by Mina Carter
He’d cut his hair, the long locks he’d always hidden behind gone to reveal the rugged masculinity of his face. In the new threads...he was a different guy, and the change blew K’s mind.
He dragged in an unsteady breath, only to have his new sense of smell latch onto something and kick him right in the gut. With his lupine senses in full, working order, he smelled the soap and aftershave Sav had used. His wolf latched onto a distinctive scent, wrapped around and within the guy standing in front of him, and rushed to the fore to be sure of what he sensed. He had to be sure. The years of trying to regain his lupine sense of smell had been for one reason…. So he would know his mate the moment he met her. A goal he’d had to give up to pursue this thing with Sav, only to realize he hadn’t been searching for a her, but a him.
Sav was his mate.
The scent expanded, triggering rage and frustration deep within him. Tears swam and with a roar, he lashed out, slamming a heavy right hook into Sav’s jaw.
The other wolf staggered back, but didn’t hit the deck. “Good punch.” He regained his feet, wiping blood from the corners of his lips with the back of his hand. “Keep your guard up on the left though.”
K snarled and attacked again. Although he stood a little taller and leaner, Sav had a hell of a lot of weight on him, but K didn’t care. His anger didn’t care. All those years, Sav had to have known, but hadn’t said anything. Hadn’t indicated by word or expression at the all-important bond between them.
He plowed a fist into Sav’s face again and followed it up with a wild punch to the ribs. Sav rolled with them, taking the blows with small grunts. Tears flowed down K’s cheeks. He hated hurting the man he loved, but rage blazed through him. Anger with the world and everyone in it. He wanted to lash out and burn it all down.
Sav didn’t fight back, but crowded into the room, closing the door behind him between K’s hits. K wasn’t an idiot: Sav allowed the punches. He’d been a cage-fighter in one of the big cities before they’d hauled him back, all piling into their little beat-up van to go find the guy. Not one of the new, fashionable fights on television either, but a real, down-and-dirty fight. The sort men with dubious, legal connections made a lot of money on, and where medical coverage didn’t exist. He’d played at their first gig still in the bloody, ripped combats he’d worn in the ring, the marks of violence still written on his body.
Since then he’d played with almost every martial arts style and sparred with Barrett and Saxon, both ex-Special Forces. No way could K take him in any sort of fight, and the fact Sav allowed a beat down pissed him off even more.
“Why?” he snarled, the plea hidden beneath layers of anger. He couldn’t do anything about the tears. “Why didn’t you tell me, asshole?”
Sav started to block his blows, not returning them, but not letting K land half as many. His lethal grace pulled at K’s attention. He forced his wolf to give him strength and launched into a punch combination the other man had taught him long ago. He didn’t answer, simply blocked some more, and K roared again in frustration, dropping his fists a little.
Sav moved in like lightning, tangling him up in a hard hold, all strong arms and solid body. He didn’t take them to the floor, or try to push K into a wall. Instead, he hauled him against his muscled frame and held him still despite his struggles. Weakness invaded K, his wolf whimpering in pleasure at being so close to their mate. Fucking traitor. He wasn’t done being mad at the guy yet.
Rage made no difference. Sure, Sav had hugged him in the past. The whole shoulder-bump, arm-slapping male-hug thing. This was different. Sav held him, really held him. Cradled K into him like something precious, arm around the back of his neck to hold him in place.
“You were straight,” he said, the deep timbre in his voice hitting K in the gut and lower. “You never noticed me. Not that way. I thought I was nuts…smelling the mate bond with no sign you even knew it was there. I didn’t say anything because I didn’t want to lose the little of you I had.”
The feel of K in his arms almost short-circuited the part of Sav’s brain that still worked. He ached from the blows K had doled out, but his wolf could handle it, easily healing the damage with none of the grumbling the cantankerous shit always gave him.
K was so not a fighter. For all his rage and wolf-backed strength, his punches were vanilla. Straight stuff, nothing dangerous or nasty. A fond smile tried to curve Sav’s lips. K wouldn’t last a minute in the ring fighting like that.
Swift, violent protectiveness rose in his veins, taking his breath away. K would never have to fight in the ring, he’d never have to fight at all. Not while Sav had breath left. He protected what was his. And K was his. Now and forever.
He’d fought him, tension running through his frame, but it drained away and he sagged against Sav’s chest. The sight of the proud man brought to tears, weakened that way, tore at his heart. But K’s hands wrapped around his upper arms to hold on and Sav’s heart flipped. It fed something deep inside when his mate relaxed, trusting Sav to hold and care for him.
“I didn’t dare say anything.” Sav continued even though words weren’t his strong suit. He’d always been more a doer, liable to put his foot in his mouth when he opened it. But now? He poured his heart out. “I couldn’t lose your friendship, even though it was a poor second to what I wanted from you. Like a beggar at a table, I took what I could get and was thankful.”
With gentle fingers he cupped K’s neck and tilted his head back. God, he had such amazing eyes. Eyes that had haunted Sav’s dreams for years. K couldn’t be described as pretty, not like some of the pups Sav had bedded over the years. Instead he had a wholly masculine, feral beauty that hit Sav in the gut each time he looked at him.
K was there, had arranged a date with a guy, was Sav’s mate and knew it for heaven’s sake…so unless they were in some complex, reality TV stunt designed to destroy Sav by giving him what he most wanted and then snatching it away…K couldn’t be the straight wolf he’d always believed him to be.
Slowly, he lowered his head. Gave K plenty of time to pull away, but he didn’t. Instead his eyes darkened, gaze latched onto his mouth and he did the unexpected. Lifting his hand, he skimmed over Sav’s shoulder and latched onto his nape in a mirror grip. He didn’t wait for the kiss but rose, meeting him halfway.
Their lips touched and Sav was lost. A simple brush of skin on skin. Hot. Firm. K’s longer stubble grazed his chin, raising a shiver along his spine. He schooled his response, took it slow, unsure of what experience K had with men. But when his little wolf made a soft, rumbling sound in the back of his throat, good intentions crumbled to dust.
A growl rose and his grip tightened. Angling his head, he kissed K again. Harder. A torrid exchange of caresses. He eased the man closer. The need to touch him overrode all else. Smoothing his free hand down K’s side, he slid under the open shirt to touch skin.
Sav shuddered. The band members had always been tactile, but the difference between touching K in friendship and as a lover blew his mind. He swept his tongue out and across the closed seam of K’s mouth.
His slight parting of lips and intake of breath were all the invitation Sav needed. Digging his fingers into a hip, he deepened the kiss, to plunder and claim, leaving K with no doubt to whom he belonged. He was Sav’s, and always would be.
K rumbled and edged closer, an unconscious little motion as though he couldn’t get enough, and met Sav kiss for kiss. Wicked slides of tongue. Wet. Slick. Sav groaned. K wasn’t submissive or shy the way he’d expected, but treated him like an equal. That was so hot.
With a gasp, he broke away, parking his ass on the back of the couch and spread his thighs. Without a word, K followed him, leaning into the cradle of Sav’s body to brush a kiss over his jaw. He became the aggressor, crowding Sav. He dropped his head back to reveal the line of his throat, a sign of utter trust between two wolves.
Closing his eyes, Sav savored the feel of K’s lips along his neck, and shifted position to allow him bette
r access, letting the other man explore wherever he wished, holding the feral instinct to pin him down and take him in check. Okay, he’d died and gone to freaking heaven. No words passed between them. They were overdue, but not yet. Right then, there was only touch.
After so many years, he needed to hold K to know he finally had him. They may only have the one night, he had no clue what would happen the next day, whether they’d go back to the careful routine they’d followed for years, but he didn’t care. As long as he had that night, Sav could survive anything.
K moaned, tore his lips away to rest his forehead on Sav’s shoulder. His chest heaved, tension drawing him so tight he shivered. Sav pulled him closer until their hips met. The feel of K’s cock through the denim, hard and heavy, proved the other man was as into it—into Sav—as he was into K. Lust hit, fast and low, hardening his cock and balls almost to the point of pain.
He couldn’t wait. He surged up, taking K with him. The gasp of surprise and pleasure fed his male ego. Yeah, he was stronger than K. Powerful enough to take care of his mate. But that didn’t mean K was weak and Sav wanted that masculine strength. He wanted…no, he ached to feel it naked and moving against him.
Manhandling him, he dragged his head back for another hard kiss. One he controlled that time, sweeping aside K’s defenses to take the man’s mouth like he wanted. Such pretty lips. He’d always thought so. Always wanted to taste….
Sav drew in ragged breaths when he pulled away, a sense of satisfaction hitting him to note K had breathing difficulties too. He gazed deeply into K’s eyes, while his thumb stroked along the collarbone under the shirt.
“I’m done waiting. I’m done being grateful for scraps,” Sav warned, his voice low and rough. “Now, I want everything. I want it all. Tonight.”
Chapter Five
The rough words, uttered in Sav’s gorgeous, raspy voice, rocked K to the core. Deep within, his heart bled. Sav had spent years by his side, aware of the mate bond, but thinking K too much of an asshole to care, when, in fact, he hadn’t known. Years of frustration and need shone in Sav’s dark eyes as he crowded K. Closer and closer, until he was wrapped up in the guy’s arms. Strong, solid arms.
K had never considered himself a weak man, always been the more aggressive in his sexual dealings, but Sav’s body and the determination in his eyes left him breathless.
“You can have everything I have to give,” he said in a soft voice. Simple words for such a complex situation.
Sav nodded, his expression tight, his dilated pupils telling K he trod the edge of his control. Good. He’d been too restrained for too many years, holding his secret in with a reservoir of courage K had never guessed at, and never wanted to experience. But that night, he wanted to break it, take Sav past the limits of that control, and see what his lover was really like.
Sure, Sav was highly dominant, but that didn’t bother him. Alpha wolves were…. And all the Lyric Hounds were Alphas, an unusual situation at the best of times. K had put it down to the fact the three of them were siblings, and they’d grown up with the other wolf, but he realized Sav’s alpha nature had been held in check by the bond between them. Where K went…where K followed, Sav would too. So, when K yielded to his brother, Sav followed suit. Almost. He and Aaron had had some blazing arguments in the past.
But there were varying levels of Alpha. Although K’d always been the dominant one in his previous relationships, taking charge and making all the decisions, that wasn’t going to be the case with the man in front of him. The thought made him weak with longing.
Sav slid both hands under K’s shirt, his palms cupping his shoulders before he eased the fabric backward and down. The fabric bunched over his arms, caught on the curve of his biceps. He wasn’t big like Sav, but he saw nothing but desire in Sav’s eyes. K bit back a moan, loving the feel of his man touching him.
“No,” Sav growled, his wolf in his voice. “I want to hear it. Want to hear every moan and cry I’ve fantasied about for so many years.”
Oh, God, the man really knew how to make his knees weak. K caught his gaze, not bothering to hide the surprise flowing over his face at the comment. Sav read him with ease, nodding and pushing the shirt down a little more, pinning K’s arms in place.
“You didn’t realize? Fuck, man, I about wore my cock out jacking off to thoughts of you. Pretending it was you touching me. Every guy I screwed…was you.” K sensed the pain flowing from the proud man. “Tried not to, told myself it wasn’t fair to them. Not fair to me either, but I couldn’t help it. I wanted you so much.”
Fuck. He could do something about that, touch Sav like he’d wanted for so many years. K tried to move, but the shirt, and Sav’s hand behind his back trapping both wrists, stopped him. He blinked in surprise, unsure how the guy had managed to capture him so easily, the thought swept away by the tide of heat hitting him.
“Oh no, little wolf.” Sav grinned, the expression rendering his rather harsh features breathtaking. “My rules now.”
Hell, yeah. K bit his lip again, dropping his head back as Sav had earlier. Utter trust. As a wolf, Sav could have torn his throat out in a heartbeat. In fact, after all this, K wouldn’t blame him if he did.
He didn’t, but neither did the he pass up the invitation to close in and leave a trail of kisses down the side of K’s neck. Each soft brush of his mouth, each small nip and lick drove the tension in K higher. Shivers ran down his spine while pleasure ran like lava through his veins.
Sav’s warmth beat at his bare skin, the soft brushes of his shirt rough against his skin. Somewhere along the way, he’d lost the jacket, but K couldn’t remember him removing it. The question paled into insignificance when a tongue skated over the line of his collarbone. Warm, wet, and wanton. A small whimper escaped him at the contact.
Crap, he’d come in his jeans if Sav didn’t hurry up. Preferring to be the top, he found he didn’t care. Not with Sav. Top, bottom, it made no difference, provided he got to fuck or be fucked.
Sav lowered and a second rough, wet rasp pulled another gasp from K. Liquid heat curled through him as he latched on, nibbling and sucking until K nearly went out of his mind. A big hand smoothed down his stomach, a rumble of appreciation in the big wolf’s throat.
Caught with his arms behind his back, K spread his feet and tried and stay on them as Sav dipped curious fingertips beneath the already low waistband of his jeans. He hissed through his teeth when they explored farther, a sharp nip from Sav’s teeth making his cock jump.
“Sav, please….” He didn’t care that he had been reduced to begging. He needed more. Way more. And less clothing between them.
“Shhh….” Sav whispered. K sucked a breath in at the slight rasp of his stubble across the sensitive skin, punching out an exhale. He still had the other hand tangled in the shirt around K’s wrists, using the fabric like a manacle, but then the other started to pop the buttons at his crotch.
He swore and closed his eyes. He couldn’t do it. Couldn’t watch the strong fingers undo button after button. He held still, only the tiniest flinch as the pressure released over his cock and it sprang free through his fly. He didn’t wear underwear. Rock star rule 101: thou shalt be commando at all times.
Time stretched out, Sav’s warm breath washing over his rigid shaft in an almost unbearable torment. A hand closed around his dick, Sav’s deep groan echoing his own. He gripped and pumped him and K arched. Pleasure slid from his scalp to the small of his back, reaching greedy fingers out to encircle his balls and tighten his ass. His shaft pulsed in Sav’s hand, throbbing as he stroked the way K liked it. Smooth, with a hint of roughness. Fuck, how did he know how to do that?
He moaned under the ministrations, until he didn’t know which way was up or even his own name. He tensed, the orgasm building at the base of his spine. “Sav…no. I want—”
Before he could put his need to come until he was inside Sav or the other way around into words, Sav let go and stripped the shirt from him. It landed in a heap on
the floor next to Sav’s coat.
“Bedroom—which way?”
Sav stepped back. Took a breath. Before he ripped the clothes right from his mate’s delectable body, tumbled him to the floor and sealed their bond. K smiled and held out a hand, the self-assured grin that had stolen Sav’s heart so many years ago on his face.
He made no attempt to cover up, his thick length jutting from the open fly of his jeans like a flagpole. Damn, the guy was big…. Sav clenched his teeth at the thought of it deep inside him. Take and be taken, the two rules for the night.
He shivered and let K lead him from the room. The cabin passed in a blur, only one door of any interest to Sav. K towed him into the main bedroom, but Sav didn’t give him chance to get fully through the door before backing him up against the doorframe and taking his lips again.
The kiss wasn’t gentle or exploratory. Passion exploded between them in a clash of mouths and a duel of tongues. K met him and pushed back when he demanded, claiming in his own right. Feral pleasure coursed through him.
Here he’d been thinking that if he ever got K into bed, he’d have to take it slow, ease him into it, and be patient with his mate’s shyness as he learnt how to make love to a man…. How wrong could he be? K wasn’t shy and the way he rubbed Sav through his jeans said he’d gotten down and dirty with a guy before.
Sav bit back the jealousy, his hand tightening in K’s hair. Who had he slept with? When? It had always been women K picked up. He fought the emotion down, it had no place on their first night, and let go.
Backing up, he yanked his shirt free of his jeans.
“Remember the Karen Jervis shoot?” Voice rough, Sav named the photo shoot the image in the glossy mag had come from. He’d recognized the photographers name in the corner. K nodded, watching him like a hawk, not saying anything, instead sucking his bottom lip between his teeth like he could taste their kiss. Yeah, he was trying to kill Sav for real. “I want you on the bed like that. Spread out for me.”
