by Alex Kidwell
Then he licked Victor across the cheek.
Chuffing out hoarse noises that Victor was beginning to suspect were wolf laughs, Randall then turned and ran into the woods, disappearing with a flash of his tail. Victor pulled a face, wiping his sleeve across his cheek to clean off the wolf slobber. “I bet you don’t drool on people, Redford,” he said.
In response, Redford opened his muzzle and licked Jed across the cheek, going over his ear for good measure. He looked far too amused about doing so.
“Yeah, that’s another wolf thing,” Jed informed Victor, wiping off his cheek and sprawling under Redford. Knievel had caught his tail and was now happily wrapping her paws around it, her own tail lashing back and forth. “I think it means he likes you, princess. Either that or he’s thinking about eating you in your sleep.”
“Emotional communications via saliva,” Victor said dryly.
“How is that any different than what you normally do?” Jed pointed out.
Victor threw an empty water bottle at him and retreated back into the van.
Two hours later, Jed made his way into the vehicle. He and Redford had been sprawled out together on the ground, the gentle noise of Jed’s voice just barely audible over the cacophony of the night sounds. They’d even run together, back and forth in the tall grass of the clearing, Jed laughing loudly when Redford tackled him to the ground. They seemed to fit together now just as well as they did when Redford wasn’t shifted. It was odd to watch, Jed Walker being so human. So very vulnerable.
Finally, though, Redford took off into the woods—after much prompting and encouragement from Jed. Heaving himself into his seat, Jed stretched and groaned before toeing off his boots. He pulled a gun from his waistband and left it on the seat next to him while he settled in and made himself comfortable. Victor just gave him a brief glance and went back to reading. The moon had risen high in the sky now, half the night whittled away, and he couldn’t even hear any howling anymore.
“I’m somewhat surprised you let him go off on his own,” Victor murmured, still more absorbed in his book than the act of talking. “With not even a cell phone or a flare gun or something.”
“I keep trying,” Jed sighed heavily, head tilted back. He’d shrugged off his jacket and was squirming in the seat, trying to find a good position to sleep in. Knievel had appropriated one of his knees, draped over it like a scarf. “But for some reason he won’t wear a fanny pack. Also, no opposable thumbs, so….” Jed shrugged.
Shockingly, Jed didn’t seem to feel the need to fill the silence. Time passed, the overhead light seeming so dim compared to the darkness outside, making Victor feel a little like he was stuck in Plato’s cave with only a single fire to ward off the night. Victor turned the pages of his book, and Jed’s breathing evened out into something quite like sleep.
The idea of chasing sleep was a tempting one, but Victor didn’t think he was going to have much luck trying to get comfortable in the minivan.
“Have you heard from him?” Jed’s voice was low, but not that of a man who’d been asleep. He didn’t indicate who he was talking about. Then again, he didn’t really need to.
“No.” Victor sighed faintly, looking up from his book to glance out the window. David had loved nights like this: clear and cold, completely still. “Have you?”
Barking out a quick laugh, Jed dragged a hand over his face. In the garish light of the overhead he looked tired, worry pinching the corners of his eyes. “Yeah, I don’t think I’m exactly on Davey’s Christmas card list at the moment.” After a beat he shook his head, lips tight. “I tried. Burned through every contact I could think of that we’d used together, tracked him to Russia, maybe, and then Peru. Trail kept going cold. I gave up a few weeks ago, when I lost wind of him someplace in Argentina. Then again, probably was just chasing ghosts.”
“Perhaps,” Victor murmured. “If David doesn’t want to be found, he won’t be. He’s a bit more experienced at doing so than the average human contact you have. No offense.”
Jed didn’t look exactly thrilled to be reminded of David’s otherness, of the fact that he’d been both something more and something less at once. “I knew him,” Jed muttered, staring up at nothing. “Shit, princess, I knew him for years. Now I don’t really know fuck all, I guess.”
Victor hadn’t seen much of Jed’s reaction to finding out that David wasn’t human. He’d seen the first part, when Jed had thought that throwing garlic pizza at a vampire was a hilarious thing to do, but all he knew of after that was that Jed had hidden in his hotel room for some time. He imagined that the knowledge must have been quite a shock, especially to Jed, who didn’t really mingle with the supernatural crowd.
“And in those years that you knew him, he was exactly the same person as he was after you found out what he was,” Victor pointed out. “Except for the numerous lies he told you, I assume.” He frowned, staring out the window. Honestly, he had no idea how David had convinced Jed for so long that he was human. “He wasn’t at his best in Cairo, either. If you’re going to judge him, don’t judge him because of that.”
“This ain’t some after-school special about giving your mommy and daddy the ‘I fuck boys’ talk,” Jed growled. “He sure as hell wasn’t the guy I knew. Because instead of being a kind of stick-up-the-ass contact who dated like it was changing socks, he was a guy who ate people. And now I gotta live with the fact that, as close as I was, as much as I thought I understood, everything was wrong. So fuck you, Victor, and fuck Cairo. He would have killed you if Redford hadn’t smelled it going south. And you wouldn’t have been the first.”
Victor just stared at Jed for a few seconds, then dipped his gaze back to his book. He really had nothing to say to that. What could he say? That if David had killed him, he wouldn’t have particularly minded at the time? It was true, but it was also likely to send Jed into a cursing fit, and Victor wasn’t in the mood to put up with one.
After a long moment, Jed murmured, so quietly that it almost didn’t count as out loud, “Just wish I didn’t worry so much about the stupid fucker.” Leaning forward, Jed twisted the key, turning off the lights. “Go to sleep, Victor. You’re gonna run down the battery.”
Victor blinked hard as he tried to adjust to the sudden darkness. At a loss for what to do, he slotted a bookmark between the pages he’d been reading and put the book down on the seat next to him. There was a far-off noise, a long, drawn-out howl that reassured him somewhat. At least one of the wolves must be close.
“As much as David could trust anybody, I think he trusted you,” Victor said into the darkness. His sight was beginning to adjust, bringing Jed and the interior of the van into sharp relief, the pale moonlight shading everything white and black. “He’ll contact us when he’s ready.”
There was a sharp snort that summed up what Jed thought of that. But Victor could see him rustling around, and then a blanket hit him in the face. “Sleep, princess,” Jed commanded, but there was a softness in his tone, under the weariness. “We’ve got a long day coming.”
Victor heaved a sigh, but he nonetheless dragged the blanket off his face and twisted himself to lie across two of the seats. It was hardly comfortable. “Pity. I was looking forward to braiding your hair and watching romantic comedies together. We were having such a nice talk too.” One that he was glad was over.
Jed gave a loud, genuine laugh, and Victor could see the other man peering over the back of the seat at him. “You’d be surprised, professor,” Jed said around his grin. “I do a mean french braid.”
Chapter 5
Redford
REDFORD RAN.
Nothing else existed but him and the forest. The wind through his fur, the ground under his paws, the noises of insects and night birds that guided him. To his sight, the forest was alive with movement, flora and fauna swaying together as a single organism, one that he was instinctively in tune with.
He had never felt so free.
The aggression and the fear that his instincts wer
e usually edged with were nowhere to be found. It was just him and the forest and utter freedom.
Every once in a while, he caught a glimpse of another wolf. His instincts reacted first, wanting to chase and growl, but once his human mind kicked in, he recognized them for who they were. Edwin, a lighter streak amongst the darkness. Anthony, stalking a deer. Randall, curled up next to a stream to watch the play of moonlight over water. Then, later in the night, the three of them gathered together. Redford could smell them and the deer they were eating.
He approached cautiously, loitering on the edge of the clearing they’d dragged their prey to. Though Redford understood that they were wolves and they were just eating, the whole scene looked briefly terrifying to him: three wolves gathered around a carcass, blood shining on their muzzles. But it was just the Lewises, all of whom gave him a happy welcome. Redford sounded a low huff in return and trotted over.
Edwin had saved him the liver. Redford wasn’t sure why, but from the expectant body language of Edwin, it was probably his favorite part. They fed, and splashed around in the river to clean, and wound up collapsed in a pile afterward, warm and full. Randall’s nose was pressed into Redford’s stomach, Edwin was draped across him, and Anthony was warm at his back. The moon bathed them and the river sang to them and they were at peace.
Redford closed his eyes, and the rest of the night drifted past him. His instincts and the wolf in the back of his mind were peaceful and satisfied, for the most part. But Jed wasn’t there. That was the only thing that would make it better.
As the sun started to rise over the horizon, Redford lifted his head and opened his eyes, taking a deep breath. He hadn’t slept so much as he’d rested. Detaching himself from the pile, he sneaked a few short steps away to change back, biting his tongue so he didn’t disturb the brothers. They didn’t look like they were waking up anytime soon, so Redford left them, unable to help smiling briefly as he started the walk back.
He wished he’d had the foresight to bring along clothes or to change back closer to the van. It felt very strange, strolling the woods in nothing but his skin, but it also felt like an extension of the night and everything it had contained. Freedom. Freedom from worry and boundaries. The freedom to do exactly what he was doing.
It felt amazing.
The walk back didn’t take him as long as he’d anticipated. Jed was hovering at the tree line, looking anxious and worried. The playful spirit of the night lingered in Redford, and he grinned to himself as he stalked behind the trees, keeping himself hidden until he got close enough to pounce on Jed, tackling him to the ground.
“That was awesome,” Redford enthused, happily thumping his hands on Jed’s chest. “We should do that every full moon.”
The tension faded from Jed’s face into a slow grin, his fingertips brushing along Redford’s cheeks. There was guilt under the smile, but Jed shook it away to laugh lowly. “You look like you had fun, babe,” he murmured, kissing Redford’s chin.
“It would have been more fun if you’d been there,” Redford replied. “But it was good. I ran around, and Anthony killed a deer. And then we rested a bit.” Self-conscious, he reached up to swipe a hand over his mouth, making sure there wasn’t any blood remaining. Thankfully, there didn’t seem to be. “And I liked it earlier too, when it was just you and me.”
Jed’s hands ran through Redford’s hair, down his back, Jed’s idle touch exploring his skin. Making sure he was all in one piece. It was a touchstone for Jed, Redford knew. A way to assure himself that Redford really had come back to him. “Nah,” he huffed out a rueful breath. “Couldn’t have kept up with you. You’re much better off with the furry brigade.”
Redford rolled off Jed and flopped down to lie in the grass next to him on his back, their arms still pressed together. “Our time together was my favorite bit,” he murmured, finding Jed’s hand with his own, linking their fingers together.
He hadn’t felt quite this satisfied in a long time, like every part of him was exhausted in the best kind of way. It was actually similar to how Redford felt after a round of really good sex with Jed, only this time his instincts were happy too.
Jed raised their joined hands to his lips and kissed Redford’s knuckles. He almost looked embarrassed by the gesture, but he didn’t let go. “It’s always mine too, Fido,” Jed said gruffly. He wore the same look he always got when he said something sentimental but didn’t want to acknowledge it. So Redford rolled over again, sprawling himself on top of Jed to kiss him, reaching his arms past Jed’s head to stretch.
“I’m going to need a massive breakfast,” Redford announced, nosing his way in against Jed’s neck. He smelled the same as always, pine and gunpowder, mixed together with what Redford knew was his own scent. “Did you have a good night?”
“I slept in a van with Victor goddamn Rathbone,” Jed muttered, head arching back to give Redford more room, a pleased little murmur as Redford found that one spot on his throat that always made Jed’s toes curl. “What do you think?”
“Poor Jed,” Redford laughed. “Did you have to put up with lectures?” He didn’t know what Victor could possibly think of to lecture Jed about, but he was sure Victor could come up with something.
“It was terrible,” Jed pouted, a gleam in his eyes as he wiggled a bit under Redford. “I’m traumatized for life.”
Redford lifted his face from Jed’s throat to briefly sniff the air, glancing up at the sun. If he figured correctly, the Lewises would still be an hour away, considering how deeply they’d been sleeping. Victor too smelled like he was fast asleep. For now, it seemed, they had the entire forest to themselves.
He wanted to say something potentially cheesy about making better memories for Jed after his lecture-based trauma, but instead Redford just kissed him, leisurely and slow, lifting up to grin at him. “I’m sorry. I’ll never make you sleep in a van with Victor ever again.”
“Good.” Jed arched his neck up to catch Redford in another kiss, his legs wrapping around Redford’s hips to keep him there. “I missed you.”
“I missed you too.” Redford ducked down to kiss Jed’s throat, biting him lightly. The instinct was there, wanting him to bite harder, to give Jed a mark that would last for the next few days, but that could wait. For now, Redford was content and comfortable, the sun warming his back, and he had Jed underneath him. He wanted to relish this.
He kissed Jed, smiling into it, lazily running a hand down his chest. Redford still wondered if he should feel weird about the fact that he was naked in the middle of a forest clearing, but it felt like the most natural thing in the world, especially with Jed there. “You have far more clothes on than I do,” he pointed out, getting his hands under Jed’s T-shirt.
With a laugh, Jed tumbled out of his shirt, tossing it away and sliding his hands through Redford’s hair, down to his shoulders, tugging him in to meet in a sweet clash of lips and tongue. “God forbid,” Jed mumbled with a smirk, kicking off his jeans, sprawling out under Redford happily. He looked more than comfortable to be in the same naked state. If a car happened to drive past on the nearby road, Redford had no doubt that Jed would just flip them off and attempt to charge them for viewing rights.
Jed’s hand slipped between them, wrapping around Redford’s cock, his lips trailing along the slope of Redford’s shoulder. “God, you’re gorgeous,” he murmured, nipping lightly at Redford’s neck, burying a smile into his skin. “How do you just keep getting more beautiful?”
“Wolf secret,” Redford replied, giving the words a lofty tone, grinning down at Jed. He still felt heat rising to his cheeks, though, just like every time Jed complimented him. There was a laugh buried against his skin as Jed painted a trail down his chest, tongue teasing across his nipple. In retaliation, Redford bit harder at Jed’s neck, grinning to himself at the gasp it produced. “You’re getting predictable,” he teased fondly, doing it again. Every time, Jed would get this glazed look in his eyes like he’d temporarily lost all sense of anything else that w
as happening.
It was satisfying to know that Redford could have that kind of effect on Jed—a man who normally divided his attention between fifteen different things. Not now, though. Now the hands that would be reaching for weapons, that would be focused on violence or planning, were gentling down his sides. Now the eyes that scanned rooms for exits, that picked people apart, that looked for weaknesses and opportunities, were dark with want. Were only focused on Redford. Every part of Jed was in tune with him, every shudder and sigh was only for Redford. Jed tipped his head back, baring his throat, a slow smile slipping across his lips.
“Yeah, I’m predictable,” Jed muttered. “I’m so fucking into you, Red, you have no idea.” Redford smiled against Jed’s throat at the words, soothing the bites with a kiss.
“Predictable is good,” he replied lowly, moving his way down to Jed’s collarbone, giving him another bite there. He liked knowing exactly what to do to make Jed lose his mind, and knowing the steps didn’t make it any less exciting.
As for himself, he thought he might try to be a little unpredictable this time around. Redford knew he was still a little shy when it came to things like this, something he hadn’t quite managed to break out of yet. But on the morning of the full moon, and after a night of running, he was feeling confident. It was a good feeling. So he bit at Jed’s throat again, then down lower, nuzzling over his stomach, then licking a long line up his cock, grinning up at Jed. Jed certainly seemed into it, if the moan was anything to go by, so Redford grasped his hips, settling in, contentedly ducking down to wrap his lips around Jed, sucking him gently. He could go hard and fast, and maybe he would later, but for now the sight of Jed, free and happy, sprawled out on the grass, was something Redford wanted to savor a little longer.