The Alpha's Secret, An MMF Erotic Romance (The Stonewall Pack Alpha Series) (8 page)

Chapter 8

Bridget smiled the best she could.

His hand stroked her hair. "Please."

How could she refuse an alpha who was begging? She slid her mouth all the way to the base of his cock.

Gavin's hand tightened in her hair. "Yes."

She timed her actions with Liam's so every time he pushed into her, she took Gavin into her mouth, then pulled back as Liam slid out. They continued for a long time, long enough that she lost track of anything but the feel of her two mates inside her, filling her, joining with her, loving her.

"You close?" Liam said.

"Yeah." Gavin brushed Bridget's hair away from her face. "You close, honey?"

Bridget shook her head once. She didn't want to lose her rhythm.

"No?" Liam said. "I'll take care of that."

She wanted to tell him she didn't need to come again—twice was more than she'd ever had before. But she couldn't easily get loose from Gavin's cock and before she got very far, Liam's fingers slid over her clit, sending a jolt through her body.

Maybe three times was the charm.

It didn't take long before she was moaning just as loudly as her two mates. She struggled to remember not to bite down.

Gavin's hand touched her shoulder. "Now." His voice sounded gravelly.

A second later, he came in her mouth. She held still and swallowed all that he gave her. She had barely pulled free when he and Liam pulled her upright, Liam still pushing into her. Gavin's hand joined his on her clit as he buried his head in the crook of her neck. Liam nuzzled her other shoulder.

They both bit down.

Her scream sounded almost like a howl. The orgasm that crashed over her blotted out nearly every thought except one—mark. She buried her teeth in Gavin's shoulder. His body jerked against hers as though he was coming again, while her body continued to shake.

With all three of them having their teeth in each other, she felt like she never had before. So full, almost complete. Almost…but one thing was missing. She still needed to mark Liam.

As though he'd known what she was thinking, Liam released her. He turned her around and slid back inside her, giving her a long, deep kiss. "Can't hold on much longer."

"You don't have to." She brushed her teeth over his shoulder and bit down.

He immediately came inside her, pushing as deep as he could go. She kept her teeth in him until every shudder had left his body.

Meanwhile, Gavin came up behind her, sandwiching her between them. "We're one," he said.

Liam kissed her gently. "One."

***

Thank heaven they'd gotten her a room with a king-sized bed. Gavin didn't think all three of them could have fit on the double bed in Liam's room. Tucked up against her back, he stroked her hair, still amazed that he could do it. She'd let them in. Finally.

"This doesn't mean I don't want a pre-nup," she said sleepily.

Trust his mate to stay ornery. "You can have anything you want as long as you stay with us."

She shifted so she could see him. "Anything?"

Hmm. Maybe he shouldn't have said that. "Within reason."

Her lips twitched as she settled back into position, her front snuggled against Liam's chest. "I'm going to remember you said 'anything.'"

"You still want to see that therapist?" Liam said.

"Yeah. Maybe once or twice. I mean, everything seems great right now, but that doesn't mean everything's solved."

What a female thing to say. But he did tell her 'anything.' "We'll call first thing in the morning." He didn't think he could keep his eyes open much longer.

The next day, Gavin ate breakfast with his mates then headed home for a few hours. Among other things, he needed to tell his Alpha about his mates, and find out his reaction. Even though Gavin still held out hope his Alpha wouldn't force him to leave, he knew better. Every male who found his mates was given a hearty slap on the back and shown the door. Why would he be any different?

While he did some things at home and packed a bigger bag, Liam and Bridget were going to consolidate into one room and call the therapist.

Gavin tracked down his Alpha at his office. Mason ran a security company. He and Gavin had collaborated on many cases, so Gavin knew the office well. After getting buzzed through and signing in, Gavin was allowed to make his own way to Mason's office.

Mason sat behind his desk working on his computer. "Hey, Gavin. What's up?"

Gavin closed the door behind him. The humans in the office didn't need to overhear pack business. He didn't bother with a long preamble. "Funny thing happened when I went down to Marysburg working on that case. I found my mates."

Mason's face went blank, his mouth dropping open. It took several seconds before he spoke. "Not you."

Gavin shifted from one foot to the other. What did that mean?

Mason leaned forward, forearms on the desk, head tilted down. "I thought at least you would stay with me for good." After several seconds, he looked up as though remembering himself. "Sit."

This wasn't quite the reaction he'd expected. As Gavin sat down in Mason's guest chair, he said, "What do you mean?"

Mason took a deep breath. "That's the problem with having an all-male pack. You lose people you shouldn't have to lose."

Any hope Gavin had had of staying in the pack died. "Why are we all-male? Why not allow females, at least females mated to wolves in the pack?" Even as he said it, he knew he'd enjoyed being in the all-male pack. There was something masculine, something unapologetically strong and fierce about a pack without a single moderating female influence.

Mason spread his hands out on the desk, palms down. "I can't stand to be around them."

Gavin sat up straighter. "Women?"

The look on Mason's face held not a little of the wolf along with a deep anguish Gavin had never seen in him before. "I lost my mates, long ago. Ever since, I can't stand to be around women. Not at all. Not even human women. It's their hair, their eyes, their shape. Everything about them reminds me of what I lost."

Mason nodded toward the window that looked out over the rest of the office. "Not a single woman. You never noticed?"

"It's a male-dominated field. I never thought past that." Gavin couldn't believe he hadn't known his Alpha had had mates. And part of him didn't want to hear it, the part of him that shied away from the idea of anyone losing their mates. Of him, losing Liam and Bridget. How did Mason go on living?

"Good. I never wanted anyone to think past that." Mason stood and walked around the desk to sit next to Gavin. "So I'm sorry, but I can't accept your mates into the pack. Or her, at least. And I know you'll want to be with them. Maybe the D.C. pack will take you all in."

A lot of their mated wolves had gone to the D.C. pack. "I might need to go a little further south. Bridget's in Stonewall pack, down in Marysburg."

"Bridget."

"And Liam."

"The same Liam you introduced me to?" Mason said.

"The same."

Mason clapped him on the shoulder. "He's a good man. Congratulations."

"Thanks." Gavin noticed he'd gotten no congratulations for Bridget, but he couldn't begrudge Mason, not after hearing his story. He did wonder why it was only women and not men who reminded Mason of his mates. But who knew what paths grief took?

"Marysburg, eh? That'll be hard with the business. Or are you abandoning it?"

That was just what Gavin was wondering. "I haven't figured it all out yet. I don't want to abandon it, but Bridget doesn't want to move up here. So we'll have to find some compromise."

"It'll all work out. Is this…is this your official goodbye?"

Gavin knew the rules. Once he'd officially left the pack, he had to be out by sunrise the next morning. "Not yet, if that's okay. I'd like a few more days to pack everything up and kick off the sale of my place."

"No rush."

They talked a little longer, Mason catching Gavin up on pack business, even though Gavin wouldn't need to know for much longer. Then Gavin left, feeling unsure and unhappy. When he reached his car, he turned his phone back on. He'd turned it off while he talked with his Alpha. Liam had left a message.

"The therapist had an opening this morning," Liam said. "If you can get there by eleven, come on by."

He had half an hour. Gavin hopped in the car and headed for Reston, where the therapist's office was. If he drove fast, he could just make it.

***

Liam sat next to Bridget in the waiting room. As eleven o'clock got closer and closer, she became increasingly fidgety. He put his hand over hers. "Relax."

"Easy for you to say. It isn't your brain that's about to be dissected."

He chuckled. "I've talked to therapists before. They're not so bad. Really. They're just people."

She turned her hand palm up and threaded her fingers through his. "Would you go in with me?"

"They usually don't like that."

"But would it hurt? I'd feel better if you were there."

It seemed strange to him that this little woman who had fought them so hard felt so scared. But that had been why she'd fought them, too. And now she was facing that fear directly. She must be terrified.

And brave. Very brave.

"Of course I'll go in with you," he said.

The therapist's door opened and two women—both wolves—walked out. One of them had her coat on and inched her way toward the outside door. Just as the therapist turned toward Bridget and Liam, the outside door swung open and Gavin rushed in.

"Am I too late?" Gavin said.

"Just in time." Liam waved him over.

A few minutes later, the three of them sat on the therapist's couch while Bridget explained why she'd come. The therapist, Maryann, listened to her story then leaned forward.

"If you only have one or maybe two sessions, I suggest hypnotherapy."

Bridget stiffened.

"It'll only be a light hynopsis, more of a relaxation than anything else. All I want to do is relax you enough so that you'll be able to remember what's causing all your anxiety." The therapist's voice was very soothing. She'd probably be good at the hypnosis stuff.

Liam squeezed Bridget's hand. "We'll be right here. Nothing bad will happen."

She squeezed his hand back then grabbed Gavin's hand with her free one. "Okay."

Several minutes later, Bridget sat slumped on the couch, hypnotized. The therapist had made Liam and Gavin move to chairs nearby so they wouldn't disturb her while she was under. Good thing, too, because Liam was having a hard time seeing her like that. She looked so vulnerable. He didn't think he'd be able to resist touching her if he were still sitting next to her.

"I want you to go back," Maryann said. "Back to the time when you decided males owned their female mates. Can you do that?"

After a moment, Bridget softly said, "Mmm-hmm."

"How old are you?"

"Four." Bridget's voice sound faint and dry.

"Where are you?"

Her face crinkling up, Bridget said, "A house."

"Whose house?"

Liam shifted in his chair. It sure was like pulling teeth. But at least they seemed to be getting somewhere.

"Dunno." Bridget's voice sounded young, almost like the four-year-old she'd once been.

"Who's with you?" Maryann said.

Bridget paused. "Ted."

Shit. Maryann sat up straighter. Liam couldn't see her face but from her body language, it looked like she felt the same way he did. Not happy. Not happy at all.

"What's Ted doing?" Maryann's voice sounded just as calm as ever.

Bridget's words came slowly. "Watching football."

"Are you at Ted's house?"

"No."

After more questions and single-word answers, the story spilled out in fits and starts.

"Ted was babysitting me. But he took me to his friends' house and told the female, Jenny, to watch me instead. We were there all afternoon, the three men watching football and yelling for more beer. They pushed their mate around. They bossed Jenny and gave her orders. Then late in the afternoon, Jenny wasn't cooking fast enough. I followed one of her mates into the kitchen and saw him hitting her, over and over. She screamed and cowered away from him, but he wouldn't stop."

God, what a thing for a four-year-old to see. And why the hell was Ted babysitting her?

"How did that make you feel?" Maryann said.

Bridget shifted in her seat. "Sad. I never wanted to be like her."

"So you decided to never have mates?"

She shifted again. "Yeah."

Maryann glanced back at Gavin and gave a little nod. "Your parents were mated, right? Did your fathers treat your mother that way?"

"No." Her answer was swift and definite.

"What about your sisters who are mated? Do they get treated like that?"

"No."

"So not every female mate gets treated that way," Maryann said. "Right?"

Bridget nodded slowly.

"Say it, Bridget."

"Not every female is treated that way."

"Some males treat their female very well," Maryann said. "Say it."

Bridget repeated her words.

"Based on what you've seen so far of Liam and Gavin and not counting what happened when you were a child, do you believe they will treat you well or badly?"

Chapter 9

Bridget's answer came a little slower. "Well."

"You don't sound sure."

"How would I know? They could change."

"Did your brothers-in-law change?"

"No."

"What about your fathers?"

They continued in that vein for a while longer, Maryann convincing Bridget step by step that the incident that had imprinted on her brain when she was just a child was only one of many examples she'd seen. The end of the session neared.

"What I want you to do now is unhook from that memory," Maryann said. "Imagine your emotions are ropes with big hooks on the end and those hooks are lodged tight in that memory. Now pull the hooks out one by one until none are left. Then left the memory drift away."

After waiting a minute, Maryann went on. "I'm going to wake you up now. You will remember everything we've talked about, but the memory we discussed will seem very, very far away and will no longer have any hold over you. It will remain unhooked." She continued to bring Bridget out of the hypnosis and a few minutes later Bridget opened her eyes.