Healing His Heart

STORY EXCERPT

“Stop it,” he found himself whispering, looking away. “One guy already broke my heart. I can’t take this. I’ve been a sucker my entire life. I should’ve known when I confessed to Todd Matthews in high school that he’d never been interested in me, that I was just the butt of all his jokes with his jock friends. Todd was just the beginning.”

Stefan knew he made no sense to Roman. Hell, Roman might have harbored no ill intentions against him. Maybe the guy merely took pity on him and offered to buy him a drink out of simple kindness. Good people still existed in the world, right?

God. What would Roman think of him now?

Roman reached out, closing one huge hand over his clenched one on the bar. Then the shifter rose, and he thought that would be it. Roman would walk away, except Roman leaned in close and without warning, tipped his chin and took his mouth.

Boy, he’d never been kissed like that, didn’t think a simple kiss could feel like tiny fireworks exploding inside of him. Roman claimed his mouth hungrily, roughly, and without apology. He parted his lips slightly, letting Roman deepen the kiss. Recovering from his initial shock, he clutched at Roman’s shirt and sucked down on Roman’s tongue.

His dick pulsed in his jeans, and he became aware of Roman’s hard muscles pressing against his skin. When Roman pulled away, he panted, unsure of what to say. He still wasn't sure if Sherman had gotten lost or if there was a plausible explanation for Sherman not showing up but right now, all he could think about was Roman.

“There. You still think I’m just another scammer?” Roman asked, his exotic eyes bright gold under the dim bar lights.

He shook his head quickly, still incapable of words.

“Those poor fuckers don’t know what they’re missing out on,” Roman said, taking out his wallet and slapping a twenty on the bar, not taking his eyes off Stefan. It was a little intense, having Roman’s undivided attention, and admittedly, a little hot. “Let’s go.”

Challenge blazed in the shifter’s eyes.

“Go where?” he asked.

“Anywhere but here. That good with you?”

“A-absolutely.” He’d never done anything like this in his life, anything wild or reckless. Stefan did everything by the book. Growing up, he got good grades at school because he had nothing to do during school nights, no social engagements to go to, and most of his friends preferred to stay home and play MMORPGs.

They exited the bar.

“I left my ride back at the city, you mind taking the train?” Roman asked him.

“We can take my car,” he suggested. They arrived at the parking lot and he led Roman to his car. Roman held his hand out.

“Keys,” Roman said.

“What? No. I’m driving.”

Roman flashed him that scary stare again but he refused to back down. Roman sighed, shrugged, and got in the passenger seat. Back at the wheel, he started the engine and asked, “What kind of shifter are you, anyway?”

“Go ahead and take a guess.”

“Um, bear?” he asked. Roman definitely had a dominant predatory beast inside of him.

“Nope.”

He thought back to Roman’s feral yellow gaze in the bar. “Wolf?”

“What else?”

He huffed. “You should give me a break. I’m not used to shifters. Okay, I used to work with a few, but they were a deer and tabby cat shifter, respectively.”

“That explains your initial reaction to me earlier. You looked ready to bolt after seeing me.”

“Well, you growled at me. How was I supposed to react?”

“You got a point. I don’t usually like humans.”

“I can tell, but why?” he pressed, hungry to know more about this enigmatic and gorgeous werewolf. Another question came up, too. What made Stefan different? Stefan didn’t dare ask though, because it felt like he was in some kind of dream. This wasn’t real, because hot guys like Roman didn’t normally ask out suckers like him.

Roman shook his head. Stefan felt like he brought up a sensitive topic and decided to leave for now. “I can’t tell you the reason yet, but let’s just say a few bad humans decided to screw me up during my time in the military.”

“Okay. Wait, you’re a soldier?” he asked, interest piqued even more. Of course Roman did something badass, and the werewolf was certainly in shape.

“Ex-soldier,” Roman said.

The werewolf sounded grumpy again. Another sensitive topic? How many were there? Then again, who was he to judge, when Stefan carried plenty of baggage himself?

They started moving now, and he drove out of the multi-leveled parking lot. Sherman’s betrayal no longer felt as important as before, not with the huge werewolf sitting next to him. In a span of an hour, Roman had treated him to a drink, listened to all his problems, and was now going on a date with him. Could he call this a date?

It was certainly progress, plenty compared to the two years of his life wasted on a scammer who only saw him as a cash cow.

“What are you thinking about, little human?” Roman asked.

“You.” He blushed.

Roman chuckled, the sound sexy and deep, capable of melting his insides. “Blunt. I like that.”

He quickly shook his head and thought he needed to elaborate. “I mean, I’m wondering why Sherman made me work for every ounce of attention but you’re the exact opposite.”

“There’s one thing you should know about wolves then,” Roman began, and he thought Roman changed the topic for a reason.

“What’s that?” he asked, deciding to play along.

“Once we set our sights on something we want, we don’t stop the hunt until we’ve obtained it.”

ADULT EXCERPT

“I’m sorry, I talked a lot, didn’t I?” he asked, setting the cup in front of Roman on the counter.

Roman brushed his huge callused fingers over his and his heart started racing again. His reaction to the werewolf was insane. Stefan couldn’t recall being this sensitive to any other guy, not that he had plenty of experiences to compare to. He read plenty of romances, it was his favorite genre, but he never expected those books to translate to real life.

Stefan didn’t know when it started, maybe just yesterday, but he started to fall really fast and hard for Roman. Maybe that was a little dangerous, and Roman might end up breaking his heart, but he didn’t think so. Roman told him he wasn’t going anywhere anytime soon, didn’t he?

“I don’t mind. The sound of your voice is calming,” Roman said, sipping his mug.

“How about you? Don’t you have work?”

Roman paused, considering his question.

“Hey, no secrets, okay?” he blurted, aware he still knew next to nothing about the werewolf.

“Fine. I do jobs for certain clients, jobs that are against the law.”

“That sounds shady as hell.” Of course his werewolf had to be badass and worked some kind of dangerous job. Stefan should have expected that. They were like day and night, chocolate and vanilla ice cream, worlds apart. Yet, despite their differences, he figured they could work things out.

Stefan was that determined to have his own happy ending.

“It’s the kind of job perfect for a man like me,” Roman said, setting his cup down, expression serious. “At least now, I don’t just blindly follow someone else’s orders. I’m not a good man by any means, Stefan. You should know that at least, before things become serious between us. This is new to me, too. I don’t usually do relationships.”

“You mentioned that last night.”

“You’re still not backing out?” Roman asked with a raise of his eyebrow.

He firmly shook his head. “Nope. I don’t scare that easy.”

Within a blink of the eye, Roman was no longer sitting across from him from the counter and stood next to his chair. He let out a surprised breath.

“Are you sure about that?” Roman asked, cupping his cheek.

He nodded. “I’m done with staying in the background and being passive. That’s how I was with Sherman and all the other guys who broke my heart. I want to take initiative.”

“Oh? Let’s test your resolve. Come kiss me, little human.”

He stood, legs shaky, and planted his hands on Roman’s muscled chest. Then he tiptoed and kissed the big werewolf. Roman’s hands were on his ass a moment later, pressing him forward. Roman wrapped his hands around his waist, and without warning, turned him so he faced the counter. Roman kissed the side of his neck, hand moving to the hem of his jogging pants. He moaned when Roman found his dick.

The werewolf gave his thickening shaft a few pumps and tugs. Just from that, he nearly came, but he held back, not wanting to disappoint Roman.

“Look at you, you’re so hard for me right now. It’s turning me on,” Roman said against his ear, pressing his erection up against his butt.

“I—” He didn’t know what else to say, couldn’t come up with tangible sentences either, because Roman’s large hand felt so good on his dick.

Stefan didn’t argue, even as Roman peeled his jogging pants down. Now the bulge in Roman’s jeans dug against his bare buttocks. He groaned, thrusting his dick to meet Roman’s hand.

“Fuck,” Roman muttered against him. He heard a zipper being jerked down, then felt the press of Roman’s cockhead between his ass cheeks. Stefan’s bottoms pooled to his ankles and he kicked it aside, distinctly aware they were really doing this, in his kitchen no less, and in broad daylight.

He blushed, but didn’t tell the werewolf to stop. Neither of them were drunk now, and truthfully? Excitement and shame proved to be a potent combination.

“Don’t worry, I got lube right here,” Roman told behind him, a growl accompanying his voice.

Stefan read somewhere that shifters didn’t catch anything, and he was clean, so that eliminated the need for a condom. Good, because he couldn’t imagine being taken by Roman in any other way but bareback. Roman nudged his legs wider and stopped working his prick for a moment so he could drizzle lube down his puckered entrance.

Roman pushed one slick finger in him, making him squirm.

“God,” he murmured, wanting something bigger inside of him as Roman added a second finger.

“No God here, baby. Just us.”

“Baby. I like that,” he whispered.

Roman nipped at his neck in answer and began to widen Stefan for his access. The werewolf brushed against his sensitive spot, and he gasped Roman did again and finally replaced his hand with his dick.

“Do something for me,” Roman said against his ear, resting his hands on his waist.

“What is it?”

“Touch yourself while I fuck you.”

He groaned. Those words just sounded so dirty, so erotic, and he was excited to meet Roman’s commands. Curling his fingers over his shaft, be began to stroke just as Roman pushed in. He gasped at Roman’s entry. He knew the werewolf was huge, but Roman seemed a lot bigger. Roman didn’t breach him all the way though, but made his way inside him slowly, until finally, Roman was balls deep inside his ass.

Claiming His Heart

STORY EXCERPT

The last thing Ivan expected his little ferret to do was make his own dance floor and start belting the lyrics to the song currently playing on the jukebox. Hayden had drawn a few stares. Ivan had a feeling that Hayden would be all embarrassed once he came to his senses, so it was only logical he joined his little ferret on the floor. Hayden just looked so miserable.

Hayden felt like a wonderful bundle of warmth in his arms, a perfect fit. Abort the mission, some part of his mind yelled, because no way in hell someone like him deserved this incredibly brave and yet vulnerable shifter with unexpected steel in his spine.

They swayed against each other a little, although Ivan had never danced in his entire life. Well, today could be a day of many firsts. Fuck, but with Hayden all pressed up against him, rubbing his cute, handsome head against his chest, Hayden reminded him of a needy cat, a kitten he wanted to take home with him.

“Ivan?” Hayden finally asked, sounding a little sober. “Did I just—”

Ivan put a finger to his lips. He had a feeling Hayden tended to think too much. “Hush. It’s fine.”

He somehow managed to usher Hayden out of there, remembering to pay their tab before leading his little ferret outside. The night air felt good against his face, especially with Hayden still clinging to him, as if the little ferret didn’t want to let go of him either.

His little ferret. Ivan wondered if he had any right calling Hayden that. Hayden thought he’d been joking when Ivan explained what he did for a living. Once Hayden sobered up, how would the ferret shifter react when he realized Ivan was a monster?

“Oh, look who’s hard up,” Hayden said, and he snarled when the daring little Omega gave his dick a squeeze through the denim of his pants.

Ivan flared his nostrils, and he caught sight of his eyes through the window of his truck. Bright yellow. His wolf rose to the surface, hungry, eager to mark, fuck, and mate the little tempting ferret who made it clear he was interested in Ivan, too.

“Stop that,” he said, a growl accompanying his words.

Any sensible submissive shifter would have backed away, not Hayden though. Hayden giggled. “You don’t scare me, big wolf. I know you’ll never hurt me.”

He shoved Hayden against his truck, wanting to jolt Hayden awake. He slammed one hand against the truck beside Hayden’s head, and the sound of his fist cracking metal and glass made Hayden widen his eyes.

“You think I’m a good guy, don’t you?” he asked, voice dangerous, his wolf so close to his skin he had trouble leashing the animal under control.

“I don’t think, I know.”

“You know nothing, little ferret. Once you know the real me, you’ll turn tail and run screaming,” he said, pressing their faces closer, so his nose touched Hayden’s.

Hayden blew out a breath and let out a huff. “You’ve been nothing but nice to me.”

“Your definition of nice is fucked-up,” Ivan said. “You trust me this much, when you shouldn’t be this close to me.”

“Hold on a second, you approached me.”

That was true, Ivan mused, but only because he couldn’t help himself. Hayden started out as an obsession, but getting to know the little ferret changed plenty of things between them. Now, Ivan doubted his wolf would want to get rid of Hayden easily.

Hayden was far from done though, and he went on, “All the dominant ferret shifters my parents paired me off with were assholes. They wanted something from me, to lose weight, to learn to cook better. The list is endless. You know what?”

“What?” he asked, deciding Hayden needed to let all these problems off his chest.

“I was scared when they kicked me out, terrified of being on my own and without a support system to rely on. Afterward though? I was relieved. I didn’t have to worry about pleasing some stranger who only cared I can give him kits, and my parents, who only saw me as a breeder.” Hayden continued, “You’re the first person to treat me like I matter, the first to even pretend that I’m perfect.”

Hayden looked and smelled so sad that he pulled the other man to a tight, fierce hug.

“I’m here,” he said, unsure if his words meant anything.

Hayden rested his head on his chest. “Thank you.”

Amused, he parted from his little ferret. “You sure like to thank me a lot. Get in the truck.”

Once he was behind the wheel, he noticed Hayden staring at him.

“Where are you taking me now?” Hayden asked, sounding a little hopeful.

“Home, I think. You had one too many drinks.” Shifters usually didn’t get drunk that easily, but maybe Omega ferrets were different.

Hayden got drunk as fast as a human, Ivan observed. If he hadn’t been there, some dominant shifter, some asshole, might decide he could take advantage of Hayden. That made his blood boil. A possessive streak came over him, dangerous because Hayden might not realize it, but he’d already accomplished what few could, even Danny. Hayden had hooked his tiny claws deep into skin and burrowed his way into the icy heart of a killer.

“Home? I knew it. I was too weird for you, right? Dang. I really had a plan going on in my head,” Hayden mumbled.

“What plan?”

“Seduce you into my bed and maybe even convince you to play pretend boyfriend for my family dinner.”

ADULT EXCERPT

Hayden sunk his nails into Ivan’s broad shoulders, parting his lips so Ivan could deepen the kiss. He sucked down hard on Ivan’s tongue, groaning as he became distinctively aware of the bulge in Ivan’s jeans rubbing at his own groin.

Ivan withdrew from his mouth only to start leaving a trail of kisses down his neck, the hollow of his throat. In seconds, Ivan had his pants undone and shoved a rough callused hand down his boxers. He groaned when Ivan curled his fingers over his shaft and began stroking him.

“Oh God,” he murmured. Hayden would explode even before they got to the good part. He couldn’t let that happen, except his body refused to listen.

“I’ll come,” Hayden confessed, blushing hard, but Ivan locked their lips together, kissing him slowly with a tenderness which surprised him, because nothing about his wolf was soft.

“Go ahead,” Ivan said once he released Hayden’s lips. “I want to see you come from my touch alone.”

Then his wolf started stroking him faster, other hand gripping his ass. He widened his eyes as the pressure building inside him reached breaking point. He cried out, screamed Ivan’s name as his vision blurred. Hayden exploded, spilling his load all over Ivan’s fingers. Neither of them cared about the mess they made. He panted, resting his head on Ivan’s warm chest.

Ivan wove his clean fingers into his hair, fisting it, exposing his neck. He moaned when Ivan scraped his teeth against the spot between shoulder and neck. Hayden didn’t understand the significance yet, but he was confused when Ivan looked pained as he pulled away, as if it was a struggle to do so.

“We’re not done,” his wolf said, voice deep and growly.

“Yes, I need,” he faltered unsure if he could say the embarrassing words.

Ivan gripped his cheek, forcing him to look into those brilliant gray eyes flecked with gold. “Tell me what you need. There’s no room for shame here, little ferret.”

“Please fuck me.” The words spilled out of him, unbidden. God, it sounded so dirty, but he didn’t care. Excitement hummed in his veins. Even his inner ferret wanted this to happen, to connect with the terrifying, amazing wolf in front of them on the deepest level.

“Good answer.” Ivan helped Hayden off his lap.

“Pants off,” Ivan ordered.

They shredded the last of their clothing, and once Ivan dropped his boxers, he stared, unable to help it. Ivan was hung like a horse, every inch of him engorged and hard. He swallowed, already imagining Ivan’s thick cock spearing through him, claiming him.

“On your hands and knees,” Ivan commanded.

He dropped on all fours, only for Ivan to run his hand down his spine, the curve of his ass. He squirmed when Ivan reached the cease between his buttocks and pried his ass cheeks open. Feeling self-conscious, he began to pull his knees together, but Ivan nudged his legs wider, exposing his ass, cock, and balls.

Ivan gave his soft cock a tug and he moaned, feeling it pulse. Plenty of Hayden’s failed dates had been human. He assumed no shifter would want him after years of being rejected by dominant ferret shifter males in his own pack, so he was afraid to try again.

There were two benefits in having another shifter for a lover. First, they recovered fast. Dominant males were said to be insatiable in bed. Second, they didn’t use condoms because shifters were immune to most diseases. The other was the fact Omega ferret shifters were self-lubricating. Ivan let out a rumble as his fingers brushed against his hole.

Yup, Ivan just found that little fact.

“Fuck, you’re so ready for me,” Ivan said, sliding one finger in him and quickly adding in a second.

He groaned. “I need you inside me.”

“Be patient, little ferret. I’m not exactly small, so we can’t rush things.”

He liked that Ivan was a considerate lover, but if Ivan wasn’t inside him soon, he’d go mad. So, he went for playful and thrust his ass at Ivan, who let out a soft snarl. Hayden wouldn’t have tried this before with any other man. He’d always been passive when it came to his love life. Maybe that was why he had bad luck when it came to finding dates, but he was starting to believe fate did things for a reason.

If his pack didn’t throw him out, Hayden would have never met Ivan, he’d be back home, probably paired off to some older wereferret who’d only see him as a baby making machine and nothing more.

“Don’t tempt me,” Ivan warned when he pushed his ass at Ivan again.

Ivan’s swat made him jump. He wasn’t shocked by the pain, but by how the gesture only turned him on even more.

“Behave, little ferret. Who knew you’d be a wild cat when it comes to sex?” Ivan sounded amused.

Thankfully, Ivan couldn’t see his face. Hayden bet both his cheeks and neck were red by now.

“I’m not,” he blurted. “It’s just, being with you makes me different. Braver.”

“Well, I like this side of you, your shy self, too. All of it,” Ivan said, then the werewolf’s fingers brushed that special spot in him.

He mewled, clawing at the wooden floor only for Ivan to stroke his prostate again. Finally, it seemed like an eternity before Ivan replaced his digits with his cock. He moaned as Ivan rolled his hips and pushed in. It burned, the werewolf proving bigger than he anticipated, but once Ivan moved past the thick ring of stubborn muscles, the ache faded.

Ivan finally buried himself balls deep inside Hayden. He let out a breath. Ivan felt so huge inside of him, completely stretching him wide.