Hamilton grimaced. “Right. There’s no moving that to New York, obviously. I guess I’ll have to see where I can open a new shop. It might take a while, and I’ll have to go back to New York a few times, but it’s doable.”
Dallas still couldn’t believe what he was hearing. He felt like he was the one having a hard time accepting the situation, and he didn’t like it. It made him feel less in control.
Hamilton obviously knew it because he said, “Look, we don’t have to make a decision now, but I don’t think a long-distance relationship would work. We don’t know each other well enough.”
“Isn’t that kind of the point of a long-distance relationship? To get to know each other even though we’re not together?”
“Why are you trying to get out of this?”
“Don’t answer my question with another question.”
“Give me answers, then. You’re the shifter. I thought you’d be at least mildly happy to find me.”
Dallas sighed. He was doing this wrong. He was happy to have found Hamilton, but it complicated his life in a way he hadn’t anticipated. Now wasn’t the right moment to do this, to get involved, but it wasn’t like he could tell Hamilton to come back later. It was already a miracle Hamilton wasn’t freaking out or looking for a way out.
“I am happy to have found you,” he finally said.
“Could have fooled me.”
“This isn’t making things easy, though. I just started a new job, and I can’t afford to leave it. The pack can’t afford to lose me.”
Hamilton nodded. “And I get that. That’s why I don’t mind moving here. Like I said, I don’t really have anything back in New York. I can’t say it’ll be easy, but I’m ready to do it, as long as I know you’re not going to dump my ass as soon as I get here.”
Dallas’ wolf growled in his mind just at the thought. “I won’t. I can’t. My wolf won’t let me, even if I wanted to, and I don’t. I’m just surprised and a little shocked by what’s happening. I certainly wasn’t expecting to meet my mate when I got up this morning.”
“Yeah, well, I wasn’t expecting it either when I boarded the plane. Doesn’t mean we can’t make the best with what we have, right?”
“Yes.”
“So, you’re a wolf shifter? A werewolf?”
Dallas smiled, and Hamilton smiled back. “No. Werewolves and shifters are two different paranormal creatures. And I’m not a wolf shifter, not really. I’m a maned wolf shifter.”
Hamilton slowly nodded. “I have no idea what that is.”
“Not a lot of people do. I guess it would be easier for you to see it than to explain it.”
Hamilton straightened, his eyes wide. “You’re going to show me?”
That wasn’t exactly what Dallas had meant, but Hamilton looked excited, and he had no problems shifting in front of anyone. Getting naked might be a bit awkward in this case, but he could go to the bathroom. “If you want me to.”
“Please.”
Dallas got up and rubbed his hands down his chest to straighten his sweater. “I’ll be right back.”
He stepped toward the bathroom, but Hamilton grabbed his wrist, stopping him. “Where are you going?”
“To the bathroom.”
“You need to pee?”
“Uh, no. I’m going to shift.”
“Oh. Is there a reason why you don’t want to do it in front of me? Like, is it really painful and disgusting to watch? It can’t be an easy thing to do. Your bones and whatever have to change shape.”
Dallas shook his head. “No, it’s not for that reason. I do have to get undressed, though.”
Hamilton let his hand fall on his knee. “And you don’t want to get naked in front of me.”
“We just met,” Dallas said softly, even though that wasn’t really the reason. He wasn’t sure he wanted Hamilton to see him naked because he didn’t know what Hamilton thought of him. He didn’t think he could stand it if Hamilton looked disappointed, or worse if he started laughing.
“Doesn’t mean I don’t want to ogle you.”
Dallas arched a brow. “So you would get naked just because I want you to?”
Hamilton grinned and reached for his T-shirt before Dallas could stop him. He whipped it over his head and let it fall next to him on the bed, and Dallas couldn’t look away.
Hamilton’s chest was covered with tattoos, except for one spot over his heart. Every color seemed to be present, and Dallas wanted to lean closer, to see the designs better, but Hamilton was already leaning back and reaching for his belt, so Dallas leaned forward and put his hand on top of Hamilton’s. “Don’t.”
“No? I thought you wanted to see me naked.”
Dallas cleared his throat. “I wouldn’t say no to that, but I don’t think now is the right moment. I’ll shift in front of you, but you need to keep your clothes on.” Better know now than later if Hamilton had problems with Dallas’ body, or at least that was what Dallas tried to convince himself of.
Hamilton didn’t put his T-shirt back on. Instead, he leaned back and stared at Dallas, clearly waiting for him to get naked. Dallas sighed. He’d agreed, so he had to do it even though it was the last thing he wanted to do at the moment.
* * * *
Hamilton wasn’t sure what the problem was. Dallas didn’t seem eager to get naked, and he could understand that, but not the fear on Dallas’ face.
Not everyone was as comfortable with their body as Hamilton was, but surely Dallas had to know he was sexy as fuck and that Hamilton wanted to jump his bones? Maybe that was the problem. Maybe he thought Hamilton wouldn’t be able to stop himself or something, and okay, he had to admit he was having a hard time. Dallas had taken his sweater off and was now working on his shirt buttons. It was a slow thing, and it was torture.
Hamilton wanted to reach up and yank the shirt off Dallas’ body, but instead he shifted on the bed and stuck his hands under his thighs. He watched Dallas’ long fingers move, sliding the buttons out of their holes, his fingertips skimming the skin of his chest with every move. Hamilton wanted to be the one to do the touching, but since Dallas looked kind of spooked, he kept his hands to himself.
Dallas finally reached the last of the buttons and slowly pushed his shirt open. He looked hesitant, and Hamilton didn’t even try to hide the lust the sight in front of him sparked in him.
Dallas was beautiful. He wasn’t muscled, but he was lean. The little hair he had on his chest was a light brown, like his hair, with a hint of red when Dallas moved in the light. His copper-colored nipples were visible, and Hamilton couldn’t look away as they hardened. He didn’t know if it was because Dallas was cold or because of something else, but he hoped his presence had a hand in it.
When Dallas reached for his belt after toeing his shoes off and taking his socks off, Hamilton grabbed the sweater he’d taken off earlier and dumped it in his lap. Dallas paused and looked at him curiously, but Hamilton just grinned and gestured at him to continue.
He was excited, both to see Dallas naked and to see him shift. He had no idea what a maned wolf was, had never even heard about it, and he was curious.
Dallas opened his belt, then his pants button, and Hamilton held his breath, but Dallas stopped moving.
“I’ll understand everything when I’m in my wolf form,” he said, startling Hamilton out of his staring.
“What?”
Dallas rolled his eyes, but a small smile played on his lips, telling Hamilton he wasn’t really annoyed by the fact that Hamilton had obviously not been listening to him. “I said that I understand everything when I’m in my wolf form. You don’t have to be afraid I’ll try to bite you or anything. It’s just me in a different body.”
“Yeah, okay.”
Dallas arched a brow. “You’re still not freaking out.”
He seemed to be a bit more at ease, even though he was half-naked, and Hamilton wanted him to be even more relaxed. Maybe conversation was
the way to go. “I’m not.”
“Why? I know of people who fainted when they found out about shifters. Some freaked out and left, refused to talk to their mate and kept their distance.”
Hamilton shrugged. “I’m not sure what to tell you. I don’t freak out easily, and I thought Nysys was a shifter, so I got used to the idea. I wasn’t going to push him away, not with him being my best friend’s boyfriend, or mate, I guess. Besides, shifting into an animal is fucking cool. I wish I could do it.”
Dallas’ eyebrows rose high on his forehead. “You want to be a shifter.”
“Kinda. It sounds cool. I wonder what animal I could be. Maybe some kind of big cat? Or maybe a wolf, like you. We could run together. You run, right? Like the wolves in the documentaries.”
“I do. All shifters like to be out in the open.”
“That’s not something I can do with you, so yeah, I wish I could.”
Dallas smiled and shook his head. “You don’t have to run with me for us to be close, and you still can, you know? You’ll just be human while I won’t.”
Hamilton waved at Dallas’ body. “Yeah, okay. Now can you please shift for me?”
“So eager.”
“You can bet your sweet ass I am.”
Dallas blushed and looked down, finally shoving his pants down his legs. Hamilton bit on his lower lip because he wasn’t sure what might come out of his mouth if he opened it. Dallas had been hot even half-naked, but damn, those legs. Hamilton wanted them wrapped around his waist, like, right now.
They were long, so long, and he wanted to lick every inch of them. The hair there was the same color as on Dallas’ chest, and Hamilton suddenly didn’t care much about Dallas’ wolf. He wanted to spread Dallas on the bed he was sitting on more than watch him shift.
Dallas never looked up as he stepped out of his pants and finally hooked his fingers under the elastic of his boxer briefs. He quickly pushed them down as if he were taking a Band-Aid off, and before Hamilton could say anything, Dallas was gone.
Hamilton’s eyes widened and the lust he’d been feeling raked up a notch. He hadn’t realized he’d be turned on by Dallas shifting, but he was. Not that he wanted Dallas to fuck him right now because that would be too much bestiality for his taste. But just the thought of Dallas becoming human again and pouncing was enough to make Hamilton’s cock twitch.
Instead of doing what he wanted—like opening his jeans and taking his cock out—he swallowed and took a good look at Dallas.
It wasn’t what he’d thought of when Dallas had said he was a wolf. Everyone knew what a wolf looked like, and that was what Hamilton had imagined, but that wasn’t what was in front of him.
No, Dallas didn’t look like a wolf, not quite. He looked more like a fox, but his legs were very long, a bit like a deer, and his face was more wolfish. His coat was red, with black markings on his neck and down his legs, but the tip of his tail was white.
And he was looking at Hamilton. It didn’t take a genius to realize he was waiting for Hamilton to run, but it was the last thing Hamilton wanted.
He moved forward, sliding his legs off the foot of the bed and reaching for Dallas. He paused with his hand inches away from Dallas’ head, silently asking for permission. Dallas couldn’t give him a verbal one, obviously, but he leaned forward and bumped his head against Hamilton’s hand. Hamilton took it as a go-ahead.
He pressed his palm on top of Dallas’ head. The fur was softer than what Hamilton had expected, and he rubbed his fingertips on it, enjoying the feeling. He’d never been a fur kind of guy, mostly because he thought it was ugly and he wouldn’t wear something animals were killed for even if he were paid to do it, but this was different. Dallas was alive, breathing, and obviously enjoying the rubbing. His eyes were half-closed, and his tongue lolled out of the side of his mouth. He looked a bit like a dog, and it made Hamilton want to rub his stomach.
He refrained, keeping his hands on Dallas’ head. “You’re cute,” he said, wondering if it would offend Dallas.
Dallas opened one eye, but that was all the reaction Hamilton got out of him. Talking to Dallas in this form was weird, maybe even weirder than talking to a normal animal. Dallas understood what Hamilton was saying, but he couldn’t talk back, and it wasn’t easy to understand what he was thinking.
“So, you’re cute, and I’m not afraid of you.”
Dallas rolled his eyes and moved his lips, exposing the sharp teeth in his mouth.
“Okay, so that’s impressive, but you said you weren’t going to bite me, so I’m going to take your word for it. Can I touch your legs? They’re so fucking long.”
Dallas huffed and lowered his head, letting Hamilton’s hand slide off. Hamilton thought it might be a yes, and Dallas could always move if he didn’t enjoy what Hamilton was doing. Hamilton reached down and skimmed a finger along the length of Dallas’ leg. “They’re really long. Is that why your legs are so long in your human form too?”
Dallas did a weird shrug no wolf should be able to do, and Hamilton chuckled. “Right. It would be easier if you could actually answer me, I guess.” He straightened and rubbed Dallas’ head again.
Then Nysys suddenly appeared next to the bed and Hamilton yelped, moving away and falling off the side of the bed.
He heard a growl and saw Dallas move. He was surprised when Dallas positioned himself in front of him as if trying to protect him from Nysys, and when he sat up, he saw that Nysys was keeping his distance. His hands were raised as he tried to make himself look harmless, but he didn’t really need that. The monkey footie pajamas were enough to make him look like a kid.
“So, Morin’s downstairs,” Nysys said. “I told him I was going to come get you. I wasn’t expecting this, though.”
Hamilton rolled his eyes and got up. “What were you expecting?”
“Eh. Naked skin, maybe some fucking.”
Hamilton knew Dallas would have blushed if he’d been in his human form, but instead, he growled. It would probably be a good idea to separate those two, so Hamilton said, “We’ll be right down. You go ahead.”
Nysys didn’t wait for Hamilton to say it again and popped out.
“That’s going to take a while to get used to,” Hamilton said, staring at the spot where Nysys had been.
Chapter Three
Dallas didn’t lose time shifting and dressing again. He kept his eyes low, not wanting to see what Hamilton thought of him just yet. He seemed to have liked Dallas’ wolf form, but that didn’t mean he’d liked his human form. Dallas thought he’d seen something just before Hamilton had put his sweater on his lap, but he didn’t want to hope in vain. It was easier this way.
“Sorry for growling at Nysys,” he said as he buttoned his shirt up.
Hamilton shrugged. “It was his fault. There’s a reason why we’re in a closed room. He should learn to knock.”
Dallas nodded. He wanted to ask Hamilton what he was thinking, but he needed to be completely dressed. He was so focused on buttoning his shirt up again that he missed Hamilton coming closer. He realized how close Hamilton was only when Hamilton grabbed his wrists, stopping him.
He looked up, blinking, and Hamilton let go of him to finish buttoning his shirt. The gesture was more intimate than Dallas would have thought, with Hamilton’s fingers brushing over his skin every so often. It made Dallas want, and at this point, he still wasn’t sure it was a good idea.
“What are you going to tell Morin about us?” he asked to distract himself from Hamilton’s touch.
“The truth.”
That didn’t really answer Dallas’ questions because everyone had a different idea of truth. “And that means?”
“That I’m angry with him for not telling me about shifters, for not trusting me. That I’ll move to Wyoming to be with you. That you and me are an item.”
“We are?” Dallas hated the slight tremor in his voice. He knew Hamilton had noticed it from the way he slowed down, h
is fingers resting on Dallas’ skin, just under his throat. He swallowed, and Hamilton felt it.
He smiled and leaned down. Dallas expected Hamilton to kiss him, and he did, just not on the lips. He pressed his lips where his fingers were instead, and Dallas shivered at the touch. It had been so long, and Hamilton was his mate. How was he supposed to resist his touch? How was he supposed to go back downstairs and behave as if his life hadn’t just been flipped upside-down?
“We are,” Hamilton whispered against Dallas’ throat. “If you want to, of course.”
“Yes.”
Hamilton chuckled and kissed Dallas again. “So eager.” He straightened. “When are you going back home?”
“After lunch.”
“All right. I have enough clothes for a week or so, and I’m sure I can convince you to let me use your washing machine.”
“I... what?”
“I’m coming with you. We’ll spend the week together, see where it takes us.”
“It’ll take us to Christmas.”
“Yeah, just before Christmas. Then I’ll have to fly to my parents’ for a bit.”
Dallas was disappointed he wouldn’t spend Christmas with Hamilton, but they’d just met. He couldn’t expect any man, not even his mate, to forget all his plans just for him.
“Then I guess I can come back here, spend New Year’s Eve with you, maybe with Morin and Nysys too. And in January, I’ll move and look for a new shop.”
Dallas leaned closer, enjoying Hamilton’s warmth even though they weren’t touching. “You planned everything, huh?”
Hamilton shrugged. “I know it doesn’t seem like it, but I’m a planner. I like to have at least an idea of where I’m going, even it’s it not timed or anything.”
“You seemed more like an impulsive to me.”
“Eh. Depends for what. But really, as long as I know more or less what I’ll be doing, I’m happy.”
He finally stepped away, and Dallas wasn’t sure whether he was relieved or dismayed. Still, they needed to go downstairs before Nysys decided to come fetch them again, so he moved toward the door. His eyes went wide when Hamilton took his hand, but he didn’t protest. He didn’t want to.
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