Obsessed with Fur [3xtasy Lake 4] (Siren Publishing Ménage Everlasting) (9 page)

“Cut me some slack, Maibee.” Marcario rubbed his arm and promised himself he would watch his language better once the little munchkin showed up.

“Ecstasy Lake is like a sanctuary for shifters. We all have found ourselves here under different circumstances, and exactly when we needed it the most. Even if we didn’t realize it at the time.”

“I wanted to tell you both sooner, but it wasn’t something to talk about over the phone.”

“Do you have a formal pack leader?”

“Gordon Roberts. Although, unlike others I met, he doesn’t run the pack like his personal kingdom. We all respect him because he and his wives are the ones who first started encouraging people to live here. They are often the first ones to take care of those who need help.”

“That’s why he came down to get Jess?”

“Yes, she is his assistant, but he thinks of her as a daughter.”

“Is Jessica a shifter, too?”

“That is something you will have to ask her. It’s a personal question, and not something everyone goes around wearing like a nametag. Even Vencel and I weren’t too sure of it all when we first moved here. We thought we would keep to the outskirts of town and mind our own business.”

“They have a way of pulling you in and accepting you like family. Mai’s human and that didn’t stop everyone from banding together to help protect her.”

Marcario felt a bit better knowing that their sister was so well protected. These people could do a much better job than they had done, and the baby would be raised in a loving home surrounded by a community that would care for them all.

I wonder if we could live here like that with Jess.
The thought floated to the forefront of his thoughts, but he pushed it away. He and Jelani couldn’t live here. They would be bored to tears within weeks, and then what would they do? There was no way they could take Jess with them, because they couldn’t protect her the way they needed to.

“I need a beer.”

Gaspar appeared from the kitchen, thankfully wearing a pair of pants, carrying a couple of bottles of beer and a bottle of juice for Mai. She wrinkled her nose at him but took the bottle and sat back against her husband’s chest. He wrapped his hands over her tummy and rubbed gently.

“Are you two going to be okay with all this?”

“We don’t have much choice. From what I understand, being a mate is unbreakable.”

“It is but, it also means that we love your sister more than anything in the world.”

“I love them like that, too, but not only because they are mine. I wanted to tell you all this today and hoped that you wouldn’t be too overwhelmed. It looks like I worried for nothing, which is awesome. Tomorrow is the spring festival. This is my first one, and I’m really looking forward to it.”

“What has that got to do with telling us?”

“Because everyone in town will be there, and when a human is around they all have to be on their best behavior.”

“What if we didn’t take it well?”

“Then we would have come up with an excuse why you needed to go back to the city this weekend. I told Gordon we were going to talk to you, and that makes everyone relax a bit more.”

“So you two don’t mind helping to set some things up right?”

“Of course not. In fact we would love to have something to do.” Marcario wasn’t used to a sedentary lifestyle and all this waiting for his shoulder to heal was starting to grate on his nerves.

“Jelani, don’t let him overstrain that shoulder.” Mai pointed at Marcario and frowned. “You need to take it easy.”

“I think that it’s tightening up because I’m not doing anything with it.” He walked over and wrapped his arms around his little sister. “Don’t worry about me, Maibee.”

She grinned at his use of the nickname he gave her as a kid. “Are you going to think up silly names for the baby?”

“Probably. Now let’s get going before Jelani starts complaining about the cold.”

By that evening, Marcario’s shoulder ached, but it felt good to finally be useful. It took most of the day to get everything the way that Helen and Ann liked it. Both women were thrilled when he and Jelani had arrived with Mai to help. The day before a contract company had come and built a large temporary pavilion in the Roberts’ backyard. Snow had been shoveled out and a false floor laid down. Heaters hung from the ceiling around the large room, and large windows allowed in lots of light. Jelani had spent most of the day sitting under one of the heaters doing various jobs that Helen gave him. There was tons of catered food delivered that Mai, Ann, and Helen had helped set up.

He helped move tables and hang colourful banners across the room, careful to avoid a fire hazard with the heaters. It felt good to do something creative with his hands. He was careful not to overdo it, and thankfully his brother ran interference whenever their sister started fussing over him.

“You keep rubbing that shoulder and Mai is going to be over here fussing again,” Jelani commented. “Are you sure you’re okay?”

“God, don’t you start.” Marcario hadn’t realized that he was rubbing it again and moved his hand before anyone else noticed. “It’ll be fine. Instead of worrying about my shoulder, look at that ass.” Marcario smacked his brother’s arm and nodded toward a woman standing with a group of people. A tight pair of blue jeans hugged her nicely rounded cheeks. He could almost imagine how those globes would shiver under his hand. He followed the luscious curves where they dipped into her waist. She wasn’t short, but she still looked graceful from the back. Her arms waved dramatically, as she was obviously telling a story. Blond hair curled down around her shoulders and bounced softly as she moved. She was wearing a hooded sweatshirt that hung to her hips and masked her upper body. He wanted to know what she looked like under all those clothes. Damn, this was the first time he felt an instant attraction to a woman in months.

Ever since that night in Toronto his thoughts had revolved around one woman. A woman who accepted comfort from them but was borderline terrified of them. He now knew some of the things that happened to her. Mai kept him and Jelani updated while they were back in Africa, but it wasn’t the same.

At least now it looked like Jessica’s tight grip on his thoughts must be loosening. The idea of that partially bothered him. When he and Jelani agreed to help out for this celebration, he hoped he would see her at some point. They had been here all for two weeks and not caught even a peek of her on the rare times they ventured out. This morning, though, Mai told them that Jess had been in Toronto with Gordon and was planning on coming to this event tonight.

Jelani hadn’t said anything yet and he glanced over at his brother, wondering if he even heard his comment. “Hey? You with me here?”

“You don’t recognize her?”

“Dude, I would never forget a woman with an ass like that. I think she’s a nanny or something. I think I might have seen her with Gordon’s kids earlier.” Marcario glanced back over, feeling guilty that he might have forgotten her name. In that moment her face turned and she started to look around the room, avoiding looking directly behind her. He could almost see the way her body tensed up. “Holy shit. It’s Jess.”

Desire slammed into him like a freight train. She had changed in the past few months. So much so, he hadn’t recognized her right away. Of course, five months ago she didn’t have the softness to her figure, and he never saw her with her hair down. She didn’t look as sculpted as she did in the fall, but that didn’t take away from her at all. This was a different look, and one he heartily approved of.

The night he met her and carried her to the cab haunted his dreams, only in his dreams she was naked, and the inside of the cab was a luxury hotel room where he and Jelani could explore every inch of her body. He took the opportunity to get a good look at her. Five months ago she had a picture-perfect body that came heavily sculpted from a lot of time in a gym. Now from what he could tell, her body looked softer and much more appealing. His cock stirred in his jeans, and by the way Jelani shifted on the spot, he suspected that his brother felt the same way.

She had to sense them watching her because she continued to dart looks around her. Only her expression wasn’t that of anticipation, but more of fear.

“We’re making her nervous,” Jelani said as he got up from the table. “Let’s go talk to her.”

Marcario nodded and pushed himself up off the chair. As soon as they both moved, Jessica’s head turned and she looked directly at them. Her face wasn’t as angular as it was before. She looked more beautiful then he remembered. Her thick sweatshirt still hid her curves from him, making him fantasize about what she was hiding.

“Marcario, if you don’t stop looking at her like that we will never make it out of the bar in one piece. You look like you’re on the hunt, man.”

“I’m starting to feel that way.”

Jess didn’t move as they crossed the room toward her. She looked wide-eyed at them and didn’t move except to glance back and forth between them. She looked like a deer caught in headlights, and that rankled. He wanted to see the personality he’d been watching. He looked past her at her friends. The woman looked confused and the two men glared at him and his brother.

A sick feeling punched him in the gut. What if she’s here on a date? It was a distinct possibility, and he hoped that the Fates weren’t that cruel.

“We’ll convince her that we are a better choice.” Jelani answered his question as if he had spoken it. That always seemed to know what the other brother was thinking. Thank god for Jelani’s never-ending optimism. Beneath it all he knew his brother was deciding which one of the men might have escorted Jessica.

The younger one with long red hair moved closer and draped an arm over her shoulders, whispering something in her ear. It stole her attention away from him and his brother and he saw her visibly relax. He wanted to be the one to reassure her. He wanted her to turn to him and his brother when she needed comfort.

Jelani reached out for her first and captured her hand in his, bringing it up to his lips. “Hello, beautiful.”

Jessica blushed slightly as Marcario claimed her other hand and stepped closer to her. Words crowded his thoughts and he couldn’t figure out what to say first, so he simply smiled and pressed her knuckles against his lips. Her hand felt like silk under his fingertips, and he could have happily stood here all night staring into her big brown eyes. There were so many things floating around her expression, and he wanted her to tell him and Jelani all of them.

A deep clearing of a throat drew his attention and he looked at the man with his arm draped over her shoulders. If this guy thought he was going to have an easy task stealing her from him and his brother, then Marcario would happily dissuade him of that assumption.

“Oh, I’m sorry. I’m being rude.” Jessica addressed the other people standing with her. “This is Marcario and Jelani Bennett, Mai’s older brothers. I met them a few months ago in Toronto”

“You’re not rude in the slightest, Jess.” The redhead looked back and forth between him and Jelani. “You didn’t barge in and interrupt a conversation.”

Jessica tensed up slightly and tried to pull her fingers from Marcario’s grasp. He held on slightly for a moment longer and then let them go.

“Sloan, stop instigating.” The other woman reached out and tugged on a chunk of his hair. He nodded slightly at her but didn’t move from Jess’s side.

“Jelani, Marcario, this is Carol, and two of her husbands, Jaxon and Sloan Henderson.”

It took a moment for Jessica’s words to permeate his brewing temper. He glanced at his brother and in a moment of clarity, his mood lifted.

“I’m sorry, did you say husbands?”

Sloan leaned forward and shook each of their hands as well. His grip was a bit tighter than need be but Marcario didn’t care if that meant that he didn’t have any sort of claim on Jessica. “Yes, Carol is married to me and my two brothers. Kaden is helping Gordon bring in some more food.”

“Helen has been cooking up a storm again.” Carol smiled at him and relaxed back against her husband. “Gordon insisted on having some of the food catered in so Helen wouldn’t be too overwhelmed. Everyone pitches in to help for the spring festival. Around here we like to celebrate the first day of spring, even if it doesn’t look like it outside.”

Jelani laughed. “That snowstorm we had a few days ago sure didn’t make it feel like we are changing seasons.”

“Nothing like winter getting in hopefully its last good punch.” Sloan rubbed his hand along Jessica’s arm, and Marcario slowly breathed in and tamped down the wave of jealousy that pounded against him. This was a friend, and from what he knew didn’t have any designs on her. He and Jelani had a long talk with Gaspar and Vencel today about this town’s proclivity toward multiple relationships. It was one thing to talk about it and another to see it so open.

I could live here.
No sooner did the thought cross his mind that he could sense Jelani’s gaze on him. He glanced over and his brother quirked an eyebrow.
Looks like we are on the same page again.

“The last time we spoke, you were both headed back to Africa with MSF to work on some projects.” Jessica’s soft voice drew him in like a moth to a flame. He would happily stand here all day and listen to her talk.