The Brink by Shayla Black

Light spilled from the bathroom, illuminating Raine as she rose. She trembled and bit her lip, looking vulnerable as she stared at him stretched out before her. The little furrow appeared between her brows. He’d given her a command that wasn’t easy, and anticipation tightened Liam’s chest as he waited to see what she would do.

She slipped onto the bed next to him, and he released his cock. He couldn’t do anything to it that she couldn’t—and make him feel much better. But Raine didn’t start there; she merely braced herself on his chest and gazed into his eyes.

“I’ll do my best,” she murmured. “Because I love you.”

Liam absorbed her vow as she dropped a kiss to his chest, his jaw, one cheek, then the other. A fleeting press of her lips in each spot had him closing his eyes… He barely had time to process how moving he found every touch before she gave him another brush of a kiss elsewhere.

Raine climbed farther up his body until her face hovered over his. Dark obscured her expression. Liam hated that he couldn’t see what lay in her eyes.

“Turn on the lamp,” he insisted.

She didn’t hesitate before she did as he bid. Soft light poured from the fixture on the nightstand, spilling over the bed.

“Better?” she asked.

He nodded. “Come back where you were.”

When he held out his arm to her, she settled into the crook instantly. Now he could see all the curves and delicate lines of her face. Her expression held nothing back. Raine wasn’t sure how to give him what he’d asked for, but that stubborn chin and her determined mien told him that she’d give her all trying.

That effort alone warmed him. She wanted to please him. Hell, she already was. But he let her continue because he needed to feel her love in the most tangible, visceral way.

Raine eased closer, her warm breath spilling onto his lips. “Because I love you.”

He’d barely comprehended her whisper before she layered her mouth over his. Liam tasted her solemn vow as he parted her lips and climbed in deeper. Yes, he’d asked her to give to him, but he found himself impatient for more—for all of her. Thankfully, she didn’t seem to mind, just complied with his wordless demand, stroking his tongue with her own and cradling his face in her small palm.

Liam couldn’t keep his hands to himself. His fingers found their way into her hair, tugging slightly to change the angle of their kiss. The other curled between them to yank at the belt of her robe until it slithered apart.

As he reached under the silky garment and skated a palm down her hip, she pulled back with a little grin. “Because I love you.”

Then Raine eased down his body, lying half atop him, and bent her head to take one of his nipples in her mouth, flicking it with her tongue and teasing him. A jolt of desire buckled him. He’d never thought of the nubs as particularly sensitive, but he’d been damn wrong. The minx had proven him wrong.

She eased one thigh between his, and he felt her knee barely graze his balls. The heat of her naked pussy blasted his hip. She pressed her soft breasts to his side and wriggled her damp folds against him with a little moan. A blaze of need flared inside him, and Liam grabbed handfuls of her silk robe, trying not to tear it off her body and mount her. Letting her love him in her way was sorely testing his control.

With a hiss, he cupped her nape and pressed her head into his chest. She took him deeper, laving his sensitive flesh. Liam groaned hoarsely. He’d already been hard. Now, Raine made him ache for her touch and the sharp, divine release only she could give him.

In his arms, she squirmed until he eased up on his hold and kissed her way to his other distended nipple. As she worked it into her mouth, another jolt of sensation zapped him. Desire pooled low in his belly, revved his blood. God, the woman drove him mad.

With another lap of her tongue, she pulled away. He wanted to protest. The Dom inside him ached to take over and command all her satin flesh for his pleasure. But he needed to know how else she intended to make love to him.

Raine gave him a shy smile, then dropped her gaze to his chest and started feathering her lips down his sternum, down his abdomen, down even lower…

She nipped and licked at the skin around his navel, avoiding his cock throbbing for her attention. Every muscle in his body went taut as she teased the skin of his stomach, dipped her tongue into his belly button, then breathed over the sensitive head.

Dear fucking hell, how long did she expect him to lie back and do nothing? Was she proving her love or simply tormenting him? It felt like a fine line. He began to sweat.

Propping herself up on her hands and knees, Raine shimmied down his body. He caught a mere glimpse of the bite marks on her breasts, saw a few on her neck. They’d infuriated Liam when he’d been convinced she’d never love him the way she loved Hammer. But now that she’d invited him to leave his own, Liam found himself staking out her skin, seeing where he could brand her as his, too.

Then she chased all thought from his head as she caressed one of his thighs and dipped her head to drag her teeth over the other. She sucked at him, giving him a little love mark. Then another farther up. Another inward. And another just under his balls.

Unable to stop himself, Liam tangled his fingers in her hair. “The amount of teasing I’ll take has its limits, love. Remember the expression about paybacks.”

She tipped her chin up, resting it on his belly. If she turned her mouth, it would be right on his cock. Damn it, woman…

Instead, she simply grinned. “I’ll keep that in mind, Sir.”

Suddenly, the door opened. A shadow darkened the portal. Liam would have recognized the shape anywhere.

Hammer dragged a chair into the room, at the side of the bed, and stared at Raine on top of him, putting her little mouth all over him. “Work your magic, precious. Bring him back to us.”

Liam couldn’t miss the approval on Hammer’s face. His acceptance and Raine’s openness touched him. After the meltdown earlier, instead of rubbing his nose in his mistake, they’d simply cared enough to understand, forgive him, and love him back.

Emotion lumped in his throat, clogging him. He loved them both. The two most important people in his world.

Liam sent Hammer a grateful nod, then the man plopped into his chair with a wink.

“I asked Hammer to join us because you’re a part of us,” Raine murmured. “There’s nothing of mine that belongs exclusively to him, especially my heart.”

“I can feel that in your touch,” he managed to choke out.

“Good. Take whatever you need from me, Liam.” She wore every emotion in her big, blue eyes. “Because I love you.”

A few days ago, she hadn’t yet told him what was in her heart. Now she couldn’t seem to say it enough, and that moved him more than he had words to express.

And then he didn’t think anything because she took his cock in hand. Her eyes fluttered shut as she closed her lips around him with a moan. Her tongue swirled. Liam felt her devotion as she worshipped him with her mouth.

All the blood left his head, rushing south, right to the center of the pleasure she heaped on him. Her head bobbed as she laved him up and down, sucking him deeper with every pull, then stroking his crest with the flat of her tongue, only to ease back and work the little spot just beneath before starting the cycle all over again. Liam gritted his teeth and shoved his hands into her hair once more, so fucking ready to throw her onto her back.

“Raine…” he growled out, desperate to urge her faster.

She answered him by scraping his sensitive head with her teeth ever so gently, cupping his balls…and pulling away.

“Am I proving my love to you?” she asked in a husky voice.

He fisted her hair and dragged in deep breaths. “You’re proving how well you can test my restraint.”

“I might be. But it’s only because I love you. I don’t want you to ever doubt it again.”

It was all he could do to hold in a groan. “Our wee lass has turned into a tease, Hammer.”

His best mate laughed. “She’s teasing the fuck out of me. I can only imagine how you’re feeling. Good luck with that, man.”

“I’d have better luck if she lost the robe.”

“I’d be more than happy to.” Raine pulled it off her shoulders in a slow caress, then tossed it to the floor.

Liam groaned. Hammer did the same. Then Liam heard the hiss of a zipper and saw Hammer freeing his own cock to stroke its length. Then Raine eased one of her thighs over his body, straddling him, and leaned forward until the tip of his cock nudged her opening. He stopped thinking. God, he’d give anything to take her bareback.

But she leaned forward and braced her hands on his shoulders, bending until her plump breasts swayed in his face. Liam’s mouth watered. He loved her nipples something fierce—big and hard and sweet.

He captured one between his lips and gave it a mighty suck. Raine gasped and threw her head back. Liam watched her arousal climb, transfixed. Her lips and cheeks turned rosy. She softened everywhere. He couldn’t wait to be inside her.

But Hammer’s telltale bite mark taunted him, a red beacon mere inches from his mouth. He found himself nipping at the flesh just beside it.

“Yes,” she panted. “Yes. Please let me feel your teeth, Sir.”

Everything inside him jerked to plant his mark on her. He gripped her arms as his mouth hovered just over the pristine spot he wanted to call his own, the territory he wanted to look at tomorrow and know with pride that she wore a part of him.

“Aren’t you sore, love? I don’t want to hurt you.”

“You’ll hurt me far more if you don’t. Please…”

Fuck, how was he to say no to that? And why would he bother?

Liam sank his teeth into the firm flesh of her breast, right beside Hammer’s brand. He sucked hard, bit deep—and felt need grip him mercilessly by the balls. Raine whimpered and dug her fingernails into his scalp. Her whole chest moved as she breathed with him, his teeth still steeped into her skin.

He fucking didn’t want to let her go, but he pulled back to ensure that he wasn’t hurting her. The rapture on her face made his restraint vanish.

Raine did want his marks, didn’t only want Hammer’s. Liam couldn’t wait to give her more.

“Scoot forward and lean closer,” he demanded.

She did it without question. Liam gripped her hips and bit at the underside of her breast, nipped at her ribs, dragged his tongue up her belly. Then he caught sight of the impression of Hammer’s teeth on her pussy. Instead of feeling jealous that another man had left his brand on their girl, Liam imagined how erotic it must have been the moment Hammer felt her most tender flesh giving way to his unyielding need.

Liam wanted that for himself and almost thanked Hammer for the excellent notion.

“Closer,” he barked at Raine. “Give me your pussy.”

She rushed to comply. “Thank you, Sir.”

Her heartfelt reply and total appreciation for even the idea of his teeth on her tender pussy ratcheted up his ache even more. He couldn’t get his mouth on her fast enough.

Stroking her clit with his tongue for a long moment and hearing Raine catch her breath sent a heady rush through Liam’s bloodstream. She was a goddamn drug, and he’d become a fucking addict. He didn’t care. The moment her flavor hit his tongue, something in him snapped. The most primal part of his nature roared.

Easing back, he let his bottom teeth barely graze her clit. He kept her hanging there, balancing on a knife’s edge. Her thighs tensed. Wetness gushed. Her pleading moans rang in his ears.

“I need this,” she whimpered. “I need you. Liam…”

He planted his teeth in the fleshy pad above her clit and bit down ruthlessly. She screamed. Her body jerked as if he’d hooked her up to a live wire. For a moment, he worried that he’d hurt her. Then she reached for her nipples and pinched them hard, tugging, twisting, squeezing.

The sight had him sucking at her mound, then testing the fleshy pad with his bite once more.

“Yes. Yes!” she cried. “I want to see you there tomorrow. Because I love you.”

“I love you, too, Raine. I need to be inside you.” He sounded gruff, impatient.

She didn’t care at all. She slid down his torso. Liam caught sight of the fresh marks in an angry red directly above the most vulnerable place on her body.

That damn near made him berserk.

He clutched her hips, anticipating that moment he could thrust deep and lose himself inside her. All he needed was a bloody condom and…

But Raine kept inching down, then arched back, unerringly setting her swollen cunt against his naked cock. He dug his fingers in deeper, resisting the urge to sink in and damn the consequences.

In the back of his head, Liam knew that was the most animal part of him wanting to mark her in the most human way by filling her belly with his seed. She’d let Hammer do it once, but this wasn’t a pissing match. Raine hadn’t given him free reign over her body like that. Frankly, he’d expect Hammer would have something to say about it, as well.

Last month when she’d worried Hammer had gotten her pregnant, Liam had been willing to raise that child as his own. But the notion of swelling her belly with his baby… He gritted his teeth, wanting nothing more. It surprised him that so soon after Gwyneth had scared the hell out of him with a “son,” he’d be so eager to truly conceive a child. Not just any child—one with Raine. That made everything different.

Someday…

“Let me get a condom, love.” He reached for the drawer of the nightstand.

“I don’t need one. I’m willing to give everything to you. Because I love you.”

Then Raine pushed her hips back, and his cock sank past her wet opening, deep into her core without any protection at all. The friction blazed through him, almost as hot as the reality of the trust she was giving him and the depths of her love.

“Jesus, Raine!”

As she took him to the hilt, she mewled. “If you don’t want this, tell me now.”

Her voice quivered. Her pussy rippled. She was already close. Damn it to hell, so was he.

“I want you this way,” he confessed. “More than anything. I love you so much. Aren’t you in the middle of your cycle, love?”

“Pretty much,” she whispered.

And she still wanted to be with him this way.

Hell, Liam wasn’t going to last, not feeling heaven all around him, not seeing his marks on her, too. Not knowing that with this climax, they could cement their futures together in more ways than one.

But he had one problem…

“Hammer.” He tried to catch his breath. “Mate, I won’t take her bare if you’re not ready for this.”

“Oh, don’t let me fucking stop you from the best sensation ever.” Macen’s voice had become a rough growl. No doubt, he was close, too.

That was all Liam needed.

“Give me your body and your love,” he demanded of Raine. “Ride me hard.”

She keened out her answer, then dipped her hips and thrust him deeper, taking him from hilt to head and back again with every sway of her hips. Liam clenched his jaw and dug deep for restraint.

A half dozen strokes in, her cunt all but strangled him. She dug her nails deep into his shoulders. “Sir, may I come?”

“No,” he snarled. “You wait for me, love. We’re going to feel this together.”

Her aching cry filled his ears. Hammer’s rough breathing followed. Liam heard his own low growl.

He slid his thumb over Raine’s clit. Hard, poised, ready. Damn it, he wanted this to last, but every drag of her walls over his bare cock drove him dangerously close to the brink.

From beneath, he tried to thrust up as he yanked her hips down onto him. In the back of his head, Liam realized he was fucking her without finesse. She’d be even more bruised tomorrow. He’d see those discolorations, be reminded of this heady, life-changing pleasure and…

What had infuriated him an hour ago now set off his desire as if someone had lit the fuse on the bomb inside him.

Liam flipped Raine to her back and shoved his way back inside her in one unrelenting thrust. She looked up at him as if she was lost and only he could save her. Orgasm was seconds away. He felt his spine tingling, his balls drawing up, his breathing change, the ache sharpening.

“Last chance,” he managed to say. “I can pull out.”

Raine shook her head. “Because I love you.”

Those words flipped the switch on Liam’s self-control.

“Come!” he shouted, driving into her ferociously, shuttling in and out of her body at a dizzying pace.

Almost instantly, Raine seized up and wailed, her entire body clenching down to suck him in deeper.

“Fuck…” Hammer groaned harsh and low.

Liam felt everything inside him give way as his cock jerked, ecstasy shot through his system, and he spilled every bit of himself inside her. Spasm after spasm of pleasure rocketed through his body, giving him the fuel to pump her until he felt spent and dry—and so desperately fucking in love, he knew it would never end.

* * *

After a luxurious bath, Raine lay flat on her back, happily cuddled between Liam and Hammer. Both had rolled to their sides and propped their heads on their palms. She resisted the urge to pinch herself. With everything terrible that had happened today, it spoke volumes about their commitment to one another that they’d all ended up in the same bed, sharing a soft conversation, wearing matching looks of contentment.

Liam added an extra dose to her happiness when he related everything that had happened with his ex-wife at the hospital while they’d waited to learn about Kyle’s illness.

“You mean, after all Gwyneth’s bullshit about that kid being your ‘love child,’ he’s not only not yours but he’s not even hers?” Hammer looked ready to throttle the woman.

Liam gave his friend a tired smile. “Exactly. I guess she thought I’d marry her just because she wanted me to or out of the goodness of my heart. Who knows? She wanted something so she expected the universe to fall in line. I’m glad it’s all behind me. Now that the truth is out in the open, she’ll return Kyle to her sister, take herself back to London, and…I don’t expect to hear from her again.”

While Raine couldn’t be happier that Gwyneth had come clean, one thing bothered her. “And what made her decide to suddenly tell the truth?”

Liam paused. Exhaustion lidded his dark eyes and pulled at his firm mouth. “She was rattled enough by Kyle’s illness that she couldn’t be bothered to keep up the façade any longer.” He leaned in and brushed his lips over hers. “You don’t look convinced, my suspicious wench.”

Raine didn’t want to be suspicious, but something sounded off. “So she was just going to give up? She hijacked a baby, falsified birth records, came up with a whopper of a lie, and…” She shook her head. “I don’t see her quitting. It’s a huge fortune.”

“Well, the DNA test is due back in a few hours, anyway, and the jig would be up. She knew that.”

Granted, Raine had only met Gwyneth once, but that didn’t sound like her at all.

Hammer palmed her abdomen with a frown. “I hear what you’re saying, but what else could she do to Liam?”

“I don’t know, but some people would do a lot more crap for a lot less money.”

“True,” Hammer agreed. “But in this case, I think Gwyneth is played out. She doesn’t have any other moves.”

Maybe not obvious ones, no. But the woman’s whole plan had been pretty unexpected and unbalanced. Raine wouldn’t be surprised if Liam’s ex had something else up her sleeve. Then again, childhood with Bill Kendall had made Raine naturally wary.

“I don’t think I can stay awake anymore, love.” Liam lay back and closed his eyes.

Most of this day had been truly awful for him. Like, the worst day ever. She understood why he’d reached the end of his energy and wanted it over.

She leaned in and brushed a kiss on his lips. “I love you. I can’t wait to move into our new house together. Thank you.”

“Love you…” he muttered.

In the next breath, he began to snore.

She smiled fondly, then turned to glance Hammer’s way. “He’s wiped out.”

Macen frowned and rubbed at his eyes with his thumb and forefinger. “I’m afraid I’m not far behind him. Hell of a day.”

“Yeah,” she sighed. “Let’s not wake up later and have this much drama.”

“You got it, precious.” He curled an arm around her. Then from one breath to the next, he dropped into a deep slumber, too.

And despite the fact that the December temperatures had dropped tonight, sandwiched between Liam and Hammer, she might as well have been curled up in a furnace. And the three of them definitely needed something bigger than a queen bed.

It was her last thought before she succumbed to fatigue, as well.

She woke with a start to some god-awful chainsaw-like noise. Heart racing, she sat up in the dark room, wondering what that sound was. Then she realized it wasn’t a power tool at all but Liam and Hammer grinding out dueling soundtracks of some of the loudest snoring she’d ever heard. A glance at the bedside clock told her she’d barely been asleep for an hour.

Sighing, she tried to lie back and catch more shut-eye. Liam rolled to his side and tried to take his third of the bed out of the middle. With his mouth near her ear, it only increased the decibel level of his snoring. Hammer decided to fight someone in his sleep, and Raine ended up with knees and elbows in her back. As they closed in on her, her body temperature went from toasty to roasting.

There’d be no peace in this bed tonight—or what was left of it.

Shaking her head, she crawled out from between them and pulled on the robe she’d discarded while making love to Liam earlier. He was naked next to Hammer, who wore only his boxer briefs. They looked cute in bed together. What a shame she didn’t have her phone to snap a picture. If she did, though, they’d paddle her ass silly.

Raine pulled the sheet over the two of them. She could find her own bed, she supposed, but she found herself incredibly exhilarated by the promise of their future. The house, the love, the way they’d worked through more of their issues… She didn’t want to sleep now; she wanted to live.

They wouldn’t be up for hours yet, but she could make their coming morning much better than the one they’d just had. Hammer had his apple spice muffins, but she intended to make date scones for Liam.

Grabbing her laptop, she rushed to the kitchen while searching for a recipe. Orange and date scones, no. Maple and date, no. Bacon and date scones? Oh, just hell no. Finally, she found a recipe that sounded edible. If he didn’t like this version, she’d try another next time until she got the pastry right.

She bustled around the kitchen and grabbed her ingredients. Self-rising flour, baking powder, salt, sugar, butter, eggs, milk—check. Dates…no. She glanced at the time on her computer and debated. Go to the store now or wait until sunrise? Raine sighed. She was awake and wanted to get these baked, try one herself before she unleashed them on Liam, just in case they sucked and she had to start over.

With a little curse, she tiptoed back to Liam’s room, tossed on some yoga pants, a T-shirt, and some flip-flops. She searched the club until she found her purse, phone, and car keys. It had become an old habit of hers to inform Hammer before she left, but he looked so peaceful sleeping. She’d run out to the twenty-four-hour market just around the corner and be back in less than half an hour. They’d never miss her.

Pushing her way out the club door, she heard it click shut behind her. The parking lot was fairly well lit and mostly empty. Of course, her little compact sat there, along with Liam’s Escalade. Hammer kept his Audi in the garage out back. Some of the other cars she didn’t recognize, except Beck’s Mercedes. When had he arrived?

With a shrug, she glanced past what looked like Seth’s rental and a van she’d never seen, then strode to her four-door. She’d just pressed the button on the fob to unlock it and opened the door when someone behind her growled, put a brutal hand over her mouth, then shoved something hard against her ribs.