Triple Dog Dare

Chapter Twenty-One

There was still one melancholy chore for Carla, Elain, and Liam to perform. The three of them drove north on I-75 to Tampa. Elain rode in the back while Liam drove and Carla sat in the front seat. The two of them seemed to be getting along very well, something Elain gave silent thanks for.

I won’t hope. I won’t hope.

Elain hadn’t visited the cemetery in over fifteen years, when she’d asked her mom to take her there. She had no conscious memories of Maureen Alexander, something that made her very sad. Both Liam and her mom had obviously loved her very much, although in different ways.

Lost in her own thoughts, Elain paid little attention to their conversation in the front seat. When they pulled into the parking lot at the cemetery and Liam shut the car off, the three of them sat there for a moment in silence. It wasn’t until Elain looked forward and realized they were waiting on her.

“Oh, I’m sorry.”

Carla smiled kindly at her. “It’s okay, honey.”

Elain offered up what she hoped didn’t look like a halfhearted smile in return. In silence, they all exited the car.

Carla led the way through winding paths toward what appeared to be an older section of the cemetery. When they stopped before the gravestone, Elain wished she’d thought to bring flowers to place on the grave.

Liam dropped to his knees in front of the stone and placed one hand on the writing etched there. Closing his eyes, he silently wept.

Carla put her arm around Elain and hugged her. Elain didn’t know what to say to either of them. She barely knew what to think. So many things had happened, so many emotions, so much to process.

It would take a lot of time.

Unfortunately, she suspected they hadn’t heard the last of the Abernathys. Then there were the cockatrice to deal with.

And she was going to be an aunt, sort of, to both Lina’s twins and Mai’s baby.

That part, at least, filled her with some joy, even if of a melancholy kind. She’d spent the evening before researching Down’s syndrome and knew that it was possible Mai’s little girl might be born almost completely normal, with minimal medical problems.

She didn’t want to contemplate potential worst-case scenarios.

After a few minutes, Liam sat back on his heels, took a deep breath, and scrubbed his face with his hands. “Thank ye for bringing me here. I knew the second she died. I felt it in my soul. I knew she’d want me to move on, just like I’d have wanted her to had it been me. I made a vow to myself that until I could rightly say good-bye, I wouldn’t. And I didn’t. I had no desire to.”

Carla stepped forward and laid a comforting hand on his shoulder. “She was a wonderful woman. I’m glad I got to have her in my life.”

He nodded. “I wish we’d had more time together.” He let out a harsh, barking laugh. “As old as we each were, we only had three years together.” He looked up at her. “That’s something, eh? The Goddess has a fine sense of humor, but I can’t rightly say I can see anything good in it.” He reached up and squeezed her hand. “Thank ye, Carla. Ye did good by her, and by Elain. I cannot ever begin to repay ye.”

He stood and hugged her.

Elain watched them.

Don’t hope. Do not get your hopes up!

After a moment, Liam extended an arm to Elain, welcoming her into their embrace. She willingly went, her eyes prickling with tears as she felt their loving arms around her.

He kissed the top of her head. “Yer mum would be so proud of ye,” he said to her. “I’ve no doubt ye’ll keep those men of yers in line. Ye’ve got a right fine temper, just like she did. That’s one of the things I loved about her. Spirited.”

Elain almost couldn’t force herself to say it. “Please,” she whispered, “tell me you’re not leaving.”

He hugged her even more tightly as his voice broke. “Never again. Not unless ye tell me to go. I’ll never leave ye again, I promise. Ain invited me to live with all of ye as long as I wanted.”

With tears streaking her face she looked at her mom. Carla nodded. “I’ll stay, too. If you want me to. As long as you want me to.”

Elain vigorously nodded.

They stopped for dinner on their way back to Arcadia. With the mood now lighter and Elain’s apprehension about either of her parents’ possible departures completely lifted, she was able to fully enjoy their company, as well as notice a genuine bond developing between Carla and Liam, even deeper than the friendship that had blossomed over the past couple of weeks.

“I do need to go back to Spokane to take care of a few things,” Carla said. “I need to pack my stuff and decide what to do with the house. I don’t want to sell it in this market, but I could rent it.”

“I’ll be happy to help ye, if ye’d like me to,” Liam offered.

Carla smiled. “Thank you. I appreciate that. I’d like that very much.”

“And if you wanted, you could live in my house in Venice,” Elain offered. “Um, both of you, if you wanted. Not that I don’t want you two in Arcadia,” she quickly added. “I just meant if you wanted, you know, privacy or…something.”

Carla nudged Liam. “I think that’s a hint.”

He laughed. “I’d have to agree.” He squeezed Elain’s hand. “Whatever will be, will be, sweetheart. Regardless, that’s something that can wait until after yer wedding.”

Elain winced. “Eloping is really looking good right now.”

Carla burst out laughing. “Wow. The princess bride wanting to elope? That really says something, doesn’t it? Life did get pretty crazy.”

Liam’s expression turned serious. “And likely to get crazier. I don’t want to worry either of ye, but honestly? We’d all be better off under the same roof. At least for a while.”

“Safety in numbers?” Elain asked.

He nodded. “Those crazy buggers killed my sisters-in-law. And one of the Lyalls’ cousins’ mates. All to try to locate me to find ye. I doubt the Clan Council can stop them simply with a won challenge. Rodolfo Abernathy’s pride’s on the line now. The man killed his own son and grandson for disappointing him.” He sipped his coffee. “I’d be surprised if he didn’t kill Paul as well before the day was over for losing to ye.”

Elain’s stomach turned. Okay, the guy was a creep, but kill him? “You really think he did?”

Liam shrugged. “Hard to say. Wouldn’t surprise me, let’s just say that.”

Carla shook her head, her expression grim. “Elain, I’m sorry I gave you a hassle about wanting to take karate when you were a kid. I’m so glad you did now.”

Elain managed a smile. “Me, too, Mom.”

Back in the car and on their way home to Arcadia, another question came to Elain. “Dad, do you think Mai’s baby is safe?” It still felt both odd and gave her a thrill to call him that.

Sitting in the backseat, she watched him glance at her in the rearview mirror. “Maybe not. Part of me says let the word get to Abernathy that she’s got Down’s syndrome so he’ll leave things be. Part of me thinks that if he finds out a child of his bloodline is imperfect, that he’s just batshit crazy enough to try to kill it. I sincerely doubt anything our Clan Council says would deter him.”

A wave of protective fury washed through Elain. “If I have children. What about that? Will he come after them?”

“Again, it’s hard to say. These are questions for Lacey and Lina. Or even things ye might see yerself when ye start having visions.”

“But do you think he’d try to kill or abduct any of my kids?”

“I don’t know, but I wouldn’t put it past him. He’s a fecking arsehole of the worst kind.”

Elain sat back, silent the rest of the way home. When they arrived, Ain, Brodey, and Cail stepped out onto the porch to greet them.

She hugged all of them. Ain made her look up at him. “What’s wrong, babe?”

“I want to take those fuckers out. Take the fight to them. Finish this so they quit fucking with our family.”

“Who?” Ain asked.

“The Abernathys,” she said.

The men exchanged a worried look. “Where’s this coming from? What happened?” Ain asked. She knew he was concerned since he didn’t even give her grief about the swearing.

“Have you heard anything about Paul Abernathy since the challenge?”

From the look on Ain’s face, she knew he had. “Tell me.”

He glanced at his brothers again before answering her. “That’s the problem. No one’s heard anything else about him. None of the doctors they might use, no one. It’s like he disappeared off the face of the planet.”

“Or like his grandfather killed him and buried him in the woods in Maine?”

Finally, Ain grimly nodded.

“And Abernathy won’t just give up that easy, will he?”

“Probably not. But we are not going to take a fight to them. There were plenty of Clan wars to last those of us who remember them for the rest of our lives. Defending ourselves is one thing. Unprovoked aggression is another.”

“Okay, fine. But what if they come after us again?”

“If they come after us again,” he said, “then yes, we’ll pull out all the stops and finish it.” He hugged her tightly to him. “Until then, let’s just enjoy the life we have. Okay?”

She tried to relax into his embrace. “Okay.”

Brodey and Cail surrounded her, too, adding their arms to Ain’s warmth. Elain closed her eyes and breathed in their scent. Because of the Abernathys, she’d lost her mother and been forced to fight for her men. She’d lost a childhood of not being with her father, time she could never get back. Not to mention Mai’s baby might be at risk. Or her own future children.

If he tries again, he’s a dead man, she swore to herself.

With all the events of the past few weeks following her mother’s arrival in Arcadia, Elain had gratefully turned over most of the wedding planning duties to her mom and Mai even though it left her out of the loop on some things.

Surprisingly enough, that was fine with her. The night before the wedding, she lay snuggled in Ain’s arms while waiting for Brodey and Cail to come to bed.

“How many of your brothers are coming to the wedding tomorrow?” she asked him.

He laughed. “Two. You’re marrying them.”

She gently shoved him. “I meant your other brothers. You told me you still have ten brothers still alive.” She couldn’t imagine having a family that large. “And why didn’t we bring them into the mess with Abernathy and the cockatrice?”

He shrugged. “They have their own packs and families to take care of. I didn’t want to drag any of them into all of this. It’s our problem, not theirs.”

She sat up and looked at him incredulously. “Are you telling me none of your other brothers are coming tomorrow?”

“It’s all right. Three of our brothers are younger than we are, but the rest are older. Some much older. Most of them don’t even live here in the States. We’re not exactly close to all of them. Doesn’t mean we don’t love them or that they don’t love us, but we all have lives to live.”

“But…but they’re your brothers! Don’t they care you guys are getting married?”

“I called all of them and they wished us well, but it’s okay, really. I think all of them sent us cards. We’re going to have more than enough people here tomorrow to help us celebrate.”

Brodey and Cail chose that moment to walk into the bedroom. She pounced. “Did you know none of your brothers are coming tomorrow?”

Brodey frowned. “You feeling all right, babe?”

Cail smacked him on the shoulder. “I think she means our other brothers.”

“Exactly. Why am I the only one bothered by this?”

Ain chuckled. “Exactly. You are the only one bothered by this.” He took her hands in his and kissed them. “Seriously, we’re fine with it. We love our brothers. Don’t get us wrong, if they needed our help, we’d be there for them in a flash. And if we asked them for help, we know they’d be there for us.”

“Well, maybe not Brighton,” Brodey grumbled.

Cail laughed. “Yeah, he is an idiot.”

“That’s not very nice!” Elain protested.

“Well,” Ain said, “it’s the truth, unfortunately. He’s the one immediately older than we are, born before us.”

“The boy’s just not right in the head,” Brodey said.

“You of all people shouldn’t pick on one of your brothers,” she scolded.

“Babe, Brodey’s exactly right,” Ain said. “He’s not a bad guy, he’s just…”

“Simple,” Cail helpfully offered.

“That’s mean!” Elain said.

“No, that’s kind,” Brodey countered. “I think he took one too many headers off a horse in his day.”

Cail snickered. “He never could ride worth a shit.”

“All right,” Ain said, apparently sensing how upset Elain was growing. “That’s enough. Babe, we’re sorry, but he is our brother, and we do know what he’s like. You’ve never met him.”

“That’s the point. You’ve got this huge family I’ve never met. When do I get to meet them? And why don’t you have any sisters?”

When all three men’s faces looked sad, Elain immediately regretted her tone. “I’m sorry, guys. I shouldn’t have asked.”

“No, it’s okay,” Ain said. “We only had three sisters. All three of them have long since died. Only one of them was a shifter.”

“Mom always joked she should have gotten Dad neutered when she realized he mostly produced boys,” Brodey said with a smile.

All three brothers laughed at that. “Yeah,” Cail agreed. “Poor Mom. She was always outnumbered.”

“She held her own, though,” Ain said. “She ruled the house.”

Brodey nodded. “Remember the last Christmas, when I was slow to get up and help with the dishes?”

His brothers laughed. “Yeah,” Cail said. “She grabbed you by the ear and had you howling as she dragged you into the kitchen.”

All three men laughed, ending in a nearly identical sad sigh.

“I wish I could have met them,” Elain said. “They died trying to help me.”

“It’s okay, babe,” Ain assured her. “As fucked up as this sounds, maybe it’s better things worked out this way. If your parents had relocated, we might never have met you.”

“You’re right. It does sound fu—freaked up.”

He stared at her for a moment before he burst out laughing and pulled her to him in a hug. “Thank you, sweetheart. I promise I won’t spank you for swearing as long as you promise to try to remember not to do it.”

She laughed with him. “Deal. And thank you.” She looked up into his handsome face. How could she feel this much love, not just for him, but for all three of them, without her heart exploding? “I do want to try to follow the Code.”

His expression softened as he gently stroked her cheek. “I appreciate that, babe. I know as a Seer you’re going to sometimes need freedoms to go take care of things that’s going to set not just me, but all three of us Alphas on edge. We promise we’ll try to be patient and understanding. Just please, be patient with us in return when we lose it. We love you and we worry about you and we don’t want anything to happen to you.”

She nodded. “I will. I really love this kinder, gentler Prime gig you’ve got going.”

“Yeah?”

She laughed. “Yeah. Makes me really horny, too. It’s damn sexy having a hot, hunky, dominant and yet sensitive guy.”

“Well, let’s take care of that,” Brodey said.

“Hold on,” Ain said. He looked deep into her eyes. “Are you really happy, sweetheart? Are we really making you happy?”

She nodded. Then she kissed him. “I’ve never been so happy and content in my life,” she truthfully said. She straddled his lap, her arms draped around his neck. His hard cock rubbed against her clit. “Thank you for having patience with me.”

He smiled. “Thank you for having patience with me. With all of us.”

“Yeah, we’re a handful,” Brodey said with a smile.

She reached between his legs and cupped his balls. “Yeah, you are.”

“Mmm. Keep that up, babe, and you’re going to be full of cock in about two seconds.”

“What if that’s my goal?”

Cail laughed. “Your wish is our command, yadda yadda.”

She grinned as she maneuvered her pussy over Ain’s cock and slowly sank down onto it. “I believe you still haven’t done something yet.”

He arched an eyebrow at her. “Are you inviting me to do what I think you’re inviting me to do?”

“Go get the lube and you’ll find out.”

Brodey laughed as Cail scrambled out of bed. “Nice to know I’m not the only one she leads around by the balls.”

She laughed as she gently squeezed his. “And you, if you want that cock sucked, you’d better get in a different position.”

“Ooh, she’s feisty tonight, boys,” Ain teased as he slid both of them a little farther down the bed to allow Brodey access.

She wrapped her fingers around the base of Brodey’s cock and pulled him until he was close enough she could wrap her lips around it, too. Cail returned with the lube, and she stopped fucking Ain long enough that Cail could get her lubed up and his cock seated deep inside her ass.

Elain let go, allowing her body to take over. “Fuck me, boys,” she whispered before swallowing Brodey’s cock again.

Ain set the pace below her. Elain closed her eyes and enjoyed the feel of the heat from their bodies washing over her. The only sounds were flesh slapping against flesh as Cail fucked her, the wet sucking of her mouth on Brodey’s cock, and moans of pleasure from all three of them.

Elain felt like she was floating, her clit already swollen from the friction against Ain’s cock. Cail grabbed her waist. “Jeez,” he grumbled, his voice low and full of need, “your ass is so fucking tight, it’s fantastic.”

She loved this, that she could elicit this reaction from all three of them. Her body instinctively moved with them, needing them, wanting them. As the first release swept through her, she cried out around Brodey’s cock.

One of the visions hit her again. This time pregnant and snuggled in bed, each brother with a hand on her swollen belly, all three men wearing expressions of wonder as they felt the baby kick for the first time.

Another orgasm pulled her back into her body in time for her to moan again at the taste of Brodey shooting a hot jet of cum into her mouth. Ain and Cail picked up speed and tempo, their cocks growing hard and triggering another climax as she cried out in pleasure.

With nearly simultaneous growls, the other two brothers came, filling her body with their juices as she collapsed, shivering, on top of Ain.

“Are you okay?” Cail asked.

She grinned. “Waaaay better than okay.” After getting himself and her cleaned up, Cail returned to bed. A funny thought hit her, and she giggled.

“What’s so funny?” Ain mumbled. He was already half asleep.

“I like being the filling in the sandwich,” she said with a sleepy yawn.

Brodey snorted. “More like one of those donuts,” he said. “You know, with the creamy filling.”

She giggled again. “Okay, I like that, too.”

“Let’s get to sleep,” Ain said. “Big day tomorrow.”

“Mmm, cake,” Brodey said.

She laughed again, punctuated by a yawn. “It’s all about the food for you, isn’t it?”

“No, not just the food, babe. The sex is great.”

She snickered. “Horndog.”

“That’s me,” he agreed.

“Sleep,” Cail said. “It’s a good thing.”

On that note, she snuggled closer to her men and closed her eyes. Tomorrow, she would officially become Mrs. Aindreas Lyall.

And her dad would give her away.