Page 20 of Tethered Magick

“I could hug you,” I said on a nod.

“Then why don’t you?” he teased.

I was on him before he had a chance to say anything else. Strong arms came around me, and his biceps flexed as he lifted me off the ground and carried me away from the mass of men left groaning in our absence.

Dason managed them while Jolon ignored their rising frustration.

“They’ll wait,” he assured me, his breath tickling my ear.

Soon, all my favorite scents surrounded me, and I was settled on Jolon’s lap with a burger in my hands.

“Medium, right?” Chayton nodded toward the burger, but I’d already stuffed it in my mouth.

I groaned around a bite, ketchup smudging on my lips. I didn’t even care. My tongue was in heaven, and my stomach chose that moment to growl loudly.

“It’s perfect.”

“It could have been charred, and I think she would have happily eaten it,” Kota told him.

Axel shook his head. “She’s been scenting these dudes for two hours.” His fingers gripped his red solo cup hard enough to squish the sides.

“My nose hurts,” I complained. “It’s not that they all smell bad, but they don’t smell like mine.”

“It’s not feasible that you’d take on many more mates.” Chayton stood and rounded the chairs until he reached a cooler. He pulled out a water bottle and tossed it to Syler, who caught it midair.

He opened it and offered it to me, and I gave him a sweet smile of thanks when he passed it over.

The bottle was cold to the touch, but the icy water was soothing against the heat of the fire roaring a few feet away.

After living in the stuffy company of witches and warlocks all my life, I enjoyed the relaxed gatherings of the shadow touched people.

“How many more do I have left?” I questioned, not bothering to try and assess the situation myself.

Axel studied the scene behind me, the line that seemed infinite.

“Do you really want to know?” he asked sheepishly.

I winced. “Probably not.”

This was harder than it looked. So many of the men I’d turned away looked crestfallen. Others were angry at being denied a chance at a true mate. Some seemed relieved, and I figured out that a number of them had already chosen mates and were settled into relationships. Those women had been glaring at me all evening, not that I blamed them.

Mara and her friends hadn’t spared me any assessing looks either, and I hadn’t missed the flash of pained longing across Mara’s face when I wound up in Dason’s arms.

I sighed, and my men felt my distress through our bond. They sent reassurances while I devoured the rest of my food and forced myself off of Jolon’s lap. He followed me up.

“One last push and then I get to take you home and show you how proud of you I am,” Jolon murmured in my ear as he leaned over my shoulder. His lips brushed along my neck, sending shivers down my spine.

Axel boxed me in, his hands cupping my face as he lifted my eyes to meet his. “Make that two of us,” he purred. I met him halfway as he kissed me. His tongue tangled with mine, the taste of him fresh in my mouth while Jolon trailed one, two, three kisses up my throat. Being between two men had me squirming. Never in my life had I dreamed of being with more than one man before, but now that I had six mates, it’d become more than a passing daydream.

My head was spinning by the time they were done with me, and Syler scooped me up next. I squeaked as I wrapped my legs around his waist. Large hands settled on my ass, and my fingers dug into his hair.

Boldly, I swooped down and kissed my quiet mate, sucking his bottom lip before releasing him. His chest rumbled below me, and he stole one more graze across my mouth, one more sweep of his tongue, before setting me on my feet.

Chayton took my hand and pulled me into his chest. “You’re handling this all so well,nizhóni.”

My fingers toyed with the braid over Chayton’s shoulder. “Are you going to reward me when we get home too?” I asked huskily.

“You think you can handle all that focused attention?” Chayton murmured, his eyes hooded, his desire written clearly on his face.