Connor stopped just a few feet from the boundary to the safe house. They’d been here a day already and he couldn’t shift without feeling sick. He’d come away from safety and into the woods determined to shift so he could get close to Micah. Too long without holding him and talking to him and he was slowly losing it. Finding a small circle of bracken and twigs, he concentrated on shifting. In a moment he was crouched on two arms and two legs as a human. Nausea rolled inside him and his head had a band of iron around it. He closed his eyes and focused on settling his stomach.
“Connor?”
Micah’s voice came through the trees and Connor tensed when his lover entered the small clearing.
“You okay?” he asked gently.
Connor didn’t need affection and understanding, he needed his headache to subside and his stomach to stop fighting him.
Micah moved a little closer and held out a small vial. “Joseph said to try this. It’s only herbs and natural ingredients. No magic, I promise.”
Connor took the vial, downed it in one swallow and then passed it back. Whatever was in there tasted of manure and he swallowed hard before the whole lot came back up again. Micah pulled out a blanket and placed it on the ground and then settled on it with his back against a tree. Widening his legs, he crooked a finger at Connor and then pointed at the blanket.
Connor balked. The last thing he needed was for anyone to touch him.
“I have some massage oil; I can try to press away the tension from your head.”
The offer was too good to refuse and his wolf certainly wanted to be between Micah’s legs with Micah’s hands on him. Without thinking anymore Connor eased himself down and sat as close to Micah as he could. Micah encouraged him to scoot back a little more and then he opened one of the small containers and pulled out another vial similar to the first. This time though the contents smelled of almond and he was mesmerized as Micah warmed the oil in his hands.
“Come here,” Micah said. He gently tugged Connor back and down a little so that his head was resting on Micah’s chest.
Surrounded by the scent of almond and Micah, Connor closed his eyes. Micah pressed and stroked and found every point that had pain. His hands traveled from forehead to throat to shoulder and back up to the base of his skull.
“Yurgoodatthis,” Connor slurred. He could feel his eyes drooping so he closed them and allowed every muscle in his body to relax. Finally the pain was gone and Micah stopped the massage. He caught the ends of the large blanket and wrapped them in it under the tree.
“Sleep now,” Micah whispered. Connor wasn’t going to argue.
When he woke he felt like a different person. His headache had gone and he didn’t feel sick. If anything he was hungry and wrapped in Micah’s arms, exactly where he wanted to be, he wondered if there was food in the other container.
“Bread, meat. Other food,” Micah said softly.
“You can read my mind?” Connor asked quickly. Fuck. He thought that only happened in same species fated mates. If Micah could read his mind then he would know exactly how deeply he was falling in love with Micah and that would make Connor vulnerable. Micah had not only said to his face that he loved him, but he’d talked about it to Joseph when Connor listened as a wolf.
“I can hear your stomach,” Micah laughed. “As well as your thoughts.”
They rearranged the blanket so it was more of a picnic area and Micah set out food that Connor leaped onto. Finally full he realized just how much he’d needed to eat and be touched by Micah.
“That magic your brother did really played hell with me,” Connor observed.
“He said it would. Said he wasn’t expecting a wolf coming along for the ride.” Micah took another suck of the synthetic blood and wrinkled his nose.
“What’s wrong?”
“This batch tastes like nothing when it’s cool.”
“You should drink mine,” Connor said gently.
“I don’t do that,” Micah replied quickly. “As a race we don’t do that anymore. Well, most of us don’t.”
“I’ve seen vampires drinking blood from willing people. I’m willing.” Micah’s eyes widened and Connor pushed the food to one side and crawled over the blanket on all fours to crouch in front of him. “You could taste me, like you will always be able to taste me, and I could bite you, and mark you and make you mine.” His cock was thick and so damned hard he had to take a hand and push it back against his belly to keep it steady. Micah’s jaw was slack and he still had that deer-in-the-headlights expression.
“Connor—” he began.
“Micah. Listen to me.” Connor leaned in to kiss Micah and then slipped a finger in between the buttons of Micah’s dark shirt. He touched cool skin, and then traveled a little to the left to scrape a small line across where Micah’s nipple was. Micah hissed and arched away from the tree and against Connor’s finger.
Extending his claws a little, Connor snapped the cotton holding the button and the next and then another. Material pushed aside, Connor could finally see Micah’s lithe form and the small scratch of red, through the shirt, on that cinnamon nipple. He leaned and bathed it with his tongue, sucking and curling until Micah placed both his hands on Connor’s hair and dug into his scalp.
Connor moved to give the same attention to the other nipple and then placed the flat of his hand on Micah’s erection. The thought of Micah inside him again, face to face, with Micah taking his fill of Connor’s blood and Connor biting down into his vamp’s fragile skin was too much to think about. He was close to coming already.
Quickly he helped divest Micah of his clothes until they lay facing each other on the blanket. This was the turning point, this was vampire and werewolf exposing their base natures and joining together in the closest way possible. This was the moment of no turning back. Telling Micah how he felt was vital.
“I love you,” he whispered. “I know you think it’s just my wolf, but it isn’t. It’s all of me.”
Micah said nothing for a moment, but then he moved to roll Connor on his back and slide between his legs until they were pressed together. Reaching for the oil, Micah coated his hands and, pulling Connor up farther, pressed inside him with his fingers. Gently at first and then more insistently he soon had three fingers inside as he stretched Connor to accept him. Carefully lining himself up, he hesitated only momentarily.
“I love you, too,” he said gently.
Then he was inside Connor and after a rocking motion was seated deep. They stared at each other, Micah’s hands curled under Connor and tilting his hips. He rocked again and then his fangs descended, wicked sharp, and there was a hunger on his face. Connor’s wolf moved to expose his throat, Connor moved with him as one since he wanted this.
Micah hesitated momentarily and then in a swift move scraped his fangs across the skin of Connor’s neck. Connor whimpered with lust and fear combined, but didn’t shift his position one inch. The teeth into his skin hurt, but when Micah moved inside him, the pain receded and pleasure flooded him.
Micah sucked in time with fucking Connor into the blanket and Connor’s orgasm built, his balls tightening and his eyes closing in ecstasy. Claws out, he gripped Micah’s biceps and whined his journey to completion. Micah pulled back, his lips red with Connor’s blood. He licked it away and then kissed Connor until Connor felt lightheaded. He was so close and Micah knew. He’d sped up his thrusts, leaned closer and tilted his own neck for Connor’s bite.
Connor sank his sharp teeth into the skin at the juncture of neck and shoulder and then he was coming harder than he ever had before. Micah shouted his completion and together they peaked and held each other close. Connor released the bite and his wolf howled inside at the joining. Connor fell flat to the blanket and Micah collapsed on top of him.
“Hell,” Connor said, “I think I’m dead.”
“That was intense,” Micah replied.
He stole another kiss and Connor could feel his lust spiraling again. His body wanted more, his mind wanted more. More of Micah. “Good thing you’re so small, vampire,” he murmured against Micah’s skin.
Micah reared back with a grin on his face. “Again with the small,” he said.
“When are we moving on?” Connor asked. Now that he was well there was no reason to delay finding his family and making sure they were safe. He wanted his family brought in as soon as possible to the safe haven of the Resistance.
“Tonight,” Micah said. “Joseph is splitting up from us. He wants to work on finding Ethan’s killer and getting that evidence.”
“He’ll need us,” Connor protested. He was torn as to what he needed to do.
“He’ll be fine,” Micah soothed. “We’ll grab some gear and go to the last place you remember your family being. Then we’ll take it from there. Okay?”
Connor held Micah close and inhaled his intriguing scent. “You’re coming with me and not your brother? Are you sure?”
“Joseph will be better on his own now. Anyway, I’m never letting you out of my sight again, wolf.”
“Never?”
Micah snuggled into Connor and murmured words that sent love coursing through Connor’s body.
“Not in a million years.”
THE END