Nowhere to Hide (Tundra Wolves Book 4)

by Maggie Walsh

  “So, it’s like a public claiming?” Oberon asked.

  “Exactly... but some will do it over and over again. Usually the ones who are exhibitionists,” Fane replied.

  Oberon finally pulled his attention from the group across the room and met his gaze. “And no one around here cares? I mean, look at them. They’re practically fucking on that table and everyone else in here is just going about their business,” Oberon said, awestruck.

  Jude chuckled again. “Yup. That’s part of who Tundra Wolves are, man. And what those four are doing is totally tame compared to things you’ll see around here while you’re staying. One day you’ll be strolling down Main Street and maybe see a guy on a leash being led by a leather Daddy. Another day you’ll be shopping in the market and find a cute little gamma all trussed up in harnesses and a gag as his Dominant decides that being in aisle five has turned him on and he bends his submissive mate over right there and starts to fuck him. It’s all normal and natural here.”

  “Fucking hell, we really have walked into heaven, haven’t we? I mean Fane has told me stories about you Tundra Wolves but seeing it’s all true is different than just hearing the stories. Fuck, I’m so hard right now I think I might just blow in my pants and without anyone even touching my willy,” Oberon confessed as his gaze moved back across the room.

  Fane looked over his shoulder again and chuckled lightly. He had forgotten how open his kind could be with their sexualities. He noticed a familiar face in the crowd when the heavy kisser pulled back, revealing the man he had been kissing and Fane turned back to Jude and Oberon as he asked, “Isn’t that Lysander?”

  “Yup, that’s him and three of his men,” Jude replied.

  Oberon’s eyes went wide. “Oh right, the alpha said the lucky bastard had four men. Damn, that must be something,” Oberon’s voice came out wistful as he stared at the group. Fane always knew his best friend liked ménages but he had no idea Oberon would be so turned on with the prospect of four or more. Maybe coming here was the best thing for them after all, even with the dark and ball numbing cold.

  “Well, I think you’re up, Fane,” Jude said, grabbing his attention.

  He looked to Jude. “I thought you and horny-man there were playing this one?”

  Jude chuckled as he shook his head slightly. “True, that is, if he can keep his eyes off the action across the room long enough and keep his dick in his pants, but I meant you’re up over there,” Jude replied as he motioned across the room with his chin. Oberon cursed low and his eyes widened again, but this time they weren’t filled with desire, Fane was confused. He looked back over his shoulder again, scanning the room, and finally saw what Oberon and Jude were looking at. His mate had just walked in with the alpha and they were heading his way.

  Fane turned fully, then remained still as he watched the men walk toward them. Halfway across the room his mate’s gaze met his, and Fane felt a tremor of desire race through him. Marlo had the most stunningly beautiful sapphire-blue eyes he had ever seen, that went perfectly with his shoulder-blade-length sandy, light-brown hair with golden highlights. The two tight braids on the right side, pulling the hair back away from his face, showed the sensual curve of his sleek jaw and throat. His mate was sex walking and every man’s wet dream. He had to be about five feet seven and a hundred and thirty pounds, slim, toned, and the way he moved was more like a feline than a wolf with the way he held his head high, shoulders back, and hips that swayed back and forth as he walked.

  Fane’s cock instantly lengthened and filled as he took in every inch of his mate. His wolf began to growl and claw inside him, wanting to come out and claim what belonged to them. The beast was riding him hard and howling for release, and wanted to hunt the little white wolf down, pin him underneath him, then thrust deep within him, marking the wolf as his.

  If Ridge hadn’t already explained to him how his wolf would react and what it meant, once he found his mate, Fane would have been terrified of his wolf’s reaction, but now knowing that his wolf did indeed need to claim their mate’s wolf before he could claim the human to make the mating bond complete, Fane was finding himself fantasizing about it at that moment. He could feel his need to fuck Marlo building as much as his wolf’s need to fuck Marlo’s wolf, and he found it all exhilarating and thrilling.

  Once they got to within three feet of him, Dell and Marlo stopped, but Marlo’s gaze still remained locked with his. “Fane Heart, Marlo Keto, my assistant and little brother,” Dell introduced, but put a bit of a warning in his words as he stated “his little brother”. Fane knew Marlo wasn’t Dell’s actual brother by blood, but he did consider the omega his brother, so Fane took the warning as it was meant, “don’t fuck with him or hurt him or we’ll have a problem.”

  Fane extended his hand. “Hello, Marlo, it’s nice to finally meet you. I’ve heard a lot about you from Caleb and Bo, as well as Blu.”

  Marlo reached out and clasped his hand. Instantly, the fire that had been building inside him since he had spotted his mate now amped up to a million, and Fane was overwhelmed with his need to claim. He swallowed hard, trying to hold back the growl of possession that threatened to break free.

  “It’s nice to meet you too. I’ve heard a few things about you as well,” Marlo replied.

  “All bad I’m sure. I’m sorry about that.” Fane didn’t know why he was apologizing, but for some reason he felt like he needed to.

  The blush that rose up Marlo’s cheeks and the fact that he finally broke their gaze, told Fane that what he said was true, and Marlo had only heard bad things about him. Not that what was said was untrue, because Fane was the first one to own up to what an asshole he had once been, but the realization that, until now, all his mate had heard about him was negative things didn’t sit well with him, and filled Fane with guilt.

  “Not all,” Marlo whispered softly, quickly flicking his gaze up to Fane’s, before looking down again.

  “Wow, if I knew all we had to do was get your mate here in front of you to make you shy and blush, I would have started hunting him down years ago,” Jude teased, causing Marlo to turn a deeper shade of red as he looked up and glared at Jude.

  “Shut up, asshat,” Marlo growled at Jude, making the beta laugh, then Marlo bit his bottom lip and looked down again.

  Fane couldn’t help it and chuckled as well. He liked seeing the fire in his mate and knowing that the man wouldn’t take crap from people. It was so against the nature of an omega that Fane found it extra sexy.

  He placed his glass on the nearby table and stood, then walked to Marlo. His mate lifted his head and looked at him. Once their gazes met, he smiled and asked, “Would you like to go grab a table and talk, or would you like to take a walk?”

  Marlo gave him a shy smile and replied, “It’s a bit cold out, but if you wouldn’t mind I would prefer a walk. With Jughead here...” Marlo shot Jude a dirty look, “I’m afraid we’ll never get past anything, but knowing each other’s names.”

  “Hey!” Jude yelled. “I resemble that remark.” He started laughing again.

  Dell shook his head as he chuckled, then walked to Jude and threw an arm over his shoulders. “If it gets too cold, you also have Bo’s place you can sit and talk.”

  “Thank you, Alpha,” Fane said, then turned back to Marlo. “I would love to take a walk with you.”

  Fane held out his hand indicating for Marlo to lead the way. Marlo turned and headed for the door and Fane followed. When they reached the door, they each grabbed their coats, put them on, then went outside where it was already pitch black out.

  Fane knew it was going to take him some time to get used to these increasingly shorter daylight hours and cold temps, but he didn’t seem to mind as much as he had when he and Oberon were making their way up here. Now that it seemed like his cousin Ridge wasn’t so angry or distrustful of him, maybe still a bit leery, and Dell seemed to have no problem welcoming them into his pack, and he had found his mate, Fane was beginning to feel more comfortable. H
e could feel the stress leaving his shoulders and it was a nice change from the way he’d been all knotted up over the past few days.

  He and Marlo walked side by side, silently for about six or seven minutes as Fane stared at the dancing colors of the Aurora Borealis. He knew that at different times and depending on the temperature that they could become even more breathtaking than they were now, and he found himself looking forward to seeing the changes. Right now, there were a lot of different greens, whites, and some gold shimmering across the sky.

  He knew he needed to say something to get their conversation started, so he thought he could start with the beauty before them. And being the more dominant of them, Fane figured he should take the first step. He cleared his throat, then said, “I’d forgotten how desolate, dark, and cold it could be up here, but I also forgot how beautiful it could be at the same time. The colors from the Aurora Borealis are stunning.”

  “It’s one of my favorite things about living up here. Sure, we have to deal with the ball-numbing cold and a lot of darkness when it’s cold, but that view is amazing,” Marlo replied.

  “I remember the colors being a lot more vibrant the last time I was up here, but I guess that will come with more darkness and colder temperatures, right?”

  “Yes. It will start getting darker and darker now and the temperatures will get a lot colder. With the crispness and clarity of the air, the colors will be brighter and more visible, so then you will be able to see a whole rainbow of different colors.”

  Marlo went on to tell him how with it now being early November that the sun rose at about ten o’clock in the morning and set at around two twenty in the afternoon, and even though it wasn’t completely dark at sunset, it was more like dusk for a few hours, the darkness of night still came in a lot earlier than during the spring months when the light season would begin.

  Fane was entranced as he listened to Marlo explain all about the different types of twilight they experienced up here in the region, and the temp changes. Marlo told him that they were only weeks away from total darkness, well, almost. Sometime around November twenty-fourth it would appear as if the sun never rose and it would last until mid-January. There would be times during mid-day that the sky would lighten and not be as dark, it would appear more like twilight, but they would never actually see the sun in the sky.

  Then Marlo explained about the temperatures dipping into hell, because of no sunlight to warm the Earth or air. Fane was familiar with the whys, but just hearing Marlo talk had him mesmerized. His mate could read the dictionary or the phone book and Fane would be just as captivated as he was in that moment. Fane knew it was cold, but he hadn’t realized that earlier when it was light out it had only been fifteen degrees, but now it was minus four.

  Walking by Marlo’s side, listening to him talk so lovingly about the region as well as his home, packlands, and pack, Fane hadn’t realized how long they had been out walking or how cold it was getting, until a sudden chill ran up his spine and caused him to shiver.

  “Oh shit,” Marlo said as he grabbed Fane’s arm and stopped walking. Fane stopped as well and they turned to face one another. “I’m so sorry. I get to talking sometimes and I forget how boring all these facts can be to others. You must be freezing.”

  Fane gave him a soft smile. “I wasn’t bored for one second. I loved hearing about my new home and how excited you are about it when you speak. As crazy as it sounds, I look forward to seeing all the changes. I didn’t realize how much I actually missed it up here, until I came back.”

  “How about we head over to my place and I make you some hot cocoa or coffee, so you can warm up, and then maybe you can tell me a little about you?” Marlo suggested. Fane could see the hopeful look in his mate’s eyes.

  “I would like that. It’s definitely hot cocoa season, and right now, it sounds like just what I need to warm up. Do you have small marshmallows?” Fane asked, with a cheerful smile.

  Marlo giggled and the sound went straight to Fane’s dick. It didn’t matter how fucking cold the damn thing was, one look or giggle from his mate and his cock started to take interest.

  “Well, duh. That’s like a sacrilege or something to not have small marshmallows in your hot cocoa, right? Or at least it should be. Come on, I don’t live far,” Marlo said, then slid his arm around Fane’s and they continued their walk arm in arm. Fane felt a strange… peace—contentment maybe—seep into his heart, and he liked it.

  CHAPTER 9

  As they approached his small white house that he shared with Nelo, one of his best friends, Marlo felt a sense of not belonging anymore. The little place he had called home for years suddenly felt like he didn’t belong there, and the feeling was strange. But, the new sensation that was building inside him now was just as foreign, but Marlo found that he liked it. It was the sense of belonging to someone. The sense of... peace and... contentment. Was that even a word? Yes, he was sure it was. Marlo shook his head at his crazy thoughts.

  As he did, he took a step up onto the first step of the stairs leading into the house and his foot slipped on a chunk of ice. Marlo’s arms flailed out as his leg flew forward and he bent backwards. Just when he thought, Shit, this is going to hurt about hitting the frozen ground, an arm wrapped around his waist and pulled him close to a large, hard body. Marlo found his arms immediately and without thought, reached up, then slid around a strong neck. Suddenly he was wrapped in Fane’s thick arms, their bodies pressed together and their face’s only an inch apart.

  Marlo’s breath hitched as a shiver of desire raced down his spine, and a small moan slipped past his lips as his cock began to thicken. The damn thing had already been at half-mast as he and Fane walked around town together, but now his dick was standing tall and at attention, wanting... no craving Fane’s attention.

  The steaming show of his breath on the frigid air gave away the fact that he was starting to pant, admitting without his consent, the effect Fane was having on him and his body. The concerned look in Fane’s eyes suddenly shifted, and Marlo felt like a deer caught in the headlights of an oncoming car. The intensity of heat and desire he could see in Fane’s gaze made his breath catch in his throat. Then, Fane leaned in, closing the small gap between them and captured Marlo’s lips.

  He gasped from the move, but also from the rush of heat that overtook him and had his balls churning. Fane slipped his tongue inside Marlo’s mouth and the taste of the Dominant wolf was like ambrosia to Marlo. Instantly Marlo wanted more. He felt a bolt of lightning shoot through him and Marlo knew it was because it was his true mate who was touching him, kissing him, wanting him.

  Marlo could feel Fane’s want in the kiss and in his embrace as well as the long, thick, hard pole that was pressing against his stomach. Gods, the thought of an alpha cock made Marlo want to beg to be fucked right there. Tundra Wolf alphas were known to have the largest cocks and Marlo craved large cocks. It was one of the things he loved most about being gay. Anal sex and play. He loved having his ass played with. There was nothing better in the world than having a very large cock impale him, stretching him wide, then fucking him until he couldn’t think. Of course, being an omega, he hadn’t actually experienced a real cock before, but he did love testing out all the largest dildos and butt plugs that Bo created.

  He leaned into the kiss, pressing his body harder against Fane’s and dropped his head back, submitting to Fane without hesitation or reservation. In his heart Marlo knew this was where he was meant to be. His soul sang to the heavens as it recognized its other half and rejoiced at their reunion.

  Marlo was surprised to realize there was no fear inside him of what was to come now that he had found his Dominant mate. He was shocked to discover that he actually wanted it more than anything. More than air. He wanted Fane’s dominance and he wanted to submit fully to the man. A part of him still wanted his independence, but with Fane by his side. He wanted to be equals in their relationship, but give himself fully to Fane in the bedroom.

  Surely that
could work, right? He had seen it with his friends as they had found their mates. Caleb and Ridge for instance. Caleb was a total submissive to his alpha mate in times of intimacy, but Ridge also respected and encouraged Caleb’s independence in being a warrior. Could he have what they all had? Did he dare to wish? To dream? None of them were omegas so maybe it would be different for him. Was it smart to wish for something that might never be?

  Fane broke the kiss, but didn’t pull back or release him. Marlo shivered from the warmth of Fane’s breath as it caressed against his cool cheek. “You’re thinking too hard, beautiful. I must not be doing it right.”

  The smile he saw on Fane’s face and in his eyes showed him that his mate wasn’t mad, but teasing and he liked it. A part of him just knew from that one moment that what he was wishing for was within his reach. Somehow, Marlo knew that with Fane as his mate, his alpha mate, that he could be who he was in all aspects of the life they were about to build together, and that knowledge had his heart clenching with love for the man.

  Talk about a shock to the system. Marlo had only met Fane this afternoon, yet now he was standing here in the man's arms and he could feel love building inside him for someone he didn’t even know. How was that possible?

  Marlo looked into Fane’s eyes and everything seemed to just snap into place. He saw the tenderness inside his mate’s eyes and just knew everything was going to be okay. His heart swelled even more... along with his cock. “I was just thinking how much I liked you kissing me,” Marlo finally replied.

  Fane hummed. “Mmm, I liked that too. Should we do it again or go inside for that warm drink before we freeze to death?” His mate asked, then leaned in and stole a quick kiss.

  Marlo smiled. “Can we do both? Another kiss then go inside?”

  Fane chuckled and Marlo loved the deep baritone of it. It ran over him like a caress and was like warm whiskey. Suddenly, he wanted to know how deep that voice would go when Fane was lost in his desire.