Mirror Image Seduction (Feline Shifters of Down Under Book 1) (6 page)

“Dylan, cut the jokes. Now is not the time.”

“Who’s joking? I didn’t get a kiss. You got one. Totally unfair.”

Lacey was rubbing her face in her hands now as she made a whining noise.

“I can’t date two men at once! It’s insane. And I’m not
mating
anyone. So you both can get over that idea right now.”

“Oh, baby, we’re gonna love proving you wrong.”

Ryan thumped his brother on the arm. “Wait, would ya? Lacey, why can’t you date us? Have you got a boyfriend already?”

He felt his brother stiffen, and anger radiated off him in waves. Ryan glanced at him, thinking Dylan’s response a little excessive in his opinion.

“What the fuck is your issue, Dylan?”

“I just remembered the text I saw on her phone. Somebody wanted to know why she didn’t go home. She had them saved under ‘dead horse’.”

Ryan groaned. Great. He didn’t want to go through a possessive human to get to his mate.

“I don’t have a boyfriend. And quit doing the twin mind-meld thing. It’s rude.”

A grin spread over Ryan’s face. Lacey had her arms crossed beneath her breasts and was looking a little fierce. Which on her was totally adorable.

“Dylan was just telling me about how your phone chirped while he was driving your car here earlier with a text from ‘Dead Horse’. He’s worried we have some competition for your attention.”

As her face drained of color, Ryan inwardly cursed. She glared hard at Dylan, “You had no right to invade my privacy like that! How dare you go anywhere near my phone!”

****

Dylan raised his hands up in surrender as she turned her fury on him. She was cute when she got worked up, but he didn’t want her thinking he’d gone snooping when he hadn’t. Not on purpose, anyway.

“Calm down. I was looking for your keys when the screen lit up. I wasn’t sure if you lived with your folks or a housemate so had a quick look to see if it was someone worried about you not being home yet. I’m guessing Dead Horse isn’t your housemate?”

“No. He’s a stupid ex that doesn’t know when to quit. I hate to think what the message said. Please tell me you didn’t read it?”

Dylan’s cheeks heated, an uncomfortable and almost foreign feeling to him.

“Ah, like I said, I thought it might be someone you live with. I didn’t want them to worry about you, so yeah, I saw the message.”

Lacey stomped up to him and poked him in the chest with a finger. “How dare you! Is privacy a foreign concept? Gah, this is so embarrassing. I’m leaving. This is just all too much.”

Panic had him grabbing for her, pulling her stiff body in against his.

“I’m sorry, Lacey. I honestly did it out of concern, for no other reason. Please stay a while and talk with us.”

Damn, she felt good in his embrace. Soft, warm, and downright sexy. The desire to kiss her full red mouth was almost overwhelming, but he knew she wouldn’t welcome it yet. Her shoulders slumped, and she rested her forehead against his chest. He wrapped his arms tighter around her, the need to keep her close as natural as breathing. She was such a little thing, their mate. She inhaled deeply before she shuddered a little against him. When she pushed herself away from him, he reluctantly released her. He bit his tongue to stop himself speaking as she turned and left the bedroom in silence. He passed a worried glance at his twin before following her. Ryan didn’t look like he had any idea what to do either.

Dylan found Lacey opening cupboards in the kitchen.

“What are you looking for?”

“I just wanted a glass of water.”

Kicking himself for not already asking if she was thirsty after she’d passed out like she had, he rushed to her side.

“Here, let me get it for you.”

She stiffened like she was going to argue, but in the end moved from the kitchen. As he pulled down a glass and filled it with fresh water he could feel her gaze on him. What was she thinking? He took the drink over to her and caressed his fingers over hers as she took it from him. He swallowed the groan that rose and suppressed the smile that tugged at his lips. His skin tingled where it had touched her, confirming beyond a shadow of a doubt she was his mate.

“So, what is the real reason you put the brakes on things in the bedroom? Was it me?”

Lacey sputtered water down her chin as she coughed.

Dylan had never been one to mince words or put off the inevitable. They needed to deal with Lacey’s doubts and fast. His body ached for his mate, and he could feel Ryan suffering the same way he was.

“Damn, you don’t beat around the bush do you?”

He shrugged as his gaze followed her fingers while they wiped the water from her skin. He wanted to touch her there, kiss and caress every inch of her luscious body.

“Well, I’ve already mentioned how I feel about dating two men. And even if that wasn’t an issue, I’m not the kind of woman who falls into bed with a man on the first date. Which this wasn’t supposed to be. It was meant to be a causal dinner where I asked you both questions for my story!”

Dylan grimaced, noting the angry glint in her eye and the accusatory tone in her voice. “Yeah, well, your questions got answered. But I really wish you wouldn’t put them in your story. The last thing we need is to be outed to the general public. It would make our lives really difficult, and there would be no way we could stay here. Our whole family would have to move.”

Lacey sat on a barstool at their breakfast bar, and she spun the now empty glass between her palms.

“I don’t want to make anyone’s life harder, Dylan. This story about Cameron’s rescue is my first chance at a real story. I was excited about writing this epic piece that would secure my place at the
Melbourne Herald
. But now I’m not sure what the hell to write! I assure you, I won’t be outing you or your family in the press.”

Things were getting way too serious and glum, so Dylan gave her his sly smirk. “How many dates do you normally go on before you ‘fall into bed’?”

Ryan was standing behind Lacey and rolled his eyes at Dylan.

“You’re an idiot, brother.”

“Well, she was all sad and shit so I’m changing the subject.”

“Um, I don’t know! Six maybe?”

Dylan folded his arms over his chest as he leaned his butt against the kitchen bench opposite Lacey.

“Six dates huh? Well, there are two of us, so that makes it three. It’s Friday night now … and you’ve said you don’t claim tonight as a date so Monday night you’re all ours!”

He couldn’t help but chuckle at the way Lacey’s mouth opened and shut a few times. Her wide eyes looked so innocent as she struggled to deal with him. She finally closed her mouth and shook her head.

“You are too much, Dylan. Really? You think you can bargain your way into bed with me?”

“No. I’m negotiating dates with you, beautiful, and you’ll be in both our beds. Not just mine. Or rather, we’ll both be in your bed. So, where do you live? We’ll pick you up tomorrow at six for dinner.”

Lacey laughed at him now, the sadness leaving her face and the healthy bloom he’d admired when he’d first met her, returning to her cheeks. “I have a work function tomorrow night. I guess I could meet up with you during the day.”

The ache in Dylan’s chest, which he hadn’t even realized was there, eased a little with her words. She was agreeing to date them. They could do this. They could win her over and get her to agree to mate with them. He knew they could. Because they had to. If not, they’d be alone for the rest of their lives and completely miserable.

Chapter Seven

He can’t be for real. He just can’t.
Lacey blinked slowly. Once. Twice. She expected this fantasy of a man to vanish each time she reopened her eyes. He had to be a figment of her overactive imagine.
Guess that’s what I get for spending so much time with my head in a book.

After a third blink, she rubbed her eyes before glancing back at the hunk of a male standing in front of her. Nope, he was still there in all his glory. Damn, the man had to be six foot something and was mouth-wateringly yummy, even fully dressed.
Wonder what his skin would taste like.
She mentally shook her head. This was not the time for daydreams. This god of a man had just propositioned her! No, even more than that, he and his twin brother wanted to date her. She couldn’t tell if it was a fantasy come true, or a nightmare.

“Seriously, am I dreaming? Can someone pinch me or something?”

Dylan let out an inhuman growl. “I can show you an ‘or something’ that should clear things up for you.”

He then strode towards her, erotic intent clear to read in his hot gaze.

With her stomach in knots, she squealed and jumped off her seat, bolting towards the door and where Ryan stood.

“No, no, stop! I was joking.”

She held both hands out in front of her, her heart pounding in her chest. Dylan stopped in his tracks and tilted his head in an animalistic manner as Ryan shifted to stand between her and Dylan. Facing her, he cupped her cheek in his palm.

“Tell us what we can do to help you be okay with us.”

His voice was so sweet, measured and calm. Such a contrast to the intense heat waves wafting off Dylan.

“There’s nothing either of you can do. I need time to process everything I’ve learned today.”

She bit her lip and looked between the brothers. Could she really do this? Date two men at once, and brothers at that? What would her friends think of her? Would she earn herself a reputation of being a slut? Would her friends leave her in the dust? Leaving her to start over.

“If I do this…”

“
When
you do this…” Dylan’s deep, gravelly voice was so strong and confident, it made her belly quiver with arousal for him, which pissed her off. She was trying to be serious and think with her brain, not her lady parts. Damn, but he was far too sexy for her sanity on his own. What the hell would it be like when both of them were in full on seduction mode?

“I want separate dates, to get to know you both better.”

They looked stunned for a moment, their massive frames stilling in shock. Complete silence descending as they stared at each other… With a frown, she stamped her foot which made them both turn towards her.

“Stop doing that! I hate it when you leave me out of the conversation.”

Dylan chuckled, and Ryan gave her his lopsided smile.

“Sorry, beautiful. No one’s ever picked up on it before. Our parents have always encouraged the connection so it’s second nature to for us to use it.”

She huffed in frustration as she put both her hands on her hips.

“I know it’s a great thing for you two to have, and I wouldn’t normally care. Except for the fact I know you’re talking about me and that makes it unfair and rude!”

Lacey coughed and cleared her throat, annoyed at how high pitched her voice had become. She was probably being irrational, but at this point, she just didn’t care!

Ryan reached out and stroked over her forearm, the touch managing to both soothe her and make her ache for more.

“We were just tossing around ideas for our dates. If you want to see us separately to start with, we totally respect that.”

“Yeah,” Dylan interjected. “It’ll be kinda nice to be treated like an individual person for once, rather than just half of one.”

She snorted in a very inelegant way. “I hardly see you as half a person. You guys are too different to start with. You complement each other, but are still very much separate. Everyone else must be cruel or … plain stupid to not see that instantly.”

She shook her head, suddenly furious at anyone who’d dare to treat these men badly in the past. She didn’t know much about them yet, but the little she did know was enough to know they were decent men. They were brave, protectors of children, from a good family, had secure, steady jobs, and they were both clearly intelligent and capable of deep care and love. Listing it all off had Lacey back to thinking maybe she was still dreaming. These men were too perfect to exist in the real world.

They looked at each other again, and Lacey cleared her throat.

“Okay, so, you guys are happy for me to date you separately…”

Before she could finish, Ryan jumped in. “Yes. One date each, Saturday and Sunday, then Monday evening we’ll go out together, before we bring you back here. For the night.”

She frowned, not sure she understood where this was going. If she decided to give these men a chance, long term, how the hell would it work? Did they expect her to allow them to take turns with her? A different twin every other night? That would be horrible. Her gut already twisted at the thought of a relationship that was so incredibly unorthodox.

But then again, would she be able to choose just one of them if her hand was forced? The good guy and the bad boy? Fire and ice. They were both so beautiful to her, and she felt a strong connection to each twin.

Her breath caught in her throat, and she frowned at the two men. Did they mean to share her in the sense that they’d both take her together? Like in the erotic fantasy novels she read. Warmth curled inside her, and she squeezed her eyes shut as she clenched her thigh muscles.
No, no, no.
That didn’t happen in the real world! Maybe it would be best to just end this before it got going…

“And what happens if I can’t date both of you, or we don’t suit?”

The men laughed, the sound so happy and husky that a shiver spread through her body and the heat between her legs coiled tighter until she ached. Why did she have such a visceral reaction to these men? Their smiles were so gorgeous she could barely hold onto her resolution to be strong. Her body and soul craved them and wanted her to quit fighting it and fall into their arms so she could bathe in their warmth and joy.

“What’s so funny? My question was perfectly legitimate and a logical argument.” Despite her resolve to remain serious, she felt her own lips turn up a little when the twins aimed their megawatt grins at her.

In a smooth, lightning fast move, Dylan grabbed her around the waist and pulled her flush against his solid body. “Because you, sweetheart, were made for us. You will fit with each of us like a lock and key, mind, body, and soul.”

He slid his hands down to her ass and pulled her in snugly against his very erect flesh. She gasped as the ache between her legs increased ten-fold.

“Not yet, buster.” She pushed herself out of Dylan’s arms, but smiled at him to make sure he knew she wasn’t trying to hurt his feelings.

“I really do need some time to myself to process all this. I’m going to head off.” Underneath her worry and confusion, her heart felt light, an excitement flitting around her belly that she hadn’t felt since she’d first received the offer for her university placement. “Which way is out?”

Ryan pushed open the kitchen door and pointed right. “We’ll show you out. Just head through the living room and there’s the front door.”

Lacey walked into the entrance of the house and glanced around. “Wow, your house is beautiful.” It had all the modern fittings, but lacked a bit of warmth. There were a few photos around, but it was clearly a male house.

“Thanks. I’m glad you like it. We built it with you in mind.”

She spun around and stared at them, her mirror image twins.

“Pardon me?” She couldn’t have heard that right.

Dylan was shaking his head, and Ryan stepped forward, taking her hand and leading her towards the front door. “Sweetheart, you seem to have forgotten. We are not human but cheetah shifters, born with only one mate. Well, males are born with one mate that they share with another shifter. Because we’re twins Dylan and I, along with our parents, always assumed we would only have one wife between us. We built this house with you in mind. Waiting for the day when we finally found you.”

Her brain took a little vacation as she stepped out the front door on autopilot. Taking a few deep breaths, inhaling the cool, clean air of their country property, she felt her body relax a little.

“So, are you saying you’d take turns with me or, you know?” She let the sentence drift, unsure how the hell to say what she was thinking.

Ryan stepped up to her and cupped her face with both his palms.

“However you need us to be, Lacey. We want everything with you. We both want to share your bed and your body every single night. But we can be patient and ease you into things, if that’s what you need.”

She cleared her throat, while she tried to find the words to ask what she needed to know.

“So, have you guys … you know?”

She swallowed hard as jealousy swam up inside her like ivy climbing a fence. Even with Ryan’s calming touch, her emotions were swirling out of control. How many others had there been? How often? Was she just a notch in their bedpost and this whole mate thing was nothing but an elaborate pick up line?

Dylan stepped up close to her, and Ryan dropped his hands to her shoulders. Dylan traced her cheekbone with a fingertip, the delicate touch sending ripples of heat through her body.

“Have we what?”

“You know, shared women before.”

There was a moment of stunned silence, and then an explosion of laughter around her, punctuated with comments like, “You’re kidding, right?”

“Why would we do that?”

Both men had stepped away from her, and without Ryan’s calming touch, fury overtook her mind. How dare they laugh at her! Again! Her cheeks burned furiously with a mix of embarrassment and anger. Clenching her jaw hard, she focused her attention on getting her bag. She marched over to her open window, reached into the car and dragged it out. She dug around in her things looking for her keys. She could hear them jingling. They must be in there.

“Hey, don’t be mad with us, sweetheart. We’re sorry, we weren’t laughing at you.”

“Yes, you were.” She looked up and glared at them. She tucked her car keys into her back pocket, dropped her bag and then crossed her arms over her chest for emphasis.

“No, we really didn’t mean to laugh at you. It’s just that neither of us have ever dated anyone, let alone together. The very idea of having any kind of commitment to a woman who isn’t our mate is simply unconceivable to us.”

“You’re kidding me?” She dropped her arms as her seething temperature plummeted. Were they serious? These two men were beyond gorgeous, inside and out. They couldn’t be virgins … impossible! He had to mean something else.

Ryan shrugged. “Well, we’ve been told since we were young that we’d know it when we found our mate, by her scent, the instant attraction, and the perfection of her touch. It’s called the Calling. We were waiting for you, and as soon as we saw you, we knew.”

Lacey swallowed, salty tears swimming in her eyes, blurring her vision. She’d never been described as perfect by anyone—not even herself—and the idea that these two stunning men had been waiting for her made her want to cry.

“Okay … ah, so I’ll see one of you tomorrow?”

She turned towards her car, her mind swimming in a cloud of disbelief. This was all so surreal. As she laid a hand on her door handle, her mind cleared a little, and she realized they hadn’t made firm plans for tomorrow. Releasing her grip she went to turn back toward the twins when Dylan’s husky deep voice rung out from just behind her.

“Hang on, beautiful. You’re not leaving yet.”

He took hold of her elbow, spun her around before he pressed her up against the car with his body.

He stared down at her for a moment, and Lacey moaned as his lips descended, a blaze of heat engulfing her as his hands roamed up her body to cup her jaw moments before his lips connected with hers. With a contented sigh, she opened to him, and his tongue swept inside while he ground his hardening cock against her belly.

She groaned and let her knees give way when he pressed into her harder, holding her weight easily as she grabbed fists full of his shirt, yanking it upwards so she could slide her hands beneath the cotton to feel his hot flesh. His skin was smooth and perfect, just like the rest of him.

He tore his mouth away and stared down at her with a gaze so full of lust, she was surprised she didn’t go up in flames.

“Come back inside, beautiful.” His voice was barely understandable through his low growl, but she knew what he was asking her.

“I can’t.”

He stared at her a moment longer before he sighed, and closed his eyes as he rested his forehead against hers.

Gosh, but she was a fool. Could she resist them until Monday night? She was one hundred percent sure, she couldn’t say no to either of them if they pushed her even a little right now.

Lacey stood up a little straighter and rested against him, unable to believe that an attraction like this truly existed for her. She’d never wanted anyone this much in her whole life.