Hidden in Smoke (Phoenix Rising #2)

Nuzzling into my neck, Theo started mumbling to himself, keeping his hands still as he tried to reason out an explanation for my high sex drive. “I don’t believe there are any documented cases of a female shifter going into heat—at least not that I’ve read—but I’d have to check my resources to verify it. I’m not going to lie; I’ve been having doubts about the accuracy of some of our texts since I started feeling so drawn to Nix. The pull is indescribable, too strong to call it merely a compatible match between our alters. I wonder if this may factor in? Perhaps we’ve set something off in her? In each other? Or it could be attributed to her shifting so late?” His mind was furiously calculating, trying to find an answer. My brain felt muddled, driven by my need. Seriously? Couldn’t a girl just be turned on?

“Whatever the case, her heightened hormones are probably lending to her increased sex drive,” Ryder explained and ran a hand through his hair, looking pained as his eyes dropped to my lips once more.

“Is this really a problem?” I wanted their hands back on my body. I felt them all pulling away, and I wanted to cry.

“We’re not rejecting you, sweetheart. Don’t be upset.” Damien came forward and pulled me into his chest.

“It’s just that your hormones—this so-called heat—could be clouding your judgment.” Theo sighed and slowly withdrew his fingers from my skirt. “The most important thing is that you don’t regret anything we’ve done when you wake up in the morning.”

“I’ll regret not doing things!” I wailed. Why were they always stopping me? Didn’t they want me the way I wanted them?

“Holy fuck; of course, we do!” Killian cursed and started pacing.

Walking up to me, Hiro grabbed my hand and brought it to his waistline, giving me ample time to pull away as he slowly slid my hand down to feel how hard he was. “That is all for you.” He guided my hand over him a few times before he closed his eyes, swallowed hard, and stepped away, releasing me as he went.

“Don’t you dare think we don’t want you.” This was from Ryder. He stalked up to me and cupped my cupped my face while Damien still held me tight. “I’ve been planning our first kiss since the moment I saw you. I want to kiss you more than anything, but when we look back on our life together, I want our first kiss to mean something special.” I teared up as he explained his hesitation. Ryder could be incredibly sweet, and this was one of those times. Nodding, I let him pull me into his arms and hug me, kissing the top of my head, then my eyes and cheeks. I sighed and tried to reign in my raging hormones.

“Come on, Nix.” Damien pulled me toward the stairs.

“I can’t believe none of you are going to ravish me.” I knew I sounded pathetic, but I couldn’t help myself.

“Oh, our night’s not over,” he promised as he dragged me up the stairs and the guys followed.

“It’s not?” I was confused. If they weren’t going to touch me… then what else was there?

“No, Nix. Go get ready for bed.” Raising an eyebrow at him, I crossed my arms in front of my chest.

“I’d do what he says, woman.” Killian smirked at me and crossed his arms as well, leaning against the wall at the top of the stairs.

Giving up, I marched into my room to follow their orders, disappointed about the turn the evening had taken.





Thirty-Two





Damien





When I heard her door click shut, I let out a sigh of relief. We were barely hanging on by a thread, and if she had looked at me with those pleading eyes one more time and asked me to touch her, I’m not sure I would have been able to hold back. Her pheromones were swirling through the air, surrounding my brothers and me, and the need in the house was at an all time high. Whatever was going on with Nix was driving us all crazy. I could feel everyone’s desire for Nix flooding my mind, fueling my own into a raging fire.

I could see the same resolution in my brothers’ faces. We had left our girl worked up and turned on, and none of us had wanted to send her to bed alone. Earning her trust and not pushing her, especially when she’s had a little bit to drink and her hormones were at an all-time high, was worth walking away from, though. None of us would ever compromise her faith in us. Our first kiss tonight had been more than perfect, and the fact that my friends were there to watch had only increased the pressure my hard-on was putting against the zipper of my jeans. I liked to watch as much as I enjoyed being watched, and I nearly groaned aloud as I replayed our kiss in my mind.

Each of us had headed off into our rooms, and I kicked my shoes off, reaching behind my back and pulling my shirt over my head, tossing it into a pile on the floor. I could feel Nix’s sexual craving through our connection as I tuned in to her. I could almost picture her climbing into bed and writhing under her sheets. Her need was almost suffocating, and I let out a hiss as I pulled my zipper down, giving my body more room to expand. She wasn’t writhing yet, but she would be soon. I fully intended to make sure she was sated before the evening was over. Four distinct murmurs sounded in my head as we each lost ourselves to the scent of her seeping under our doors.

Damien? She reached out tentatively through our link.

I’m here, sweetheart. I finished undressing down to my tight boxers and climbed onto my queen sized bed. I wished with every fiber of my being that Nix was next to me. I sent her an image of my hand snaking below the waistband of my boxers and heard her gasp. It was like a soft echo in my head, hearing her gasp through our connection but also hearing the small intake of breath faintly through the wooden barriers of our bedroom doors. My room was across the hall, on a slight diagonal from what I now considered Nix’s bedroom.

Touch yourself for us, Nix. I widened the telepathic link as much as I could and let the guys communicate mentally with our girl as freely as the could.

Killian groaned. Yes, baby.

The idea of Nix’s fingers sliding underneath the thin cotton of her underwear surged through me, and I heard the resounding appreciation of such an image from the other men in the house.

If we couldn’t touch her ourselves, this was the next best thing.

Do you have any idea what we want to do to you? Hiro’s deep, low voice simmered to Nix. What we’ve been fantasizing about for weeks?

Tell me. The breathy reply made my blood hot as our girl pushed images of what she was doing to herself through our connection, making us crazy. Her fingers were sliding through her slick folds, teasing herself the way she wished we would touch her. When her finger brushed over her clit, she threw her head back from the overwhelming sensation on a silent cry.

The emotions and lust of the other four men in the house battered me, and my body thrummed with sexual frustration. Gripping my steely length, I squeezed to contain myself before I exploded prematurely. Funneling all these feelings made sex unbelievably intoxicating. Fisting my hand over myself, I leaned my head back into my pillows and let the images the guys were sending wash over me as I acted as the conduit to Nix.

An image of her sandwiched between Ryder and Hiro blasted through me on its way to Nix, and I had to bite my lip to contain a cry. It was sexy as fuck to see what played through Hiro’s mind. Ryder’s arms tied to the bed with Nix straddling his hips, taking him deep inside of her pussy while Hiro buried himself in her ass. Her hands were tied just above Ryder’s, causing her back to arch heavily. Her breasts were positioned right above Ryder’s eager mouth, leaving Hiro in control of the punishing thrusts as Nix cried out from the dual penetration of the two cocks rubbing against each other through her thin, sensitive walls and Ryder’s eager tongue on her nipples. A beautiful, feminine cry echoed through the walls.

That’s it baby, slide your fingers into your pussy. Imagine us buried inside of you, pistoning in and out, making you wild. Let us hear how good you’re making yourself feel. Hiro demanded of Nix, and I matched pace with her slow movements as she guided her fingers through her wet heat, pulsing as she moaned for him—for us.

An image of Killian and Nix appeared next, his hands pushing gently on her shoulders as she fell to her knees in front of him. Her small hand wrapped around his large cock, stroking slowly as she glanced up at him through her lashes. He imagined her taking him into her mouth slowly, suctioning her lips around his wide girth as her warm, wet tongue teased him to distraction. I lost myself in the image of her head sliding up and down my brother’s cock as I stroked my own in time with the mental movie.

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