Leo teased his fingertips down Jerry’s throat, then rubbed across his torso. “You’re a gift, baby. Never think otherwise.”
Jerry massaged Leo’s scalp, enjoying the intimate touches. “Good thing I feel the same about you.”
Easing down on his left arm, Leo cradled both their heads on his arm, clutching Jerry intimately. He rubbed along his ribs and over his hip with his other hand. Tracing lightly over Jerry’s skin, he seemed content just to explore him.
Sighing, Jerry cuddled against the man, deciding to do a little exploring of his own. He traced Leo’s strong lines, mirroring the other man’s touches. Where Jerry was lean and lightly toned, Leo was broader with thicker muscles. Leo had a smattering of chest hair but would never be considered a bear. Jerry found he enjoyed threading his fingers through it.
After several minutes of companionable silence, Jerry wondered, “So where do we go from here?”
“What do you mean?”
Jerry focused on Leo, smiling upon seeing the contented, drowsy look on his face. “I just mean... are we living together here? Or—” He paused, nibbling his bottom lip, recalling that the place was a rental. “I guess you have a home elsewhere, huh?”
“Yes to us living together.” The lethargic look on Leo’s face vanished. “If you didn’t realize that, I guess I didn’t do a good enough job explaining what it means to be bonded to a shifter.”
“Oh, well, you did,” Jerry quickly countered. They’d talked about it quite a bit that first day, but—”I didn’t want to presume, was all. I don’t want to be a mooch.” He frowned a little as he thought about that. “I was thinking about getting a part-time job. And my GED. I didn’t finish high school, and I’d really like an education, but I didn’t want you to think I wasn’t grateful. I—”
“Whoa, easy, baby.” Leo lifted his forefingers to Jerry’s lips, pressing lightly to stall his verbal diarrhea. “The simple answer is... I will support you in your goals, and you could never be a mooch.” Sliding his fingers up Jerry’s nose, he massaged over his eyebrow, perhaps attempting to ease Jerry’s scowl lines. “I have a home in the woods halfway between Stone Ridge and Colin City. We can look at the place in the next day or so, and if you like it, we’ll move there.” Leo shrugged, his expression relaxing again. “If you like this place better, that’s fine, too. I can use our time out here to create a new identity for me. It’s a little early, but not terribly so.”
“New identity. What’s that mean?” Jerry asked curiously. He vaguely recalled Leo saying something about creating identities when he’d first met him, but he’d been so scared and stressed out, Jerry couldn’t remember much.
“Well, since shifters live around five hundred years, give or take, every few decades we have to either move or hide from society for a decade until those few humans who know us well will forget us.”
Leo began rubbing his hands over Jerry’s torso again, skimming his fingers down until he reached his dick. Cradling Jerry’s cock, he gently rubbed over his softened flesh, causing him to suck in a harsh gasp as his blood began to heat once more.
“Oh, god,” Jerry whispered, a tremble working through him as his prick began to swell in Leo’s hold. “That should not be possible.”
Leo waggled his brows playfully. “Told you we’d be going for hours.”
Jerry whined as he stared down at Leo playing with him. His touch was gentle, obviously knowing that, while his penis responded, the skin was extremely sensitive. When Leo slid his fingertips down to tease around his balls, Jerry spread his legs, silently encouraging the touch.
“Talking time over?” Jerry asked as his breath became a pant.
Leo chuckled, his expression full of mischief. “We can keep talking, darling.” He rubbed his forefinger over the sensitive patch of skin behind Jerry’s balls. “I just couldn’t help but explore your beautiful body... all spread out and on display for me.” Leaning closer, Leo pecked a kiss to his lips, then whispered against them, “You’re just too irresistible.”
Moaning, Jerry muttered, “Explore away.”
Leo did just that.
Chapter Eleven
Having pleasured and fucked Jerry until they collapsed sated and exhausted in bed during the wee hours of the morning, Leo shouldn’t have been awake. He held his mate close and breathed slowly, listening to the sounds around him. Frowning, he tried to figure out why his wolf was restless in his mind.
Then he heard it. The soft crunch of snow under... a booted foot, perhaps?
What the hell?
Leo wasn’t expecting anyone. Easing away from his warm mate, he padded naked to the window. Without moving the curtain, Leo swept his gaze over the yard.
The bright gibbous moon lit up the area, giving his excellent shifter vision plenty of light to see by. He checked out the tree line and shadows, figuring out where everything was. After a moment, Leo almost thought he’d been mistaken.
Then he spotted him.
Someone stood just to the right of the woodshed, nearly hidden from view. As Leo watched, the man made some kind of hand movement. In response, four men separated from the trees and began stealthily creeping toward the house.
Leo made out the fact that each carried a handgun.
“Shit,” Leo grumbled. “Who the fuck are you?”
His muttered words roused Jerry, who rolled over in bed and peered at him. “Leo?”
“We have company.” Leo wasn’t going to sugarcoat the issue or coddle his mate. The only way to stay safe was through knowledge. “I count five, and they have guns.”
Keeping an eye on the advancing intruders, Leo still saw the way Jerry tensed in his peripheral vision. “Come here, sweetie.” He lifted his hand, palm up, and beckoned to him.
Jerry immediately obeyed, scrambling across the bed and joining him, plastering himself to Leo’s side.
Leo wrapped his arm tightly around his mate, rubbing up and down his side soothingly. Seeing two men head toward the front of the house and two go toward the back, Leo scowled.
“Lean over and hand me that phone, baby, then get dressed in warm clothes.”
To Leo’s relief, Jerry did as he was told without question.
Leo took the phone and hit two on speed dial. On the second ring, his alpha answered. “Leo? What’s wrong?”
Alpha Declan’s curt question didn’t surprise Leo. After all, there were few good reasons to call someone at four-thirty in the morning.
“I have at least five men with guns converging on the house. Any news from Jared and Carson as to why that would be?”
“Shit. No. Lark, call Dixon. Tell him to get to Leo’s cabin asap.” Declan returned to his call, saying, “Dixon’s only a mile from you, Leo. And we’ll be right behind him. Can ye hold them off until then?”
“Damn straight, I will,” Leo grumbled, hearing the sound of movement through the line as well as hearing Lark talking in the background.
“Good. Others will be there soon.”
The line went dead, and Leo held the phone out to a fully dressed Jerry. “Take the phone. It’s on silent, but if it rings, feel free to answer. Plus, you can use it as a flashlight, if you’d like,” he assured, taking Leo’s hand and leading him through the house. “Upstairs.”
“Aren’t you getting dressed?” Jerry whispered the question. His brows furrowed as he kept glancing at Leo’s naked form. “You’re gonna face ‘em naked?”
“One, it’ll shock the shit out of them,” Leo replied honestly, waggling his brows. “Two, if I need to shift, I can do it faster when I don’t have to worry about clothes.”
“Oh. Right.” Jerry nodded, appearing to understand. “Where will I be?”
Leo saw the way his mate glanced around uncomfortably. They hadn’t been upstairs at all. There hadn’t been a reason. Still, Leo knew where he was going, even if Jerry didn’t.
“In the second bedroom on the left here,” Leo told him, guiding him into the room. �
��The attic door is in the closet. You climb up in there.” As he crossed the room, he yanked the blanket from the bed. “If anyone other than me appears, you hide amidst whatever crap you can find up there. Got it?”
To the best of Leo’s knowledge, there were a number of boxes stored up there from when he and Luther had cleaned out his parents’ home. Leo hadn’t had room in his house to store them. Not to mention he just hadn’t had the heart to go through them then, so he hadn’t minded putting them somewhere else.
An out of sight, out of mind type thing.
“I can’t let you face them alone,” Jerry objected, dragging his feet. “What if you need me?”
Leo rested both his hands on Jerry’s shoulders and stared deep into his mate’s pale green eyes. “Jerry, I do need you. I need you safe.” Even as he saw his mate’s mutinous look, he told him, “My sweet mate, you are the love of my life. My heart beats for you. Please, I beg of you.” Sliding his left hand up, Leo gently massaged his scalp. “Please go into the attic and stay safe.”
While Jerry’s scent betrayed his displeasure, he still nodded. As he did, Jerry gripped Leo’s biceps. “I love you, too. Don’t get hurt.”
Even knowing it so wasn’t the time for their declarations, they still made Leo’s heart soar. He dipped his head and plastered a hard kiss to Jerry’s lips. Breaking the kiss just as quickly—otherwise, he knew he would get distracted—Leo squeezed Jerry’s shoulder, then led him to the closet.
The huge walk-in space was shared with the bedroom on the other side.
Cupping his hands and placing them on his bent knee, Leo tipped his chin up, indicating the hatch in the ceiling. “Step up, grab that ring, and pull down the ladder.”
Jerry rested his hand on Leo’s shoulder, then placed his left, socked foot into the cradle created by his hands. Resting his weight on Leo, he reached up with his free hand. Jerry grabbed the ring and pulled, but the hatch didn’t budge.
“Keep hanging onto it,” Leo urged. Shifting his hands, he kept Jerry’s foot cradled in one of them. With his free hand, he gripped his hip. “I’m gonna pull you down,” he whispered in warning. “Don’t worry. I won’t let you fall.”
With their combined weight, they managed to get the hatch’s ladder pulled down.
Leo winced at the sound of the creaking hinges and grinding wood, but it was too late now. He handed the blanket to Jerry, then bounded up the ladder. Once Leo had taken a quick look around and not finding any sign of critters, he returned to the floor.
After cupping Jerry’s face and pecking one more kiss to his lips, Leo ordered, “Up you get. And don’t worry. Reinforcements will be here in minutes. All I have to do is keep them chasing their tails.” Leo winked, hoping he sounded a hell of a lot more confident than he felt.
It’d been a long damn time since he’d faced off against anyone in such a manner. For his mate’s safety, though, Leo would rip out the throat of every fucking one of these guys.
As Jerry climbed the ladder, Leo advised, “Head to your left. The wood flooring is thicker, and there are racks of clothes against the back wall, just in case you need more warmth... or to hide behind them.” As much as Leo hated offering that bit of advice, he knew it was a possibility. “Don’t come out until you see me or someone else you know.”
Jerry paused and peered down at him, his expression pained. Still, he nodded. A second later, he was gone.
Leo lifted the ladder and closed the hatch. Then he closed the bedroom door they’d come through before slipping out of the far side of the closet. He closed that door behind him as well.
Slinking to the bedroom door, Leo paused and listened. He heard a very faint crunching noise. Frowning, he realized it was someone stepping on a few leaves that had fallen off the logs he’d carried in. That was in the back foyer.
Okay. At least, the back two have gotten inside.
The sound of quiet scraping followed by a click came next, and Leo knew the front door had just been picked.
Damn. I’d hoped to be back downstairs when they got in. At least this way I can stay between them and my mate.
While the humans’ steps were light, Leo’s shifter hearing could still easily make them out. He crept to the top of the stairs and crouched at the landing, waiting and watching. From his vantage point, he could see down the stairs to the front door as well as between the wooden railing slats and into the living room and kitchen.
As Leo watched, the men in the front room motioned to the pair that were coming in the back. The open floor concept to the right side of the house made that easy. The left side of the home—both upstairs and down—were the bedrooms and bathrooms.
While the pair at the back headed toward the downstairs hallway, the ones who’d come in through the front door headed up the stairs.
Leo eased backward, then slipped into the first bedroom on the left. With the way the furniture was set up, the door would slam into the dresser. Taking advantage of the vacant space between the dresser and the door, Leo peered through the crack created by the swing of the hinges and waited.
As soon as he spotted the first guy slinking into the room, gun at the ready, Leo moved. He slammed the door into the human with as much force as his shifter strength gave him. The stranger bounced off the doorjamb. While he dropped the gun, he also let out a surprised cry.
In an instant, Leo was around the door and grabbing the man’s shoulders. He slammed the already dazed human against the wall. Not giving him a chance to recover, he gripped the guy’s head and twisted.
The sick sound of popping echoed in Leo’s ears. Before he could even let go of the man, the soft thwack noise of a suppressed gun being fired sounded through the quiet darkness... right before a bit of wood splintered near his left shoulder. Leo shoved the dead man at his counterpart, then followed him, using the human’s body as a shield.
Lowering his shoulder, Leo slammed into the dead guy’s back, driving him into the live one. The intruder screamed, “Up here,” before he went down. Leo pounded his fist into his face, shutting him up and breaking his nose in the process.
“Barney?” someone from downstairs called. “Position!”
Glaring first at the unconscious man as well as the dead guy on top of him, Leo called back, “Barney’s not available. Leave now, and I won’t kill you.”
“Can’t do that, asshole,” the guy who’d called for Barney replied. “You got somethin’ of ours. We want it back.”
Leo rolled his eyes. “What the hell is up with you guys calling young men its? Don’t you care that they’re people, too?”
“Fags always want their hole filled, so who gives a shit if we get paid for it?” a second guy jeered, his tone cutting. “Are you a fag, too? Is that why you’re protecting our property?” The stranger chortled cruelly, then he seemed to be talking to the first guy. “Let’s take ‘em both in. Whadda ya say? If we can’t use him, I bet Larson could tell us who would buy him.”
Leo gritted his teeth. These guys knew Larson. He was the shifter who’d kidnapped and sold Stephani and Sara to the Robles gang in the first place. While Leo didn’t know if this group were gangbangers, if they knew anything about Larson, Leo needed to take as many of them alive as possible.
“Damn,” Leo grumbled under his breath.
After Leo heard the first guy agree to take them both, the man spoke into some kind of walkie talkie or microphone. “Got a problem. They were awake, and Barney and Garth aren’t responding.” He paused a second, evidently listening to a response, for then he answered, “They’re holed up on the second floor.” There was another pause, then, “Got it.” His next comment must have been to his partner, for he stated, “Grab that timber there. We’re gonna light the place up and smoke ‘em out.”
“Oh, fuck no,” Leo grumbled. No way was he going to let these assholes torch his grandfather’s cabin.
Deciding safety overrode his need to keep as many dudes alive as possible, Leo shifted. He’d
just finished the twenty-second transition—give or take a few seconds—when he heard the unmistakable sound of a wolf’s howl... and it was close.
Fuck yeah. Beta Dixon is here.
Galloping as swiftly as his paws would go as he scrabbled on the hardwood floor, Leo bolted out the bedroom door. He bounded down the short hallway and lunged, soaring over the stair railing and angling his body at the guy peering into the fireplace. Evidently, the asshole hadn’t found a piece that he could pick up, seeing as the embers were low, so he’d been trying to spark up the flames a bit with a large piece of kindling.
Leo took all that in at a glance as his body arced through the air. The other guy shouted, but he ignored it. He also ignored the thwack, thwack of another suppressed gun firing wildly toward the ceiling. Leo took courage in knowing that Jerry was hiding at the other end of the house.
With a loud snarling growl, Leo landed on the shocked guy. He wasted no time in wrapping his jaws around the man’s shoulder and tearing into the flesh there. At the same time, he dug his claws in and used his impressive wolf weight to flip the guy to the ground.
There was a loud crack as Leo felt his own body slam into the tiles of the hearth. Ripping his jaw away, tearing muscle, flesh, and bone, he released his prey. He bolted toward the kitchen, using the sofa as cover.
To Leo’s relief, even as he heard the human who’d been shooting call out, “Daton, you okay? Daton?” the click of a trigger without the resulting thwack, thwack told Leo that the guy’s gun was empty.
Taking advantage, Leo leaped over the back of the sofa. As he landed on the cushion, he took in the scene. Either the asshole had cracked his skull open on the stones of the hearth and died, or he’d been rendered unconscious. He wasn’t moving. Changing direction, Leo used the bounce of the cushion to springboard him at the other final guy... who still seemed in shock that he was being attacked by a huge wolf and continued to pull the trigger of his empty gun.
Morons, all of them.
With a Wolf’s Support Page 9