded around them was Maddox,
but he was coming around slowly. Now that her store was finished and ready for
the upcoming grand opening, the males spent time beating the hell out of each
other sparring in the gym or using one of the training programs in the
holo-rooms.

But
seeing them bond over a meal just wasn’t normal.

“Ignore
them,” Reva ordered. “Males get angry when they hear us talking about them.
They know we do it, but hearing it for themselves is a whole different story.”

Mya,
Pia, Reva and Kahla had decided to have dinner at the Helios restaurant Tangala,
where Kahla had reserved them a table. They’d been seated in a quiet corner
where they’d have privacy as soon as they arrived, while Tavius, Ryland and
Mikal had been ordered to get their own table across the room.

Since
the TechCon was starting in a few days, New Vega was packed with people. All
the restaurants were filled to capacity, but Tavius and Kahla knew everyone who
worked on the vessel, so they never had a problem getting a table anywhere.

A
server rushed over to take their food and drink orders, and Kahla introduced
the Helios female to the rest of the group. Greetings were exchanged and after
she left, Kahla said, “I’m so glad I took this evening off, even if it is only
for a few hours. Sanctum has been packed the last two nights, and I can’t even
imagine what it’s going to be like when this shit show actually begins.”

Mya
frowned. “I thought you were happy about New Vega hosting the TechCon?”

“I
am, but I have a low tolerance for stupid people, and they seem to be
everywhere…and multiplying rapidly.”

Reva
nodded in agreement. “That’s true. I had to punch some guy in the throat
earlier after he grabbed my ass.”

Pia
choked on a laugh. “Had to?”

Reva
shrugged. “Trust me, he deserved it. It was fun.”

“I
don’t doubt it.” Pia grinned, but she sobered as she turned to Mya with a
questioning look. “Don’t think we’ve forgotten what you said earlier. What’s
wrong? You’ve seemed happy. I mean, I’ve barely seen you all week, and I’m your
guard.”

Reva
smirked. “Are they trying to fuck you to death? They do seem to keep you pretty
busy these days.”

Kahla
winced. “Please, they’re still my cousins. I don’t know if I want to hear about
that part of their relationship.”

Mya
felt herself blush as her friends laughed again. It was true, but she didn’t
want to admit it out loud. In fact, this was the first night since she’d
started seeing the Adaro brothers that she wasn’t with one of them. Maddox,
Daimon and Tavius hadn’t been happy when she’d informed them that she was
having dinner with the girls, but they’d just have to deal with it. She needed
to talk to her friends. Pia, Reva and Kahla had more experience with males, and
she needed their advice…desperately.

“It’s
not that. I mean it’s partly that, but I…” Mya paused as the server brought their
drinks and a large platter of appetizers to the table. She took a large gulp of
the potent Helios drink they had all ordered, then winced as the alcohol burned
slightly going down her throat. “I’m with them all the time, but I still don’t
really understand them.”

“Honey,
it’s only been a week. Give it time,” Pia said gently. “I’ve been bonded to
Ryland and Mikal for years, and there are days I feel like I’m still figuring
them out.”

“I
know, but it’s just that…they say things. Sweet things that makes it seem like
this is more than just us having fun, but then again, we really don’t talk. I
mean, I ask questions all the time, but I feel like I’m pulling teeth or
something getting them to really talk to me. You know I don’t have any real experience
with relationships. Is this how it always is in the beginning?”

Kahla
frowned. “Some males have issues talking about things, and my cousins would be
at the top of that list. You shouldn’t feel like your bothering them if you
want them to talk to you, though.”

“I’m
in love with them,” Mya blurted out in a soft whisper as if she were confessing
some sin.

There
was a moment of silence, then Pia said, “That’s a good thing, isn’t it?”

Tears
stung Mya’s eyes. She didn’t know how to explain to her friends that she didn’t
know if it was good or bad yet. Since the first night she’d been with Maddox,
she’d spent every night with one of the brothers, but never together. Part of
her felt as if they passed her to the next when they didn’t want to deal with
her or they were busy.

Did
they think a plural relationship meant they only had to put in a fraction of
the work? Maybe that wasn’t fair, but they rarely explained what they were
doing when they weren’t with her. She’d always thought that when she fell in
love, the males she was with would share everything with her. That they’d talk
about their hopes and dreams, and share how their days had been when they were
apart and make plans together for their future.

But
did she even have a future with the Adaro brothers to talk about?

The
words came pouring out of Mya as she explained the situation. She’d never had a
problem talking to Pia about her feelings, and she trusted Reva and Kahla, and
valued their advice. It was vital that she figure out if she was just being
overly sensitive, or if it was some strange Krytos relationship thing that she
simply didn’t understand.

“So,
they’re sharing you, but not sharing with you,” Reva stated when Mya was done
with her rambling explanation.

“Yes!”
Mya exclaimed. Reva had summed up why she was so upset in one sentence. Why
couldn’t she have figured that out on her own? Pushing that thought aside, she
added, “Maybe I’m overreacting, but I can’t be in love with them if they’re
only with me while they wait for some Krytos female to come along.”

“Ask
them what’s going on, then,” Reva told her.

“I
can’t do that!” Mya said sounding horrified.

“Why?”
Reva and Kahla asked at the same time.

“Because…just
because.”

Kahla
rolled her eyes. “Yeah, that clears it up.”

“I
understand,” Pia said sympathetically. “Some human women have a hard time
talking about feelings because some men are commitment phobic. To be fair, some
women don’t like talking about where a relationship is going either.”

“Humans
are strange creatures,” Reva muttered.

Kahla
nodded in agreement. “They really are.”

“I
wish I could talk to them about this, but I don’t know how,” Mya admitted. “Last
night, I heard them talking about who was going to come with me while we were
at dinner, like it was some sort of chore on their list of tasks for today.
Watch out for Mya, check. I wouldn’t have even known about it if I hadn’t
overheard them while I was in the bathroom before Maddox and I went to sleep.”

Kahla
frowned. “You only sleep with Maddox?”

Mya
shook her head. “Every night we switch off who I sleep with. Sometimes I wonder
if they made up a schedule and have it posted somewhere.”

“I
don’t know if I like the sound of that,” Pia said darkly. She knew that Mya
wasn’t the type of woman who could be happy with that type of relationship. If
she was all in, then she needed her partners to be all in as well.

“I
still don’t get it,” Reva announced. “If you don’t like something they’re
doing, how can this get cleared up if you don’t ask?”

Deciding
to be honest, Mya said, “Because I love them, but I can’t force them to love me
back. And hearing that they don’t would hurt too much. They said they were
courting me, but—”

“Wait…what?
Hold on!” Kahla held her hand up in the air. “My cousins said they were
courting you? Mya, they’ve announced their intentions to mate you. You don’t
have to worry about them returning your feelings.”

Mya
goggled at her. “They what?”

“When
a Krytos male courts a female, it is a tradition done with the intention of
mating. They don’t do it if they’re just after a quick fuck or just enjoying a
female’s company for a little while.”

Mya’s
head reeled. “But…but…why haven’t they said anything to me about it?”

“Because
males are stupid?” Reva asked.

Kahla
nodded. “Yes, they are. If my cousins want you as their
tava
, then—”

“There’s
that word again!” Mya exclaimed. “I keep asking them what it means, but they
won’t tell me. I tried to look it up, but I haven’t been able to find a
definition.”

“And
you won’t. It was never put into the language converter database because it’s a
sacred Krytos word that humans don’t need to know about since they’d never use
it. Damn them,” Kahla growled. “They called you their
tava
? Males really
are stupid.”

“What
does it mean?” Mya asked nervously. “Is it bad?”

“
Tava
is the name that a Krytos would use for his mate, but only if they are the
alpha of the pack. A basic definition is alpha mate,” Kahla explained in an
angry growl.

“Holy
shit…” Pia breathed out.

“I
totally wasn’t expecting that,” Reva agreed.

Mya
blinked at all of them, then focused on Kahla again. “Does that mean…?”

“Oh,
yeah,” Kahla said with a curt nod. “Congratulations, Mya. My idiot cousins
mated you, and didn’t bother to tell you. Welcome to the pack, alpha.”

***

CHAPTER
THIRTEEN

“This…I…it
can’t be!”

Mya
stood up so quickly that her chair almost fell over.

“Oh,
it is,” Kahla countered. “And I hope you kick their asses for not telling you.”

Tavius
was across the room a few seconds later, snarling at his cousin, Reva and Pia
as he pushed Mya behind him as if to shield her. “What have you done?”

Mikal
and Ryland appeared behind Pia, both men placing a protective hand on her
shoulders. “Don’t yell at our chosen.”

“They
did something to upset Mya,” he growled.

Mya
shifted and poked him in the chest. “They didn’t upset me. You did.”

Confusion
broke through his anger. “What have I done?”

“You
mated me without telling me?” Mya hissed. “How could the three of you do that?
Why didn’t you say something?”

Her
questions had begun in a whisper, but ended on a shout. She glanced around,
noticing that the rest of the people in the restaurant had gone silent.
Everyone was staring at her, but she didn’t give a damn if she sounded like a
shrew.

 She
was pissed, and she wanted answers…now.

“Mya—”

“No.
Not here. I want to talk to you, Maddox and Daimon in private. Right now.”

Tavius
gave her a curt nod, then held out his hand to her. It was petty, but Mya
ignored his offered hand as she stomped past him, heading for the entrance. Anger
burned through her like a laser, but by the time they made it to the VIP
elevators, her anger faded to a mixture of confusion, disbelief, happiness and
a healthy dose of hurt.

Wounded
feelings aside, she was elated that they wanted to have a life together, but
what kind of life would that be if they couldn’t talk to her about important
things?

When
the elevator door opened on the second level, Maddox and Daimon were standing
in the hallway, both of them looking grim. She was aware that Tavius had
contacted both of them on his wrist unit during the walk from the restaurant.

Fighting
to keep her voice calm, she said, “I’d like to speak to you in your suite.”

Once
they were in the living room, she moved to face all three of the brothers. “I
have something I want to say to you, and I’m not sure I’m going to be able to
get it all out if you interrupt me, so I want you to let me finish before you
say anything.” She looked at them expectantly, but the three of them just
stared at her intently. “Well?”

“You
asked us not to speak,” Daimon reminded her quietly.

Right.

Mya
began to pace the length of the room as she tried to figure out how to begin. “Kahla
told me what
tava
means,” she explained, then rushed to add, “You can’t
be angry with her. You should have told me, but you didn’t, and I don’t know
what that says about our relationship. How can we be together if you keep
things like this from me?”

Three
males growled low in their throats, and Maddox stepped forward. “Enough, Mya. I
can’t stay silent when you say things like that. You said you belonged to us,
and we will not let you go.”  

Mya
stopped pacing. Maddox wasn’t one to show his emotions, but she could clearly
hear the panic in his voice now. Turning, she was struck by the intense longing
and need coming from them, but it was more than that. There was love shining
back at her from three pairs of dark eyes, and the sight of it amazed her.

Why
hadn’t she seen it before?

She
been so caught up with her own insecurities that she’d missed what had been right
in front of her. They hadn’t told her how they felt about her, but then again,
neither had she. They’d all made mistakes, and things would have to be
different moving forward, but how could she stay angry at them when she was also
to blame?

Being
with them filled her with joy, and she needed to share her love with them. Her
friends had been right. She needed to be open and honest with them. If she
asked for what she wanted, she might be rewarded by having her greatest dream
fulfilled.

But
there would be no reward without the risk.

Be
brave…

Staring
at the three males she loved, she found the courage to open her heart. “Coming
to New Vega was a big change for me. I knew I’d be taking a risk starting my
new shop and living so far from everything I’ve ever known, and I thought I was
ready. But nothing could have prepared me for meeting you. You are the most
amazing males I’ve ever known. I love the way you care for your people, and how
honorable you are. But most of all, I love who you are. I…I’ve fallen in love
with you—all of you—and I—”

Suddenly,
Mya found herself in Maddox’s arms, his mouth crushing down on hers. Touching
him, having his strong arms wrapped around her, she could sense the love he had
for her. It sunk into her, permeated every atom of her body and filled her
soul. He pulled back and wiped at the tears she didn’t know had fallen down her
cheeks.

“Don’t
cry,” Maddox murmured. “I can’t bear to see you cry.”

“I’ve
been so confused. Maybe it’s because I’ve never been in a relationship before,
but I was so worried I would do something to mess this up and lose you that
I’ve been driving myself crazy. I need you to talk to me. I love you so much
and couldn’t stand thinking that you didn’t feel the same way about me.”

“We’re
sorry, sweetheart,” Tavius said as he gently stroked a hand over her hair from
behind. She turned toward him, and he leaned down to brush his lips against
hers. “I fell in love with you the first moment I saw you. In my heart, I knew
you were meant to be ours. We were trying not to overwhelm you by asking for
too much from you too soon, but we didn’t realize how it was making you feel.”

Daimon
eased her gently from Tavius’ hold, taking her in his own arms. He kissed both
of her cheeks before settling his mouth on hers. “I should have known,” he said
quietly as he pulled back. “You told me you were worried that I didn’t want you
when I’d been holding back to give you time after being with Maddox and Tavius,
and we’ve been doing the same thing by not explaining things to you again.”

He
lifted her hand and pressed a kiss in the center of her palm, then curled her
fingers as if holding that kiss in her fist before he held it to his chest,
right over his heart. “We thought we would scare you if more than one of us was
with you at a time, but that only made you even more unsure, didn’t it?”

Mya
thought she should have felt closed in by having the three big males
surrounding her, but she’d never felt so safe before. Being near them allowed
her to sense the raw emotions pouring out of them, and she basked in the warmth
of their love and desire for her. “I’m so sorry I doubted you…doubted us. I
wasn’t sure you wanted a future with me since we’ve never—”

“You
are our future,” Maddox said solemnly. “Come, there is something we need to
show you.”

They
were always saying that to her, and hearing it now made her smile. Daimon and
Tavius followed behind her and Maddox as he led her passed their bedrooms toward
the closed door at the end of the hallway. When he opened the door and turned
on the light, Mya just blinked.

The
huge bedroom was decorated in shades of gray and purple, with black furniture
and silver accents. To the left was a wall of windows that showed the inky
black of space. In the center of the room was a large recessed circle, down two
wide steps. A huge four poster bed was positioned in the center of the circle,
covered with a plum-colored bedspread. The bed was as big as a lake, with
intricate carvings etched into the dark wood, and sheer silver curtains that hung
around the top of the canopy.

The
right side of the room was completely lined with frosted glass shelves.
Spotlights in the ceiling shone down on the top level, and lights underneath each
shelf shone down on the tier below. There were dozens of objects on the
shelves, some that she recognized, but many she’d never seen before. “What is
all this?”

“Maddox
is a bit of a hoarder,” Tavius said, grinning when Maddox growled at him.

“I
am not. I just like to collect things that are rare and useful.”

Tavius
rolled his eyes. “Like I said. He
collects
things…lots of things. There
is another room on the other side of the suite off the living room that is full
of—”

“You
are getting off topic,” Maddox said, cutting his brother off. Taking Mya’s
hand, he led her over so they were standing closer to the wall of shelves. “All
of these items are special to us in some way.”

Daimon
stepped forward and pointed to a beautiful white statue of a goddess with her
hair fanning out around her. It looked as if it was made of alabaster, but
there were veins of gold shot through it that made it look like it was glowing
in the light.

“This
was made for us by a D’Aire that was close to our family. He helped us when we
were starting New Vega, and lost his life fighting alongside our parents.” He
moved his hand over toward a glass case with a feather inside it. “This is from
one of his wings…as a remembrance.”

Tavius
pointed to another object. “This is a Helios ceremonial knife gifted to us by a
tribe leader we took in after her village was burned by another warring tribe.
She and the surviving members of her tribe now run the restaurant you were in
earlier tonight.”

Maddox
reached out toward three Krytos daggers that were side-by-side on stands. He
picked up the smallest one of the group and held it out for her to see. “Each
Krytos carries a dagger as a symbol of what we’ve lost, but also as a vow to
fight so it will never happen again. This belonged to our mother…and now it is
yours.”

Mya’s
breath hitched as he handed it to her. She looked up at him with wide eyes. “Maddox,
why would you give this to me?”

“She
would want you to have it, as welcome to our family. As a daughter. As our
mate.” He cupped her face in his hands as Tavius and Daimon each placed a hand
on one of her shoulders. “We didn’t tell you before now, because we wanted to
give you time to choose us. You were innocent of males, and we didn’t want you
to regret your decision, but there is no way we can let you go. You have our
hearts and our love. We want you to be our
tava,
our alpha mate.”

“I
want that, too,” she whispered, tears streaming down her cheeks. “I love you,
all of you, and would be proud to be your mate.”

Maddox
lifted Mya up into his arms and carried her down the wide steps so they were
near the bed. He sat her down carefully, then took the dagger from her. “You
can leave this here when you aren’t using it,” he said as he put it on top of the
nightstand, then he removed his own from his belt and placed it next to hers.

“You
mean this room is mine?”

“Ours,”
Daimon corrected as he sat down next to her, lifting her onto his lap. “Three
of us will sleep in this room each night while one of us will stay in our old
room.”

 She
put her arm around his neck, cuddling into him. “Why?”

“Because
when we are with you, we would like to rest in peace. One of us will guard the
others to ensure everyone’s safety,” Maddox explained.

Mya
thought that was slightly paranoid since they were on a secure level and their suite
was private, but if it made them feel better, she would just go with it. She
took a moment to notice the craftsmanship of the bed. “This is absolutely
gorgeous…and huge. It’s a wonder you were able to get it in here.”

“I
made it in here,” Daimon said quietly. “No other has slept in this bed. I made
it for our mate. For you.”

Mya
leaned in, pressing her lips to his in appreciation for his special gift. He
let out a growl of hunger, but Tavius pushed him back before he could take the
kiss deeper.

“Enough
of that. We’re still not done with show and tell. Computer, shift window
screens to summer night,” Tavius said in a loud voice as he sat down next to
her.

Her
head turned as she let out a gasp as the windows changed to an image of a dark
lake cast aglow with silvery moonlight. “Oh, wow…”

“You
can change it to any scene you like,” Tavius told her. “I’ve programmed in some
images for every season, but if I missed anything you like, we can add it
later. This way, you won’t have to miss home so much.”

Her
eyes burned with tears, but she fought them back as she threw her arms around
his neck. “Thank you.”

“It
is my pleasure,
tava
.”

Maddox
had walked back to the wall of shelves and he took a brown velvet bag off the
bottom row, then came back to join them. He stopped in front of her and lifted
the bag, pulling a black object out. “I added this to my—I mean, our collection
last week.”

“See?
I told you he’s a hoarder,” Tavius whispered loudly.

Maddox
growled, but before he could lunge at his brother, Mya distracted him by
saying, “That’s a marking device. Why do you have it?”