Wolf’s Fall

by E. A. Reynolds

  Then, Mandalay kissed Nic slow and easy, allowing him to take control of the kiss. Their tongues tangled and explored before licking against each other.

  Nic moaned softly as he stroked his hands up Mandalay’s back and down to grip his hips. Drunk on the passion, Mandalay kissed a path from Nic’s shoulder to his chest, nipping and biting as he went. His teeth teased the flat nipple, and then licked over it before licking a path to the other one.

  “Pretty baby.” The words were a rough gasp. Nic’s hands scrubbed at his back and his nails lightly pressed into Mandalay’s skin.

  He sucked hard at Nic’s nipple, swirled his tongue around the areola, and then drew back to pinch it. “Nic.”

  Nic moaned as Mandalay’s teeth closed over his nipple. “Oh fuck, baby, you’re making me so crazy I can hardly stand it.”

  Loving that desperate sound in his voice, Mandalay licked a trail down to his stomach. He nipped at the firm muscle, traced the outline of his navel, and continued his way down. Mandalay’s tongue darted out to trace circles on Nic’s lower belly before he knelt between Nic’s parted thighs.

  Mandalay’s tongue glided down his shaft and back up to play over the crown. He blew over the head before flickering his tongue over the slit of Nic’s dick. Then, he took the head into his mouth.

  “Fuck!” Nic growled and fisted his hands in Mandalay’s hair. “Yes, pretty baby. Suck my dick.”

  The scent of Nic’s lust whipped around the room, a potent aroma that intoxicated Mandalay even more than the sound of Nic’s voice.

  Mandalay’s head bobbed up and down as he sucked greedily at Nic’s cock. He licked down the shaft and to Nic’s balls. He sucked one and then the other before flicking beneath the sac. Nic growled, and Mandalay teased the spot again before taking the head into his mouth again.

  “Come here,” Nic commanded.

  Mandalay crawled up to him and leaned toward the nightstand. He pulled the drawer open and reached in for a tube of lube. Mandalay straddled Nic, flipped the cap, and squeezed some into his hand.

  He rubbed it and smoothed the gel onto Nic’s cock, massaging the hard flesh. Nic moaned, and Mandalay caressed the head with his thumb.

  “You’re driving me insane, sweetie,” Nic said roughly.

  Mandalay set the tube aside and lifted just enough to tuck the bloated head of Nic’s prick to the entrance of his ass. Then, he slid down it slowly.

  Mandalay mewled, writhing on the mattress as Nic’s fingers claimed his ass, hitting his sweet spots over and over. The pleasure became an intense wave that crashed against him hard and fast, taking his breath away. Sweat beaded on his brow, a sheen coating his body.

  “Oh, shit,” Mandalay cried. “Oh.”

  Nic hissed, his face taut as Mandalay moved on erotically. Mandalay wanted Nic as hot as he was, as hungry for him.

  “Damn, don’t stop,” Nic ground out, his throat rough with desire.

  Mandalay leaned toward Nic and braced his hands on the bed. Mandalay began to ride him with greedy need, and Nic gripped his hips and thrust up.

  “Nic!” His cock rubbed against Nic’s belly as he rode him harder. The sensation was pure bliss. He was catching fire, on the verge of going up in ashes.

  He set up a steady rhythm of hard strokes that pushed Nic to the depths of his ass. Mandalay threw back his head as the passion built. His balls drew up tight.

  Then, he was coming, his cum shooting onto Nic’s stomach as his body shook with the tremors of pleasure that ripped through him.

  Nic came with a hard grunt. “Shit. The knot.”

  “No,” Mandalay cried, refusing to break the delicious connection. His entire body began to chill from the inside out and nails elongated into claws.

  The knot was simple. Nic’s cock grew larger inside him, almost like it knotted to form a tight lock that would ensure pregnancy in some cases, but a mental and emotional tie in all cases.

  It was a physical joining of their animals.

  “Mandy, we shouldn’t mate yet,” Nic protested.

  Nic’s cock swelled inside him, the knot forming. He only had bare minutes to decide if he wanted to claim Nic now, this very moment.

  There were so many reasons why he shouldn’t. He didn’t know and might not even like what he did come to know. Time was important when forming bonds, real and lasting bonds.

  But in this moment, his wolf only saw one thing. And it surged forward taking the decision from his human hands. He bent to Nic, even as Nic rolled them over.

  The animal sensed what Nic planned to do and bit him, locking cold teeth in him and holding on.

  “No, Mandy.” Nic gasped and his eyes flared wide as he tried to pull away.

  Mandalay raked Nic with his claws, and Nic hissed. His skin became cool against Mandalay’s, but he refused to release Nic. And Nic’s cock filled every inch of his ass as the knot tightened and the last vestiges of cum pumped into Mandalay, pushing him into another orgasm.

  Chapter Eleven

  Nic collapsed on top of him and Mandalay panted, spent from the expulsion of energy both sexual and psychic. When he could breathe normally again, Mandalay realized the animal was gone from his mind, resting contentedly inside him.

  Then, he realized what he had done.

  “My god,” he exclaimed and eased Nic off him. “Nic.” Nic was still cold to the touch. “Nic.” His lips had a blue tinge as he laid unmoving.

  Mandalay climbed from the bed. What had he done? He’d done two things wrong, and he didn’t know how Nic would ever forgive him let alone accept him now.

  If he didn’t die.

  “What do I do?” Fear made his skin clammy. Who could he even call?

  He felt for a pulse and at first couldn’t find one. Then, he picked up the very faint thud.

  “Okay, he’s alive. Barely. Only you could be so stupid as to almost kill your mate. God.” He paced for a few minutes trying to think of who to call, vetoing the names that came to mind.

  “Seven!” He went downstairs and got his phone. He went through it for Seven’s number. Finding it, Mandalay dialed it. As he waited for an answer, he raced back upstairs where Nic was still as a rock.

  “Hello?”

  “Seven, it’s Mandalay,” he said frantically. “I—Nic—I don’t know what to do.”

  “What’s happened?” he asked patiently.

  “We—I mean…” How did he say this without being totally embarrassed?

  “You made love?” Seven asked carefully. “Or you had a fight and you did something to Nic.”

  “We didn’t fight, but I think I hurt him. He’s just lying there so still and cold. I don’t know what happened. One minute I was—and then the wolf just took over. I couldn’t stop him.”

  “Did you hit him with cold energy? I noticed you channeling it quite effectively. You probably just stunned him. How’s his pulse?”

  “Weak.”

  “Check him out. See if you hurt him. You can do that, right? You’re a healer, too.”

  “I—yes.” He put the phone on speaker and held one hand over Nic’s chest. With his eyes closed, he sensed the wolf inside Nic. His animal growled, and Mandalay heard it as clear as—yes.

  He allowed his wolf back into his mind. Then, he reached out to Nic’s wolf. The animal’s psychic touch was strange, unfamiliar. The animal’s essence was strong and steady, which meant Nic was okay.

  “Reach for the bond,” Seven said.

  “I did,” he said softly. “He’s okay. I knocked his energy out of balance, but he’ll be fine after a little rest.”

  “Okay,” Seven said. “Should I come over? Are you okay?”

  He wasn’t okay. He’d done something wrong. “No. I’ll just wait for Nic to wake up.” Nic would leave him. All desire to be with him gone, trust destroyed.

  Damn it!

  “I’ll come over,” Seven said. “You don’t sound so good.”

  “No. I’m okay. Thanks.” Mandalay ended the call quickly and went to sho
wer. Then, he dressed and braided his hair before covering Nic with a blanket and slumping back onto the bed.

  He’s going to hate me. He won’t even be able to stand the sight of me.

  * * * *

  Nic woke with a headache and groaned when he tried to lift his head from the pillow. He laid there a minute, drawing in the scent of ice, cold, and fear.

  Mandy?

  Then, it rushed back to him. The wolf with his blue eyes, the determination, the fear, and the chill of his skin. His wolf had realized too late what the man had known.

  “Mandy.”

  He opened his eyes again, sensing that he wasn’t alone. Nic forced himself up, despite the ache in his head. Mandalay stood before the window, back to him.

  Nic climbed out of bed and went into the bathroom to splash water on his face before going back to Mandalay. He hadn’t moved, his shoulders were slumped, and the scent of salt wafted on the air.

  “Mandy, what’s wrong?” Nic asked, going to wrap his arms around his waist.

  “I’m sorry.” Mandalay pushed him away and turned to look at him. “The wolf—you rejected us.”

  “What?”

  “You didn’t want to mate, and he just took control. I couldn’t stop it.”

  Nic studied him, seeing the bleakness of his eyes. “Honey, I know it felt that way, but I wasn’t rejecting you. I was—”

  “You said no.” Mandalay folded his arms across his chest. “I know that was no cause to mate you against your will, and I understand if you need some time.”

  Nic rubbed his forehead. “Did anything happen while I was out? Did the kids come back?”

  “No.” Mandalay shook his head.

  “I’m going to shower and then take something for my head because it’s killing me.”

  Mandalay reached out, and Nic saw the pain in his eyes and captured his hand. He kissed the palm.

  “I know you don’t trust me not to hurt you again, but let me heal you.”

  “No. Mandy, just relax. I’m not upset. I just wish you’d waited. We needed the time to get to know each other better. Being mated changes so much, so fast. Not only that, I could have gotten you pregnant because we didn’t use protection.”

  His eyes widened. “I’ll take care of it.”

  “Don’t do anything either of us will regret,” Nic said gently. “I’m starving. Can we eat after I get that shower?”

  “I’ll go get things ready,” Mandalay said and tugged his hand from Nic’s and ran from the room.

  Nic sighed. “Baby mine,” he said softly. He had studied snow wolves and had known pretty much what to expect.

  They didn’t take rejection well from their mates. They were a volatile breed in the first months of mating and when they were in heat. They were jealous and contentious. They were also very dangerous to everyone around them, including their mates. Some of them could actually kill their mates even after mating.

  The cold they produced was a psychic phenomenon that was as much a toxin in some of them as it was a protectant. From what he could tell from their connection at mating, Mandy’s abilities worked slightly different than other snow wolves.

  He could project the cold energy right into his victim’s minds, paralyzing them before stopping their hearts as the cold turned to a gas that invaded their entire system. It was a deadly gas that contained crystalized ice and could leave his victim damaged or dead.

  Nic took a quick shower, thinking about the kind of child they’d produce. His family had the snow wolf gene. It was a recessive one carried by males. All of his children could be as dangerous as his mate.

  The only saving grace for him was that he was immune to the poison of the gas, though not the cold.

  Chapter Twelve

  When Nic came downstairs, Mandalay had dinner on the table. He was expecting Nic to make some excuse about getting a call from security or something he had to go take care of.

  He took a sip of wine already planning to spend the rest of the night getting drunk.

  “Smells good in here,” Nic said as he came in behind him. “Roast chicken?”

  “We already had meatloaf. Want some wine?”

  “Can’t.”

  “Right. You have to go.”

  “No, but things are uncertain, Mandy,” he said as he rested a hand on Mandalay’s waist. “Can you deal with what you’re going to have to until things are settled?”

  “What things?” He frowned as he turned and put some distance between him and Nic, who merely moved around him to pull out a chair for Mandalay. “What things?” he demanded when Nic didn’t answer.

  Nic took the glass from him. “You can’t get drunk. If something happens, it might be my life that you fail to save. Could you live with that?”

  Mandalay glared at him. “I can do what I want.”

  “You’re not a child, pretty baby, and you know that’s not true. Responsible adults don’t drown in drink.”

  “Leave me alone,” he snapped.

  “I’m not going anywhere unless I get called away,” Nic told him. “So, sit down. I want to enjoy this nice meal and then have a piece of that cake.”

  Mandalay blinked. “You’re actually staying? Why? So you can make fun of me or rake me over the coals for acting like a desperate prick?”

  “Mandy.” Nic cupped his jaw. “Stop this. I’m not upset. My head is still hurting because I don’t know where you keep the aspirin.”

  “Let me heal you. I can get rid of a simple headache,” he said. “But you won’t, because you’re afraid I’ll make it worse.”

  “I’m not afraid of you,” Nic said softly. “I know the danger you are to me even though we’re mated.”

  He shoved Nic’s hand away. “It’s not my fault, but I can control it.”

  Nic did move closer to him this time. “I know you can,” he said. “And I know you never would have pushed past my barriers if your animal hadn’t gotten so pissed off. I didn’t want us to have sex too soon, because we needed to talk about protection and mating.”

  “What about mating?”

  “If we were both ready. If you were ready to handle my life and what that meant. I needed to tell you some things about me, so you could make an informed decision.”

  “Things like what? You’re a clairvoyant?”

  “I’m not as good as my uncle or my father but that I do has the ability to change how things will be for us,” Nic told him. “Our natural wolf telepathy will only be enhanced. We’ll be able to sense each other no matter what. We’ll be able to communicate through our wolves no matter the distance.”

  “Your uncle tried to tell me that.”

  “But he didn’t, because he thought I should,” Nic said. “When we connect, it’s going to be different, but I’m not sure how different yet.”

  “And you weren’t ready to find out,” Mandalay said. He understood the man didn’t want to connect with someone who could kill him. “You are scared of me.”

  “I’m afraid you won’t be able to handle my life, Mandy,” he said. “I’m a hunter, a killer. That won’t change even after this thing with Blacktooth is over.”

  “I know,” he insisted. “I know I screwed up. I broke your trust by taking your choice away.”

  Nic shook his head. “You are my choice, pretty baby, and I take part of the blame here. I connected with you long ago before you were even born. Your wolf crossed the line, and you need to control that, but no trust was broken. You still have me.”

  “You’re just saying that to make me feel better.”

  “My head hurts, Mandy. Let’s just eat.” He sat down in his own chair and dug into the meal.

  Mandalay watched him, wolf and man suspicious. They ate in silence, and when they were finished, Mandalay cleared the table and made coffee to go with the cake.

  “Please, let me heal you,” Mandalay said when Nic rubbed his temple. “I might have hurt you seriously.”

  “Do an examination.”

  “You’ll have to s
it down so I can have better access to your head.”

  Nic sat down at the table, and Mandalay examined him. He found a cold pocket lingering in Nic’s head. The spot wasn’t decreasing in intensity, it was only increasing. He had experience with healing wounds inflicted by his own cold energy and was able to remove the icy patch in ten minutes.

  “Inhale slowly,” Mandalay told him. “Hold it and then slowly let it out.”

  Nic did.

  “Again.” Mandalay was curious by the spark of cool energy igniting inside Nic. He tried to touch it but couldn’t. The cold spread rapidly, coating every part of Nic like a shell. “How do you feel?”

  He was afraid he’d hurt him irrevocably.

  “Better.” Nic looked up at him. “What are you looking at inside me?”

  “I’m not sure. I will have to keep an eye on you though to make sure I didn’t do something.”

  Nic stood and pulled Mandalay into his arms. “Forget about it,” he said. “I’m not permanently damaged.” He kissed him. “Let’s have dessert and then take a walk.”

  He doesn’t want to be alone with me.

  Nic smiled as Mandalay’s thought bled into his mind. Mandalay’s fear was a little endearing.

  “I do,” Nic said. “I want nothing more, and this walk is just like foreplay.”

  Mandalay blinked. “Foreplay?”

  Nic grinned. “You’ve got a lot to learn about me, pretty baby, so start paying attention.”

  Nic had two pieces of cake, and Mandalay wondered if it was just to please him. After they loaded the dishwasher, they headed out for that walk. Nic laced his fingers through Mandalay’s as they strolled along, and the silver-flecked sky seemed to be all around them, creating a curtain between them and the world.

  Nic took them off the street to the woods that edged the neighborhood. He led them to an alcove of trees not far from the creek. There, Nic leaned against a tree and pointed up at the sky.

  “The Big Dipper.”

  Mandalay looked up at him and then the stars. Did he have a true romantic on his hands or an old-fashioned Romeo?

  “What’s that?”

  “That is the Little Dipper.” Nic kissed the side of his neck and Mandalay smiled. But then, Nic’s phone rang, and Mandalay groaned. Nic took it from its holster and glanced at the screen.