by Marcy Jacks
That thought had him slowing to a stop, his human mind coming through the haze of what he was feeling and what he was doing just enough to really notice the similarities between right now and that night ten years ago.
He’d been just like this, only less in control of himself. His memories of that night were still a blur, but he knew he’d been rough,
Mason Returns to His Mate 85
and had he not had Derek’s word to tell him that he’d enjoyed himself just as much as Mason had, then he would still be bearing the guilt of what he’d thought he’d done.
He was claiming his mate. Mason’s alpha wolf was dominating him right now, taking over in a rare occurrence that put instinct before intellect. Had Mason been claiming Derek that night as well? Was that why he was doing this now? After a ten-year separation, did he need to reclaim his mate? Or was this just the two of them coming together as normal?
Derek’s gasping voice called to him. “What’s wrong?”
Mason blinked and looked down at him. Derek’s hazel eyes were clouded with lust, his face desperate, and judging by the way his arm was moving in that rhythmic way, he was still stroking himself, desperate to come once more.
Mason pulled about halfway out of him and then thrust back inside.
Derek’s eyes squeezed shut at the act, his mouth opening in a blissful cry.
“Perfect. I’m going to put a smile on your face,” Mason said, thrusting long and hard inside of his lover’s asshole.
Derek was forced to release his cock and put both hands down on the ground before he could fall on his face again. “Trust me, you already are. Fuck, just like that,” he moaned, pushing back against Mason’s hips.
They fucked in an irregular pattern. There was no rhythm to what they were doing, but it was the best sex Mason had had in years. The push and pull of his cock inside that tight hole was to die for. He needed to let his inner wolf out more often because it knew a thing or two about passion and fucking.
Mason gripped Derek’s hips as tightly as he could without breaking the skin and straightened his back, looking down and watching as his dick disappeared inside of Derek’s hole.
“You. Are. So. Fucking. Hot.”
86 Marcy Jacks
Derek didn’t say anything. The only sounds he seemed capable of making were the breathy moans that had become his language as Mason claimed him, fucked him, touched everything inside of him.
The sizzle in his balls when they bounced like a wrecking ball against the back of Derek’s thighs only added to his pleasure, and when everything inside of him went tight and the pleasure built, he knew the end was near and sped up his pumping hips.
Derek cried out. “Holy fuck! I’m coming! I’m―”
Derek spilled himself again, though this time, he didn’t grab hold of his dick to hurry it along. He was more eager to just let it come on its own this time, it seemed.
Mason held on and fucked Derek as hard and as fast as he could,
throwing his head back and yelling his orgasm when it gathered inside of him and shot out of his cock, spilling himself inside of his lover.
As he came, Mason grabbed the base of his prick and quickly pulled out. He stroked himself the rest of the way, and let his cum spill onto Derek’s back.
When he finished, he sighed at the sight.
Now he’d claimed his mate.
“Wow.” Derek laughed, letting his body flop over onto the soft
sand. “We need to do that more often.”
Mason had no intention of letting them leave this pond until they’d made love at least four more times. Even after being so recently satisfied, already his cock was twitching for more. If Mason so much as allowed himself to look down at his lover, his mate, and
think a couple of dirty thoughts, he’d be as hard as those math exams
he took for those online classes he’d tried a couple years ago.
As it was, he decided his mate could use a five-minute breather.
The longer Mason held off, the better the pleasure would be when he had that perfect ass in his possession again.
Mason Returns to His Mate 87
Chapter Nine
Tom had everything he needed now. The three extra hunters had arrived, although they were cocky little shits, the lot of them. He wouldn’t trust any of them to have his back, but they were idiots to assume that he had theirs.
“Just stay behind us, old man,” said their leader, Tatum, who refused to take any commands from Tom.
Really, what sort of stupid new-age name was Tatum anyway? Fucking parents nowadays naming their children such ridiculous names. They should be shot, really.
That was fine. This was only a temporary deal anyhow. All he needed was for these new hunters to lead the way into the area where the pack of werewolves resided. They’d captured one not too long ago, but he’d unfortunately been a wild one, with no allegiance to any pack.
The monster had still known where to find more of them, and he’d given the location of the pack willingly.
Not just one pack, but two. There were two packs within an hour’s drive of Brampton. Tom couldn’t believe his good luck. It was no wonder that the other hunters who’d arrived before him had such
trouble getting any pelts to sell, or even getting out of the area alive, when there were so many organized wolves out and about.
That didn’t seem to deter these men a single bit. Tom had known they were thrill seekers and hungry for money, but just being in the same room with them was a nightmare. The oldest of the three was only twenty-four years old, and the stupid idiot carried around one of those portable gaming systems and played it during the night, as
88 Marcy Jacks
though that wasn’t the perfect way for a werewolf to find them by following the sounds.
Even Billy, fool that he was, was smart enough to keep those things locked up and out of sight. Tom was pretty sure the guy had even sold his to help pay for a new pistol not too many months ago.
These boys were practically worthless, and how they’d survived for so long, Tom would never know.
The only information they took from him, and hesitantly at that, was when he pulled out the photo ID from the bag and wallet they’d snagged from the store before lighting it on fire.
He’d explained that the man in the picture was human and a supporter. The three boys nodded and told him they would protect him if some human should attempt to attack.
God, Tom could hardly wait for these idiots to get killed in the coming battle.
* * * *
Mason woke up to the warmth of the sun on his body and the warmth of Derek’s body beneath him. He was so comfortable that for a moment he’d thought he was lying in bed with his mate, just waking up before the alarm could start its bitching for the day.
No. They were still at the pond.
Mason picked himself up onto his hands, pulling his weight off of Derek’s back.
The other man shivered with the sudden chill then opened hiseyes, looked up at Mason, and smiled.
“Morning,” he said.
Mason breathed a sigh of relief. Though he’d been assured by the man beneath him, some part of him still chewed over the possibility of what would happen the morning after. He’d been frightened, but Derek was awake. From what Mason could see, there was no blood
between his legs, and he was smiling up at Mason.
Mason Returns to His Mate 89
Mason cleared his throat. “Good morning.”
Derek lifted himself, prompting Mason to pull the rest of his weight off of his lover, and then Derek looked around. “Wow. Can’t believe we spent the whole night here.”
Mason could, and he’d been stupid for allowing it to happen, all by themselves as they’d been. “We should get out of here.”
“Sure, just give me a sec. I’m filthy.”
Mason watched as Derek stepped into the pond, carefully at first, adjusting himself to the cold temperature, and then diving in.
Maso
n could hardly deny him the quick wash, not with the way they were both covered in dirt and dried-on cum.
Derek came up for air, shaking the water out of his hair. It was the most gorgeous sight Mason had ever seen in his life. “Aren’t you coming?”
Mason clenched his fists, and then he carefully sniffed the air. He scented nothing that that should concern him. No other foreign scents, aside from Ivan’s, but that had long ago faded.
Why not?
Mason went in after him. They swam around for a bit, enjoying the water and each other, and then they lazily made love again on Mason’s rock before getting back into the water to wash off one more time.
The only thing that was a factor in making them leave was how hungry they were both getting.
That, and Mason didn’t want to risk that some of the omegas and pups came to spend the day here and saw two men having sex. Werewolves were pretty good with nudity, but he didn’t want to teach any young kids about the birds and the bees.
“I’m never going to fit into these jeans,” Derek complained when it came time for him to dress.
The best he could do was put on his boxers, wearing them like shorts, and force his T-shirt over his head before sticking his feet into
his shoes, still damp from the night before.
90 Marcy Jacks
“You could always just go au naturel,” Mason suggested, wiggling his brows.
“Not in this lifetime,” Derek said. “Just because you have no shame doesn’t mean I don’t either.”
Mason was both looking forward to and dreading the day when Derek broke free of that shy nature of his.
“Let’s head back.” They’d dawdled long enough, and Mason was beginning to get antsy without really knowing why. Those were the worst feelings to have. It meant his instincts were going crazy, but whether it was danger, some of the pups playing pranks, or an animal coming onto his territory, he wouldn’t be able to identify it until he saw it or smelled it.
Mason made sure to hold Derek’s hand tightly in his, and Derek just had to notice that they were power walking the way back.
“What’s going on?”
“Nothing, just hungry,” Mason lied.
He heard the growl in Derek’s voice and noticed right away the way the other man’s hand tightened in his.
“Mason,” Derek warned.
His wolf didn’t like the challenge, but for the sake of some immediate peace, Mason decided to let it go. Derek wanted honesty, and Mason had to remember to treat him like an adult when it came to
these things if he wanted to keep him.
This was going to take some getting used to.
“My senses are going a little crazy. I’m worried and scared, and that only tends to happen when there’s something to be worried about lurking nearby.”
Derek shivered, but his grip on Mason’s hand never wavered. If anything, it tightened reassuringly. “Okay.”
That…had been so much easier than Mason had thought it would be. They kept right on walking and were another couple of minutes away from the safety of the pack when Mason jerked the both of them
to a stop.
Mason Returns to His Mate 91
His ears twitched, and his bare feet registered the feel of footsteps coming toward them from far away.
“What is it?” Derek asked.
Mason turned to him and put his finger to his lips then motioned toward the shrubs just before pulling them into the safety of them.
What are we doing here? Derek mouthed once the thick branches and leaves were hiding them.
Then he froze as the sounds that Mason had heard came close
enough for human ears to pick up on.
“The pond is this way. Little far out, but the kids like to go swimming there,” James said.
“I hope you have life jackets,” said another voice that Mason did not recognize. It was authoritative, though, and considering what they were talking about, the owner of that voice could only belong to one profession.
Cop. Someone had finally come to check out DeWitt’s pack and see if Derek was anywhere over here, hiding.
“No, but they’re not allowed to go without at least four accompanying adults, and they all know how to swim.”
Mason watched between the leaves as James and the officer, who
was in full uniform, passed by.
As the officer spoke, asking more questions about this and that, James’s eyes looked down toward the shrub where Mason and Derek were hiding. Their eyes met right before he went back to his conversation, both passing on by, heading toward the pond.
Mason waited a minute, until his sensitive hearing couldn’t pick up on the sounds of his brother’s and that cop’s voices or their footsteps crunching in the twigs and leaves on the trail.
Then he and Derek stepped out from their hiding place. “They’re making sure you’re not hiding here,” Mason said.
“For the first time I’m glad I didn’t come with any personal possessions,” Derek replied.
That was right. If Derek had a whole load of things back at the
92 Marcy Jacks
guest cabin where he was staying…
He didn’t. There was no clue for the cop to see that Derek was with them. Hell, for all Mason knew, James had said that only Mason was staying in that cabin.
Which, for the last couple of days, had been true.
“We need to get back,” Mason said. He and Derek hoofed it back to the houses.
They didn’t know what to expect when they got back, which was why Mason slowed them down and they hid behind some more of the larger pines and shrubs.
There was a cop car. Parked smack dab in the middle of the drive,
blocking any other cars or trucks from coming or going.
There was another man leaning against the driver’s side door. Not in uniform, and he was wearing a duster like he was in the Wild West or something.
Derek squeezed Mason’s hand, grabbing his attention. What do we do? he mouthed.
Wait, Mason lipped back, because that was all they really could
do.
Wait they did. For nearly a half an hour. Mason didn’t know what exactly James was doing with that other guy in uniform at the pond. Did the guy want to drain it or something? Mason was pretty sure there were no bodies in the water, though a few had been known to get buried around the land.
Still, it had been so long that Derek had long since lost the fear of being caught and had started to doze against Mason’s chest.
Mason was about ready to join him. The boredom was killing him, and apart from how mildly funny it was that every werewolf walking around in the pack knew he was hiding there and the cop didn’t, there was little to entertain.
Then the snap of a twig a little too close to their hiding location pulled him from his almost-nap.
He looked up and around, but his hiding place was a little too
Mason Returns to His Mate 93
good because his visibility of his surrounding area was next to nothing.
Then another snap, and footsteps, then voices.
Mason relaxed as he recognized James’s voice, still speaking to the cop in uniform as they walked down the path and back to the pack. James was promising the officer that he would call if he ever saw anyone fitting Derek’s description and yadda yadda, but Mason’s muscles bunched up again and that instinctual fear took over once
more.
There was something else nearby, and it had gotten closer while Mason was distracted with his brother and the cop.
It was enough that Derek had come out of his dozing to look around with him. There was no wind, the trees were absolutely still, so whatever it was, the scent wasn’t reaching Mason’s nose just yet.
Another snap of a twig, and then a metallic click, and then the scent did come to him.
Human, oil, metal, and a whole lot of pissed-off tension hung in the air. Mason was about ready to get up and risk being caught just so he and
Derek could find another hiding place when the hard steel barrel of a gun pressed into his neck.
“You don’t move any more than that.”
He was fast, Mason had to give him credit for that. He looked up into the face of an older male with a square shape and silver hair. His expression was of the serious kind, seriously pissed off, and he would kill Mason if he tried to move.
It was Derek the old man was staring at, though.
Shit, this was one of the hunters belonging to that group Derek had fought back at the pawn shop.
He seethed into Derek’s direction. “You murdered my son.”
Oh, fucking Christ. That was even worse. Mason grabbed a hold of the barrel of the rifle before the hunter could point the thing at his
mate.
The guy growled at him. “Let go, or I will kill you.”
94 Marcy Jacks
“That gun fires and you’ll have every werewolf on the pack land after your ass,” he retorted. “It’ll only be another couple of seconds before they figure out you’re in here with us. You snuck up on me, but you won’t get by thirty werewolves.”
“Won’t matter when my boys start attacking.”
What? He had more sons?
Whatever the case was, it didn’t matter because the guy had basically just said he had backup and that they were going to carve through the pack.
He tried to quickly think of any way he could take this guy out without killing himself or Derek, before Derek made the first move.
Derek lunged out from his hiding place in the shrubs and started running full speed to James and the cops.
“Hunter! Hunters are here!” he yelled.
“Fuck!” the old man seethed, turning his gun around and smacking Mason in the face with the butt of the rifle.
He saw stars and fell back but didn’t pass out. The human was desperate if he thought a move like that would accomplish anything, but when Mason blinked, he saw how the hunter was pointing his rifle through the branches and leaves of the shrub. Likely he was pointing that thing at Derek.