Thomas finally smiled, and Viktor felt relief wash over him. He didn’t understand his lover completely yet, but he hoped to know him better each and every day.
“I want that, too,” Thomas said. “But just be ready for the way I overthink things.”
Viktor chuckled. “You overthink things? I hadn’t noticed.”
Thomas pressed closer. “Seems you’ve already adjusted to that.”
“Sort of. I know I need to pay attention to you. Take care of you. Make sure you know what I’m thinking.” He began to unbutton Thomas’s shirt. “If I’d been more honest with you, more open, then you wouldn’t have been worried about my reaction today.”
Viktor watched Thomas’s chest rise and fall as he pushed the smaller man’s shirt off. Thomas looked up and said, “Not your fault. You didn’t know you needed to. Or that I’d be making a big speech in front of witnesses.”
“Only made it better. In my opinion,” Viktor said. He ran his thumbs over Thomas’s nipples until they hardened, loving the way Thomas lowered his head to hide how much he liked that, and then he knelt to take one between his teeth and torment it a moment as he unlaced Thomas’s breeches. Once he had Thomas’s cock free, he bent to lick the head and gripped Thomas’s ass with both hands so he couldn’t pull away. Because he was so much taller, Viktor really needed Thomas flat on his back to suck him properly. But Thomas’s moans urged him to continue. When he felt Thomas nearing completion, he finally stopped and carried him to the bed, tossing him down before pulling his boots and breeches off. He wanted to be naked, too, but not until he’d made his little fox come.
Thomas tried to sit up, but Viktor denied him. He pinned him down by the hips and went to work on him again, and the startled cry of pleasure only encouraged Viktor more. He moaned as Thomas’s fingers tangled in his hair, and he took the cock down his throat as long as he could. Thomas came with a cry, and Viktor slowed his sucking to enjoy the taste of his lover and prolong his pleasure. He could feel Thomas trembling under his grip, and he looked up to find Thomas staring at him as he shook with pleasure. He gently pulled off of Thomas’s cock and crawled up the bed, taking Thomas’s face in his hands.
“Say it again,” Viktor whispered.
“I love you,” Thomas said, the shyness gone now.
“And I love you,” Viktor said, kissing his cheeks and lips and jaw. “So much. Gods, I’d have laughed if someone had told me this would happen.”
“Laughed?”
Viktor nodded, standing up to undress hurriedly. “I was heading east to the mountains, but a priest at a roadside shrine told me to head for the sea. I’d only been in Dannis a couple of days before I ran into an old friend, who immediately said he knew of someone who could use a man with my skills.” Throwing the last of his clothes on the floor, Viktor climbed back onto the bed. “If I hadn’t showed up, he wouldn’t have thought of me because he wouldn’t have known how to contact me. The gods sent me to Dannis. To you.” He kissed Thomas soundly. “You’re so precious to them they wouldn’t allow you to continue being unhappy.”
* * * *
Thomas laughed, both in shock and disbelief. “I’m not sure about that last part.” He licked his lips. “That really happened? The priest telling you to come?”
Viktor nodded as he began to caress Thomas again. “Of course it did. And I’m glad I listened. Each time I’m inside you, I feel how perfect we are for each other.”
Thomas spread his legs as Viktor’s hand drifted lower. “Then what are you waiting for?”
Viktor chuckled as he rolled to grab the little jar of oil by the bed. “I don’t want to wear you out.”
“You won’t,” Thomas said. He sighed as Viktor’s oiled fingers touched him. “You know you won’t.”
Thomas arched off the bed as Viktor prepared him, and he was hard again by the time Viktor climbed on top of him and made him open his eyes. Viktor kissed him so gently, and Thomas felt moisture pricking the backs of his eyes. He tried to close them again to let it subside, but Viktor wouldn’t let him. Viktor wiped at one tear that had escaped and then captured his mouth as he lifted Thomas’s ass and spread his cheeks to enter him. They made love so slowly that Thomas teetered on the edge the entire time.
“Driving me,” Thomas panted, “crazy.”
“Have I proven my point?” Viktor whispered against his ear before nibbling on the lobe.
“Yes.” He ran his nails down Viktor’s back. “Now make me come before I lose my mind.”
Viktor chuckled as he pulled out a little bit. Thomas began to protest, but the words died on his lips when Viktor pushed his knees to his shoulders and pinned him like that as he drove into him harder and faster than he ever had before. The contrast and the shock only added to the pleasure, and Thomas came hard, crying out as he tried to hold on to Viktor as best he could. He felt the hot cum spilling onto his chest as Viktor drilled into him. His lover finally slowed as he found his own release, and Thomas stared up at Viktor as the man spilled his hot load, filling Thomas so full that some of it ran out of him.
Viktor withdrew, panting yet smiling, and he captured Thomas’s mouth again. Thomas had to fight for air and pushed Viktor off him eventually, which made his lover chuckle.
“I take it back,” Thomas said. “You just might wear me out.”
Viktor drew him close, and Thomas must’ve fallen asleep in his warm embrace. He blinked, noticing that it was dark, and he wiggled to free himself from Viktor’s hold. He sat up, and Viktor rose beside him and placed one arm around him.
“Was I too rough?” Viktor asked.
Thomas wiggled and felt a little twinge. “My ass may be a bit sore tomorrow, but maybe we can switch.”
Viktor’s arm tightened around him. “I’d love that.”
Thomas turned enough to look at him. “You would?”
“Of course. As good as you feel around me, I want to experience you taking me as well.” Viktor caressed his cheek. “We don’t have to share a room. I know you need space. You’re tidy, I’m not. But I really do want to share a bed each night.”
Thomas leaned back in Viktor’s arms. “I’d like sharing a room.” He ran his hand along Viktor’s thigh. “Easier to clean up after you.”
Viktor pressed a kiss to the side of his head. “Oh, is that the only reason?”
“No, but it’s a decent one.”
“Being neat was pointless in my family. Someone else would just mess it up.”
Thomas turned his head and listened to Viktor’s heart beating before he asked, “Will you write to your family? Garrick’s sentence will likely last several months. Jail time, probably some labor, though it may depend on if he tries to escape.”
Viktor sighed. “He might try. I don’t know. He’s never been in serious trouble before. Minor offenses. But I shouldn’t be that surprised by any of this. I’ve always given my younger siblings the benefit of the doubt, but I should probably be wary of any of them. Our father was a shining example of … well, a bad example. I’ll probably write to my mother.”
“Does your mother approve of it all, or simply tolerate it? You’ve never exactly said,” Thomas said.
“I was trying not to make you too afraid to go home with me one day.” Viktor sighed. “Mom … she tolerates anything to keep her children close. Or if not close at least willing to stay in touch. She only lectures if you get caught, if that makes sense.”
“Yeah. Kind of.”
“Our father made a living through mostly dishonest means, and with so many children, what could she do? But she works hard. Brings in plenty of money herself. In honest ways the majority of the time.” Viktor shifted his hold on Thomas. “Will your parents disapprove of my family?”
“Probably, but they won’t judge you based on it. I’ll vouch for you there, too.”
“They’re so damn quiet. If you three are alone, does anyone talk at all?”
“Questions will be asked periodically. But no deep conversation.” Thomas repositione
d and looked into Viktor’s eyes, taking his hands. “I like how we’re kinda different.”
“Good, because we definitely are.” He squeezed Thomas’s hands. “Though we’re alike in some ways.”
“Yeah. Some ways.”
They sat there a while, simply holding hands. When Viktor reached up and lifted Thomas’s chin, he saw the concern in Viktor’s eyes. “What?” Thomas asked.
“I hope I’ve banished your confusion rather than making it worse.”
“Feelings aren’t that simple,” Thomas said.
Viktor let his hand drop down again, and he intertwined his fingers with the hand he’d released a few moments earlier. “I know.”
“But despite anything that might linger in my mind, I’m not confused about my feelings for you.”
“Good, because after today, you’re not getting rid of me.”
“I’m not?” Thomas said with a smile.
“Certainly not.” Viktor leaned forward, pushing Thomas to his back and crawling over him. “My only regret is not being able to get you pregnant. It’s the only claim I can’t put on you.”
Thomas opened his mouth to reply, and Viktor stopped him with a kiss. Once he managed to get free, he said, “I’m pretty glad you can’t do that. And I feel pretty claimed already.”
Viktor smiled and nipped at his neck. “Promise?”
Thomas put his arms around Viktor’s neck and replied, “Promise.” He brought Viktor’s lips back down to his.
When they parted again, Viktor said, “So, when do I put a ring on your finger?”
Thomas gaped up at him. “Uh … we can discuss that.” He swallowed. “Later.”
“Hmmm, seems I’ve not made you feel claimed enough.” He rolled Thomas to his stomach and asked, “How sore are you?”
Thomas lifted his ass and rubbed against Viktor’s hard cock. “Not that bad.”
“Good,” Viktor said, working his mouth down Thomas’s back and then spreading him wide to rim him.
Thomas gasped, just as he realized that, with or without a ring, he belonged to this man.
Epilogue
Three Months Later
Viktor emerged from the lake and shook to dry his fur off a little. Once satisfied, he shifted back to his human form and sat on the blanket they’d laid out. A smile spread over his face as he watched Thomas swimming in the little lake. He laughed when Thomas turned over on his back, his back paws propelling him. Viktor had no idea if regular foxes could swim that way, but he loved watching Thomas do it and seeing his tail swish in the water. When Thomas came out of the water a few minutes later, Viktor held up a towel for him. Thomas tilted his head and hesitated a moment before walking over and letting Viktor dry him off. Viktor rubbed gently until Thomas was completely dry, and then he discarded the towel and petted Thomas, which made his lover tilt his head again. Viktor smiled down at him. He’d learned that this gesture, while in shifted form, was the equivalent of Thomas raising one eyebrow.
“You like rubbing my fur, too,” Viktor said. “Plus, you’re so much cuter than I am.” He scratched Thomas behind both ears and bent to kiss his forehead.
Thomas backed up and shifted back to human form. “You keep making eyes at my fox and I’ll stop shifting.”
Viktor laughed as he caught a hint of a smile on Thomas’s face. “No, you wouldn’t.” He snatched Thomas’s hand up and kissed it. “If we were the same kind of animal, we could have sex in shifted form.”
Thomas settled on the blanket beside him. “You ever done that?”
“Once. It was pretty different. I’d say I prefer having hands.”
Thomas laughed. “I’m sure you do. Those things never stop.”
“As if you’d want them to.” Viktor lay back on the blanket and looked up at the clouds. “I meant what I said last night. We’re not going home until I have an answer.”
“We have work to get back to. Godwin gave us three days,” Thomas said, reclining beside him.
Viktor rolled to look at him. “Then answer the question I ask you almost every day.”
“Don’t recall you asking a question.”
Viktor took him by the chin. “Practically every time I take you, I say ‘Marry me’.”
Thomas bowed his head and rubbed his cheek against Viktor’s hand. “I know you do.”
Viktor fixed him with a stare, trying to read his face, to understand his hesitant lover. “Just tell me if you don’t want to marry me. Don’t want to marry at all. As long as you’re mine, I’ll live with it. But I don’t understand your refusal to answer me at all.”
Thomas swallowed and said, “I don’t intend to refuse you.”
“Then what’s wrong? My brother will be here before too long to collect Garrick once his sentence is up. Adam’s my favorite little brother. I’d love for him to be the first to hear I’m getting married.”
Thomas opened his mouth but then closed it without saying anything.
Viktor sat up, barely holding on to his temper. “What’s wrong, Thomas?” he snapped. “Why won’t you fucking tell me?”
Thomas sat up as well, biting his lower lip and looking almost sad. “I … want to take the mate vow. And I’m scared you won’t want to.” He took a deep breath and pushed it out slowly. “I always thought that, if I ended up with another shifter, that we would do that. I know it’s permanent, unlike a marriage, so I was scared to ask.”
Viktor stared at him, relieved yet baffled. “Why didn’t you say so?”
“I just told you that. I was scared.”
“I told you I loved you barely two weeks after we met. I’ve been hinting at marriage ever since I told you I love you. And I’ve been asking for weeks now.” He yanked Thomas to him, cupping his cheek. “For such a logical man, you’re the silliest person I’ve ever met.” Bringing their lips together, he kissed Thomas until the man melted into his embrace. He didn’t release Thomas’s mouth until he had the man completely pinned beneath him.
“Is there anything else we need to clear up?” Viktor asked.
Thomas licked his lips and said, “Which of your family members can be trusted to come to our mating ceremony?”
Viktor chuckled and gave him another quick kiss. “Not many. Half of them will try to kidnap you if they see you naked.”
Thomas blushed a little. “We’re only naked a few moments.”
“Still, I fell hard for your cute little ass the first time I saw it.”
Thomas gave him a shaky smile. “We’re really doing this?”
“Oh yes. You’re never getting rid of me,” Viktor said with a grin.
“Good,” Thomas said. He shifted beneath Viktor and wrapped his legs around him. “Now, I think we have business to attend to.”
Feeling mischievous after what Thomas had just put him through, Viktor freed himself and said, “Do we? I thought I might go for another quick swim.” He rose and made for the water. Just as he was waist deep, Thomas jumped on his back.
Turning his head, Viktor said, “Yes? You need something?”
“Yes. I need my bear to fuck me,” Thomas said, softly biting Viktor’s neck.
Viktor pulled Thomas around his body and into his arms, suppressing a tremor. He loved feeling Thomas’s mouth and teeth on him, and his little fox knew that all too well. “Hmmm, guess I better give you what you want then.”
“Yes, you better,” Thomas said as he slid his arms around Viktor’s neck and practically climbed up him.
Viktor captured his mouth and held him close, once again thanking the gods for leading him to a happiness he never could’ve imagined in a million years.
The End
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Also from Victoria Vallo
Captured by Space Aliens Volume I:
Bound & Boarded (Banned from Amazon)
Captured by Space Aliens Volume II:
Tortured & Tamed (Banned from Amazo
n)
Captured by Space Aliens Volume III:
Seized & Seduced (Banned from Amazon)
Captured by Space Aliens Volume IV:
Mastered & Mated (Banned from Amazon)
Different Stars
Unforgetting Hearts
More Than a Fantasy
His Bounty
At the Highwayman’s Pleasure
At the Highwayman’s Mercy
Training Him
Wicked Game
Willing
Imprisoned
Shackled
Mated
Claimed
Assassin’s Touch
Mate Me Series
Mace’s Rebel
Alric’s Runaway
Tore’s Romantic
Shifters of Arizia
Tangling with His Tiger
His Timid Fox
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Victoria Vallo has written under many names and ventured into almost every genre. When darker tales beckoned, she decided to follow.
Twisted E-Publishing, LLC
www.twistederoticapublishing.com
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