Trained to Protect

by Lynn Hagen

  Another was from an improperly healed bullet wound in his left shoulder. Maltese had barely survived that ordeal. Thankfully the bullet had been a through-and-through and some guy who wanted a potion for his failing liver had stitched him up and saved his life.

  Maltese hadn’t dealt with just preternatural. He’d helped out humans, too, telling them his potions were just natural herbs and remedies, and truthfully, they were. You just had to know what to mix and how much of it to mix.

  He jerked when Vince traced his fingers over the long jagged scar that ran over his chest. “You’ve had such a hard life.”

  “Are we gonna have sex or what?” The last thing he wanted to talk about while naked was his crappy life. That would be a definite mood killer.

  “I’m not judging you.” Vince’s gaze snapped to Maltese’s. “I’m just trying to better understand where you’ve been so I can learn how to love you the way you need to be loved.”

  Maltese was rendered speechless. Love? Had the snow leopard really said that? “How can you talk about love when we’ve known each other only a few days?”

  Vince pressed his palm over Maltese’s heart as a warm, soft smile curved his lips. “Even if you weren’t my mate, falling in love with you would be so easy. You’re a survivor, a fighter, but you’re also a caring and giving man. How could anyone not admire those qualities?”

  Maltese had no idea how to respond. He squirmed on Vince’s lap, pressing his hands over his cock as he focused on a part of the wall by the front door.

  “Okay.” Vince slid his hand over Maltese’s chest. “I’ll stop embarrassing you.”

  “You’re not…embarrassing me. I just don’t know what to say.”

  Vince stood, cradling Maltese in his arms as he walked down the hallway and entered his bedroom, placing Maltese on his bed.

  As Maltese lay there, he watched Vince undress, revealing a perfect, sculpted body honed with muscles, with angles and planes that made Maltese’s mouth water.

  Vince had said they were mates, and Maltese both hoped that was true and prayed that it wasn’t. On the one hand, Maltese was sick and tired of going through life alone. He would love to belong to this powerful and kind deputy. On the other hand, Vince would have expectations that Maltese feared he wouldn’t be able to live up to. For so long he hadn’t had to answer to anyone, had lived his life on his own terms…mostly. But now he would be held accountable for his actions, be expected to become a respected member of society, and that terrified him.

  Not because he wanted to be a criminal but because he feared disappointing Vince. It wasn’t easy giving up the way of life he knew for the unknown.

  “Focus on me.” Vince crawled into bed next to Maltese. “I can see a thousand worries filtering through your eyes. Let them go for now, and later, we’ll tackle them together.”

  “I’m dreaming all of this, ain’t I?” Maltese bit his lip. “There’s no way you’re real.”

  Vince took Maltese’s hand and made Maltese touch his chest. “Do I feel real?”

  Maltese squeezed Vince’s swollen pec. “You feel hard as a rock.”

  Still holding Maltese’s wrist, Vince guided Maltese’s hand to his cock. “There’s something else that’s hard, too.”

  With a quick intake of breath, Maltese curled his fingers around Vince’s thick and long erection. The guy hissed as his eyelids fluttered closed then opened. Maltese had made Vince look that way, with a wild and feral expression in his eyes, made him hiss in pleasure, and that bolstered his confidence.

  “My body is all yours,” Vince whispered. “Explore all you want.”

  Maltese’s hand fit around the guy’s cock with room to spare. He smoothed his hands over the smattering of dark hair on Vince’s legs, enjoying how his palm tingled. He glanced at Vince and saw the man watching him with heavy-lidded eyes.

  His heart thumping wildly against his ribs, Maltese moved down the bed and settled between Vince’s powerful legs. Using the flat of his tongue, he licked a long path up the man’s cock and grinned when the hard flesh jerked.

  Vince was still watching him, his fingers curled into the bedding as his chest rose and fell in quick pants. Maltese wanted to see the guy lose it, to hear Vince call out his name. It was almost a desperate need as he sucked the head between his lips, his spit coating the spongy flesh.

  Groaning erupted above him, and one of Vince’s hands slid through Maltese’s hair, gripping the strands as his hips bucked before stilling. The muscles of Vince’s thighs tightened and then relaxed as Maltese worked the hard, thick cock down his throat while inhaling the man’s deep musky scent.

  Maltese could manage only half of the length, keeping his fist around the rest. With his other hand, he cupped Vince’s balls, tugging and massaging them while trying to keep his balance.

  As much as he didn’t want to, Maltese pulled back for air, stroking Vince’s cock in a slow, leisurely fashion before he dove back in and suckled the head.

  “Oh, fuck.” Vince arched his back before relaxing against the bed again, his breathing ragged and his body tight. He spread his legs, giving Maltese more room, both his hands now streaming through Maltese’s hair.

  Maltese slid his lips up and down, using his saliva to coat the way. Vince hissed, moaned, and dug his fingers deeper into Maltese’s hair. Maltese felt empowered at the way he was making this broad, strong man writhe beneath him. Vince would probably do anything Maltese wanted just to reach his climax, but Maltese wasn’t the type to use anyone. He just wanted to hear Vince cry out his name.

  “Close,” Vince said through clenched teeth.

  Maltese took his cock down to the root, his eyes watering, and he nearly gagged, but he managed and was rewarded with hot shots of cum to the back of his throat.

  “Maltese!”

  Hearing his lover call out his name made him feel high, like he was floating on a cloud and never wanted his feet to touch on the ground again.

  He had to pull back, unable to keep Vince’s cock down his throat any longer, but he kept the tip in his mouth as he consumed every last drop of the guy’s spunk.

  With a deep and rumbling purr, Vince grabbed Maltese under his arms and lifted him off his cock, tossing Maltese to his back. He reached into his nightstand drawer and came away with a small bottle of lubricant.

  After wetting his fingers, Vince drove them deep into Maltese’s ass.

  “Oh my fuck!” Maltese arched his back as he wiggled his bottom, hissing at the pain and pleasure of being stretched so wide.

  Vince slammed his lips against Maltese’s, eating him up and shoving his tongue down his throat as his fingers scissored, thrusting in and out of Maltese’s hole.

  “You ready for me?” Vince asked against Maltese’s lips. “Tell me I can shove my dick in your ass and get you off.”

  Maltese nearly came from that dirty demand. “Yes,” he hissed.

  With a snarl, Vince pulled his fingers away, leaving Maltese feeling empty until his lover pressed the blunt head of his cock against Maltese’s pulsing hole.

  Vince rested his forearms on either side of Maltese’s head. He captured his lips again as he thrust hard and deep, not stopping until he was balls-deep inside Maltese.

  “Wrap your legs around me, sweetheart.”

  The endearment had Maltese’s heart soaring as he did as Vince asked. “Call me that again.”

  Vince’s brows puckered, and then he smiled. “Sweetheart.”

  Maltese shivered as the word swept through him and made his entire body pulse.

  “You might think it’s too soon.” Vince cupped his face but had yet to move. His cock throbbed in Maltese’s ass as Maltese wiggled, encouraging Vince to do something, anything. “But I do love you.”

  Maltese closed his eyes. He wasn’t ready to hear those words or to repeat them back. In truth, he wasn’t ready for any of this. Doubt crept into him as he opened his eyes and saw that Vince was still staring at him, as if waiting for a response.

 
“I…” Maltese pressed a hand over his eyes.

  “In time, sweetheart.”

  Then Vince started moving, making Maltese forget about their conversation as he was taken to new heights. He left the world behind as he submerged himself in Vince, in how amazing his cock felt buried inside him and reaching his climax.

  “Here’s the proof you asked for.” Vince sank his canines into Maltese’s shoulder.

  He cried out and arched his back as their bond snapped into place. Maltese came so hard his balls ached. He thrashed under Vince as Vince pistoned into him, growling and purring into his shoulder.

  When Vince stiffened and came, electrical bolts shot through Maltese, making Vince extract his teeth and pull completely out of his body.

  Vince rolled to the side as Maltese jerked and thrashed around, terrified at what was happening to him.

  “What the fuck is going on?” Vince asked as he pressed his hands against Maltese’s chest.

  Lightning bolts shot from Maltese’s eyes and mouth, scorching the ceiling before they disappeared and Maltese was released from the sensations that had wracked his body.

  “Maltese?” Vince shook him. “Talk to me.”

  Maltese twitched as he turned his head and gazed at his mate. “My powers were just restored.”

  “How?” Vince’s brows were deep slashes. “I thought your dad stripped you of them.”

  “I-I don’t know.” Maltese tried to sit up but fell back down, moaning as his bones ached. He rested an arm over his eyes. “I think our mating unlocked them.”

  When Vince grew quiet, Maltese moved his arm and stared at him.

  “What exactly are your powers?” Vince asked.

  “The power of lightning,” he answered. “I can summon the charged particles in the air and use them.”

  He thought his mate would back away farther than he already had. The last thing Maltese wanted was for Vince to be afraid of him.

  Instead, his mate smiled.

  His mate. The guy had been telling the truth. Maltese matched his grin.

  “See, already things are turning around for you.” Vince lay on his side and pulled Maltese toward him. “You have your powers back, and you have a job.”

  “And a mate.” Maltese couldn’t help but laugh. He was so overjoyed that he wanted to jump from the bed and do a happy dance but was content to snuggle against his snow leopard.

  “Now all we have to do is figure out who was shooting at us.” Vince ran his hand over Maltese’s chest.

  Maltese groaned. “Don’t kill the mood. Let’s worry about the outside world later.”

  Vince’s smile faded. “Do you see now that I wasn’t bullshitting you, that we really are mates?”

  Maltese nodded.

  “Can you afford me a little trust?” Vince held his hand up, his thumb and index finger barely an inch apart. “Maybe that much?”

  Maltese stuck a finger between Vince’s, making the gap just a tad wider. “Maybe that much.”

  After twenty years of looking at everyone as the enemy, Maltese wasn’t sure he knew how to trust anymore, but for Vince, the man who had come to mean the world to him, he would try.

  * * * *

  Orlando looked at his phone when it pinged. He opened the text and saw Maverick had come through for him. Not only was there a video to watch but closeup pics of the driver.

  And the deadly automatic in his hand.

  Orlando’s stomach sank when he played the video, watching the fire from the muzzle as the shooter tried to gun down Vince and Maltese. Those bullets had come so close to hitting Vince that Orlando started to sweat. One had barely missed the deputy’s head by a fraction of an inch. If Vince hadn’t dove onto Maltese, Werth would’ve lost another officer.

  He set his phone down and ran the plate, but just as he suspected, the sedan had been stolen from Pride Pack Valley. As far as Orlando knew, Zeus, the alpha who ruled that town, hadn’t installed any cameras that would help their case.

  He sent a quick thanks to Maverick via text and then walked out of his office. “I want you to run this mug for me,” he said to Dillon as he held up his phone.

  “Send it to me,” Dillon said when he looked up at Orlando. “Is this the shooter?”

  Orlando nodded.

  “I’m all over it.”

  Orlando sent the pic to Dillon’s email before he left the station. Newt worked part time at the candy store, and he wanted to check on his mate just to reassure himself that Newt was fine. His mate had quit his job at The Village Inn, stating he needed a different pace. The supervisor, Carla, had wished Newt luck before he’d left, though Newt had stated that he would miss some of the elderly he’d taken care of at the retirement home.

  When he walked into the store three blocks over, Newt was behind the counter, ringing up a customer. Orlando took a moment to drink him in, feeling as though he was the luckiest man on the planet.

  Newt looked up when the customer left and spotted Orlando. “Did you come to buy some candy or make out in the breakroom?”

  Newt’s coworker, Samson Woods, wrinkled his nose. “Please don’t fool around on the breakroom table. Some of us use it for eating, and I don’t want to think of your naked butts sliding all over it.”

  Orlando chuckled as Newt came from around the counter and threw himself into his arms. “Miss me already?”

  “Every second you’re not around,” Orlando said.

  His mate’s brows furrowed. “But you’re not here for that, are you?”

  Orlando shook his head as he hugged Newt closer. “I just watched the video of the shooting.”

  “And you need grounded.” Newt squeezed him tight. “I can do that for you.”

  “Why can’t I ground a man?” Samson asked. “All guys ever want from me is a quick lay.”

  “TMI,” Newt said over his shoulder. “Go get some more pretzels from the back. The container is low.”

  Samson gave Newt the stink eye. “You just want to make out with the sheriff.” He huffed. “Fine, but if you see any man candy walking through the door, holler for me. I could use a dose of deliciousness.”

  Newt chuckled. “He’s such a character.”

  Orlando cupped Newt’s face and gave him a quick but thorough kiss. “Just stay safe, okay?”

  Newt nodded. “Copy that.”

  As much as he hated to release Newt, Orlando did and walked out, scanning the streets for the tan sedan. But he doubted the shooter still had it. He probably ditched the car after he’d fled. Orlando was willing to bet it had been abandoned on the side of the road somewhere.

  But that didn’t matter. They had his photo now, and Orlando wouldn’t rest until the son of a bitch was behind bars.

  Chapter Seven

  Vince was seated on the couch, lacing his boots. It was almost time to leave for work. “Are you ready?” he called out to Maltese.

  “I feel like a dork,” he shouted from the bedroom. “I’m not coming out.”

  He highly doubted Maltese looked silly in his new clothes. Vince had been very careful when he’d selected them, making sure they would enhance his mate’s features instead of dulling them.

  “Get your butt out here and let me see.” He pulled the hem of his pant leg over the top of the boot and stood. “We have to be going, Maltese. You don’t want to be late on your first day.”

  “I look stupid,” he argued.

  With a small growl, Vince headed down the hallway. When he stepped into the bedroom, he was taken aback by just how handsome Maltese looked in his crisp and white button-up shirt, his burnt-red sleeveless V-neck sweater, and his dark slacks. Even the polished shoes on his feet looked stunning on him.

  “You look…” Vince couldn’t stop gaping at his mate. Maltese was handsome in his street clothes, but polished, he could easily get a modeling gig, and Vince wasn’t exaggerating, either.

  “Dumb.” Maltese pulled at the collar of his shirt.

  “Gorgeous.” Vince smiled. “I’m tempted to kee
p you hidden here so no other guy chases after you.”

  Vince kept himself in the doorway because if he stepped any closer to his mate he might not be able to keep his hands to himself. But his damn feet wouldn’t listen to his brain. He moved forward and slid his fingers over Maltese’s cheek and gave his mate a kiss that set Vince’s soul on fire.

  With a deep groan, Vince forced himself to pull away. “You look like the stuff wet dreams are made of, sweetheart.”

  Maltese blushed. “I look like a straight-up nerd.”

  Vince grabbed his mate’s hand and tugged Maltese from the room. “Let’s get your nerdy ass to work, and then later, when I have you all to myself, I’m inserting my pencil into your pocket protector.”

  Maltese burst out laughing, making Vince snicker as they walked out the door, but not before making sure they grabbed their jackets.

  When they made it to the station, Dillon gave a low, short whistle. “Who’s the model standing next to you?”

  Vince flipped Dillon off. “Keep talking like that and I’ll have to tell Max.” He turned to Maltese. “Pat will let you know what you need to do.” Vince jerked his chin toward the redhead at the reception desk.

  Blowing out a breath, Maltese nodded and walked away.

  “We need to talk,” Dillon said in a low voice. “I got an ID on the shooter, and you’re not gonna like what I found.”

  They walked through the squad room, heading toward Werth’s office. Vince looked over his shoulder and smiled when he saw Pat laughing and Maltese grinning. His mate was gonna do fine.

  “You got an ID that fast?” Vince asked when Dillon and Werth filled him in on the video and photo Maverick had sent the sheriff.

  “He popped up right away,” Sheriff Werth said. “Guy’s got a rap sheet a mile long.”

  “Name is Latham Vargas,” Dillon said. “He’s committed everything from extortion to kidnapping. He’s a hired thug that has no limits on what he’ll do if the price is right.”

  That still didn’t tell Vince if this Vargas guy was after him or Maltese or why he was after either of them. Too bad they hadn’t caught him because Vince would’ve beaten the truth out of him, especially after Vargas tried to kill them.