The wheels had been set in motion that very first night.
The Beast gripped Tobias a little closer to him, desire shooting through his body at the feel of Tobias’ skin against his. It was the oddest feeling, to know that the male beside him was now his. A sort of contentment combined with excitement. And fact of the matter was, it made no difference now whether Tobias continued to resist. Tomorrow night the wheels would come to a halt, and everything would be complete.
The Beast, however, had to ensure that Tobias wanted it when it happened. Otherwise he would end up like Layla.
Layla…she had been the only real mistake of the Beast’s entire reign as alpha. She was one of only eleven outsiders who had been brought below ground during his time in charge. The rest had been readied for their change, had been eager for it when it occurred. Layla, however, had not. She hadn’t wanted to come below ground, she hadn’t wanted to change, and because of that her turning had not been entirely successful. Physically she was almost one of them, though the red hair remained, incongruous alongside the thousands of tawny heads, but emotionally? The Beast sighed. She was not in the right place at all, insisted on coming back above ground as much as possible, though that desire should have been muted the moment of her turning.
Would Tobias be the same?
The Beast hoped not, and that was one of the chief reasons he had let Tobias go. He wanted Tobias to want to return, to be eager for what was to come…only he wasn’t, and the Beast was going to have to work hard over the next twenty-four hours to make that the case. Perhaps he had left it too long? Perhaps it had been a mistake to wait? He didn’t know the answers to those questions, and that bothered him. A lot.
Tobias mumbled something, stirring in the Beast’s arms. He was so fucking beautiful. His hair, his eyes, everything about him was. He lifted his free hand and ran it along Tobias’ collarbone. The skin was so soft, so pale. And then down to his belly, pushing the covers back as he did so. Tobias was muscled all along this area, though the Beast knew that was not always the case. Tiny, silver lines snaked around his hips and pelvis. Marks from when his body had been different. The Beast, after they had showered following their lovemaking, had taken a few moments to look around Tobias’ home, and he had seen a picture that made him pause. It had been Tobias, sat on the beach, dressed in a tee and a long pair of shorts. He had been different then, chubbier, softer. The Beast had considered that, wondering if he would still have felt the same desperate desire for his mate if he had still looked that way, and he had known instantly that he would have. It didn’t make any difference to him if Tobias was softer, more rounded, he would happily have stroked along his softer skin, his rounded belly, it would have been different, but it would not be less. The desire was for Tobias. Not just for the muscles and the leanness. Tobias was his regardless of what he looked like. The Beast would desire him because he was his mate, not because of how he looked.
Beauty is in the eye of the beholder…never had that been truer.
He stroked lower, rubbing over Tobias’ pelvis and to his curls. Gently, the Beast tangled his fingers in them, tugging slightly. Tobias stirred beneath him, mumbling something the Beast couldn’t decipher. He tugged again before making his way down to Tobias’ cock. He was semi-hard, and the Beast smiled. He loved Tobias’ cock. Loved feeling it in his mouth, licking around its length. Tobias was not huge in terms of thickness, but he was perfect in terms of length. The Beast could not get enough of it.
Carefully, he pulled his arm out from underneath Tobias then moved down the bed. He wanted Tobias back inside of him. Wanted to feel his mate come down his throat, and then lick up every single drop of his seed. If he was honest with himself, the Beast knew that part of him was hoping to bind Tobias to him through the pleasure they shared. If Tobias was sated enough, mindless enough with the need he felt then he would be more willing to do as the Beast wanted.
Was that fair?
The Beast wasn’t sure, but he didn’t care. In the end this was all for Tobias, because he would be happier this way. The Beast knew that in the end, nothing would make Tobias as happy as he could, even if that meant he would be spending the rest of his life below ground, living with creatures that were little more than fairytales to the rest of the world.
He moved down to the bottom of the bed before sinking to his knees on the floor, his head now in between Tobias’ legs. Gently, the Beast tugged him down, wrapping each of Tobias’ legs over his shoulders.
Tobias’ cock was right there, ready for him, in no time at all. He smelled of the blue shower gel they had soaped each other in, a light fresh musk. The Beast wanted to lick it all off until he could taste Tobias. His mate tasted beautiful.
He reached out with one hand and wrapped his fingers around the base of Tobias’ cock. Then, and gently, he leaned in and took Tobias’ cock head in between his lips. His mate stirred slightly, moaned softly.
The Beast smiled in satisfaction.
He nibbled Tobias’ cock head, allowing his lips to explore each bit of that reddened tip. Then, bit by bit, he took every inch of Tobias’ length into his mouth. He hit the back of the Beast’s throat in no time at all, and the Beast opened it up, letting Tobias go as far as he desired.
Once Tobias was deeply seated, he began to suckle him, applying just enough pressure for Tobias to feel like was being stroked by a thousand different fingers. His lips moved back and forth, his tongue swirled along the base, and a moment later he applied his thumb against Tobias’ pucker.
“What…?”
The Beast looked up, caught Tobias’ startled gaze, and smiled. “Shhh,” he said. “Shhh.”
“Oh, God…”
He pressed against Tobias’ pucker and felt it clench around him. He wanted to be filled, but the Beast was not going to do that. This time, for once, he wanted Tobias to come by his mouth alone, wanted to feel him tremble and shudder around his lips. He wanted it so bad…
He lowered his gaze, set the rhythm again, and wanted to roar with satisfaction when Tobias placed his hands at the back of the Beast’s head, guiding him, coaxing him. The Beast allowed Tobias to pump himself in and out of the Beast’s mouth, moaning with pleasure each time he hit the back of the Beast’s throat.
As he did so, the Beast applied just the right amount of suction, just the right amount of pressure. He swirled his tongue around, trying to give Tobias as much pleasure as he could.
When Tobias came, he did so on a hoarse cry. His cock pulsed between the Beast’s lips, and wave after wave of cum shot into the back of his throat. It tasted of salt, and musk, and Tobias and the Beast loved it. He swallowed everything that Tobias had to give and then licked up every drop that had escaped, including the splashes that had hit his balls and his pucker.
Tobias shuddered beneath him, shifted on the bed, begged him to stop. “Please,” he whispered. “Please.”
The Beast slowed his motions, applied slow licks along Tobias’ length. “You like that?” he asked.
Tobias gave a deep sigh. “You know I do.” A pause and then, “I love it.”
The Beast smiled, his body thrumming with pleasure and excitement. He lifted himself up, releasing his grip on the base of Tobias’ cock, and locked eyes with his mate. “I will always pleasure you,” he whispered. “Always.”
He moved up the bed so that in no time at all Tobias was back in his arms. He was sated now, little shivers moving through his frame, and despite the fact the Beast was hard, that he wanted nothing more than to bury himself in Tobias’ ass, he made no move to do so. This was for his mate, and he was willing to deny his own pleasure.
“That was…” Tobias paused.
“Satisfying?” the Beast asked.
“You know it was,” Tobias mumbled.
“That is all that I want,” the Beast whispered. “To pleasure you, to make you happy, to make you tremble.”
Tobias curled against him, burying his face in the Beast’s chest. His breathing was even, regular, satisfied
, and for a moment the Beast thought that Tobias had drifted back into a deep sleep, so when he spoke the Beast couldn’t help but tense. “That’s not all you want though, is it?” he whispered.
The Beast sighed. “In the end,” he said. “No matter what else. It will all come back to that.”
Chapter Seven
The next afternoon Tobias stood in the doorway of his kitchen and watched as the Beast poured himself a glass of orange juice. He was naked but for his jeans, and despite his rioting thoughts, Tobias couldn’t help but admire the other male’s physique. Where he was all corded and lean, the Beast was all about the muscle. It was so easy to remember how it had felt being wrapped in those muscular arms, feeling the weight of him pressing down, trapping him in place, forcing the pleasure from him.
He frowned, because that wasn’t fair. Last night, and this morning, the Beast had not forced anything. In fact, he had given far more than Tobias had expected. During the first time, when he had fucked him hard and fast, and then the second, in the shower, when he had bent him over and fucked him leisurely, coaxing a startling orgasm from him, and then in the last… Tobias swallowed unsteadily, he hadn’t had his cock sucked a whole lot in his life, but he suspected that no one would be as good at it as the Beast. He seemed to know exactly what rhythm to set, exactly how to move his tongue, to apply the right amount of suction…
Tobias loved it. He had a dawning feeling that he always would.
The Beast placed his glass down on the table and shot Tobias a smile. His happiness was obvious. Tobias could not only see it, he could feel it. It came off the other man in waves.
“Can I get you one?” he asked gesturing to the orange juice.
Tobias shook his head and moved into the room. He’d dragged his jeans and a tee on, but felt stupid for doing so now. The Beast seemed quite happy to wear only his jeans, hanging low on his hips. Tobias itched to reach out and run a hand along the Beast’s chest, feeling the sprinkling of hair below his fingertips. Hell, he itched to do a whole lot more than that, which was ridiculous! They had spent hours fucking one another last night, and Tobias had never come so much in such a short period of time. He should be satisfied. Should be almost sleepy with satisfaction. Only he wasn’t, he wanted more. It was almost like from the moment the Beast had arrived at his door that the weeks spent apart had ceased to mean anything. That they were forgotten, and it had only been a handful of minutes since they were below ground, pleasuring one another.
What the hell was happening to him?
Tobias lifted a hand and ran it across his face, rubbing at his temples as he did so. He was so confused! Nothing was making much sense, and he suspected that whilst the Beast was here, right in front of him, that nothing would. Only, nothing had whilst he was on his own either, so what did it all mean in the end?
“How are you feeling?” the Beast asked.
Tobias dropped his hand, took a seat at one of the bar stools surrounding the counter, and answered with the first word that came to mind. “Different.”
“Because of last night?”
Tobias nodded slowly. “Among other things.”
The Beast took the seat opposite Tobias. As he did so he reached out to take Tobias’ hand in his. Tobias couldn’t help but curl his fingers around the Beast’s, just like he had last night after being suckled to sleep.
“Last night was…” The Beast paused. “Even more intense than the first time. We have a connection, Tobias. You realize that, don’t you?”
“I know that we’re attracted to each other,” Tobias said, because he could hardly deny it. “That much is obvious.”
“It’s more than that,” the Beast said. “So much more.”
“It’s…” Tobias shook his head. “I don’t know what it is.”
“Then why don’t I tell you?” the Beast asked.
His words held something that made Tobias look up, straight into those yellow eyes. The moment he did he knew, he just knew, that the Beast was going to tell him the truth now, that he was going to answer all the questions that had plagued Tobias for so long, and suddenly he was absolutely terrified.
It was the warring desires all over again. The desire to know versus the desire to pretend that everything was still the same as it had been before he had been dragged below ground. And with that realization came the reminder that this man, the man that Tobias had shared so much pleasure with, had taken and held him against his will.
Why was he okay with that?
Why had he fucked him again?
Surely he should be reacting in an entirely different way?
Tobias shot up, pulled his hand from the Beast’s and crossed his arms. He thought of all his true crime shows, the ones he loved to watch on a lonely Saturday night, and what the psychologists on those shows would say was wrong with him. They would say he was sympathizing with his captor, that he had Stockholm syndrome or something, that he should have gone straight to the police.
Except, it had never occurred to Tobias to do that. Once above ground his chief concern was to try to understand why he wanted the Beast so badly. Why he longed for him with a fever that made no sense.
He had no answer.
And that worried Tobias a lot.
What possible future could there be between the two of them? Even ignoring the fact that the Beast lived below ground, that there was something…odd…about him and his people, that Tobias was not the first to be abducted. Even ignoring all of that, what then? What was this between them? Was Tobias to be nothing more than a quick fuck whenever the Beast desired it? Would that be enough? No. He knew it wouldn’t. And yet, the other option, going back with him, that was an impossible one. He couldn’t quantify why, but Tobias’ entire being rallied against that idea. To be hemmed in by granite walls, to not be able to walk down to the bay, to see the waves, to feel the spray on his skin?
Impossible.
He wrapped his arms around himself, almost trying to hug away the frantic thoughts racing through him. The Beast frowned, and Tobias knew even without asking that the Beast did not like him pulling away. The fact that he had come after him was proof enough of that.
“Tobias,” the Beast sighed.
“I don’t know what you want from me,” Tobias whispered.
“For now?” the Beast asked. “It isn’t about what I want, but about what must happen.”
“I—”
“You might not want to know,” the Beast added. “But you need to.”
And with those words Tobias couldn’t help but ask the easier of the questions, not about them, not about what this was, but about the other thing, the change, the differences… “What have you done to me?” he asked.
“Done…”
“Yes, done,” Tobias said. “I know something is different. It has been since the very first night I came back home. I can feel it.” He looked up, that nameless dread settling in his gut again. “What’s happening to me?”
“What do you think is happening?” the Beast asked slowly.
And Tobias gave voice to the thought that was both impossible and inevitable. “I’m…changing.”
The Beast nodded. “Yes.”
“How?” Tobias demanded.
His yellow eyes were hooded now, guarded, and when he spoke the tone to the Beast’s voice was different than any Tobias had heard before. “You remember when I bit you?” he asked and Tobias nodded, his neck almost beginning to tingle again. “I claimed you then,” the Beast said. “It is the way of our people when we find our mate. And for humans the bite is the catalyst. The start. You’re changing because of it at the physical level. Your body is undergoing almost a metamorphosis.”
Tobias shuddered, because wasn’t this, somewhere deep down, what he had feared, and yet… “A metamorphosis?” he whispered.
“Yes.”
“Into what?”
“Into one of us.”
“But what does that even mean?” Tobias demanded, and he was thinking of Layla now, of the
things that she had said. “How is this even possible? It makes no sense. People can’t be changed because someone bites them!”
“Tobias,” the Beast said. “You have been below ground, you have seen our home, seen our people. Why do you think we all have tawny hair and yellow eyes? Why do we look alike? Why are we separate from the humans?”
“The humans,” Tobias whispered.
The Beast nodded and leaned forward. He grabbed Tobias’ arm and tugged it free before wrapping it in his hands. “You know that we’re different, don’t you?” he asked.
“I know you’re all crazy,” Tobias bit back.
The Beast laughed then and squeezed Tobias’ hand. “To some extent, yes. But more than that, and you feel it, Tobias, whether you want to admit it or not, we are different. We’re not the same as those above ground.”
“Then what are you?” Tobias demanded, because he couldn’t not ask now, fear or not. “And what have you done to me?”
“You will see what we are soon enough,” the Beast said. “Because you are becoming one of us, and that means that you will become part of our family. Part of our community.”
“Below ground?”
“Yes.”
“But…” Tobias swallowed down the sudden lump in his throat and shook his head. “What if I don’t want to do that?”
“Don’t want?”
The dread again, the panic, and Tobias spoke before even thinking about his words. “Whatever you’ve done to me I had no choice in. I didn’t ask you to change me. You can’t simply assume this is something I am okay with.”
“You have no choice but to be okay with it now,” the Beast said. “It is inevitable.”
“Is this what you did to Layla?” he demanded and again, he pulled his hand free, and stepped away from the counter. “You changed her without her permission? What did you do to her? What did you do to me? How is any of this even possible?”
The Beast sighed and stood. His face was blank now, the pleasure and happiness Tobias had seen, gone.
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