by Lisa Oliver
least usually the two people concerned could be intimate with
each other. Richard’s behavior wasn’t making any sense.
“He doesn’t need a hard-on to take care of my needs. His trust
in me grows with every passing day. His wolf is not averse to my
touch, or to him touching me. Terry has a lot of firsts I can take
care of for him – his first kiss, giving someone a hand job, a blow
job even. And believe me, having him in my arms at night while
we’re sleeping is something I dream about, and I’m going to
make it happen. Don’t you worry about us.”
“You can’t have him, he’s mine.”
The words were automatic, but Zander knew it was more than
that. He was losing control of his mating situation and he really
didn’t like it. Somehow in his crazy mixed up head he’d always
believed that Terry would one day come back to him, would want
him and would live with the restrictions that Zander had to keep
in place if he didn’t want to lose his partnership with Sully. A
friendship that Zander thought he had to hold onto at all costs.
But now he wasn’t so sure. If he lost his mate permanently then
he…fuck, he might as well be dead.
“The big difference between you and me, my friend,” Richard
continued, “Is that I want to be with him anywhere, anytime. I
watch him sleep – it’s so cute, did you know he snuffles in his
sleep? I want to take care of him and my wolf is so fucking proud
when we go out together. If Terry accepts me as a bond mate,
then he will always come first in my life. You – all that is going
to happen to you is you’re going to lose your wolf spirit, if you
persist with this stupidity. You’ll go mad within weeks and will
probably end up dead, or in a mental institution. For what? To
protect your reputation with one homophobic, human idiot you
call a partner? Terry mourns you every single day and you want
to stay friends with Sully?”
The anger left Zander as though someone had flicked a switch.
Terry was grieving, over him, despite everything he’d done.
Grieving, well that had to mean he still wanted him, no matter
how callously Zander had behaved. Hanging his head, he felt a
trickle of wetness fall down his face as pain gripped his heart and
strangled it. Tears. Fuck, he’d never cried before. Usually when
confronted with any emotion Zander would force it away –
suppress it, just like he’d done from the moment he decided to
live in the human world. But he couldn’t do it today. Terry was
too important. He might not like it but the arrogant wolf shifter
who had been doing his job, looking after his mate, was right.
A mate should always come first, should always be the most
important person in a wolf shifter’s life. It had been that way
since the beginning of time and Zander had been so worried
about keeping his partnership with Sully, he’d forgotten the very
heart of what it meant to be a wolf shifter. If Terry did accept
Richard’s bond, then Zander would lose everything, including the
chance to be in love for the very first time in his life.
“What can I do? I fucked up more badly than you can know.” His
voice sounded broken even to his own ears, but Zander couldn’t
care less if he appeared weak. If Richard took him out in this
clean but tiny bathroom, then it was nothing less than he
deserved. He had to know if there was a chance that he could
fix things with Terry. He had to make things right, and if that
meant losing Sully, well, there wasn’t anything he could do about
it. Terry had always deserved his full focus, from the moment
they’d met. Fuck. The little sweetheart deserved everything
Zander could possibly give him and a thousand times more.
“I do know how you’ve fucked up, I made Terry tell me. But you
still have a chance,” Richard said. “Look, your friend will be
getting anxious, we both have work to do this afternoon, and I
want to make sure Terry is okay. I told him you would probably
come in here to talk to me, and I know he will be worried sick
about it. He’s terrified we’ll fight and he hates the very thought
of either one of us getting hurt. Omegas are like that. Come and
see me tonight, okay? I’ll stay late at the office. Terry has a
meeting with his Diva friends, so we’ll be alone. I’ll help you
come up with a plan to win him back.”
Richard was right, again, which did nothing to make Zander feel
any better. Even though he wanted to rush back into the
restaurant and claim Terry right there over the table so no one
else could take him away, he forced himself to be patient. He
could wait until tonight. He quickly washed his hands and face
at the sink, while Richard waited for him. As the two men walked
out of the door, he said quietly, “Why are you doing this for me?
Why didn’t you just push Terry into letting you claim him, if you
care for him so much? Is all this just a game to you, baiting me?”
“Don’t ever doubt how much I care for him, Samuels,” Richard
said, for the first time a deep growl evident in his tone.
“Terry means the world to me, but his wolf longs for you. I’ve
had my life with my true mate and I wouldn’t have missed a
second of it. Believe me, what Terry could have with you is so
much more than I can give him. I care enough about him to want
to see him have that with you. So you get one chance, one more
chance. You ever fuck it up again, and I will take him as my own
and I’ll fucking rip your throat out just to break your bond. You
have my promise on that. He’s too special to be wandering about
the world on his own without protection or love. What I don’t
understand is why you haven’t seen that before.”
“I never even thought of that,” Zander said, as shame hit him
all over again. But it was the truth. He had recognized that Terry
lived in a bad neighborhood, but never thought about protecting
him. He knew Terry had gotten hurt at work, and probably lost
his job, but he didn’t know if his mate was worrying about money
now. Fuck, the number of ways Zander had let his mate down
were increasing the more he thought about it.
“Well you’d better start thinking, with your wolf instincts, not
your fucking human ideas. I’ll see you tonight.”
Richard headed back towards Terry, who did look really anxious,
while Zander looked around for Sully. He wasn’t surprised to see
that his partner had left, probably headed back to the office. It
was a five mile walk, but Zander was going to use that time to
clear his head and start to think of ways to show Terry how
special he was.
How the hell could he have forgotten the very foundations of
wolf shifter society? The importance of a true mate. Heading out
of the restaurant, Zander thought for a minute and then changed
direction, deciding to head for his home instead. Drug crimes
were a fact of life, take one criminal down and another takes his
place. It was a never ending bat
tle, one that Zander normally
enjoyed fighting. But drugs were human problems, perpetuated
by humans on other humans and today, Zander needed to think
like a wolf.
Lengthening his stride, Zander hurried home. He had a sudden
urge to phone his father, who was still Alpha of Zander’s ex-
home pack. Although they hadn’t spoken in years, since Zander
had left the pack rather than challenge the man who raised him,
Zander knew his father would hear him out, talk to him. The
older man would be disappointed in him for losing his way, but
if anyone could offer him some advice on how to woo his mate,
then it would be his father. Hopefully between him and Richard,
Zander would be in with a chance of being the mate that Terry
deserved.
Chapter Nine
“I’m so nervous I think I’m going to throw up,” Terry whispered
as he smoothed non-existent wrinkles out of his collared shirt.
He was dressing for a date with Zander. He was actually going
on a date with Zander! He still had no idea what happened in the
bathroom of the pizzeria, had no idea if Zander had changed his
attitude or anything else. All he knew was Richard had asked him
to give Zander the chance to be the mate he was supposed to
be. Terry trusted Richard, so he agreed. But thank goodness
Richard had come over to give him some moral support before
Zander arrived, or Terry was sure he’d be in a huddled mess
under his blankets. He hunted out his colorful jacket, the one
that always made him feel good, and shrugged it over his
shoulders.
“You’re going to be fine,” Richard said coming up behind him and
giving him a hug. Terry still felt a bit of a tingle in his skin when
Richard touched him, but he was getting better with it. The fact
that in all the times they had gone out on dates, Richard had
never been anything but a perfect gentleman really helped.
Terry saw Richard as a mentor, someone who looked out for him,
and the lack of sexual intent went a long way towards soothing
Terry’s nerves. Glancing up in the mirror at Richard’s reflection,
Terry noticed that Richard was also dressed up. He always
looked smart, but Terry could tell that his friend had made a bit
more of an effort this evening.
“Where are you going this evening? You’re looking pretty spiffy.”
“You don’t look so bad yourself,” Richard said with a grin.
“Actually I have a date too, with your friend Roy actually. The
couple of times I’ve talked to him, he seems like a really nice
guy, and seeing as you are off out with your mate, I thought
why not see what happens. Are you okay with that?”
Terry was surprised to find he didn’t mind, but then although
Richard had proven he was the most attentive friend he could
ever had, he would never get jealous over anyone Richard
showed attention to. He wasn’t like that. But he was surprised
in Richard’s choice of date. He didn’t think Roy had ever actually
been asked out on a date before, and he said so.
“I think all men deserve the chance to be treated properly,”
Richard said. “Roy may have a mouth on him, but he’s really
cute. Looks a lot like you actually and that happens to be a look
I’m attracted to.”
“You know he’s going to want to blow you in the bathroom before
dinner don’t you?” Terry wasn’t being mean about his friend, he
loved Roy like a brother. But he did know that Roy felt his only
value was in what he could provide sexually, and he was damn
proud of his oral skills. Unfortunately Roy tended to get even
more sarcastic if he was turned down. In fact he could turn into
a real drama queen if things didn’t go his way.
“Roy needs someone who puts his needs first, and who shows
that they can care about the whole package, not just his wicked
mouth. You let me worry about your friend, and you worry about
your mate who, if my nose tells me correctly, has arrived to pick
you up. Do you want me to get the door?”
“Yes please,” Terry whimpered as he ran to the bathroom. He
wasn’t just nervous, he was terrified. Not of Zander, but of his
own feelings. He’d been through so much hurt with the big Alpha
already and they’d never even had a proper conversation. The
man had never shown him any affection or any of the traits a
good mate would have – and yet thanks to their brief
interactions, or despite them, Terry felt like his heart had been
blasted with a machine gun. It had so many holes in it. He wasn’t
sure he could survive much more.
The only reason Terry had agreed to give Zander a fighting
chance, was because Richard had talked openly and honestly
about his own mate, and the life they had shared together.
Richard’s mate had been human and it was clear from everything
that Richard had said, that he adored his mate the way any wolf
shifter should do.
Richard had told him that Zander had those same feelings, he’d
just spent too much time thinking like a human, and had let his
fears get in the way. It was the thought of Zander being afraid
of anything at all, that convinced Terry he needed to put his hurt
behind him and give things a go. Wolf shifters only got one mate,
and no matter what the Fates might have been thinking when
they paired him with Zander, Terry had to trust that somewhere
under that arrogant exterior was the man who was perfect for
him in every way.
And now Richard was going out on a date with Roy, and Terry
well, he’d better get out of the bathroom before his mate thought
he had stood him up. No matter how badly he’d been hurt by
Zander, Terry would never knowingly cause him any pain. Taking
a deep breath, Terry squared his shoulders, gave his shirt one
last smooth down and headed out to the living area, where
Zander was waiting.
Seeing his mate standing so tall, and so wonderfully edible, had
Terry’s cock rising and he gasped at the impact simply being in
the same room with Zander could cause him. Zander was a good
ten inches taller than him and at least three times as wide.
Dressed in a dark charcoal suit jacket and matching pants, with
a plain black silk shirt underneath, Terry was reminded again of
his initial moniker for the man – Mr. Perfection.
Zander had taken the time to shave, his dark hair was tidy and
if Terry wasn’t mistaken, freshly cut, and in his hand Zander had
one dark pink rose, which he held out to Terry as though asking
him to take it. Thank you. The flower was meant as a thank you,
and Terry was touched by the gesture. Forcing his feet to move,
he took the flower, and cupped it in his hand. It was easier to
enjoy the soft bloom than it was to look at Zander. The man fair
took his breath away.
“Are you ready to go?” Zander asked in that husky deep voice
that made Terry’s knees tremble. “I made dinner reservations in
town.”
In town? His mate was really making an effort if he wa
s prepared
to be seen in public with him. Casting a quick look at Richard
who was waiting by the door, Terry nodded. “I just need to grab
my keys.” Still holding the rose, grabbing his keys from the bowl
by the door, Terry went to head out, but Richard stopped him,
taking the rose from him.
“You go. I’ll put this in water for you and then lock the door when
I leave. Give him a chance little one,” he whispered.
“I will,” Terry smiled. “And no blowjobs in the bathroom, okay?
Roy deserves more than that from you. You both mean the world
to me.”
Richard gave him a mock salute and headed through to Terry’s
tiny kitchen and Terry looked up at Zander meeting his eyes with
a hopeful smile. Zander held out his arm, and Terry slipped his
hand around the elbow, swamped by a whole raft of sensations
that came from touching his man in such a simple way. They
hadn’t even left the house yet, and Terry was worrying about
how they would get through dinner. Being so close to his mate
was causing his wolf to throw a party in his head, and his cock
to try and get out of his pants. Talk about sensation overload.
/~/~/~/~/
Zander was tongue tied. Not a common occurrence for him. He
usually had no trouble talking to a wide range of people. It said
so on his resume, damn it. But the moment Terry had come out
of his room, Zander had been struck mute. Terry was wearing
his bright jacket that Zander totally loved, combined with a black
shirt and long black pants. His dark hair fell over a face that was
too pale to be healthy, and Zander worried if his little mate had
been eating enough. The whole effect was of innocence, and a
sweetness that Zander could never achieve. In that one
moment, Zander understood what his father had told him the
day before.
His mate was an Omega, and he, Alpha wolf and fucking idiot,
had been charged by the Fates to look out for this man. To
protect him and care for him and make sure that Terry was
happy in every aspect of his life. In return his Omega would be
loving, loyal and totally devoted, providing Zander with an inner
strength he didn’t even know he needed until he’d talked to his
father.
Unfortunately Zander didn’t know what was in Terry’s life apart
