by Fel Fern
“And other reasons. Remember the bite I left on your neck the first time we had sex?” Rick asked.
It didn’t surprise him Rick went for blunt honesty, but then again, that was one of the reasons why he loved his bear. Love. Yes, he loved Rick. He realized that before he left the Red Mountains, he just didn’t know what to do.
“Yes.”
“Each time we fucked, I was tempted to give you the claiming mark.”
“What are you saying?” Craig remembered asking Danny about the mark on his neck. Pat had one, too, he remembered, and he’d blushed when Danny told him about the mating mark. Shifters only chose one mate for life.
“You’re my mate, Craig. My bear has known since the day we met. The only reason I didn’t go further was because I didn’t want to ruin your future.”
“Ruin how?” Craig knew the answer to that one though, because mates couldn’t live far from each other. Danny told him about that, too.
“Don’t ask questions you know the answer to, baby.” Rick continued, “When you left town, you were undecided. So was I. I came here to hear your answer, whether you’ve changed your mind or even considered the prospect of moving in with me and becoming my mate.”
Those words mustn’t have been easy to say, especially for his werebear. Rick was a man of few words, he knew that. Lying or delaying his answer wouldn’t help either of them. It was time to come clean. Craig owed Rick that, at least.
Chapter Thirteen
Rick set his cup down, wanting to hear Craig’s answer. He didn’t waste a second. Right after his talk with Mac the night before, he told his brothers to take over managing the bar. Rick only packed an overnight bag and hopped into his truck. He’d driven straight to Craig’s place, the address generously provided by Danny. Before divulging it though, Danny made him promise to not screw things up, whatever that meant.
“I—” Craig began, then took a deep breath. Fuck. Rick worried Craig would tell him he came here for nothing, but the human continued, “These past two weeks have really been miserable without you.”
Rick blinked, tugged Craig close, and set Craig’s steaming cup on the counter before the human hurt himself. Craig’s infernal hell cat continued watching them for the side. Craig mentioned the little critter didn’t belong to him, but that darned cat acted all possessive over Craig. He inhaled a lungful of Craig’s scent.
Denied for what felt like an eternity of his mate’s delicious scent, he wanted to roll in it for as long as he could.
“It’s been hard,” he admitted. “But I have to tell you, little human. It pissed me off when you ran off. At least you left that thoughtful letter.”
Craig spun in his arms, cheeks and neck turning red. “I’ve said a couple of embarrassing things in that note.”
“I reread the letter plenty of times.” Rick stroked Craig’s back thoughtfully, amused the human hugged him tighter.
“You came back for me,” Craig whispered.
“And you haven’t answered my question,” he told his human patiently.
Craig looked up at him and said three simple words which stunned him completely and made his bear roar in triumph.
“I love you.”
“Fuck, baby. Me too,” he said without hesitation.
“I missed this, missed us. It’s so lonely here. Bite me, Rick. I’ve decided. I want to be yours.”
The bear in him had grown impatient enough to strike, to make sure Craig would be bearing his mate mark in a couple of minutes, but he told his inner beast to be patient.
“You understand what that means?” Rick had to ask, ignoring his fuming bear.
“I do. It’s been two weeks, and I’ve thrown myself into my work. I realized I’ve already achieved a level of success I never dreamt of having. I don’t want to grow old, bragging about my glory days but end up with nothing. Doing this no longer makes me happy.”
Rick let out a breath at those words. Fuck, but he’d been so proud of his little human coming to that decision on his own.
“I’m not going to ask you again,” he said. Last warning to his mate.
Craig was smiling though. “I don’t expect you to.”
Rick tipped Craig’s chin and kissed him deep and rough. He drank in the sweet, familiar taste of his mate, a taste he’d been craving for the past two weeks.
“The last fourteen days felt like hell,” he said after parting from the kiss.
“Ditto. Why do we make ourselves miserable? I asked myself that question many times, and you know what?”
“What?” Rick asked.
“Love’s supposed to be like that—hard. It has its ups and downs, but ultimately, don’t you think it’s worth it?”
Rick growled in agreement. “Just so you know, little human. I’m this close to fucking you against the fridge.”
“Wait, let’s head to my bedroom. Thanks to you, I got inspired to get good sheets, too,” Craig said.
Bemused, he let his little human lead him past the kitchen, down a corridor, and inside his bedroom. Craig’s spacious apartment reminded him a little of his house, how big and lonely it seemed, especially after Mac and Connor left. Craig didn’t live with anyone else though. Rick imagined it must have been isolating.
He grinned at the huge queen—or was it king-sized—bed.
“We’re sleeping in the same bed when you move in with me,” Rick reminded Craig.
“Well, my bed’s new and much bigger. How about we compromise and use your bed to replace the single in the guest bedroom?”
Rick chuckled. His bear was very pleased Craig took his life-changing decision to leave all this behind seriously.
“I’ll think about it,” he said, just to annoy his little human.
“So, how do you want to do this?” Craig said.
“I have some ideas,” Rick said. “First off though, you’re wearing too many clothes.”
“Hey, you, too. It’s your fault, you know. After you, I can’t seem to find other guys attractive, especially when I keep comparing them to you.”
“Careful, little human. You don’t want to inflate a bear’s ego,” Rick said, showing teeth.
“Enough talking.”
Rick agreed with that. They reached for each other and, within seconds, stood naked. Rick’s dick pulsed between his legs, already thickening. One quick look at Craig’s cock told him his human missed him, too.
He neared Craig only for Craig to fall on his knees. Pleasure filled him as he gripped Craig’s hair, pulling him close. The human wore an eager look on his face. Craig slipped a tongue out and licked away the pre-cum on his tip. He groaned. Craig seemed to be enjoying himself, exploring the length of his cock.
Craig tongued his slit, traced the sensitive spot under his cockhead, before tracing every ridge and bump. He groaned. So, his little human wanted to tease. Fine. Rick let Craig have his fun. After a few licks, he gave Craig’s hair a tug.
“Take me in your mouth,” he ordered.
Fuck, it felt good, seeing his prick disappearing into Craig’s throat. Craig bobbed his head up and down several times. His dick went from half-mast to full. It felt damn good, seeing his mate on his knees, eager to please him.
Knowing he needed to be inside Craig and finish inside Craig’s ass, he gave Craig’s hair a tug. Craig paused, released his prick, and settled on his knees, probably awaiting his next instruction.
“Bed,” he said hoarsely. Offering Craig a hand, he helped the human to the bed. Craig lay on his back, legs dangling over the edge. Perfect, he wanted to see the expression on Craig’s face when he bestowed his mate mark on his mate.
Rick grabbed the lube from his wallet. He tucked that in there, in the hopes that if Craig refused him, they might as well have some steamy farewell sex before he returned. It turned out he had nothing to worry about, because Rick succeeded in winning his mate over.
Returning between Craig’s legs, he lifted Craig’s legs over his shoulders, smiling at the sight of Craig’s hard dick, jus
t like his own. He uncapped the lube and applied a generous amount into Craig’s hole. He stretched and widened his mate for access, fueled by Craig’s pleas.
“Don’t make me wait any longer,” Craig begged.
That did the trick. He replaced his fingers with his dick and pushed all the way in. Craig grasped but he had no complaints. Rick gritted his teeth, loving how tight a fit his dick was inside Craig’s tiny hole.
“Tell me how much you missed me being inside you,” he told his mate. He didn’t move yet, waited for Craig to get used to his size once more.
“I missed your cock. I missed everything about you.”
Fuck, but those words went right to his heart. Rick blanketed his body over Craig’s. He missed the familiar warmth of Craig’s skin. He’d always marveled how Craig’s slender body was a perfect fit to his own.
He began to move in and out of his mate, rhythm quick and fast. Craig raked his nails down his shoulders, his upper back, but he didn’t mind. The slight ache only riled his bear further. His balls tightened against his body. Rick had almost forgotten how good it felt, having his dick buried deep inside Craig.
For the past fourteen days, Craig’s departure left a hole in his heart. Both man and bear felt like something vital had been torn from them. Now, he needn’t worry about that any longer.
He took his mate deep and deeper with each turn. Rick shifted the angle of his thrust. Judging by Craig’s widening eyes and cry, he knew he found Craig’s sensitive spot. Rick aimed for Craig’s prostate repeatedly, liking how Craig met him for every turn.
So close now. He reached for Craig’s dick and gave the tip a squeeze, sending Craig off the edge of oblivion. Craig screamed out his name, spilling jazz over his stomach. A few pumps inside his mate and he reached climax.
Craig turned his head to one side, offering his neck to him. Rick unsheathed his fangs and struck, burying them deep past skin and hitting bone. Craig cried softly beneath, and he reached out, covered Craig’s hands with his, holding his mate, not restraining Craig. This was a delicate process. The last thing he wanted was for Craig to struggle and him to tear something important.
His brave mate remained still though, waited until his bear forged the mate bond between them. The missing hole inside him started to fade away, as their life force finally became one. He pulled his fangs away, then gently kissed Craig’s cheek.
Rick rolled off his mate, wanting to keep his weight off the smaller man. Then he gathered Craig close to him. Craig let out a happy little mewl and curled contentedly next to him. Languidness hit him. The bear in him had stopped fighting him. Thank God, because for the past two weeks, all the animal ever did was fight him.
His bear had known all along what he needed, the person he couldn’t live without. His mate. Oh, they had plenty of work ahead, obstacles to overcome. Rick wanted to make Craig’s move as smooth as possible.
“Is it done?” Craig asked, breaking the silence a little later.
“Yes,” he answered, resting his lips on the nape of Craig’s neck.
“I think I felt your bear just now,” Craig told him. “It was a fierce, powerful animal. I want you to know I accept and love both of you.”
Those words meant the world to a shifter. He hugged his mate tight against his body. It was hard to tell where he started and where Craig began. They were one, so it didn’t matter.
“I want to keep modeling,” Craig blurted, turning around so they looked each other in the face.
“Of course.”
Craig looked surprised. “Really?”
“I’d never keep you away from what you love to do. I figured it’s just a change of location, right? If those fashion big shots want you, they’ll make the effort to visit you in your new home.”
“My God, you’re perfect,” Craig murmured, rubbing his head against his chest. A rumble came out from him as he reached out and stroked his mate.
“So are you, little human,” he said with affection.
“I love you. I know I’ve said it already, but I just wanted to let you know.”
He grinned, understanding what Craig meant. Discovering love and having his mate by his side, no matter what happened, was the greatest gift he could ever ask for. That was right, when fate delivered Craig at his doorstep, Rick had been given the greatest treasure of all. Now, he understood what his brothers had felt when they found their respective mates.
“I love you back, and don’t worry, I’m not going to ever sick of you, baby.”
“Promise?”
“I promise.”
THE END
FELFERN.COM

Siren Publishing, Inc.
www.SirenPublishing.com