Sweeter than Wine

CHAPTER 4

Sebastian watched Matt, in his furry form, hop up on the leather sectional.

«Mind the claws, you mangy alley cat!»

Matt paused to send a disdainful look over his shoulder as he stretched out in a boneless heap. Relaxing on the couch, he let the change take him.

Christina's gasp called Sebastian's attention back to her. No matter how many times he saw the shift from were to human, it still amazed him. He could only imagine how Christina must feel, seeing it for the first time. When he looked back at the overstuffed couch, Matt lay there in all his naked human glory, staring back at Christina with lust clear in his eyes. For a moment, Sebastian had to work to hold his temper in check.

He had to remind himself, this was what he wanted. He'd asked Matt to help her. More than that, he needed Matt to give Christina some of his speed, agility, and strength. That he'd agreed to do so was unprecedented, but Sebastian had a very special relationship with this particular werecougar. Sebastian had been there for Matt and his brothers after their sister's brutal death at the hands of her crazed mate. Sebastian had helped them hunt down the cougar and dispense justice for his crime. Because of his sister's tragic death, Matt had a soft spot for any woman like Christina, who'd been abused and betrayed by a man who'd promised to love, honor and cherish her.

As a general rule, the various supernatural races didn't mix. Most vampires disdained the were and vice versa. Were blood was a delicacy to vampires, though Christina was too young to realize it. The consumption of were blood allowed them faster healing and much more energy than regular mortal blood, but it was damned near impossible to get. The were had ample means to protect themselves even from ancient vampires, and it just wasn't worth the trouble for a momentary high.

Unless it was your first meal.

Few knew how crucial a newly turned vampire's first meal was to the rest of their existence, but Sebastian knew the secret because of his own experience. Centuries ago, he'd been left alone in the forest after his maker turned him and left him the same night. When he woke, Sebastian had followed the scent of blood to a wounded animal left for dead. Newly turned, he didn't know much, but instinct kicked in and while he couldn't bring himself to feed from a human, he acknowledged his need for blood. Sebastian drank from the injured wolf he found cowering in the undergrowth. The poor creature had two broken legs-one front and one hind-and would require months of rehabilitation if the wounds didn't fester, which was likely in the murky forest.

Sebastian sank his teeth into the creature's neck, startled when it changed under his hands. He tasted the red copper of blood and the burn of what he'd come to know later as magic. Within a few seconds, a young girl lay on the ground where the wolf had been, clutching a broken arm to her chest, one of her legs twisted at an unnatural angle. Her eyes shone with desperate fear and Sebastian was aghast at what he'd almost done. This was no injured animal. Though he'd never seen one before, he realized the poor child was a werewolf.

After calming her fears, they'd struck an accord that night. Sebastian helped the girl get back to her family in exchange for a bit of her blood to keep him going. She was a long way from home and would have died without help, but he was newly turned and needed to feed. Small amounts of her blood fueled him as he carried her back to her pack.

There were tense moments as he returned the youngster, but she was quick to tell them how he'd helped her. After some convincing, her parents were grateful enough to let him live. They gave him a place to sleep for the day, since it had taken the rest of the night to carry her home. Thus was born a lasting friendship between Sebastian and the were. It also propelled him to greater power than any vampire of his age. That's why, only three centuries into his immortal life, he was highly ranked among his kind and could hold his own among some rather powerful-and ancient-friends.

He wanted to give that strength to Christina and the only way to do it was with Matt's help. Though the hunger to make love to her grew to nearly unbearable proportions, tonight she would feed freely from the werecougar for the last time, and on the morrow she would be able to stand on her own against any man-supernatural or otherwise.

«Come over here, sweetheart.» Matt's voice sounded from across the room. She stood between the two men, shifting her weight to one foot, indecision written all over her body.

Sebastian went to her and placed his hands on her shoulders. Kneading her tense muscles, he pulled her back against his chest.

«You need this, my dear, and I need to feed off the energies released when you climax. We both do. Let Matt give you this. Just one more night.»

She surprised him by turning in his arms. «Will you…?» She flushed under his scrutiny and in that moment he could deny her nothing.

«I'll be here with you. I promise.» He gave in to his own desires and kissed her, allowing his hands to drop to her waist and slip under the hem of the baggy sweatshirt. Her skin was so soft, so warm, as he skimmed a seductive path up her small ribcage, tugging the shirt up and out of the way. He had to break the kiss to pull the sweatshirt over her head, but she went right back to him, kissing him breathless as she pressed her soft, bare breasts against his chest, rubbing all over.

A warm presence came up behind her and Sebastian opened his eyes to find Matt grinning at him across the top of Christina's petite head. With a few tugs, the werecougar relieved her of her pants and she was bare between them. She made a delicious whimpering sound against Sebastian's lips as Matt's hand settled between her thighs and began to rub.

It was almost too much for Sebastian. This night was for Christina and Matt. She had to feed from the cougar and fuck him several more times before Sebastian would be satisfied that all the benefits of Matt's blood and lust had been realized in her transformed system.

With a suppressed groan, Sebastian stepped back, ducking out of her hold, though he couldn't free himself of her pleading gaze. Matt turned her in his arms and Sebastian gave a sigh of relief when she could no longer see him. That had been close. Sebastian had almost given in to the desire plaguing him since the moment he first saw her, but it wasn't yet time. He would have her-repeatedly-but not just yet. No, he had to be absolutely certain she was as strong as she could be before he took her and discovered whether or not she was the woman he'd been searching for all these years.

Even if she wasn't his One, he knew he'd keep her as his lover for many years to come. It would take at least a decade to sate the lust riding him for this petite woman. And that was only the tip of the iceberg. He could see himself fucking her happily well into the next century.

But first things first.

He watched with forced detachment as Matt cupped her fleshy buttocks. He backed toward the couch, taking her with him as he kissed her. She was under his spell now, that magical were tongue doing its job on her senses, no doubt. Matt sat, pulling her over him, forcing her legs apart to straddle him on the couch. One hand teased a nipple, while the other settled in the folds of her pussy.

She squirmed on his lap, her heart-shaped ass lifting and rolling in a way that made even Sebastian's loose karate pants too tight to bear. He shifted, adjusting himself, but couldn't draw his eyes away from the arousing picture of Christina, naked and spread, on Matt's thighs.

«She's wet and ready for me, Sebastian.» Matt insisted on increasing Sebastian's level of discomfort by giving him a play by play. But Sebastian was a strong man. He'd play along.

«Then what are you waiting for?»

Sebastian could see three of Matt's fingers pushing deep inside her body as she rose up on her knees and let out a keening cry. She was more than ready. And so was he, but he had to refrain this night. It was too important not to.

«Good question.» Matt removed his fingers, and positioned his cock in their place as he guided her down onto him with one hand on her shoulder. Christina was lost in pleasure, her head thrown back, her mouth open as she panted, her eyes shut tight. She moved down onto Matt's body, biting her lip as the pleasure seemed to overwhelm her.

The alluring sight was nearly his undoing. Sebastian couldn't help himself. He moved closer.

«Ride him, sweet. Take him as far as he can go inside you.»

«Sebastian!» Something inside roared when she cried out his name as her body tensed around Matt's. When she quieted, Matt lifted her and placed her on her back, positioning himself between her thighs and driving home again. He hadn't come, though she'd certainly felt the first of many completions she'd experience that night. Sebastian moved closer to look down at her beautiful face. Her gaze held his as Matt pushed her to another high, this time going over himself, sending his potent were seed deep inside her.

Matt sat back after a few minutes and smiled. «Well, that took the edge off. How are you feeling, sweet thing?» He trailed his large, calloused fingers over her soft, damp skin. That last orgasm had been a strong one and she quite obviously needed a little time to recover. Sebastian realized also that she hadn't fed. That would have to be rectified sooner rather than later. Perhaps now was a good time to teach her to bite without fucking, for she certainly wouldn't want to fuck every mortal she might feed from in the future, if she proved to not be his mate. Even if she was, it was his duty to prepare her for every eventuality, and there was always a possibility that she would have to feed off mortals in certain situations.

Sebastian lifted her shoulders and sat behind her, supporting her as she floated back to earth. He couldn't resist reaching down to tease her pouting nipples. They bloomed under his touch and her eyes opened.

«You didn't feed, little one.»

She looked up at him, a charming, embarrassed flush staining her cheeks. He realized she probably perceived his words as criticism and it hit him like a blow to the chest. He hated the look of self-conscious insecurity on her face. Dipping his head, he kissed her open mouth, wiping the fear away with his tongue as he turned her around to face him on the couch.

«That wasn't a complaint about your performance.» He drew back to meet her gaze. «Merely an observation. You need to feed.»

A smile broke over her lips and warmed his heart. «So what do you want me to do?»

«Go to Matt.» Those three words were harder than any he'd ever spoken, though she'd never know it. He didn't have it in him to push her toward the other man, but she turned nonetheless, following his spoken orders.

Matt tipped his head to the side, guiding her with one hand on the nape of her neck. Matt watched Sebastian, and Sebastian watched them both.

«Feel for the sweet spot with your tongue,» Sebastian coached. «Take your time. Reach out and dampen his pain with your mind if you can.» Sebastian checked, extending his own power, glad to find she was already exerting her new power to protect Matt. She was a natural when it came to not causing another being pain, but he should have expected it. Her life to this point had been one of self-sacrifice to the point of foolishness. «Have you found it?»

She nodded slightly as she dragged her luscious lips over Matt's neck. Sebastian envied the younger man in that moment, more than he'd ever envied another being in his long life.

«When you're ready, bite him. Do it fast to cause the least trauma.»

Sebastian felt the moment of her decision, saw the way her delicate jaw moved, clamping down on Matt's corded throat as she sank her teeth in and sucked. Matt jumped too, but in a movement of pleasure, not pain. Sebastian could clearly see the werecougar's cock hardening once more next to Christina's hip.

She fed well this time, letting go just at the point where Sebastian would have told her to leave off.

«Very well done, my dear,» Sebastian complimented her as she smiled. Her new fangs were petite, just like her, and sexier than hell.

«You taste good, Matt. Have I thanked you yet for helping me this way?» Her eyes grew serious as she turned to the other man. «I'll never be able to repay you,» her voice broke with emotion, «for this gift.» She held out her hand, taking Sebastian's, surprising him. «Either of you.» She squeezed Sebastian's fingers. «You gave me a second chance, and you,» she looked at Matt, «have given me a strength I'd never otherwise have. Sebastian told me, Matt, and all I can do is say thank you.» She shrugged with a soft smile. «It seems inadequate.»

Matt regarded her with a serious expression. «Just promise me you'll use this power well. Help others when you can.»

She nodded. «I will. I promise.»

«That's good enough for me.» Matt stood and picked her up, dumping her back on the sectional couch on her hands and knees. «Now for some more fun. Are you game?»

Sebastian fled the couch, afraid if he stayed near her head, he wouldn't be able to resist the idea of feeling her mouth on his cock. That would come soon enough. Tonight was for her. He had to keep reminding himself of that.

By the time he looked back, Matt had mounted her from behind, driving his cock deep as she moaned, her breasts swinging in a rhythmic, arousing display under her as Matt pounded home. He varied the speed and depth of his thrusts, kneeling behind her on the couch, watching her ass with a speculative expression.

«If you were a cougar, and we were fucking in our fur,» Matt mused as he stroked his big hands over her rear, «your tail would be right about…» he spread her cheeks and rubbed one big thumb over, then above the tiny hole, «…here.» He rubbed again and she moaned. He sped up his thrusts, both nearing another pinnacle. «Fucking as a cat is nice, but nothing beats…the human…experience.» He punctuated his words with hard thrusts that lifted her off her knees as she cried out in the grip of another huge orgasm.

Matt followed her over the cliff, but pulled out after a few quick spurts inside her, spending himself in the crack of her ass. Sebastian almost feared what he could predict was coming next.

Matt leaned over her, resting a moment as he used one hand to rub his semen into the crack of her ass, using it as lubrication for his fingers. One dipped inside the tight rosette as she whimpered, but it wasn't in distress. Sebastian watched her every reaction. He'd stop this at the first sign of trouble, regardless of the fact that she needed as much of Matt in her-in every place possible-to grow as strong as she possibly could from this encounter.

«You like this, sweetheart?» Matt whispered as he bit down on her earlobe. «You like my fingers in your ass?»

She panted as he added another finger, stretching her. «Yes!» she cried and Sebastian's cock hardened to the point of pain at the sexual anguish in her voice. «Yes!»

«Then you'll like this even more, I bet.» Matt didn't rush. He pulled his fingers from her, observing her level of readiness before proceeding. He was nothing if not a careful lover, which Sebastian was glad of at this moment. He wouldn't have trusted any other man to initiate Christina this way. Matt rose so he could feed his cock-hard once again-into the tight rosette he'd stretched and made ready.

Sebastian moved closer, lured by the sight. He was entranced by the look on Christina's beautiful face. She was in some far-off place where pleasure mixed with pain. He knew it well. It was the realm of the vampire, the one that fed them and claimed them as they fed. Ecstasy edged with the barest hint of pain was their existence.

Matt, by contrast, was earthy and very mortal, regardless of the fact he would live the length of several human lifetimes, as did most were. He was careful with Christina, but he could never understand that realm where the vampire dwelled and flourished. Not completely.

Sebastian wanted so badly to join Christina in that place. He wanted to be inside her, his cock in her pussy, his fangs in her flesh, hers in his as they fed on each other, so close none could tell where one began and the other ended. He wanted all that. With her. Only her.

But not yet. He could wait. He must.

Once more should do it.

Let Matt have her this one last time and then she could rest and recover. Sebastian would bide his time until she became his alone.

Matt seated himself fully in her tight ass as Sebastian watched, his mouth dry, his pulse pounding through his body. Matt shifted and sat back on the couch, bringing

Christina with him in an unexpected move that set off another climax in her quivering body. Matt sat, content to have her on his lap, her legs straddling his, his cock buried in her ass.

But Christina wasn't coming down. She was strung taut on the edge of something huge, and clearly in distress. Sebastian moved in front of her, wanting to help. Her eyes opened and the fire in her gaze struck him like a body blow. Her expression pleaded.

«Sebastian!»

Matt's hands moved around and spread her pussy, playing with her clit as Sebastian watched, entranced. «There's room for one more here, old buddy. Want to join us?» The werecougar licked her ear and bit down on the fleshy lobe from behind. «I bet she'd like it.» Matt seemed unaware of the danger. Sebastian was a man on the edge of control, a beast barely leashed.

«I cannot,» Sebastian breathed, knowing he shouldn't, but wanting nothing more than to join with the woman whose eyes pled with him, whose heart tugged at his.

«Sebastian,» she panted, in an agony of desire, «I need you. Please! I'm begging you!»

It was the begging note in her voice that pushed him beyond reason. With a growl, Sebastian lost control of the beast within. He tugged down his loose pants and knelt on the couch in front of her, between Matt's legs. With a single, harsh thrust, he joined with her, plunging and fucking like a wild animal.

Teeth bared, he pulled her forward, his cock tight within her pussy while Matt's filled her behind, but Sebastian was too far gone to know or care for possible consequences. He fucked her hard, nuzzling into her neck, panting hot breaths across her skin as she did the same. His mouth sought and found the point of her pulse, the sweet spot of her neck, savoring only a moment before plunging home with his fangs at the same time as his cock.

Dimly, he registered the feel of her petite fangs buried in his flesh and the wonderful feel of her sucking sent him over the edge of all reason. He sucked and fucked, coming to a blinding orgasm in a huge fireball of urgency that swept all three of them up in it together.

He blacked out for a while, but as he came back, knowledge filled him.

She was in him.

As he was in her.

Her blood, her body, her lovely mind was joined with his, as he was with her. They were true mates. She was his One.

«Christina.»

«Sebastian? What is this?»

«The true bond. Can't you feel it? We're joined. Now and forever more.»

He lifted away from her and pulled free of her luscious body. In the wonder of finding his mate, he'd forgotten momentarily about the shapeshifter. He'd been part of them as the bond had formed. What consequences could that have? He didn't know.

«Matt? Are you all right?»

The werecougar shook his head as if coming out of a stupor. And perhaps he was. «Holy shit. What was that?»