Page 23 of Bonds of Fate

“Leo convinced Ro to let him take Nix, and he finally chose Luca to start his rut. Gideon went along—for damage control. They’re in the nest, and Nix is with Grayson. Leo’s getting some rest. I think Rowan will be looking for him before too long—you know how he gets.”

Makes sense. Leo was Rowan’s favorite during a rut: soft in all the right places but strong enough to take it.

“Thanks for waiting with me, Finnie. I’m going to go and see if Gideon was able to get Rowan down to baseline. You coming?”

“As Luca likes to say: I sure as fuck hope so. Let me check you over, though, first, and then I’ll go clean up.”

Jay’s sexy Dr. Merritt runs the usual battery of concussion evaluations and deems him as well as can be. There’s a bruise still on his jaw, and it creaks when he moves it.

“That could still have ice if you want to take the time?” It’s rhetorical, and just like his mate to still try to doctor him when he already knows the answer.

They make their way toward the stairs and the nest room, and when they get to the top, Jay can already hear Rowan, even though the door is closed and the ventilation system is running at rut levels.

He wants his omega, and he’s not taking no for an answer.

“Fuck, this is going to be harder than I thought. If you’re going, you should before I go in.”

“Yeah, I’ll be back when I’m ready.” He gives his mate a quick kiss, and Jay watches as Finn heads toward the other wing of the house.

He’d like to say he’s prepared for the sight that greets him, but it hits him with only slightly less power than Gideon’s left hook. He’d expected fucking, but Rowan is being made to kneel on the edge of the nest, where he is counting in Mandarin. Luca is riding Gideon—straddling him with his back arched and hishands on Gideon’s thighs—while the alpha is praising both his boys for a job well done.

Gideon may be enjoying Luca’s tight body, but his attention is locked on their young alpha.

Rowan stops counting with a low growl the moment Jay opens the door, the spiced rum scent he loves hitting him full force. His cock twitches in a Pavlovian response, anticipation sparking through him.

Rowan fucks like a porn star, but he takes it like one, too.

“Start over, Rowan. You can’t afford to be distracted. Do it—breathing first.” Gideon’s voice is hoarse, laced with heat. “Can you smell how good our alpha smells? Maybe he’ll fuck you if you can get to three hundred without breaking your concentration.”

His voice breaks with a groan. “G—go. Fuck, baby, do that again.”

Luca grins at Jay and swivels his hips in his mate’s lap.

“Gid? Where do you want me? Finnie’s just cleaning up.”

Rowan has just started counting again, having convinced himself it would be futile to overpower Jay and make a break for the door.

“Sorry, he was almost there, no?” Jay crouches beside Luca and is lucky enough to get a tongue in his mouth for his efforts. He runs a free hand over Gideon’s abdominals, which flex in response as he braces his feet to pump up into their beta.

Luca is letting tinyuh uh uh’sescape from his heart-shaped mouth, and Jay reaches for his dick but checks in with Gideon first, who nods imperceptibly. Using his thumb and forefinger, he squeezes the head in a rhythmic but firm grip. The resulting moan is satisfying.

Rowan is finally at a hundred, Jay thinks.

Gideon runs a hand down the center of Luca’s back but asks, “Can you finish with Luca? Do you mind, baby? Rowan needs me to help him get on track.”

“Mmm? Jaybird? Yes. Gimme.”

Jay divests himself of his sweats and grabs the lube—vanilla?“Fuck. Who’s idea was this?”

Gideon laughs and pulls out of Luca, lifting him straight up so Jay can grab him around the middle.

“Ask the troublemaker.” He gives them both a peck on the lips and runs a hand over Luca’s hair again, obviously not wanting to leave his soulmate unsatisfied, but Rowan has shifted to a crouch and is counting in English–not Mandarin–in hopes no one will notice.

“Hey, baby. Were you trying to stir everyone up?” He’s not expecting an answer, given how deep Luca is, so he leans in and takes Luca’s mouth in a kiss. He tastes spiced rum on his tongue—maybe Gideon let Luca have a taste before he set Rowan to his counting task. “How do you want me?”

Luca is flat on his belly in the next second—red ass tilted up in a deep curve, one leg bent out to the side. “So pretty, Luca. Such a good boy for us. Were you good for Rowan, too? Do you have permission to come?”

Gideon has Rowan on his knees still, but now the younger alpha has Gideon’s cock down his throat. Rowan is bobbing his head and covering the rest with one hand while the other grips the base of his own just above his knot. Rowan’s not got permission, then. Jay can only be amazed at the control Gideon exerts over these two. It’s nothing short of magic.

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