by Marie Harte
But Gideon knew. He’d felt a similar sense of helplessness and anger at learning his friends had been killed. Even knowing Ollie had survived and was somewhere out there didn’t lessen the pain of losing loved ones. And from all accounts, Alex had been close to his sister.
“This is about Katie.”
“No shit.”
“I’ve had enough out of you. So we can do this the hard way, or we can do this the really hard way.”
“What are you—Damn it. Get off!”
Alex could do little more than respond with jabs and growls as Gideon attacked. Despite both men having Circ-fast responses, abilities, and senses, Gideon was a natural fighter. He’d been participating in illegal mixed martial arts bouts for years before becoming Circ. He fought dirty; he fought to win.
Alex fought to survive, but grief weighed him down, slowed him. Gideon knew the man’s beast didn’t like the strife. It wanted to obey its alpha. And it was past time it learned what Gideon’s beast already knew—there was no dissention in the pack.
You either obeyed, or you died.
Chapter Two
ALEX FROZE AS Gideon dragged him closer, those sharp fangs sinking into his neck and staying there.
With one rip, he’d tear Alex’s throat wide open, then gulp down the blood and flesh he’d earned through right of combat.
Yeah, in the months since they’d learned to adapt to being Circ—to hiding their weird eyes with contact lenses, dealing with a communal need for sex and for battle, and living in a group dynamic—Alex had realized he really was as much animal as man.
The beast that lived inside him accepted Gideon as his alpha, his leader. It wanted to know it belonged.
Alex vacillated between wanting to be a part of something bigger and wanting to go away, to never deal with life again. He missed Katie so much sometimes. It was like he had a constant heart ache, one that even Bailey with all her empathic skills couldn’t fix.
For that reason he’d been keeping his distance. At first he’d been surprised Gideon and Bailey had let him. But Gideon understood what it was to lose someone close.
Apparently he’d gotten over his losses, though, because he sure the fuck wasn’t respecting Alex’s need for space right now.
Those huge fangs of his dug deeper, and Alex forced himself to breathe shallowly and make no sudden movements. And to ignore the sudden surge of his libido at being so close to his alpha.
Not alpha. Friend. Fellow Circ.
Alex did his best to clear his beast’s thoughts, but the damn thing wanted to roll over and purr, having Gideon’s attention all to himself.
Gideon’s fangs retracted, and he licked the already healing marks of blood. His green eyes looked catlike, the pupils slit and long, intense. “Ah, there we go.” He latched onto Alex’s neck, this time with a kiss.
Alex hissed, his already hyper-aroused body going from aggressive to submissive from one heartbeat to the next. “I hate this.”
“Liar.” Gideon chuckled and sucked his way to Alex’s ear. “You need this, Alex. As much as the rest of us do. Maybe more.” Gideon snaked a hand down the front of Alex’s body, cupping the massive erection straining Alex’s pants. “You know you need to relieve the mating heats. I’ll get Bailey to lay off if you’ll at least fuck the others.” Gideon’s voice softened, and he nipped Alex’s earlobe. “It’s okay, man. You can feel as much grief as you need to.”
The sexual spark shot all the way from Alex’s ear to his cock, and he couldn’t help his moan, or his thrust into Gideon’s touch.
“But all this challenging bullshit stops here.” Gideon growled, then turned Alex around to face the wall.
He tried to ignore his excitement. But the thought of getting reamed, hard and deep, had him aching.
“Put your hands up against the wall and keep them there.” Gideon panted, his large frame and solid build a definite threat…and a measure of safety. Because when with Gideon, nothing would get to Alex that Gideon didn’t allow. “You hard of hearing? Do it.”
Alex slapped his hands on the wall and kept them there, aware of Gideon’s claws raking his belly, his hips, and his groin as he deftly slid Alex’s trousers and underwear down, exposing bare flesh. Gideon yanked his hips back, positioning Alex for penetration.
Then there was no more waiting.
Alex sucked in a breath as a huge, slick cock thrust inside him with ease. A side effect of the Circ serum was that Circs experienced sexual hunger which could only be appeased by another Circ. Sure, Alex could have sex with anyone he chose, but that intense craving to come would only go away if he fucked a fellow Circ. To ease the Circ need to procreate, males had a natural lubrication.
When erect and aroused, Alex’s cock produced a natural oil. No need to stop to lube up, not when he was already slick and ready to go.
Even as Gideon sawed in and out of him, his own dick was lubed and full, his balls heavy with the need to release.
Gideon must have been angry, because he didn’t give Alex a reach-around or wait for him to catch up. He fucked Alex at a ruthless pace. “You bastard, you obey. You hear me? You’re mine.” He yanked Alex’s hair back, exposing Alex’s throat, and continued to piston, his balls slapping Alex’s ass with each pummeling shove.
“Yes, yes,” Alex hissed, Gideon’s shaft filling him and giving him that connection he’d been lacking. His beast purred, and the constant loneliness receded as he remembered his place.
“You don’t get to come yet, Palmer. Not yet,” Gideon bit off as he swore and emptied into Alex’s ass. But Circs had stamina, and even after coming, Gideon remained hard.
“There we go. That helped, didn’t it?” Gideon eased his hand from Alex’s hair to circle the front of his neck, holding onto the vulnerable part of Alex’s throat. “But you’re not there yet, are you?”
Alex panted, hard but not close to coming. “No.”
“Because you need me to let you. You want to please me, don’t you?”
Alex groaned. He didn’t exactly like this part of it. Sure, he liked being on the bottom with his male lovers, but that didn’t mean he wanted to submit and obey all the time. He felt a need to dominate as well.
“Don’t you?” Gideon repeated with a growl and gripped Alex’s throat harder.
The pain did something to him, elevating Alex’s desire. Gideon must have sensed it, because claws pricked his neck, and Gideon changed his stance, bending lower for a different angle into Alex that sent sparks through Alex’s entire body.
“Oh yeah. You needed this.” Gideon fucked him harder, simultaneously gouging his neck while reaming his ass. “Too bad Eli isn’t here to help.”
At the thought of the brutal Eli hurting him oh so nicely, Alex hardened like a fucking stone. “I’m close.” So fucking close.
“But you won’t come yet.” Gideon grunted with each thrust. “Not until I let you. And you’re wet, aren’t you?”
Finally, the bastard let go of his neck to reach around Alex and grab his cock. Alex nearly came, the feel of Gideon’s big hand gloving him close to orgasmic.
Gideon leaned closer and whispered into his ear, “So what’s it gonna be, Alex? You ready to come back? Ready to come for me? Take your place in the pack?”
Alex could have cried when Gideon eased the pressure off Alex’s dick. “Yes, damn it.” We are—Alex and his beast. The thing inside him purred for real.
Gideon huffed. “About damn time.” Then he nipped Alex’s ear, the prick of pain laved by a warm tongue and firm lips. “Now, Alex. Now.” Gideon shoved so deep and hard that Alex couldn’t stop himself.
He cried out as he came, spattering the wall with a rush of seed while Gideon jetted into his ass on a roar.
Knowing he’d pleased Gideon made the ecstasy last even longer, and Alex felt himself trembling as Gideon eased from his body. He was aware of little as Gideon cleaned him up, redressed him, then turned him around.
Alex would have stumbled except Gideon caught him and hel
ped him leave the small room. “I gotcha, Alex. I always have your back, man.”
Gideon didn’t do sweetness and light. He didn’t give the guys soft words and easy affection. But when he made a promise, he stuck by it.
“Now about calling me a dumbass… We’ll have to get back to that. I’m thinking you’re gonna owe me a bigger apology back at HQ.”
Back in the States? “We’re heading back already?”
“The location Lowell mentioned in Panama was a front. But Carter hacked the security protocols and traced some kind of money trail to a place outside Dallas.” Gideon smirked. “About damn time we got more than a nibble. Dr. Edwin Lang can only run for so long.” He glanced at Alex, his green eyes gleaming with satisfaction. “We’d probably already have nailed the guy if some pain in the ass Circ would stop disobeying orders and distracting the team.”
Alex gave a weak chuckle, surprised to find himself so tired. “Yeah, well, Eli’s like that.”
“Funny. I meant you and you know it.” Gideon shook his head. “Dumbass? Oh yeah. You’re not through owing me for that comment. I figure you can make it up to me on your knees.”
Alex thought the idea had appeal and felt his body try to respond.
“That or gagging on Carter’s cock while Eli fucks you. Gets Bailey all hot to see them doing you. And you know how that gets me.”
Alex sighed, tired yet aroused once more. “We are all kinds of fucked up.” Never in his life had he thought he’d ever participate in orgies.
“Yeah, but it sure feels good, you know?”
“I know,” he said, feigning sorrow.
Gideon laughed. “Now quit complaining, and let’s head back. We need to debrief Joo Kim’s guys and get our asses on the plane before the government decides their agreement with Doc doesn’t extend to Gideon Enterprises.”
“Right.” Alex agreed. Doc, one of their contacts back in the U.S., knew important people in the government. He worked with Circs in the private sector and had a lot of money and contacts that had helped Alex’s team land the job with Joo Kim. Carter would eventually have gotten them closer to Lowell, but Doc had managed it for them instead. Alex would make sure to thank him when they got back.
Then they’d get to work. They had a lot more enemies to deal with before the scoresheets would ever be even. Dr. Edwin Lang, Duane Smith, and the many rogue Circs and mutants who committed such evil needed to be stopped. But the rogues who’d killed Katie belonged to him. Time to stop fucking around and get some answers.
They’d start in Dallas.
******
Four days later, Alex felt like a new man. Almost. Being reminded of his place in the pack by Gideon had helped, as had some group time with the guys and Bailey. Though he still sometimes tried to deny it, Alex knew his life had changed forever since becoming Circ.
He hadn’t asked to be changed. But shit happened, time moved on, and he had to accept he wasn’t human. Birth, death, and taxes. The only sure things in life.
He sighed, accepting that he had to start getting on an even keel again. It felt like he went from feeling good to bad in the span of a heartbeat anymore. He didn’t like being so off-balance. But that need for justice, hell, for vengeance, against his sister’s murderers refused to fade.
He’d had a piece of them two months ago, back when the team had rescued Bailey from being attacked. He could still feel Myers’s blood on his hands, the scent of death so near. For all he knew, Myers had died that night. But Yates and Sheer were still out there, still hurting the innocent and wreaking havoc on everything they could sink their claws into.
Dr. Edwin Lang had plenty to be held accountable for, but especially for taking psychopaths and killers and turning them into super strong freaks with now not only the will but the ability to destroy.
“Yo, Mr. Feel Good, what’s with all the dramatic sighs?” Elijah Ortiz smirked at him. The only member of the team besides Alex who liked to give Gideon a hard time, though Alex didn’t think Eli really meant it. The guy just had a difficult time adjusting to belonging. And not looking at life through prison bars, no doubt.
“You get less charming by the day.”
“Yeah, sure.” Eli shrugged. “Whatever you say. So you ready to start training again?”
Of the four Circs, not including Bailey, Alex was dead last when it came to hand-to-hand fighting. Not his fault, as the guys had all been mixed martial artists who made a living fighting on the underground circuit before becoming Circ. Alex had been a PI. One who worked without a license, but still, not anywhere near a professional brawler.
“Okay, fine. If it’ll get you off my ass, then sure.”
Eli grinned. Alex followed him into their gym, marveling that he now lived in a veritable mansion. Having absconded with nearly thirty million dollars of the Norton fortune, which had funded Dr. Lang’s research, the team had put down roots in the Pacific Northwest, of all places.
They lived in a small town outside Seattle, close enough to the bustling city but far enough away from neighbors that they had plenty of privacy, as well as security in place to deal with potential threats.
Bailey was still gleefully decorating the home. She’d started on the spaces they used the most, like the large media room, big ass kitchen, and their bedrooms. They also had a dining room they’d never eaten in, a sitting room he couldn’t see any use for, and a craft room she swore she’d put to good use…someday. But the real treasure of the mansion, according to Carter, lay below. The basement served as grand central for all of Carter’s many computers, servers, and their security equipment. A portion of the area had been sectioned off as a firing range, though all of them could shoot well enough thanks to their keen Circ senses.
Eli and Gideon’s pride and joy lay in their gymnasium, a large area attached to the indoor pool. Eli had a hard-on for anything involving brute force, and he and the others spent a lot of time working out their Circ aggression, as well as perfecting holds and offensive techniques.
Of them all, Gideon and Eli fought to hold the title of best fighter, followed closely by Carter. Gideon used strategy and had a methodical way of destroying an opponent, whereas Eli moved with a grace and speed that belied his size. He was a joy to watch, but Alex would never tell the guy that. Eli had a big enough ego as it was.
They walked through the mostly empty house, past cream colored walls and over gleaming hardwood floors.
Eli shook his head. “Bailey needs to get cracking on decorating the place if we decide to stay.” He snorted. “If. What the hell is Gideon thinking that this isn’t enough?”
Gideon wasn’t convinced they’d found a “forever home” despite the guys and Bailey being fine with it. God knew it was better than anything else Alex had ever lived in. He’d grown up middle class, like Bailey. And he knew the guys had been mostly street rats, living hand to mouth or worse. What exactly could Gideon want that would be better than this?
“How the hell is Gid not sold on this place?” Eli continued. “Man, we have a fuckin’ pool!”
“I know.” Alex pushed open the door leading to the gym and saw Carter lifting weights in the corner. Free weights, Nautilus machines, any and ever kind of weight training equipment they wanted complemented a large area meant for sparring. They even had shock absorbent floor mats used in professional arenas. Yeah, the guys had spared no expense when it came to working out. The rest of the house, apparently, could wait.
Eli stripped down to just his shorts, not bothering with shoes or a shirt. Like the rest of them, he was ripped. He had a swarthy complexion, and yeah, he was hot. Sexy. Short dark hair framed a face that screamed danger and sex in the same breath. His eyes often looked more black than brown, and the colorful tattoos across his chest bridged the dual sleeves on his arms. Old gang symbols mixed with skulls, snakes, and reapers. Eli wasn’t big on butterflies and unicorns. He was as dangerous as the venomous snakes inked into his skin, especially after what Lang had done to him.
“You done ey
e-fucking me?”
Alex flipped him off, and Eli laughed. Though Eli tried to play it off, Alex knew his friend was still unsure about having sex with men. Alex had grown up knowing he was bisexual, so needing the guys didn’t bother him at all. Carter was gay; he’d had to adjust to being with Bailey, but he’d managed. Gideon didn’t seem to care either way, though Alex had the sense their leader would likely label himself as straight.
Then again, as Doc and his team in New Jersey had said, being Circ wasn’t about being gay or straight. It was about being Circ. The need for his own kind pulled at Alex, as much as he sometimes wished it didn’t.
Eli felt the same, Alex could tell. But the big bad jackass would never let down his guard to show his vulnerability. Or at least, he didn’t feel comfortable enough with the pack to let it down yet. Though Alex knew a bit about everyone, he didn’t know their histories, just as they only had the barest inkling of what life had been like with Katie and his parents.
Alex removed his shirt and shoes but kept his workout pants on. His blood thrummed at the opportunity to fight, and he let himself engage, knowing Gideon had been right. Alex needed this as much as he needed that more intimate bonding with the group. Being sexual with the others since being back had helped, but this exercise would let him relieve the bloodlust as well.
He didn’t notice Eli step closer until venom-tipped claws shot at his chest. He automatically hardened his skin and dodged easily enough. “Gee. Thanks for letting me know we’ve started.”
“Please. As if the enemy is just gonna ask if you’re ready.” Eli showed a hint of fang. “You need work, Alex. You’re getting slow in your old age.”
“Idiot. I’m only four years older than you.” Thirty-three to Eli’s twenty-nine.
“Be easy on him, Alex. You know the baby of the group has issues,” Carter called out, the old man of the group at thirty-four.
Eli scowled at the blond giant. “Up yours, Carter.”
“So clever, little guy.” Carter snickered. “Kick his ass, Alex.”