STORY EXCERPT

“Are we seriously going to start letting every blood sucking, shit stain vampire in the world into this pack? Because if we are, I fucking quit.”

Jason growled, his pointed ears fell into the back of his head as he stared at the gamma wolf who dared to make that comment about his mate.

Jason was in his wolf form, sitting proudly with his chest out next to his bad-ass vampire lover.

He might just be an omega, but he wanted every single person in this room, the alphaincluded, to know that he did not give a shit about their approval. He might be here begging for a favor and everything, but that didn’t mean he was going to put up with their shit.

The gamma hardly seemed impressed by his show of teeth.

Of course he wouldn’t be. The guy was a grown man with a mohawk, for Christ’s sake. This guy probably walked around with his chest out acting as though he never shit or farted or anything.

There had been a guy like this in Jason’s pack, before Jason’s pack of been utterly destroyed by other vampires, but he still knew the type. The sort of wolf who walked around like they owned the place, despite not being the actual alpha.

Jason didn’t like this guy already. He looked up at his mate, but Damian didn’t look down at him.

He might be a vampire, but he was more alpha than anybody in this room.

Jason fucking loved that about him.

“I am only here to ensure the safety of the wolf next to me. I am not asking for a shelter for myself.”

Triton, the alpha of this pack, leaned forward in his chair. He threaded his fingers together and rested his chin on them, as though incredibly interested, or even amused, by what was going on in front of him.

“You came here and delivered a frightened omega to us out of the goodness of your heart? Do you want nothing else in return?”

Jason growled a little bit again at the idea of being a frightened omega. H’de done basically everything he could to keep anybody from looking at him and assuming that. The only thing he was scared of was being forced to stay here while Damian had to leave.

“I want the safety of this werewolf next to me, yes.”

“Do you want for nothing else? You’re just going to drop him off here and leave him with us?”

No, he absolutely is not. Jason just had to keep his cool while his mate negotiated. Damian had already promised him that if worse came to worse, they would walk out of here together. They would not be separating.

Jason had to keep reminding himself of that just to keep calm.

He knew his mate would want to stay with him, but that didn’t mean Damian wouldn’t do something that would upset both of them if he thought he had to.

Before they had met, Damian’s entire career persisted of doing things he didn’t want to do.

Damian seemed to think long and hard before he finally responded.

“Jason is mine. I’m not going to pretend that I know everything there is to know about werewolf mating rituals or whatever there is. The only thing I know is that I needed to walk out of that place with him. If I had to kill some of my own to do it, I had to do it. If I had to betray my master, then I had to do that, too. So yes, I am willing to do what it takes to make sure he stays safe. I don’t know you, but I know that werewolves are, by and large, safer with their own kind.”

That was definitely the sort of talk Jason didn’t like to hear.

It sounded a little too sincere for his liking. A little too much as though Damian would go back on his promise if he thought it would keep Jason safe.

He didn’t so much as growl, wag his tail, or even let out the tiniest of whimpers. Whatever it was they did after this, they had to look like a team when they did it.

Triton looked at him, and Jason found himself stiffening a little, his fur bunching and bristling.

“Are you going to stay like that this whole time, or do you have something to say to me?”

Jason looked up at Damian, and when his mate nodded, Jason decided it was time.

He made the change.

ADULT EXCERPT

“I want to fuck you,” Damian said, his voice breathy and making Jason shiver.

He nodded, and God, his cock already throbbed as though Damian’s hand were stroking it, as though he were already getting that pressure and friction he desperately needed.

“Are you sure you’re good with this?” Damian asked. “I can always—”

“Shut up.” Jason put his hand over Damian’s mouth before he could utter another word. Jason dropped his hand and looked at the man. Jason grabbed the hem of his borrowed shirt and lifted it over his head, throwing it away and leaving himself bare-chested for what was to come.

“I know what I want, and I knew what you were. Stop trying to change my mind, because if I ever try to walk away, it’ll only be because you’re pissing me off with your self-pitying bullshit.”

Jason thought a man with such a rough past needed to be treated a little roughly if he was to get the point here. He wasn’t sure what came over him as he grabbed Damian by his long black hair, fisting it and yanking him close.

Maybe his inner wolf was making itself known, demanding action of the physical variety.

Werewolves were very physical creatures, after all.

“You’re a warrior. You’re a trained assassin and I know you’re logical and reasonable enough to know you’re punishing yourself. Cut it out. It doesn’t look good on you.”

Damian looked at him, really looked. He seemed to be doing that a lot lately, as though he were trying to see right through Jason.

But then, he smiled. “All right. If that’s what you want.”

Jason was stunned he was getting his way so quickly. “Yeah, it is what I want.”

He wasn’t stupid. Damian was likely placating him, but so long as he got the message, as long as he was able to at least think about it, then that meant something.

They had years to iron out the wrinkles, to bring Damian to a place where he could be at peace with himself. For now, Jason kissed his mate on the mouth softly again.

For now, this was just for the two of them.

Jason wrapped his arms around Damian’s shoulders. He relished it when Damian did the same, holding him back just as sweetly as Jason was.

Even better when the other man began slowly thrusting his hips forward, pushing his waist, his cock, against Jason’s.

Even through their clothes, it was hot. It was sexy, and it made Jason shiver and mewl into Damian’s mouth.

Great. He was trying to be all sexy and alpha here, and even now, as Damian thrust their dicks together through their clothes, Jason realized he was never going to be alpha enough to take complete control. The only control he had was the control Damian gave to him.

Well, whatever. He was just going to have to work with what he had.

Two could play this game, and Jason thrust his hips back, grinding his prick down against Damian’s.

He felt the shiver and the moan vibrating through his mouth and the rest of his body.

So he did it again, and again, but the problem was that it was a double-edged sword. What pleasure he could give to Damian was thrown back at him almost tenfold. Jason found himself dry humping against his mate because his pleasure was increasing, because it was making him lose control.

Great. He was being swept away by his own stupidity.

And that made him smile. His and Damian’s noses were touching, their breath warming each other, and he tried not to laugh.

“What is it?” Damian asked, pushing his fingers down the waist of his pants, his long fingers gripping the swell of Jason’s ass cheeks.

Jason shook his head. “I just… realized that I’m trying to be sexy and alpha-like for you, and you can get around all that without even trying. It’s funny.”

“You are sexy,” Damian assured him, a finger sliding sweetly into his crease. The man already knew him, his digits able to move and tease with expert precision. “Maybe not an alpha, but I know that’s not how you want it.”

The heat that climbed up Jason’s neck and settled into his cheeks and ears had nothing to do with his words and everything to do with those wiggling fingers.

“Y-yeah,” he said.

“You want me to take control of you, don’t you?”

Bastard had him there. “Yeah,” Jason said again, his voice getting more and more breathy. He couldn’t seem to stop it.

And Damian was right. He didn’t want to stop it. He wanted Damian to take command. He wanted Damian to put himself on top of him and take him hard and fast.

Jason didn’t even care if Triton’s pack happened to hear them.

Let them hear it.

“Think we can make all the mates upstairs jealous?”

Damian’s grin showed off the points of his teeth. “I think we could try.”

“Good,” Jason said. “Then I want you to bite me again. Take a drink. When I go up there next, I want them to see that I belong to a vampire.”