Chapter 23 I am frozen and unable to move. I'm not an idiot. I know they haven't solved everything between them, but the idea that I can bring them together after so long is heady in my blood. It's too much, too fast, too overwhelming. Every nerve ending is aflame, every inch of skin electrified by their touch. I'm drowning in sensation, in the scent of their arousal mingling with petrichor and pine. Arson's hands grip my hips, holding me steady as he notches himself at my entrance. The blunt head of his cock parts my slick folds, teasing, promising. Behind me, his brother mirrors the movement, the thick length of him pressing insistently against the tight pucker of my ass. Then I feel a hot wash of liquid against my asshole that makes me gasp. Glancing back, I watch as Aries digs his teeth into the cut on his arm Arson gave him from the fight and uses his own blood to lube me up. Fuck. What the hell did I get myself into with them? And why does watching him go absolutely feral for me ignite me even further, my thighs even slicker now with my own arousal. I'm trembling, caught between apprehension and desperate need. I've never done this before, never even let myself imagine it. But now, with both of them surrounding me, claiming me, the thought of being filled so completely sends a dark thrill shuddering through me. "Breathe," Arson murmurs against my throat, his lips brushing over my thundering pulse. "Just breathe and let us in." I try to obey, forcing air into my lungs, willing my body to relax. But it's not easy when every cell screams for more, when the ache between my thighs is a gnawing hunger that demands to be sated. They begin to push forward in tandem, stretching me, filling me, the burn of the intrusion warring with the searing sensation of finally being claimed so completely. I cry out, my voice echoing through the hushed forest, and Arson swallows the sound with his mouth on mine. His brother's hands smooth over my back, gentling me even as he continues to press deeper. "That's it," he croons, his voice rough with strain. "Take us in. All the way." I feel like I'm being split in two, skewered on their thick lengths. It's almost too much, the fullness a sharp edge of pain that is so keen it's pleasure entwined. But beneath that is a deeper ache, a primal need that urges me to open further, to submit entirely to this claiming. "Please," I whimper, not even sure what I'm begging for. More, less, harder, gentler. I'm lost to everything but the feel of them inside me, possessing me, branding me as theirs. They begin to move then, a slow, deliberate rhythm that drags over every sensitive nerve. Arson's cock slides against a spot deep within me, sending sparks of electricity ringing through my core. Aries matches his pace, the thick drag of him stretching my tight channel, igniting a different kind of fire. I'm suspended between them, impaled, utterly at their mercy. And I've never felt so complete. So right. Like every broken piece of me is being fused back together by the heat of their possession. Their hands roam my body as they thrust, calloused fingers mapping every curve and hollow, claiming each inch as their territory. Arson's teeth graze my shoulder, a sharp counterpoint to the silken slide of his tongue. Aries's lips find my ear, his hot breath sending shivers cascading down my spine. "You're ours now," he rasps, punctuating the words with a particularly deep stroke that has me seeing stars. "Body and soul. No more running." "No more hiding," Arson agrees, his hand slipping between my thighs to find the swollen pearl at their apex. He circles it slowly, teasingly, drawing a keening cry from my throat. "This is where you belong. With us. Always." I can only moan in agreement, words lost to the maelstrom of sensation threatening to sweep me away. They're everywhere-inside me, surrounding me, filling my senses until there's nothing left but them. The slick slide of skin, the mingled scent of our arousal, the harmony of panted breaths and satisfied moans. Their thrusts grow harder, faster, more demanding. Arson's fingers work me mercilessly, stroking and rubbing until the coil of tension in my core winds tighter than a spring. Aries's grip on my hips tightens to the point of bruising as he drives into me, each powerful surge stoking the flames higher. I'm climbing rapidly, my body no longer my own, merely an instrument for their need. For our desire. The wet sounds of our joining fill the air, obscene and erotic, urging me onward. Upward. Until, with a suddenness that steals my breath, the crest of rapture breaks over me. I shatter between them, my body convulsing, clenching, milking their hardness as I come apart. A hoarse scream tears from my throat, only to be swallowed by Arson's greedy mouth. They ride me through it, hips churning, stroking me through the aftershocks until I collapse, boneless, against Arson's chest. But they're not done with me yet. Not even close. I can feel the rigid heat of them still pulsing inside me, demanding more. "Again," Arson growls against my lips, his hand still moving between my thighs, coaxing me back from the edge only to push me over once more. "We're going to fill you up," Aries promises darkly, punctuating the words with a sharp snap of his hips that makes me yelp. "Fuck you so deep and hard, you'll never want anything else. Brother, you want to feel how good her ass takes a cock? I want to feel the sweet heat of her cunt again." Arson releases an mmm against my lips, and I shudder, lost to them both. They both pull out of me and I feel a spill of liquid down my ass and thighs-my own arousal, Aries's blood, their precum-all of it adding to the slowing of time and the languid sensations in my body. They shuffle around a minute, Aries and Arson passing back and forth a ripped shirt? between them cleaning themselves off before reshifting into opposing positions. Arson moves behind me, and Aries traps my face in his hands and kisses me like I am his oxygen. All I can do is hold on while they invade me again, this time my body slick in a way for them to easily use, even as it doesn't ease the tightness of them both filling me up. There's a soft moan against my ear that sends arousal through my veins all over as Aries plunders my lips. When he pulls away, he stares me straight in the eye as he pumps into me, faster, harder, deeper. Arson matches his pace like they were made for this, made for me. I moan brokenly, shuddering as a second orgasm crashes into me before the first has fully receded. They don't relent, wringing pleasure from my quivering flesh with ruthless skill. I'm lost in a haze of ecstasy, my body no longer my own as they use me for their own ends. Arson's hand fists in my hair, pulling my head back to expose the arch of my throat. His teeth scrape over the sensitive skin before he sucks hard, marking me as his. Aries's fingers dig into the flesh of my stomach as he pounds into me, the force of his thrusts rocking me backward into Arson's chest. I'm mindless, reduced to nothing but sensation and need. The slap of flesh on flesh, the filthy praises they groan against my skin, the relentless drive of their cocks stretching me wide. I could happily drown in this feeling, subsumed by the tidal wave of pure bliss cresting over me again and again. Distantly, I feel the tension in their powerful frames, the stuttering rhythm of their hips that signals their impending release. Part of me wants to beg them to wait, to make this exquisite torment last forever. But the other part, the wanton creature of desire they've awakened, wants nothing more than to feel them pulse and throb as they empty themselves inside me, marking me irrevocably as theirs. "Please," I moan, my voice a broken rasp. "Please, I need..." "We know what you need," Arson soothes, his fingers tightening in my hair. "And we're going to give it to you. Every last drop." Aries's thrusts turn erratic, his breathing harsh against my cheek. "Fuck, I can't... I'm going to..." "Do it," Arson commands, his own hips driving up to meet his brother's. "Fill her up. Make her ours." With twin groans of surrender, they let go, their cocks jerking and twitching as they spill their release deep inside me. I keen at the sensation, the hot flood of their seed triggering one final, shattering climax that seems to go on forever. My world narrows to nothing but fire racing through my veins, obliterating everything except pure, overwhelming sensation. Distantly, I'm aware of their hands gentling on my sweat-slicked skin, their lips brushing tender kisses over my face as they murmur words of praise and possession. But it's all secondary to the pulsing fullness of them still buried inside me, the warm trickle of their combined release seeping out to coat my thighs. Slowly, carefully, they ease out of my tender flesh, drawing whimpers from my throat at the loss. For some strange reason, I'm afraid they'll both disappear, but they don't go far. Arson gathers me into his arms, cradling me against his chest as he lowers us to the moss-covered ground while Aries stretches out beside us, one large hand splaying possessively over my hip. I'm not sure how long we simply lie there, our racing hearts gradually slowing, and our breathing evening out. The air is heavy with the musk of sex and sweat, the earthy scent of the forest floor beneath us. In the distance, a bird trills out a sweet song, the melody at odds with the primal act we've just engaged in. As the haze of lust slowly dissipates, reality starts to creep back in. Uncertainty churns in my gut, the magnitude of what we've just done hitting me full force. This changes everything. There's no going back from this, no pretending it never happened. I tense in Arson's arms, my mind racing with all the implications, all the potential fallout. What if this ruins everything? What if it makes things awkward and strained between us? As if sensing my spiraling thoughts, Arson tightens his hold on me, his lips brushing the shell of my ear. "Stop overthinking," he murmurs, his deep voice rumbling through me. "Just feel." Aries's hand strokes soothingly along my side, his calloused palm rough against my oversensitive skin. "This is right," he says softly, conviction ringing in every word. "This is how it's meant to be. The three of us, together." I want to believe them. Want to let myself sink into this moment, this feeling of absolute rightness. But the doubts persist, nibbling at the edges of my mind like hungry mice. "But what if...what if it doesn't work?" I whisper, giving voice to my fears. "What if we can't make this...whatever this is...last?" Arson's fingers catch my chin, tipping my face up to meet his intense gaze. "We will," he says firmly, his eyes blazing with determination. "We'll fight for this, for us. No matter what it takes." "We're not letting you go," Aries adds, his arm tightening around my waist. "Not now, not ever. You're a part of us, Lilian. The piece we didn't even know was missing until we found you." Tears prick at the backs of my eyes, my heart swelling with a hope I hardly dare to acknowledge. I want to trust in their conviction, in the strength of what we've forged between us. But a lifetime of disappointment is hard to shake off, the scars of abandonment still raw and aching. "I'm scared," I admit in a small voice, the words catching in my throat. "I don't know how to do this, how to be what you need me to be." "You already are," Arson assures me, his thumb stroking tenderly over my cheekbone. "Just by being you, by letting us love you. That's all we need, Lil. All we'll ever need." "We're scared too," his brother confesses, vulnerability roughening his deep baritone. "This is new territory for all of us. But we're in this together, figuring it out as we go. And I know, down to my bones, that it will be worth it. What we have, what we feel for you...it's real. It's everything." Their words wash over me, soothing the jagged edges of my fears, my doubts. I want to believe them, want to trust in the strength of this bond we've forged through fire and fate. And looking into their eyes, seeing the depth of emotion shining there, the unwavering certainty...I feel something slot into place inside me. A puzzle piece I didn't even know was missing until it settled into its rightful spot. "Okay," I whisper, a shaky smile tugging at my lips. "Okay. Let's do this. Let's...let's be together. All in." Their answering smiles are blinding, joy and relief and love shining through like sunbeams cutting through clouds. Arson dips his head, capturing my mouth in a kiss that steals my breath and pours his very soul into me. Aries's lips find my shoulder, pressing reverent kisses to the skin as if in worship. We lay there entwined, savoring the closeness, the rightness of our bodies pressed together. The forest seems to hum with approval around us, the ancient trees standing sentinel over this moment of perfect communion. Slowly, reluctantly, we untangle ourselves and rise on shaky legs. My muscles ache in places I didn't know could ache, a delicious reminder of all that transpired. Arson's hands skim over my body as if reassuring himself I'm real and this wasn't just some fevered dream. Aries watches us with a soft smile, his eyes reflecting the same incredulous wonder I feel bubbling up in my chest. We help each other dress, fingers lingering on exposed skin, unwilling to let go of this cocoon of intimacy we've spun. There's a new undercurrent between us now, a pulsing awareness that feels as vital as the blood in our veins. The brothers share a look over my head, some silent communication passing between them before they each take one of my hands in theirs. "Let's go home," Arson says quietly, the word laden with unspoken meaning. Home. The idea of it sends a thrill down my spine. But where is home? Not the Mill House, so close. Definitely not the warehouse that represents Aries's trauma and Arson's revenge. As if reading my thoughts, Aries speaks up. "We don't have anywhere to go yet, but we'll find a place to start over, to build something new. Together." The image forms in my mind-a cozy log cabin nestled among towering pines, smoke curling from the chimney, wildflowers blooming in the clearing. A sanctuary, a haven. A home. "That sounds perfect," I breathe, emotion clogging my throat. "What about a cabin in the woods? Away from all of this. I wish we could go now." We all lapse into silence, dreaming hopefully for a moment. We have a fight ahead, and I'm not naive enough to think it's not going to impact us all. But for now, this is all I want. All I've ever wanted and needed. Wherever they are is home. And I'll follow them. Just as soon as the rest of our issues are dealt with. Richard. My mother. Arson's captivity. We'll be free of it all.