“Then we’re lucky,” Finn replied. “If it doesn’t work, you’ll keep looking. It’s what you do. It’s what the Professor does. It’s what Diane does. We’re damn lucky to have you guys, and every one of us knows it. Now, get back to work while I go find my mate,” Finn teased.
“You’ve got a good mate, Finn,” Gideon said. “Take care of her.”
“I plan to,” Finn answered and headed out. He opened himself up, but it wasn’t Laura he connected with, it was Murphy. He felt his brother’s rage and sorrow and headed out at a run.
* * * *
Laura took her time searching for Ariel. She had an idea of where the other woman might have gone but wasn’t sure. She didn’t know Ariel very well. She had mostly stayed by herself or stuck close to Gideon or Vic. She avoided Daniel, and if what Laura thought was true, then she understood that avoidance much better. He had a hard road ahead of him if he wanted to reach his mate. Ariel might have healed from the physical, but the mental and emotional pain she’d suffered were still there.
Laura found her in the barn, up in the loft. She sat with her legs dangling out one of the windows, staring out over the land. Laura hesitated only briefly before taking a chance and sitting beside her. She didn’t speak. Instead, she waited for Ariel to acknowledge she was there.
“I’d been on my own for a year when they found me. I was arrogant. Thought I knew everything, but I never saw him coming.” Ariel reached for a loose piece of hay and began tearing it apart.
“They’re good at making you feel like they care about you, like they’re the friend you’ve been waiting for,” Laura said.
Ariel nodded. “I was with him for three days before they…before it happened. I guess they were searching for the males.”
“That seems to be the way it works,” Laura agreed. “Find the female then go from there.”
“How far did they get with you before Gabriel showed up and stopped it?” Ariel asked.
“I was staked out on the ground,” Laura admitted. “There were two male shifters. They’d drugged them.”
“How many humans?” Ariel asked.
“Three. Two of them were lookouts while Erik made sure the male shifters stayed focused on me.”
“He slapped at you, concentrating on your breasts and sex?” Ariel asked. “Showing them what was on offer.”
“Yeah,” Laura agreed.
“There were three shifters with me,” Ariel said. “Two of them must have known each other. They teamed up and killed the other guy. I’ll never forget the way they tore him apart. I was terrified, wondering which one would be the one to come after me, but they didn’t fight one another. They turned on me instead.” A tear dripped down Ariel’s cheek.
“I’m sorry, Ariel. I’m so incredibly sorry for what you went through,” Laura whispered and the other woman shuddered.
“You know what I remember most about that day?”
“No,” Laura barely managed to get out. The pain Ariel was feeling was so thick, so strong, it was as if it were another entity sitting with them.
“The way they kept apologizing as they took turns raping me. I could see the fury at what the drugs were forcing them to do in their gazes, but the hunger was there. They didn’t want me. I was just the tasty meat laid out to entice the beast. I’m not even sure they realized what they were whispering as they took me, but I still hear it in my nightmares. I’m sorry. Over and over again. I’m sorry while they took turns tearing me apart. I hate that phrase. It makes me sick.” She glanced at Laura. “It was the first thing Daniel said to me. He reached for me, and I flinched. It was instinct, even though I knew who he was. He saw me panic. He cupped my face, and it felt so perfect. Then he brushed his thumb over my lip and said he was sorry. Just that. I’m sorry. And I couldn’t run far enough away.”
“Oh, Ariel.”
“I lied earlier. I am broken. Some days, I think there are parts of me that will never heal.” Tears streamed down her face. “The two shifters took turns raping me until the hunters decided it was enough and killed them. Then they turned on me.”
Laura shook her head in denial. “Hunters don’t rape shifters. They wouldn’t soil themselves by taking one of us.”
“They must not have gotten that memo,” Ariel told her, voice going hard again, and Laura recognized it for what it was. It was Ariel’s way of locking it all inside. It broke Laura’s heart to watch Ariel struggle to maintain control over her emotions. They bled through anyway. “When they were done, they left me there to die. I wanted to die. I wanted the ground to open up and swallow me, to bury me so deep that no one would ever find me. Then Thomas was suddenly there. He was so gentle then. I almost convinced myself that I saw him shed a few tears over me.”
“He freed you.”
“He wrapped me in a blanket and took me back with him. And gave me to Gideon. He was the one who held me when I woke up from dreams so real I swore I felt them touching me. He was the one who was always there for me. Gideon might not have saved me, but he helped me put myself back together.”
“Did he?” Laura asked. “Because you don’t seem back together to me.”
“I don’t think all the pieces fit anymore,” Ariel said softly.
“Then make them fit,” Laura encouraged her. “Until you do, they win. You’ll always be that girl, bleeding on the ground. And you’re so much more than that, Ariel. You deserve to be more than that.”
“I don’t know how to make them fit,” Ariel admitted, and it broke Laura’s heart.
“One piece at a time,” Laura told her. “One at a time.”
She held out her hand, offering friendship she wasn’t sure Ariel wanted from her. The other woman stared at it for a long moment then slowly lifted her hand and took Laura’s. It was a start.
Ariel went back to staring out at the landscape, but Laura turned and found her mate with her gaze. She knew he’d heard what Ariel had shared with her. Just as Murphy had, though he remained hidden somewhere in the shadows. Both men were enraged by what had happened. Even more, they were hurting for Ariel, their heart’s breaking at what she’d endured.
Daniel needs to know,
Finn said in her head, and she nodded. Ariel needed her mate to help her heal, and the only way he could was if he knew just what his mate still dealt with. Daniel had had the misfortune of saying the exact wrong thing to Ariel when he’d first seen her. Hopefully, it was something they could get past. Daniel deserved happiness, and Ariel… Laura had a feeling she needed to learn how to live again.
Chapter Eleven
It was dusk by the time Laura and Finn made it back to her house. She’d sat with Ariel for a long time, neither of them speaking. She sensed the other woman just needed someone to be there, so Laura had stayed with her. Finn and Murphy had left at some point, but her mate had shown up immediately when she’d left the barn. He hadn’t said a word, just pulled her into his embrace and held her. She knew what he was thinking, though. If not for Gabriel, she could have suffered the same as Ariel had. Laura had known she was lucky that day, but Ariel made her realize just how lucky.
“I want to hunt them down and kill everyone who was there,” Finn admitted once they were inside. “Even the shifters.”
“They were drugged,” Laura reminded him. “They were victims.”
“It’s hard to remember that, considering what was done.”
She nodded. “I know, but they all three died that day. They were used then slaughtered. As for the hunters, from what I’ve heard about Thomas, I can’t imagine he let this go unpunished.”
“You think he hunted them down?”
“I do,” she said. “He seems the type who would.”
“Yeah,” Finn agreed. “He does.”
“I don’t know about you, but I could use a hot shower,” she said, giving a big stretch that had her rising on her tiptoes.
“Sounds good to me,” he agreed, wrapping his arms around her and tugging her back against his chest.
“Does that mean you want to wash my back?” she questioned with a purr, lifting an arm to loop around his neck. She needed Finn. Needed to feel his touch on her skin. Needed to wash away the horror of what Ariel had shared with the exact opposite of it, with love and passion.
“Among other places,” Finn crooned, trailing kisses down her neck.
She turned in his arms and walked backward, leading him toward the bathroom. She reached for the hem of his shirt along the way, and they removed it together, tossing it aside and starting on hers. They left a trail of clothes down the hallway, arriving at the shower wearing only their underwear. He kept running his fingers along the lace edges of her panties while she bent to start the water. He took advantage of her change in position and brushed his fingers farther under the lace, dipping between her folds.
“Finn,” she moaned, catching her breath and arching her back to give him better access.
His husky chuckle washed over her just before a single digit pressed inside. She was panting by the second stroke and begging by the third. She felt his breath at her hip then the tug of his teeth on the lace as he pulled it , using his free hand to work the other side down. His teeth scraped along her rear as her underwear lowered, finally dropping off her rounded curves until all that held them up was the finger working her. She wanted them off but didn’t want him to stop.
He slid his finger free, but her moan of loss turned into a startled cry as his teeth nipped her buttocks while he ripped the lace free. She jerked the lever up in response, turning the shower on and feeling the mist hit her shoulders. His tongue flicked between the folds of her sex and had her crying out, lifting on her toes to offer him what she wanted him to take.
“Not yet,” he rumbled, nipping her bottom curve again before standing behind her and jerking her up with him. She felt the damp tip of his erection when he pulled her back, his hands making quick work of her bra. She rubbed against him, feeling the smear of his pre-cum along her ass.
“Keep that up, pussy cat, and I’m going to fuck your sweet ass instead of that hot little pussy,” he warned.
That thought shouldn’t turn her on, shouldn’t make her knees weak with the desire for him to do that. She wanted Finn, any way he wanted her, every way he wanted her. And she wanted him with equal measure.
“Shower,” he said and nudged her forward, following at her back until they were both cocooned in the heated water and steam.
Skin grew slicker as they rubbed against each other. His hands skimmed over every inch of her, somehow silky with soap suds she’d never seen him grab. His hands stroked her shoulders and down her back in large sweeping glides then slid forward to capture her breasts and nipples before moving down over her abdomen. He fondled the curves of her hips and ass, even sliding a finger along the seam and tapping at the anus he’d vowed to claim before dropping to his knees behind her. He stroked over each leg, working from her toes upward. He tickled behind her knees, but her laugh turned to a moan as his hands slid up the insides of her thighs. His fingers stroked her folds, washing and exciting with every touch.
“Oh, God,” she gasped.
“Hand me the showerhead,” Finn commanded, staying on his knees.
Her arms were sluggish, her movements jerky as she complied, and she shuddered as he moved it over her, rinsing her skin.
“Turn around.”
Her legs didn’t want to work, but need had her moving. His arm lifted, directing the spray over her chest, concentrating the flow of water over each nipple, making them sting and tighten. He moved back and forth over her stomach, skimming past her sex and focusing on her thighs and legs instead. Finally, he trailed it higher, and she knew exactly where he planned to aim. Her head fell back, her palms pressing against the wall as she prayed her feet would hold her up. Strong fingers spread her lips, and warm water hit her swollen clit. She automatically tried to squeeze her thighs shut, but Finn was there, his knees pressing against the insides of her feet, keeping them wide while his head moved closer.
The water moved, hitting her thigh, and his mouth rubbed over her. He moaned, his tongue flicking and working her sex, tasting and exploring every intimate part of her. He thrust it inside her sex, fucking her with it before licking his way back up to her clitoris.
“I’m going to fall,” she whimpered.
“I won’t let you,” Finn said and pressed his forearm over her hips, anchoring her as he ate her pussy.
She heard the nozzle hit the tile but was immune to anything but Finn and what his mouth was doing to her. Pleasure flooded her system and had her rocking her hips into his tongue, seeking the orgasm that loomed just out of reach. She moved one hand, running her fingers through his red locks and latching on. His whiskers added to the bliss, his mustache tickling her clit with every pass of his mouth. Her gasps filled the air, and she dropped her other hand, gripping his hair with both hands and grinding against him as she sought release. He chuckled then took her clit between his lips and sucked hard, thrusting two fingers up into her channel and pumping them fast and deep.
“Finn!” she screamed as she came and was thankful he held her to him, keeping her from falling.
She had her eyes closed, trying to catch her breath, but felt every move he made as he stood, careful to keep a hand firmly on her. She watched through slitted eyes, her hands braced once more on the wall at her back as she took in the sight of her naked mate. His hands moved over his skin, washing himself much faster than he’d cleaned her. He gave his thick cock a cursory stroke before reaching lower and swirling his palm around his balls. She wanted to be the one washing him.
“Next time,” he growled, responding to her thoughts as if they’d been spoken aloud. “If you touch me right now, I won’t last to get inside you.” He reached down and grabbed the nozzle spraying it over his skin to wash away the soap while she licked her lips and watched. “And I plan to spend the rest of the night buried deep inside you.”
“Yes,” she moaned.
He re-hung the showerhead and reached behind her to turn off the cooling water. Somehow, they made it to the bed. Her damp skin met the silk sheets then Finn was over her, in her, and nothing else mattered. He was slow and easy, dropping kisses over her face and shoulders as he moved, and she realized he needed this just as much as she did. Perhaps even more.