Authors: Tamsin Baker
Brandon
straightened up and nodded. “Yes, but it’s pretty rare. The hand touching thing
is only the first step, there’s a lot more to it.”
She
bit her lip, not sure she wanted to know, yet she couldn’t walk away now.
“Like
what?”
He
took his hands out of his pockets and twirled one of his hands at her.
“Turn
around and I’ll show you.”
“Pardon
me?”
He
smiled like the devil himself and she heard Tyler’s voice. “Brandon, don’t
freak her out.”
She
couldn’t pull her eyes away from Brandon’s face. Everything in her wanted to go
to him and touch him, feel that connection again. Yet, she was a little
frightened to know how deep it went.
“Laura?”
Brandon twirled his hand at her and she huffed loudly enough to be heard around
the barn.
“Fine.”
She turned away and focused on
the horse. What sort of parlor trick was he going to pull out while she wasn’t
looking?
Warm
hands ran up her arms and she jumped, electricity zinging along her skin.
Softer than before but most sustained.
She turned her head
to find out which of the men’s touch had made her skin tingle and was
unsurprised to see the more confident of the twins. Brandon was behind her.
“What
are you doing?” she asked him as she spun around to face the blond Viking
towering over her.
Brandon
gripped her arms and pulled her against him, the strength of his body
undeniable as her belly quivered in anticipation of what he would do with her.
“Showing
you…”
And
with that enigmatic statement he kissed her. His lips were hot and soft, strong,
but unhurried.
Push him away! You don’t even
know this guy!
But
her fingers were already moving toward his chest and up into his short hair.
She moved her hands around to cup his scalp and moaned as his tongue slipped
into her mouth. His sweet, orange taste overwhelmed every sense. Her knees
weakened and she sagged against his large, strong body.
He
pulled back and Laura’s eyes sprung open. Brandon was staring down at her with
shock written across his face.
Tyler
stepped up next to them and somehow managed to take her from Brandon. One
minute she was in the Viking’s arms, and the next moment she was with a dark
angel.
“What’s
happening?” she asked, blinking slowly. Tyler had the most angelic face. She
traced her fingers along his smooth jaw, dreamlike calm coming over her.
Never,
even in her wildest dreams, did she imagine a man like this would want to kiss
her.
“My turn.”
He swooped in and kissed her
with the most incredible passion. He kissed her slowly, exploring her mouth
with his tongue and lips. It was completely different from the strength and
possession she’d felt behind Brandon’s kiss, but it was just as amazing.
Her
head was spinning when he finally pulled away.
“Wow.”
Laura staggered away from Tyler’s warmth and landed with a thump on a hay bale.
She definitely felt drunk.
Chapter Four
Oh God, she was the one. Her
taste, oh fuck…her taste!
Fire
was burning under Brandon’s skin and he couldn’t clear his mind of the
sweetness of her mouth. Every inch of his body needed Laura to touch him again.
He’d never craved such a thing before. He wanted to strip off every item of
clothing he wore and beg her to lay her hands on him. How pathetic was that?
“What
just happened?” Laura swayed a little from side to side where she sat on a hay
bale, looking as intoxicated as though they’d fed her a bottle of whiskey.
Brandon
shook his head and growled at his brother. He couldn’t talk, and he wasn’t
explaining this to her. He felt wild. He only held onto his lion by the tips of
his claws.
“It’s
proof that you are meant to be ours.”
Brandon
threw up his hands and walked to the far end of the stables, shaking his head
and grunting.
Fuck, Tyler! I thought you’d be
more eloquent than that.
He
strutted back to the place where Ty and Laura sat, just in time to see Laura’s
shocked expression turn to one of outrage.
“What?”
She
screeched,
the sound bouncing around the barn.
Brandon
glared at his brother and stepped into the exit so she couldn’t get away. Now
that he’d tasted her, he knew she was the one, and there was no way in hell he
was letting her get away.
In
truth, he’d kissed her hoping to feel revulsion at her size, to dislike the way
she kissed him. Anything to assure him that he had not found his
mate, that
he could continue to live the life of a carefree
bachelor.
He’d
been wrong. She was his and now he’d never let her go.
“I’m
sorry,
I shouldn’t have said it like that…”
Tyler
really did have to work on his charm if that was the best he could do.
“Shouldn’t
have said that? Shouldn’t have said
what?
What the hell is going on?”
Laura
was really screeching now, and seemed to be hyperventilating as her breath
wheezed in and out.
Tyler
was doing nothing, and Brandon really didn’t like the noise.
He
strode forward and grabbed her arms, silencing her with his mouth. She moaned
and sunk into his embrace, making his body come alive. Her taste exploded
through his senses, the perfect combination of sweetness and lust. He needed
her.
Her
hands slid under his shirt and stroked his skin. His lion leapt inside him,
then settled to purr. She pulled away a little to whisper against his lips.
“Why do I want you like this?”
Brandon
couldn’t speak but he moved his hands down to her ass and gave it another good
squeeze. Fuck, why did he like that so much?
“Brandon?
Tyler?” Their mother’s voice called out to them and Brandon reluctantly stepped
away from Laura. It almost hurt to do so. He hated the loss of warmth when her
hands weren’t against his skin.
“Here
you boys are.”
Their
mum stood in the doorway, her lovely wide smile on full display as she looked
between the three of them. She gestured to them.
“Laura.
Come with me and meet some of the family.”
Laura
looked up at him, her green eyes worried and open.
Brandon
nodded once to her and she seemed to slump. She better not want him to protect
her from his mum. That was never going to happen. To be honest, he wasn’t even sure
it was possible.
Laura
moved up next to their mother, her lovely cotton dress clinging to her curves.
That ass just called out to him.
Bend me
over and fuck me, please.
He
shook his head and growled in impatience. When would they be able to claim her?
Rosalie
took Laura’s arm and looked back over her shoulder at them.
“Come
on, boys. I think Laura needs to meet some of your cousins.”
Brandon
groaned and shared a mutual aggravated look with his twin. Their courtship of
Laura had just been completely taken over.
****
Rosalie
took Laura’s hand and led her into a pack of men, all related somehow to the
two that had just kissed her. Laura glanced around the group of massive males that
were all staring at her and heat filled her cheeks. Why were they all looking
at her like that?
“Laura,
this is Jack and Scott. Another perfect pair
like
my
boys.”
Two
pairs of intense eyes swung her way and Laura actually tried to take a step
back on pure instinct. These men were magnificent. Older than Tyler and
Brandon, probably mid to late forties, but their aura was unmistakable.
Virile, strong, protective males.
Hang on, what had Rosalie
said?
“Perfect pair?
Sorry?”
Rosalie
smiled up at her and squeezed her arm tightly as though to prevent her from
going anywhere.
“Yes,
in our family some of the men are born un-identical twins, and we call them
perfect pairs.”
Laura
glanced back at the two men again and began to see the similarities to her
guys.
One
was blond, though he was greying now, blue-eyed, hugely muscular, and taller.
The other had brown hair shot through with white, brown eyes like Tyler, and was
shorter but still fit and lithe.
“You
mean because of the complete opposites in looks?” she asked and Rosalie nodded.
“Yes,
but it’s more than that. Their personalities are perfect opposites, yet
completely complimentary, too. One will be more intelligent, the other stronger.
One will be more protective, and the other will be the more affectionate. Think
of it as having everything you could ask for in a man split into two, so that
you don’t miss out on anything.”
Laura
looked over the men again and watched the way their mouths turned down in
disapproval. She wondered if their disapproval was over what Rosalie said,
though they weren’t correcting her.
Tyler
and Brandon had moved closer now, and Laura giggled a little to see the
similarities in the two sets of twins.
“Wow,
you guys have strong genes.”
The
men shuffled their feet and looked anywhere but at her. Hmm, they did say that
the truth hurt, but why would such a compliment be a bad thing? They were
beautiful, all of them.
“Am
I missing something?” she asked the group as a whole.
Scott,
the bigger twin, looked at her and answered her question.
“Rosalie
has just left off the most important thing about perfect pairs.
The bloody curse.”
Rosalie
tsked
loudly and held tight to Laura’s arm. She was
going to have bruises tomorrow if the woman kept up that hold.
“It
is not a curse! Just because you both stupidly followed your gonads rather than
tradition does not mean it’s a curse. She’s still out
there,
you just have to find her.”
Both
men rolled their eyes and a rather stunning adolescent woman ran up.
“Dad,
we need you for a minute.”
Scott
smiled apologetically and bobbed his head.
“Nice to meet you.”
Jack
saluted and headed off as well, following the girl who was sprinting off toward
the side of the house.
“What’s
their problem?” Laura asked
,
confused by the multitude
of emotions she felt radiating around her.
The
men had seemed possessive, jealous even, and sad. She turned toward her guys
for more details. Brandon and Tyler looked at each other for a moment before
Tyler stepped forward.
“Perfect
pairs only have one mate. A woman they share that is made only for them.”
When
he paused for breath, Laura inhaled sharply, pain clamping down on her chest.
He couldn’t be serious.
Tyler
continued. “But Scott and Jack chose not to do that. They both married and had
kids with women that have made them miserable. And we…” He paused again,
looking back at Brandon before continuing, “are not going to make the same
mistake.”
“Are you telling me that you expect me to...do what, exactly?”
She shook her head and blinked several times. She couldn’t actually
be listening to this, or understanding it correctly.
“You two can't both want me!”
Her voice had risen in both tone and pitch, and for the first
time in her life, Laura was feeling hysterical. They had to be kidding.
“Of course we do.” Tyler's tone was so smooth and placating, she
began to laugh. Then she snorted and giggled.
Very elegant.
She pried herself away from Rosalie's grip and staggered toward
the house. She felt woozy and numb. She couldn’t stand up straight.
Renee came toward her, grabbing her and gently maneuvering her
so that she ended up sitting on the porch.
That woman was awesome.
“Can you believe...
”
Laura
wheezed,
grabbing Renee's hand and once again feeling
intoxicated. Maybe there was something in the air out here.
“What?” Renee asked, sounding excited and interested.
“Your brothers say they both want me. This has to be some sort
of cruel joke, because it’s not possible.”
That sobered her pretty quickly.
What was it—“make fun of the fat sister” week?
Renee smiled kindly at her, like one would when explaining
something to a child.
“Why would it be a joke? You're beautiful and kind, and if that
magnificent aura you give off is anything to go by, you'll be a great mate.”