them. Him dead or unable to phone would fix that.
"Chill," Nicky said, "chill, damn it." His words made sense, but he was starting to nuzzle my hair. The lioness had slowed and was sniffing the air. I ground my hips into Nicky just a little bit. He made a soft wordless sound.
"Shit," Jacob said. He moved his free hand along my neck until he found the hilt of the big knife under my hair and jacket. He got a handful of my hair, moving it out of the way as he drew the knife out. Nicky moved back enough for him to do it. The size of the blade put more of a damper on their amour than anything I could have done.
Jacob held it up to the light. It gleamed, and the edge was as sharp as it looked. "This is as big as her forearm; how the fuck did you miss it?"
Nicky blinked up at the blade. "I was searching her when the lioness did its thing. My bad."
Jacob sighed, and lowered the blade. I couldn't read the look on his face. It was partly sad and partly something else. "It's okay, Nicky. You've never been around a Regina when she's in heat. A pride can tear itself apart before she picks a mate."
The lioness rolled onto her back, rolling on the ground like any cat. It made me writhe against Nicky, and he didn't exactly fight the sensation. I was going to lose control, and sex would be the least of what we might do. I tried to think.
"My first pride died that way, because the Regina wanted the strongest Rex, so she waited for the winner. I promised myself I would keep my men away from shit like that."
Nicky changed his grip, letting me have my arms, picking me up around the waist, lifting me off the ground. My hands went to his arm, holding on, but not fighting. I was out of weapons. What would help me? What would help me stop them? I mean, I was good at sex, or so the men in my life told me, but good enough to make them turn down a shitload of money and betray their other men? I wasn't that good. No one was that good. If sex wouldn't help me, I had to stop what was happening. Chill, he had said. I tried to call my necromancy, like I had in the restaurant, but the lion was too loud in my head. I could smell lion. I think it was Nicky, but it was as if the world were drowning in the thick musk of it. I couldn't breathe past it. I didn't want cold blood, I wanted hot.
Nicky collapsed onto the leather couch with me under him. The height difference meant that he wasn't lined up for anything, but his hands slipped under my skirt, and I struggled out from under him, spilling myself to the carpet. Nicky stayed on the couch, staring at me with one wide eye, his breathing labored.
I crawled backward away from him, and he let me, but I'd forgotten about the other lion. It was too careless for words, but I wasn't thinking clearly. The lioness was eating what made me me. I understood in that moment that I didn't have to shift to lose myself. I crawled into Jacob's legs and started forward, but he reached down, grabbed my arms, and pulled me to my feet. I was suddenly staring into his face from inches away as he bent that tall body down to me. He said, "Oh, God." It was more a cry for help than a sound of passion.
I felt his other arm move and went to block it without thinking. My hand traced down his arm to find my knife. "Is this really what you want to stick in me, Jacob?"
He swallowed so hard it sounded painful. "Don't do this."
"You first," I whispered.
"What?"
"Call off your cats, don't earn the second half of Bennington 's money."
He shook his head. "You aren't my queen yet."
Nicky came behind me, hands sliding over my back. Jacob growled at him, but the younger man said, "We don't have to fight. She shares just fine." He ground himself into me from behind, shoving me against Jacob. I was suddenly held between both of them, and they were both hard and ready. I couldn't help but react to it, writhing between the two of them. It was Jacob who pulled me back