With Caution

by J. L. Langley

  A soft, seductive kiss tickled his stomach, making him loosen his grip. As soon as his hand fell to the mattress, his prick was once again engulfed.

  Ass muscles clenching tight, he shivered. His balls drew closer to his body and his legs tensed. It was absolute torture. A tingle raced up his spine. No, not yet. “Oh God, oh—”

  The wonderful warmth left his cock.

  Remi half growled, half laughed. “You fucking tease.”

  A snort answered him, then his dick was gripped, held upright and laved from tip to balls.

  Fisting his hand in the thick hair again, Remi pulled his lover’s face closer to his groin. “Yessss, that feels good.”

  His legs were shoved higher, exposing him more, and that wicked tongue laved his crease, snaking down.

  Remi tried concentrating on the slick caress over his perineum and the breath across his balls. Suddenly, it stopped and saliva dripped through his crease.

  Then more spit landed on Remi’s hole. A finger circled his anus, spreading it around.

  “Tease!”

  The finger pressed inside.

  Remi moaned. “God…”

  Bang, bang, bang. “Remi, open up.”

  Remi bolted upright in bed so quickly a wave of dizziness hit him.

  The knock came again. “Remi, let me in already. Are you still asleep? You better not still be asleep.”

  Sterling? Remi blinked, trying to focus. “Coming.” He jumped out of bed, looking around. What the fuck was he looking for? Oh, pants.

  The knock came again.

  “I’m coming.” He yanked his pants on over his boner. He groaned and tucked his boner in his pants and zipped them. He ran to the door and flung it open.

  Sterling strolled inside. “You were still asleep.”

  Remi stood there for a minute, the sunlight feeling like it was stabbing him in the head. There didn’t seem to be an emergency. Damn, he was wobbly from getting up so fast.

  His mom waved from her car.

  After waving back, Remi shut the door. What the fuck? He glanced at Sterling, who stood in the middle of the living room frowning. “What?”

  “Do you realize it’s ten o’clock?”

  Remi walked back into his bedroom and flopped on the bed. Holy shit. His heart was pounding. Remi buried his face in the mattress then turned his head to the side and took a deep breath. Damn, how much had he had to drink last night? He remembered Rhys bringing him home in his car and Jake—

  “You forgot me.” Sterling came in and crawled onto the bed beside him. He lay on his side facing Remi.

  “I didn’t forget you. I didn’t realize you were coming here. I was planning on going to get you when I got up.”

  Sterling shrugged, flopping onto his back. “Mom was going to the store, I had her bring me. Why are you still asleep at this time a day?”

  “I went out last night.”

  Sterling rolled back onto his side. “You did? With Jake?” He smiled.

  Remi groaned, turned over and sat up. Climbing off the bed, he headed to the bathroom. It was way too fucking early for this. He couldn’t remember all of what he’d said to Jake last night. Then there was that dream… He kept having it. Why?

  “Hey. Where are you going?”

  Crazy. I’m going crazy. “To take a piss.”

  * * *

  Sterling snagged his helmet off Remi’s white laminate kitchen counter and, with the football under his arm, took off out the door.

  Remi followed at a much slower pace. Goddamn he didn’t have the energy to keep up with Sterling today.

  What all had he said to Jake last night? Remi winced thinking about it. When he was drunk he didn’t hold anything back, everything he thought just flew right out his mouth. It was why he never got drunk unless he was with someone he trusted completely. And while he did trust Jake, he hadn’t planned on getting drunk.

  What the fuck happened? Oddly, he wasn’t really hung over. He’d had a bit of a headache when he first got up, but it was gone now.

  He tucked his helmet under his arm, put his sunglasses on, turned the lock on the front door and shut it. He checked to make sure it locked and descended the steps. No telling what Sterling was getting into while he was up here trying to figure out what all he’d said and done last night.

  The apartment door downstairs and across from Remi’s opened. Mr. Morris stuck his head out. “Morning, Remi.” Mr. Morris dipped his gray head toward the parking lot, where Sterling was already sitting on Remi’s bike. “Looks like you have a big day planned.”

  “Yeah, he’s going to make the team next year or kill us both trying.”

  Mr. Morris chuckled. “Well, he’s a good kid. If anyone can teach him how to play, it’s you.”

  “I’m sure going to try.”

  Mr. Morris nodded. “You’ll do fine. Listen, have you noticed any bums hanging around here lately?”

  Remi shook his head. “No, I haven’t really noticed.”

  “Well, I’m going to talk to the super this morning. I swear the neighborhood is going to hell.”

  “Remi,” Sterling called from the parking lot.

  “Thanks, Mr. Morris. I better get before the kid takes off without me.”

  “Have fun playing ball.” He waved and went back in his apartment.

  Bums? Remi surveyed the lot, but didn’t notice anything out of the ordinary. Wait. There was a homeless person, across the sidewalk where the next apartment building began. Interesting.

  “What’s up?”

  Remi jumped at Sterling’s voice. “Nothing.” He glanced at his brother and put his own helmet on and fastened it. “Let’s go.”

  * * *

  Smiling, Sterling ran the ball back. “Did you go home alone?”

  Remi snagged the ball and growled. “Would you stop?”

  “No. I wanna know.”

  “You are too young to know.”

  Sterling’s eyes widened. “Holy shit, something happened.”

  Remi groaned. “Nothing happened. We went out for a few drinks and I met Jake’s friends there.” Jesus, the kid had a one-track mind. And why the hell did he seem to want something to happen? “Where did you go? Was Jake there? Did you have fun?” And why did his questions sound so…suspicious?

  “Hi, Jake.” Sterling waved, looking over Remi’s shoulder.

  Jake? Remi turned and, sure enough, there was Jake. Not only Jake, but Tank, Dago, Gadget, Zack, Nick and Rhys. Remi smiled, feeling a warmth spread through him that had nothing to do with the heat of the summer day.

  A gasp sounded from beside him. Sterling’s mouth was hanging open, his eyes wide. Then he whispered, “Oh. My. God.”

  Remi followed Sterling’s gaze all the way to Rhys.

  Rhys stood right behind Jake, in a pair of cutoffs and a tank top. He had a cooler on his shoulder, carrying it like it weighed nothing. He was limping slightly.

  “I know, scary as hell, ain’t he?” Remi asked.

  Mute for the first time in his life, Sterling simply nodded.

  Remi knew how the kid felt since he’d had the same reaction.

  Stepping up to them, Jake furrowed his brow at Sterling, then met Remi’s gaze.

  Remi shrugged. “Rhys.”

  Jake nodded. “Ah.”

  Gadget walked up to Remi holding out his hand. “Hey, man, how’s it going?”

  “Good.” Remi slapped Gadget’s hand, then made a fist and hit Gadget’s.

  Nick did the same thing. Tank and Zack slapped him on the back.

  Dago looked a little green as he grabbed Remi’s hand and pounded him on the back. “Hey.” His voice sounded rusty.

  Remi’d had as much alcohol as Dago, but apparently he’d fared better this morning. “Hey.” Remi squeezed Dago’s hand and slapped his arm. “How’s your head?”

  Dago groaned. “Oh fuck. Hurts like a son of a bitch. How’s yours?”

  “Actually, it’s fine.”

  “Lucky bastard,” Dago grumbled.


  Remi chuckled.

  “Jake, where the fuck do you want this?” Rhys asked, dipping his head toward the ice chest on his shoulder.

  “Bend over and we’ll show ya, Rhys,” Gadget murmured.

  Jake pointed to a tree. “Stick it over there in the shade.”

  “Fuck you, Gadget. Just for that, you stay the fuck outta the ice chest.” Rhys walked past. “Hey, Remi.”

  Remi grinned. “Hey, Rhys.” He turned around and raised a brow at Gadget. “You got a death wish?”

  “Shit, Gadget would do anything to get away from all those damn kids of his.” Zack flopped onto the grass and stretched his legs out.

  Dago laughed, then clutched his head and groaned.

  Remi fought back a laugh. He could imagine. He’d learned last night that Gadget was married and had nine kids. “All right, guys, play nice.”

  Tank went to Sterling, who was standing next to Remi with a blank look on his face, and offered his hand. “Hey, pup. Sterling, right? Remi’s told us a lot about you. Nice to meet you.”

  “Nice to meet you too.” Sterling shook Nick’s hand and became his normal chatty self, introducing himself to the rest of the gang. If Remi wasn’t mistaken he heard the little shit mention his name a couple of times, asking about last night.

  Jake sidled up next to Remi and bumped his shoulder. “Kid is as protective over you as you are him. How do you feel this morning?”

  “Good. No hangover. What the fuck did I do last night? And what are all of you doing here?” Not that Remi was complaining. He and Jake were beginning to get back the easy camaraderie they’d shared before the night Remi’d discovered they were mates. Actually, now it was better. Remi didn’t have to try and hide his attraction.

  Jake took the ball from him, answering the second question and ignoring the first. “Thought the kid could use some group practice.” He glanced at his friends. “We’re almost a team, only two short.”

  “We’re like thirteen short, Jake,” Sterling corrected.

  “I said a team, not two teams,” Jake countered.

  “A team is one whole side. Did you mean we’re all going to play offense?” Sterling raised a brow.

  “Well, I meant—”

  “Okay, okay.” Remi intervened to keep Jake from strangling Sterling. The kid questioned everything…to death. “How about two teams, one of four the other five?”

  They wound up playing Remi, Sterling, Jake and Rhys against Dago, Gadget, Tank, Zack and Nick. It went pretty smoothly until the guys realized how good Sterling was and Zack tried to tackle him. Rhys planted Zack on his ass and winced before hobbling away.

  Remi leaned into Jake. “He gonna be all right?”

  Jake nodded. “Shhh… Don’t mention it.”

  Sterling ran back after his second touchdown. He took one look at Rhys, who was trying to walk the pain off, and went right to him, grabbing his arm. “You okay? Will your leg be all right?”

  It got eerily quiet. Remi couldn’t hear anything but the traffic a block away and a dog barking somewhere nearby.

  After a few seconds Rhys stared at Sterling’s hand on his arm, then back at Sterling’s face and smiled. “It’s an old wound. I got into a shootout with a Mexican drug lord. I got wounded pretty bad…leg ain’t never been the same since.”

  Remi walked over, knelt in front of Rhys and tapped his calf. “Off with the shoe.”

  “It’s fine.” Rhys glared down at him.

  “Fuck that. You’re as bad as Sterling. Lose the goddamned shoe.” Remi had seen his share of injuries, first in football and now as a fireman. Regardless what Dirk said, he’d make a good EMT.

  Rhys grumbled and started cussing under his breath, but he didn’t say a thing when Remi untied his shoe and eased it and his sock off. He checked for mobility, moving Rhys’ ankle side to side, then watched for tenderness, massaging the leg. Rhys’ ankle was a little swollen, but there was no bruising.

  Remi stood and tossed Rhys his shoe and sock. “Go put ice on it.”

  Remi noticed all of the other guys staring at them. “What?”

  No one said anything.

  Sterling caught Rhys’ arm. “Come on, I’ll go with you. So, tell me about the shootout and how you caught them.”

  Rhys grumbled some more, but let Sterling pull him along.

  Jake’s hand landed on Remi’s shoulder. “I swear. Leave it to Sterling to be the only person ballsy enough to ask about the limp. It’s a sore subject. Rhys punched out the last guy who asked.”

  Remi jerked his head around, looking at Jake. “What?” Remi spared his brother—who was chattering away to a very bewildered-looking Rhys—one last glance then leaned closer to Jake. “Umm, is he dangerous?”

  Jake’s attention focused on Rhys and Sterling. “Very. But not to any of us.”

  Chapter Ten

  After pulling the SUV into a clearing near the woods, Jake turned off the headlights and the ignition and looked over at Remi. “You ready?”

  “Yeah. Ready when you are.”

  Jake gave a crisp nod and opened the door. “Let’s go.”

  The buzz of several different conversations hit them at once. Quite a few pack members were here already. He shut the door and met Remi at the front of the Tahoe.

  When they stepped into the clearing, the talking stopped. About thirty pack members stood near a big campfire in the middle of the small area, which was surrounded by trees. All of them were focused on Remi.

  Jake got an eerie feeling, then dismissed it. This was Remi’s first time meeting most of the pack. Keaton and Chay had kept him sheltered, only introducing him to the pack alpha, while they taught him how to be a wolf. It made sense the members would be curious about him.

  Remi stepped closer, brushing Jake’s arm with his shoulder. As though that were a sign, everyone turned back to their conversations.

  Putting his hand in the middle of Remi’s back to let his mate know he was there, Jake kept walking.

  Chay, a strange look on his face, waved from across the fire and immediately strode forward. He met Jake and Remi halfway with Keaton hurrying after him.

  “Hey.” Keaton nodded to Jake.

  Jake tipped his chin. “Hey.”

  Chay didn’t say anything. He leaned close to Remi and sniffed.

  “Cut it out, asshole.” Remi flicked Chay’s ear. The unease surrounding Remi seconds before had vanished. “God, this werewolf shit is hard to get used to.”

  “Ow.” Chay slapped a hand to the side of his head and flicked Remi’s ear back.

  “Ow.” Remi clutched his ear, glaring at Chay.

  Shaking his head, Jake chuckled. At least Remi was no longer nervous.

  Standing over near a group of trees, Rhys jerked his head, indicating he wanted Jake to come to him. Rhys’ glower was more pronounced than usual. Something must be up.

  Jake nodded and turned to Remi. “When you and Chay are done assaulting one another, come find me. I’m going to see what Rhys wants.”

  “Okay.” Remi glanced out past the fire and dipped his chin in greeting to Rhys.

  Rhys returned the action.

  As Jake walked off he heard Keaton say to Remi, “You smell different.”

  Exchanging hellos here and there, Jake made his way to Rhys. “’Sup?”

  Rhys’ brow furrowed. “Something strange is going on.”

  Jake’s lip quirked, but he didn’t dare laugh. Rhys was serious. “How so?”

  “I know damn well I sprained my ankle tackling Zack’s ass today, now it’s good as new. More to the point, my fucked-up leg isn’t aching. I can’t remember the last time this son of a bitch didn’t ache, especially after doing something stupid like trying to play football.”

  Jake frowned. He’d noticed this afternoon after Remi examined Rhys’ foot that he was walking more evenly. How could Remi handling Rhys’ leg make it better? Remi hadn’t done anything but massage it a little. Jake stared back at Remi. He was still talking to his friends. Fuck
, the man looked good. The firelight made his skin glow. He was something else, but he wasn’t a miracle worker.

  Rhys inhaled audibly next to him. “What did you do to him? He smells fucking great.” Rhys shook his head as if to clear it.

  “Man, I will kick your ass. You know that, right?”

  The corner of Rhys’ mouth turned up. “You can try. But you know damn well you don’t have anything to worry about from me. It’s just weird as hell though. It’s strong. I noticed it as soon as y’all got here. Everyone did. Think it has something to do with him fixing my leg?”

  Jake opened his mouth to tell Rhys that Remi could not have possibly healed his leg and all hell broke loose.

  Men started yelling at once.

  Tank, Dago, Gadget, Zack, Nick and Chay were in a circle, damn near fighting with several of the pack’s alpha wolves. They heaved people back, exchanging blows every few shoves. Fangs flashed and eyes glowed. The smell of blood, anger, arousal and sweat filled the air. Remi wasn’t in sight.

  Heart racing, Jake ran toward the commotion. His fangs dropped and his hands balled into fists, preparing to defend his mate. He inhaled deeply, trying to find Remi. He was somewhere in the crowd, the smell of his fear was everywhere, but Jake couldn’t see him. “Where the fuck is Remi?”

  Rhys kept pace beside him, his gait more even than normal. “He’s in the middle with Keaton.”

  “Halt,” John Carter, the pack leader, yelled in a deep, booming voice that didn’t sound like his own. Everyone froze, except Jake, Rhys and Joe Winston.

  Joe Winston, Chay’s father and the pack Beta, rushed forward, pushing through the crowd.

  Jake shoved past Tank and Gadget, ignoring John Carter’s demand for everyone to stay back. He had to get to Remi and make certain he was all right. If it meant having to take on his own pack alpha to do it, he damn sure would.

  Remi had his back to Jake, talking to Joe and Keaton.

  Keaton argued with his mate’s father about something, his hands were claws—thanks to his ability to shift into a third wolf form—by his sides.

  “Remi.” Jake touched Remi’s shoulder.