The Warlocks’ Pact

By Lacey Carter Andersen

Table of Contents

Title Page

Chapter One

Chapter Two

Chapter Three

Chapter Four

Chapter Five

Chapter Six

Chapter Seven

Chapter Eight

Also By Lacey Carter Andersen

About the Author

Chapter One

Harvey

A blood pact’s a powerful thing among warlocks and not something to mess around with. But blood pacts can be even more powerful when done between twins... or, in our case, among triplets. My parents have warned the three of us from the time we were children never to make a blood pact.

My brothers and I never worried about it. Between the three of us, we had enough brains not to do something so stupid. Or so we thought. But then... we graduated from college on the same night, got drunk, and made the biggest mistake of our lives.

We made a blood pact to discover the identity of Nessie, the Loch Ness monster, before Christmas.

Stupid, right?

I blame the expensive tequila. My brother, Peter, blames the documentary that we’d started watching late on that fateful night. And my other brother, Ryan... he blames me for losing the remote and getting stuck on that show. We should have been watching sports, or a dumb reality show, or anything else at all.  Anything but that.

No matter what or who’s to blame, now we’re bound by our pact. The blood pact is why we are in Scotland the morning before Christmas Eve, determined to free ourselves, no matter the cost.

Because if we don’t, the consequences will be dire. And we’ve wasted too much time already trying to break the pact without actually fulfilling the requirements.

“This place is fucking cold,” Ryan mutters beside me.

The three of us are squeezed into the back of a cab, heading for our hotel. We slept some on the plane, and now we're ready to get this over with.

We’re bundled up in coats, our huge bodies pressed uncomfortably against each other, and I can feel Ryan’s anger building with each second that passes. I know he's thinking about the businesses he left behind, the millions of dollars he’s given control over to other people. Ryan doesn't give up control easily... or ever. This is new to him and it has been pure and utter torture.

Peter whistles beside us as we pull onto a little road. Loch Ness Lake comes fully into view on one side of us, and we can see the hotel just ahead.

“We’re not in Texas anymore,” Peter says, in a soft, awed voice.

And he’s right. This place is so different from our home state. The morning sky is overcast. The green of the plants is brilliant. And the lake that stretches out with mist hovering over it like steam? It looks like something out of a horror movie, beauty edged with danger.

A shiver moves down my spine, and I look away from it.

I sense magic in the waters, but maybe it’s just my imagination or wishful thinking. Because if I can’t sense anything, I don’t know how we’re going to find this monster.

“Here,” the driver says, stopping in front of our hotel.

Ryan throws open the door, and we all pile out. He pays the driver, and we grab our bags. As the cab pulls away, we look up at the white stone building covered in moss. Already, I like this place. If we were here on vacation, I’d be in heaven.

Unfortunately, we won’t exactly be enjoying our time here.

An older woman comes out of the building drying her hands on an apron. “You boys must be those Americans, the Scott brothers.”

I nod and hold out my hand. “Nice to meet you, ma’am.”

She grins, and I immediately like her. She has long brown hair, the slightest wrinkles, and a warm smile. She reminds me a little of our mom.

Mom's crushed we’re missing Christmas at home. I push the guilty thought away. She’d be even more crushed if she knew what we’d done. It’s better that she thinks we’re selfish than to worry about the consequences of our stupidity.

The woman takes my hand. “I’m Sharon Reid. Welcome to the Loch Ness Oasis. Now, what brings you here?”

A tingle moves between us, and I yank my hand back, frowning. The hotel owner is a witch?

She raises a brow. “What’s brought three warlocks all the way from America?”

My brothers and I exchange a glance.

Who wants to handle this?

Peter takes off his sunglasses and gives her a smile that flashes his dimples. “Probably like most tourists, we’re here to learn about Nessie. Maybe you could even steer us in the right direction to get a glimpse of it?”

I know what he’s doing. The three of us played football on the same team. We’re hulking men with blond hair, blue eyes, and easy-smiles. Turning our baby-blues onto women seems to have an instant affect, even for witches. Maybe she will be able to help us.

As if on cue, a teasing smile touches her lips. “Come inside. Let’s have a little whiskey and talk.”

Chapter Two

Harvey

Ms. Reid shows us to our rooms. We reserved a suite, with a tiny living room and dining room connected by three bedrooms. It takes up the whole top floor, and didn't come cheap, but Ryan always has to have the best. As a teacher with limited pay, I would’ve been glad for just about anything, but Ryan’s quick to flash his card and tell me to put my wallet away. It almost makes up for what an arrogant asshole he can be most of the time.

We drop our bags in the room and return to chat with the woman who runs the hotel. She pours us each a whiskey and one for herself before she pokes at the fire in the fireplace and joins us.

I've never been a fan of whiskey, but this is the smoothest I've had... I could get used to this. I stare in silence at the tiny Christmas tree that blinks at me from the corner, imagining the huge twenty-foot tree in my parent’s home. I'm missing Christmas at home more than I thought I would. This could be our last Christmas ever. The thought is even more sobering.

“Seriously boys,” she sighs, after a quiet moment, “as much as I enjoy flirting with three of the sexiest damn Americans I’ve ever seen, you didn’t come all this way to meet me.”

Our light mood fades, and I can feel the tension in the air. Should we tell her the truth? Or lie?

Peter leans closer, his face somber. “We did something stupid.”

She raises a brow and takes another sip of her drink.

“We made a blood pact,” he said, his voice cold and dark.

Her drink drops to the table with a jarring sound against the wood. “Triplets? Fuck. That’s why I could sense your magic coming like a storm. What was your pact?”

Peter stares down at his drink. “To discover the truth about Nessie.”

“Why the fuck would you do something so stupid?” she asks. All gentleness has left her voice.

Ryan shrugs. “We were drunk.”

She sighs. “Of course. So, what happens if you don’t find out the truth?”

No one talks.

I don’t know what to say. Saying the words out loud gives them more power. And they don’t need more power. We’ve spent the last six months trying to find a solution. But now, we have just two days to discover the truth. Already, the consequences of the pact are chasing us like demons. I swear I feel the magic reaching into my chest and squeezing my heart... reminding me of what’s to come.

“It’s bad,” Peter finally says. “About as bad as you can imagine.”

She leans back in her chair and studies us for a long time. “You boys seem sweet. I don’t want anything bad to happen to you. But no one knows what Nessie is.”

“But there is something out there right?” I ask.

She nods and picks up her glass, staring down at the dark liquid. “If you go along the shore in that direction for a while,” she says, gesturing with her hand, “you’ll come to a little house. Humans can't see through its enchantment, but you’ll see it, and you’ll know it when you do. The woman there knows more about Nessie than anyone else. If you have any chance, it’s with her.”

Relief washes through me. “Thank you.”

We start to rise.

Her soft voice surprises us. “But be careful. The humans who investigate leave empty-handed. But our kind? They end up either dead or gone. This secret... it’s one worth killing for.”

We thank her and head out into the cool morning.

Pausing before the lake, Ryan turns to me. “What do you think?”

I shrug. “I think we'd better hurry. And watch our backs.”

A breeze blows around us, and I swear I hear whispers warning us of death. This beautiful place—it does hold a secret. And we have no choice but to unravel it.

Chapter Three

Sharon Reid

Picking up the phone, I dial her number. It only rings once before she answers.

“Yes?”

“Don’t kill me,” I whisper into the phone.

“What did you do?” There’s a warning in her tone that makes me shiver.

“Triplets were just here... big, sexy, American warlocks. Apparently, they’ve made a blood-pact to discover the identity of Nessie.”

“What did you do?” she repeats.

“I sent them to you.”

My words are met with silence.

Heart racing, I tangle the phone cord around one finger. “Did you hear me?”

At last, she responds. “Congratulations, those boys are dead now.”

I shake my head. “No, listen—“

But she’s already hung up. Setting the phone down, I collapse into my chair. I hoped that helping them wasn't a mistake. I thought she would show them compassion, but apparently, I was wrong. May the Gods have mercy on their souls.

Chapter Four

Loire

Six months ago, a man drowned a woman in the sacred waters of my lake in a fit of jealousy. When her ghost came to me, asking for revenge, I couldn’t help myself. Seeing his face plastered on the local news, tears streaming down his face, asking for information about her disappearance, made me sick. I dragged her body from the darkest depths of the lake and left her in his bed beside him as he slept.

It was no surprise when he turned himself in.

And I swear, the sound of his screams still makes me smile. I hear he can’t stop muttering of ghosts and zombies.

Serves him right.

But unexpectedly, the woman's ghost rewarded me for helping her. In life she’d been a powerful witch, so she cast a spell. She promised on the day he returned I would have help.

Her instructions were simple. Three men would come to my aide, and I must have sex with all three of them in the waters. Their powers would be mine, and I would have a chance of freeing myself from him at last.

Already I could feel myself going into heat. My clothes felt too tight, and the waters called to me. Today, I would become pregnant with another of my kind, and I would birth the only child of my rare species. The only child in a thousand years.

One of these three men would be the father, and all three of them would die when I sapped their powers.

It was a sad thing. I was gentle by nature and considered life precious. But Fate had other plans, and three unknown warlocks would have to pay the price.

I only hoped they were horrible men, ugly, cruel, and selfish. That would make it easier to kill them. Wrapping my arms around my shoulders, I stared out at the waters. A monster would soon swim in its dark depths. That monster only had one goal, to make me his. He planned to impregnate me with his child and make more of his kind.

If three warlocks had to pay to keep this world from being overrun with his kind, so be it.

And yet, my stomach clenches as I think of what I must do.

People might call me a monster. They might think I’m just like him, but I’m not.

I’m just... me.

Chapter Five

Ryan

I was glad for the thousandth time that I bought the top-of-the-line hiking boots on Harvey's advice. I preferred my Italian loafers, hand-stiched in Milano, but Harvey was right. These hiking boots were worth the fashion crime. They were already wet and filthy, and we were only on day one of exploring this damn lake. I hated it when one of my brothers was right.

Peter seemed to like it here. He pointed out things in the water and studied the plants, the scientist in him unable to shut up, even when our lives hung in the balance. Even Harvey seemed to enjoy the nature that surrounded us.

I despised it.

I’d made every right decision in my life until that night, when I was so drunk I couldn’t stand without the entire room pitching. Even after all this time, I couldn’t for the life of me figure out what made us make that pact. My brothers said it was the damned tequila... but I felt something else. Somehow, Fate had a hand in all of this.

I hated the idea that my life and choices weren’t my own.

Harvey and Peter might feel hopeless about finding the truth about Nessie, but I’d handle this the way I handled everything. We’d find the truth and move on as if this mistake never happened.

I hope.

“Guys?” Peter called, just ahead of us. “I think I found the cottage.”

I move faster, scrambling over the boulders and rocks lining the shore. Stopping next to Peter, I look at the little house, far too close to the water. Moss covers every inch of the stone structure, even the roof. Windows peek out at the lake, but hide what's inside. There's magic here. I sense it coursing through every inch of the structure.

Murmuring to myself, I cast an ancient spell of protection around my brothers and myself.

I step forward and at that moment the door opens.

A woman stands in the doorway. She's tall, with auburn hair, her skin as pale as the finest alabaster. Her face is extraordinarily beautiful, with high cheekbones and full lips. Her jeans and T-shirt hug her supple curves in a way that pushes every thought of Nessie from my mind.

My muscles tense, and my dick hardens.

This woman is the most fuckable woman I’ve ever seen in my life.

“You must be the Scott brothers,” she says, her Scottish accent making every hair on my body stand on end. “Come inside.”

We follow like men under a spell, like humans caught in a siren’s song.

Stumbling over rocks and dirt, we reach the little porch and duck to go inside.

And then, we were in a tiny living room with a small kitchen. Despite the sense of foreboding, it's just a simple house, warmed by a crackling fire.

Now that we’re closer, I see that her eyes are the color of the bluest water.  They run over us in a strangely intimate way, as if she’s evaluating us on a level most people don’t.

“Take off your coats.”

Her command is simple, matter-of-fact. We obey in a rush of movement and put our coats on the coatrack by the door. She gestures to her couch, and again, we obey.

Seating herself on a chair before the fire, she leans back in a confident way. “I’m Loire.”

We all just stare at her.

She raises a brow. “And you are?”

“The Scott brothers,” Harvey says dumbly.

Her eyes sparkle. “So, with triplets I don’t need to know your individual names?”

Peter clears his throat. “Uh—no, sorry, I’m Peter. And this is Ryan and Harvey.”

She meets each of our gazes as he introduces us. “Nice to meet you. I’m told you’re some kind of conspiracy theorists, here to ask me about Nessie.”

I want to answer, but my tongue won't respond.

“No, I mean yes,” Peter finally says, his cheeks turning red. “I mean, I’m a scientist. Harvey’s a teacher. And Ryan, well, he’s been creating businesses since he could talk.” He clears his throat. “But, yes, we’re here to ask about Nessie.”

There’s a flicker of interest in her eyes, and for a second I think she might ask us a question, but then a cocky smile plasters across her face. “Well, you aren’t the first to ask about the creature, and you won’t be the last, but no one knows the truth about Nessie.”

I clear my throat, and sit up straighter. “You have to be able to help us find this monster. We—“

“Don’t call it that.” Her smile vanishes.

“Uh,” I look at my brothers, but they are no help at all, just staring at the stunning woman.

“Okay. Well, we need help finding it. Anything you can tell us will be greatly appreciated.”

A calculated look comes over her face, as if piecing together a complicated puzzle. “Okay, I guess I can help a little.”

Standing, she grips the edge of her shirt and pulls it off.

I lean forward, and my cock jerks as she tosses her shirt to the floor. Her breasts are covered by a sinfully delicious black bra. The lace cradles her, but doesn't hide her firm breasts and hard nipples.

Fuck Nessie. I’m going to do whatever this woman wants.

She unbuttons her jeans and slides off her pants. I bite back a groan as I stared at the matching panties. Is she completely bare?

Fuck this!

Standing, I peel off my shirt and tear open my jeans, tossing my boots along with them. Finally, in nothing but my boxers, I meet her gaze.

She was grinning, her eyes running over my body. And I let her. She'll like what she sees.

“And here I thought you Americans might be worried about taking a dip in December.”

It takes me a long second to process her words. “You want to... go swimming?”

She smirks. “Why else would I be stripping in front of three strange men?”

Talk about a bucket of cold water.

“I mean, why did you strip then if you didn’t know what I had planned?”

I rub the back of my head, struggling for something that doesn’t make me seem like a horny loser. “Damn it. I thought we were fucking. You happy?”

She laughs, and the sound is way too pleasant. “Your hard cock gave that away.”

I know I should feel embarrassed, but there’s nothing embarrassing about my package either. “Maybe we could... get to know each other better before this swim?”

She takes two steps toward me and her hips move in the most enticing way. She rests a hand on my chest and slides it down until I’m about to lose my shit. But she stops just above my boxers.

“I’m afraid that’s just not going to happen.”

Drawing her hand back, she looks to my brothers. “What’s it going to be, boys? Are we taking a swim? That will help you with at least one of your problems.”

Her gaze goes back to my hard cock, and I grit my teeth.

This woman’s got to know that everything she says just makes me harder. Right?

My brothers look uncertain as they undress. But in minutes, Peter’s standing in his tighty-whities, and there’s no denying that he likes this woman too. Harvey is wearing blue briefs, and his dick strains to break the thin material.

Her gaze moves over all of us, and she smiles. “Can you warlocks breathe underwater?”

I frown. “With the right spell...”

She waves her hand away and goes to her kitchen. A minute later, she produces three gnarly looking green balls on a saucer. “Take these pills. They’ll give you a full day underwater.”

“My mom always said not to take enchanted food from strangers,” I say, wrinkling my nose.

She shrugs. “Up to you. I’m not the one who wants to learn about Nessie.”

My gaze moves back to the three pills in her hand, and my treacherous eyes go to her hard nipples. Shit. This woman... I need to fuck her desperately. There’s time for Nessie and her... but only if I stop being a chicken-shit.

Opening my mouth, I dare her to feed one to me.

I expect her to back down. Most women back down from me. But instead, she moves closer, until her body is inches from mine. She leans up so those fucking beautiful tits of hers are rubbing against my chest, and feeds me the magical pill. It disintegrates in my mouth and tastes like dog food smells, but I don’t even care. I just want her to keep touching me.

My brothers take the other two green balls and wince as they eat them.

Peter makes a gagging noise. “I don’t think I can—“

She moves closer to him, and to our shock, starts to stroke his shaft through his underwear. Peter swallows the crap and stares down at her like she’s a mirage.

“Is that better?” she purrs.

He groans and his head falls back.

For the first time, her smug look fades. “You just need someone to kneel down and suck you off, don’t you?”

“Oh, fuck,” he groans.

She steps back shaking her head as if to clear her thoughts. “We don’t have time for this. Let’s go.”

When she heads outside, we all take a minute to breathe.

“She’s too sexy,” Harvey says.

“Did you see her breasts?” Peter groans.

Yes, I did... and none of this makes any sense at all.

“This is probably a trap,” I tell them, reality setting in.

“And I bet she’s wet as fuck,” Peter murmurs.

“Did you guys hear me?” I ask them.

Harvey sighs. “Of course it’s a trap. Women don’t just strip for random strangers and stroke their dicks." “So what do we do?”

Peter finally seems to be paying attention. “We go. And we’re ready for anything.”

None of us has a better idea. This woman is our only lead. We’ll just be careful and stay one step ahead of her. If we do that, no matter what she plans, we’ll be okay.

Stepping out into the cold, my gaze goes to the beautiful woman. She’s turned away from us, displaying her round ass cupped by her thin panties.

This woman is pure and utter trouble.

What she doesn't realize, and what may be her downfall, is that so are we.

Chapter Six

Peter

The enchanted, foul tasting balls worked better than I imagined. As we swim beneath the freezing waters of Loch Ness Lake, we don't need air. We explore the deepest, darkest parts of the lake, swimming past fish and other creatures until we reach the bottom of the lake. Here, our warlock eyes pick out the silver strands weaving through the ground.

I pause, frowning. Knowing my answer before I touch the silver, but not being able to stop, I run my hands along the pure magic, completely enthralled. I’ve never seen anything like this before. It’s beautiful, and completely unexpected.

This place is enchanted with a spell older than time, and it's woven into the very earth.

But why? Why would something need this much magic? For what?

She takes my brothers in one direction, but I feel the magic pulling me.

Knowing that I shouldn’t split from them doesn’t stop me from exploring my curiosity. The silver lines grow more frequent and larger as I move through the underwater plants and find a cave. Swimming into it, I find a bright place filled with the silver magic.

Moving deeper and deeper, I stop when I reach the end. A massive doorway made of silver magic is in the back of the cave. It glows with symbols unlike anything I’ve seen before.

Heart racing, I stretch my magic out. And know. This is an entrance for a creature of power and danger, unlike anything I’ve seen before. Nessie.

Something touches my shoulder.

I whirl around.

It’s the woman. Loire.

She slides closer to me and presses her body against me. My thoughts spin away. She pulls my underwear down my thighs and starts to stroke me.

Oh, fuck. It’s been so long. And this woman, she’s intoxicating. She's everything I’ve ever imagined and more.

Her lips find mine, and energy crackles between us as she strokes me harder and our kiss deepens. My tongue tangles with hers, and she releases my shaft. Her legs go around my waist, and she breaks our kiss.

Holding my gaze, she slides her underwear to the side, takes me in her smaller hand, and presses me inside of her.

I’m shocked as her tight body holds me like a vice, and then, she’s bouncing on top of me, taking me deeper and deeper with each movement. When I finally come to my hilt, I can’t think. I don’t understand anything except that her tight muscles are squeezing me beyond reason.

My hands grip her thighs, and I slam into her over and over while she rides me.

When I feel her climaxing around me, I finally come, releasing the tension that’s been building inside of me for months. White hot pleasure awakens every sense in my body. It’s indescribable how good I feel.

At last, she sags against me. I feel complete in a way I never have with a woman before. She pulls back from me, her auburn hair floating around her pale skin like a dream. Her expression... is confused.

When her legs untangle from my back, I adjust her underwear and mine.

Turning back to the doorway, I give her a questioning look.

She shrugs.

I want to find the others, to tell them. And I think she knows what I want.

She takes my hand and leads me out of the cave, then points in one direction, releasing my hand. I start to swim, and look back. But she’s gone.

Frowning, I continue to swim. My experience with the woman is almost as confusing as what that doorway means. But I know my brothers will know better than me.

If I can find them down here.

Chapter Seven

Harvey

I’m trying to focus on our search for clues as to what Nessie is, but my thoughts are scattered. The woman makes me feel things I don’t understand, and I’ve got a sinking feeling that I know why.

Some warlocks have fated mates. Most are not so lucky. My father and mother said it’s impossible to fight or ignore. The choice is simply taken from us.

And this woman... I don’t think I have a choice with her.

I think she belongs to us.

I didn’t tell my brothers though, because of the very real complication that comes from the fact that she’s not a witch. She’s something else in our paranormal world. She may not experience fated mates in the same way we do.

Maybe she has a choice whether to be with us or not.

If I tell my brothers, and I’m wrong, the consequences might be more than we can deal with right now. Even if I'm right, things may not go the way we want. Either way, she is a complication we don't need right now.

As I continue swimming forward, distracted by my thoughts, I end up swimming over a deep cavern beneath the water. It’s brighter than even the silver lines we saw earlier. Frowning, I swim deeper until I reach the bottom.

My heart clenches. Human bones litter the ground in all directions, the silver magic holding them into place. We were right about this Nessie. It is a monster.

A dangerous one.

Spinning, I come face-to-face with Loire. She looks worried.

I can’t help myself. I pull her closer and wrap her in my arms, wanting to bring her comfort.

Our gazes meet, and the worry drains from her face. She reaches up and strokes the stubble of my chin, and I’m lost in her clear-blue eyes.

Leaning down, I give her every opportunity to pull away, before planting a gentle kiss on her lips.

Her hands slide into the back of my hair, and she tugs me closer. Our kiss deepens, and I long for more. But I know this isn’t the time or the place. This—

She takes my hand and curls it around her breast.

I break the kiss, shocked.

Holding my gaze, she uses my hand to push back the material of her bra.

I lose all fucking control. Leaning down, I take her sweet nipple into my mouth and suck eagerly. My other hand pushes that material away too, and I’m stroking and squeezing her other nipple. I move between the two of them, sucking and stroking. These breasts are perfect. And mine!

When she slides my hand down, I’m eager as I move beneath her panties. She bucks against me as I touch her there too, unable to stop myself.

My head is spinning when she finally tugs my boxers down, takes me, and maneuvers me into place. Just as I’m about to slip into her, my brother, Ryan, is suddenly beside us.

She looks back at him, and I think she’s going to freak and pull away.

But instead, she wraps a hand around his neck and kisses him.

He moves behind her, and I feel him adjust her underwear. In seconds, we’re both inside her, moving as one. We are determined to give her an experience she's never had before. Just like she’s doing for us.

A shudder moves through her body. I feel my control slipping, and then, she’s bucking wildly.

We come at the same time, filling this woman with our seed. With our everything.

Sagging around her, I stroke her shoulder, amazed and confused.

She looks up at me, and the complex emotions in her eyes hold me like a trap. I know now that she didn’t expect this to happen between us, and I wonder if she feels the pull between us too.

And then, the earth begins to shake.

She jerks out between us, all three of us frantically adjusting our clothing. The earth shakes harder and harder, and she looks at us in panic, pointing straight up.

We nod, and swim for the surface.

The water continues to shake until we feel it... a black magic unlike any we’ve felt before. Something evil has awakened in these waters. Nessie. And now, I have feeling we won’t just have to discover what this creature is.

We’ll have to kill it too.

Chapter Eight

Ryan

We explode out into the surface, gasping in fresh air. The morning and afternoon have faded into evening since we slipped beneath the waters, and the red sunset paints the lake a crimson color. The surface of the lake pitches and moves as if an earthquake is rocking this world, but we know better.

The creature in the water has awakened.

“Go for the shore!” the woman commands. “As quickly as you can. And get as far away from here as possible.”

I frown at her. “No way in hell. We’re here to find the monster, and we’re going to.”

The panic in her expression twists my heart. “You don’t understand. You have to get away, okay?”

“Not a chance.”

Anger flashes in her eyes. “You won’t survive.”

“Come with us.”

She shakes her head. “This is something I have to take care of.”

I open my mouth, but she cut me off. “I didn’t just fuck you for fun. It was the only way to get access to your magic. I—I used the three of you.”

“Used?” I repeat, not following. What the fuck was she talking about?

“Your powers... they’ll be gone soon. You’ll be weak and defenseless.”

My heart races. “How defenseless?”

“Useless. The second I will it to happen. So go. I’ll have no choice but to take your powers when it comes for me.”

“Fuck.” I can’t even be angry. The water is pitching so frantically that panic is setting in. “Okay, but we’re coming back to deal with this tomorrow. We’re—wait, where’s Peter?”

I see it hit her. “Still below the surface.”

My stomach clenches. “We’re not going anywhere without him.”

“I’ll look for him,” she promises.

I shake my head. “That’s not good enough. We’re not leaving without him.”

She grabs my arm, her grip tight. “The only way to defeat it is to use your powers. The prophecy is clear. When that beast arrives, you'll be weak and defenseless. Get out of the water. I’ll save Peter, but you have to go! All of this is bigger than you can imagine. This prophecy has been in place for centuries." The feeling of being weak and powerless settles inside of me like a stone, but I know my answer. “We won’t leave without him.”

Around us, the water pitches harder and faster, and an island erupts in the center of the lake. The sands are white, interlaced with glowing silver light.

“Use a spell to conceal yourselves,” she whispers.

I hear Harvey begin to mutter, and my skin tingles. In seconds, I know we’ve blended in with the waves.

That's when the monster raises its head from the waters.

Nessie looks nothing like the pictures. Yes, it’s got a long neck, massive body, and round head. But it’s bigger... bigger than a house, and its mouth is filled with razor-sharp teeth.

It throws back its head and roars, a sound that tears through us.

“Stay here. Trust me,” she whispers.

Then, swimming away from us, she heads straight for it and toward the island that separates the creature from us. My hands twitch to pull her back, to keep her safe. But I stay, swimming in place, watching to see what happens. Fear sits in my stomach like a solid ball, but I’m determined to see this through. She rises from the water and climbs onto the island. Her legs shake from the effort and her steps are uneven.

Without speaking, Harvey and I draw closer. Watching.

Within seconds, Nessie transforms into a huge man, with dark blue skin and scales. He slides onto the island, towering over Loire. Her shoulders straighten, but she remains rooted in place.

“Oh, so you are going to make this easy for me?” he says, his voice like the waves of the ocean. “I was looking forward to bending you to my will.”

“I’m not making this easy for you. I’m here to tell you my answer yet again. I will not allow you to mate me.”

His expression grows thunderous. “Today you are destined to become heavy with the child of prophecy, with my child. You will submit to my will until I’m certain my seed has been planted.”

“No,” she says. The word seems to hover between them.

His mouth twists. “Now that you’re in heat, you can’t get far from the waters. How exactly do you plan to escape me?” He smiles. “You don’t even have to answer, we both already know. You can’t. So let’s stop with these games. Come to me and fulfill the prophecy.”

In an instant, the creature’s power washes over all of us, and it takes everything inside of me to keep swimming.

“You will lie down and let me take what’s rightfully mine.”

She opens her mouth.

At that moment, Peter pops free from the waters. He gasps for air and splashes, drawing attention from Loire and the monster.

“What in the Gods’ names is that being doing in my sacred waters?” The man roars. “Every human should be asleep, caught beneath my spell.” His head tilts to the side. “But you’re not human, are you? No matter. You're dead now.”

Peter is yanked from the water by his neck and held up before the man. He thrashes and struggles, grabbing at his throat, but his fight is in vain.

We act without thinking, climbing onto the island. Leveling my shoulder, I race toward him and knock the man into the water. Peter hits the ground, gasping for air, and Ryan moves to his side.

“What have you done?” Loire whispers. “This is my only chance. I need your powers to stop him. But if I take them, you’re all dead.”

I stare at her. “No, we’ll fight by your side.”

She opens her mouth to answer, but before she can, the beast rises from the water, no longer a man. It throws back its head in a roar and then launches at us. We leap into the waters, trying to escape it, but its big body is everywhere, tossing about, spinning us through the waves.

I grasp onto its scales, digging my hands in. Beneath the waters, I repeat the first spell that comes into my head, hoping and praying that Loire won’t sap my powers yet. If she does, we’ll have no chance against this beast.

Instantly, the beast begins to thrash beneath my grip, and I feel my powers crackling through him. My thoughts jumble with each of his violent movements, and my teeth crack together, but I refuse to let go.

And then, he throws me. I spin through the water, unsure what’s up and down. When I can see again, the creature is heading straight for me, its massive jaw open and ready to swallow me whole. For one second I’m frozen. I can’t outswim it. Can I fight it like this?

Loire comes out of nowhere, so fast she’s nothing but a blur of color. She leaps straight at the creature and pounds a fist into one of its eyes.

A wail shakes the water. The beast thrashes its head.

Now!

Shooting forward, I grip onto its scales once more and begin my spell again. This beast might have controlled this lake for this long, but that’s because it didn’t have us to fight against.

I repeat the words faster and faster and I know the moment my brothers join in as they realize that we haven't lost our powers.

I see them through the water, grabbing onto the creature too. The three of us hold onto it, repeating the words until it vibrates around us.

It tries to bite at us, but Loire is there in an instant, grasping onto its snout. It tries to shake her off, but she’s relentless.

And then, the beast shrinks.

Disappearing from our grip, we watch as it shrinks into an animal the size of a mouse. Instantly, Loire grabs it around the neck and darts through the water. We follow as quickly as we can, chasing her even as we realize we’re falling far behind.

She reaches the shore outside her home quicker than we do and races into her house.

We finally emerge from the waters and stumble after her, drained from our spell.

Walking through the open door, we see her standing beside her fish tank. Inside, Nessie is trapped, thrashing uselessly against the glass.

And Loire... she’s smiling.

“I thought I had to take your powers to stop him,” she turns, and her smile widens. “Turns out I just needed your help. Thank you.”

There’s a moment where we’re all just staring at each other. Everything that happened replays in our minds. Maybe we should be mad at her for tricking us into taking our powers.

But when she had the choice to leave us powerless, she didn’t actually go through with it. She trusted us enough to give us time to help her. And it’s hard to blame someone who was only trying to stop that beast.

“It’s over and done with,” Harvey says, shrugging awkwardly.

Peter’s blushing. “And you helped us with our blood pact to find Nessie, so I guess we’re even.”

Her smile fades, and we sense that something has changed. Something I don’t understand.

She tilts her head, studying us. “What exactly are the consequences of not completing the terms of your pact?”

Peter spills our secret, his relief loosening his tongue. “We could never find love or have children until we discovered its identity.”

Looking at the being trapped in the water, she’s quiet for a long time. “I’ve been dreading this day. The day I went into heat and could finally become pregnant. I knew he’d come for me...”

For one terrible moment she looks small and frightened. Every instinct within me awakens, screaming that this woman is mine to protect.

I move closer to her and wrap my arms around her from behind, my chest aching. “Our spell was a powerful one. He won’t be bothering you again.”

She looks back at me, those water-blue eyes of hers capturing me in her gaze. “You three saved my life and you deserve the truth.”

Pulling away from me, her hands curl into fists, and tension sings through her body. “He isn’t Nessie. I am.”

We stare in confusion.

“I’m a shifter. He and I are the last of our kind. I fled here a long time ago to be free of him.”

“You’re—you’re the creature in the water?”

She nods.

No wonder all the stories about Nessie say the creature is gentle.

I give her a reassuring smile. “It’s no wonder we all came together so easily. Shifters and warlocks go together like—“

Peter interrupts. “A partially positive hydrogen atom and a partially negative atom in a polar covalent bond.”

We all stare at him.

His cheeks turn bright red. “Or ham and pineapple on pizza.

I look back at Loire. “I know usually only serial killers eat ham and pineapple pizza, but I vouch that he's not a serial killer. He’s just a weirdo.”

She throws back her head and laughs. “Don’t worry, I’ve got my own guilty pleasure foods.” She grins at us. “So, we’re good?”

We all nod as one.

She removes the soaking wet bra and slides her underwear off down her legs. “I’m also afraid to tell you. I didn’t think much about anything but surviving at the time, but there’s a very real possibility that you three may be fathers in the months to come.”

I’m pretty sure my jaw dropped to the ground.

“So why don’t we go and take a shower and decide what we should do with him,” she indicates the creature in the tank, “and about us.”

Spinning around, she strides into her bedroom.

Peter looks at me. “Uh, so, I guess we’ve met the requirements of our blood pact.”

“So now we can fall in love and have kids,” Harvey mutters.

I glance back at where the woman has gone. “Did anyone think meeting Nessie might actually mean falling in love with her and having kids with her?”

Peter and Harvey shake their heads.

“So what do we do now?”

Harvey strips off his boxers. “I don’t know about you two, but I could go for some shower sex.”

My brothers hurry off after the beautiful woman.

I think of Texas. My parents. My businesses. And then, I think of Loire.

Maybe I’m crazy, but Christmas with a beautiful monster doesn’t sound so bad. And after that? Who knows?

It’s just, there’s still one thing bothering me. Calling after Nessie, I stay rooted in place. “Loire? Did that creature leave all those human bones on the bottom of the lake?”

There’s no answer for a long second.

And then, her lovely voice comes like a song. “I didn’t judge his taste in pizza, so don’t judge my little... guilty pleasure.”

The shower turns on, but I stay standing in the living room for a while longer, debating about how I feel about that little twist to our adventure.

Want to read more stories about monstrous women finding the men who love them? Check out: Medusa’s Destiny.

Also By Lacey Carter Andersen

Mates of the Realms: Mortals

Renegade Hunter

Cursed Hunter

Betrayed Hunter

Mates of the Realms: Immortals

Rebel Lover

Rebel Lies

Rebel Loss

Alternative Futures

Nightmare Hunter

Deadly Dreams

Mortal Flames

Twisted Prophecies

An Icelius Reverse Harem

Her Alien Romance

Steamy Tale of Warriors and Rebels

Gladiators

The Dragon Shifters’ Last Hope

Stolen by Her Harem

Claimed by Her Harem

Treasured by Her Harem

The Dragon Shifters’ Last Hope Collection

Magic in Her Harem

Harem of the Shifter Queen

Sultry Fire

Sinful Ice

Saucy Mist

Monsters and Gargoyles

Medusa’s Destiny

About the Author

Lacey Carter Andersen loves reading, writing, and drinking excessive amounts of coffee. She spends her days taking care of her husband, three kids, and three cats. But at night, everything changes! Her imagination runs wild with strong-willed characters, unique worlds, and exciting plots that she enthusiastically puts into stories.

Lacey has dozens of tales: science fiction romances, paranormal romances, short romances, reverse harem romances, and more. So, please feel free to dive into any of her worlds; she loves to have the company!

And you’re welcome to reach out to her; she really enjoys hearing from her readers.

You can find her at:

Facebook Page: www.facebook.com/Lacey-Carter-Andersen-1940678949483316/