Prodigal Wolf

by L E Franks

  Carlo ran full bore to the water’s edge. Ted was at his heels yipping. Carlo saw a dolphin approaching and howled. Ted nipped Carlo’s tail, not hard enough to hurt, but enough to get his attention.

  Carlo turned and let Ted rub his nose against his neck before licking his ear. Carlo shook his head and laughed. He nodded toward the water and ran out, hoping Ted would follow.

  When Carlo hit the deep water a dolphin swam close, he yipped and the dolphin chirped before spinning around and jumping out of the water, its beautiful body arching high above the black depths before sinking under. Carlo sighed, it was his friend after all. Carlo swam deeper and the dolphin came to him, touching his nose against Carlo’s neck. He closed his eyes for a moment and hummed, so happy that he’d found him again.

  Ted swam over and he introduced the white wolf to his dolphin. They touched noses and the dolphin chirped. Joey raced back up the beach and Carlo wondered where he’d been. Joey swam out to meet the dolphin, swimming in circles and laughing when the dolphin splashed him.

  Ted and Joey swam back to shore and Carlo dove under the water with the dolphin, swimming through the waves. They were together for thirty minutes before exhaustion forced Carlo back to shore. He nuzzled his friend’s nose before he left, communicating on an instinctual level, like he and his pack.

  Carlo shook off the extra water and barked his goodbyes as the dolphin pod swam into deeper water. Joey raced toward him and stopped at his shoulder. He pushed at Carlo’s body and whined. He wanted to run and Carlo did too.

  They took off with Ted racing out in front of them. It felt good to run like crazy, chasing the wind and nothing more. They were close to the southern tip of the island when Ted yipped. Carlo slowed and they all stopped. He could smell the deer, sending a wave of longing and hunger through Carlo. He howled and took off, racing into Sea Pines community, running to the forest preserve. The deer was easy to track. He, Ted, and Joey raced together as a pack, melding effortlessly to deliver their assault, taking down the buck.

  They chowed down, their bellies satisfied and his heart full of happiness. He didn’t give a shit what Angelo’s pack did, he had Ted and Joey and that was enough. His heart twisted and he knew it wasn’t but he couldn’t deal with Angelo right now.

  Carlo dipped his head and pushed at Joey. The gray wolf pushed back, shoving him into Ted. Their little game turned rough and suddenly he was on his back, his feet up in the air. Ted and Joey had conspired against him to pin him in the dirt. Then Joey did something that Carlo would never forget. He licked his underarm, sending Carlo into a ticklish fit. He squirmed but before he could get up, Ted licked from his chest to his ear, coating his fur with spit.

  Carlo pretended to be upset, but he loved their play. He’d missed playing with his boys.

  They loped back to the beach and ran north, heading to their condo. The sky had begun to pink up and tourists would be on the beach soon. They needed to clean up and shift. It wouldn’t be good for humans to see them in their true form.

  Joey shifted first, then Ted, both of them lay panting and a bit dirty as they worked through the lingering pain radiating through their bodies while Carlo kept watch over them— his alpha instincts in full force. Once they’d settled enough to stand, Carlo changed, his body morphing quickly from inky black fur into golden skin, taut muscles, and the correct number of arms and legs. He stretched, running his fingers through his thick black hair before pulling Joey and Ted into a group hug. “Hey, I love you guys. Thanks for running with me. That felt great.”

  “Yeah, it’s been a while. Thanks,” Joey kissed Carlo’s shoulder then grabbed Ted’s hand, leading him upstairs.

  Carlo sighed hard, wishing Angelo were here to take him upstairs to shower. Where the fuck had that come from? Carlo growled and grabbed his clothes from the floor, racing to his bathroom to clean up. He wouldn’t let Angelo ruin this too.

  CHAPTER EIGHT

  The wind had picked up, blowing up the beach, cooling Kevin’s already heated skin. He flipped his beach blanket out, spreading the cloth wide, securing the corner with their ice chest. The lifeguard lowered his umbrella and jumped down from the tall wooden stand before lugging the structure up the beach, his beautiful muscles bunching as he moved. Grady tossed his towel onto the sand beside Kevin, followed by his shirt. Kevin glanced up, his gaze fixed on the lovely dip surrounding Grady’s spine. Waking up on the couch this morning, wrapped in Grady’s arms had been great. His palms flexed in the sand, imagining running his fingers over the silky flesh.

  “I’m going to get wet. Want to join me?” Grady jogged toward the water and Kevin followed after him, watching the way his ass moved in his green board shorts.

  The tide was coming in; the water was about halfway up the beach and only ankle deep for the first twenty feet of the low surf. Grady stepped in a hidden hole and fell, tumbling in, making a huge splash, yelping on the way down. Kevin laughed as he ran after Grady, pitching forward when he hit the same dip in the sand. The bitter salt water caused him to sputter as he struggled to stand.

  Grady splashed, launching a wave of water right into his face. Kevin retaliated, sending Grady running. The waves were low which made for the perfect place to play in the surf. Kevin reached down, grabbing some sand, then his hand clutched something slimy and he screamed. Grady cocked his head to the side, “Everything okay?”

  “Oh my God. I grabbed a fish or something.”

  “You wimp.” Grady splashed him again and shoved him. Kevin toppled over, taking Grady with him. His head dipped below the surface and he stayed down. Grady pulled him up, their bodies plastered together. His gaze connected with Grady’s, holding it for a long moment. Grady breathed in deep and moaned.

  Kevin stepped back, all too aware of the kids playing in the water near them. He cleared his throat and waded out to deeper, pulling Grady with him. They bobbed with the gentle roll of the waves, his gaze flicking back to Grady every few seconds.

  “You could fuck someone out here and no one would ever know.” Grady grabbed his leg and Kevin jumped.

  “What was that?”

  “It was me.” Grady pinched Kevin’s leg again, causing shivers to race over his body.

  “You could have sex out here, but it’s South Carolina. We start hugging and someone is going to get mad.” Kevin stared at the people around them, families, a few het couples and a couple of guys hanging out together. “That guy, the one in the orange board shorts, he’s cute.”

  “Not gay,” Grady said.

  “Yeah, but his ass is nice.” He found another guy and tilted his head toward him. “Green muscle T, blue swimsuit.”

  “What about him?” Grady asked.

  “He’s gay.”

  “Yeah, but too old. Not cute either.”

  “He’s okay.” Kevin shrugged his shoulders. They pointed out a few more guys, laughing at some of the families. The beach had filled up halfway, and the tide was rolling in fast. They’d floated closer to shore as the tide moved up the broad beach, getting a kick out of the number of people surprised when their chairs were swamped with water.

  “I’m hungry. Let’s go grab a sandwich out of the cooler. What did you pack?” Grady grabbed Kevin’s hand underwater and squeezed.

  The smile was quick on his lips and earned him a wink from Grady. They’d been flirting heavily this trip and last night at the club had been amazing. He couldn’t believe Grady had gotten him out on the dance floor. Maybe dancing in public wasn’t such a big deal. It had felt so good to be plastered up against his friend. Maybe this trip they’d end up in bed together again. He wanted Grady, but he wanted the guy for more than one weekend at the beach.

  They dropped hands as they drew closer to shore. “You need more sunscreen.” Kevin noticed Grady’s neck pinking up a bit and didn’t want the guy to get burned. Grady shrugged and flashed him a killer smile that made Kevin melt.

  “I’ll pull on my shirt while we eat.”

  They settled on the beach bla
nket, drying off. Grady opened the cooler and passed Kevin a sandwich. They shared a bag of chips, Kevin feeding Grady a chip or two. Every few minutes a new hot guy would walk past and they’d comment. A few of the guys turned to look at them, but most of those were too old and not hot enough to bother with. Kevin wanted to see Joey again. Just thinking about him made him hot. He turned to Grady, watching him chew.

  Grady smiled, his blue eyes flashing with heat. “You know, of all the guys out here, you’re still the hottest.”

  Heat rose up Kevin’s chest to his face. Grady knew how to make him feel good. Had they been alone, or maybe in a different city, he would have pushed Grady back onto the sand and kissed him. As it was, he just smiled and let his eyes rove over Grady’s body, wishing his friend would pull off his shirt.

  A volleyball slammed in the ground ten feet away, spraying sand in their direction. Kevin looked back at the nets, spiking his interest even higher. A group of hot dudes were on the court, their gazes trained on Kevin and Grady, probably because of the ball now rolling toward them, but still, having eight pairs of eyes staring at him warmed more than just his soul.

  A tall guy with blond hair and dark eyes jogged over. “Hey, you two want to play?”

  Grady picked up the ball and chunked it to blondie. “You game?” he asked Kevin.

  “Sure. Give us a minute.” Kevin took a draw from his water bottle and stored it in the cooler. He grabbed the sunscreen and stopped Grady before he could take off. “Sunscreen.”

  He squirted a glob onto his hand, swiping it quickly over Grady’s shoulders and down his back. Grady groaned. “Seriously, I’m about to pop wood with you touching me like that.”

  “Hey, I’m not doing anything,” Kevin glanced around, hoping no one was in hearing distance.

  “Your doing nothing does a lot for me.” Grady glanced over his shoulder, a wicked gleam in his eyes. “Let’s go do some damage on the court.”

  “Put some on my shoulders.”

  “Fuck.” Grady grabbed the bottle from him and spread the goop over his skin quickly. “I’m already hot and you make me touch you. We need to buy the spray stuff next time.”

  Kevin half turned around. “Really, you don’t like touching me?”

  Grady shot him a look like he’d gone crazy. “Kevin, there’s kids around.” Two toddlers shrieked behind them.

  He shrugged, “Okay, I get your point.”

  “No you don’t, and that’s the problem because my point is about to be a real point. Let’s go play some volleyball, maybe I can get it under control.”

  Kevin sunk his teeth into his lower lip, wondering why they were still on the beach instead of back at the condo doing something about Grady’s point. Then he looked up and saw the boys playing volleyball and knew why. Hell, they’d been watching the wrong guys on the beach all day long. These were the hottest damn men out here. He took in the sun-kissed skin, low slung board shorts, and legs so beautiful he wanted to get on his knees and lick.

  They approached the group and the men stopped playing. Kevin knew at least one of the guys was interested, maybe two. They were all beautiful to look at and he wondered if any of them would be interested in a bit of sharing. He rolled his eyes— like he’d be brave enough to ask.

  “I’m Rich.” Blondie stuck out his hand for a shake. Grady, then Kevin, grasped his hand.

  “Mark,” a tall man with black hair said “…and that’s Chuck”

  The lone Asian dude waved from across the net, then returned to his stretching.

  “Mike.” A pale shorter man nodded.

  “Lloyd,” the one guy with a beard said.

  “Dave.” The hottest of them all came over and shook both Grady and Kevin’s hand. When he touched Kevin he smiled and held onto Kevin for longer than necessary. Grady nudged his shoulder and Kevin glanced at him, liking the possessive gleam in Grady’s gaze.

  “I’m Bob. Ignore Dave, he’s a flirt.” Everyone laughed and Kevin’s face heated.

  “I’m Dan. Now, let’s play.”

  He and Grady split up, each on separate teams, playing five on five until two more guys joined and they were six on six. It was crazy. Sweaty men were everywhere. Kevin loved the scent coming off the guys—all sweaty and tangy with the ocean breeze blowing up the beach, swirling around them. He was on a natural high, his body filled with adrenaline and lust. He hit the ball over the net, slamming it into the sand, scoring his team the match winning point. Five guys surrounded him, slapping him on the back and high fiving him. It was amazing. He felt on top of the world as Grady came over, rolling his eyes as one of the older guys asked Kevin if he wanted a beer.

  He was going to say sure when Joey and Ted caught his eye—Joey’s gaze almost predatory. Kevin’s body tightened, heat rushing through him. How long had they been watching? The hair on the back of his neck stood on end and his spine tingled. He turned back to the guy offering him a beer and smiled. “Um, I’m not actually old enough to drink. But thanks for the offer.”

  Kevin slung his arm over Grady’s shoulder and they made their way back to their towels and cooler. He turned back, not seeing Joey or Ted. Disappointment wove through him. He’d wanted to see the guys again, but maybe it wasn’t meant to be.

  “That was awesome.” Grady pulled him tight and for a moment Kevin thought they were going to kiss. His stomach flopped and he sucked in a breath; Grady laughed and pushed, shoving him hard enough to spin him face first into a muscled chest tightly encased in a black T-shirt. He stepped back and glanced up. Joey.

  “Who’s your friend, Kevin?” Joey asked, his gaze raking first over Grady then Kevin.

  ≈ ≈ ≈ ≈

  Grady’s eyes slid past the dark-haired man crowding Kevin to the blond. His shaggy white hair blew around his face as he stood, staring out to the ocean, lost in the horizon beyond, frowning. The guy was cute, someone he’d be interested in if he were at Columbia, he glanced at Kevin, noticing the way Kevin gazed up at Joey. Looking back at the blond, Grady imagined wrapping his arms around the big guy. An image of Kevin filled his mind and he shook off the thought. Grady turned back to the dark haired one who’d asked him his name and stuck out his hand. “I’m Grady, and you are?”

  “I’m Joey and this is Ted.”

  Ted turned his focus away from the beach and onto Grady. His lip turned up further into a half sneer, almost making him appear cruel. Ted’s features softened, a warm smile spread across his face. Grady’s breath caught and he was drawn to the man.

  “Grady, nice to meet you.” Ted stuck out his hand and Grady took it, allowing Ted to pull him close. “So, you surf much?”

  They were almost chest to chest, the closeness throwing Grady off. “N-no, not ever actually.”

  “If the waves get decent this week I’ll have to take you out. There’s a certain type of wave that is perfect for body surfing, you know, letting the water push you into the beach. It’s fun. The dynamics of body shape, speed which you jump and the shape of the wave all matter. I watched you play volleyball, you’re fit. You’re the right shape too. You’d body surf well. So, you’re coming to the party.”

  “What?”

  Ted glanced at Joey, a smirk twisting his lips. “I thought you’d already asked them.”

  “Ted, we just ran into them.”

  “Yeah, right. So Grady, you got any beer in your cooler?”

  “No, just cokes and water. So what party?”

  Joey slipped his arm around Kevin’s shoulder and started walking him toward the water. Grady felt Ted’s hand on his hip. His balls tightened. He glanced up, spying Ted’s lopsided grin.

  “Tonight, you need to be there. Nine sharp. Talk your friend into it. Looks like Joey is laying on the heavy. He’s probably going to say yes.”

  Grady watched Kevin and Joey exchange information. Kevin nodded and smiled. Yep, he could tell they were on for the evening. They had plenty of time to get home and get cleaned up. They’d eat something at the condo and then head to the pa
rty.

  He noticed the way Joey was toying with Kevin’s shirt. They looked good together. For a moment he wanted to see Kevin kissing the guy. He rolled his eyes. What had gotten into him? “Yeah, looks like we’ll be there.”

  Ted brushed his fingers over Grady’s shoulder. “I’ll be waiting for you.” Grady swallowed hard and nodded. The two men were irresistible. Ted and Joey waved goodbye as they headed toward the plaza. Kevin was behind Grady, his hand on Grady’s butt, squeezing gently. He was horny as hell and he hoped Kevin felt the same way.

  “Nine tonight. We’re going to party hard,” Kevin stated.