Ovation (Galaxy Circus #9)

Chapter 1

CHAPTER ONE

Lila

“ J ohn, William, Eric, come quickly. Liliana is awake.”

There’s a beat of silence as Xavier’s words sink in before the room explodes into chaos. All three of my grandpas, who were fully focused on Vivian, turn their attention to Xavier.

“She’s awake?” Tears well in my eyes at the hopefulness I hear in John’s voice.

“Yes, come quickly. She’s asking for you and muttering about Vivian.” Xavier gestures in the direction of their wing. He looks completely frazzled and not like the put together warlock we all know and love.

“Should I chase after her?” Saxon asks, looking in the direction Vivian just went.

“No!” William shouts, running his hand through his hair. It’s grown out a bit over the last few months, and he is definitely in need of a new buzz cut. It’s sitting kind of funny from all the tugging he does. “No, definitely not. If Liliana wants to see her, then we can always send her another message. We don’t know enough yet, not to mention Phillip and Fiona’s conversation that Connor overheard.”

“Come on.” Eric takes off using his enhanced speed. John and William follow quickly behind him, and I turn to look at Zeydan through the window. He’s watching the children, but his tails are bristling with agitation and his head is cocked like he’s listening to something.

He turns to look inside the window, and his eyes glow with power.

“I should tell him,” I say quietly, biting my lip.

I’m still a little unsure about where we stand. He mated me, and I can feel the small slice of his soul inside me, but it’s a one-sided bond. I haven’t sealed him to me yet, and despite his protests that Liliana is like a sister to him, there is no blood between them. What if there was something more once upon a time? They are as old as dirt, so it wouldn’t be beyond the realm of possibility that they had a fling in the past.

Before I can make a move, though, he disappears, only to reappear directly in front of me. “She’s awake.” He doesn’t phrase it as a question, so I just nod. “I thought I could feel a remnant of god power.” His brows furrow in confusion. “But I could have sworn it was a remnant of death power I felt, not life. Now that I’m inside, though, I can feel the gentle wave of life.”

“Will you go to her?” I ask, and he shakes his head as Ghosie walks outside to round up the children. His fur will protect him from the cold better than any of the others. I hear them squealing and giggling as they refuse to come inside.

“No, not yet. Are your grandpas with her?”

“Yes, they went immediately,” I reply as the cats and Ghosie wrangle the children and herd them inside. They are starting to get whiny now, and all of them protest loudly.

“Then I think warm baths and bed are in order.” Nikos is quick to scoop Hali up as she ducks around Echo, trying to get outside again. She starts to scream. I’m not sure where she gets her temper from—certainly not me.

“That sounds like a good idea.” Caspian gets Jack while Tirrian and Brannock grab the other two girls. Silac swoops in and lifts Typhoon, who is quick to snuggle into his chest. That baby is such a snuggle rabbit and has his daddies wrapped around his little finger. They all disappear in the direction of our wing, and the noise dies off.

The cats shake off their fur, flinging droplets of water everywhere, and I glare at them. They have the grace to look sheepish before slinking over to the fireplace, making themselves comfortable in front of the flames.

“Are you going to go up there, Lila?” Saxon asks as he starts to pack up the games. Ghosie and Zeydan join in, Zeydan putting away the deck of Go Fish cards, while Saxon stacks the blocks of Jenga together.

“Not yet. I don’t want to overwhelm her. It will be a big shock for her, and I’ll let the grandpas, Link, and Xavier explain everything to her before I join them,” I tell them as I grab the Twister mat and fold it, placing it and the customized spinner back in the box. I head over to the table with the Clue game and put away all the pieces as well as the cards and packs of Guess sheets. Once finished, I stack the boxes on top of each other, making a mental note to take them all back to the ship with us when we go.

I don’t meet any of the guys’ looks. I don’t want to see what they think. I’m not technically hiding, but I know once I go in and meet my grandma, everything is going to unravel. We will know the truth that I’m certain has been staring us in the face.

I’m not paying attention to what’s going on, caught in my thoughts, as I sit on the sofa in front of the fire. Echo puts his big head in my lap and gives my hand a lick. I absently stroke his mane, and he makes a weird, rumbling kind of purring sound that’s soothing, but I hear the others talking quietly in the background. I watch the flames as they lick over the logs, the sight combined with the warmth emanating from it slightly hypnotic.

I feel the sofa sag as someone sits next to me

“Talk to me, Lila.” Saxon puts his arm around my shoulders and tucks me against his side. I snuggle into his large body and sigh.

“What do you want me to say?” I ask, not really sure what the problem is. We were having an awesome family evening playing games before Vivian interrupted. There was no way I was going to let her through to sit with Liliana, even before she got spooked. I need the cousins to wake up so I can pump them for information as well.

“Why aren’t you racing to meet your grandma?”

I shrug as much as I can while trapped in his arms. “I don’t know. What if she’s disappointed? I don’t remember meeting her in any of my memories. I must have, right? She only went missing a few months before my parents were killed.”

“Lila, why would she be disappointed? From what I understand, they loved you and your parents very much.”

I shrug, having no idea why I feel this way. Meeting my grandpas was the best thing that ever happened to me, so why wouldn’t meeting my grandma be the same way? “Maybe because her identity is so up in the air. I don’t want to become attached and realize we got it wrong.”

Saxon nods and gives me another squeeze. “I can understand that. After what you’ve been through, it’s no wonder you hold everyone at arm’s length. Come on, why don’t we get some sleep? It’s probably going to be in short supply over the next few weeks. I’m sure if they need you, they will come get you.”

Saxon stands up and tugs me to my feet. I go reluctantly. I know he’s right, but my gaze drifts to my grandpas’ wing of the house. There’s a whirl of emotions inside my body, I’m sure I won’t fall asleep quickly. I look at both cats and find them asleep in front of the fire. It’s weird, considering they love the snow and ice so much. You would think it would be too hot for them, but nope, they are snuggled together and purring contentedly, so I leave them where they are. They will probably wake up and go back outside at some point.

As we head to my bedroom, Ghosie and Zeydan follow. Both stop at my room and give me a kiss goodnight before heading to the room they share. Neither of them press to stay with me—Zeydan because he can feel everything that’s going on, and Ghosie because of his fur. We don’t sleep in the same bed because we’d spend all night fucking and wake up more exhausted than rested. Hopefully one day, we can figure out a way to fix his problem. I know how touch starved he is, and I make a mental note to spend some more time with him, even if we do end up horizontal.

Now that we’re all mated, I feel slightly more settled, despite only having half a mating with Zeydan and not having Brannock fully locked down. As I strip and climb into bed, I promise to finish the Skarrian bond with both of them as soon as possible. I’m sure that will help resolve any lingering doubt.

Saxon climbs in behind me and snuggles against me, and I sigh with contentment. I tip my head, offering him my neck. He cups my breast with one hand while the other slides down to gently circle my clit as he laves his tongue over the thick vein that pounds with what he needs.

“Bite me,” I murmur quietly, a slight whine in my tone. I’m feeling all kinds of needy, and being loved on by one of my mates will hopefully settle the rolling turmoil of my emotions.

He doesn’t make me beg, and as he slides his fangs into my neck, he enters me from behind and lazily thrusts his fat cock in and out in time with his pulls of blood. My body sings, and my mind soars as my orgasm rolls through me like a gentle wave, erasing all worries and doubts and focusing my attention on the delicious sensations he’s wringing from my body.

When he finally fills me with his cum, he sweeps his tongue over the two fang marks in my neck, sealing them so I don’t continue to drip blood. His hips lazily continue to roll, his cock not losing his erection despite him already finding his release. He keeps me on edge, plucking at my nipples and teasing my clit until I’m a begging, pleading mess once again. I hear the door to our room open and close, and I know one of my other mates has joined us.

“It looks like you’re taking very good care of our mate,” Caspian rumbles, and I peel my eyes open to look at my first mate.

“Want to join us?” Saxon asks, and I watch with a little giggle as Cas quickly tears off his clothes. I don’t get to continue to watch the show, though, because Saxon pulls out of me, and I whimper at the loss of his thickness.

He rolls me over and murmurs, “Patience, my sweet. I’m just getting us in a better position. Cas will stuff you full again and keep my cum deep inside you.”

My pussy throbs at his dirty words as he pulls me flush against his chest, lifting my leg so it’s over his hip and giving Cas easy access.

Saxon leans in and takes one of my nipples into his mouth, giving it a slow suck before piercing it with his fangs. His venom flows through my system, pushing me toward orgasm again, and I pant and squirm, but he holds me tightly.

“Stuff our wife full. She’s a needy wench,” Saxon tells Cas as I feel him get onto the bed. I expect to feel his legs against mine, so I’m shocked and delighted to feel his tentacles caressing my skin instead. The little suckers place tiny kisses everywhere they touch as his arms wrap around my body, pinning me between the two males.

“Bite me, Lila, and drink your fill while your husband takes care of your carnal needs,” Saxon instructs as one of Cas’s tentacles inches toward my pussy and slides through Saxon’s cum which is dripping out of me.

“Can’t let this go to waste,” he mutters behind me, pushing it back into my body. I gasp as its thickness pushes into me, throwing my head back and closing my eyes.

“Uh-uh. Pay attention to me.” Saxon grabs my chin and forces my head back down. He releases a claw on one of his fingers, and my eyes widen as he slides it across his pec. The scent of his blood reaches my nostrils, and my mouth waters as my own fangs click into place. I lean forward just as Cas removes the tentacle from my pussy and pushes it into my asshole without prep. I groan and struggle against the intrusion, but they hold onto me while Cas forces it in.

“Good girl, taking your mate deep into your ass,” Saxon croons, pulling my head down so I can lick the blood trickling down his chest. I lap at the wound as I feel another one of Cas’s tentacles enter my pussy. It’s a lot, but I need it. I want to get lost in desire and be a dripping, sated mess, used and abused and stuffed full of cum. It triggers a part of me that wants to be permanently full of my mates’ cum. I want them to tie me to the bed and use me as a cum receptacle so I don’t have to think about anything more than when my next dose of cum would be coming. That life would be simple.

My mind becomes a messy haze as Cas fucks me in both holes while I drink from Saxon, but then Saxon pulls away, and I sob, trying to get his blood. Cas rolls into a half reclined position, his back against a pillow, and takes me with him, leaving me double stuffed. My eyes roll back at the sensations coursing through my system. They’ve kept me on the edge of coming for a long time, and I’m practically begging for it. Saxon follows, straddling us. Blood continues to run down his body from the cut, and he uses it to coat his cock, sliding his hand back and forth as he gestures for me to open my mouth.

“Let your mates fill all your holes, and we’ll let you come,” he tells me, and I eagerly open my mouth. He grabs my head and fucks my mouth with reckless abandon. All I can do is breathe through my nose as Cas’s tentacles thicken inside me and fuck me harder as well. It doesn’t take long before I’m flying into space, my mind clearing of everything but the bliss they are wringing from my body. Saxon fills my mouth, and I swallow his seed as quickly as I drank his blood while Cas fills both of my holes with his cum.

We collapse into a messy, sweaty, cum-covered heap, and I couldn’t be happier.