Alone, Ryan picked up the mirror again and turned his head this way and that to look at how the pretty flowers transformed the simple braid into a lovely decoration. He’d never given much thought to how he looked, especially after Haldon had started to single him out. He hadn’t wanted to attract the attention of a dominant. After whelping Milo, everything had become centered around caring for his pup. His own needs had been shoved aside.
Now was different. Tonight, he would be claimed by someone he truly desired. He didn’t expect to really enjoy the mounting because he never had before. At best, it was tedious. At worst, painful. He wasn’t worried about the bad part. Griffin would be gentle with him. That went without saying at this point. He figured he might like the activity somewhat under the circumstances. But what really worried him was pleasing Griffin. It was imperative that his new mate get the most amount of pleasure out of their coupling. It was the least he could do, far more important than making coffee or fixing meals. Any servient could perform those tasks for a dominant. Only a mate could bring them pleasure.
Or rather, only a mate should. He didn’t want Griffin looking elsewhere for it. And while he didn’t think Griffin was that kind of man, he wasn’t going to take any chances.
Now, you’re just trying to find things to worry about.
Yeah, he was. Griffin loved him. They were going to be mated within hours, and instead of borrowing trouble alone in his room, he should be out enjoying himself with Griffin and the others. Putting the mirror down, he took in a deep breath and let it out slowly.
The moment he opened the door, he heard the sounds of many shifters entering the great room for dinner. As he walked down the hall, his heartbeat ticked up in anticipation and nerves. He wasn’t used to being the center of attention, yet he knew the moment he appeared, all eyes were likely going to be on him. He didn’t much like the idea of it.
And then his concerns evaporated as the large, comforting figure that was Griffin entered his line of sight. The beta was coming to meet him so that he wouldn’t have to enter the overly crowded room alone. Of course, so like Griffin to think of things like that. Being mated to someone hard-wired to plan and manage problems was going to be wonderful.
Griffin’s face lit up. “Gods, Ryan, you are beautiful.”
Ryan felt his cheeks heat and he dropped his gaze briefly. “Thanks, that’s kind of you so say.”
He raised his eyes slowly to take in the sight of his new mate. Griffin was magnificent, decked out in a nice shirt of his own with dark blue jeans. The fabric of both garments stretched over his amazing muscles. Every contour was visible, and Ryan’s palms itched with the compulsion to run his hands over all of it. The intensity of his response made him blush more.
Griffin reached up to cup one heated cheek. “It’s not kindness when it’s true. I wish you could see yourself through my eyes, to truly appreciate your worth.” He dropped his hand. “Come on, I want to show you off to the others.”
Ryan said nothing because any words caught in his throat. When Griffin tucked him under his arm, Ryan could only wrap an arm around the beta’s waist and smile with an overwhelming happiness.
There was a brief moment of silence when they first entered the great room before everyone started calling out greetings and well wishes. Still wordless, Ryan acknowledged it all with nods as Griffin escorted him over to the alpha’s table. With so many shifters crammed into the space, they had to wind their way through narrow paths. Rain had made eating outside impossible, so they just had to make do. Ryan was both disappointed at not being able to eat out under the open sky and relieved that the tight quarters gave everyone an incentive to get through dinner quickly. It meant he and Griffin could leave relatively early and get on with the mating.
He was somewhat surprised that he would be sitting at the high table, a place of such honor, given that the visiting alphas remained on pack lands. Surely Lorcan would take the opportunity to play host one more time with his fellow alphas. Ryan had assumed that he would sit with Griffin’s friends instead of squishing everyone around Lorcan. But no, Griffin held out a chair for him right next to Kyle.
“Relax, sweetheart,” Griffin said before giving him a quick kiss. “I’ll go get you some food.”
It was on the tip of his tongue to say that he’d do it instead before Kyle caught his eye and shook his head once. Right. Tonight was different. Griffin could pamper him as much as he wanted. All Ryan had to do was sit back and relax…well, as much as possible given what was ahead of him. That didn’t stop him from instinctively searching out where Milo was. He’d agreed with Kyle that the pup was best occupied by Mabel and her twins. His pup loved those two and Mabel was astoundingly good at jugging all three even though she, herself, was once again in whelp. Tonight, however, she had Craig to help. Between the two of them, they kept Milo’s attention on them and not on the fact that he couldn’t see his father.
The evening progressed in a blur. Griffin returned with a plate that was full, but not overly so. Ryan was grateful that the man had thought of how Ryan’s stomach was already fluttering with nerves. Plus, being mounted on a stuffed stomach wasn’t the best idea. The last thing Ryan needed was to get sick.
Griffin was also attentive without being stifling. He treated Ryan to small touches as they ate, nothing overtly sexual, yet sufficient to make Ryan’s skin tingle. His restrained cock and balls ached in a sweet and mostly unfamiliar way. His nerves slowly morphed from worry to something more like anticipation. He felt an urge to reciprocate and when he tentatively placed his hand on Griffin’s thigh, the beta graced him with a heated look.
“If you keep that up,” Griffin whispered into his ear, “I won’t last for the rest of the meal.”
“Sorry,” Ryan whispered back, but when he tried to remove his hand, Griffin grabbed it and held it in place. From that point on, eating became a little harder. Ryan didn’t mind. The constant contact only eased his concerns and increased his arousal.
Any tension he felt over his own situation didn’t apply to the rest of the room. With the joining of the two visiting packs through an approved mating came a relaxation among the dominants that spread throughout the rest of the shifters. A quick glance in their direction confirmed that Ethan sat between his brother and his mate with obvious ease. The two alphas weren’t exactly exuding warmth, but they were obviously not at odds anymore, either. For his part, Ethan conveyed his happiness in his every expression. It was so infectious that Ryan felt the last of his fears slip away.
If Ethan’s life can turn out wonderfully, then so can mine.
Ryan pressed his fingers into Griffin’s thigh in what he hoped was unspoken encouragement and a sign of his enthusiasm of what was to come.
Griffin put down his fork and pushed his plate away. He turned to gaze down at Ryan. For a few seconds, he let his wolf show through his eyes. The sight made Ryan shiver and his own wolf whined, then howled with impatience. His hole clenched against the slick that descended, a clear sign that his body was ready to be mounted regardless of whether his mind was onboard. Griffin’s nostrils flared and his canines slipped over his lower lip. There was no more time to wait.
By unspoken command, Griffin had Ryan on his feet a second later. Talk around the room died out. Griffin nodded first to Lorcan, then every else with a sweeping look. “Thank you all for a magnificent meal. My mate and I appreciate your company and good wishes, but it is time for us to retire.” He chuckled. “My wolf grows impatient and I’m sure you’ll forgive my lack of control this one time.”
Everyone laughed and cheered out encouragement. Ryan couldn’t help burying his face in Griffin’s broad chest in embarrassment. Then there was no more time for such thoughts, or any at all, as his beta swept him up and carried him out. Ryan closed his eyes for the short journey, only opening them again when Griffin set him back down on his feet.
His cozy room had been transformed into a lovely space filled with lit candles, flowers and more pretty pillows than he
knew he possessed. His friends had obviously snuck off to do this during the meal and the knowledge filled his heart with more joy. There was no longer any question that his presence in the Rogue Pack was welcome, not merely tolerated.
Griffin shut the door before leaning against it. His massive chest heaved. “Do me a favor, love, and take off that nice shirt.” He sounded oddly breathless.
Ryan blinked at him a few times. “Um, sure, if that’s what you want.” His suddenly clumsy fingers plucked at the buttons.
“It’s not what I want, but if I don’t have you do it, I’ll rip the fabric.” He curled his hands into tight fists. “My control is slipping. Gods, Ryan, I want you so badly.”
Ryan grinned shyly as he pulled off his shirt and carefully folded it. “You do? That’s good to hear. I, ah, want you, too.” He peeked up at the man from fluttering lashes as he put the shirt aside.
Griffin shuddered. “That’s good to hear. I won’t hurt you, you know that, don’t you?”
Ryan nodded. “Yes, I do. Shall I take off my pants as well?”
“That might be for the best. They look like a good pair of jeans. No sense ruining them, either.”
It was harder than he’d expected. Part of it was he could feel Griffin’s intense stare. To be the object of such desire wasn’t completely new. Haldon, too, had fiercely wanted to mount him. Yet, this was different. It didn’t feel predatory. And he wasn’t going to spoil a second of this night thinking of that old brutal letch. He dismissed those awful memories with the contempt they deserved.
The real issue, though, was that for the first time in his life, he had to maneuver around a hard dick. The bulging shaft pressed against the fly, making it difficult to undo the buttons without grating against the sensitive flesh. Once he’d succeeded, he shucked the pants off along with his shoes and socks. He stood awkwardly in front of the man who would soon mate with him, with a stiff cock waving between them.
The room was silent for what seemed like forever as he stood there, Griffin’s sweeping gaze taking him in. No, not quite completely quiet. The pounding of Ryan’s heart sounded loudly in his ears, as did Griffin’s harsh breathing.
“If you could only see yourself as I do,” the beta finally said. “Beautiful. And knowing you are aroused eases my biggest worry. I was afraid that you wouldn’t like the physical aspects of mating. I promised myself I’d take it nice and slow tonight, ease you into what will essentially be a new experience for you. I’ll be honest, because that’s how it should be between us, and confess that it’s going to be hard. I want you so badly. I’m practically mad with the wanting.”
Ryan drew in a big breath and let it out in a whoosh. “That’s okay, Griffin. Truly. I’m not afraid of you. I, um, like that you want me,” he added with a shy grin and a shiver that racked his body and caused his hole to clench.
In the next instant, his breath was stolen by Griffin with a swift kiss that had him clinging to the man’s large body. The fervor of it morphed seconds later into something gentle, yet no less powerful. Their tongues met inside his mouth, and every inch of his body was touched by some part of Griffin’s.
His head spun as he was whirled around and laid down onto softness. Griffin’s clothing rasped against all of Ryan’s sensitive bits—his nipples and cockhead. Fluid leaked from both areas, making him feel a moment of embarrassment. Griffin’s lavish attention distracted him quickly, however. The beta’s blunt fingers plucked at one wet nub before wrapping around his weeping cock and tugging slowly.
Ryan groaned and arched into the touch. He stroked whatever part of Griffin’s body he could reach, frustrated by the clothing getting between him and the man’s skin. His legs moved restlessly, hooking around Griffin’s while his hips bucked with mindless need.
Griffin broke the kiss, his teeth scraping along Ryan’s lower lip, before peppering his jaw and neck with attention. He entwined the fingers of one hand in Ryan’s hair to angle his head back and expose more of his neck. Open mouthed kisses tugged his flesh. Then the hand clasping Ryan’s cock let go and wandered back to one pec.
“I know this is for Milo still,” Griffin said in a low, gravely tone as he pinched a nipple. “But I can’t resist playing with it a little.”
Ryan moaned in response. “Anything you want. I love you, Griffin.”
The man paused in his attentions for a second before plundering Ryan’s mouth again in a passionate kiss. “I love you, Ryan,” he said when he’d finished. “So much so that I’m scared to death of fucking this mating up. I want you to be ready when I mount you. I want you dripping with need when I put my cock inside your sweet ass.”
Ryan writhed. His channel itched and pulsed. “I’m wet now, ready for you.”
Griffin growled. “I can make you wetter still, baby.”
Ryan couldn’t imagine that. It seemed impossible. His thoughts scattered, though, when Griffin lapped his way past Ryan’s stomach and sucked his cock in down to the root with one big gulp. He cried out and arched into the warm tightness of Griffin’s throat. Gods, the sensations of being sucked were amazing. He shook his head back and forth and clawed at any part of Griffin he could find as an orgasm ripped through him.
He would have screamed with the intensity of the pleasure except that his lungs froze as his body seized up. For long seconds, he felt suspended in Griffin’s embrace, no longer lying on the pallet, no longer in control of himself. Then he crashed down again, twisting and moaning, almost sobbing. His own pathetic efforts at self-gratification faded away in the face of being brought to climax by someone else. Someone he loved and loved him in return.
By the time his breath returned to almost normal and his mind cleared sufficiently for him to think, he realized that Griffin had let go of him. Ryan’s spent cock lay semi-hard against his pelvis, although it still tingled with aftershocks. As did his nipples. His hole, now positively dripping with slick, spasmed. It wanted attention, demanded it. His hands felt empty as there was no longer any part of Griffin within reach.
Ryan forced his eyes open. The beta hadn’t gone far, only as much as necessary to undress. He was still tearing at his clothing, his gaze fixed on Ryan and not on what he was doing. Ryan winced at the sound of the shirt ripping, but Griffin paid it no mind. His focus was purely on Ryan. And once the pants were down, exposing the beta’s long, thick and very hard cock, Ryan forgot all about everything else.
I want him inside me. Now!
The force of the need surprised him. There was no hesitation or second thoughts, however. Being mounted became his sole desire. When he tried to roll over, though, Griffin stopped him.
“No, baby. I want to see your face. It’s the only way I’ll know for sure if you’re enjoying yourself.”
“The bite?”
“Later. For now, it’s all about pleasure.”
Ryan relaxed, reminding himself that Griffin knew what he was doing. Ryan might technically be the one with this kind of experience, but the beta was the right one to do the thinking for the both of them. That might not always be true. In this, though, it was. All Ryan had to do was lie back and give over to the wonderful sensations Griffin’s renewed touch was giving him.
It was as if the man knew Ryan’s body better than he did. Every touch was a marvelous sensation. His cock, naturally, and his balls. Also the inner thigh where it met up with his hips. Even the backs of his knees were an erogenous zone, apparently. When Griffin cupped them to raise Ryan’s legs, the feel of it went straight to his dick. Slick dribbled down his upturned ass. Griffin inhaled deeply, making his nostrils quiver.
“Nothing has ever smelled so good. I want a taste, sweetheart. Is that okay?” Before Ryan could answer the startling question, Griffin added, “Can you hold your legs up for me?”
Ryan complied without thought, clasping his kneecaps to keep the position Griffin had put him in. Freed from that job, the beta grabbed Ryan’s ass instead and pushed him up higher. Then Griffin bent over and flicked his tongue out to lap up the
slick. He groaned as if tasting the best treat in the world before swirling around Ryan’s hole. The warm caress opened Ryan up more. He could feel the ring go slack and welcome the tip of Griffin’s tongue when it poked inside.
Oh, this was too much. He’d never heard of such a thing. Why wasn’t Griffin simply shoving his dick up him instead, the way Ryan knew he wanted? The mystery of it all paled, however, in the face of the amazing sensations that thrusting tongue elicited from him. Soon, he was once more moaning and writhing. It was almost impossible to hold his position. He wanted nothing more than to flop his body wide and enjoy.
Griffin chuckled, warm breath tickling Ryan’s wet hole. “I thought you might like that. But I think it’s time to move on to what I hope will be even better stuff.”
Ryan could only mumble in response, then gasp as something harder than a tongue slipped past his loosened ring. Not a cock. He knew that right off, having experience. He squinted down his body to watch Griffin fuck him with a finger. It didn’t hurt. Nor did the second one he quickly added. Instead, the action aroused him more, made his hole and channel more pliable. He welcomed the intrusion by clenching around the fingers and pulsing his muscles to draw them in farther. On each pass out, Griffin did something magical with them that sent sparks flying straight to Ryan’s dick. If this kept up, he’d come again soon.
But it didn’t. Once Ryan was mindlessly thrashing, Griffin pulled his hand away to grip Ryan’s ass fully again. He pushed up until Ryan’s legs were hooked over Griffin’s shoulders and scooted in closer. Ryan knew what was coming next and far from dreading it, he closed his eyes fully and waited with excitement to be breached.
Griffin’s cock stretched him wide, almost painfully so. The discomfort, however, was weirdly helpful. It increased the pleasure, not kill it. Ryan took in shuddery breaths as the hard rod slowly filled him. His channel greedily sucked it in, welcoming the invasion. Demanding it. It was one, long, slow fuck that pressed against his prostate with unrelenting pressure. By the time Griffin was balls deep in Ryan’s ass, another orgasm was washing over him.
Omegas Unchained (The Rogue Pack Book 8) Page 16