Page 34 of The Arabis Triad

“Would it also be unfair if it was three against one?” she asked, glancing at both Coltan and Ashir.

“I see no parents he could run and cry to,” Ashir said.

Paxt crossed his large arms over his chest. “I did not run and cry. And itwasunfair, two against one. It was only because the two of you knew you could never win against me.”

“Sooky la la,” Evelyn said, and ignored their confused expressions, waving it away. “Forget it. All I know is I have to get you back after ruining this beautiful dress from your sister.” She splashed him again.

“Do not start something you have no hope of winning,” Paxt said.

She raised a brow, enjoying herself for the first time in forever. It was so good to play around. To feel free. To have fun. “What makes you think you’ll win?”

“Yes, Paxt. What makes you think you’ll win?” Ashir scooped up a bucket load of water in his hands and sent it over Paxt’s head.

“I warned you.” Paxt swung his arms, spraying them all with sheets of water.

She gasped, and as the shock wore off, began pummeling water as hard and as fast she as could in the general direction she thought Paxt was.

She screwed her eyes shut against the barrage of water, ducking her head into her chest, gasping in breaths. Strong arms surrounded her. She was thrown into the air and came down with an enormous splash, dropping below the surface.

She came up spluttering, catching sight of Paxt grabbing Ashir in a headlock. Both of them fell below the surface of the water. Paxt came up again, this time heading toward Coltan. Quick as anything, Paxt powered his shoulder into Coltan’s solar plexus and threw him away with a roar.

Evelyn gasped. Coltan was not a small man by any means, and he was packed with muscle that would weigh a ton.

Paxt set his eyes on her, drilling into her with heated intent.

A fire of a different sort ignited between her legs, making the water feel that much cooler. It lapped all over her body, her skin extra sensitive. She stepped backwards, but Paxt charged at her so fast she barely was able to take another step.

He caught her in his iron embrace, hauling her out of the water and pressing her to his rock-hard chest. “Do you yield?”

His gaze simmered, dark and dangerous. She struggled in his hold, something writhing inside her—a hole inside her heart that she never knew existed and yearned to fill. She didn’t know what to make of it, yet was desperate to have it replete. She pressed her palms against his skin, aware of hard muscle beneath the silky texture. Hard and soft at the same time.

“No.” Her voice was low. Husky.

He held one hand behind her head, the other around her waist. His rigid cock pressed into her soft belly. She shivered as desire spread through her, igniting illogically, yet coming from a place of rightness.

“Evelyn. Do you yield?”

She knew he was speaking about something else entirely. He tilted his hips, dragging his cock along her belly. Slowly, her arms came around his neck, her legs about his waist. He tilted his hips again, this time gliding his cock against her slit.

She moaned, the sound coming from deep within her chest. Delicious sensation shivered through her body. Her skin sparked, sensitive to the water, to his hold, to the intimate part of her body opening like a flower and pressing against his hardness.

There was heat at her back as Coltan settled behind her. He trailed his hands over her shoulders and down her arms, his fingers making lazy circles on her skin. Ashir stood beside her. He moved her wet hair from her face, planting his lips along the sensitive dip of her neck.

“Open your eyes, Evelyn.” Paxt rasped.

She hadn’t realized they were closed. She only managed to open them halfway, too heavy to go any further. Paxt was millimeters away, his gaze fierce and intent. His mouth hovered so close. If she just moved toward him a little, she’d be able to have his lips where she wanted them.

The hand on the back of her head firmed, locking her in place. His expression turned almost feral. His cock dragged along her slit, long and slow and burning. She was empty. She needed to be filled. Her fingers dug into his shoulders.

Coltan’s palm slid along her back, the tips of his fingers skimming the cleft between her buttocks. She gasped as he grazed her rosebud. Dark heat throbbed inside her.

She rubbed herself along Paxt’s shaft, but hands on her hips prevented any movement. Desperation clawed at her. She needed to be touched. Needed the pressure to be released. She clawed at his shoulders. Desperation she couldn’t put a name to built into an inferno, from nothing to all consuming.

“Please.” The word was drawn out. Pleading.

“Do you yield?”

She barely recognized Paxt’s voice. It resembled churned-up gravel.

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