Chapter 25: Their Cursed

Remi

The art exhibit Amanda took me to was really cool. It was some kind of modern sculpture show, and everything had some different way to look at it that completely changed the piece. We spent a couple hours moving around the exhibit and looking at all the pieces. The artist was incredibly talented, and I really enjoyed the whole exhibit.

When we were done, Amanda took us to a cute little bakery where we snacked on pastries and coffee. Amanda was easy to talk to even though she did a lot of the talking. I was beginning to feel like we were real friends already. She made me tell her everything about Cullen and last night. We had spent over 2 hours in the bakery before we decided to get up and walk over to the park to feed the ducks. We had been enjoying ourselves enough that we did not know how much time had passed until my phone rang.

“Hello,” I answered.

“Hi, baby. Are you okay?” Calder’s voice came through my phone.

“Yea, I’m okay. I’m sorry, it’s pretty late isn’t it? I didn’t mean to worry you!” I said quickly. He chuckled.

“It’s okay. Are you girls coming back for dinner?” he asked.

I turned to Amanda and she looked at me quizzically. “Calder wants to know if we are coming back for dinner,” I whispered to her. She giggled at me.

“Yes, Caldy! I will bring her back to you!” she shouted. My cheeks went red as she continued to laugh at me. Calder laughed over the phone too.

“I guess that answers my question,” he said.

“We’ll be back soon,” I said.

“I’ll be waiting, baby,” he said. We hung up and I shot a mean glare at Amanda. She just continued to laugh at me.

“You don’t have to tease me about it…” I said.

“I am only trying to tease Caldy and Cully, I swear. You just embarrass easily. You got to embrace this mate stuff. Honestly, you scored,” she said with a shrug.

“What do you mean by that?” I asked.

“They aren’t my brothers so I can say this: Calder and Cullen are hot. Steamy, dirty, hot. Then combine that with the fact that they are both super smart and capable. They are like the complete package. And you get both of them all to yourself!”

“Okay, no hitting on my mates!” I said. She smiled at me. “What?” I asked.

“You just called them your mates,” she said cooing at me. I rolled my eyes at her but then smiled thinking about Calder and Cullen.

“Let’s go,” I said, dragging her back in the direction of the car.

-

When we got back, Calder and Gentry had pizza waiting in the living room and a movie ready to watch. We all sat around on the couches and ate pizza and popcorn. We watched some action movie. I had started the night sitting next to Calder on the couch. When we had pushed the pizza box away, he pulled me up onto his lap, cuddling me close. We stayed like that the whole movie.

Oddly, I was relaxed the entire time. I laid against Calder and watched the movie, enjoying being in his arms. After the movie, we all went our separate ways to our rooms. Cullen had said he would be home after dinner, so I was hoping he would be back soon.

I was still a little nervous about the whole thing. I wanted to trust what Cullen and Calder were saying and something inside of me was telling me to. After Cullen and I talked last night, I felt so much better. My heart did not ache thinking about him anymore. My mind strayed to them many times throughout the day.

When we got upstairs, Calder left to go take a shower. I sat on the couch and checked my phone. Jessie had texted me with my schedule for the week. I was scheduled for Monday lunch and dinner. Nervousness washed over me. I had completely forgot about work with everything that was happening. Then I remembered about Cullen buying the diner and needing to find a new job.

I sighed. I got the feeling that Calder would be sad but accept me going to work tomorrow. But Cullen was a different story. He was oddly possessive in such a nonchalant way. It did not seem like he was willing to show his sweet side to anyone but me.

I chewed on my lip as I sat there thinking about the best way to tell the both of them. The bedroom door opened, and Cullen appeared. My heart started beating faster. He closed the door behind him and came directly over to me. I did not even get the chance to stand up before he was leaning over me, caging me in with his arms.

He smiled down at me. "Hello love. How was your day?" He said running his nose along mine.

"Amanda and I had a lot of fun. The exhibit was really nice. I wish you were there," I said.

"So do I," he said. He pecked my lips. Calder emerged from the bathroom then. He wore only a pair of athletic shorts. His wet hair flopped over his forehead as he strode over to us.

"You're back," Calder said in a measured voice.

Cullen looked up at him and nodded. He turned back to me and scooped me up in his arms before sitting on the couch himself and burying his face in my neck.

"Took longer than expected," Cullen said. He continued to snuggle me.

"Everything alright?" I asked him.

"Everything is perfect now," he said hugging me closer.

Calder flopped down next to Cullen and pulled my legs over his lap. He started rubbing my legs as Cullen held me. "Ready for bed, baby?" Calder asked.

"Sure," I said. Cullen's face came up and his lips skimmed my jaw.

"Why don't you go change for bed and I'll be right back?" He whispered. I nodded my head. He gave me a lingering kiss before helping me climb off their laps. I grabbed my pajamas from my bag and went to the bathroom to change. I quickly washed up, brushed my teeth, and changed into the same pajamas I had been wearing all weekend here.

I looked in the mirror trying to gather the courage to put my foot down about going to work tomorrow. I took a deep breath before exiting the bathroom. I looked over to see Cullen sitting on the edge of the bed and Calder still on the couch. They stopped their conversation, and both turned their heads to me. Holy smokes I was not sure I could handle one boyfriend and now I think I had two. I walked towards them slowly.

Cullen held his arm out for me. "Come here," he said. I went to him. I stood in front of him, and his hands rested on my hips.

"I missed you today," he said softly.

"I missed you, too," I said.

Calder stood up and came up behind me, standing flush against my back. At the same time Cullen's lips captured mine and Calder's found the crook of my neck. I let a small moan as they both kissed me. I wrapped my arms around Cullen's neck as they continued to both kiss me. Simultaneously, Cullen pulled me closer, and Calder pushed me forward. I stood sandwiched between them now and Calder's hands found my a**, squeezing it. I yelped at the sudden contact and Cullen plunged his tongue in my mouth, kissing me deeper.

Calder’s lips left my neck and traveled up. His teeth found my earlobe and nipped at it. I tried to pull away from Cullen and he met me with a growl, his hands coming up to grab my face and keep me with him.

“Tsk, tsk,” Calder whispered in my ear. “Don’t run away from us, baby.” A shudder ran through me at his words. I could feel him smiling next to my ear. Cullen finally broke our kiss, letting me catch my breath. Calder continued to pepper kisses along my neck and shoulder.

“Do you want us to stop, love?” Cullen said huskily. His voice sent more shivers through me. My core was on fire and they had barely touched me. When I did not answer, he tried again. “We are all yours, love. What do you want?” between both of their hands on me and their mouths, my mind was in a haze. I could not form coherent speech.

"Maybe you need to be spanked," Calder whispered in my ear. That made me squeak. He chuckled in a husky voice.

“Sp-spanked?" I managed to say.

"Yes, baby. Spanked," he said.

Cullen kissed me again, his tongue pushing at my lips, requesting entry. I opened my mouth and let him in. After a moment he pulled away and rested his forehead against mine. Calder did the same from behind. We all sat there catching our breaths.

"Maybe that's enough for tonight," Cullen said quietly. I gave him a small nod. Calder moved from behind me as Cullen picked me up and set me on his lap, straddling his hips. He looked into my eyes with his grey ones. I gave him a small smile.

"You're so beautiful," he whispered.

"Thank you," I said quietly. I knew my cheeks were red hearing him say that.

"Are you tired, love?" He asked. I nodded my head.

"Let's lay down," he said.

"Wait," I said. He looked at me quizzically. I knew I needed to tell them before we went to sleep. "I need to go home tomorrow. I have to work tomorrow afternoon," I said. My voice was barely a whisper.

His face got confused. "No, you don't," he said. Calder crawled into the bed behind Cullen.

"What do you mean, baby?" Calder asked.

"Jessie, a girl I work with, sent me my schedule for next week. I am scheduled for lunch and dinner shift. I need to go back to work…"

"That's absurd," Cullen said. "You don't need to work."

"Cullen…" Calder started. I looked between them.

"If I don't go back to work, I will lose my apartment…" I said.

"You don't need your apartment," Cullen said. He said everything as if this was a foregone conclusion.

"Cullen, we hadn't talked about her moving in…" Calder said.

"Of course she is going to move in. She's our mate." I looked between them. This was overwhelming and I did not expect it to be.

"Cullen, we can't just make that decision for her," Calder said. Cullen looked back at me.

"Fine, I will take you home in the morning and then take you to work. But I will also pick you up afterwards and we will discuss this then," he said.

"Okay," I said quietly. I guess that was better than it could have gone. Calder sat back on the pillows. Cullen lifted me up and turned us so that I was in between them, still facing him. He kissed me lightly while pulling me close to him. Calder’s body turned and he cuddled me from behind. I was wrapped in both of their arms and my whole body felt lite and warm. Being with them both made me feel safe and content, which was a nice change from the last few years being on my own.

There were still a lot of things to figure out and issues that needed to be resolved but I knew I loved them both. I loved Cullen’s soft and sweetness towards me but cool, strict exterior. I love that Calder was sweet and doting but also demanding and dominant with me. They were so different yet so balanced. And they made me feel like I fit perfectly between them, like it is where I have always belonged.

Cullen

Remi was getting flustered as Calder and I kissed her. She was not ready to mate yet and that was probably for the best. We needed to help her wolf emerge so she could feel our bond fully. And I wanted it to be perfect for her. I wanted her to want it. Giving into her last night was so easy. I knew I would do whatever she ever asked of me.

"Maybe that's enough for tonight," I said quietly to her. Her small face nodded at me. I picked her up and placed her on my lap so that she was straddling me. Calder moved around the bed to come to the other side. I looked at her beautiful face, wishing she were marked so I knew what was going through her mind. She was so quiet, so timid.

"You're so beautiful," I told her.

"Thank you," she said. Every time we complimented her, she blushed.

"Are you tired, love?" I asked her. She nodded at me again.

"Let's lay down," I said.

"Wait," she said very quickly. I looked at her curiously. "I need to go home tomorrow. I have to work tomorrow afternoon," she said in a quiet, nervous voice.

Why did she think she needed to go to work? Calder and I were more than capable of taking care of her and providing for her. "No, you don't," I said. Calder was crawling over the bed from behind us.

"What do you mean, baby?" Calder asked.

"Jessie, a girl I work with, sent me my schedule for next week. I am scheduled for lunch and dinner shift. I need to go back to work…" she said. I could tell she was nervous about telling us this.

"That's absurd," I said. "You don't need to work."

"Cullen…" Calder started. She looked at both of us.

"If I don't go back to work, I will lose my apartment…" she said. That would be the point very soon. I wanted her living with us immediately.

"You don't need your apartment," I told her.

"Cullen, we hadn't talked about her moving in…" Calder told me.

"Of course she is going to move in. She's our mate." I replied. Wasn’t this obvious?

"Cullen, we can't just make that decision for her," Calder said. I looked at him. “We need to let her make the choice. She will choose us but let her have a little space.”

“Fine. But I will be taking her to and from work and I want her to sleep here. We need to bring her wolf out so she can feel the mate bond.”

“If she agrees, fine,” he replied.

"Fine, I will take you home in the morning and then take you to work. But I will also pick you up afterwards and we will discuss this then," I told her. I hoped she would not argue with me.

"Okay," she agreed, like the good girl she is. Calder moved over to the pillow and I lifted Remi to the center of the bed to lay between us. She was still facing me, so I snuggled her to me. I kissed her while Calder positioned himself behind her. We both held her as we all drifted off to sleep.