Upon the Threshold (13 page)

“I will try, but no promises,” she confessed. “I really am trying here. We have a celebration to get back to, so yes, let’s do this.” She looked up at Kraven and licked her lips. “How do you want me?” Oh, boy, that so did not come out right, and she knew it the moment she saw his nostrils flare and his eyes narrow. “That question could be interpreted in so many different ways in this particular situation. So you can remove the implements,” she hastily added.

She watched his jaw clench, and just past his arm, Lukkis putting a hand to his mouth to stifle what she assumed was a laugh.

“Foot on the chair, hold the robes up but not too far,” Kraven said. His voice was rough, harsh even, and his eyes were flickering from the normal color to that odd golden shade that signaled the Beast was close.

Eli did as he instructed and bit her lower lip. When his large hand stroked up her thigh, she shuddered. Her knees actually trembled. “Kraven,” she whispered his name. She was desperate, hungry, and needy. “Please,” she begged. “Hurry.” Because if not, they would not make the celebration. “Get it out and over with.” But his hand kept stroking her thigh, and his growl—goodness, his growl was making her wetter and wetter.

“Don’t. Move.” He shot her a look as he bit those two words out. Only when he said them did she realize she’d been rotating her hips, a sensual calling to her mates. Another deep growl told her he’d found the first implement, and in a quick tug, it came free with a flood of liquid from her pussy. His face tightened even more, his breathing coming out in hard pants as his hand moved to the one in her ass. She felt him take hold and pull. When the implement came free, she nearly fell over.

Eli was gasping for breath. She was shivering, and not because she was cold either. Letting the gown fall, she looked up at both of her mates and knew that she wasn’t the only one affected by the removal of the implements. She licked her lips and, after swallowing hard to regain her voice, whispered, “I should clean up a bit.” She was leaking from her pussy.

“That would be best.” Kraven nodded. Stepping back, she watched as a quiver worked through his body. He sucked in a deep, slow breath and then let it out. He was battling his instincts—she could see it, his nostrils were flared and his muscles rigid and larger than earlier.

Elisabeth didn’t say anything at all because she knew that they were all contending with their needs right now. She looked from Kraven to Lukkis and noted that both were making and releasing fists, but Kraven seemed to be closer to the edge of the Beast than Lukkis, which was completely and fully interesting. She wasn’t sure why Kraven was closer to the Beast than Lukkis was, but she wasn’t going to question it.

Both men stalked around the far end of the spare quarters they had stepped into, giving her some space as they fought for control. It took a bit of time, but eventually Lukkis let out a shuddering breath and looked at her with his normal hazel eyes. Kraven, though, still had that edge going on, his teeth still a little too sharp but lessening into regular human-like teeth. Blunt and very unthreatening.

After she was fully cleaned up, Elisabeth put the cloth on the bedside table and then moved to the men she had tied her life to. Placing a hand on each of their chests, she looked up at them. “Thank you for that. Thank you for giving me that relief.”

Lukkis shrugged. “I didn’t have all that much to do with that. I was, thankfully, well over here. Kraven, brother, never knew you had that kind of restraint.”

Kraven moved his head around on his shoulders, his neck cracking with the motion. He looked down at her and his eyes were back to their normal color, the crystal blue looking a little too sharp though. “I am glad you are feeling better.”

“Thank you again,” Eli said softly. “I can’t imagine what that cost you to do for me, but thank you. For ensuring that I was taken care of. We should go now, right?” They needed to leave the rooms and get back to the party or they would never make it back.

Nodding, he leaned in and brushed a kiss to her forehead. “Yes, we should go now, or they will come looking for us. They cannot begin without us seated at the main table. It is tradition.” Stepping back, he took her hand from his chest and folded it gently within his.

Eli smiled when Lukkis did the same. Each of them holding her hands gently in theirs. This was what she would accept for now, since what she really wanted was something they couldn’t do until they had finished with their celebration. “Then I suggest we get ourselves moving so that we can have our celebration and leave before it is over in order to begin our bonding?”

“We will be leaving well before the festivities conclude,” Lukkis said. He looked her over with a hunger that she knew well. “We will eat, toast, and then get out of there so we can show you just how much we need you.”

“Thank you both for understanding that I need you both in a way that borders on insanity.”

“It will be what we make of it and nothing more and nothing less,” Lukkis told her. They were moving toward the festivities. There was music and laughter and the scent of food on the breeze. “A life can only be as good or as bad as those living it and what their choices are. We make our futures, Elisabeth.”

“Well, I am hopeful that we will have a good life together. I certainly will do all that I need to do in order to ensure that we have a good life.” She wanted happiness. She had traveled across universes to get to these two men, and she deserved happiness.

“We will have a good life,” Kraven said. “Because that is what we all want. But you need to want it and be willing to work on it to achieve it. Nothing is given freely in this universe except for emotions. Everything else is a work in progress with a specific goal in sight.”

“I am willing and ready to work for it. I’m willing to work at whatever it is that I need to achieve in order to fit into your world. Whatever I have to do, I will do it. I want to be all that the two of you need. I just hope that there will be someone who will be willing to teach me everything that I need to learn so that we can have whatever it is that we need to be happy. I know that I have much to learn, and I am willing to do just that.”

“We will teach you as we will learn from you. It is what mates do. And what we cannot teach you, we will find someone to assist us all,” Kraven said. He lifted an eyebrow when she looked up at him. “You appear stunned by my words. Why would you be?”

“I shouldn’t be surprised by anything that has to do with the two of you. I know that, but I am. I guess that I’m surprised because I never would have guessed that you would take so much time out of your lives in order to teach me. I like it though, a lot.”

“We are honored to take time with you, Elisabeth,” Lukkis told her, pulling her attention to the man on her other side. “It is a chance for us all to connect on a deeper level than just the physical bonding that will come this night.”

“I’m glad. I look forward to all aspects of life that we will share. I look forward to being a part of your lives and not just a spectator. I know it will take me time to find something to do in your world, but I’m hopeful that one day I will.” Something other than being their mate, their bride. She wanted work as well to keep her occupied.

“You have a job, do you not?” Kraven asked. “You can continue your work with your people, and in time, bring what you know to ours as well. You are an intelligent woman with much to give to both our peoples. Knowledge should always be shared.”

“Thank you. I would like that, a great deal. But after we return from your homeworld. I was told we had to do the ceremony there, only on a smaller scale, is that correct?” She hoped without the implements because that had been torture, walking to her men with every single move rubbing her clit and making her pussy weep for them.

“Yes. It is more for a public display to those of power to show our respect to them. It will only entail walking the path, the public declarations, and then we will all walk down the path again to meet with them. They will have us sign some documents they will notarize, and it will be on record. There will be a small feast, and then we can go to the location they will have had prepared for us for the evening.”

“That sounds doable.” She looked up at Kraven and frowned. “I can’t shake the feeling there is something you aren’t telling me, however. Is there something else I need to know before we go to your homeworld?”

“Oh look, drinks,” Lukkis said and jogged off.

Kraven said something after him, definitely not English, that had Lukkis laughing hard. Kraven let out a breath and rubbed a hand over his face. “Yes, there is something I should tell you before we go to the Droushanian homeworld. I don’t want you being surprised by it, but I also didn’t want to mention it on this night.”

“You will tell me tomorrow though?” She understood that sometimes things didn’t need to be voiced on such a special night, and she appreciated him wanting to ensure that she would have that time with them. “I trust you. If you don’t wish to talk about it tonight, I understand, but we will tomorrow?”

He lifted her hand and pressed it between both of his as he faced her. “I don’t wish to hide it from you, but tonight doesn’t need to have it spoken about. Tomorrow will be soon enough to bare it to you so that you are forewarned.”

“I can live with that. I can handle waiting. Tonight is for us. Tonight is a celebration of what we will all three share together.” She curled her fingers around his hand. “We will be okay. I just know it. Somehow and some way, we will get through this. I have faith in us.”

“It is a celebration we will all share,” he said softly. Lifting her hand, he pressed it to his chest, one hand over hers and the other cupping her face. “Now, I think it is time for us to join in on the celebration. To enjoy this night, and then we can be together, completely and fully.”

“I look forward to that. All of it.” Especially given how ready her body was for the men. The ritual oils they’d used made her even more sexually aroused than she typically would be, and she was hurting in need. She was desperate and hungry for more. For all. For everything.

He rubbed his thumb across her skin before lacing their fingers together and leading her to her mating celebration.

Chapter Ten

They were inside the ship, a very quiet ship. Lukkis had explained that except for a few crew manning the sensors, everyone was out at the celebration. The crew would be rotated out so that everyone could have a chance to partake, but other than those six people, they were all alone on the vessel and would be all night.

They’d reached Kraven’s quarters. At least she thought they were his; she hadn’t really been paying attention during the walk. Anticipation of what was to come had distracted her.

“Elisabeth,” Lukkis said. He was frowning at her. Okay, so maybe it wasn’t the first time he’d called her name. “Are you all right?”

She shook herself out of her haze of need and smiled. “Sorry. I just…” Biting her lower lip, she looked up at Lukkis and then Kraven and admitted, “The oils that they used had a special additive that is making me very, very needy. An aphrodisiac I believe is what was used, because I swear right now I am just a walking, talking woman who is about to jump on her two men.” Funny how she was only needy when she looked at them. No one else stirred her, only Kraven and Lukkis.

“Danykia didn’t explain that to you before they used the oils?” Lukkis asked, looking more than a little confused.

“She should have,” Kraven murmured. “Did she not recommend you bathe after the initial preparation as well to remove some of the oils at the very least?”

“If she did, I didn’t listen,” Eli admitted. “I did take a bath, but then there were even more oils from one of the other ladies. Danykia wasn’t there. It’s okay, though, because I was assured that I would need to be as ready as my body could make me in order to accept both of you and your Beasts during this mating. I want this. It’s going to be okay. I promise,” she assured them. “I look forward to it, in fact—being with both of you and solidifying this bond I already feel forming.”

“They put in additional oils?” Lukkis looked worried now, his eyes huge. “Holy Mother,” he breathed out.

“They didn’t take into account she is human,” Kraven said. He tugged her in closer to them. “Before we mate fully with you, Elisabeth, we need you to bathe. We will be excreting more pheromones during the mating, and they will interact with the oils. You should only have a little on your skin so that you enjoy it but are not driven into a frenzy, as you would be now. Don’t panic,” he said, both hands coming up to cup her face. “It’s all right. Just breathe. We’ll draw you a bath, and you can wash, and then we will have our night together, I promise.”

“Okay,” she said with a sigh. “It’s not hurting me. I need you both to understand that. This isn’t hurting me at all. I just need you. So very much.” She leaned into him and smiled. “I will bathe, and when I come out, we will begin our night.” She was still worried about what he had to tell her come morning, but that was then and this was now.

“Let’s go and get the bath ready,” he said, rubbing a hand up and down her back gently. “It’s not hurting you now, but we don’t know how the oils would react with your physiology, and we can’t chance that. We warned Danykia, but she may not have passed it on properly to the others, and they did as they normally would.”

“I’ll get the water going,” Lukkis said, stroking a hand over her arm gently. “Come on, Elisabeth. Let us look after you for just a little bit longer.”

That had her smiling and she nodded. “I’m enjoying how the two of you are looking after me. It’s something that I have never before had. Will you from time to time allow me to take care of you as well?”

“Of course,” Kraven said, guiding her through the bedroom and to the bathroom. She frowned. Everything seemed a little different from the last time she’d been here. Then again, maybe not. She really hadn’t gotten a great look around. “It is what mates do for one another.”

“That’s good. I like that idea a great deal. I enjoy the idea of being able to take care of you and having you taking care of me.” Eli was going to find her way with these people. She was determined to find a niche for herself, and she was going to love it. Period. “Now, I should go and take that bath before I forget myself.”