by Ophelia Bell
Javin cleaned his inner elbow with a disinfectant wipe, jabbed the injector in, and hit the button at the top. With a faint hiss the drug was sent into Simon’s vein and that was that. Now for the part he usually looked forward to but today was more worried about.
He was reaching for Javin’s hand when the other man stood abruptly and pushed his chair in. Gripping the chairback hard enough for his knuckles to whiten, he said, “I need you to visit your partner. Tonight.”
Simon stared at him in shock. “What? No fucking way. That bastard ruined my life. The league has the counteragent now so the issue is moot anyway.”
“Not anymore. There was another victim today. Midnight Star was injured. The toxin’s even more effective than before somehow. The counteragent’s stopped working.”
An icy chill shot down Simon’s spine. Not another one. He shook his head. “Astra Garrick was hurt?” His voice was barely a whisper. Of all the solo champions whose careers he followed, he’d latched on to hers the closest. There was something about how she fought, her ferocity, her utter fearlessness. She had all her brother’s skills plus something more. Where the Ebon Claw had been cold and ruthless, a technically perfect fighter on all counts, Midnight Star had taken that talent and set it on fire.
He was too dazed by the news to react when Javin grabbed him by the collar and yanked him out of his seat. “Did you fucking hear me? We need to go tonight!”
Simon stared into Javin’s eyes, recognized the mirror of his own fear, and suddenly Javin’s rage made sense. “You love her too.”
“What the fuck? She’s Talon’s sister.”
“No, no, don’t pull that with me. You love her and that’s why you didn’t put the moves on me like you usually do. I see it in your eyes. You’re fucking raw. Trust me, I get it. I feel it too.”
Javin snarled, his canines lengthening in a way that only someone with training could accomplish without shifting entirely. This was new. Did the good doctor have champion training too? Most shifters couldn’t control their animal well enough to manifest only partial shifts.
“You don’t get to feel shit for Astra, you filthy fucking hyena. You’re part of the problem.”
“Don’t you think I know that?” Simon shot, smacking Javin’s hands away and pushing back against him. He was bigger than Javin and could easily take him in a fight, but he played the submissive because he had no status to leverage anyway. “I didn’t ask to be a fucking drug addict. It was supposed to be one match. Now look at me! Everyone on the goddamn planet knows my face. They all look at me the way you’re looking at me right now, like I’m no better than something you’d scrape off your shoe. Watching Midnight Star fight was the one joy I got out of the fucking league anymore. If you think you’re any better than I am, you’re fucking delusional.”
“I told you, she’s Talon’s sister. He was my best friend. There’s nothing between us.”
“Are you sure about that?” Simon taunted. “Because you sure as shit seem emotional about what happened right now. How do you like feeling helpless for a change? Like the entire world has flown right off the rails and you have no fucking hope of getting it back under control.”
He was deflating now, but Javin looked as pissed as ever.
“Control is overrated anyway,” Simon scoffed and turned to walk away. A big hand clamped down on the back of his neck and shoved him down onto the tabletop. His nose cracked against the wood, pain lancing through his face, and his teeth dug into his lip. The coppery taste of blood flooded his tongue, but the sensation was nothing compared to the feel of sharp teeth digging into the back of his neck where Javin’s hand had been.
Simon groaned, his dick stiffening.
“I’ll show you control, you son of a bitch,” Javin said.
“I bet you will,” Simon said over his shoulder, his chuckle fading into a hiss when Javin yanked his sweats down past his ass and the clank of a belt echoed behind him.
Simon’s erection pressed hard against the cold wood. He shifted his hips to find a more comfortable position that didn’t have the edge of the table digging right into his balls. Javin smacked him and he yelped in surprise.
“Fucking hell, I had no idea you were that bad off.”
“Hands over your head. Grip the edge of the table and don’t fucking move.”
Simon cast a surprised glance back as he obliged, hooking his fingertips over the far side of the table. Javin was unbuttoning his shirt, then tearing it off to reveal his dark, sculpted torso. Champion training had seriously rubbed off on this guy in a good way. Was half the reason they kept winding up in this position because they had no hope of experiencing actual sex with a champion?
Javin’s wolf eyes blazed with need, darting up to meet Simon’s gaze. “Where’s your lube?” he asked.
Simon’s mouth fell open. Then he said, “Bathroom cabinet.” Javin had departed at a swift walk when Simon realized his mistake. “Wait! Bedside table,” he called. He didn’t need to take any fucking chances that Javin would find his stash.
“Don’t move!” Javin called back.
“Now way I’m letting you chicken out of this,” Simon muttered to himself. He turned his head to face the hallway Javin had disappeared down, hands still obediently gripping the table edge and his bare ass fully on display.
Javin reappeared a moment later with the small bottle in hand and paused in the entrance to the dining room. A proprietary look flashed in his eyes, and it sent a shiver across Simon’s skin. He couldn’t help but tilt his hips against the table, and enough fluid had escaped his cock that he glided along the smooth polished wood.
“Get the fuck over here and fuck me,” he said, still marveling a little that Javin had even taken the time to grab the lube. With that look in his eyes, Simon had been fully prepared for spit and nothing more.
The cap snapped open on the bottle and Simon’s ass tightened, then released almost on its own. Javin came close and gripped one cheek, spreading him open. Cold fluid hit the top of his crease at first and his cock jerked beneath him as the fluid trickled down around his hole.
“Don’t go easy, please,” he said, already tortured by Javin’s deliberate, slow pace.
“Do I ever?” Javin asked, slicking one fingertip around his opening before plunging it in. Simon jerked, clenched, then released as Javin smacked him on the ass again.
“No, dude, you do whatever the fuck you want. I’m just trying to change it up by telling you what I need for a change, and what I need is for you to fucking nail me to this table.”
Another measure of lube hit his ass and another finger pushed in. He knew he was loose enough for the other man though. This was a weekly occurrence so they’d had plenty of time to acclimate. He thought Javin just secretly enjoyed torturing him.
He was about to beg again when Javin’s thick, hot cockhead prodded his opening and the words died on his lips when the other man shoved deep.
Simon gripped the edge of the table, groaning as Javin began to fuck him hard. Fingertips dug into his shoulders, hot breath gusting against his neck. His entire body tingled from the pleasure he longed for daily while waiting for Javin’s next visit. It wasn’t the sex as much as the simple contact. Javin could be brutal, and often was. There was no real love between them, just the common need to expel their demons through pain and pleasure.
Something was different today though. The knowledge that the Midnight Star had been injured ate at him, and despite the rising waves of pleasure Javin’s dick sent surging through him, a deeper ache had started growing inside. He could have done more to stop this. He should have done more.
He reached beneath his hips and gripped his cock, Javin’s needy groan harsh against his ear as the other man’s hips smacked against his ass. Pleasure bloomed bright as a sun when he added his own stroking palm to the pounding friction inside him.
Javin’s mouth rested against his ear, breaths harsh and fast. His teeth grazed Simon’s neck and he braced himself for the pain of a b
ite, only dimly wishing for a mating mark to obliterate his need, though he knew that would never happen. His good doctor was far too restrained and in control for that, despite all appearances at the moment.
But what he felt shocked him even more than a bite. Rather than teeth sinking into skin, Javin’s lips pressed hotly against the sensitive skin beneath Simon’s ear. Not just an accidental brush in the heat of passion, but an actual kiss. The show of tenderness was so unexpected yet so much what he needed, he snapped. His cock exploded in his fist, a rough groan that was half sob wrenching from him.
Javin’s body went rigid and his cock spasmed at the same time. His breath blasted against Simon’s ear, a single word escaping as he came.
“Astra.”
Simon’s elation over the show of tenderness faded to confusion, then understanding. All the other times suddenly made more sense. He’d believed it was just an incoherent outburst, but after learning Javin knew the Midnight Star, everything clicked.
He began to laugh as Javin eased out and ambled to the kitchen, grabbing a pair of towels and tossing one to Simon.
“What’s so fucking funny?” Javin said, his dark chest gleaming with sweat and heaving as he caught his breath.
“You’re in denial. If you don’t love Astra Garrick, why the fuck did you just say her name while fucking me?”
“I didn’t—” Javin began, then dropped his gaze to the floor. “Fuck.”
7
Simon
Simon wiped up, then pulled up his pants and joined Javin in the kitchen. He opened the fridge and pulled out a pair of bottled drinks, handing Javin one. “So you were close with the Ebon Claw, huh?”
He leaned against the counter across from the doctor, waiting for a response. Javin’s face contorted with anguish for a split second, then he took a deep breath and looked as placid as ever.
“He was my best friend. I swore I’d protect her.”
“And you fell in love with her instead. I get it.”
Javin shook his head. “No, you don’t get it. I didn’t fall. I honestly don’t think there was a single moment when I didn’t love her.”
“You’re lucky to even know her,” Simon said, a hint of bitterness seeping into his voice. “I just get to admire her from afar, though I probably have her to thank for this, don’t I?” He waved a hand between them. “Would you even debase yourself with me if you didn’t need something? You’ve been after me to visit Gunther for months. It’s because of her, isn’t it?”
“She was only wounded a few days ago. The last few months weren’t about her, but the league in general.”
“The nagging, I get, but the sex? Don’t tell me we started fucking because you want to protect the league. And deep down she represents the league for you, doesn’t she? You swore to protect her.”
Javin swallowed and cast his gaze toward the window for a moment, as if hoping to catch a dragon flying in the sky beyond.
“Yes,” he finally said, meeting Simon’s gaze dead on. “I will protect her, but I can’t be with her. She’s like a little sister. It just can’t happen.”
Simon snorted. “That sounds like bullshit.”
“Fine. She can’t stand me so it doesn’t really matter what I want, does it? You and I are both shit out of fucking luck.”
“Well hey, we’ve got each other,” Simon said with a bitter smirk.
Javin rolled his eyes, then sobered again. “You do have me. I may not always show it, but I wouldn’t go out of my way like this if I didn’t care.”
“Out of your way for a good screw, you mean?” Simon asked, crossing his arms.
“Out of my way to make sure your symptoms are managed. But I think you’ve been self-medicating lately so maybe you didn’t really need me to come today at all.”
Simon stilled. How could he know? “I’m not . . .”
Javin shook his head. “You smell different when you’re on the shit, Simon. Did you really think I wouldn’t notice?”
“Fuck,” Simon muttered, covering his face in his hands. Of course the wolf would know. “Just don’t report me. Don’t . . .” His throat closed around the words and his eyes burned with tears. Don’t leave.
Javin was at his side, slinging an arm around his shoulders. Simon buried his face in the doctor’s neck, his tears mixing with the pungent sweat clinging to the wolf shifter’s skin.
“I’m not fucking around with you on this anymore. You have to stop or it’s going to kill you. When was the last time you trained?”
“What the fuck for? I’m never getting back into the league. I have no life. This fucking apartment is it. Your visits are the only thing keeping me sane.”
“Taking care of yourself goes a long way to helping reclaim some connection with your animal. Proper diet, exercise, rest. Kicking your addiction is the first step. Hell, finding a mate would probably be the best thing you could do.”
Simon snorted and pulled away, giving the doctor an incredulous look. “In my fucking dreams. I’m infamous, in case you missed it. An accessory to attempted murder. The only reason I’m not locked up is because I sold out my partner. I don’t even know where to start.”
“Start by being honest with yourself, and with me. What do you want?” Javin was giving him that intense stare again, like he could see into Simon’s soul.
“Are we just talking within my grasp or bigger?”
“Go as big as you can imagine. We’ll work backward from there.”
“All right. I want to compete again. The arena was all I cared about before this shit. And I’d like to apologize to Astra—hell, just being able to meet her would make my year. I doubt she’s interested in me groveling at her feet, but I would if it would help.”
Javin tensed. “You know what would help, Simon.”
Fucking hell, there was no backing out of this now, was there? “Fine. You promise to help me with what I want, then I’ll help you.”
“I can’t promise you’ll compete again. You know that,” Javin cautioned. “But for starters, I need you to show me where you hide your drugs.”
He balked at that idea but Javin’s intensity made him give in. If he really wanted what he’d said he wanted, this was the first step. With a sigh, he turned and led Javin toward the bathroom, opened the cabinet, and pulled out an innocuous-looking container of swabs. Opening the lid, he fished out the metal cylinder that held cartridges of the drug. Of the dozen doses he’d bought, half remained.
“This is all of it,” he said, reluctantly handing it over. “Can you help Astra, using this?”
Javin’s expression darkened as he scrutinized the canister. “The toxin in her blood isn’t the same as what killed her brother. It’s close, which is how we’re sure the drug that produced it is a version of the one you used. But unless this is the new formula, it won’t be sufficient to help.”
Simon slumped against the wall. “It’s the old batch. My dealer said his supply dried up after the scandal last year. That was the last he had. His supplier ghosted him. And before you ask, yes, I tried to get more information. I may not be able to reclaim the respect of the league, but I’m willing to make amends if I can.”
“Was he the same dealer your partner bought from?” Javin asked.
“No, he was just some street punk. He didn’t even have a name for his source. I believed him. The poor kid was terrified of me. He wouldn’t have lied.” Simon had felt like a thug that day, intimidating a malnourished, scraggly outcast from one of the southern fox clans. Even without his connection to his hyena, he could have snapped the kid in half with his bare hands. He’d paid him double his asking price for the drug to make up for scaring the kid shitless.
“And you don’t have any idea who your partner’s source was?” Javin asked.
“No.” Simon braced himself for the step he knew it was time to take. “But I’ll see if I can meet with him tonight. Just . . .” He took a shaky breath and tried not to sound like he was begging. “Just keep up your end. I can’t
do this alone.”
Javin pressed his lips into a tight line and patted Simon on the shoulder. “I’m not going anywhere. Shall we?” He gestured toward the door.
* * *
After showering and changing into a more presentable outfit, Simon settled in the passenger seat at the rear of Javin’s sleek, two-person transporter. The narrow, aerodynamic vehicle sped through the air, floating several yards above the ground, its gyroscopic movements managing to calm his frazzled nerves.
That old incessant voice was back, buzzing like a pest inside his mind, accusing him of being a stupid asshole for giving up his stash so easily. But he wanted free of that crutch. He wanted his fucking life back, and if Javin remained true to his word, this was the first step to freedom.
“I’ll wait out here,” Javin said when they reached the check-in desk at the incarceration facility. Simon nodded absently, his back and neck prickling with fear and his skin clammy beneath his shirt.
The guard showed him into the visitation room a moment later and motioned him toward a small table that was bolted to the floor. Two chairs sat on either side of it and he took one, his knee already bouncing in agitation while he stared around the room. It could’ve been him in here if he hadn’t turned on his partner. He’d have fucking died if that had been the case.
A door opened across the room a moment later and Simon’s head jerked up. A pair of guards escorted another shifter through, hands clenched on the former champion’s meaty biceps. But Gunther didn’t look like himself. He was still a huge fucker, taller than Simon and big enough that he probably could have subdued both guards easily if he’d tried. But the calculating ferocity Simon had known him for was entirely absent. His eyes were glassy, unfocused, and his gait sluggish. A sheen of sweat covered his brow, glinting in the artificial light.
The guards shoved him into his seat and he let out a soft grunt, staring at the floor and trying to catch his breath. Simon inhaled through his nose, the scent of desperation mixed with deep, irrational hunger filling his nostrils.
