Sophie Oak - Siren in Bloom

“You did, sweetheart,” Leo said, frowning. “You show no signs of having long-term emotional problems with it. Am I wrong?”

“I didn’t care, Leo. That’s what I never told you. That man held a gun to my head. He killed my husband right in front of me, and all I was worried about was whether Beth and Bo survived because I didn’t care about me. I felt dead inside. I didn’t care if he killed me because I didn’t have anything to live for. I was almost disappointed when Trev saved me. There was a part of me that wanted it to be over. I’d lost my mom and dad. I’d married a monster, and I thought I maybe deserved it all.”

“Shelley.” Wolf’s heart was breaking. He reached for her hand.

She shook her head, but her fingers threaded through his, accepting his comfort. Tears rolled down her face. “It wasn’t the same this time. Leo’s going to have to deal with some serious nightmares because I didn’t want to die. I couldn’t die, not when I just figured out what the whole love thing meant. Leo, I’m so sorry. I should have trusted in what I felt. I keep trying to sacrifice myself because I think it’s the only way to fix things, but I know now that I’m not alone in this. We’re all together. We can’t make decisions alone anymore. Holder put that needle in my neck, and I didn’t want to die. I wanted to do anything I could to live.”

“You told me to let him push the plunger,” Leo said, his voice hard. “Don’t think I haven’t forgotten that.”

“I know, but he was lying, Leo. It was truth serum. He didn’t want me dead when he measured the dose. He wanted me talking. I was pretty sure it wouldn’t kill me, but a bullet would have killed you.”

“It doesn’t matter, baby,” Wolf said. “We need to set some serious boundaries. Look, we will follow your instructions when it comes to swatches and paint and furniture.”

“Unless you try to wallpaper my office, and then we’ll have a problem,” Leo said.

Shelley laughed a little. “All right. I’m in charge of making things pretty, and you two handle the bad guys. I can agree to that.”

Wolf hugged her, reveling in the feel of her in his arms. This was his place in the world. He’d searched for it, longed for it, mistakenly believed it was something like a career, but this was his place. Her arms. Her heart. Her soul. This was his home.

“I love you, Shelley.”

She smiled brilliantly. “I love you, too.”

He pulled the blue box out of his pocket. “This is what I wanted to get before I decided to do the self-sacrificial asshole thing.”

“It seems to be a recurring theme in this family. We’ll be in therapy for years,” Leo said with a sigh.

Shelley opened the box and touched the interlinking circles. “This is perfect.”

“It isn’t a ring, but I thought Leo and I should pick that out,” Wolf said.

“I wouldn’t dream of picking out a ring for her,” Leo said. “I would screw it up. How about we take our woman and let her pick it out? After all, she’s in charge of pretty things.”

Shelley went still. “Is that supposed to be a proposal?”

Wolf knew when they had fucked up. “Nope. Not a proposal because when we propose, it’s going to be beautiful and romantic and very memorable.”

“And you’ll say yes,” Leo announced.

Shelley grinned. “Yes. I suspect I will. Now someone better kiss me. I didn’t take that stupid butt plug for nothing. I want my men.”

Wolf felt his cock jump at the thought. He wanted it, too. He wanted to fill her up. Carefully avoiding her neck, he kissed her, his lips finding hers with the unerring instinct of a man coming home. Soft, she was so soft, his woman.

He let his tongue delve in, sliding against hers, dominating. She softened under him, giving him exactly what he wanted. He pulled her into his arms, pressing her chest to his.

He came up for air. “Are you sure you’re up for this? I can be pretty rough. I’ll try to be careful.”

“Don’t you dare,” she said, her nails digging ever so slightly into his shoulders. “I want my Masters. I’m the world’s worst sub, but I want my Masters. I want them rough and masculine and bossy. I want you and Leo exactly the way you are.”

And he wanted to dominate her. His cock was swollen with need. “Strip.”

Her mouth came open. “What?”

“You heard him, pet. My brother told you to strip. Let’s make a quick amendment. We handle the bad guys, you handle the decorating, and we are definitely in charge in the bedroom.” Leo’s eyes had darkened.

Shelley obviously wasn’t about to just give in to that. “I get to pick the wine, too. And three times a week, I get to pick what we watch on TV or see at the movies.”

His girl was a negotiator. And he foresaw a whole lot of HGTV and reality shows in his future. “Agreed. Now, strip.”

He got to his feet and stood beside his brother as Shelley tossed the blanket off. She was wearing pajama pants and a T-shirt.

“No more clothes when we’re alone. If I have to watch TV shows about people making food I can’t eat, then at least you can be naked while I do it,” Leo said.

Wolf liked the way his brother thought. “And you have to let one of us shower with you every morning. You’ll allow your Masters to clean you.”

She snorted, an oddly adorable sound. “I bet there will be a whole lot of cleaning going on.”

She tugged the T-shirt over her head, and Wolf’s mouth watered. She wasn’t wearing a bra. Her breasts were round with large pink-and-brown nipples that he loved to suck on. Her hands shook a little as she pushed the pajama pants down and off her hips. Her pussy was such a perfect little bud, a flower that bloomed just for them.

“I didn’t want to die this time because I finally knew what it meant to be alive,” Shelley said, standing in front of them. She didn’t try to hide herself. “I knew what it meant to love.”

Leo stepped forward, his hands finding her curves. Wolf walked to the back, pressing his pelvis to her round ass.

“I love you, baby. This is forever,” Leo said, his lips kissing her forehead, her nose, her lips.

“Forever and a day,” Wolf promised, nuzzling her neck. That just might be enough time.

Forever. The word meant something now. Shelley breathed in, letting the sweetness of the moment assail her every sense. This was the perfect place to be, between her men, her Masters. Oh, that part of their relationship might not be the dominant one, but it was there, and she would honor it. It was something they all needed.

“Show me what a good girl you are,” Leo whispered, stepping away.

She knew what he wanted. She got to her knees as gracefully as she could. She vowed to practice until the move was second nature, a gift to honor her Masters. She spread her legs wide without the horrible inhibitions of before. There wasn’t a place for self-doubt here. She placed her hands on her knees palms up and lowered her head.

“Very nice,” Wolf said. “But I think I’d like to see you present yourself. Bring your head up, arms behind your head. I want to see everything that belongs to us. I want to see breasts and pussy.”

With a deep breath, she did as he asked, lacing her hands behind the back of her head. It brought her breasts up, thrusting them into a presentation position.

“These are lovely, brother. I love her tits. But I think I want to decorate them. The little sub is in charge of decorating everything else, but I think we get to decorate her. I’m going to grab a few necessary items. Why don’t you warm up her mouth?” Wolf asked.

“It would be my pleasure.” Leo looked down at her, his thumb trailing across her lower lip. “How would you like that, my pet? Would you like to suck your Master’s cock?”