by C. W. Gray
Sonny shrugged. “Myrtle is sweet, but she can’t bake for shit. I’m not eating her cake pops. Don’t tell her though, okay? I don’t want to hurt her feelings.”
Leo smiled and nodded. “Sure.” A slow song came over the speakers. “Do you want to dance?”
Sonny sighed happily. “This Goldilocks really wants to dance with his bear.”
Chapter 4
Leo barely managed to not shudder in pleasure when Sonny laid his head against Leo’s chest as they slowly swayed on the dancefloor. His mate was sweet and funny, and there were so many things he wanted to ask him, things he wanted to tell him.
With his mate in his arms, it suddenly didn’t feel like Sonny was out of his league. Even with Flufflepuff spread out on his shoulders, this moment felt perfect. Maybe, when the dance was over, he could ask Sonny out to dinner.
“You’re a good dancer,” Sonny mumbled into Leo’s chest.
Leo chuckled. “This kind of dancing is easy. Trust me, you don’t want to see me try anything fancier.”
Sonny looked up, meeting his eyes. “Why did you date Dillion? He’s horrible.”
“He’s not horrible,” Leo said. “He’s just self-involved and petty.”
Sonny wrinkled his nose, looking even more adorable. “I should have gone all Maleficent on his ass.”
Leo settled his chin on top of Sonny’s head. “Dillion’s words hurt, but not as much as they used to. We lived together for a year, but I didn’t realize how critical he was until we broke up. Every day was filled with little comments about my weight, the auto shop, or my family. He didn’t like any of it.”
Sonny growled, and Leo started laughing. He knew Sonny was a powerful witch, but he was so damn cute it was hard to take his growl seriously.
Sonny pouted. “His head really would make a nice pecan pie. The spell would only last for an hour.”
Leo stroked Sonny’s back, trying to soothe him. “There’s no point to it now. Dillion can’t hurt me anymore.”
“I like your belly,” Sonny mumbled, rubbing his face against Leo’s chest and reminding Leo of Flufflepuff.
Leo flushed. “I’m glad. I don’t think it’s going anywhere.”
“Being a mechanic is a good career,” Sonny added. “Myrtle says your family’s auto shop does good work.”
“We do,” Leo said, smiling softly. “My mom and my sister Coleen run the office while the rest of us handle the jobs.”
“Why didn’t Dillion like your family? Are they mean?”
Leo snorted, thinking about his mom and her need to feed everyone. “No. They’re loud and obnoxious. They like to play jokes on one another, and we’re always teasing each other. I have two sisters and three brothers. It gets a bit chaotic.”
“That sounds nice,” Sonny said. Leo didn’t know what to make of the wistfulness in the witch’s voice.
“Dillion thought they were too rough and common – his words, not mine.”
“Dillion is stupid.”
“Agreed.” Leo closed his eyes and enjoyed the moment.
“Look at that ass,” someone whispered behind him, and a small hand squeezed his butt.
“What the fuck?” Leo spun around, glaring at the woman dressed as Little Red Riding Hood.
She bit her lip and gave him a heated look. “Do you want to be my Big Bad Wolf?”
“Carrie, back off,” a young man dressed like a firefighter said. “He’s a bear. Obviously, he doesn’t want to be your wolf.” The man blew him a kiss. “Hey, bear. Do you want to see my hose?”
Leo gave Sonny a puzzled look. “Are they for real?”
Sonny narrowed his eyes and studied the two. “I think we have a problem, Leo.”
“Leo, I need you,” Dillion said, pushing between the other two and pressing against Leo. “Fuck me hard. Right here.”
Less than a minute later, Dillion’s head resembled a pecan pie, and a crowd was gathering.
“Sonny,” Gemma screeched, pushing around the other partiers. “What did you do?”
“It’s only an illusion spell,” Sonny mumbled, and Leo laughed, earning a glare from Gemma.
“Leo is such a sexy name,” another man said, this one dressed like a vampire Zorro. Oops, he was a vampire dressed like Zorro.
“I think they’re spelled,” Sonny said, wincing.
“Sonny, that dress shows off your legs so well,” an elderly woman dressed as a medieval queen said. “Why don’t you lift it up just a little, and let us see what’s underneath.”
“Mrs. Cortez,” Gemma said, gasping. “Your husband is right beside you.”
“I think Rosie has a good idea there,” Mr. Cortez said, eyes full of lust as he looked Sonny up and down.
A deep growl rumbled through Leo’s chest. Fuckers better back off.
Dillion, pecan pie head and all, tried to press against Leo again, but the firefighter and Little Red were vying for his spot.
“I’ve never noticed how pretty your eyes are, Sonny,” a woman dressed as a zombie said. “Do you want to go out sometime? How about now?”
“Definitely spelled,” Sonny said, eyes worried. “Gemma, this is my seventh-grade school dance all over again.”
“Your dewy body glistens in the light,” Zombie lady said, eyes devouring Sonny. “Let’s make love all through the night. I’ll wrap you in my arms so tight, and hug you with all my might.”
“Wow,” Leo said. “I’m both frightened and impressed.”
Sonny stifled a laugh. “Damn it, this is bad.”
Six more people pressed through the crowds to get closer to Leo and Sonny, while Gemma tried to push them back.
Leo held Sonny tight and batted away the Cortezes’ hands as they reached for Sonny. “What the fuck is going on?”
“Uh, I’m sorry about this, Leo,” Sonny said. “I have a feeling Myrtle did something to the cake pops.”
“Sonny! I need you.”
“Leo! Let me touch your hair.”
“I’ll die if I can’t have you.”
“Just take the dress off. Let me see that hiney!”
“Yeah,” Leo said, drawing out the word. “I think that’s a good possibility.”
“Sonny isn’t the sexy one,” the firefighter said. “The bear makes my dick so hard.”
Mrs. Cortez smacked the man. “Don’t you dare insult my Sonny sunshine-naked booty-shaker. He’s the hottest thing in this room.”
“You tell him, Rosie. Here, I’ll get Sonny and bring him back to our apartment.” Mr. Cortez tried to get past Gemma, but the rabbit stomped on his foot and bit his arm. “Damn, crazy rabbit!”
Trish and her husband, Raul, pushed through and started helping Gemma keep the lust-filled people away from Leo and Sonny.
“Gemma, get them somewhere safe,” Trish said, whacking Zorro with her large bag and umbrella. Fortunately, Miles’s mom had dressed as Mary Poppins for the party.
Leo yelped when he felt a hand pull off the furry hood he wore, baring his dark hair. Flufflepuff hissed and swatted at Little Red.
“Gemma, we’ll help too,” another man in the crowd said and stepped in to fend off Little Red’s grasping hands. “Back off, lady.”
“Thanks, Doug. I’ll get them out of here.” Gemma grabbed Leo and Sonny and ran with them to the bathroom across from the manager’s office. “You two stay there until Myrtle gets back. Lock the door and ignore anything you hear.”
Leo looked over her shoulder. Fourteen lust-filled people were pushing the other partygoers aside and trying to get to Leo and Sonny. “Gemma.”
She looked back and rolled her eyes. “You seriously owe me for this, Sonny. I can’t believe I have to clean up this mess.”
She pushed them into the bathroom and slammed the door.
Sonny locked the door and pushed the small accent table in front of it. He turned around and gave Leo a sad look. “Well, this is a nice first date.”
Leo blinked, then grinned, his worry over the strange night disappearing. “This i
s a date?”
Sonny blushed. “We’re wearing a couple’s costume. That means it has to be a date, right?”
It didn’t, but Leo wasn’t about to point that out. “Yeah. It must be.”
Chapter 5
“At least the bathroom isn’t tiny,” Sonny said, sitting on the small ornate chair next to the sink. The bathroom was meant for prospective renters, so Myrtle’s manager kept it well decorated and in perfect condition.
Leo sat on the toilet seat. “It could be worse.”
“I can’t believe Myrtle made love-potion cake pops.” Sonny made a face. “She should know better.” He didn’t understand how she had managed to direct the potion toward both Sonny and Leo.
Leo looked thoughtful. “There were only seven cake pops, but I counted fourteen people.”
Sonny blinked. “Oh. That’s right.”
Leo sighed and leaned his head back on his shoulders, dislodging Flufflepuff. “Miles made me exactly seven cake pops too. He kept telling me to make sure to eat them all.”
Sonny groaned. “What do you want to bet that he spelled the cake pops to make you fall for me, and Myrtle spelled her cake pops to make me fall for you?”
“I think you’re right.” Leo frowned. “I feel bad for those people.”
“Me too. It’s not right to mess with people’s emotions,” Sonny said, feeling guilty. “At least not without their knowledge. I’ve made baked goods spelled with love enhancements for clients before, but it’s always been with their knowledge and consent. They wanted to spice up date night.”
“To be fair, Miles probably knows how much I like you,” Leo said.
Sonny tapped his shoes on the tiled floor in excitement. “You like me?”
Leo smiled, and Sonny’s heart thumped faster. His bear was a handsome man. “I like you way too much.”
“It could never be too much,” Sonny said, shaking his head. “Myrtle knows I have a teeny tiny crush on you too. She probably thought she was just giving me a little push.”
“A teeny tiny crush?”
Sonny held his fingers up, an inch of space between his thumb and index finger. “Teeny tiny.”
Leo scratched his chin. “Now that I think about it, you’re always watching me from your balcony when I get home from work.”
Sonny smiled. “Okay. It may be a huge, gigantic, colossal crush.”
Leo’s smile lit up his face. “Why didn’t you say anything before? We’ve been dodging one another for a few months now.”
Sonny stretched his legs out and gestured over his outfit. “I wasn’t sure how you felt about all this.”
“Hmm, I think all that is damn beautiful.” Leo moved to sit on the floor beside Sonny’s chair. “You’re a beautiful person, Sonny. I’ve watched you too, you know. I see you with Miles and with Aaron and Gemma. Flufflepuff comes and visits me every night to tell me how wonderful you are.”
The cat climbed onto Sonny’s lap and purred. Sonny stroked her back. “Good kitty. Wait. How is she visiting you?”
Leo winced. “That’s not important. The point is, you’re a lovely person inside and out, and I’m glad you are at least somewhat attracted to me.”
Sonny took a breath. “My parents weren’t so happy with my genderfluidity.”
Leo looked confused. “Why not? It’s not a big deal. It’s just you being who you are.”
Sonny couldn’t resist reaching out and cupping Leo’s face. The bear’s skin felt warm and a little rough from his evening stubble. “They aren’t as understanding as you. When I was a kid, I had to hide my more feminine clothes and makeup. I kept things at Myrtle’s shop, and Aaron had a drawer of clothes for me at his house. When I was feeling more feminine, I would change outfits before school. Of course, my parents caught me a time or two.”
“What did they do?” Leo’s voice was gruff and his eyes more golden than they should be.
His bear must be close to the surface. Sonny shrugged. “Confiscated my makeup and searched my closet for anything too girly. When I graduated high school, Myrtle and Aaron helped me move here. Myrtle gave me a job and signed over ownership of my apartment.”
“What did your parents say about that?”
Sonny grinned. “They were pissed, but there’s nothing they can do. I haven’t spoken to them since I moved out. I call once a month and leave a message, but that’s it. They never call back.”
Leo covered Sonny’s hand with his own. “Do you want me to kill them? I have a couple of lion shifter friends with questionable eating habits.”
Sonny made a face. “Eww. No, thanks.”
He held Flufflepuff carefully and leaned forward, accidently falling into Leo’s lap. “Oops. I’m so sorry.” He wiggled around until he got comfortable. “So, tell me about your family.”
“Bunch of bear shifters that live in the suburbs,” Leo said, shrugging. He wrapped his arms around Sonny. “My grandparents live farther north and thought my parents were crazy for moving right outside the city, but my dad wanted to start his own business, and you kinda need customers for that to work.”
“Do you still talk to your grandparents?” Sonny’s own grandparents were fully supportive of his parents cutting him out of their life, so the concept of a loving family was kind of odd to him.
“Oh yeah. We kids spent our summers with them when we were young. Now, we may be grown up, but we still like to visit. Usually we’ll do a big holiday weekend with them in December.”
Sonny grinned. “I can just see you shoveling cows and mucking cornfields. Farmer bears are so hot.”
Leo laughed, and Sonny enjoyed the rumbles. “I take it you’ve never been to the country?”
“Nope.”
Leo gave him a shy look. “If you want, you could come with us this year.”
Sonny swallowed hard. “Really? Your family wouldn’t mind?”
Leo shook his head and licked his lips. “No.
Sonny’s eyes traced Leo’s lips, and he couldn’t resist. He leaned forward and pressed his mouth to Leo’s. His bear tasted like heated honey, and Sonny couldn’t get enough of him.
Sonny groaned and deepened the kiss, Leo’s arms tightening around him. He vaguely felt Flufflepuff scamper off his lap when he moved to straddle Leo, his tongue sliding against his bear’s.
Leo’s warm hands ran up the sides of Sonny’s bare thighs, and Sonny shuddered, dick hardening quickly. He moved his hips against Leo, feeling the shifter’s erection pressing against his ass.
“Sonny,” Leo said, breaking the kiss. “I can’t just kiss you.”
Sonny grabbed his face and pulled him in for another kiss. “Good.”
Leo growled and cupped Sonny’s ass as he arched up. His big hands gripped the back of Sonny’s manties and pulled hard, ripping the fabric in half and baring his ass to the cool air.
“Leo,” Sonny said, laughing against Leo’s lips. “I would have taken them off.”
Leo rubbed a finger against Sonny’s hole, but he stopped laughing to moan. “Fuck. We don’t have any lube.”
Sonny started laughing. “I love Gemma.”
Leo scowled. “Say what?”
Sonny pulled the single pack of lube and condom from his belt. “Gemma gave this to me earlier tonight, just in case.”
Leo hummed. “I love Gemma too.”
A few minutes later, Sonny gasped when Leo’s finger stretched his hole. He pushed back, moaning when Leo added a second finger. “Leo, get in me. Now!”
“Bossy,” Leo said, smiling against Sonny’s neck.
Sonny unbuttoned Leo’s pants and licked his lips at the size of his dick. He squeezed the last of the lube into his palm and slowly stroked Leo, learning the shape and the feel of his man. “I’ll be spending a lot of time with you, little Leo.”
Leo laughed through his moans. “Did you just talk to my dick?”
“Shh, I’m having a conversation here.”
Sonny squeaked when Leo rolled him onto the soft rug and braced himself above
him. “Sorry to interrupt.”
Leo slowly pushed into him, and Sonny lost all ability to speak. Long, smooth strokes in and out of his ass took up all his attention until Leo leaned down and kissed him again.
I love him. I love Leo, Sonny thought, losing himself to the feel of their bodies moving together. Leo hit just the right spot and Sonny lost it, calling out and coming hard.
A few moments later, Leo came, filling Sonny’s ass.
They lay together on the hard floor, panting while they caught their breath. Sonny looked to his left. Flufflepuff stared at them, eyes bored. Sonny’s wig was crumpled next to her.
“Oh, goddess, what have we done?”
Leo started laughing. “I’d say we traumatized her, but she doesn’t look all that scandalized.”
Sonny smiled, then bit his lip. “Leo, I really want to do that again.”
Leo smiled wide. “Me too.”
Chapter 6
Leo woke up quickly, feeling eyes watching him. They lay on the bathroom floor, and Sonny slept sprawled on top of him.
Myrtle and Gemma looked down at them, identical smug looks on their faces.
“I told you the costumes would work,” Gemma said, crossing her arms.
Myrtle snorted, and Toddlebug chittered from her shoulder. “Costumes? My cake pops brought them together.”
Gemma narrowed her eyes. “No, your cake pops got you reprimanded by the Witches Council and fined by the police.”
“Did Miles get in trouble?” Leo really hoped the kid didn’t lose his apprenticeship with Sonny.
Gemma looked puzzled. “Why would he be in trouble?”
Myrtle shook her head furiously. “You didn’t hear that, Gemma. Sweet Miles didn’t have anything to do with it. I made two sets of cake pops and then didn’t stick around to make sure they went to the right people. It was irresponsible, and I’ll deal with it.”
Leo grinned, happy that the older witch was protecting Sonny’s apprentice.
Gemma sighed, then chuckled. “Miles is a lucky boy. You’ll talk with him, Myrtle?”
The older witch pursed her lips. “Of course. Had to have the same conversation with Sonny when he was about Miles’s age.” She winced. “Got my own lecture last night. I’ll take him with me when I do my round of apologies.”