“Yes.”
“One of them saw you during the battle and realized you were his mate.”
Lucas held his breath, waiting for Jericho’s reaction. “Mate?” he asked in a croak.
“Mate.”
“But I—”
“You hate everything supernatural. I get it, but I think you need to be told the truth before you make a final decision. I know you want to say no and to be left alone, but I’m not going to allow that, not when the happiness of one of my pride members is concerned. You’re going to stay here, and you’re going to listen to what we have to say. Once you have, you can decide whether you want to help us and give your mate a chance or if you’d rather go to jail.”
Lucas expected Jericho to say he wanted to go to jail right away, but he didn’t. He slowly nodded, looking a bit dazed, and said, “All right.”
Dominic looked as surprised as Lucas felt, even if only for a few seconds, but he didn’t comment. Instead he looked at Jared. “How is he?”
“I haven’t had the opportunity to examine him today.”
“What happened to me?” Jericho asked, and Jared looked at him.
“We found you in the forest. You had several bite and claw wounds, and you’d hit your head so hard we weren’t sure you’d ever wake up.”
Jericho raised a trembling hand to his head. His dark hair wasn’t too clean, but then he hadn’t been able to shower in more than two weeks. “How?”
“Noem,” Jared answered, gesturing toward Noem, who was hovering by the door. “He’s a Nix, and Nix have healing powers. He’s also a nurse, and he helped care for you.”
“My... ”
“Yes, your mate helped as well. He came by to see you every day.”
Lucas was surprised he hadn’t noticed that with all the time he and Benjamin had spent in the infirmary for visits, but then he’d been worrying about Benjamin, not looking around to see who was there.
“The wounds on your body are healed, although you’ll always have the scars. Noem can help with them if you allow him to, but he won’t be able to make them completely disappear. Your brain is fine, although you might get headaches and be sensitive to light for a while. I can give you painkillers if you need them. You’ll need to stay in the infirmary for a few more days because I want to keep an eye on you, but after that... ”
Jared looked at Dominic in question, and Dominic answered. “After that, it’ll be up to you. You can stay here if you help us with the hunters, or we can move you to the council jail.”
Lucas thought he knew what Jericho would choose, and he didn’t think most pride members would be happy about it.
Chapter Seven
Benjamin knew Lucas couldn’t wait to go back to the ranch, and there was nothing stopping them, not anymore.
Almost one month after the attack, three weeks after he’d woken up in the infirmary, and Noem and Jared had declared him completely healed and ready to take on the world. He and Lucas could leave, could have left a week before, actually, but Benjamin’s family was still living with the pride, and Lucas had suggested he and Benjamin stay until they left. Benjamin knew what that had meant to Lucas, and he’d been grateful for the opportunity.
They were all supposed to leave today, Benjamin and Lucas for the ranch and Benjamin’s family for the nearest fox skulk. It would give Benjamin time to get used to the ranch before he and Lucas came back to the mansion to celebrate Christmas with the pride.
Benjamin was curious to see how the situation between Noem and Kay would evolve, because as far as he knew, Noem hadn’t told Kay they were mates, and a week had passed since he’d found out. Benjamin also wanted to know who Jericho’s mate was, but so far, all the people who knew—Dominic and Jared—had refused to talk about it, and not even spying on the infirmary had given Benjamin answers.
He rolled on his side and poked Lucas’ side. “Are you sure we can’t stay until Christmas?”
Lucas groaned into his pillow and turned his head to look at Benjamin. “Are you really waking me up for this?”
“It’s almost time to get up anyway.”
Lucas blinked, his eyes still sleepy, a pillow crease on his cheek. It seemed impossible to think of a six-foot-eight man adorable, yet Lucas was, and it made Benjamin want to climb him like a tree. He restrained himself only because he wanted an answer to his question.
“You only want to stay because you’re curious,” Lucas groused.
“Well, yeah. Why else? You can’t tell me you don’t want to know who Jericho is supposed to mate with.”
Lucas groaned and rolled to his side, facing Benjamin. “No, I don’t.”
“Liar.”
“Fine, maybe I am a little bit curious, but it’s not going to be enough to make me stay.” He hesitated. “But you could stay. You don’t need to come back with me, not unless you want to. You could stay here until Christmas or even later if you want to.”
Benjamin knew Lucas was serious about his offer. He slapped his arm. “Shut up. You know I won’t stay.”
“You could.”
“I want to be with you, not to stay here while you’re at the ranch.”
Lucas didn’t say anything, but by now Benjamin knew him well enough to be able to know what he was thinking anyway, at least some of the times. He rolled his eyes and shifted closer, pressing his naked body against Lucas’, smirking when Lucas groaned.
“I want to move in with you. I want to come live at the ranch. I don’t care that you don’t have money, or a huge house, or whatever you think you need to give me. You’re enough, and I’ll go where you go. Okay?”
Lucas slowly nodded as he slipped a hand around Benjamin’s waist. Benjamin could tell there was something else. He reached behind Lucas and squeezed a handful of ass cheek. It would either distract Lucas or make him realize he should talk before Benjamin distracted him. Either way, Benjamin won.
“So,” Lucas said. Benjamin kept his mouth shut and waited for Lucas to gather his thoughts. He knew Lucas needed to get them out like he wanted to.
“We decided we should date for a while before mating,” Lucas finally said, and that wasn’t what Benjamin had expected him to say.
He’d thought Lucas would try to convince him to stay, not because he didn’t want Benjamin with him, but rather because he didn’t think the ranch was good enough for Benjamin. That was bullshit, and Benjamin was doing his best to make Lucas realize it was, but he wasn’t sure he was having a lot of success. He wouldn’t stop trying, though.
“Yeah, we did,” he answered, curious to see where Lucas was going.
“It was more for me than for you, though.”
“Yeah, but it’s not a bad thing. I don’t mind. It’s a compromise.”
“That was two weeks ago, though.”
Benjamin swallowed, because a spark of hope had lit up in his chest, and he didn’t want to hope for nothing. “Uh, yeah. It was.”
“We’ve spent those two weeks together.”
Benjamin sighed. “Luc... just say it, yeah?”
Lucas looked at Benjamin’s chin instead of his eyes, but it was fine. “I don’t want to wait anymore.”
Benjamin slid the hand he still had on Lucas’ ass up his back and around his torso until he could cup Lucas’ cheek and tilt his head. Lucas’ cheeks were flushed, and Benjamin loved it. “Does that mean what I think it means?”
Lucas snorted. “Now is the time when you don’t want to say things as they are?”
“Fine. Does it mean you want to mate with me? Like, mating bites and everything?”
“Well, I can’t exactly bite you, but—”
“You’d be surprised. Keenan actually bit Jonah when they mated, human teeth and all.”
“Yeah, well, I’m not going to bite you.”
“Then I’ll slit a wound in my neck and you can drink from there.”
Lucas grimaced. “That sounds... ”
“I know, but it�
�s nothing. Really.” To show him, Benjamin reached up and ran one shifted claw along the skin where his neck met his shoulder. He tried not to wince at the pain, especially since it wasn’t much, and he felt the blood well from the wound.
He half expected Lucas to panic and to try to press something to it, but instead Lucas looked at him, his eyes dark, and leaned forward. Benjamin pressed the side of his head against his pillow and held his breath.
Lucas’ lips brushed Benjamin’s skin, and Benjamin felt Lucas’ rough tongue lap at the blood. Benjamin swallowed, and then Lucas’ mouth was there, sucking on the wound, the pulls echoing in Benjamin’s groin. He’d already been hard, even though his initial erection had waned a bit while they talked, but now he could probably pound a nail into the wall with his dick and not have any problems doing it.
Benjamin moaned as Lucas reached behind his back and pushed his fingers into him. They’d woken up during the night and Lucas had fucked him, and he was still slick and slightly stretched. Not enough to take Lucas without prepping, but it wouldn’t take much.
Lucas moved his mouth away and licked the wound on Benjamin’s neck. “Is it enough?” he whispered, his fingers still moving in and out of Benjamin’s ass.
“Y—yeah. It’s enough.”
Lucas gently pushed Benjamin onto his back and Benjamin opened his legs, expecting Lucas to settle between them. Instead he reached for the nightstand and grabbed the lube, taking his fingers out of Benjamin and squirting more lube onto them before pushing them back inside.
Benjamin clung onto Lucas’ shoulder, scratching him when he added another finger, whimpering when he took them all out and finally pushed his dick inside Benjamin. Benjamin desperately wanted to bite Lucas, to claim him just like Lucas had just done with him. Lucas seemed to read his mind and leaned down a bit awkwardly, scrunching his upper body so Benjamin could get to his neck.
Benjamin struck fast, not wanting Lucas to be uncomfortable. He came as soon as Lucas’ blood hit his mouth, and his orgasm seemed to last until he finally felt the bond settle between them, until he felt how close to coming Lucas was himself. He tightened around Lucas and licked the wound closed so Lucas wouldn’t bleed all over the place.
Lucas groaned and thrust harder and faster, and Benjamin held onto him until he stiffened, his back bowing as he came. He slumped onto Benjamin, knocking the breath out of him.
“Sorry,” he mumbled as he settled more on his side, taking most of his body weight off Benjamin. His arm and leg were still slung over Benjamin, but it was better. Benjamin could breathe.
“It’s weird,” Lucas mumbled, his face pressed against Benjamin’s neck.
“What is?”
“The bond. I can feel what you feel. It’s weird.”
“But nice, right?”
“Yeah.”
“You—”
The door slammed open. Benjamin squeaked. Lucas jumped up, ready to take on whoever was attacking. His hands flew to his groin when he realized it was Benjamin’s father, but he didn’t get back into bed. Benjamin sat up and pulled the sheet to his chest, glaring at his father.
“What the fuck?”
Benjamin’s father pointed at him. “It’s all your fault.”
Benjamin looked at Lucas, wondering if at least he knew what the fuck was going on, but he shook his head and straightened. Benjamin’s gaze flickered to his dick and he grinned, because he knew his father would be furious at the sight of them like this. Well, even more furious than he already was.
“Benji!” Benjamin’s father snapped.
Benjamin turned his attention back to his father just in time to see his brother come in. He groaned, because really? Why did his family feel the need to embarrass him like this? “What do you mean, Dad?”
“He means he thinks it’s your fault that I’m not leaving with him,” Michael said, sitting on the edge of Benjamin’s mattress.
“You’re not?”
“Nope. I want to be an enforcer. I’m staying here.”
“I won’t permit it,” their father spat out.
“Too bad you can’t forbid me anything, huh?” Michael said, looking like he didn’t have a care in the world.
Their father looked at him, then at Benjamin and at the bite on Lucas’ neck, and stormed out. Michael rolled his eyes and looked at Benjamin. “So you finally did it, huh?”
“Shut up.”
Michael laughed and got up. He walked to the door, pausing to wink at Benjamin. “It was about time.”
Benjamin threw a pillow at him, but Michael managed to shut the door before it hit him.
“You guys are weird,” Lucas said as he sat back on the bed. “But I wouldn’t have you any other way.”
About the Author
Catherine lives in Italy, country of good food and hot men. She used to write fantasy as a child, but it was reading her first gay erotic romance novel that made her realize that that was what she really wanted to write.
After graduating from college in English language and translation, she divides her day between writing, reading, taking care of her son and reading some more.
You can find her on Facebook and Twitter or on her website: authorcatherinelievens.wordpress.com
Email: [email protected]
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