Ripples of Threat

by Rebecca James

  “You did hold it back,” London reminded him. “You should have gone to Grey immediately after Gabriel told you he planned to leave.”

  “But Gabriel made me promise! I wouldn’t break it—not to him or to any of you.”

  Vincent’s outburst silenced London. He looked away and stroked his pregnant belly, which had just started protruding enough to be noticeable.

  “Of course you wouldn’t,” Justin said, crawling onto the floor to cuddle with Vincent. “I would have hated to be in your shoes.” He sighed. “I hope Gabriel’s okay. He hasn’t been well at all, and he could go into labor at any time. I hate to imagine him out there alone in the woods.”

  “Why didn’t he at least wait until the baby came?” Vaughn asked.

  “I don’t think he was thinking of anything other than the fact he believed he’d driven Grey and Ian apart,” Justin said.

  “How did he do that? What happened?” London asked. “I heard Ian stayed with Roanan a night or two.”

  “He didn’t. He just blamed himself, I’m sure.” Justin said. “Honestly. Gabriel never told me, but I could tell he was miserable. And that on the heels of Grey getting mad at him for talking to Duncan.”

  London leaned against the arm of the couch. “Maybe it was sex related. Maybe having an omega made Grey ignore Ian. Kind of like your situation, Vince.”

  Vincent sat up and shook his head. “I don’t think so. It would’ve happened a long time ago. Craig resented me from the very start. He’s come around in the past few months, by the way.”

  “How did that happen, anyway?” Justin asked. “I’ve been meaning to ask you.”

  Everyone seemed interested in the answer, and even Christopher cocked an ear as he cooked to hear why the situation had changed.

  Vincent blushed. “When I went into heat, Grey left me with Craig, who had to…you know, take care of me.”

  Vaughn let out a whoop. “That’s genius! So, Craig had to spend days fucking you.”

  Vincent nodded. “We began to talk some after that, but things really changed when Craig found out I was pregnant. It’s his baby, because Kale made sure he never knotted me.”

  London’s eyes lit up. “Kale already had a child with you and knew Craig would feel protective over you if he got you pregnant! Do you think that had something to do with it? I mean, Ian and Grey. Could the baby Gabriel’s carrying be Ian’s, and Grey resents it? Maybe as pack alpha, Grey feels he should sire the first several children.”

  Justin looked contemplative. “I can’t really imagine Grey feeling like that. I mean, the first child, sure, but not the rest.”

  A knock interrupted them, and Christopher got up to answer the door. When he saw Xavier standing on the stoop, he told the others he was going out for a while. The announcement was followed by whistles and catcalls. Christopher shut the door on them, red-faced.

  “Those omegas can be a raunchy bunch,” X said, a broad smile on his face.

  Before Christopher could say anything, X pulled the beta close and kissed him until he went boneless in the alpha’s arms. Christopher decided nothing was better than the feeling of Xavier’s arms around him and the alpha’s lips pressed to his. Nothing.

  Weaving his fingers through X’s thick hair, Christopher pulled the alpha closer. He ran his tongue through the alpha’s mouth, wanting more but not sure what more was. They hadn’t had a chance to be together since the night Gabriel had interrupted them. More than once Christopher wished he’d awoken that night when Gabriel slipped out—he would have found some way to stop the man.

  “Let’s go to my place.” Xavier tugged on Christopher’s hand. “I got a new bed.”

  “What happened to your old one?” Christopher asked, threading his fingers with X’s and walking beside the alpha toward the woods, past a couple of betas guarding the den.

  “I broke it.” At the beta’s look, the alpha clarified, “It was only a cot and really uncomfortable. I got Rob to build me a big bed. It takes up most of the room, but I don’t care.” He wiggled his eyebrows. “Suits my needs.”

  Butterflies took flight in Christopher’s stomach. “Okay.” He was silent the rest of the walk, thinking about what would happen when they got there. X didn’t seem to notice, perhaps preoccupied with his own thoughts. As soon as they were inside the little cabin, the alpha pressed Christopher against the door, mouth hot and demanding.

  Lost on a tide of emotion and lust, Christopher let Xavier lead. He was one part scared, three parts horny as hell, and willing to do anything. He couldn’t believe he was really there with X—the alpha he’d fantasized about for so long but thought unattainable.

  “Is this really happening?” he whispered into the alpha’s chest when they finally parted.

  Xavier moved back to look down into the beta’s eyes. Christopher leaned his head against the door, looking up at the alpha, who ran his thumb over the beta’s bottom lip.

  “Yeah. And…we don’t have to do anything else if you don’t want to. Seriously. I don’t want to push you.”

  “You’re not pushing me,” Christopher said.

  X caressed Christopher’s chin, sending a shiver down the beta’s spine. “Something bothering you?”

  Christopher couldn’t admit he still wondered about X’s feelings, if the alpha still wished to be with Trace, even though X had explained about saying Trace’s name that night in the barn. Christopher knew he should be happy X had pretty much confessed to being in love with him. He just couldn’t help the doubts trying to strangle his happiness and dragging a pall over his anticipation of what was to come. After all, what did he have to offer the alpha? An orphan who’d worked in a barn for years and didn’t know the first thing about sex? Well, other than giving head. Christopher thought he was getting pretty good at that.

  “What are you looking so smug about?” X tugged gently on Christopher’s ear.

  The beta blushed. “I’m not looking smug, and nothing’s bothering me.” He kissed Xavier, and as the beta had hoped, the alpha’s lust took over. Christopher gasped when Xavier lifted him off his feet, but gamely wrapped his legs around X’s waist, doing his best to keep up with the hot, deep kisses as X carried him down the hall and into another room.

  The next thing Christopher knew, he was flat on his back on a soft mattress watching X strip.

  “You weren’t lying; this is a huge bed,” Christopher said.

  X smiled, and Christopher’s cock filled.

  “Gods, you’re sexy.” Christopher’s breath caught on the final syllable. The muscles beneath the alpha’s toned, tanned skin rippled as he moved. A tempting sprinkling of dark hair covered X’s chest, and Christopher found himself wanting to lick the two small brown nipples perched atop the hard pectorals. The ridges of the alpha’s abdomen made Christopher’s fingers twitch with the need to touch, and the enticing dip of X’s navel had his mouth watering. Was that weird? To want to lick a man’s navel? Christopher didn’t know, but he hoped not.

  The beta reached down to free his throbbing cock, eyes never leaving X as the man undressed to reveal long, muscular legs with killer thighs. And that cock. It was fucking huge with an already swelling knot. The alpha’s balls hung down like soft pendulums, and Christopher shivered with the urge to taste them again.

  Angling himself so his head hung over the bed while pushing away thoughts of how silly he probably looked, Christopher glanced up at X and opened his mouth. The alpha’s bronze eyes flamed as he stepped closer so Christopher could take one furred testicle into his mouth. Running his tongue over the warm orb, the beta felt X shiver. Christopher wrapped his arms around the alpha’s big thighs, straining his neck as he thoroughly sucked first one and then the other gonad.

  From this angle, Christopher had a wonderful view of the alpha’s firm, rounded ass. He ran his hands over the cheeks before boldly spreading them to reveal the small hole surrounded by dark hairs. Lust fired through Christopher’s brain, intensified by X’s moans of pleasure as the beta contin
ued to assault the alpha’s nuts with his tongue.

  Christopher loved the taste of sweet skin and the feel of soft hairs against his tongue. He wanted more. With a whimper, Christopher urged the alpha forward, and X moaned, leaning forward until Christopher had him on his knees on the bed. The beta didn’t know what had taken over him, but he felt powerful. He wanted to taste every part of the alpha. Moving his mouth from X’s balls to the alpha’s taint, Christopher licked and sucked until X was cursing and breathing hard.

  Spurred on by X’s reactions, Christopher bit at sensitive skin.

  “Fuck…Chris. Holy wolf father and his seven pups!” The big man’s legs trembled beneath Christopher’s hands.

  Christopher didn’t stop until his mouth reached X’s hole, licking and sucking at it, tugging at the hairs with his lips, pushing inside the wrinkled entrance.

  “Shit! Remus’ balls, that feels so good! Gods, Chris. Fuck!” X breathed in hard bursts of air, muscles trembling beneath the beta’s hands.

  Christopher couldn’t believe what he’d reduced the alpha to. His confidence surged.

  When the pressure in Christopher’s neck got to be too much, he reluctantly left the sweet, quivering hole and made his way back down until he could get that big, alpha cock into his mouth. The first stab against the back of his throat gagged Christopher, but he opened his mouth wider so the alpha could slide his meaty head as far in as possible.

  “Yeah, gonna fuck that creamy white throat,” Xavier growled, watching from beneath his body. He lowered his ass, spearing Christopher’s throat with his cock until the knot pressed against the beta’s lips.

  Unable to shove any more of the alpha inside his mouth, Christopher stuck out his tongue and licked around the knot, making X shout out in pleasure.

  Emboldened, Christopher pushed his smallest finger against X’s hole and the alpha went off like a rocket, shooting down the beta’s throat.

  Christopher had to let the cock slip out so he could breathe, and lay panting on the bed, a euphoric buzz taking up in his head. Christopher jolted when X sucked down his cock, and in no time Christopher arched off the bed, eyes rolling back in his head as he climaxed.

  “Fuck, what got into you?” X asked when he got the rest of Christopher’s clothes off and they lay in each other’s arms.

  “I just did what I wanted to do.” Christopher’s voice was hoarse.

  “Well, it was great.” X kissed Christopher, probing deeply into the beta’s mouth with his tongue.

  The alpha reached beside the table and grabbed a tube of lubricant. Christopher looked at Xavier in question. Werewolves didn’t really require lube. Although, as a beta, Christopher wouldn’t be as slick as an omega, his body naturally prepared itself for entry.

  “This is your first time, right?” X glanced at the beta as though afraid Christopher might say he’d recently lost his virginity when X wasn’t looking.

  Christopher nodded, hiding a smile.

  Relaxing, X squeezed some gel onto his hand. “Then I’m going to make it as pleasurable as possible.” He waggled the tube in front of the beta before tossing it aside. “Humans are good for something.”

  Christopher tensed, wondering if X would realize what he’d said and remember his dead mate, but the alpha seemed completely focused on what he was doing.

  X gently pushed Christopher’s legs apart and rubbed the gel into Christopher’s crack. “Gods, I love your ass. I want to pound it so bad.”

  The words brought pre-cum to the tip of Christopher’s cock, and his breathing picked up as X’s finger passed over and over his hole. Christopher found himself pushing back against it.

  X chuckled. “Like that, do you?” He inserted his finger.

  Christopher gasped, grabbing the alpha’s shoulder.

  Xavier stilled. “Okay?”

  “Y-yeah. Keep going.” X’s finger was big, and the fact the alpha’s cock was much larger wasn’t lost on Christopher. Why should a finger feel so intrusive?

  X pushed his index finger farther inside the beta’s body, moving it around a good bit before adding another. Every so often the alpha would nudge something that made Christopher gasp, but more often, it felt like X was burning the beta’s insides with a torch.

  “Too much? X asked, meeting Chris’ eyes.

  Determined not to make Xavier stop, Christopher shook his head before letting it fall back on the pillow as the alpha continued stretching him out. The beta knew X was being kind. He doubted many alphas would take so much time with a lover, and part of Christopher wanted to tell X he could get on with it. But another, larger part was terrified of what was to come. His stomach knotted at the thought of the alpha’s big shaft penetrating him.

  Bit by bit, the beta adjusted and slowly began to relax, only to tense up again when the stretch became too much. Sweat dripped down his chest. When he looked at Xavier’s muscles and bubble butt, desire washed away the pain, but Christopher couldn’t keep his mindset there when pain radiated from his rim through his inner muscles. His cock flagged, and he grabbed hold of it, hoping X wouldn’t notice. He needn’t have worried; the alpha seemed mesmerized by the sight of his fingers plunging into Christopher’s virgin hole.

  When X added a third finger, Christopher curled his toes in pain, arching off the bed with a moan. Through a haze, the beta could see the alpha’s big not forming at the base of his phallus.

  “Think you can take me now?” X asked.

  Keeping his eyes shut, Christopher nodded. No way was he going to stop the alpha. X might never want to do it with him again. Besides, it had to get better, right? Werewolves fucked all the time, and Christopher had seen first-hand how much they enjoyed it. He was just a whiny little virgin and needed to suck it up.

  Removing his fingers, X pushed up from where he’d been reclining beside Christopher and hovered, erection curving upward. Anticipation and fear stole the beta’s breath.

  “Please…” Christopher murmured, unsure if he was begging for the alpha to fuck him or to back off. He wanted X inside him, but he was afraid of the pain.

  Xavier urged Christopher to roll over until he lay face-down on the mattress. X’s ran big palms over Christopher’s ass before pushing his legs apart. Christopher swallowed a gasp when the enormous cock-head nudged at his opening and pushed inside. Sharp pleasure laced with pain zipped up the beta’s spine, and he cried out.

  X stopped moving. “Chris? Okay? I’m having trouble holding off.” The alpha’s voice was tight.

  Steeling himself, Christopher raised his ass. “Give it to me.”

  With a groan, X pushed his cock all the way inside the beta, skimming across something deep within that made Chris’ legs shake. Maybe…maybe this wouldn’t be so bad after all.

  But then X began to thrust, and it felt like Christopher was being ripped apart. Surely this wasn’t the act so many claimed to enjoy.

  The beta clutched the bedclothes and bit into his lip. Was it supposed to feel like this? Hurt so damned much? Somewhere behind the hurt was pleasure, but Christopher couldn’t get to it. X certainly sounded like he was enjoying himself. For a moment, Christopher tried to concentrate on the feel of the alpha’s big body flattening him to the mattress, chest hair scratchy against his back, balls hitting his taint as X rode him. Sweat broke out on Christopher’s forehead. Gods, it hurt. When would X be through?

  Christopher’s limp cock tried to climb inside his body as the beta gasped and grunted through the onslaught. Lucky for him, the sounds of pain and pleasure were similar. He felt the alpha’s tongue on his shoulder.

  “Good, baby?” X asked.

  Christopher couldn’t bring himself to admit that it wasn’t. That it was awful, and more than anything, the beta wanted that big serpent of a cock out of him. He moaned in answer, burying his face in the pillow. What was wrong with him? He had no one to ask. Or did all betas feel as though their insides were being ripped out when they were being fucked? Was X doing something wrong? But no, Canaan never would ha
ve continued fucking the alpha if it had felt this way. The beta couldn’t even summon up jealousy at the thought as the agony increased.

  Christopher couldn’t hold back the yell that tore from his throat when the knot penetrated him. Unaware of the beta’s discomfort, X ground into Christopher. Christopher clutched the sheets, breathing shallowly as the bulge slipped past his sore rim. Thank the wolf father X had used the lubrication. Christopher didn’t want to think what this would be like without it.

  X rotated his hips, forcing the peach-sized knot past all resistance. When the alpha was seated all the way inside, fat balls pressing against the beta’s ass, a pleased rumble came from his throat that sent a shiver racing up Christopher’s back. The knot nudged whatever spot inside the beta that felt good, but it wasn’t enough to erase the overall discomfort. They lay there for a few moments, both breathing hard, X running big hands over Christopher’s chest and downward. When he came to Chris’ limp cock, the alpha stilled.

  Christopher panicked. The alpha had been enjoying himself. He couldn’t let X know the experience wasn’t the same for him.

  “I sort of already came,” he said, not having much trouble sounding embarrassed. Pre-cum from earlier arousal plus the fact he’d been pressed against the mattress lent to his lie.

  X growled into Christopher’s ear before nipping the lobe. “That good, huh? I’m glad.” He kissed Christopher’s neck. “I wanted your first time to be special.”

  It was special, all right. Christopher doubted he’d forget it any time soon.

  X pressed kisses to Christopher’s neck and shoulders that rapidly turned into bites as the knot swelled inside the beta. Christopher squeezed his eyes shut. How big could it fucking get?

  “Want me to fuck you with my knot?” X whispered in Christopher’s ear before licking it. He started to move.

  Christopher wriggled, wishing he could jump off the bed and run. Luckily, the knot broke.

  “Holy fuck!” X yelled, body seizing with pleasure.

  For a moment, Christopher’s extreme discomfort was outweighed by his awe at X’s orgasm. He felt the alpha’s seed coat his insides, and, briefly, it was all worth the pain. But then X began fucking Christopher hard and fast, the bed squeaking and hitting the wall with every thrust, and Christopher could only grit his teeth and hang on, praying it would soon end. X changed position, and a sharp prickling took up at the base of Christopher’s dick, traveling like lightning through the beta’s groin and racing to the top of his head. Christopher screamed, bucking wildly against the bed, as an unexpected orgasm tore through him. Tears ran down the beta’s cheeks as he fought to catch his breath. Fuck, that had been weird. For a second there, he’d felt so good. Maybe this was the way sex was supposed to be.