by Bru Baker
Alpha Connoll chuckled.
“I remember what a new bond is like,” he said. “Don’t let me keep you.”
Danny wrapped an arm around Max’s waist and headed for the elevators. Neither of them said a word until they were back in the suite.
Max huffed out a soft laugh when he saw the open bedroom door. It hadn’t even been an hour since he’d been in here fantasizing about getting Danny out of his tuxedo. Now sex was the furthest thing from his mind. He had so many questions for Danny about his childhood and his relationship to his inner wolf. Did he even want to be with a Pack that celebrated their shifter ability? Would he feel comfortable on Pack runs and at ceremonies and rituals where everyone shifted?
“Hey,” Danny said, coming up behind Max and running his hands over his shoulders. He tugged on the lapels, and Max let him slide the tuxedo coat off. “What’s going on in your head?”
Chapter Nine
MAX had been tense and upset, so Danny told him to go take a shower. While he was alone, Danny ordered room service and a bottle of wine. It wouldn’t take the edge off like it would for a human, but it just seemed more civilized to have a serious discussion about their future over a glass of good cabernet.
Danny changed and hung his tux in the closet. Tonight had been terrible, but there were still three more events to attend before the summer was over. He’d made a deal, and he was going to keep it. He just wished he knew if he’d be attending with Max by his side or not.
The food arrived before Max finished his shower, which was more a testament to how long he’d spent in the bathroom than it was the speed of the room service. Danny would have worried he’d hurt himself in there, but as an Alpha, Max was pretty indestructible.
At least Danny assumed he was. He didn’t know much about his own kind, and he knew even less about shifters. He’d come home from Camp H.O.W.L. excited about his new abilities, and his father had locked him in the pool house for a week until he was absolutely sure Danny had full control over his shift. Since then, he’d only shifted during Pack runs during the full moon.
Danny look in a lungful of air after the porter left, challenging himself to separate out all the disparate scents in the room. He hadn’t practiced this since he was nineteen. It was embarrassing. He’d let his father color how he felt about his wolf, and he’d been kept isolated enough from the Pack that he hadn’t formed any real bonds with them.
He should have gotten more involved with the Pack after he’d gotten out from under his father’s thumb financially, but he hadn’t. He’d been busy with grad school and then with starting the foundation. But those were just excuses. Some part of him believed his father when he said their wolves were a curse. It wasn’t going to be like flipping a switch—Danny was going to have to push to get past those prejudices.
The smell of their dinner was overwhelming, but Danny took another breath and worked past that, blocking out the scent of roasted meat and steamy vegetables. The porter had been wearing a musky cologne, and Danny could easily scent where he’d been in the room. He closed his eyes and tried to go deeper.
The table in the living room had been wiped down with something lemony recently. It tickled at Danny’s nose, making him want to sneeze. Max’s scent was dulled by the water and the soap, but he could smell the remnants of his anger and frustration. Arousal too, both his and Max’s. Probably from earlier, because neither of them were in the mood now.
He kept his eyes closed and listened hard. The suite was large and well soundproofed. But he could hear the showerhead dripping in the bathroom and the quiet shurr of the towel as Max rubbed himself dry.
Danny opened his eyes, his hearing and sense of smell dulling a bit as he lost his focus. Stretching his senses was amazing, like he’d been in a cramped space and finally had the chance to stand and work out all the kinks.
Embracing his abilities instead of burying them felt so different. He hadn’t fully appreciated how much he’d been missing by suppressing his senses all the time.
Danny was proud of himself that he anticipated the bathroom door opening before it did. The whisper of Max’s bare feet along the marble floor had given him away.
Max still looked tense when he came out, looking delicious in a thin T-shirt and a pair of sweatpants. Rivulets of water from his wet hair darkened his collar. He smelled amazing, and Danny took a step forward to bury his face against Max’s neck. The shower had warmed his skin, amplifying the scent of sun-warmed grass and woodsmoke. Like most Supes, Max had showered with scentless products, and Danny’s pulse quickened at the raw, male smell of him.
Max made a soft noise and brought his hands up to glide along Danny’s back. Danny’s nose filled with the scent of his arousal. It made Danny irrationally happy to know he had that effect on him. It made him feel powerful to be able to capture his Alpha’s attention so completely, especially after the emotional showdown they’d just had downstairs.
Wait. Did he just think of Max as his Alpha? He pulled away, startled by the track his thoughts had taken. Max eyed him carefully but didn’t comment on the way Danny had stiffened and pulled away. Instead he picked up the bottle of uncorked wine and poured two glasses, handing one to Danny without a word.
Danny brought the glass to his lips, but the first sip seemed to stick in his throat. He put the glass down, busying himself with transferring the plates to the cozy table near the window. He was skittish, like he couldn’t trust his own body. Was this what Max felt when he said his instincts took over? Was his inner wolf picking up on the bond and taking over?
Not that he had a problem with Max being his Alpha. He wanted to join the Torres Pack, and he was pretty sure he wanted to let the bond between them continue to strengthen until it formed the Alpha Mate union. But he wasn’t used to feeling like he wasn’t in control of his emotions and actions.
“We should eat before it gets cold,” Danny said, even though his stomach rebelled at the thought of food.
“You don’t have to serve me, you know,” Max said, voice full of amusement as he watched Danny arrange their plates.
“I kind of feel like I do,” Danny snapped.
Max looked at him like he’d sprouted two heads. “If this is about your father—”
“It’s about my instincts screaming that I need to take care of you,” Danny blurted. “I don’t have a clue what I’m doing, but everything in me makes me want to make sure you’re okay. You’re tense, and you smell like you’re on edge. It’s making me feel that way too.”
Max was at his side in a flash, dark eyes full of worry. He cupped Danny’s face in his warm hands.
“I’m sorry, Danny. I didn’t realize you were that sensitive to my emotions. I’ll try to do better to shield them.”
He released Danny, and Danny took a seat at the table, feeling silly for being so moody but unable to find a thread of the happiness that had been so strong a minute ago.
“I’m fine,” Danny muttered. He stabbed at a green bean with his fork, not waiting for Max to eat first. It made him feel a little bit better to buck that particular tradition. He wasn’t going to defer to Max, even if they ended up mated.
“You’ve had a rough night,” Max said. He sipped his wine but didn’t touch his food.
“So have you. You need to eat.”
Max shook his head. “I can’t. My mate is upset and I caused it. I don’t—listen, the instincts are new to me too, okay? Food is the furthest thing from my mind until I make sure you’re okay.”
Danny put his fork down with a growl. “Is this what mating is? Because it’s miserable.”
Max stood up and held a hand out to Danny to pull him out of his chair and lead him across the room to the sofa. He sat and arranged Danny so he was half-in, half-out of Max’s lap. It should have been awkward, his torso cradled against Max’s, but it wasn’t. He stomach calmed instantly and the dread that had been thrumming in his chest disappeared.
“What the fuck,” he said flatly, glaring at Max.
Danny ran a hand through Max’s hair. It was thick and stuck up as it dried, and Danny liked how it fell through his fingers.
“I didn’t know. I’m sorry.”
Max leaned forward and rested their foreheads together. “Don’t be sorry. I’m the one who should apologize. I’m still adjusting to the Alpha spark. It’s a lot to handle. And the mate bond on top of it…. God, Danny, sometimes I feel like I’m a cub again, unable to control my shift.”
Danny wasn’t sure how to respond to that, so he nestled closer and kept quiet.
“I’m terrified that I’m going to do something to fuck this up,” Max admitted. “You have every right to be distrustful of Alphas. You haven’t really had a good example of one in your life.”
That wasn’t fair to Alpha Connoll, but Danny didn’t think arguing with Max would help the situation.
Danny’s stomach growled, and Max had the two of them on their feet before Danny could blink.
“You need to eat,” Max said, letting him go so he could sit.
“Back atcha, buddy.” Danny gestured to Max’s untouched food.
Max pushed mashed potatoes around his plate until Danny started eating, after which Max followed suit, though begrudgingly.
“I figured bears would have a big appetite,” Danny said. “And the Alpha spark burns more calories on top of that.”
“I’m not actually a bear, you know. It’s the easiest way to explain on the fly, but binturongs are a bearcat.”
Danny couldn’t picture that, but he wasn’t about to yank out his phone to Google it now that Max was finally eating. He needed to keep him talking so he’d relax.
“I was envisioning more like a grizzly. You know, standing in a stream spearing salmon with your claws.”
Max laughed. “Binturongs are actually omnivores. Which means while we have to eat a lot when we shift, it doesn’t have to be red meat. We eat a lot of pork and rice after our Pack runs.”
“You eat a lot of pork, period. That thing we had the other night, what was it called? The fried pig. So good.”
“Crispy pata,” Max supplied for him. “Yeah, that’s one of my favorite things. We don’t have it often because it’s a pain to make on that scale at home, but it usually shows up at special occasions.”
“Like your grandmother coming home after spending months in the Philippines.”
Max’s lips quirked. “Like the Alpha bringing home a guy for the first time.”
Danny couldn’t help but grin at that. “Really?”
“Really. It was just supposed to be a family cookout until Tori spilled the beans about you coming, and suddenly half the Pack wanted to come.”
“Where do you go for your Pack runs? There aren’t any bearcats around here for you to blend in with.”
Max gave him an incredulous look. “There aren’t any gigantic wolves around here either. We go up north to a campground.”
“Is your form big? I mean, bearcats sound small.”
“Actual binturongs are smallish. They’re related to civets. But we’re just like you. We keep roughly the same mass when we shift, so we’re much bigger than the average wild binturong.”
Danny had heard of civets. His mother had imported civet coffee for a luncheon once. He and Sloane had dared each other to drink it, but they’d both chickened out.
“Do binturongs eat coffee beans?”
Max made a face. “If you’re asking if binturong-poop coffee exists, no. It doesn’t. It’s a common question.”
“Just checking,” Danny said, smiling so hard his cheeks hurt.
They put the plates back on the cart, and Max wheeled it into the hallway. Danny was grateful. The smell of the food had been mouthwatering when he’d been hungry, but it was distracting now that he’d eaten his fill.
Danny caught Max in a loose embrace when he came back in. He drew him in for a kiss, soft and undemanding. Max looped his arms around Danny’s back, pulling them closer together as he deepened the kiss, and Danny let him take control of it until both of them were breathing hard.
He pulled back, his throat catching at how blissed-out Max looked. He had to admit his inner wolf was feeling about the same.
“Thanks for being here with me tonight,” Danny said. “And for not mauling my father earlier, even though he deserved it.”
“Bringing up your father isn’t doing much for the mood,” Max joked.
Danny leaned their heads together. “I was thinking more about how you fought off your Alpha asshole instincts and let me handle myself,” he murmured. “That was pretty hot.”
Max’s next chuckle sounded forced. “So all I have to do to turn you on is keep an iron grip on my instincts and let you speak and think for yourself? That’s a pretty low bar.”
“It’s really not. You’re an exceptionally good guy.”
Max’s shoulders were still stiff with tension, so Danny kneaded them lightly, his arousal spiking when Max’s eyes fluttered shut.
“Would you let me give you a massage? To help you relax, I mean.”
Max opened his eyes. “I don’t think I’d find that particularly relaxing.”
“I’m pretty good at it. I took a kinesiology class in undergrad, and we had to learn how muscle groups work together. There was an extra credit project on massage—”
“That’s not what I meant,” Max said. Danny was thankful he’d cut off his rambling. He tended to do that when he was nervous, and kissing Max definitely made him nervous. He pressed a light kiss to Danny’s mouth. “While having your hands all over me definitely sounds like fun, I think it would be counterproductive if your goal is for me to relax.”
That sounded like a challenge, and Danny never backed down from one of those. He grinned and hooked a finger in the waistband of Max’s sweats, pulling him toward the bedroom. Max followed without further protest.
“This is, what, our fifth date? Sixth? I think it might be time to pull the plug on going slow. We both agreed this isn’t casual.”
Max cupped a hand over Danny’s cheek and gave him another soft, slow kiss.
“While I would love to do that, and trust me, I would love to do that, I’m not sure it’s a good idea to make that decision when we’re both emotionally wrung out and exhausted,” he said. “This isn’t taking it to the next level physically, it’s consummating the bond.”
Danny hated to admit it, but Max was right. He was sure he’d still want to have sex with Max tomorrow, but it was a good idea to wait until they’d both had some time to process what happened tonight.
“I like morning sex better anyway,” Danny teased, laughing out loud when the steady thrum of Max’s pulse quickened.
He was really enjoying reconnecting with his senses. And he had a feeling it was going to make sex much more intense. That was definitely worth waiting for, especially since the wait was only going to be a few hours if he had anything to say about it.
They shared the bathroom sink as they got ready for bed, and it was more intimate than anything Danny had ever done. Max looked rumpled and sleepy, and the way he rubbed at his eyes as he fought off sleep while they sat up in bed talking was almost irresistibly adorable.
Danny let Max curl around him when they turned off the light. He’d never been comfortable enough to just drift right off to sleep with someone else in his
bed, but lying there with Max didn’t feel awkward or uncomfortable. Danny listened to Max’s even breathing until it put him to sleep.
IT wasn’t unusual for Danny to wake up with his covers tangled around him. He was a restless sleeper, and he had a hard time falling asleep and staying asleep. So he was surprised to find he and Max had barely moved at all when he woke the next morning.
They had plans to meet Sloane for breakfast, but it couldn’t be much past six, judging from the light streaming in the window. They hadn’t bothered to pull the shades when they’d gone to bed last night, and Danny was glad. Max’s skin looked perfect in the soft glow of the weak sunlight. Danny gave in to temptation and let his fingers trail lightly over Max’s exposed shoulder. Max twitched and opened his eyes, a sleepy smile curving his lips when he realized Danny was looking at him.
“Morning.” Max wiggled an arm out of the duvet and used it to pull Danny closer so he was lying on Max’s chest. The thin T-shirt he’d slept in had ridden up in his sleep, and Danny splayed his hand over the bare skin, fascinated by the way the muscles contracted under his touch.
“Ah, Danny,” Max bit out when Danny continued his exploration. “That’s… ah.”
Danny laughed and let his fingers dip farther, tracing the outline of Max’s morning erection, which presented an oh-so-tempting bulge in his sweatpants. Max told him they’d reevaluate in the morning, and it was morning. Danny wasn’t going to be held back anymore, not unless this really wasn’t what Max wanted. And from the way the bulge jumped when Danny’s fingers traced lightly over it, he didn’t think that was the case.
“I’ve had a good night’s sleep,” Danny said before Max could speak. “The best night’s sleep, actually. I slept like a rock. I still want to join your Pack. I still want to get to know you and continue this bond, and I’m not scared that the end of that line is taking my place as the Alpha Mate in your Pack, assuming things go well. Have I addressed all your objections?”
He laid his palm over the bulge and squeezed lightly. Max shuddered and groaned, his hips bucking up, trying to follow when Danny took his hand away.
