Frosty Melt

Who Needs Christmas? 6

Frosty Melt Twelve elves left the North Pole to be free of all things Christmas and have been living together for decades. They have gone without their mates for years, but when the first of the twelve finds his, the others have hope for finding theirs. Flower is a reserved elf who hates snowmen and the monotony of one-night stands. After finding his mate, he puts the same care and concentration he would into his inventions into all that he does for Otis. Otis Connor has been a sex slave for years. He doesn’t know how to be free, but Flower gives Otis a chance to turn away from all his pain to find his inner strength and capability of giving and getting love. As the feelings between Flower and Otis grow, will Otis be able to truly leave his past behind, or will it be too much to overcome? Genre: Alternative (M/M or F/F), Paranormal, Shape-shifter Length: 35,666 words

FROSTY MELT Who Needs Christmas? 6

Joyee Flynn

EROTIC ROMANCE MANLOVE

Siren Publishing, Inc. www.SirenPublishing.com

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A SIREN PUBLISHING BOOK IMPRINT: Erotic Romance ManLove FROSTY MELT Copyright © 2011 by Joyee Flynn E-book ISBN: 1-61034-999-7 First E-book Publication: December 2011 Cover design by Jinger Heaston All cover art and logo copyright © 2011 by Siren Publishing, Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED: This literary work may not be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, including electronic or photographic reproduction, in whole or in part, without express written permission. All characters and events in this book are fictitious. Any resemblance to actual persons living or dead is strictly coincidental.

PUBLISHER Siren Publishing, Inc. www.SirenPublishing.com

Letter to Readers Dear Readers, If you have purchased this copy of Frosty Melt by Joyee Flynn from BookStrand.com or its official distributors, thank you. Also, thank you for not sharing your copy of this book.

Regarding E-book Piracy This book is copyrighted intellectual property. No other individual or group has resale rights, auction rights, membership rights, sharing rights, or any kind of rights to sell or to give away a copy of this book. The author and the publisher work very hard to bring our paying readers high-quality reading entertainment. This is Joyee Flynn’s livelihood. It’s fair and simple. Please respect Ms. Flynn’s right to earn a living from her work. Amanda Hilton, Publisher www.SirenPublishing.com www.BookStrand.com

DEDICATION For all of us that still love to play in the snow…no matter how old we are!

FROSTY MELT Who Needs Christmas? 6 JOYEE FLYNN Copyright © 2011

Chapter 1 It was the twenty-first of November, the week before Thanksgiving, right after the big feast with Why’s parents and our whole crew, and some of us who didn’t have mates were feeling restless. It was hard living day in and day out watching our friends have what the rest of us so desperately wanted. A mate. Chiquita, Box, Button, Champ, Maze, and Shadow had tried to drag me to Leather No Lace with them, but I just wasn’t in the mood. I didn’t want another meaningless one-night stand and to wake up alone in my bed again. It was like taking a sip of a delicious drink knowing I could only have that one taste. Sometimes it was just better to ignore the temptation instead of ending up feeling incomplete again. So I decided to tinker in my workshop on a Friday night instead. Let my mated friends have their fun while my single ones had a different type of fun. I just wanted a night to myself and my thoughts. Currently, I was working on a makeshift pogo stick. But instead of jumping around on it, the person would stand still, bracing their hands against the wall, and the machine would fuck them. The goal was for something that had deeper penetration than anything I’d designed

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before and would have everything be at a tight angle. Someone would impale themselves on it, step on the pedal, and enjoy the ride. I had actually gotten the idea watching Why use his pottery wheel one night but wanted to give it a twist. A rotating machine gave a constant thrust and pressure. Something spring-loaded should give a variation, which would be more realistic to actual sex. And I wanted it to have enough give that the user could add to the experience by bending their knees and riding it in a way. That was the theory at least. It had been hours that I’d been working on the power source, and I decided I should go measure the space I had picked out in the play room. Otherwise we’d have to take one of the other contraptions I’d built out, and I found that everyone seemed to like them. But then again, it wasn’t like we didn’t have enough space to store some and rotate them in. This one needed to be plugged in, unlike some of my other ones. So I went to go check the area and see how close the nearest outlet was. Plus, I really just needed to stretch my legs and step away from my work for a while. I always made myself get some air from my work when I felt I’d been staring at it too long or had been buried in my workshop. As much as I liked to keep to myself and was one of the quiet ones in the group, too much solitude wasn’t a good thing. When I walked into the play room, I realized my friends were already back and had found entertainment for the evening. I couldn’t hold back the gasp at how breathtaking said entertainment was though. He had chestnut-colored, shoulder-length hair that flowed around him as he lay on the swing. His body was perfectly tanned and drool worthy. I wanted to eat him up. Maybe I could have a turn with him? I thought as I stepped closer, completely forgetting my original purpose for coming to the play room. The British-looking god of a man was recovering from what looked like tiring fun.

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I don’t know how long I stared at him. My brain spun off in an alternate reality where I pictured us cuddling together and making slow love on a Saturday morning before watching old movies all day long. “He’s amazing, isn’t he?” Chiquita panted as he moved up next to me. “I had first go at him. He’s open to anything and never says no. I think he’s a real sub, like trained sub. And you know that’s not normally our thing, but he was just too pretty to pass up.” “You guys brought home a real sub?” I couldn’t hide the shock in my tone. Sure, we liked more submissive men, but most of us blanched at true subs who were trained and lived the full lifestyle. “Gus asked us if we wanted to sample him. I guess the guy needs a Dom for his contract. He was really vague, but then the guy offered to come home and have sex with all of us. And I mean, just look at him. Would you have said no?” “No,” I answered honestly. Gus was the owner of Leather No Lace, the club we frequented. My other friends finished up with the sub, and I couldn’t help walking towards him any more than I could help breathing. “You didn’t finish,” Shadow said to the sub with a confused look on his face. “Why not? Didn’t you enjoy it?” “Of course I did, master,” the man answered and jumped off the swing. Oh yeah, he was British and had the yummiest accent. He knelt on the ground and sat on his feet, legs spread apart, with his head down and hands behind his back. It was a typical sub pose for when they’d misbehaved. “I have been schooled not to have an erection unless I’m commanded to. My previous masters did not allow my enjoyment of our intercourse.” “Master?” Shadow gasped and looked at the rest of us. “Wait, previous masters? What did Gus tell you?” “That you were to be my new masters,” the guy answered, never glancing up or breaking pose.

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“You assholes,” I snarled at my friends. “He’s not a sub. He’s a slave! Don’t you know the difference?” “Gus said he needed a contract,” Maze said, trying to defend himself. “That’s a sub, not a slave. This isn’t our fault. We didn’t know.” “What else did Gus tell you? He just said we’re your masters and handed you over?” Shadow looked green at the idea of being with a slave or having any part of this. “He said the Smith brothers would be the best option for my new masters. That I was to go with you tonight and show you my body and how well I was trained.” He started to sound a little worried then. “Did I not please you?” “No—what’s your name?” I asked gently as I knelt in front of him. “Otis Connor.” “It’s not that you weren’t magnificent, Otis. It’s that we don’t believe in the master-slave relationship. We’re dominant men, but we want equals who are more submissive. Hell, none of us are even Doms technically.” He didn’t say anything, so I took a deep, calming breath and tried again. “Slaves are treated like animals or property, and we don’t approve of it. You’re a person, Otis. If you need help getting on your feet, we’ll do that. But you don’t have to have a master. Do you understand?” “I understand you won’t be my new masters.” These quick, concise answers were getting on my nerves. “You don’t have to have a master or masters at all, Otis. You’re obviously not owned currently if you’re looking for new ones. Why can’t you just be your own man?” “N–Not have a master?” he asked and started to shake. “I–I’ve had a master since I was eighteen. I started training to be a servant when I was fourteen at the finest traditional school in England. Then my advisor had me trained as a slave, and I was bought when I

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became legal.” Holy crap! He looked like he might shit a brick at the idea of not being a slave, so I gave in to my instincts and hugged him. “It’s okay, Otis. We’ll help you, I promise. You don’t have to decide anything this second or—” And that’s when my fangs popped out. “Why can’t you all be my masters? I will do whatever—” “I will not share you,” I snarled as I straddled his lap and pushed him back to the ground. “Flower!” Shadow yelled and tried to pull me off my mate. I hissed at him over my shoulder, and he froze. “Dear gods, we just fucked your mate.” They all took several steps back slowly as the strong magic inside me flowed. We weren’t weak, cutesy little elves like in the stories. We were territorial predators when it came to our mates. And they had reason to be frightened as to how I’d react. “You didn’t know,” I said calmly. I didn’t blame any of them for what had happened. It was before I met Otis. I only cared about what happened now. I turned back to my mate and lifted his chin so he had to look at me. Instead he darted his gaze. “Look at me!” “Master?” he asked hesitantly but did as I asked. “No, not master. Never master. Mate.” I stared into his eyes as they went wide, and then I couldn’t hold back anymore. I struck fast, sinking my fangs into his gorgeous neck. I moaned as my mate cried out in pleasure. Otis got hard under my shorts-covered ass, and just as fast, his cock exploded. I felt warm cum seep into the cloth and against my skin. I retracted my fangs and licked the bite closed. “See, you can get hard and come. Didn’t it feel good?” “I–I wasn’t supposed to,” he said with such shame it broke my heart. “Yes you were,” I replied firmly. “I am your mate, not your master. You should never hide anything from me, including your pleasure and desire.” “I don’t have friends.”

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“Not that kind of mate,” I said gently, realizing his confusion. He was still shaking, and I decided this would take more time. I also didn’t want an audience for this. I looked over at Shadow. “Call Gus and tell him I’ll buy Otis’s contract. Make sure it’s for life and Gus removes him from his records.” “We’ll take care of it, brother,” he replied softly. I knew what they were thinking. I was mated to a slave, and they felt sorry for me. I didn’t. Otis needed me, and I didn’t care about his past. I would love him no matter what he’d been through and set him free of his chains. I teleported us to my room and smiled gently down at Otis when he gasped. I couldn’t help feeling how right this was, him lying on my bed. But that would have to wait. We had a lot to discuss first. “I’m not human, Otis,” I said as I ran my fingers through his soft, chestnut hair. Fuck, it felt even better than I had imagined. He didn’t say anything and still averted his gaze. “Don’t you have like a million questions for me?” “I am not allowed to speak unless asked a direct question,” he answered. Fuck! This might be more complicated than I’d thought. “I’m buying your contract, Otis. You’ll now live with my rules, okay?” For now I would have to play this within the confines of what he was used to. “Yes, master.” That was going to be the first thing to go. “Rule one is to stop calling me master. My name is Flower. And I want you to speak freely to me always. If you have something to say or want to know anything, you are to ask. Okay?” “Really?” His eyes went wide, but he still wouldn’t look at me. “Yes, and I want you to stop with this no-eye-contact thing. Treat me as your equal, Otis.” “B–But you’re not,” he whispered as he finally looked at me. “You’re confusing me.” “I know, baby,” I replied as tears filled my brown eyes. What had they done to my poor mate? Had he been brainwashed? Then again, if he’d been trained to be a servant and then a slave from such a young

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age, it was probably drilled so far into his head he knew no other way. “We’ll go slowly, I promise. For now, I want you to just follow those three rules, and we’ll go from there.” “Don’t call you master. Speak freely and don’t avert my gaze,” he repeated back. “I’ve never had anyone who owned me treat me in such a way.” I let the owned him part go. He’d learn we were equals, but I wasn’t going to completely pull the rug out from under him all in one night. “I’m different than anyone you’ve ever been with, Otis,” I said instead. He nodded his understanding, and I got off of him. First things first, he needed a shower. I didn’t like other people’s scent on him even it was of my friends. I took his hand in mine and led him to the shower. I turned it on, letting it warm up, and stared at my mate. Otis wasn’t intentionally not looking at me. It was more that he was so used to staring at the floor. His mind was racing a mile a minute with questions. He was scared, confused, and grateful to be away from his last master, who shared him with mean people. Ouch. “I can hear the questions in your mind, Otis,” I said softly as I pulled him in the shower with me. His bright green eyes went wide again, and his mouth opened and closed like a fish. “Why don’t you just ask them so I can answer you? Then you won’t be so worried about what’s going to happen.” “Why do you want me to be your equal?” Of all the questions I thought he might ask first, that wasn’t the one. It broke my heart that it was though. “Because you are my equal no matter what anyone has told you in the past.” I reached for the soap and loofah, only to realize he was, too. “I’ll wash you, sweetheart.” “Why?” he whimpered as his eyes darted around the shower as if trying to find an escape. Had no one ever been kind to him where it scared him this badly?

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“I want to take care of you, Otis.” I soaped the loofah up and washed his chiseled chest and then down his arms. “Ask me whatever you want. My life is an open book to you.” “People buy me to please them, take care of them. I don’t understand why you are washing me instead of the other way around.” “Because it’s not about money or power for me. I want us to be together in a loving, equal relationship. I want us to be partners.” I realized I was confusing him since I wasn’t starting from the beginning. I took a deep breath and braced myself for his reaction. “I’m an elf. I’m over three hundred years old, Otis.” “The fangs,” he whispered as he shivered. Listening to his thoughts let me know it was a shiver of lust. I was cool with that. “That was the first time they ever came out. It happens when an elf finds his mate.” “So I’m your mate but not as in friend.” He bit his lower lip, and I wanted to moan at the sight. I’m sure my dick getting hard confused him even more. “Fate chose you for me to be my everything, friend, lover, partner, husband. My fangs popping out was the sign that you’re the one, Otis. I want you like I crave no other.” “Then take me,” he said and immediately turned around, presenting his ass to me. Oh fuck! “No, Otis,” I whispered and pulled on his arm until he faced me again. “I won’t touch you like that until you understand. I’ll be with you when you want it and don’t think you have to offer yourself to me.” “I–I have a choice?” Otis blurted out. “Yes, that’s what I’m trying to tell you. I won’t be intimate with you until you choose to touch me. Otherwise I’m taking advantage of you.” “What if I want it now?” he asked as I went back to washing him.

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“You’re not even hard, Otis.” I sighed in frustration. This was much more difficult than I’d thought, and he was so fucking hot! I was barely holding on to a thread of control. “Am I allowed to get an erection whenever I want to?” “Yes, of course. You can come as often as you like if we have sex. You can eat what you like and do what you want as long as it’s legal. You’re free of being a slave.” “I’m free,” he repeated, and I knew this was going to take a long, long time. “You freed me.” “I guess you could look at it like that.” I shrugged and knelt to wash his legs and feet. I was just finishing up when he squatted down and looked me in the eye. “Then I am free to say that I want to feel you inside of me,” Otis whispered hesitantly. I nodded as my jaw practically hit the floor. I also didn’t miss the impressive piece of meat that was between his legs, hard as a motherfucking rock. “I want to be yours. I will learn to not act as a slave, but I will need help. I have dreamt of being free all my life though I have no clue how.” “I’ll show you,” I said, thanking the gods. Maybe my earlier assessment had been wrong. I was trying to respect his privacy and not listen to his thoughts unless I had to. I had always felt it was rude and didn’t want to do it with my mate. But given the circumstances, I might need some guidance here and there. “I still want to please you.” We stood back up, and he moved my hands around to his very firm, muscular ass. “That’s good, baby. Because I want to please you in every way possible and in every position I know.” I couldn’t bite back the moan as his dick rubbed against my stomach. “Take me, please, Flower.” Yeah, like I could say no to that? I was an elf, not a moron. I dropped to my knees and licked the head of his cock as I pushed in my soaped-up fingers into his ass. “Sweet mother of mercy. No one’s ever done that to me before.”

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“I’m going to be your first for a lot of things, just as you will be mine.” “Okay,” he moaned as I took him into my mouth. I fucked him with my fingers as I deep-throated him. I wasn’t going to deny his desire for us to be together sexually, but I also wasn’t sure he was ready to have sex now that he had a choice. I thought maybe he needed more time to adjust. In the meantime, I could still give him the release I guessed he badly needed. I sucked on him as I rubbed over his sweet spot. Otis cried out and shot down my throat with no warning he was even close. Damn! He had needed that. I swallowed every drop of his cum, relishing the taste of my mate. When he was done with his orgasm, he slumped against the tile wall as his legs shook. “I have not come in over four years,” he admitted as he closed his eyes. “I had forgotten what it even felt like.” “You’ll climax at least once a day from now on,” I swore after I pulled my mouth off his dick. “I’d like that.” He smiled at me as I stood up. I thought he’d been hot before, but now with that smile, he was breathtaking. It was a sight to behold. His face lit up, his green eyes sparkling, and I swear I saw some of the darkness in him vanish before my eyes. But of course he’d had a heavy burden. He’d been a slave, for crying out loud. That was over though, and I promised myself then and there I would chase the rest of the darkness away for my mate. I’d give him the life he deserved and make him happy. I just didn’t have any fucking clue how to do that.

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Chapter 2 “Where do I sleep?” he asked after we finished in the shower and dried off. Otis glanced around the room as if he was looking for something. “We can get you a room of your own if you’d like.” I hadn’t been trying to read his mind, but his thoughts were broadcasted so loud I couldn’t not hear them. I got the visuals of the cage he slept in. And the one before that which had been even smaller. I dropped to my knees as I gasped. Who could be so cruel to put another human being in a cage? It looked like a large dog kennel, for fuck’s sake! “Are you alright?” Otis was immediately in front of me, checking for signs of any ailment. “I’m fine, shocked at what I saw in your mind,” I admitted and stood back up. “No more cages, Otis. Ever. The people who put you in them should be burned in a tub of acid.” I took a deep breath and tried to get my anger under control. “You can have one of the guest rooms on the third floor or you can stay in here with me. Either option involves a bed, no cages, no floor. Whichever you’re more comfortable with is alright.” He thought about it for a few moments, shifting his weight from foot to foot. “I can really stay with you in your bed?” “If that’s what you want,” I answered with a smile. “There’s no right answer here, baby. It’s whatever you’re most comfortable with.” “I like that,” he whispered and took a step closer to me. “What?” I took one towards him, closing the gap to less than ten feet.

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“When you call me baby,” he admitted as he moved forward again. I mirrored his movements. “I’d like you to be.” “No one has called me anything but slave since I was a teenager. It’s like you’re pulling off the blindfold of what I’d been to see the world again.” “Is that why you want to share my bed? You think that’s the only way I’ll help you?” “No, something deep inside of me is screaming to trust you, and honestly, I have nothing else to lose if you end up being like the masters I’ve had. But that’s not why I want to be in your bed. You make me feel something I never have before—wanted. Not owned, but actually wanted for me. I mean, I know it is a mutual attraction, but you want more than my body.” “I do, and I’m glad you realize you’re more than a quick lay or a possession.” “I’m glad that’s how you feel about me,” he said with a bright smile that I felt warm me down to my toes. “You’re being so nice to me that I’m not scared to ask for what I want.” “What do you want?” I stepped up on my toes and slid my arms around his neck. “Besides to sleep in my bed tonight.” “Will you hold me?” Otis mumbled against my neck as he pulled me close. “I’ve never been simply held. They use me and lock me up or kick me out or make me—” “I get it,” I said, cutting him off. I couldn’t listen to any more right then, and I felt him start to shake the more he said. “I’m not them, and I’d be honored to hold you all night and sleep in your arms.” “Thank you,” he sighed. We crawled into bed, and I lay down on my back. Otis molded to my side, with his head in the nook between my shoulder and chest. His hand met mine on my stomach, and we intertwined our fingers. It was the most peaceful moment of my life. And as my mate fell asleep, I knew that I’d handled everything with Otis well. I’d pat myself on the back tomorrow.

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**** The next morning I woke alone and freaked out. I was up, out of bed, and dressed in a second. First I checked the bathroom and found it empty. Then I raced out of my room, down the stairs, and listened for any sign of my mate. Kitchen. I headed in there, and there he was. “Otis?” I asked as he hurried around the kitchen. “I am sorry I did not have your breakfast prepared in time, master. I will make amends,” he said quickly. I realized he’d found a tray where he’d put juice, coffee, toast with jam, and fresh fruit. He was lucky we’d been shopping and had any of those things in the house. “Baby, it’s me, Flower.” I moved slowly toward him. He lowered the apple that he’d been slicing to the counter and started sobbing. In a flash, I wrapped my arms around him after moving the knife out of his hand. “It’s okay, baby.” I wasn’t all about pet names, but I knew he liked it. “We’re okay.” “I thought last night was a dream. I woke up on the floor and thought I had made it all up and you had me sleep there. I am so sorry. I am so fucking sorry for having doubted you.” “Nothing to apologize for, Otis,” I said gently. “You can’t undo years of being mistreated in one night. I’m not mad, I swear it to you. I’m only upset that you ever had to endure it.” “I would have endured so much more to feel one moment of this with you. I know that sounds cheesy, but I mean it with all my heart.” I could hear it in his head that it was the truth. “Would you like to go back to bed, or should we enjoy the wonderful breakfast you prepared?” “I am sorry—” “Stop, baby. You didn’t do anything wrong.” I turned him in my arms and cupped his cheeks in my hands. “I cannot break my habits and training as easily as I thought.”

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“I know,” I whispered. “You’ll get there. We’re going to do it together, one step at a time.” “I heard you found your mate,” Horse said loudly to let us know we were about to have company as he walked into the kitchen with Bren. “Congratulations, brother.” “Thank you,” I replied as I turned to face him and snuggled up against Otis. I mouthed to my friend Did they tell you everything? He gave a slight nod that Otis wouldn’t be able to see. Good. I didn’t need my mate having to explain everything that he’d been through or sit there as I did. “This is my mate, Otis Connor.” I gestured to him as I introduced them. “This is my friend, Horse, and his mate, Bren.” “A pleasure to meet you,” Otis said with a nod as he looked at the ground. “Ohh, British,” Horse purred and ignored the elbow jab from his mate. “Welcome to our family, Otis. You need not avert your eyes. We are all equals here.” “I apologize. I am not quite used to that yet,” he whispered and started to shake. I saw that it was actually an effort for him to raise his head and look at my friend as if pushing against someone’s hand. “We’re family here,” Bren said gently as he took Horse’s hand and raised it to his lips. “I was the first human to join this family. Everyone here is wonderful, accepting, and would never judge you. You’re safe here, and we protect our own.” “Thanks,” Otis replied as he nodded his head like a bobblehead doll. “We were just about to have breakfast,” I announced quickly, changing the subject. “And then we need to figure out how Otis got to Gus and what the hell he’s doing with slaves in the club.” Okay, well, I kind of changed the topic. So I wasn’t the best at transitions or subtlety. “My last master is visiting this area for his holiday.” We moved over to the table and sat down. I took Otis’s hand in mine since he

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seemed to have trouble getting out what he needed to say. “We visited your friend Gus’s club for a private card game my master was invited to, and he put me up as collateral on one of his bets. I do not think Gus liked that, but he did not fight it. Gus won, but he is in a longterm committed relationship, so he was trying to sell me.” He started to get choked up, and in a flash, I was straddling his lap, hugging him. I wanted to kiss him so badly, but it wasn’t the time for our first kiss yet. Instead I whispered calming words in his ear until he hugged me back. “It’s okay now, you’re free. That’s all in the past now.” “I wish I felt that way now,” he admitted with a sigh. I didn’t know how to respond to that, so I let it go…for now. “Let’s have some breakfast, and we can decide what to do today,” I said gently and returned to my seat. Otis gave me a weak smile as he stood. Bren got the idea that I needed to speak privately with Horse and showed my mate the kitchen as they retrieved the normal breakfast items. “Tell Bren I said thank you later for helping my mate.” “Of course,” Horse replied in my mind while giving me a soft smile. “You okay?” “No. No, I am most certainly not okay,” I answered as tears filled my eyes. “I’m so lost here, brother. I can’t just fix this for him, and I want to make it all better. Do you know he thought he’d be sleeping in a cage? I saw it in his head, what his last master had for him. It was a large fucking dog kennel, Horse. How could a human do that to another?” “Sweet Jesus,” he hissed, his eyes flaring with anger. “Anything you need, we’re here for you.” “I know that. Thank you.” I paused and tried to calm down before saying what I needed to say, but I realized Bren and Otis had brought over what they could carry for the first trip of food, so I was running out of time. “What do we do about Gus? I get that he might not be selling slaves on a regular basis, but he did do it. It’s illegal, and it’s

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wrong. Even real masters don’t put up their slaves in a fucking card game.” “They may do things differently in England and didn’t know he couldn’t here. I’ll handle Gus. You’ve got enough on your plate. Maybe we should look into finding someone Otis can talk to? Like a professional. I’m not saying he’s crazy—” “No, I get what you mean,” I said quickly, cutting him off. Horse rushed that last part because there was a fine line between wanting some help and needing mental help sometimes, and Otis was straddling that fence. “I’ll think about it after spending more time with him. I’m not saying it’s a bad idea. I just think that it might be hard to talk to a doctor when he’s going to have to hide so much.” “Like us being elves.” “Exactly.” “Maybe we could find a paranormal one? Would you mind if I called Peter? If anyone would know, it would be him.” I thought about that a moment. It was a good idea. “Yes, please do that. It doesn’t hurt to at least have the option.” “How is he taking the news of you being mates and an elf?” “I don’t think it’s registered yet.” I sighed and realized Bren and Otis were staring at us. They could probably tell that we were communicating somehow. “I think he’s got so many other issues that he’s not even started to deal with it. It may be a while before he does. I’m kinda going with the AA motto, one day at a time.” “I think that’s wise,” Horse said gently before turning to our mates. “Sorry. Bad habit. It’s easier sometimes to talk this way with each other because we hear and understand so much more than just words spoken.” “It was quite fascinating,” Otis replied with a grin as they sat down. “I could tell you were talking from the looks you were giving each other, though I could not hear it or see your lips moving. I have never witnessed anything like it. None of you really are human, are you?”

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“I am.” Bren snickered and then glanced at me as if asking if he could elaborate. I nodded, ready for any help. “I’m immortal now since Horse and I officially mated and he claimed me. All the other mates in the house are human, too.” “Elves prefer humans?” Otis asked as he glanced at me. “I would think you would want your own kind so you did not have to explain yourselves.” “Fate decides who we should mate with,” I answered gently. “But we can’t be with another paranormal. Our magic is too strong and would cancel theirs out. Every elf has a human mate. It’s just the way things work.” “I can understand that.” Otis was fixing my coffee with cream and sugar. I don’t think he even realized what he was doing and was probably fixing it the way his previous master had liked it. It upset me, but I didn’t want him to feel like I was chastising him if I brought it up, so I let it go. We had much bigger fish to fry. “You’re taking it much better than I did.” Bren chuckled. “I freaked out and ran.” “Why would you do that?” Otis asked as he worked on his own coffee now. “Is your mate so scary you were in fear for your life?” “No, of course not,” Bren answered and looked equal parts confused and pissed off. “Horse is a good man.” “So you ran then because…” Otis trailed off with a raised brow. “I’d been burned badly before in a relationship, and Horse’s instant commitment to me scared me. Plus, yeah, I was having some problems adapting to what he was.” “An elf?” “Yes,” Bren answered, now more perturbed than upset. He glanced at me, but I just shrugged. I didn’t know where he was going with all of this either. “Did he treat you any differently than a human would?”

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“Not really,” Bren replied slowly, his eyebrows drawing together in thought. “He was very attentive, sexual, loving, didn’t play any games, and didn’t hide how he felt.” “And again I ask why you ran?” Otis raised a brow of his own. “Look, I get what you’re saying—” Bren raised his voice in frustration but then froze. We all did. The second Bren got agitated and his tone changed, Otis knelt on the floor at his feet. His head was down as he cowered. “Baby, Bren’s not mad at you,” I said gently as I moved beside him. “He was just getting frustrated because some things aren’t easy to explain.” “I was trying to make a point why I am not bothered by what you are,” he mumbled but didn’t move or look up. I could have kissed Bren for what he did next. He slid to the ground in front of my mate and raised Otis’s face up so he had to look at Bren. “I was stupid to have run from Horse, that’s why I was getting pissy. I know it was stupid, but I did it anyways because I was afraid. Fear makes us react in ways we wouldn’t think and isn’t logical. It’s a powerful emotion and can cripple us. But love is a better one. The moment I gave Horse my heart, I stopped being afraid of getting hurt.” “I have lived with the fear so long,” Otis whispered. “I do not know how to control it.” “You don’t,” Bren said simply. “You learn little by little that you don’t have to be afraid and go from there.” “I am sorry that I agitated you. I should not have done that when you have been so nice to me.” “I wasn’t upset with you, Otis. I was getting annoyed that I couldn’t put what I wanted to say into words and that I ever ran from Horse in the first place. It hurt him, my fears and my baggage, and I haven’t forgiven myself for that.” “What?” Horse gasped and practically attacked Bren, pushing him back on the floor and straddling his hips. “Don’t you dare be upset

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with yourself for that! I threw an ocean’s worth of stuff on you so quickly that it’s amazing you ever came back. I love you, Bren. Every relationship has its ups and downs and misunderstandings. I wouldn’t trade a single moment or tear for what we have. It was all more than worth it.” “I never wanted to hurt you.” “You didn’t, Bren. It was little stuff, and you were upset, too. Oh, baby, I had no idea you felt this way.” He brushed his lips over his mate’s and then spoke to us without even glancing at us. “Sorry to bail on breakfast, but I need to comfort my mate and show him how much I love him.” They were gone in a flash, probably teleporting to their room. Otis stared at where they had been like a fish, opening and closing his mouth. “I am not sure I will ever get used to that.” “It comes in handy.” I snickered as I stood and reached for his hand. He smiled softly and let me help him to his feet. “We’re going to be okay, baby.” “I hope so,” he said as he moved forward. “You said I am free to ask for what I want, right?” “Of course.” I nodded as I ran my hands up his chest, knowing what he wanted. “May I kiss you? I’ve never done it before, so I might fail miserably, but I really—” I cut off his ramblings with my mouth. One soft kiss, barely brushing my lips over his. I leaned back so I could see into his eyes if it was okay to continue. “Better than I ever dreamed of.” I pulled his head down to mine, and while the kiss still didn’t even involve tongue, it wasn’t so gentle. “I do not know what to do,” he gasped as we broke for air. “Whatever feels right, Otis. Do whatever you want, and I’ll tell you if it’s too much.” “Thank you,” he whimpered. He lifted me into his arms and laid me down on the table where we didn’t have all the breakfast fixings. I

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think I unleashed something in my mate because he inserted himself between my legs and leaned over me. His mouth was back on mine as he moved his forearms under my shoulders. I moaned when he immediately opened for me. I ran my tongue around his mouth, exploring every inch of it. He groaned and pushed his back into mine as well. We twirled, dueled, and sucked like no other when he ripped his mouth away. I whimpered and followed him to get more until I saw the smile on his face. “I guess—hi—” “I am erect!” he exclaimed as he moved my hand to his groin. I couldn’t help but give him a nice squeeze and start stroking him through his borrowed shorts. “Yes, you are,” I purred and tried to pull him back down. “No, Flower, I broke my training. Your kisses overruled that part of my brain that said I am not allowed to get an erection.” “Oh,” I said and then I pushed past my lust-filled haze and realized what he was saying. “Oh! That’s awesome, baby. See, we’ll make a little progress here and there, and soon it won’t be so daunting.” “You got me hard,” he said seductively as he stood there, letting me touch him intimately. “Is this okay?” I asked, needing to know he understood he had the option to say no. “I want you very much, my little Flower.” Otis smiled and leaned back over me. “Will you take me now?” “How about you make love to me?” I knew I’d give myself to my mate, but maybe he needed to be in charge our first time. “I–I do not know how,” he blubbered and pulled away from me. “D–Do not make me, please.” “Hey, okay, it’s okay,” I said gently as I grabbed his wrist and sat up before he could escape. “I thought you might like to have control of the situation after what you’ve been through. I didn’t mean to upset you.”

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“There were certain aspects of being a slave that I loved even if I hated who I was with.” His cheeks flamed bright red at the admission, and I got hard as nails. He let me pull him back between my legs, and I ran my hands up his firm chest. “Really?” I purred as I tweaked his nipples. “Like what?” “I like to be dominated, told what to do,” he moaned. “I love being restrained and treated roughly at times.” Otis got a little choked up then, and I stopped teasing his body. “I just want to be loved, too. That is all I ever wanted.” He took a deep breath and met my gaze. “Do you think you could ever love someone like me, Flower?” “I know you’ll be the only man I ever love, Otis.” And in that moment, it became crystal fucking clear why fate gave me Otis as a mate. I would never leave him or betray him or hurt his broken soul. I would give him everything he ever wanted and set him free of his slave past.

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Chapter 3 “Surely you have been in love before,” Otis whispered as hope shined in his green eyes. “Nope.” I chuckled and traced his jawbone with my fingers. “I’ve had a lot of sex but never love. I knew my mate would be walking through my door one day, and I didn’t want to complicate that bond when I finally found you by having a steady lover or boyfriend. I’ve been looking for you for centuries, Otis.” Okay, that might have been laying it on a little thick, but I needed him to start realizing he had worth. “What if I fail you? What if I am not what you want?” He looked so scared again. I ’ported us to my room, knowing it was the right time to take this to the next level. “What if I’m not what you want?” I parroted back and saw the understanding in his eyes. There was always a chance of failing a partner no matter a person’s background. “Let me love on you, baby. I want to show you how special you are to me already.” “Yes, take me, Flower,” he groaned as I lowered my body on his on the bed. That was all the encouragement I needed. Faster than his human eyes could follow, I had us naked and him magically stretched before lifting his legs over my hips. “You’re sure,” I whispered as my leaking cock pushed at his hole. “I don’t want to take advantage of you.” I looked down at his dick that had pre-cum on the head like mine. “It seems like you want this.” “I do,” Otis whimpered and lifted his hips, pushing the head of my cock inside of him. “Yes, more, Flower. Take me, I am yours.”

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“Sweet hell,” I moaned and thrust inside of him. Yeah, like I could have stopped then if I’d been hit by a bus. He had no idea that he was pushing all of my buttons, but he was. He was begging, submitting, announcing he belonged to me all in one shot. I almost blew my load before I even bottomed out inside of him. “Oh shit, you feel good.” “You are huge,” he gasped, and I quickly searched his thoughts to see if he was feeling any pain. He wasn’t, but he was thinking a few things that disturbed me. Like this was the first time he’d ever enjoyed someone inside of him. Oh yeah, he was going to get all kinds of enjoyable sex from me until I wiped away every bad memory he had. And even after. I leaned over him, but with the height difference, his six-three to my five-six, I couldn’t reach his mouth. I adjusted my size to reach and nibbled on his lower lip. He threw his arms around my neck, completely wrapped around my body as I slowly took him. “You are being so gentle,” he mumbled against my neck, and I felt it get slightly damp from his tears. “Why are you being so gentle? I am not worth this tenderness.” “Yes you are,” I growled and turned his face to mine. I leaned in so our noses were touching. “You are so worth this, baby. I’ve been alive for centuries, and I’ve never met a man who has deserved some tender loving as much as you do. Do you trust me?” “You know I do, Flower.” It was true. I could hear it in his thoughts. He trusted me more than the mother who sent him to that servant school to be rid of him because he was the bastard son of a— whoa! We’d so need to talk about that later. But for now if he was thinking about his past, I wasn’t doing my job right. “Then trust that you deserve to be treated like you’re precious and enjoy it,” I whispered against his lips and plundered his mouth. Otis moaned and lifted his hips to meet my every thrust. My body was on fire with the need to claim him. I did my best to keep my fangs

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retracted, but when I nailed his prostate and he pulled his mouth away to cry out in pleasure, I couldn’t hold them back anymore. “Do you need to drink?” He tilted his neck to give me full access. I shook my head and tried to ignore how tempting the offer was. “We bite to solidify the bonding between our mates, not because we drink blood.” “I like being bitten, and with your fangs, it was amazing,” Otis moaned and pulled my head down to his neck. Well, shit! “Please, Flower. I want to be one with you.” And that’s when I officially lost control. I struck fast, pumping into him harder as I bit him. He screamed in bliss and came. I followed him right over, filling up his sweet hole, the way he had the space between us. I moaned and closed the bite with my tongue. I was relishing in the taste of him as streams of my seed marked the inside of him as mine. When I was spent, I shrank back to my normal size and collapsed on top of him. “Best sex ever,” I panted. “I am glad you enjoyed it,” he mumbled and didn’t sound all that happy. “You didn’t?” I asked as I pushed up so I could see his face. I pulled out of him, worried I’d taken advantage of him. “No, I did,” he answered immediately but turned his head away. “Then what’s wrong, baby?” I grabbed his chin, forcing him to look at me. “W–Why did you remove your m–marks from m–me if you enjoyed it?” It took me a moment to understand what he was talking about in my post-orgasmic haze. “Instinct,” I said gently as we sat up. “I didn’t want my mate to have an open wound on his body. I don’t ever want you to have any pain.” “Oh.” His face softened, and a shy smile spread on his lips. “I want to wear your mark. I never liked having a collar, but it is like a version of that, and I like the idea when it is you.”

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“I don’t own you, Otis,” I said gently, not sure how to address the whole remark about the collar. “We belong to each other as mates. If that’s what you want at least.” “I do, very much. Will you bite me again and leave your mark this time?” “You just want to orgasm again,” I teased and chuckled when he turned red. “I will not deny that is a perk as well. But I truly like the idea of wearing your bite for all to see.” Who was I to deny him? I bit his shoulder since we’d probably be going out in public later and him having visible fang marks wasn’t the best idea. Otis cried out as he came all over my groin and ass since I was straddling his lap. I licked the wound just once to stop the bleeding but didn’t heal the bite. “Better?” “Much,” he groaned as we rolled to our sides. “Thank you.” “I will always give you anything you need, baby. You are my first priority in life.” “Might I ask you for something then?” “Of course,” I whispered and kissed his forehead. I ran my fingers though his thick, chestnut hair and stared into his eyes. “If it’s something I can give you, all you have to do is ask.” “I do not have much at my former master’s estate, but I do have a few personal items that I would like back. I am not sure if he would be willing now that he lost me in a card game. He was very upset about the whole thing and threatened to take me back to England with him because I cannot stay here long legally.” “We can go get whatever is yours as soon as we get cleaned up.” “I do not mean for you to journey all the way there—” “We’ll just teleport,” I said with a smile. “We’ll pop right in and out. No big deal, baby.” “You can teleport all the way to England?” His jaw dropped with shock.

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“Yep. I’ll have to look inside your mind to see where I’m going, but it won’t take us long.” “Thank you, Flower.” He pulled me into his arms and hugged me tight enough where I was having trouble breathing. Otis released me before I had to ask for more air and practically leaped out of bed. “I must warn you that you will not like what you see when I show you my room there.” “I know, but that’s in the past now,” I said gently as I got out of bed. He nodded as we went into the bathroom and quickly washed up. Then he put on the shorts I had gotten from Justice for him to borrow, and I threw on a pair of my own a and shirt. I gave him one of mine, but it looked like it might rip at the seams at any second. It also showed every inch of his perfectly sculpted chest, abs, and back. Yummy! We didn’t need shoes since we weren’t walking anywhere, and I didn’t want to bring up the fact that he didn’t have any. I guess when my friends had brought him home from the club he was dressed in a pair of see-through boy shorts and that was it. I had told them to burn those damn things. Otis didn’t need any reminders of what he’d been through. “Now I need you to picture where we’re going very carefully and in great detail.” He nodded as I held his hand and I searched his thoughts. He was quite good at this. Hell, I could even see the exact pattern of the curtains in his room. I ’ported us there and gasped. He’d shown me the corner of the room by the window, I’d thought. But that was pretty much the entire room I saw from the angle of his cage. It was an oversize kennel like a circus might use to transport a small tiger…very small tiger. Inside was one of those dog beds and an attached water bottle like he was a damn hamster. “Get what you need, baby,” I said evenly, proud my voice didn’t crack with anger. “Don’t bring the clothes unless they mean something to you. I’ll get you new ones. I want you to leave as much of this place behind you as you can.”

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“I am sorry you are upset,” he whispered and moved away. “It’s not your fault.” I tried to be gentle as I said it, but I was boiling with rage at what I was seeing. “But that”—I pointed to the cage—“is inhumane. The fucker should be shot for this closet-size room much less having you in that thing.” “If only he knew the rest of it or how many times the master left me in that cage for days at a time,” he thought as he nodded to what I said. Well fuck. Now I did. I gave him a weak smile since that was the best I could drum up right then. Otis quickly gathered his things, which turned out to be next to nothing. It was a couple of pictures, two books, his wallet with no money in it and an ID, his backup passport, and a large file folder. I didn’t know what was inside of it, and it was none of my business. He’d tell me when he was ready. “Is that everything?” “Yes, I do not have much,” he answered sheepishly. “Good, then you’re going to have a clean slate and start over,” I said with a smile and rubbed my hand down his arm in support. “Don’t worry, I left the North Pole with about the same amount of things.” But I mentally added, and a fat bank account. I don’t think he has that, nor should I mention it. Otis nodded and glanced around the room one more time. When he came up with nothing else, he slid his hand into mine. “I am ready.” “Then let’s go home and start planning our future.” He gave me that bright grin again and flipped off the room we were leaving for good. In a way I was glad he got this chance for closure. I was proud of him. Okay, so maybe a therapist wouldn’t be happy about someone giving their room and previous life the bird…but I thought it was damn poetic. I ’ported us back to our room, and my heart filled with warmth at the idea. Ours. Yes, that was just right. I quickly cleared him out a few drawers in my dresser and made some closet space for him.

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“I do not require that much room,” he said quietly. “Oh, but you will.” I giggled and bounced around. “We’re going to have some fun doing one of my favorite things.” “Which is?” Otis gave me a heated leer, and it was hard to remember what I’d been thinking. “Shopping!” I blurted out after a moment. “We’re going to do so much shopping our heads spin.” “I do not have any money nor a credit card.” “You’re my mate,” I said gently, realizing I might be treading rough waters. “Everything I have is yours, baby. It’s a real partnership between us. Let me do this for you so you can start your new life fresh. I want to provide for you.” He thought about that for a minute, running his fingers through his long hair. “I do not wish to insult you, but if I let you do this that would be the same as if I was indebted to you and you owned me.” “If that’s what you think,” I whispered and backed away towards to the door. I knew I was overreacting even as I was doing it, but I couldn’t help it. Hearing the words out of his mouth hurt. A lot. “I didn’t mean it like that.” “Flower—” he started to say, but I just shook my head and opened the door. And I ran. I was acting like a total selfish jerk. I couldn’t ignore the pain though. I ended up in my workshop, my place of solace. How could he think I wanted to own him? I wanted us to belong to each other. I knew he was used to people treating him like a possession, but hadn’t I shown I wasn’t like that? I’d offered my heart, my home, and my body to him. Wasn’t that enough? Okay, fine, most of this was his past experiences and training. I could be a wolf in sheep’s clothing in his eyes. But I wasn’t! I kept working on the power source for my latest contraption. I was completely unfocused though. Tears kept blinding my vision and burning in my eyes. What if I wasn’t enough to help Otis? Maybe he needed more than I could give him to heal.

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I don’t know how long I worked until there was a timid knock on the door. I glanced over as I wiped my tears and saw my mate standing in the doorway staring at his shoeless feet. He must have asked someone the way or checked every door in the house because my workshop was in the back, almost hidden from the house. “I apologize. I know you are nothing like the men who have owned me in the past. I am lost in how to act in a real relationship.” “I’m sorry I’m overreacting,” I said with a pout and plopped my butt on the floor. “It’s just I’m walking into this with my heart held out to you and wanting to give you everything, but I feel as if you slapped me. I know in my head that you have reasons and a past, so it all makes sense.” I pointed to my chest then, but still couldn’t meet his eyes. “But in here it hurts.” “I know, and I am sorry,” he whispered as he knelt in front of me. “I did not mean to do that. I did not put what I was feeling into words accurately. I never meant to accuse you. I wanted to simply ask what the difference was. Will you forgive me?” “Of course I will.” I hadn’t thought about it that way, but it made sense. “I promise to stay and listen next time instead of just running.” “No, sometimes you will need a moment to think. We both will, and there is nothing wrong with that. You did not yell or scream or hit me. I offended you, though unintentionally, and I understand you needing some space.” “I would never hit you,” I said firmly as I held his face in my hands. “Ever, baby. You’re my world now, and yes, I might shout, but I would never raise a hand to you.” “I know that,” he replied with a sad smile. “For so long I have been numb inside, Flower, trying to get through the day and my life. It was easier that way. But I also was not allowed to speak unless asked a direct question. I am finding myself lost on how to communicate well after years of being silent.” “Shit,” I hissed, “I hadn’t thought of it like that.” “Let us go shop.”

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“Really?” I gasped, not having foreseen him changing his mind. “Yes, you wish to do it out of love. I see that now. If the situation was reversed, I would want to do the same for you, and there is nothing wrong with that. I will find a way to give you what you need as well.” “You care for me, Otis,” I whispered against his lips. “That’s all I need.” “All you need is love,” he sang to me. His British accent was spoton of course, and he sounded just like one of the Beatles…except really, really hot. “Did you just tease me?” I asked in shock as I pulled away. “I do believe I did.” He snickered. “I quite liked it. It made me feel so rebellious!” “I liked it, too,” I admitted with a smile. We shared a laugh at how silly we were being, and then I cleaned up my workroom, covered my projects so they didn’t dry out, shut everything off, and we left. Half an hour later, we were pulling into the parking lot of Old Navy. I figured we’d start out getting some of the basics at a price that wouldn’t freak Otis out. Now was not the time to take him to Macy’s. But I needed to get him shoes. Benjii had loaned him a pair of flipflops because in those, it didn’t matter much if there was a size difference. Winter in Chicago in flip-flops didn’t work very well though. Not. At. All. “I will not count totals or worry about the price,” Otis mumbled as I handed him a few pairs of jeans in his size. I smiled at him and watched his cheeks heat up. He hadn’t realized I could hear him. He leaned in closer so no one could overhear us. “Is that an elf thing?” “Yes, our senses are overdeveloped compared to humans. I can hear people on the other side of the store as if they were standing right next to me if I pay attention.” “Extraordinary,” he whispered and kissed my cheek. “You amaze me, Flower.”

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“And you’ve not even seen all my tricks in bed.” “I look forward to it.” Otis swallowed loudly as his pants tented in the front. He might not be used to much outside of his slave word, but that was one of them. I liked how easily he let go of the no erections rule and was himself. It gave me hope that my mate could recover from what he’d been through. Silly, but if his dick was in working order and he wasn’t against being sexual, then it spoke volumes as to his mindset. “I am not used to wearing this much clothing,” he said as I threw a few sweaters that would look nice on him in our cart. “It’s more fun to strip each other if there’s more on to get through,” I replied with a leer. “Builds the anticipation to have to unwrap your gift.” “Do you bring everything back to sex?” He tilted his head to the side like a puppy studying me. “I–I don’t mean to,” I stuttered and shuffled my feet. “I’m not really good with people. I’m more a loner. I never know what to say and am always sticking my foot in my mouth. I don’t mean to.” “Hey now,” he whispered and pulled me into his arms. I buried my face in his neck and took a deep whiff, imprinting his woodsy yet sweet scent to memory. “I was not chastising or complaining, simply getting to know you. I am not the best with people either, if you have not noticed.” “I know, but I do tend to focus on sex a lot, especially in my workshop making those machines. It’s like sex is the one time I don’t feel awkward or lame. Otherwise I’ve got my head in a book or I’m playing in video game tournaments. I’m just not good at talking with people.” “I thought you were doing spectacularly myself,” Otis said with a smile as we parted. “I like that you want me so much that sex is always on your mind. I wish you would ravage me right here no matter who is watching.”

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“Really?” I squeaked, ready to swallow my tongue at the image. “Oh yes, I am very much into exhibitionism and spontaneity.” “Good to know,” I replied, nodding like an idiot as I thumped my leaking dick. It needed to go back down right now, given where we were. I was not walking around Old Navy with a boner. I already felt as if all eyes were on us and getting hard wasn’t helping. “Perhaps we should discuss this more thoroughly when we are not in public?” “Yeah, that would be best.” I giggled and grabbed the cart. We behaved then, not touching, giving each other looks, or making any innuendos. But we did have fun. I didn’t have the best sense of fashion, but it turned out Otis did. The man could coordinate like no other! It was funny because while we’d gone shopping for him, he still picked out clothes for me. I didn’t really need any new clothes though sometimes it was just good to weed out my closet since I tended to stick with my favorites. That was until they were nothing but rags. So he chose some jeans, shirts, sweaters, and whatnot for me as well as himself. By the time I was paying for our mountain of purchases, I had a wonderful idea brewing.

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Chapter 4 “Can I ask you something without sounding like I’m judging?” I asked hesitantly later on when we were back home putting away our new clothes in the spots I cleared for him in the dresser and closet. “Of course,” Otis answered, giving me a shy smile. “I am an open book to you.” “You said you went to servant school before someone pulled you out and put you in slave training?” “When I was fourteen I went there instead of what you call high school here, yes.” His eyebrows drew together in confusion. He knew I was going somewhere with this, but he couldn’t put together the pieces yet. “So did they teach you basics there that teenagers learn?” He still looked perturbed, so I elaborated. “Like reading, writing, and math, all the general stuff?” “No, that was not included in our curriculum.” His face turned bright red, and I could see it was a point of embarrassment for him. “Would you like to learn it?” “Very much so,” he exclaimed with wide eyes. “I have not read in over a decade, and I miss it. I used to love to get lost in tales when I was a child.” “Then we’ll get you a tutor.” I was excited as well, proud of myself for having thought of it. “That would be expensive,” Otis replied slowly as he eyed me over. “I have already incurred you enough costs with the clothing.” “Otis,” I sighed and took his face in my hands. “I have more money than I could spend in a thousand lifetimes. I want to do this for

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you. When we were shopping, you were so happy. I was amazed by the way you coordinated clothes, and realized you would make a wonderful personal shopper.” “Like a butler?” “No, it’s not a servant,” I answered, shaking my head. “It’s someone who buys clothes, accessories, shoes, the whole package for people who don’t have the time or patience to make sure everything matches. I think you’d feel better if you were contributing to the household. After watching you in the stores, I know you’d be a great help to all of us.” “You want me to work for your friends?” His eyebrows shot up to his hairline. “But just shopping, right?” “No one else touches you but me,” I snarled as my fangs popped out. “I do not share my mate.” “Good,” he sighed and leaned his face into my neck. I practically purred when he licked the line up to my ear and shivered in my arms. “I do not want to be shared anymore. I only want you, Flower. I feel so drawn to you, safe, and wanted that my heart races by simply looking at you.” “I feel the same way,” I assured him. “And you don’t have to be our personal shopper if you don’t want you. I thought it would be something fun that you enjoyed, that would make you feel like a part of our household. Everyone does something that helps around here. I make machines and toys for our play room, Horse had painted the art on our walls, Button has made all the vases and glasswork. Some of them sell their creations, but they’re more hobbies.” “Otherwise you’d all get bored with your immortality.” “Exactly.” I could tell there was more on his mind though I was trying hard not to read his thoughts. “Remember you promised to speak freely with me, baby.” “I will think about this personal shopper job to help if you allow me. I do not wish to be a servant or slave for anyone ever again.”

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“Of course,” I said gently and rubbed his back. “But I swear it to you it’s not like that. It’s more like if Horse needed a new suit, you’d get his measurements, check out what he has to coordinate with it, and go pick out what would work for him best. And I get how that’s what you’re used to as a butler, but you’d get to pick and choose if you wanted to do it.” “So I would help out around here, but I could also have clients of my own,” he replied as his head came off my shoulder. “I would be an entrepreneur!” “Exactly,” I said with a wide smile, glad he got it. “Yes, you’d be in the service industry, but you wouldn’t be a servant.” “No, yes, it makes perfect sense. I love the idea.” He pulled me onto his lap and hugged me. “You realized I would need to be able to read and write well along with mathematics to accomplish such a goal. That is why you were asking and offered a tutor. You amaze me, Flower. You are right, I do love to shop and coordinate. I do not know how to drive though.” “I can teach you that.” I giggled, thrilled by how excited he was now. “I figured it would be nice to have a goal to work towards. But we can get you a tutor right away no matter if you want your job to be a shopper or not. You deserve to have an education and read if that’s what you love.” “I think I love you,” he mumbled against my neck. I let it go since I was pretty sure he didn’t think I could have heard him or wasn’t thinking about my overdeveloped hearing right then. Besides, I was feeling the same way, so there was nothing amiss between us. We finished putting everything away, and Otis went to get the lay of our house and find his way around while I went to one of our studies and looked for a tutor. I talked with Why and Daran on the way, having bumped into them, and as it turned out, Daran knew someone who might be perfect. I called up Alexi Domitrivich, introduced myself, explained the situation, and waited for his response.

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“Fuck me,” he gasped when I was done. “I didn’t even know there were real sex slaves in the world today. That’s horrible.” “Yes, it’s something that needs to be stopped, I agree. My boyfriend is very resilient though and is moving past it. Right now we decided to work on his education while he tries to deprogram himself, but if he needs to talk to someone, I’ll get a professional for him.” “You’re a good man, Tom,” Alexi said gently. “I don’t know if Daran explained to you why I’m between teaching jobs, but I would love to come work for you.” “You were fired for being gay though it turned out you couldn’t prove it to be the reason.” “Yes, that is the short version,” he replied slowly. “But they couldn’t prove any other reason for me to be dismissed as well.” “I wouldn’t have called if I thought there was something amiss in your past, Alexi. We’ve all gotten shit about being gay, and it can’t always be handled as is fair. Daran vouches for you, and that’s all I need. Tell me what Otis should have to be ready and when you can start.” “I won’t know until I meet with him other than pencil and paper.” He chuckled. “I do like how you don’t beat around the bush. It’s refreshing in a world where people seem to have lost the art of being blunt and spitting things out.” “Yeah, you and Otis will get along just fine,” I said with a smile. “So when can you start.” “Tomorrow morning? Nine if that works for you?” “Fantastic.” We said our good-byes, and I practically skipped off to find my mate…only to find him cleaning the kitchen. “Otis?” “I’m almost done,” he called out with his head in the oven. “I’m so sorry,” Justice whispered as he and Cave rushed over to me. “I think I broke him.” “Tell me what happened?” I growled, and Cave pushed his mate behind him.

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“We were trying to talk to him, make him feel more comfortable with everyone.” Justice explained as his eyes filled up with tears. “I didn’t want to bring up the whole slave thing, so we were asking him about being a real English butler. When he was telling us about it, I said, ‘It would be so cool to have my own servant.’ And his eyes went wide, and he started cleaning. I didn’t mean him. I just meant—” “I know,” I sighed and patted his arm once Cave moved aside. “You don’t have a mean bone in your body, Justice. He’s just having a hard time undoing all the years of training and pain. Thank you for trying.” “What can I do to help?” Justice looked so forlorn as if his puppy had been run over. “I don’t know,” I answered, shaking my head. “I’m winging it here.” Otis stopped cleaning the oven, and I rushed over to him. “You don’t have to do that.” “You said I was to contribute to the household, and Master Justice said he wanted a servant.” Otis looked confused and scared, so I swallowed my anger. It wasn’t directed at him anyways. “No one is your master in this house, baby,” I said gently. “And you don’t have to do anything in this house. You could sit around eating bonbons all day if it makes you happy. I suggested you might want to contribute so you’d feel part of the family. Everyone in a family pitches in, but none of us clean.” “Then how was your oven so perfect?” “Because we never use it,” Cave answered with a snicker. “And we can do this.” He waved his hand, using his magic, and suddenly the countertops were all spotless. “Justice didn’t mean for you to be our servant. We’re all equals here. He simply meant it would be cool to have a real English butler. We don’t want you for the position, my friend.” “Friend? I have never had friends,” Otis whispered and started shaking.

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“You do now,” Justice said, a big smile on his face. “A whole houseful of them. I was kinda messed up when I came here and met Cave. Everyone here is really nice and will help you feel that this is your home. I’m sorry I upset you.” “It is not your fault,” my mate replied as he composed himself. “I cannot change the way I was overnight.” There was an awkward pause where no one seemed to know what the right thing to say would be, so we all said nothing. Finally Justice was the one to talk. “Want to play Xbox?” he blurted out. “I do not know what that is,” Otis answered with a smile as he put away the cleaning supplies. We had cleaning supplies? Live and learn. “It’s video games.” Justice was almost bouncing around like a kid with a new toy to share. “And they have the Kinect where you use your body as the controller. It’s so friggin cool.” “Go on.” I chuckled when my mate looked at me. “I’m not your keeper. If you want to do something, go ahead. You’re your own master now.” I almost saw the lightbulb go off over his head at my words. I think I finally phrased what I’d been trying to say in a way he understood. He leaned in and gave me a quick kiss before following Justice out of the room. “You okay?” Cave asked me sympathetically after they left. “I will be,” I answered with a weak smile. “He’s going through a lot, but I know he’ll be okay. My mate is strong and can still see joy in life. He just needs some guidance and someone to believe in him.” “Well, he’s got seventeen someones now.” Cave gave me a quick hug and announced we needed to figure out what to do for dinner. We decided to give Otis a Chicago-style experience and ordered Lou Malnati’s. It ended up being a good choice. And while I know it was a little overwhelming for Otis to interact with everyone all at once at dinner,

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I think it helped, too. He could see firsthand how the other mated pairs interacted with each other. Maybe he would understand better that we were equals and love was the only thing I wanted from him. Well, and hot sex. I liked the hot sex we had, but it wasn’t something he had to do…I just hoped he always wanted to. **** Alexi showed up at quarter to nine the next morning with a wide smile on his face. He was very handsome, and I started to rethink my decision to allow a gay man near my mate. Not that his sexuality had anything to do with his job performance, but I was possessive enough to not want anyone near Otis that might poach. “We’re going to start easy today,” Alexi informed me, breaking me out of my thoughts. “I figure some light reading, letters, and basic math to gauge where he’s at.” Otis nodded enthusiastically, and I led them to the library so they could have enough quiet to concentrate. And as I decided at the last minute, not enough seclusion for anything to happen. I wanted to make sure I could check on them and not interrupt. “He’s gorgeous,” Chiquita purred as I left my mate and his new tutor alone. He’d been standing in the doorway eyeing Mr. Hotness up and down like Sunday brunch. “Good, you take him and keep him away from my mate!” I grumbled and stormed off. My friend was right behind me as I headed towards the game room. I suddenly had an urge to play shooting games and kill people. I wonder why… “Come on, Flower,” Chiquita said with a disapproving tone. “Otis would never cheat on you! He sticks to your side like glue and hasn’t even looked at any of us since that first night.” “Yeah, which was like a whole three days ago,” I snapped and grabbed a controller. I plopped down at my gaming station and booted everything up. I loved that everything was wireless now. Nothing

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worse than having to get back up to turn shit on when I’d already sat down in a pout. “Whatever,” he exclaimed and threw his hands in the air. “You want to throw a hissy fit because the teacher’s hot, then be my guest. But you’re not giving your mate enough credit. A mate that looks at you as if you hang the moon and stars every night. A mate I’d kill to have.” I knew how that last part sounded, though I knew what my friend had meant. He didn’t want Otis. Chiquita wanted his mate as we’d all longed to find that other half of our soul. He stomped off, leaving me to my games and thoughts. He was right. I was being a big fat baby and not being very logical. Otis would never betray me. I couldn’t help that I didn’t want anyone good-looking around my mate to tempt him…ever. Several hours later, they were done and found me still playing my game. I immediately shut everything off and practically attacked my mate in a toe-curling kiss. “What was that for?” He panted as I let him go. “Will I always get such treatment after my studies?” “If you want,” I purred and rubbed up against him. “I just missed you.” Then I turned to Alexi who was trying to hide a smirk. “How did it go?” “Very well,” he answered and gave Otis a fond but appropriate look. “He’s reading at a seventh-grade level and needs a little work on his writing. His math skills will be our biggest challenge, but he’s smart, so I’m not worried. How often would you like us to meet?” “That’s up to Otis,” I replied, glancing up at my mate. “Would it be too overwhelming to have a set school schedule?” “No.” He gave me a bright smile and kissed the tip of my nose. “I would very much like to keep on learning and get one of these GEDs Alexi talked of. He did also bring up the point of my citizenship. How do I become a legal American citizen?”

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“We’ll have Daran look into that,” I answered before turning back to Alexi. “Would mornings be alright with you? Maybe four hours a day and then he can break for lunch before working on whatever homework you assign him?” “I think that would be best to start off with.” Now that we were in agreement, I showed Alexi the door and got down to what I really wanted to focus on. My mate. “Where are we going?” Otis asked with a sparkle in his green eyes as I dragged him up the stairs. “I need to fully reward you.” He laughed at my antics until we got to our room and closed the door behind us. He took a few steps back as I stalked towards him and pushed him onto the bed. “Get naked.” “Yes, Flower,” he said as he shivered at the order. We stripped faster than I would have thought possible, clothes flying everywhere. Then I dove right in. I pushed his knees to his chest and attacked his sweet hole with my tongue. Otis cried out in pleasure and grabbed his legs. I ran my hands up his thighs as I licked his tight starburst. “Do you want to be mine always?” I growled and then sucked on his sac. “Yes,” he gasped as his body shook. “Make me yours, Flower. I want you to own me.” “What?” I froze at his words and sat up so I could see his face. “I thought we discussed—” “Not own me as a slave,” Otis whispered as his cheeks heated up. “I mean I want you to own my heart. I want us to belong to each other.” “Oh,” I replied, and then a wide smile broke out over my face. “I’d like that. You’d own me just as much as I did you.” He nodded rapidly, and I felt my heart warm at his enthusiasm. I could own him if he owned me. It might not be the choice of words I’d use, but the sentiment was the same. I went back to licking and teasing his hole open.

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“No one has ever done that to me,” he blubbered and pulled his knees tighter to his chest. “It feels magnificent, Flower. You make me feel so loved.” “You are loved,” I said firmly, making sure he met my gaze. Otis smiled as his eyes glazed over with tears and emotions. I didn’t want that right then though. I wanted him to enjoy the pleasure I gave him. I kept licking and nibbling his wrinkled, pink flesh as I made a bottle of lube appear in my hand. I slicked up my fingers and pushed one in alongside my tongue. Mmm, cherry flavored. I realized his body was responding, but my mate was quiet. “Do you not like?” I asked as I kept fingering him, sliding in a second to open him up. “I love it,” he panted, and then drew his eyebrows together. “Why would you think I did not?” “You’re so quiet.” As I said it the pieces fell into place, and I wasn’t surprised by his response. “I was not allowed to make a sound even if I enjoyed what was happening to me,” he replied sheepishly. “I’m not used to letting go.” I rubbed my fingers over his prostate even as I slid in a third one. His mouth dropped open, and I knew he wanted to be vocal. “Let me hear you, baby. I want to hear how much I please you.” “Flower,” he cried out and as his back arched. I must have said the right thing because his cock exploded, spraying white streams of cum all over his stomach. I hadn’t even touched his dick. “Beautiful,” I purred and kept stretching him even as his muscles clamped down on my hand. He rode his orgasm with abandon. I wondered as I stared at him if he would always be like this. Would he get used to having orgasms and start curbing his response? I didn’t know, but I sure as fuck hoped not because watching him was the most amazing thing. When he was spent, I pulled my fingers out of his hole and crawled up next to him. I pulled him against me, smiling as he gasped for air and immediately molded to my body. Once we were settled

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under the sheets, I lay there with him, simply listening to his heart beat and running my fingers through his chestnut-colored hair. “What about you?” he asked hesitantly as he stroked my chest. “This was all about you, baby,” I whispered into his hair. “Watching you experience bliss like that is more than enough to make me happy.” “But I want you inside of me.” “After we take a quick nap, I promise to ravage you.” “Sounds good,” he said with a yawn.

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Chapter 5 Thanksgiving day I wasn’t very thankful for much. Otis and Alexi had been working together for a few days now, and the green-eyed monster was rearing his ugly head. It’s not like they were doing anything inappropriate, on the contrary. They were simply forming a friendship. And that hurt. But I stood there watching them talk as if they were long-lost friends and the relaxed pose of my mate as he worked on his studies with his tutor. Sure, Otis was my mate, but he wasn’t open with me like he was Alexi. And I knew nothing sexual was going on in the slightest because Chiquita had told me he was wooing the tutor. From the way my friend watched the man, I suspected they might be mates. But that was neither here nor there. I knew Otis would be faithful…He just wouldn’t open up to me. And it was driving me batshit crazy. I couldn’t force him to relax around me. Sure, we talked and the sex was great, but I still felt my mate holding a part of him back from me. A part that Alexi got, and it was pissing me off. Shouldn’t I get every piece of him as his mate? Part of me understood that Otis was still worried I’d turn into an asshole like his masters had. I simply thought I’d done enough to prove to him that I wouldn’t. But a person couldn’t help the way they felt, and I didn’t know how to change it. “Dinner’s being delivered at five,” Horse reminded me. I grunted and kept walking towards my workshop. Every year we ordered a catered feast for the holidays since none of us were going to cook one. It was normally the highlight for me since I loved to eat and the place

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we got it from always brought the most delicious dinner that was enough for days of leftovers. But today I couldn’t give a shit. My friend let me be since I’d been growly and pissy with everyone. They were staying out of my way, and I could feel the gap growing between us. And Otis. There was one with my mate, and I didn’t know how to stop it. I just couldn’t stop feeling hurt and left out. The only bright side of all of this was Otis was starting to be more independent. He was asking for what he wanted and hadn’t had any relapses. I was thrilled that he hadn’t woken up and started acting as a slave again. I got to work on my latest project after filling a few orders of specialized toys that I sold over the Internet. It was several hours later that my mate came looking for me. “Why do you hate my studying?” he asked, his face red with anger. “You have been cranky and get prickly when I mention homework, reading, Alexi, or anything to do with my studies. This was your idea, Flower.” “I know,” I whispered as I dropped the wrench in my hand. I couldn’t look at him. I pulled my knees to my chest as the tears I’d been holding back started to fall. I wasn’t going to lie to my mate and say everything was okay when it wasn’t. I just didn’t know how to tell him what I was feeling. “Tell me what is going on then,” he said gently when he saw how upset I was. Otis came over to me and knelt in front of me, wrapping his hands around mine. “Please, Flower. I feel this distance building between us, and it hurts me. I do not know how to fix it if you will not talk to me.” “Do you like Alexi more than me?” I blurted out after a moment. “What?” He gasped as his hold on my hands tightened. “I do not desire my tutor, Flower. How could you—”

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“No, I don’t mean like that,” I whispered as I shook my head. “I know you would never cheat on me, and you’re not attracted to him. I mean as a person, do you like him more than me?” “No, I barely know the man.” Otis blanched at my accusation, and it made me feel a little better. “Is that what this is about? You are jealous?” “Yes,” I admitted and buried my face in my knees. “You’re more open with him. You are so relaxed and at ease with him, and I feel as if you’re still waiting for me to turn into a big bad monster. You hold part of you back from me, but you don’t with him. How could I not be jealous?” “I would never cheat on you,” he said angrily. “You cannot doubt my loyalty.” “I don’t,” I cried as I looked up at him. “I know you’re not being unfaithful, that’s why it’s so hard to talk to you about this. I keep thinking if I give you more time, you’ll come around, but I can’t help the way I feel! It hurts me that you can be yourself around him and you’re so guarded with me. What is he doing that I’m not?” “Oh, Flower,” he whispered as he hugged me. “I understand now, and you have done nothing wrong.” “How do I fix this?” I sniffled, wondering if I was totally overreacting, but I felt like my heart was dying, so I pushed the thought aside. “It is something I need to work on.” Otis sighed and kissed my temple. “I am used to speaking at ease with other servants or employees. I see Alexi as your employee, and while I know in my mind I am not, I cannot help the way I am used to acting.” “I don’t want to be your master,” I sobbed when he brought up my worst fear. He was still worried I would use and abuse him as the men in his past did. “I want us to be equals. I want to take care of you and have you—” “I love you, Flower,” he whispered, and he might as well have shouted it for how quickly it stopped me in my tracks.

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“What?” I gasped and lifted my head up. Unfortunately, he had his head bent over mine, and I cracked the back of my skull into his nose. “Oh gods! I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean to hurt you.” “I know, my love.” Otis chuckled as he sat back on his heels and held his nose. “Do you really love me?” I hoped and prayed he really meant it. Maybe I should have been worrying I busted his nose, but I figured if he was laughing, he couldn’t have been really hurt. “I do.” He smiled and cupped my cheek with his free hand, and I felt my heart melt. “You are the most loving, caring, kind, smart, gorgeous man on the planet. I never thought I would have someone like you in my life, or that I even deserve to after the things I have done.” “You were trained to—” “No,” he whispered as tears of his own filled his eyes. “I never fought, Flower. Not once. Not when I was told what I was to become or when I was sold from one master to another. Not when they wanted to do the most despicable things to me. I never fought or tried to get away. I never thought I could or that anyone would listen. I figured if my own mother signed off on it, then there was no hope.” “Your mother?” I gasped, and he nodded. It was my turn to pull him into my arms and hug him as he cried. “It was her idea.” He shook with the admission, and I couldn’t blame him. Damn! And I thought my parents were jerks for trying to marry me off when I was gay. “One of the men who ran the school I was at was a master and owned slaves. He trained them, and I caught his eye. I guess he spoke with my mother, feeling her out on purchasing me, and without him even asking me, she said she would sell me. “She told me she never wanted me after I found out. I had been leverage over my birth father, who is a Duke. She did not get rid of me so she could hold me over his head and demand he kept her in a

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certain lifestyle. Then she shipped me off to servant school and then sold me.” “I don’t understand how that can happen when you were of age,” I said gently, finally voicing what had bothered me most. “Here in America a master-slave relationship is more like a Dom-sub one but with different rules. But both parties agree to the terms.” “I found out later that it is like that in England normally as well,” he admitted as he wiped his eyes. “I was sold to criminals who were in the business of human trafficking. At first I thought it was all legal, and I had no choice like becoming a servant.” I let that one go for now. “But then when I found out, I was twenty, I was too scared to try and do anything about it. I simply gave up and never fought any of it.” “That doesn’t mean you still weren’t a victim, Otis.” “I know, but I still should have fought. I figured if my mother was the one who sold me…” “Then why bother?” I finished for him. Otis nodded and sniffled. “I love you, and I did not mean to close part of myself off to you. I promise to work on that.” “It’s okay,” I whispered as I moved to straddle his lap. “I understand now, and I should have been more understanding.” I lifted his chin, so he had to look at me. “I love you, too.” “Yes?” He gasped, his eyes going wide. “With all my heart, Otis. I don’t care about your past beyond wanting to help you through it. You’re the most amazing man, and I’m honored to call you my mate. Will you let me claim you?” “Is that the blood exchange Justice was telling me about?” He looked a little confused but excited, so I wasn’t scared to explain. “Yes. We tie our souls together for all eternity and become one. You will become immortal like me, and we would be married in the eyes of my people then.”

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“And you could never leave me then? Not change your mind or get rid of me?” Oh fuck. Well, that also explained a lot. He still worried I might sell him. Yeah, that never crossed my mind. “No, baby. It would be an unbreakable bond. But it’s forever, so you have to be—” “Yes!” He laughed and rolled us over so he was on top of me. “Yes, I accept. Make me yours for always. I will love and cherish you as long as I shall live, Flower. I want nothing more than this to be forever.” “Me, too,” I whispered, getting choked up on my emotions. “We can do it tonight after the Thanksgiving feast if you want. Now that I know you love me, I don’t want to wait another day.” He nodded and then got serious. “I swear I do not like Alexi more than you. I still get nervous that I might upset you and that you will realize I am not worth the trouble. I believe you when you say you love me and will work on overcoming my fears.” “It’s not a switch you can flip, baby. Now that I understand, I’ll be more supportive. I’m sorry I didn’t come to you sooner about this. I thought I was overreacting and couldn’t figure out how to talk to you about it.” “It is in the past now,” he said with a bright smile that reached his eyes. “We love each other, and the rest we can work out.” “Amen to that.” I giggled. We rolled to our feet, and I slid my hand in his. He laughed as I pulled him along behind me. “Where are we going in such a rush, my love?” “To tell my brothers that you’re a permanent part of our family now!” “I have never had a real family,” he whispered and froze. “What do I do? How do I treat them? What do I know about family? My own mother sold me—” “Calm down, baby,” I said gently and stood on my toes to give him a quick kiss. “Our family can be whatever we want it to be. You

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know they’re not my blood family, we all chose to be a family. They’re great and easygoing guys. No stress, I swear.” “Right, right, I can do this,” he replied and then swallowed loudly. Otis took a few deep breaths and then nodded he was ready. I gave him a bright smile to try and calm his nerves. It seemed to work because the worry lines on his face melted before my eyes. We walked hand in hand into the kitchen as everyone was opening containers and getting out plates for dinner. Holy shit! I stood there with my mouth open as I took in the amount of food we had covering every single countertop. “We have more mouths to feed than normal,” Horse said when he saw my reaction. “Well yeah, but this could feed most of Chicago,” I replied with a snicker. “How much did you get?” “Three full hams, two twenty-five-pound turkeys, two shrimp platters, and double all the appetizers and sides we normally get plus desserts from Deerfield’s Bakery.” “I’m going to get so fat.” Justice giggled as he loaded up his plate. He turned and rubbed his ass against his mate. “Are you ready for some more junk in this trunk?” “I’ve got ways that you’re going to work off the calories,” Cave growled and nipped his mate’s arm. “Eat up. You’re going to need the fuel.” He swatted Justice’s ass hard, enough to make the man jump. “Horny little elf,” he grumbled as he rubbed his tender derriere. But the lust shining in his eyes took the sting off the words. “Damn right.” Cave gave a satisfied nod that he had gotten his point across and went back to uncovering food. “We have an announcement,” I said loudly so everyone could hear. They all quieted down and focused on us. I could feel the nerves vibrating off my mate, and I didn’t want that. I raised our joined hands to my lips and kissed his. “Otis has agreed to be my mate and let me claim him tonight.”

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“That’s fantastic!” Horse screeched and raced over to us, forgetting he had a tub of mashed potatoes in his hands until he went to hug me. Thankfully the lid had still been on. He quickly set it back down and practically leaped on us for a hug. “Oh, brother, I’m so happy for you both.” “Really?” Otis asked, his mouth hanging open in shock. “You are happy Flower is mated to someone like me?” “Do you love my brother?” Cave threw right back with a raised brow as everyone else smiled or snickered. “Of course I do.” Otis looked affronted that they would even question his love. I waited for him to catch on. He was smart enough to get it. “Then that’s all we want for him,” Horse explained gently. I saw realization dawn on my mate’s face. He got it! “The rest is between the two of you, and if he’s happy, then that’s all that matters. We’re not ones to judge or try and rate the value of a person. That’s not who we are.” “Thank you,” Otis whispered in relief. I didn’t even know he was worried that my brothers would object. See, this was why I liked to listen in on people’s thoughts. It was so much easier on me, and there weren’t any surprises then! “Now, let’s eat and celebrate all of our good fortune this year.” Horse slapped Otis on the shoulder and led him over to where the buffet line started. Bren, Shely, and Daran were busy opening wine and getting glasses since all the elves already knew how to set up the food. It was our house after all. I stood back for a few moments, simply taking in the sight. Everyone was laughing, playing around, and happier than we’d ever been in years past. I glanced over to Bren, the man who really started all of this. I was filled with such love for my brother-in-law, I couldn’t help what I did next even if I wanted to. I put down my plate and practically tackled him. “What’s this for?” he asked, sounding completely confused.

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“You were the first mate found and you accepted my brother. You sucked up the fact you knew nothing of our world and moved into a house with twelve elves. It was as if fate bringing you and Horse together started it all, and now we’re all finding our mates.” “And you made it easier for the other mates to accept us,” Cave said and joined our group hug. “Bren made my decision to trust you guys stress-free. He was like the first lemming we could follow, and it wasn’t as scary to jump off the cliff,” Justice agreed from the other side of the counter. “Interesting analogy.” Idiot snickered and hugged us as well. The rest of who had mates joined us as well. “Umm, you’re all welcome,” Bren said uncomfortably. We all laughed and let him go, getting back to the task at hand. It was a simple moment, and like the men we were, we handled it like dorks. Ten minutes later, we were all seated with drinks and full plates, stuffing our faces. Horse stood up and clinked his glass with his knife to get everyone’s attention. While we all looked at him, I don’t think anyone stopped eating. “For gods’ sakes, people, you act like you don’t get fed ever,” he grumbled and rolled his eyes. “Put down the damn food until we have the toast.” “Fine.” Several people bitched as forks dropped around the table. “Thank you.” He snickered. “Now every year I always give the toast as the oldest.” He turned and looked at Shadow. “And while our brother has decided to keep deferring decisions to me even though he’s fucking ancient compared to me, I feel the toast should be his now. Shadow?” “Seriously?” Shadow’s jaw just about hit the ground. “You want words of wisdom and a blessing from me? Have you finally lost your brain through your cock fucking Bren?” “Yeah, he might not be the best choice,” I said with a snort at his crass words. “But he is the old fart in the room.”

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Shadow glanced around for a moment and sighed in defeat when he saw we were all in agreement. He stood up, raising his glass as Horse sat back down. He took a deep breath and seemed to collect himself as he thought about what to say. “My life was shit before I met you all.” Charming. “Things got better after I met Maze and we watched each other’s backs. I know we, me more than him, keep to ourselves, but it was never about you guys. And now you know why. We didn’t want to involve you in the fight that we’ve taken up. For me it’s been centuries that I’ve been fighting vampires and maybe one day I can finally tell you why, but for now, let’s leave it at that.” My brother took a shaky breath, and I realized how hard this really was for him. “I’ve never been so proud of the people I love in this room as I was the moment we went after Daran. Maybe this isn’t appropriate for a Thanksgiving toast, but it was that single moment that spoke volumes about the men in this family. Not one of you, our mates included, even flinched or hesitated about jumping right in. “And yes, we’re immortal, but how do we know that?” He held up a hand to silence us. “None of us have ever tested that whole we can survive an explosion thing. There is always that little doubt in the back of our minds that something could go wrong and we could still die. I felt it when we went to help Bren catch that psycho douche bag. It was a split second where we all worried if we’d come out on the other side alive even though we are immortal. “Because we’ve never tried to see if we’d really survive anything. But still, even with that slight fear and even after I told you that a vamp could suck the magic from us, no one backed down. That is what a family is and what we have built here. And that is my point. We are blessed beyond words to have found that. I never doubt that each of you love me, have my back, and always wish the best for me.” He glanced at all the human mates for a moment. “And now our family has grown, for the better. Half of us have found our mates, and I know I speak for the ones of us still single that it has given us hope

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of finding our own mates. You are wonderful men who I am proud to call my brothers. We have allies in the werewolf pack and now the mob boss Mickey who is an honorable criminal, which I always thought was an oxymoron. “We are financially secure, live a good life, and love each other. It doesn’t get any fucking better than that.” “Hear, hear!” I called out, and I wasn’t the only one. “So I toast our family and look forward to another year together and all it may bring.” Shadow drank from his glass as the rest of us followed his lead. It was only then I realized Otis was shaking next to me. “Seriously? Vampires? Werewolves? Mob bosses? I could deal with elves, but vampires drink blood—” And then he fainted. I caught him just in time before he landed face-first in his food. “Shit.” Shadow swore and raced around the table to us. “So, I guess you didn’t tell him all of this yet?” “Nope, we’ve been a little busy dealing with his past.” I sighed and glanced around the table. Everyone was trying not to laugh as I held my passed-out mate. “At least he’s not the first to faint.” Horse snickered and we all burst out laughing then. It might have seemed cold to crack jokes while my mate was passed out, but it wasn’t like he was hurt. “I’m okay,” Otis groaned as he came back around. “Yeah you are,” I said, trying to quell my laughing. “We’re just fine, baby. I’ll fill you in later when you’re ready.” “Much, much later.” He gave me a wink, and I knew he would deal with his new and expanded world just fine. We all went back to our feast and stuffed our faces while laughing and joking. Benjii ended up providing the entertainment as he made a turkey walk across the counter like a puppet. It was all in good fun, with good people, and I was glad I’d finally found my mate to share it with. And he even loved me. Life didn’t get any better than that!

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Chapter 6 After dinner, I could feel the tension coming off my mate in waves. While everyone else started cleaning up, I led Otis into the play room, where we could get a few minutes alone. He looked even more nervous as his eyes darted around the room. He’d been in there before, but it was the first night we met with my other friends. Maybe this wasn’t the place to have the claiming ceremony. “Talk to me, baby,” I said gently as I ran my hands up and down his arms. “What’s going on in that sexy head of yours? Do you want to wait? We don’t have to do this tonight. We can take all the time you need, Otis.” “I am not a fan of blood,” he blurted out. Well, that wasn’t one I’d been ready for. Of all the possible responses I was mentally prepping myself to handle…that wasn’t one of them. And it confused me slightly as well. “You like when I bite you though.” “Yes, but you said it was a blood exchange, and I do not mean to upset you. The idea of ingesting your blood is making me queasy.” He did look a little green around the gills. “Oh, sweetie,” I sighed with relief and hugged him to me. “I promise you my blood won’t taste like icky, coppery blood. It will be more like a thick, sweet wine you’ll love.” “It’s true,” Bren said from behind us. We turned to look at him and realized we weren’t alone. Everyone was there. “Horse tasted like cherry syrup. Not something I’d want all the time or crave, but it wasn’t scary.” “Cherry syrup,” Otis parroted back. “I can do cherry syrup.”

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“So you’re okay with this?” I asked hesitantly. “Yes, let us be bonded.” I stood on my toes and brushed his mouth with mine. “All you have to do is repeat what Horse says and drink from me when the time is right.” “I am ready.” And with that, I led him over to one of the comfy tables that had padding. We needed witnesses for what we were about to do, but given Otis’s past, I didn’t want to make it too kinky or restrain him. We slowly undressed each other, ignoring everyone watching and reveling in the moment. When we were naked, I gently laid him down and stretched him magically. “I love you, Flower.” “I love you, too, baby.” I moved between his legs and slowly worked my leaking cock inside of him. We’d long since had the conversation about condoms and that we didn’t need them. I let my fangs pop out and sank them in his neck once I bottomed out inside of him. Otis moaned and wrapped his legs around my hips as I drank. “I, Otis Connor, give you my very life essence and blood freely,” Horse said, and Otis repeated it back with a groan. “My life, my heart, and my soul now belong to you and have never been claimed before. I swear on my life that there will never be any other for me and you will always come first. I accept you as my mate and pray to the gods that our binding be blessed so that I may live to love you forever.” I lifted my head and roared out my release as my orgasm sideswiped me with the force of a freight train when he spoke the last word. I filled him with more seed than I thought possible for one person to have in their body. I moaned as I felt it leak back out of him and drip down our legs. Fuck me sideways! I could no longer move as I flopped down on top of him. I magically cut my neck and adjusted my height so he could reach me.

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“Drink, my mate,” I whimpered, wanting to feel his mouth on my neck. Otis didn’t hesitate. He put his lips to the wound, and I felt an instant renewed vigor with the first sip he took. Holy shit, holy shit, holy shit! It was like drinking twenty Red Bulls. I started thrusting gently into him as I spoke. “I, Flower, give you my very life essence and blood freely. “My life, my heart, and my soul now belong to you and have never been claimed before.” He moaned and held me tighter as I changed the angle of my thrusts and nailed his prostate. “I swear on my life that there will never be any other for me and you will always come first. I accept you as my mate and pray to the gods that our binding be blessed so that I may live to love you forever.” The second I was done, we both screamed as we came, me for the second time. Not that I would call what happened a climax. It was like a week’s worth of them combined with dessert and my favorite drink. Otis pulled my head to his and kissed me with every ounce of passion he had, and I did the same. I felt my soul leave my body and swirl into his as Otis’s soul did the same to my body. They circled in and out of us until our heartbeats regulated together and we finished climaxing. Then when they settled, it was like a magical explosion. Lights of energy flowed out of us, and I almost giggled when I saw sparkles fill the room. Who would have thought magic would really be sparkly? I felt raw power blast out from us in a whirlwind, and several of my friends cried out. I remembered how the insta-orgasm felt when I’d been at other claiming ceremonies. It was like a great peak combined with sticking my finger in the electrical socket. We were still shaking from the force of it all and our overrun emotions when Horse tapped us. “Blink twice if you’re still alive, Otis.” My mate chuckled, and I could feel how delighted he was as he held me tight. “I’d say he’s good to go.”

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“Oh, he’s good alright,” I purred as I licked his nipple. “I’ve found heaven in a gorgeous package with a big cock and tight ass.” “Sweet talker,” Otis mumbled. “Are we allowed to be alone now?” “Of course.” I gave a quick wave to everyone, not even looking at them as I teleported us to our bathroom. We landed on our feet, so I was no longer inside of him, and I used my magic to prepare a warm bubble bath. He helped me in and then sat down behind me, pulling me back against his chest. “I am so fucking happy,” he whispered against my neck. I wrapped my arms over his and held on to him. “Thank you for wanting me, Flower.” “Thank you for the same. And thank you for being so amazing that I praise the gods every day for the gift they have given me in you.” “I cannot believe you feel that way about someone as messed up as I am.” “You are not messed up,” I growled and turned in his arms, straddling his lap. “You’ve been dealt a shit hand in life, and now I’m going to spend the rest of our days making you happy beyond your wildest dreams. None of what happened was your fault, and you’re incredibly strong to have survived it. I don’t think I could have, Otis.” “You would have beaten them all within an inch of their lives for even trying.” I thought about that for a moment, not wanting to just deny it and lie to him. “True, but I’m able to do things you aren’t.” “No, but I do not want to talk about this anymore,” he said firmly as he gave me a shy smile. “This is our honeymoon in a way, and I want to enjoy it.” “What did you have in mind?” I asked as I wiggled my eyebrows at him. I reached down between us and started stroking his hard dick. “What does my sexy mate want?”

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“More of that,” he gasped and then moaned as I picked up the pace. Otis lay back against the tub like a wet noodle as he spread his legs for me. “I never thought I would be able to get hard ever again, much less have an orgasm. Now I cannot seem to ever stop having them and have the recoup time of a teenage boy.” “Elves are always horny and hard. I can fuck you all night long and still walk around with a boner. And now that you’re officially mated to me, you’ll be the same way. I swear there are days that Horse and Bren do nothing but fuck in the play room.” “Sounds like we have a challenge from them to beat.” He thrust up into my hand as I moved off of his lap and fingered his hole. “Sweet mother of mercy, Flower. The way you touch me is always as if you know exactly what I need and when.” “I’m your mate,” I purred as I licked his hard nipple. “It’s ingrained in me to know exactly what you need always and to give it to you.” “What do I need right now?” He panted. “Tell me what I want.” “You want to come and then have me take you again and fill you up with my seed as only your mate can do.” “Yes!” He cried out, arching his back as his cock exploded. “Flower, I love you.” “I know, baby,” I cooed as I watched stream after stream of his cum shoot up out of the water with the force of his climax. “I love you, too.” My fangs came out, and I was hard as a rock watching him. The second he was finished, I had us out of the tub with Otis on his hands and knees. “Say yes.” “Yes, yes, fuck me!” he begged as he lowered his shoulders to the ground. I rubbed my hands over his firm ass and plunged my cock into his tight hole. We both moaned at the sensations we felt, mine mostly because his ass was still pulsing from his orgasm and massaging my dick in a blissful way. “Amazing,” I gasped as I pulled back out before slamming right back in.

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“Harder. I want it harder,” Otis shouted, and I almost fell over in shock. My mate had started making noises of pleasure during sex, but he had yet to be really vocal in any way. “Please, Flower! Fuck me harder.” “Yes, my mate,” I growled and took him with everything I had. “Tell me what you want.” “Shove that fat cock in my ass and stretch me wide.” Oh fuck! I must have unleashed the beast in him somehow. I was thrilled we’d made progress and intrigued to see how he would be now during sex. “Come for me.” I grunted as I fucked him faster and harder than any human could. I reached down beneath him and stroked him. “I just came again,” he cried out. “Show me you love this!” “I do. I want this.” “Then come for me,” I cooed before sinking my fangs into his neck. Otis screamed as his orgasm rode him and shot his load all over the floor and my hand. I followed him right over, moaning against his flesh as I drank down his sweet blood. I flooded his passage with my essence, gasping at the bond I felt between us. Gods, I loved this man. “Fuck,” he groaned as he slumped to the floor, taking me with him. “Yeah,” I mumbled and tried to not crush him. Hey, I may be much smaller than him, but any additional weight when flopping to the ground was too much. I pulled out of him and rolled to the side. The second I saw how gorgeously debauched he looked, mouth hanging open, panting, with a happily sated expression on his face, I knew one thing. “I need more.” “Yes, fuck me again,” he begged. “I cannot get enough.” “So vocal suddenly,” I purred as I licked his neck. “I fucking love it.” “You do?” He shivered and rolled onto his back to give me better access.

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“I really, really do, baby. Can I ask why now? I mean, what brought this on?” “I am not frightened anymore,” Otis admitted quietly. I sat up and moved in between his legs so I could see him fully. I raised an eyebrow as if to say explain that. “I was still scared that you would change your mind and get rid of me if I did not please you perfectly. I worried that I should not be too loud, or speak, or come too quickly. Now though, I know I can just do as I feel and it will be okay with you.” “Of course it will,” I said gently as I leaned over his body to give him a quick kiss. “You can be any way you want during sex as long as I know you’re enjoying it. And come as fast and often as you want. I promise to make it good for you.” “You always do,” he replied and cupped my cheek tenderly. “So you like my dirty talk.” As if answering for itself, my hardening dick twitched against his groin and started leaking. “That would be a yes.” Otis snickered as I nodded. “Then fuck me so hard I feel you into next week.” “Okay,” I squeaked when I saw the intense, lustful look he was giving me. I went to enter him, and he held up a hand. “What’s wrong?” “Have I ever told you how flexible I am?” he asked as I shook my head. I wasn’t able to make my mouth work right then since my brain was overloading with images of what he could do at his suggestion. Otis got up and moved into the bedroom, and I followed after him like a dog in heat. “I had a master that wanted a harem of gymnasts,” he said as he slid into the splits. Ouchie! He got back on his feet, leaned down, and palmed his hands next to his feet without even bending his knees. Yum! “But it makes for interesting bed play. Do you not agree?” “Yes, yes I do,” I panted as I moved closer. “What did you have in mind?”

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“Something I have always wanted to try.” Before I could ask what he meant, he went into a backbend with one leg straight up in the air. “This.” “You want me to fuck you with only one foot on the ground?” While the idea gave me an erection hard as nails that might last for weeks, it didn’t seem feasible. “How will that work?” Even as I asked, I was already moving into position, running my fingers over his weeping hole. “Fuck, you’re gorgeous.” “You are strong enough to support me and catch me if I start to fall,” Otis said with a moan as I kept teasing his ass. “Please fuck me, Flower. I have always wanted to try this with someone I wanted to be with. Give me the cock I crave so much.” “Anything my hot, crazy flexible mate wants,” I mumbled as I lined up my dick and slid it back into him. I went slowly since I didn’t want to jar his position, but he didn’t even flinch. I tested the waters and did it a little harder this time, but to my mate’s delight. “Yes!” He screamed as his cock started bouncing around when I picked up the pace. “You nail my prostate with every movement you make. Fill me up to the brink, my love.” I wasn’t sure if that meant with my seed or just the size of my dick. But when his limbs started to shake and I knew he’d fall, I adjusted my height and flipped him up. “Well, hello there, large man.” Otis snickered. “We will have to be quick because the man of my dreams rarely leaves my side.” Just for that, I made my dick grow along with my new body. “Such a big man.” “And all yours,” I purred as I walked three steps and pushed him up against the wall. “Gonna make you scream.” “Yes,” he gasped as I thrust up into him as hard as I could. He threw his arms and legs around me and held on for the ride. “You are too big to not have some burn. I love the burn!” “Good to know,” I grunted and thrust faster. “I love your kinky streak.”

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“Me, too,” he panted and smiled at me. “Who knew I had one?” “You just needed to feel safe enough to express it.” He nodded as I slammed my cock into his stretched, but still tight, hole. I was taking him at such a punishing rate, he couldn’t suck in enough air to speak right then. Good, I was doing my job right. His whole body shook violently to the point I would have been worried if I didn’t see the blissful look on his face. Otis came, filling the space between us with his seed, and the moment I scented his essence, my orgasm slammed into me. I cried out his name, burying my face in his neck as I shook from the intensity of my own peak. We both slid to the floor, little aftershocks running through our bodies. And then proceeded to flop onto our sides as I returned to my normal height of five-six. “Can you do that magic thing? Please, clean us up and put us to bed,” Otis mumbled against my shoulder. “I cannot move or feel my appendages.” “Is that your way of complimenting my lovemaking talents?” I asked with a chuckle. “Yes, my love. You rode me hard, and I do not want to be put up wet.” I laughed so hard at that I had to grab my sides. I did as he asked, snuggling up against him once we were freshly clean and under the covers. I yawned and thought I should tell him that I loved him but fell asleep before I could form the words. The man wore me out!

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Chapter 7 The next day I walked into my own personal hell when I went to check on Otis in the library during his studies. I wasn’t trying to snoop or eavesdrop. I’d been passing by and thought I’d just give my mate a kiss of encouragement since he’d been working so hard. I swear that was it. “Are you sure this is what you want, Otis?” Alexi asked quietly as he rubbed my mate’s back. “I’m not saying Tom and his brothers don’t seem to be good guys, but…” “But what?” my mate asked with a raised brow. “I was a victim for so long that I would not know a healthy relationship if it was dropped on my head? Tom treats me like a prince, and I am in love with him—” “How can you know that so soon?” Alexi interrupted and threw his hands in the air in exasperation. “Seriously, Otis, you’re worrying me that something is going on—” “Enough,” I snarled and stormed over to them. I leaned across the table and stuck my finger in Alexi’s shocked face. “I bring you into my home to help my husband, and you’re trying to turn him against me? Are you out of your fucking mind? I could end you without a single thought—” “Leave him be, Tom,” Chiquita said firmly from my left. “I’m not going to hurt the human. Much,” I replied with an evil grin. “I’ve done nothing to Otis besides love him and give him options. I’ve not forced him into my bed. I offered him a guest room and anything he needed to make his transition easier.” I raised my hand to gesture to his books and the fact I was paying to help my

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mate’s education. Chiquita must have thought I was raising it to smack the tutor. Not that the thought had crossed my mind or anything. I had wanted to bitch slap the guy…not the same thing. “What the fuck, man?” I growled as my friend punched me in the face before tackling me to the ground. “He’s trying to take away my mate.” “He is not!” my friend threw right back as I twisted my leg up around his midsection and rolled us over. Then I landed two good shots on him before he was able to dislodge me. We were back on our feet, but the fight was far from over. “Then what was that shit about him thinking something was going on here? Huh? Obviously I walked into the middle of this conversation. Gods only know what else he’s said!” I blocked a right jab and an attempt to sweep my feet out from under me before landing a roundhouse kick in his face. “And why are you fighting me? Mates come first! He thinks your brother is doing something to my mate. And you side with him?” Even as I said it, my heart broke. Never in a million years would I have thought that any of my friends, my brothers, wouldn’t have my back. The thought startled me for a moment, and he got in a nice right hook to my nose. Ouch! Yeah, that was broken now. Fun times. “You’re overreacting,” he said as he dodged my next kick. “And my mate wasn’t trying to steal anyone. He was looking out for someone he considers a friend.” Unfortunately, that last part hadn’t registered in time for me to stop the kick upside his head over his ear. Chiquita went down like a ton of bricks, and I froze, staring at him with my mouth open. And then chaos broke out around us. “What?” I gasped as Horse and Cave came racing into the library with their mates. “Stop this! It is all my fault,” Otis exclaimed as Alexi raced to Chiquita.

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“You could have killed him,” the tutor accused me. “What the fuck, Flower?” Horse roared as he pushed in between us, not that I had moved to make any more aggressive moves. “Flower?” Alexi asked. “Are you okay, Sam?” “Yeah,” Chiquita groaned. “I need whiskey,” I mumbled and turned to leave. “Oh, no you don’t,” Cave said, blocking my escape. I snarled in his face, and my friend let me pass out of pure shock. Of all of us, I was one of the least aggressive in the group, and in a family of laidback elves…that said a lot. I tinkered in my workshop and didn’t bother anyone, never started trouble. So when I nonverbally threatened to knock Cave on his ass, surprise would be a reasonable reaction. “Flower, wait,” Otis whispered, and I could hear the tears he’d shed in his tone. I took a deep breath, made the whiskey I wanted appear in my hand, and turned to face him. “I am not saying Alexi handled it well, but you have to admit he had honorable intentions. He simply wanted to make sure that I was not in the same situation as before.” “And that’s exactly how I would play it if I wanted you for myself and to steal you from who you were currently with,” I said and took several deep chugs of the whiskey. “I’m not saying that’s what he was doing now that I know he’s Chiquita’s mate, but it fucking looked like it when I walked in here.” “What are you—Chiquita’s mate?” Horse asked, trying to figure this all out. He turned to our friend then. “When did you find out? Who started this fight?” “He did,” we both answered. I stared at my friend with wide eyes. He wasn’t a liar. “He was going to hit my mate.” “The fuck I was,” I growled and took a step closer. “I was pissed and pointing in his face while I was shouting. I went to gesture to the books and the fact that Alexi was here helping Otis as proof that I had my mate’s best interest at heart and Chiquita punched me!”

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“Oh.” “Yeah, oh,” I mimicked. “You couldn’t have given me the benefit of the fucking doubt? Have I ever raised a hand to anyone first in all the years you’ve known me?” “No.” Chiquita was starting to look properly chastised, but I wasn’t done. “Ever seen me yell first or start a fight?” “No.” “Have I ever been in a fight unless it was to back one of you up?” “No.” “Then what the fuck, Chiquita?” I roared. “He’s my mate,” my friend whispered. And just like that, all my anger slipped away. Those three words and I knew exactly what he meant. I’d do anything to protect Otis even if it meant hitting a potential threat that was family. “I wouldn’t have hit him, but you know I had reason to be upset.” “Yes, but you were taking it in a way it wasn’t meant,” Alexi replied for Chiquita. “I don’t want Otis, but he’s my student and now my friend. I would never, ever forgive myself if he was being abused again, and I didn’t at least question that he was happy here and didn’t need help.” “It is my fault Flower is so jealous,” Otis said quietly. We all turned to him then, and he was glancing between Alexi and me with tears in his eyes. “I have spent years treating the men I have been intimate with as my master. It has been hard breaking that habit, but I see Alexi as being employed by Flower and as my equal. As such, I was more relaxed around you, and Flower saw that.” “I worried I was doing something wrong that he couldn’t open up that side of him to me.” I scrubbed my free hand over my face in frustration. “We talked about it yesterday, and today I walk in and I see you pushing him to admit I’m abusing him or something. I flipped, and I’m sorry I overreacted.” I glanced over to Chiquita,

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lying in his mate’s arms. “When did you realize it?” It meaning that Alexi was his mate. “Moments before you walked in and Alexi got a paper cut on his finger. I smelled his blood and my fangs came out. This wasn’t exactly how I wanted to tell him.” Chiquita looked as frustrated as I felt. “F–Fangs? Y–You all are not h–human?” Alexi stuttered right before his eyes rolled up in his head and he passed out. Well, fuck me sideways. What a clusterfuck this was now. “My mate is done for the day,” Chiquita informed us before teleporting them both away. I guessed to his room to tend to his mate. Which left me standing there with five sets of eyes on me. “At least it’s never dull around here,” Justice joked when the silence ran on. “How many have fainted now? We need to start carrying smelling salts in every room.” “I told him I loved you,” Otis said hesitantly, ignoring Justice as he walked towards me. “Baby, I was never mad at you.” I met him halfway and pulled him into my arms. He let out a relieved sigh and melted into the embrace. “I’m sorry I got so upset and you had to see that.” “I am not some fragile little flower, Flower,” he said. There was a quiet pause before we all burst out laughing at the accidental pun. It took us a few minutes to calm down as we all flopped onto the sofas in the library. “I never did ask you how you ended up being named Flower.” “Elves name themselves at the age of five,” Horse explained with a snicker. “We’re baptized with magic and officially enter our world. Flower came up with it.” “Yeah, and you came up with your own name, Horse.” I stuck my tongue out at him before turning to my mate. “It’s silly, but I guess you should know the story.” I took a deep breath, and Otis instantly slid his hand into mine for support. “I was little, even for an elf when

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I was a young child. My older siblings and kids in the North Pole teased me relentlessly. So I wanted to pick a strong, masculine name.” “And you went with Flower?” I could tell Otis was trying not to laugh at the irony. “I saw a really pretty blue flower and thought since it was blue, it would a have a man’s name. I asked what it was, and my mom told me it was a flower instead of what kind of flower it was. So yeah, that was the name I picked, and it totally backfired. The teasing got worse, and it didn’t help that I ended up being gay, so as soon as I was of age, I left.” “That’s when you found your friends?” “Not all of them, but I bumped into Horse within a few months of leaving.” I smiled over at my friend with all the love I could have for a real brother. “He’d been on his own for a few decades and showed me how to survive in the human world. We were gypsies for a long time, so we didn’t get busted for not aging. We found Button about ten years after I met Horse and kinda picked up a stray here and there until we had our whole family. “Back then you couldn’t settle in one place and just change documents like we can now with technology. And now there’s, what, eight million people in Chicagoland? No one will ever notice that we will forever look like twenty-something twinks. In a couple years, we’ll get new papers, trade human names, and to the outside world, we will morph into our own heirs.” “That is fascinating and a little creepy all at the same time,” Otis said thoughtfully. “I mean, all you must have seen is amazing, but I am still trying to wrap my mind around this immortality thing. That and elves and the North Pole being real. How does it stay hidden from human detection?” “Our magic,” I answered with a chuckle. “The elves there protect the location from satellites. Someone could walk right up to it and see nothing. Santa might be in charge and the face of Christmas, but he’s mated to an elf. That’s how it all started. That’s how he’s immortal

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and can do magical things like deliver presents to every child in one night.” “How?” Justice and Otis gasped together. I could see Bren wanted to know as well. Guess no one had filled in our mates on that part yet. “Santa has a huge sleigh pulled by flying reindeer. Elves use their magic to have the reindeer fly and come with. They teleport in and out of houses to give out the presents and then ’port back for another load. That’s why there have been reports of people seeing the sleigh or Santa and then it or him vanishes into thin air.” “But he is supposed to be a saint that had miracles of his own,” Otis said, looking like a kid I’d just informed Santa wasn’t real. “He did and god is real though not in the way you think,” Horse explained, and knowing him, he didn’t like telling our mates this. It tended to burst people’s bubbles when they realized what they grew up to believe was wrong. “Your Christian god is Zeus. He’s also Jupiter of the Romans, Allah that Muslims worship, and all other religions’ head figure. There’s no wrong religion…they just call him different things.” “What about Jesus?” Bren asked after a few moments. I wasn’t surprised he was the first to comment since he was incredibly logical, being a detective and all that. “Apollo,” Cave answered. “And no, we’re not a hundred percent sure since we’ve never met any of them, but that’s what elves believe. It’s been taught that way for centuries and some of the elves have met them. Hell, my great-great-great-great-great-uncle was an apostle. The world really is too small not to all be connected.” “Okay, I think I have hit my new information limit for the day,” Otis informed us as he started rubbing his temples. “I need to take small steps as I am still adapting to being a free man.” “Of course,” I cooed and snuggled up to him. “Would you like some lunch? We’ve got leftovers for an army still.” “That sounds—” He paused, and I moved away so I could look at his face. “Where did your cuts go? Your nose was broken and—”

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“We heal faster than humans do.” I gave him a tender smile in the hopes he didn’t overload. “Glad you are not hurting,” he replied with a smile. Okay then, guess it wasn’t an issue. We all headed to the kitchen and heated up leftovers. Otis relaxed now that he knew I wasn’t mad at him. Since it was Black Friday, the biggest shopping day of the year, we decided to brave the mall and go have some fun. An hour later, I was wandering around Kohl’s department store with my mate. We had discussed redecorating our room since it hadn’t been done in ages. Plus, I wanted him to feel more like it was his bedroom and home. Maybe if he helped pick everything out, he would start to feel at ease instead of a guest in my bed. That was my current theory at least. I was putting the deep plum comforter we’d chosen into the cart when I noticed a very ugly, sweaty, fat guy staring daggers at us. “What do you think of these throw pillows?” Otis asked. I glanced back and smiled at him. I was a man who never understood the purpose of throw pillows, but they were nice, so if they made my mate happy, I’d have throw pillows. “They’re nice.” He put them in with our other items, and I glanced back to where the man had been, but he was gone. That was odd. He looked familiar, but I couldn’t quite place him. I shrugged it off. Chicago might be a large city, but that didn’t mean I couldn’t run across the same people sometimes. We finished there and then headed to Bed Bath & Beyond before we were supposed to meet up with everyone else at Best Buy. We needed some new games since the ones we had we’d all beaten, and we wanted to beef up our movie collection. I also wanted to talk Otis into getting a nice flat screen for our wall so we could watch movies in bed when we felt like it. Not dirty movies! Okay, maybe some porn, but I meant more for times we just wanted to be alone.

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Another hour and several hundred dollars later, we had everything to redecorate the bathroom and odds and ends for the bedroom. I was pushing the cart to my SUV when I saw that same creepy guy sitting in a Cadillac several spaces down. Okay, now the hairs on the back of my neck were standing up. “Let’s scratch Best Buy and go home,” I said casually to Otis. “I’m a little shopped out already. Besides, I want to see how this all looks in our room.” “You just want to test out how soft the satin sheets are,” he teased and hopped in the passenger’s seat. I didn’t deny it as I put the cart away and quickly shot my friends a text message, including Bren. “Everyone get home. Someone following Otis and me.” I slipped my phone in my pocket and got in the vehicle. I could be worrying for nothing, but the guy was too far away for me to read his mind. It would have been suspicious just to walk over to him and stare. And I didn’t want to freak Otis out. He’d been through so much, and the last thing he needed was any kind of fucking drama. But I knew I’d seen that guy somewhere! We ended up beating everyone back home and unloaded our purchases. When I heard cars pull in the driveway, I made up an excuse to go downstairs. “I want to see what they all got, too.” “Oh, good idea,” Otis said with a smile and came with me. Well shit, that backfired. Just as we got to the foyer along with all my friends and their mates, there was a knock at the front door. “This can’t be a coincidence,” I said quietly to Horse. He nodded and went with me to answer it. Sure enough, fat, sweaty, and creepy was on my front porch…with the cops, two officers from the Deerfield Police Department. Fan-fucking-tastic. “That’s him,” the guy shouted and pointed at me. “That’s the guy who kidnapped my brother!”

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“What?” Horse and I exclaimed. And that’s when it hit me, where I’d seen that guy. In Otis’s mind. This was his old master…Ohhh, he was so dead. “I didn’t kidnap anyone,” I said firmly and turned to look over my shoulder. “Bren?” My friend’s mate stepped forward. “I’m Detective Griaule. What’s the problem, officers?” “This man says that his brother, Otis Connor, was abducted from their hotel room,” the officer informed him. “What’s your relationship to all of this?” “Tom,” he said, gesturing to me, “is my partner’s brother.” “Fucking fags,” the other policeman mumbled under his breath at a level no human could have heard. Great, so it was like that. Fanfucking-tastic. “I do not have a brother,” Otis said as he joined us and then froze. “Master Alfred?” This just got better and better. This was going to traumatize him and set him back. He was shaking so violently I was worried he was going to faint. “Cut the games, Otis,” Alfred growled. “You’ve caused enough trouble. Why didn’t you fight this little guy when he took you?” “H–He, I–I,” Otis stuttered as his wide eyes darted around. “You’ll have to forgive my brother, he’s mentally unstable,” Alfred said smoothly. “He’s been institutionalized in England a few times.” “No I have not!” Otis objected, seeming to have found his new courage in the face of his old master. “You kept me as a slave! You are the criminal here, not Tom.” The foyer and front porch broke out in shouting men until one of the policemen whistled loudly. “We’ll settle all this down at the station. Mr. Smith?” “Yes,” twelve people answered, and the cop rolled his eyes, pointing to me.

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“That Mr. Smith, Tom Smith, needs to come with us along with Otis Connor. The rest of you stay here.” “Now wait just a second—” Bren started to say, only to be cut off by the one who mumbled before. “You have no jurisdiction here, Griaule.” He smirked at Bren as if he flipped off my friend’s mate. “They come with us.” “Where are you taking them?” Bren ground out between clenched teeth. “We’ll let you know,” the other one answered with a sneer. I was spun around and handcuffed as a rage like I’d never known built inside of me. I caught Horse’s gaze, and he shook his head slightly. Yeah, yeah, can’t attack the police no matter how big of assholes they were being. He tapped his temple, and I caught on. “Bren will call Captain Mahan and get this all straightened out. Just keep your cool, and we’ll fix this.” “Fix it fast, Horse. I don’t want this guy around Otis.” “I know, brother.” “I suggest you tell me where you’re taking my client before I end up in front of a judge with a lawsuit against your police department,” Daran informed them smoothly as if he was completely bored of the situation. “Your fucking lawyer lives with you?” the cop asked in shock. “He’s married to my brother,” I answered sweetly. The guy shook his head in disgust and told Daran where we were all going. Before they could even reply, I was being dragged over to the squad car. This day might just go on record as the worst day of my life…if I survived it.

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Chapter 8 “Mr. Connor, you can ride with your brother.” “No!” Otis and I both yelled. “Why the fuck not?” The other cop growled. “Because I am not his brother. He bought me from another master and held me as a sex slave—” “We go from fags to incest fags?” The first one looked like he was going to toss his cookies. “Charming,” I growled. “Otis is not this guy’s brother, and I didn’t kidnap him.” “Lies!” Alfred hollered and reached for Otis, but my mate was quicker. He slid into the backseat of the squad car where the officer was holding the door open for me. I thanked the gods for that one because I had no doubt Alfred would have taken off for the airport while the police chased their tails and I was in lockup. “Tom, I am scared,” Otis whispered as the policemen got in and started pulling out of my driveway. “I know, baby,” I said gently. “It will be okay, I promise. I won’t let him hurt you ever again.” “I can’t go back there. I won’t survive it now that I’ve tasted what it’s like to be free.” “Free from the loony bin.” One of the cops snickered. “Listen to me,” I said firmly but evenly. “That man you’re believing over me is a criminal. He buys, keeps, and sells unwilling slaves in England all under some delusion that he’s their master and lord. His last name isn’t Connor, is it?” “No, it’s Williams,” Otis answered for them.

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“Brothers with different last names?” I wanted to smack them both for their lack of actual police work and prejudice. “I’ve lived in that house with my brothers, all having the same last name, for years. We’re upstanding citizens in the community and have never broken the law. Not even a damn speeding ticket. And now I’m kidnapping people? Did Alfred even show you proof that Otis was unstable and had been institutionalized?” “I thought that was weird, too—” the nicer of the two started to say. “Shut up, Rayford!” Okay, so one guy was Officer Rayford. Good to get names. I’d been too preoccupied to notices their name badges. And then I decided to go against my morals and listen in. “Who fucking cares if they have different last names? This guy slipped us a heavy donation to get his brother back and catch the bad guy. Hell, he even tracked down the perp for us.” Worst. Day. Ever. “Doesn’t it strike you as odd that the guy knew where to find me? Who’s stupid enough to kidnap a person and brings them to their home? And Otis says he’s not been kidnapped, isn’t Alfred’s brother, and wants to be with me. So why am I in handcuffs?” “Above our pay grade,” the mean cop answered. Riiiight. I sat back in the seat and realized I wasn’t going to get anywhere until I talked to someone with an IQ or who understood simple logic. After we pulled in the station and we were let out of the backseat, Alfred was right there pulling in next to us. “Thank you, officers. I’ll take my brother and leave you to it,” he said and reached for Otis. “We need you to come inside and fill out paperwork, give your statement.” Okay, so maybe the mean one did have a brain. He just didn’t want to make decisions on who was right or wrong. “Don’t you want to prosecute?” “We’re already delayed in our returning home.” Alfred shrugged as if that was a valid excuse. Douche. Bag.

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“Baby, I need you to fight,” I said to Otis, starting to panic. “You can’t leave with him right now, or I can’t help you. You don’t have to listen to him anymore.” “I know,” he whispered before turning to Alfred. “Show the policemen proof I am your brother and under your care for my mental illness.” He paused, and I almost laughed at the way Alfred’s mouth fell open. He hadn’t been ready for that one. “Of course you do not have such documents because you are lying.” “You’re getting delusional again,” Alfred sighed, but I could see the vast anger swimming in his eyes. He pulled out a syringe from his pocket. “It’s because you haven’t had your Thorazine in days.” “Fuck that, don’t you touch Otis,” I growled and struggled against the mean cop. I turned to Officer Rayford. “Please! You know this isn’t right. Why is he carrying a syringe in his pocket? He has no proof of his accusations! You know the shit that will rain down on you guys if you let him drug and take Otis out of here and you’re wrong?” “How did you get that into the country?” Rayford asked instead. “Let me see a prescription for it.” “I don’t have one on me,” Alfred answered and stared at me with contempt. “I was too busy looking for my brother to make sure I had everything with me always.” “Go get it from your hotel,” I said, knowing full well there was no proof. “We’ll wait.” Just then I saw Daran, Bren, Horse, and Why rushing towards us. Damn, that was a beautiful sight. “He’s trying to give Otis a shot and run. Isn’t there something we can do?” “Otis, name me your attorney in front of witnesses,” Daran shouted as they now sprinted to us. “I can protect you if you have me as your legal counsel.” “Yes, he is my lawyer,” Otis replied immediately. “He’s not of sound mind and body to make that choice,” Alfred snarled and stepped closer to Otis. It was Bren who got in his way.

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“And you have no proof he’s not, so shut the fuck up.” I wanted to kiss him when he snatched the drug out of Alfred’s hand. Then he held up a hand to the mean cop. “Captain Mahan of the Chicago Police Department has already spoken with your supervisor. He’s on his way to clean this mess up. You’re both ass deep in shit.” “Fuck you, Griaule,” the mean guy said. “Mr. Williams, you can take your brother with you. Any of you interfere and I’ll arrest you for assault.” I watched in horror as Alfred went over to Otis and grabbed his arm. “Tom, no!” Otis screamed and shoved away from his old master. I looked over at Horse and opened up my telepathy. Bren didn’t interfere so much as not move when Otis darted behind him and simply raised an eyebrow at Alfred with his arms crossed over his chest. Bren had at least fifty pounds of muscle whereas Alfred had that in fat. Plus, Bren was about five inches taller. Nice. “What the fuck?” “They have to go through Chicago to get to the airport,” he answered, and I started to understand. “That’s a big risk you’re taking with my mate, Horse!” “Captain Mahan’s on his way, but we can’t do anything until he’s here.” “Absolutely not,” Daran said firmly. “My client can be detained by the police until this is straightened out, but without proof, there is no way this criminal is leaving with him.” “He does as I say,” the mean officer snarled. And that’s when I had the best idea I’ve ever had. I used my magic to make Alfred punch Bren in the face when he wouldn’t move. “Sorry!” I said to Horse. “No, good idea. I wish I’d thought of it. Bren will be fine.” “What was that for?” Bren shouted and decked Alfred right back. Unlike Bren, one punch had him going down like a sack of potatoes.

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“Fuck a duck,” Officer Rayford groaned. “I knew this guy was off. Now he’s hitting a cop? No way are we letting Mr. Connor go with him.” “I agree,” the mean cop said. He released me, and I finally saw that his name plate was Sheehan. “Let’s go take this inside to the Chief. Talk about a clusterfuck.” “How much longer until our shift is over?” Rayford grumbled as he gestured for me to turn around. He let me out of the cuffs, and instantly I was hugging Otis. “It’s okay, baby. He can’t hurt you anymore. You don’t have to go back to England.” My mate nodded and shook as he kept the tears at bay. I would have been bawling like a baby at the idea of being forced to have sex with Alfred, much less being his slave. Maybe one day I could get him to see he was a much stronger man than he thought. Maybe, but not today. Today I would be the strong one and hold my mate up when he felt like collapsing. Literally. He was shaking so bad that I was worried he might collapse. “Let’s go in and get this shit all straightened out,” Bren said, not bothering to hide the annoyance in his tone. I gave Horse a concerned look that his mate must have caught. “I promise Otis is safe now. Alfred hit a cop. They won’t believe a word he says now.” He gave me a knowing wink, and I felt better that he wasn’t pissed at me at least for using my magic and getting him punched in the face. “What if they have me deported now that they know I am not going back with Alfred?” Otis asked me as he pulled away from me when I led him to the doors of the police station. “I might end up back in England after all.” “Actually, not so much,” Daran mumbled under his breath, knowing full well I’d still hear him. He slipped me an envelope, and I met his gaze. “Box gave that to me for worst-case scenario but said not to draw attention to how quickly we were able to get it.” Well that piqued my curiosity! I snuck a peek and wanted to laugh. Box already finagled a student visa for Otis. I didn’t want to

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know how, but I was going to kiss my friend when we got home. Or maybe just a hug. I was a married man now after all. “Calm down, Otis. If they try anything like that, Box got you a student visa. So we’re covered, but let’s not mention it unless they ask.” I pushed into my mate’s thoughts. I saw him visibly relax and give a slight nod. Telepathy and mind communication was a really neat gift to have sometimes! The officers showed us to the waiting room and told us they were going to talk to their boss. And by waiting room I mean an area in the lobby with falling-apart chairs that had scrapes from people being handcuffed to them. Charming. We’d just sat down when the officers came racing from the offices in back and out the door. We were all doing our best to not laugh except Otis who was trying to calm down from his almost abduction. Minutes later they came back half dragging, half carrying Alfred. “Thanks for the help,” the mean one grumbled. “Why? So we can get accused of something else while we’re here? You wanted to let him leave the country with his victim. We wouldn’t be here if you’d listened to me.” I didn’t even hide the contempt in my voice and had lots more to say, but one look from Bren spoke volumes. Yeah, don’t egg on the cop that hates you. I never said I was the smartest knife in the drawer. They got Alfred in the back and then left us to wait for over half an hour. “Think they’d notice if we left?” Horse said with a bored yawn. “I mean seriously. Their manners suck. I’m calling Emily Post.” “Isn’t she dead?” Why asked. I wanted to laugh as they started bickering whether the woman they’d never met was alive or not as if she was a beloved aunt. But the whole situation was so ludicrous that we were even here that it took all the fun out of everything. “Where is Detective Griaule?” Captain Mahan bellowed as he walked through the front door to the officer on duty at the front desk. Again I almost laughed at the way the guy paled.

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“We’re still here waiting for something,” Bren grumbled as he went to greet his boss. “Are you fucking kidding me?” Mahan snarled. He was an imposing man at his height and definitely not someone I’d ever want to mess with. He shook Bren and Horse’s hand before turning to the guy at the desk. “I want to speak with whomever’s in charge in the next two minutes or I’m getting my people out of here!” “Yes, Captain,” the guy practically squeaked. He picked up the phone and called someone, hissing into the line before setting it back in the cradle. “If you’ll follow me.” “I love a man who knows how to wield his power,” I jokingly purred at the Captain. He rolled his eyes at me as we all stood and followed the other officer. I wrapped a protective and possessive arm around Otis. “It’s okay, love.” “I do not want to face Master—I mean, Alfred again. Please?” “That’s the guy who bought you as a slave in England?” Mahan asked gently, absolutely no judgment in his tone. This was one of the reasons that Mahan was not just a great cop but a Captain. “Yes, sir,” Otis whispered and hung his head in shame. Mahan spun around, stopping our procession, and walked over to my mate. He put his finger under Otis’s chin and raised his head so they were looking at each other. “Never be ashamed for something that happens against your will, son. Be proud you survived it and came out the other side. Not everyone does that. And I know your partner to be a good man. He’ll take good care of you and protect you from now on. The shit in your life is over. We’re going to get this asshole locked up for a long, long time.” “Can you do that since his crimes were in England?” Otis asked, hope shining in his eyes and in his tone. “The moment he stepped on American soil with you, he was committing a crime. Then he sold you like a car in a poker game. Yeah, I’m all over seeing this fucker rot.” He gave my mate a wink as

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an evil smile crept on his face. Nice! We were so getting Mahan the best Christmas present ever. “Thank you, Captain.” Mahan gave him a swift nod and went back to following the officer back to his boss’s office. “Well, well, well,” an older man drawled, looking bored. “We got a big-city Captain gracing us with his presence.” “Cut the shit, Porter.” Mahan snickered. “Chicagoland police are almost as busy as we are. You’re not in the sticks or a small-town Sheriff. You know the game.” “Nice to see you again, too, Mahan.” Porter didn’t really sound all that happy though. “So your officer here is illegally married to a Rick Smith, whose brother is accused of kidnapping that man”—he pointed to Otis—“from his brother while they’re visiting here. And he’s mentally incompetent. So you’re pissed I didn’t call you?” “You know the policemen’s code,” Mahan answered, ignoring the other stuff. “Policeman’s family gets accused of something, you call the cop’s commanding officer.” “Ah, but we don’t recognize domestic partnerships as family.” If I wasn’t a better man, I’d wipe that smirk off Porter’s face. Oh, who was I kidding? I totally wanted to, but I didn’t think I could and not end up in jail for the night. “Bigot,” Mahan growled. “Fag lover!” Porter shot back. “Did you just refer to my client as a fag, Officer Porter? I wonder how the Mayor would feel about that since he has a gay son that he supports.” Daran sounded so bored as he threw out the accusation and veiled threat. He was actually looking at his nails. I’d seen people do that in the movies, but the reality of it was so much more hilarious. “These men helped capture a serial killer a few weeks ago,” Mahan said evenly as he leaned over Porter’s desk and got in the man’s face. “They risked their lives to help us when we couldn’t get vice coordinated in time. So you might not like their sexual preference, Porter, but I know you from the Corps. You’re a man who

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values honor. What civilians do you know who are willing to jump in the mix and help the police?” “Serial killer?” Porter’s eyebrows scrunched together for a moment before they shot up to his hairline. “That one from New York and LA? The one that was killing all those underage boys?” “Yup.” Mahan nodded towards us. “They came to us with a sketch of someone they saw with one of the vics.” He pointed to Horse. “He can draw and did one up for us. Came to us with a plan, and all twelve brothers not only volunteered to help, but got us in, and went in as bait. We didn’t even have time to set up a safety net. I know veteran cops that won’t do that. So do you.” “I doubt you guys normally get your asses kicked in the process though,” Horse said with false modesty. “You had a knife to your throat and fought the guy off so none of my guys had to deal with the trauma of taking a life,” Mahan shot back with a tone of respect. I’d never thought about that. It made sense though since humans thought about things differently than elves. We saw threats and good guys. Elves tended to be very black and white, right was right and wrong got punished…severely. Everyone was silent for a few moments while Porter eyed us over. Finally he asked what I could see written on his face. “Seriously?” “I might be small, but I grew up in the foster system,” Horse answered firmly. “We all did. When we got out, we adopted each other and formed a family of our own. Most of us have fighting skills, but a few of us have black belts in various martial arts. We might not have served like you and Captain Mahan, but that doesn’t mean we don’t know a worthy fight when we see one.” “We stick with what we’re good at mostly,” Why added with a bright smile. “And that would be?” Porter asked with a raised brow. “Dealing with money,” he replied sweetly. “If you check your records, we donate a sizable amount to your department every year.

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Now I’m not saying that should mean anything to you if we broke the law, but I’d think that it would speak to our character.” Porter turned to Otis and spoke the four words I’d been praying for. “Tell me what happened.” And the day just kept getting better and better. Sure, I understood why Otis had to tell what had happed and I wanted him to…but at what price to himself?

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Chapter 9 He glanced at me to tell him what to do. “Go ahead, Otis. What you say won’t leave this room. They need to know.” “Okay,” he said, nodding, and took in a shaky breath before looking at Porter. “My mother sold me to criminals as a sex slave when I was eighteen. I was trained and have had four masters since then. Alfred Williams was the most recent one until he lost me in a card game to an owner of a Chicago club. Tom and his brothers intervened, paid my fee, and set me free.” “But you’re with him?” “Yes, sir, but it is my choice. Tom offered me a guest room, an education, and a chance to be free, figure out my life.” He glanced at me, and I felt my heart warm with love at the look he gave me. “I have never met a finer man, and I fell in love. I am sorry you do not approve of that, but I will not apologize for it either. He treats me better than my own parents did, his whole family does, and I would do anything for him.” He turned back to Porter then. “I am not, nor have I ever been, institutionalized or been treated for any mental illness. I have my birth certificate back at Tom’s house, and you can verify that I have different parents from Alfred Williams. That man kept me in a cage, did unspeakable things to me, whored me out against my will, and is much like your mob here. He is a bully, criminal, and deplorable human being.” “Fuck,” Mahan whispered, and I could tell the Captain had hit uncharted territories. What does someone say to that? Porter didn’t come up with the most gracious response, but at least it was better than how he’d been acting earlier.

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“Can you prove any of this?” Otis thought about that for a moment and a wide smile crossed his face. “I can, actually.” He glanced between Mahan and Porter. “If I am not mistaken, you cannot get a person’s financial records unless they are given to you, correct?” “We’d need a warrant normally,” Mahan confirmed with a nod. They both looked as confused as I felt. “And if I have the log-in and password for them?” “You do?” I gasped, not sure what to make of that. “Just because I do not have much of an education does not make me stupid. He treated me like an animal, even in intelligence. He never covered passwords or took phone calls away from me. I took notes in those books I brought with me in case I was ever able to escape. I was not planning on stealing anything, but if I needed money to flee, I would not have any other access to any.” “After what that asshole put you through, I can’t see any jury prosecuting you if you had,” Porter said firmly. Then he turned to Mahan. “You’ve got better facilities and personnel for something this big. It’s all yours if you don’t hold my officers accountable for the way they fucked up. Williams did his homework about me before approaching us. Fuck, he knew my kids’ names. They thought he was a buddy of mine and were helping the guy retrieve his brother.” Mahan glanced at us, and I answered for our group. “They need to work on their manners and keeping their bigotry to themselves, but we didn’t go through anything today that a few beers can’t wipe away. We’ll cooperate fully with however you want to handle this.” Porter stood and shook my hand. It was almost a good moment until he blurted out, “You don’t seem like a fag.” Well, at least he didn’t say it with a sneer…Right? “Not every gay man is like in the movies. Just like every cop isn’t a dumbass or a crook as Hollywood often portrays them. Stereotypes are dangerous. Hell, I don’t even like pink.” I smiled at him to take the sting out of my words, and he returned it. But I still had that evil,

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sarcastic side that got me into too much trouble sometimes. “And I like to top even though I’m the little guy.” “Tom,” Horse groaned as Porter instantly dropped my hand. “Really?” “Oh, the good Chief knows I’m just yanking his chain,” I said as I gave Porter my most innocent smile. “Sure,” he replied and cleared his throat. “Let me go set up prisoner transport.” He booked it from the room so fast I was surprised there wasn’t a Porter-shaped cloud like in cartoons. “You guys are never boring.” Mahan chuckled and shook his head. “You’d be surprised how often we hear that,” Why grumbled as we left the office. “No, I don’t think I would be.” We let that go because it was probably true. Ten minutes later, we were all in Bren’s SUV following Captain Mahan’s vehicle and the transport for Williams. I wondered if the fucker knew just how deep in shit he was? I hoped not. Let him die of a heart attack from the shock. “We need to talk,” Horse said solemnly, focused on me. I had a feeling I already knew what he was thinking. “It’s up to you,” I replied with a sigh. “Of course my answer is yes. He deserves it for what he’s done to Otis.” “What? What are you talking about?” Otis asked in a panicked voice. “You are not planning on killing him, are you?” “No!” we both exclaimed, and Horse explained what we were talking about. “When we helped the police before, we used our magic to make to make the guy confess everything. There’s a certain moral issue—” “Do it.” Those two little words from my mate had my jaw dropping. I could see the same reaction on Bren’s face in the rearview mirror and Horse’s from the front seat.

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“Okay, whatever you feel is best, brother,” he replied gently. “We’re here for you.” “Thank you,” Otis sighed and snuggled against me. “And thank you for not judging me. I know it is not very moral, but after what he put me through, I feel it is justified. I wish I could have my other previous masters confess as well. But catching Alfred is a good step to putting all this behind me.” I couldn’t have been more proud of my mate. Especially for no longer referring to the douche bag as Master Alfred. He was making huge leaps and bounds in such a short time it amazed me. It made me think he never fully embraced himself as a slave. That he had hoped to escape after all. He might not have fought everything that had happened to him, but he knew he didn’t deserve it either. “Oh, Flower,” Why sang and tapped the window. I glanced outside and saw it was snowing. “Fuck,” I groaned. “This day just keeps getting worse and worse.” “What are you talking about?” Otis asked as he popped up off my shoulder and stared at me as if I’d grown a second head. “I could be on my way back to England with that wanker and instead he has been caught!” “I’m sorry. You’re totally right, baby,” I said and winced. He was. I was being a total jerk. “I was just upset it ever happened and he scared you like that.” “Okay,” he replied after a moment with a nod. “I can understand you not wanting anything to upset me, but this is well worth it, Flower.” He paused for a second and stared out the window. “What is the problem with snow?” “Flower’s afraid of it,” Horse answered for me with a snicker. “I am not!” I exclaimed and crossed my arms over my chest with a pout. “Just snowmen.” “And that would be because?” Otis asked with a raised eyebrow. “You’re going to laugh at me.” Wow, I sounded like a petulant child even to my own ears.

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“No I will not,” my mate said firmly. “Neither will Daran or Bren. They are your family, and that would be mean of them.” Nice guilttrip! “Fine,” I sighed as I scrubbed my hands over my face. I twisted in my seat so I was facing my mate. “The North Pole gets a lot of snow and building snowmen isn’t a new practice for kids. I told you before I was small, even for an elf, especially as a child. Well, my older siblings didn’t just tease me. They were a little meaner than that. They used to build me in the snowmen.” “Those little bastards,” Otis gasped and hugged me to him. “You could have frozen to death with the temperatures up there.” “Thank you!” I stuck my tongue out at Horse because they’d never comforted me like this. “It was traumatic as a kid. I thought they were really trying to kill me instead of it being simple mean pranks. They’d pour cold water on the outside, too, so it would freeze up and be that much harder to get out of. I used to always wear three layers of thermal underwear in case they decided to do it again.” “Did they do it more than once?” “Oh yeah,” I answered my mate. “They used to build me into a living snowman like once a week until I learned how to use my magic to melt snow. I hate snowmen, and by association snow.” I gave Why an evil look over my shoulder. “We all have issues with Christmas and the North Pole, Mr. I-Hate-Christmas-Songs.” Then I glanced at Horse. “And Mr. Hates-Santa!” “I don’t hate him anymore actually,” Horse replied and stared at Bren with a heated gaze. Umm, okaaay then! Not sure what Bren had to do with that one? “Santa and I might not ever be best buds, but my mate has helped me realize that it’s not Santa’s fault that people think of elves the way they do.” “I still hate Christmas music.” Why giggled. “They play it earlier and earlier every friggin year.” “Yeah, but you hate it because it annoys you. Some of us have valid reasons to be traumatized and hate Christmas.”

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“We all have reason to hate it,” Why said firmly as he narrowed his eyes at me. “I wasn’t accepted there any more than you were. Things with my parents have been—” “You’re right, I’m sorry.” I hadn’t been thinking. Why had a strained relationship with his parents that only recently was starting to get worked out. And he was right. We all left for one reason or another. It didn’t matter why, but it was why we’d all banded together. We weren’t accepted, hated it there, and wanted a different life. Why looked as if he had more to say but shut it when we pulled into the parking lot behind Bren’s station. Everyone got out, but Otis wasn’t moving. I slid my hand in his and tilted my head so I moved in the way of his staring off at nothing. “Talk to me, baby.” “I need something from you,” he whispered as his eyes filled with tears and he stared down at his hands. “Anything, Otis. You know that.” I hugged him tightly and felt him nod against my brown hair. “I do, but I feel it is not right to ask for this. But I have to.” He paused, and I let him as he composed himself or his thoughts. “I have to confront him after you make him confess. Will you make him answer my questions honestly?” “Yes,” I whispered and wanted to cry now, too. “You aren’t going to like what he has to say, Otis. There’s no good reason for what he did. I don’t want you to get any more hurt than you already have been.” “I understand that, but I feel if I hear the why from him, it will help me move on. Of all my masters, he was the most cruel, and I need to know. I cannot explain it better than I simply have to.” “Okay, Otis. Whatever you need.” I heard as much as felt his relieved sigh. We took another moment before getting out and joining everyone else who’d been waiting. I could tell they were worried, but

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at least they weren’t shooting Otis looks of pity that would have upset him more. I pointed to my temple, and Horse got the idea. “Your mate okay?” “No, but he’s doing his best. He wants to confront Williams and have me make the asshole tell the truth while Otis asks him some questions. The whole thing seems like Pandora’s box to me, but if it’s what he needs, I’ll do it.” “Yeah, I can see both sides to it. Maybe if he can see inside the monster’s head, he can put to rest any thoughts that it was because of him and not Williams.” I thought about it that way for a moment. It made sense in a way. But it also seemed like a rape victim blaming themselves because they went outside without a shirt on or a short skirt. That’s ridiculous. On the other hand, most people who get cheated on think it’s because of something they did. So in theory I guess I could understand Otis’s need to get answers. It still seemed like opening an explosive can of worms. I just hoped we had the right protective gear. “I feel you, man.” I sighed, suddenly exhausted. “I just don’t want him to go through any of this. I’m not saying wipe his memory or wave a magic wand so none of it hurts anymore or ever bothered him. He deserves better than this.” “He does, and that’s why he has you, brother.” Before I could ask what he meant by that exactly, we were at the back entrance of the station with Mahan blocking the door. “You might want to cut off whatever communicating you were doing before we go inside.” “What?” We gasped, too shocked to even feign that we didn’t know what he meant. “You both aren’t the best at disguising what you’re doing,” Mahan said with a chuckle, shaking his head. “If you think you pulled it over on us last time either, you’d be wrong. I got several guys who think you’re telepaths, one thinks you’re a witch—”

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“No way! Witches are vile—” Why complained and then snapped his mouth shut. “Whoopsies.” “What’s your guess, Captain?” Horse asked as he exchanged a look with Bren. His mate looked as shocked as we were. “And how will this affect Bren?” “Bren is his own man,” Captain Mahan said firmly, looking offended at some implication of what Horse said. “This doesn’t change anything or my opinions of any of you. I don’t care what you are except you’re the good guys. I just wanted to point out that you needed to work on your disguises.” “Thank you,” Horse replied with a smile. “You’re still dying to know.” Yeah, I was ready to listen in then, too. “Too little for vampires, and I can’t see them being werewolves, but I’d guess some type of magic creature after the way he freaked out when I mentioned witches.” “So far you’re right on the ball,” I said, not hiding how impressed I was in the tone of my voice. “Think north, Captain.” His eyes went wide as he realized what I was getting at, but he schooled his features in a flash. “Fine, you’re elves, now get the hell out of my head.” “We don’t normally listen in out of respect.” Horse held his hands up in surrender as he explained. “But this conversation could be overheard, so it was better to do it that way. You need to know that we’re kind of set to listen in, and we have to focus to stop.” “Yeah, try keeping a surprise secret from these guys,” Bren said with a snicker and eye roll. “But they do have some really neat tricks up their sleeves that come in handy.” “Like?” Mahan asked, seeming honestly curious. I read in his mind how much he wanted some strong coffee and how he took it. I used my magic to make it appear and handed it to him. “Shhhit. I don’t know whether to scream like a little girl or be thankful.” “I’d go with the latter if you didn’t want to draw attention.” He nodded and took the coffee, looking a little shell-shocked.

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Mahan cleared his throat as he opened the door and let us in. Officer Rayford and Williams had gone through the front to process the criminal the right way so they were luckily absent from the conversation. Otis went with Bren and Daran to get on a computer to print off the bank info the cops would need. As much as I wanted to go with, I knew he’d be safe with Bren, and it might be easier on him to do this without me around. Horse, Why, and I went with Mahan to see Williams. I wanted the man to confess his sins before Otis was anywhere near him. The chip on his shoulder needed to go, or he’d pull some shit I didn’t want my mate to endure. “You guys wait here,” Mahan told us as we entered a small viewing area off the main interrogation room. “Let me siphon some energy off of you, and then we can keep this going for several hours without being here for it.” I nodded at Horse’s request and took his hand, as did Why. I let down all my walls and opened myself up to him. I felt his power wash around inside of me before gathering momentum and propelling back into him. “You good?” I asked a few minutes later when he was done. My friend looked a little pale and tired. “Yeah, it’s done.” He plopped down in one of the chairs and we turned back to watch the show in progress. Until then Mahan had simply been staring down Williams who was giving it back as good as he got. “I don’t know what made me hit the cop,” he blubbered suddenly. His eyes went wide in shock at what he was admitting. “But I’m not sorry I did it. And those other cops were morons. All it took was a few bits of information about their boss and they were ready to grab their ankles for me. I promised to make a sizeable donation to their department, and they were all too eager to help as if it was going right in their pockets. I wouldn’t be surprised if it would have.” “Good to know, but let’s stay on the reason you’re here,” Mahan said as he sat down at the other side of the table and pulled out a

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recorder. “State your name, why you’re in America, and who Otis Connor is to you.” “Alfred Williams. I am on holiday. Otis is my slave.” I didn’t think his eyes could bug out any bigger, but it seemed I was wrong. “Why am I telling you all of this?” “Hell if I know.” Mahan shrugged but gave us a side glance through the two-way mirror. Busted! That man was way smarter than most humans. He spent the next half hour taking Alfred’s full confession of his crimes here and in England. Just as he was wrapping up, Bren and Otis joined us. I immediately went to my mate who was smiling. I wasn’t ready for that one. “I gave them everything I knew,” he sighed as I hugged him. I would have said how proud I was, but Mahan joined us in our nowcramped area. “Why is he singing like a canary suddenly?” He eyed each of us over. “Guilt?” I was sorry the minute I opened my mouth because his angry gaze focused on me. I swallowed loudly and looked to Horse. “How do you know it’s our fault?” “Do I look stupid?” Mahan raised an eyebrow as if daring us to answer yes. Yeah, I wasn’t stupid either. “We’re not telling him what to say,” Horse answered with a sigh as he leaned against the wall. “We combined our magic to make him tell the truth and answer any questions for the next six hours or so. After that he’ll be back to his normal, unhelpful self. But it is the truth.” “How can I use this if you’re coercing him?” Mahan focused on Bren then. “Did they do this with the guy they helped catch?” “Yes, sir,” Bren answered immediately. “I understand your moral dilemma with this, I had the same one. But neither criminal can prove anything. There’s no drug in their system, no one’s beating them. It’s untraceable, and they aren’t making them confess, more like giving

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them a truth serum. He won’t lie when asked a question or realize to lawyer up. And what can he say later? That he didn’t mean to confess?” “Any more surprises I need to know about?” Mahan asked after a few moments as he scrubbed his hands over his face. “After what I heard in there, I can’t feel sorry for him, but we’re not making a habit of this.” “No, it’s draining.” Horse chuckled and shook his head as if trying to stay awake. He looked at his mate. “I know you have to stay, but do you still need me? I need a nap after doing that, baby.” “Yeah, no one was paying attention that you came in here. If anyone asks, you got a ride home.” He leaned down and brushed his lips over Horse’s. “Thank you, Horse. Love you, yeah?” “Love you, too. See you at home.” Horse ’ported home, and I realized maybe we should have warned Mahan. “Fuck!” he hollered and jumped across the small area. “Seriously?” He slowly moved to where Horse had been and searched as if he was missing something. “He just vanished!” “We can teleport. It’s one of the first talents we get after we’re baptized in magic,” I explained calmly. “Right, of course,” Mahan mumbled. “Why did you call Rick Horse again? And don’t give me some shit about he’s hung like one.” Well, shit. The poor man was going to get more than he ever bargained for!

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Chapter 10 “We’ll tell you anything you want to know, but can it wait until we’re out of here?” I asked and glanced at Otis. “My mate wants to confront his abuser, and then I need to make sure he eats something. He’s not had anything since breakfast.” “I was just thinking the same thing about Daran,” Why agreed, and we both turned on Bren. “If you need to stay, then we’ll bring you food, but you need to eat as well, mate to our brother. You know the rules.” “Yeah, yeah, Mom, mates first.” Bren snickered. “Okay, explain that, Mr. Connor can talk with Williams quickly, and then we’ll go get food while I get some answers.” Mahan looked more curious now than shocked. I figured it was a better reaction to have. “Elves are crazy protective of their human mates,” Daran said as he wrapped an arm around Why. “Why, which is his real name, will always put anything I need first, even something as simple as food. They spoil us rotten, and even though Bren is mated to Horse, Why and Flower undertake the task of making sure Bren is taken care of always. To elves, no matter if they’re family, mated, or single, any elf mate is first priority. That’s the short version.” Mahan stared at Daran for a moment in shock then shook his head. He moved and sat down on one of the chairs as if tired beyond his years. “Go talk with Williams while I try and digest all of this.” Otis opened the door, and I paused, focused on the Captain. “We’re the same men you thought we were, Mahan. We just have some quirks.”

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“Yeah, quirks,” he parroted back. Okay, so maybe he needed some more time with this new development. Fair enough. “When I get my hands on you, you’re never getting out of that cage,” Alfred informed us. I moved past Otis, and he closed the door behind us. “You still don’t get it, do you?” I asked with a sneer. “You’re finished. You just confessed to a slew of shit that will have you locked up until Otis is old and gray.” Okay, so that wasn’t the truth, but he didn’t need to know that. “You’ll be the one in a cage, motherfucker.” That was fun to say. “You drugged me into telling you everything!” “Riiight, because the police carry drugs around to use on suspects. And what drug would suddenly make you grow a conscience and confess?” I stared at him with a raised eyebrow, waiting for him to answer. He opened his mouth and shut it right back up, making his chubby, red face look like a fish. This was fun. “Why me?” Otis asked as he came closer and eyed Alfred over. “You were the meanest master I have ever had. Why torture me and treat me the way you did? I never saw you be so cruel to anyone else.” “You know why!” Alfred snapped and went to cross his arms as if closing himself off. Except he was handcuffed to the table. Moron. “No, no, I never understood,” Otis whispered and shook his head. “Why me?” “Because you wouldn’t love me,” he blurted out after a moment of seeming to struggle with himself. “You normally have to buy people to love you?” I asked in disgust. It wasn’t a reflection against Otis… He didn’t have a choice. But this guy was sick. “You only slept in my bed if I ordered you to, and even then you never tried to touch me or be a real lover.” “You forced me!” Otis shouted in a loud voice I didn’t know he had. His face was flaming red with anger, and it seemed Alfred’s new

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crazy opened the floodgates. “I never wanted to touch your horrid body! I threw up after you forced me when you were not around. And you treated me like an animal! I gave the police all your accounts, so you can keep playing this insane ploy that someone drugged you, but they have proof.” Alfred’s eyes went wide as his mouth dropped open. “That is right, I knew everything, and I told the police.” My mate crossed his arms over his chest, just to show he could, with a selfsatisfied smirk on his face. “Did you think I was simply too stupid to understand what you were doing on that laptop, or did you think I would never get free?” “Both,” he mumbled, and as I watched all his bravado fade. “I would never have gotten another slave if you weren’t always so difficult.” “Do you not understand, you fat wanker?” Otis took three steps and slammed his hands on the table before gesturing to me. “I love Tom! He did not buy me or force me. He treats me as an equal and a person, not a damn pet! I couldn’t and will never care for you. You abused, raped, beat, tortured, and used me. Does that sound like love?” “I did it for your own good,” he answered lamely. “I am done here,” Otis announced and went to the door. It was buzzed opened, and I followed after him and closed the door behind us. When he started shaking and laughing, I got worried. “He is sick. It never was me or anything to do with me that made him treat me so badly. I did not cave like his other slaves, and that is why he was always fixated on me!” “Even nut-jobs want what they can’t have,” Mahan said gently. “Yes! Yes, exactly,” Otis agreed with a smile and turned to me. “I never want to see that nut-job again. I want to go to our home and make love until we both pass out.” “I didn’t need to hear that,” Mahan mumbled, but we ignored him.

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“Are you sure, baby?” I asked gently as I pulled him into my arms. “You’ve been through a lot today. Maybe we should get something to eat and just go to bed.” “No, I am done with letting him ruin my life,” Otis answered, his green eyes shining with joy. “I love you, and you are my life. Alfred is a part of an unfortunate past that is in the past. I am moving on.” He paused for a moment. “And I wish to try that Chinese restaurant you were going on and on about. I find I liked all the new cuisine you have been educating me on.” “I’ll order the whole menu, and we can pick it up on the way home,” I said, so happy for him I was on the verge of tears. “You can try everything and anything you want, my love.” “I am. I am your love,” he replied excitedly and hugged me tightly. We glanced at Mahan when we parted. “My mate promised you answers. Would you care to join us and see our home? You can witness firsthand how amazing their family is then.” “I know they’re a good bunch,” Mahan said with a smile. “But I need to ask one thing first.” We all nodded. “Can I invite my wife? She has always been enamored with fairies, and if I remember my fiction correctly, elves are a type of fae.” “That’s correct.” I giggled and leaned back against my mate’s strong chest as he hugged me to him. “Your wife is more than welcome as long as you understand why neither of you can tell anyone—ever. I wish I could invite your children, but they tend to tell secrets so—” Bren and Mahan shared a look and burst out laughing. It took a few minutes, but Bren was the first to calm down enough to speak. “His kids are in college. Mahan is older than he looks.” “Really?” Daran asked and eyed over the Captain. “I wouldn’t put you over forty.” “Forty-six actually.” He corrected with a smile. “Jenny and I got married in college when I accidently got her pregnant. Best thing that ever happened to me. We just celebrated our twenty-fifth anniversary

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a few months ago. Let me call her, finish up business here, and we’ll meet you at your house.” “Thank you, Captain Mahan,” I said, letting all my sincerity show in my voice. I moved out of Otis’s arms and extended my hand. “If there is anything, and I mean anything, you or your family needs, you just let us know. Bren thinks the world of you, and I can never thank you enough for what you’ve done for my mate.” He smiled as he shook my hand. “I always wanted to be a police officer. I knew from the first time I played cops and robbers as a kid that I was put on this earth to make it a safer place. Days like today, catching the bad guy, makes the other crap worth it. I’ve already put a call in to Interpol, FBI, and our British Embassy to figure out who can do the most damage to Williams.” “Sweet!” I exclaimed, ready to do a happy dance. “We need to talk about getting you asylum in the States since Williams was a pretty powerful fish on the other side of the pond.” He spoke gently to my mate, and I wanted to laugh. “Umm, we already took care of that,” Daran said nervously. Mahan glanced between all of us and shook his head as he dropped my hand. “I don’t want to know, I didn’t ask, don’t tell me.” And with that he walked out of the room. Fair enough! “Let us go home,” Otis whispered as he rubbed his face against my hair. “Thank you, Flower.” “For what?” I asked, not sure what he was referring to. We all filed out of the room and towards the exit. Bren ended up being done for now as well, so he was coming home with us. It was his car after all. “I would never have had the strength to confront Alfred if you hadn’t been in that room with me, supporting me.” He slid his hand in mine as we walked out into the parking lot. “I supported you and was there to help, but that was all you in there, Otis. You wanted to confront him while most would have never

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been strong enough to do that. I didn’t do that. You did. I just stood at your side.” He thought about it as we walked to Bren’s SUV. He opened the door and turned to me. “That might be true, but I still thank you for your support and never giving up on me. You fought to keep me here and safe and I love you for it.” “I’d do anything for you, Otis.” “Of that, I have no doubt, Flower,” he replied and got in the backseat. I stared after him a moment. Humans were resilient. I watched my mate, who was a victim, enter the police station scared and shaking. He had good reason of course, but still that was the state of mind he’d been in. Now I’d watched a man who’d overcome his past, a fighter and someone who’d stood up to his fears and abuser, walk out of the building. It was an amazing thing to witness. Was Otis completely healed from his past? Fuck no, that would be impossible. But this was a huge step in the right direction, and I was proud of my mate. And he was right. I would always fight for him, for us, and keep him safe. That’s what an elf did for their mate or someone they love. Didn’t everyone? I hopped in the SUV next to him, knowing in my heart that my mate had taken a big step in healing his emotional scars. I couldn’t be prouder, and I looked forward to seeing how he’d grow. How we’d grow…together.

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Epilogue: Why That night I went up to my room after grabbing something to drink, ready for the day to be over. Daran had been acting weird since we left the police station, and as much as I wanted to chalk the mood up to what we’d been through that day, it simply wasn’t adding up. I could get depressed or tired, but he was straight avoiding me or even talking to me. I was lost in those thoughts when I opened the door and dropped the can of pop. My mate was stretched out on the couch in our room wearing music-note pajama pants. I opened my mouth to speak but he shook his head. “Close the door behind you and pick up the can before it explodes all over the carpet.” I nodded like a bobblehead, suddenly no longer tired as I did what he wanted. I set the pop on the nightstand and sat on the bed. Daran turned on our iPod dock, and I wanted to groan when Christmas music came on. Right. I could endure annoying music if my mate wanted to make a point or—and then he started singing. My jaw just about hit the ground as a deep, perfect-pitch tenor song came out of my mate’s mouth. Holy shit! He was like a taller Josh Groban. He was one of my favorite singers, but every time I saw a picture of the guy, I couldn’t get over the fact that such a big voice came out of such a small package. I don’t know about most people, but when I think of a deep tenor, I think big, Italian opera singer. Not a skinny little guy who looks like he might squeak.

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Granted, Daran wasn’t short or thin, but he wasn’t even close to fat either. He was well muscled and toned but nothing that would make me think that deep tenor was inside of him. I listened in awe as he sang a flawless rendition of “O Come All Ye Faithful.” When he was done, I sat there and gaped at him. “How did I not know you could sing like that?” “We’ve not been together all that long, Why,” he answered with a chuckle as he hit pause on the iPod. “Besides, where’s the fun in knowing everything up front? Part of the excitement of a relationship is learning new things along the way. Liiiike, did you know I have a secret love of a previously popular pop star?” “Everyone likes Michael Jackson,” I answered, blinking innocently. “Now do I get to thank you for the song?” “There’s more,” he purred and turned back on the iPod. I almost fell off the bed in giggles as Mariah Carey’s “All I Want for Christmas Is You” came on. “Oh shit, that’s too good,” I gasped in between bouts of laughter. But then he started singing, shaking his hips as he moved, and I didn’t find it so funny anymore. I found it hot! Who knew my once corporate attorney mate had moves like that? For someone who didn’t know how to dance last week, he was certainly catching on quick! “Yeah, baby, shake it for Daddy!” We both froze. “Daddy?” he asked as he stared at me as if I’d grown a second head. “No daddy talk?” I asked innocently as I tried not to start to laugh. “Umm, no, yuck much?” Daran made a few gagging sounds. “You weren’t serious, were you?” “Fuck no!” I exclaimed and rolled my eyes. “I’m no perv—well at least like that. It just kinda came out. Like who’s your daddy, not so much I want to be your daddy.” “Okay then.” He gave me a firm nod and went back to his song. I swear I didn’t have any creepy daddy fetishes or something. I was

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going to yell shake your moneymaker, but at the last second I realized since Daran did work for our family, too, that might get me in hot water. So I’m not the best on my feet. Whatever. This time he didn’t stop after that song before going into the next one, which was just the acoustical version of “Let It Snow.” But what came out of his mouth was not a version I’d ever heard. “Oh, the cock in my thong is frightful.” His pants came off to show a matching music-note thong. Yum! “But the cum is so delightful, and no mouth that wants to suck it, let it grow, let it grow, let it grow!” “I’ll suck you, baby,” I whimpered as he knelt on the bed and shook his finger at me when I moved closer. “It doesn’t show signs of deflating.” No, it didn’t. “And I brought some lube for slicking.” He handed me cherry flavored, which was my favorite. I couldn’t help but wonder where he pulled that from. “My balls are already hanging down low.” Yeah, I raised an eyebrow at that one. That wasn’t all that sexy. Daran shrugged. Got it, don’t analyze his rhyming abilities. “Let it grow, let it grow, let it grow!” “When I finally sink it in your ass.” I gasped in shock at the verse. In a flash I had my clothes off and legs spread. I slicked up my fingers and thrust them in my ass as he watched. “How I’ll have to fuck you hard, but if you promise to scream real loud, I’ll make sure you come.” “Yes, yes, I’ll scream,” I whimpered and finished stretching myself magically. I used the rest of the lube to slick up his cock. Then I tore off his thong and pulled him to me. “Fuck me, Daran. That was the hottest fucking thing ever.” “And here I thought I needed to work on my striptease abilities,” he replied with an evil grin. “Practice all you want, baby,” I whispered against his lips as he pushed his fat cock inside of me. “You were gorgeous and got naked in the end. I give you an A plus.”

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“So you liked your song?” Daran moved one of my legs to bend slightly while he moved the other straight up his body so my ankle was on my shoulder. “Do you have a whole new appreciation of Christmas music?” “Yes, I loved my dirty Christmas song,” I gasped as the angle changed. “You have a beautiful voice, and I even like Mariah when you sing it.” I stared at him with all the emotion I was feeling swimming in my eyes. “I loved it, and I love you. You are the perfect man, my mate.” “I know I’m not perfect,” he moaned as he leaned over me and started thrusting in and out of my willing body. “But I know we’re a perfect fit, and I’m perfect for you.” “Yes you are,” I whispered against his lips as I threw my arms around his neck. Who knew I was this flexible? I sure as hell didn’t! “You ripped my thong,” he accused as he picked up the pace and nailed my prostate each time. “I’ll buy you a thousand replacements.” “One for each striptease you want in the future?” he teased. “Smart and sexy,” I purred. He growled and started fucking me with everything he had. I used my magic to make it feel as if he was being penetrated, too. “Oh shit,” he gasped. “You like that, baby?” I taunted, and he nodded. “You like my tight ass?” “I like everything about you.” His eyes went wide as he started grunting. “Not going to last, Why. You got me too wound up.” “Touch me,” I begged. Daran reached down between us and ran his fingers over the head of my cock. That’s all it took. I cried out his name as I shot streams of cum between us, his abs rubbing my dick in a glorious way. Daran buried his face in my neck and groaned my name as he came, filling my ass with his very essence. I was still riding my peak as my fangs popped out. I sank them into his shoulder, and he

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screamed in pleasure. I felt his cock twitch inside of me as he had another orgasm. My leg slipped off his shoulder as he thrust inside of me gently, extending our pleasure. “You should top more often,” I gasped when we were both done. He merely grunted and collapsed to the side of me, pulling his dick out of my ass in the process. “Is that a yes?” “Give me a minute,” he panted. “Multiple orgasms take a lot out of us humans.” “But you’re special,” I cooed as I snuggled up against him. I licked the side of his neck and decided to tease him. “Your cum is leaking back out of my ass.” “Oh fuck,” he whimpered, and I saw his flagging cock try to recover. “I love my kinky elf.” “I love my hot, wonderful human.” And damn if it wasn’t the truth. I loved Daran like I never thought was possible. I wouldn’t trade him for anything in the world…even if he made me listen to Christmas music every night for the rest of our lives. Besides, I could always just hide his iPod.

THE END WWW.JOYEEFLYNN.COM

ABOUT THE AUTHOR Joyee Flynn grew up in Chicago living in the same house all her life until she left for college. Though she has a great life, she loves to get lost in fantasy that only books could bring. Her wide interest in reading was reflected in her writings. Currently Joyee lives with her dog, Marius, named after a vampire from Anne Rice’s Interview with the Vampire series. She dreams of one day living out in Montana, enough land to have a few horses, and find a couple of cowboys of her own. A lover of men, Joyee’s all about them in any form in her books. Vampire, werewolf, military, doesn’t matter at all as long as they are hot, hard, and sex fiends!

Also by Joyee Flynn Siren Classic ManLove: Who Needs Christmas? 1: Screw Santa Siren Classic ManLove: Who Needs Christmas? 2: Hell’s Bells Siren Classic ManLove: Who Needs Christmas? 3: Stupid Mistletoe Siren Classic ManLove: Who Needs Christmas? 4: Holy Stockings Siren Classic ManLove: Who Needs Christmas? 5: Down with the Tunes

For all other titles, please visit www.bookstrand.com/joyee-flynn

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