(Amaia)

Mintaka’s lips are tender and he covers mine like a master craftsman. He is a smooth kisser; there is no hurriedness in the movement of his lips or the languid strokes of his tongue. He takes his time, savouring me as if imprinting the first taste in his mind.

The double sensations blaze me with the feeling of their collective lips.

Alnitak’s sensual graze on my neck and Mintaka’s fervent delicate strokes on my lips.

The twin feelings have my body heating up like a volcano, ready to burst.

The pain in my thigh somehow lessens as if someone has placed a healing balm on one quarter of it.

That’s surprising...

And then I feel Alnitak stiffening behind me, his body goes rigid and his breaths come out ragged.

"Amaia!" He whispers with such softness, as if he has found a new meaning to my name. 𝕗𝕣𝐞𝐞𝘄𝐞𝚋𝚗𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗹.𝚌𝕠𝚖

Mintaka lets me go at his brother’s call and I turn to face him.

There is a newly unravelled truth in his gorgeous eyes as they take me in. His arms protectively wrap around me and he desperately hugs me to his body.

"You are mine. I feel the mate bond. I can scent you, I can see the golden halo around you. Zevran recognises you as our mate."

WHAT???

I almost scream in joy at his words. A breath of joy leaves my body.

Did the curse lift? It seems like it did but only for him.

The words of the book come flashing back to me.

Not only do the mates have to recognise me without the mate bond, but they also need to perform a selfish act of love. Alnitak’s decision not to withhold information from his twin, instead easing him to open up with me, helped him realise he is my mate too. This must have acted as a buffer.

That action alone has led to the curse being lifted.

His lips crash down on me like a meteorite, hot and explosive, burning me with this newfound manner–dominating my mouth, invading it. His burning body rubs against me, setting mine on fire too.

The thick arousal between his legs pokes my abdomen, letting me know how turned on and volatile he is.

Threading my hands into his lush locks I rock my body against his.

"I will give you guys a minute..." Mintaka’s thoughtful voice comes. There is so much we need to speak about but with Alnitak in such a condition, he is giving us space. "I will try and connect with Zelen and take him for a run if he comes out."

With these words, I hear the door to their room close.

Slowly, I let go of Alnitak’s mouth, and he lowers his head, resting his forehead against my lips—not ready to sever the connection.

"....I don’t understand Amaia. How? How can I suddenly scent you? I thought you had no natural scent and that’s why I couldn’t find the connection or feel a mate bond. Or just because you are a unique human," he wonders out loud.

My arms stay across his neck, hugging him to me.

"I do but I don’t know if I should tell you or can tell you." With this newfound reality, I believe that the curse will be extended to Alnitak. Just like I can’t reveal anything related to the curse, once he knows, he won’t be able to tell his brothers or anyone else about that matter.

He raises his head and places a small kiss on my nose, "Try me, Amaia. I don’t want you to be alone in this. Not anymore. I am already so guilty for not believing you. Tell me everything."

My brain warns me against it but my desperate heart wants someone to share the secret with, if I can. I don’t even know how the damned curse works and how much I can reveal to Alnitak.

"Ummm, I was cursed...." My eyes widen at that and so does his. I can actually speak about it.

"Is it the first time you can say that out loud?" He asks, slowly rubbing my back and I nod my head in disbelief.

"I am sorry, Amaia for all the hurt I caused you and for not believing in you when you were suffering." He desperately connects his forehead with mine and heavily sighs. His strong shoulders sag under the guilt.

"I even made you cry. What kind of shitty mate I am." The guilt coats his words and I just hug him tight. It’s the newfound mate bond which is feeding him all these emotions. He is probably not even used to them. Women carry deeper emotions and I am sure he is overwhelmed.

"You already apologised. What matters is that we are here and have found our way to each other." I rub his back, trying to free him from this overwhelming guilt.

"Tell me everything. Everything that you can say."

So I begin. But I am unable to tell him about Huradis, or that Alnilam is my fourth mate or that I have a curse mark on my thigh.

I informed him that someone had placed a curse on me so that my mates wouldn’t be able to feel the mate bond with me.

I also tell him in detail about Tarian and what a bag of shit he was.

How the curse affected me, brought me pain every time Alnitak was near. How I sought a solution to it all.

"Is that what you were reading when we kissed in the library for the first time?" He asks, slightly amused and I nod at him.

"Yes, I was trying to find a way to lift this curse. I didn’t want to live like that."

"Amaia, I can’t even imagine what you were going through daily. Being so near us and yet so far away." His touch on my waist tightens, making evocative feelings run through my body like tiny sparks of love.

"I promise you, that’s the last time we’ll disappoint you. No more. I will make up for every heartache we caused. Every harsh word I said and every moment I ignored you." My lips automatically smile at his hearty words. His eyes won’t stop changing colours as if they have been fitted with a kaleidoscope.

"I have no doubt."

And then his voice becomes all serious.

"But on top of that, I want to find the person who placed that curse on you and I am going to rip him apart."