ANNE MARIE’S POV:
The two hive pack leaders are still stuck in my head. I wait for Sienna's breathing to level out before Nix and I finally give in to the sleep we need. My eyelids feel heavy, but Marcus keeps looping in my mind like a glitchy projector. He and Dr. Greyson visited Lord Jeffrey, Patrick's vampire son. Being near him made my skin prickle and my abdomen ache; it was a reminder of a life that is gone. Something I'll always miss and never get back.
"He recognized us, Annie. Not just our scent, but..." Nix says in the back of my mind.
"Yeah. He definitely knew who we..." I cut myself off, morning the life stolen. My throat is dry.
Onyx stared right at me (through Marcus’ eyes) while Sienna and I hid behind that fern. His eyes were beautiful but sad. I can still smell the scent of fresh pine and wet stone on him. How he remembers me is a mystery for another day. Sleep pulls me under.
Then it hits. The dreamscape. The life where I was twenty four. Gaia, the Moon Goddess, pushes the remnants of it back into my skull.
— ♡ ♡ ♡ —
Oliver is too efficient. I am in Marcus's office (it smells like old bourbon, that sharp, stinging scent of rubbing alcohol) and the lights are too bright.
"Oliver, assist Anne Marie onto the bed, would you" Marcus commands.
Oliver guides me to the gurney. His hands are cold.
"Come now, Miss Rightfield," he says, steadying my arm.
"Thank you," I say, pulling the thin gown tighter. I lie back and shift my weight.
Click, click. Leather straps lock around my wrists and ankles. The buckles bite into my skin. My heart hammers against my ribs. Oliver moves fast; too fast. I whimper, my eyes asking him why.
"Mr. Walker requires absolute stillness for this," Oliver explains. My stomach feels heavy and hot.
Marcus scrubs his hands at the sink. The water splashes against the porcelain. It is too loud.
"Oh, this is going to be fun," Nix says in my head. Fun? I am strapped down like a frog in a lab.
"Marcus?" My voice is shaky. "Is this really necessary …?"
Marcus flicks his wrist to dismiss Oliver. He quickly leaves. The door clicks shut.
"Yes indeed, my love," he says, snapping on blue latex gloves. He looks at me like I am something he owns. "Your heat cycle is starting. We need to stabilize it before..." He trails off and traces the leather strap on my ankle. "...before complications arise with the twins."
The twins? I don't get it. The door swings open and Dr. Lucas Knox walks in, unannounced, with a grin.
"Marcus, old friend! Ready to examine Anne Marie?" he asks.
"Yes, thrilled!" Marcus smirks. He is not acting like a professional. This is not like him.
Lucas chuckles and looks at the straps. "Marcus, what are these for? Annie is not feral."
"Those are of no concern to you," Marcus growls. He drags his fingers along the leather, looking amused, a smile about to break. "Anne Marie requires... special handling."
“Am I in heat?” I ask Nix (mentally). I can't tell if the smell of my own skin is too strong. “Am I going feral?”
Lucas sniffs the air. He looks at Marcus.
"Marcus, her pheromones are spiked." he admits, then looks at me. "But these restraints are excessive. She is seven months pregnant. This feels like one of your... games."
Marcus ignores him. Lucas puts on his gloves.
"Alright, Anne Marie, let's assess those pups. Shall we?" Lucas's tone is professional, but he is still smirking. "Okay... legs already spread. Good, good." (Not that I can help it)
The air is cold on my skin when he lifts the gown. I instinctively try to move my legs, but can’t because of the restraints. Lucas presses his fingers into my belly.
"Strong heartbeats, excellent fetal movement," he notes. Marcus watches. His gray-blue eyes go dark. "Feel here, Marcus," Lucas guides his hand. "...that is Peter's head. And this curve? Marcus Jr.'s spine."
Marcus touches me. His fingers brush my inner thigh. Not an accident. I moan.
"He loves how we react," Nix says. "He knows we like his touch"
Marcus does it again. Lucas arches a brow.
"Getting a bit... personal, aren't we?" he chuckles.
Marcus ignores him and rubs his thumb over my clit. I squirm against the leather.
"They are mine," he growls. "Her condition requires my... direct intervention."
"Dude, you are no doctor," Lucas counters. He pulls Marcus's hand away, but his own hand stays on my stomach (protectively). "And you are only agitating her heat. Anne Marie needs calmness, Marcus. Not your... erotic desires."
I actually do want it.
Marcus does not listen. He never does. His eyes turn glowing green.
"Mine." The word rumbles in his chest. His alpha aura hits the room like a thick weight, pushing Lucas back until it hums against my skin. "Her heat is my responsibility. The pups respond to my touch... not sterile instruments... or book-smart nerds."
Lucas chuckles and leans against the desk.
"Alright, Marcus. Play your little game," he says, tossing his gloves into the bin. "But I am staying. Protocol requires an attending physician during any... uneducated, medically involved interventions. Y'know?"
My breath hitches. I know where this is going. My body aches. This is right down Lucas's alley.
"Proceed," Lucas demands.
Marcus does not hesitate. He palms himself through his dress pants. He moves slowly, stroking.
"Anne Marie." His voice is rough. "Your heat calls to Onyx. These restraints?" He tugs on the cuffs. "Not for your safety. For your pleasure. To keep you... receptive."
I moan, trying to press my thighs together.
"Marcus, please... Lucas is watching," I say. My voice is shaking.
The straps dig into my skin as I arch. Marcus's eyes are Onyx’s (glowing green).
"Okay, man. Look..." Lucas exhales and rubs his face. "Should I just... step out?"
"Yes. Now!" Marcus growls.
Lucas smirks and heads for the door. I catch that boner poking through his scrubs.
"Don't get too naughty or rough," he teases. He winks at me. "Remember, the babies..."
The door doesn't even click shut before Marcus rips my medical gown open. My breasts spill out; nipples hardening under his stare.
"Goddess, you're..."
He doesn't finish before his mouth hits me. His teeth scrape my skin and he sucks hard.
"Marcus... the bab..."
I writhe against the leather straps. My buds become tight and taut in his mouth.
"Shhh." He breathes against my peak.
He drags his lips up my throat; his teeth graze my mark. He slides his hand between my thighs, slipping his fingers up and down my clit.
"So wet for me, Bean Sprout."
That nickname is a nuisance. My dad used it, but Marcus makes it sound like a dirty joke. He pushes in, rubbing a specific spot inside me until I gasp.
"Ooo, Marcus…"
"Feel that?" His voice is gravelly. "That's Onyx calling to Nix. Your heat is a fire, Annie. Only my knot cools it..."
He stops. Pulls out. Presses his cockhead against my entrance; it is straining, still hidden behind his dress pants.
"Look at me."
I look. His eyes still have that green glow.
"This isn't just fucking. It's pack..."
"Law," I mutter, finishing his thought.
"My Beta seed grounds you."
He grinds his clothed erection against my clit. I scream and buck against the restraints.
"Your body knows its purpose," he growls. He looms over the gurney and loosens his belt. "To take me. To pleasure me. To fuck… Ahhh…!"
He doesn't finish. He frees himself and slides into me in one deep thrust. I sob. I feel stretched to the limit.
"Marcus, please... let me go… I’m fragile…" I breathe, begging.
"Fragile?"
He chuckles and drives deeper.
"Your wolf begs for this, Anne Marie. Your womb craves it..." He presses a hand against my swollen belly. The pups kick against his palm. "See? Even they know..."
"Let him claim us, Annie," Nix growls in my skull.
Marcus sinks his fangs into my neck and sucks. He pistons deeper and harder. Then his fangs retract.
"Cum for me, my mate."
He licks my neck, the open wound starting to seal. I am close. His rhythm changes; he rolls his hips and stays shallow until the heat coils inside me. He leans down and swallows my moans with his mouth. We kiss. He thumb-flicks my nipples. My whimpers vanish as our wolves merge. Nix and Onyx snarl together; the sound vibrates in my chest. The twins kick hard.
He kisses me again and drives his hips.
"Stop fighting the restraints, Anne Marie," Marcus growls. "Your submission pleases Onyx... and he'll please you..."
He flicks his tongue over my nipple. I feel a jolt go to my toes. I arch into him despite the leather biting into my wrists.
"Marcus... please...?" My voice is raw.
"Cum for me," he rumbles against my other nipple. "Your heat demands completion, Annie. Pack law binds us. A Beta anchors his mate during a frenzy..."
I shatter as he clamps his mouth around my nipple again. My walls clench around him. My scream is muffled against his shoulder. His knot swells inside me; it feels thick and insistent.
"Marcus!"
I screech. Another orgasm rips through me (it burns) and I tremble against the leather.
"This is pack law? You're inventing shit now..."
Aftershocks make my thighs quiver. He roars and spills into me. His knot locks us together. He sinks his fangs into my neck and reopens the mark again. Blood fills my mouth because I bit my lip; it tastes like pennies. He collapses over me. Our sweat-slick skin sticks together.
"Always... you will forever be mine..." He murmurs into my hair.
Outside the window, Wolf Springs is just a city. Busy and bustling; oblivious to us. In here, everything is hot. He unhooks my wrists and kisses the raw marks.
"Forgive me, Bean Sprout?"
He traces my jaw.
"Onyx needed..."
He leaves it there. He frees my ankles; the leather has left red bands.
"He needed this?" I rub my wrists. "Marcus, you conjured pack law out of thin air. Again. Just to torture me into this... and to please your wolf."
He chuckles and helps me sit up. I grab my belly. He traces the bite on my neck.
"Sweet torture?" I exhale.
He smirks.
"Annie, your heat needed anchoring. Onyx sensed the twins' distress... your pheromones were spiking. A Beta's knot grounds a she-wolf's frenzy during pregnancy. Basic hive pack..."
"Let me guess… Physiology?" I slap his shoulder and wince as I stretch. "Since when are you a doctor? You just wanted an excuse to tie me down and..."
"Told you, Annie," Nix purrs in my head, cutting me off. "Fun. Fun. Fun..."
The scent of old wolf, expensive cologne and copper (my own blood) fills my nose as Marcus hauls me from the gurney to the couch.
He wraps me in a cashmere throw. My skin feels tight and itchy where he marked me.
"Basic physiology," I mutter, tracing the bite on his shoulder where Nix fought back through me. "Next, you'll say hive pack law requires foot..."
"Yes. New rule just now," he says, interrupting me. He brushes hair from my forehead; his hand is heavy. "Foot rubs are mandatory post-knotting..."
He kneels before me. His palms are hot against my ankle as the blanket slips. He digs his thumbs into my arch; it's a hard, bruising pressure. But it feels absolutely divine. Nix and I purr inside.
"Hive pack physiology 101, Annie. Post-knotting foot care prevents..." he lectures, like he's reading a manual.
"Oh, stop decreeing fake laws just for kicks..." I swat his head.
Marcus grins, pushing his thumbs deeper into the muscle.
"Fake? Never. Article 0 point 7, Section 3 of the Hive Pack Accords: 'Post-knotting foot rubs are an Alpha's solemn duty'..." He winks, his voice hitting that British tone. "Or Beta's, in my case..."