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  Mark hadn’t expected such gentleness, not after that kiss before. So his mate had a soft side too. He could totally get behind that. And it was very sweet that Hunter worried about Mark even now. He truly cared about him.

  Hunter explored Mark’s mouth. When he ended the kiss, he nudged Mark’s head to the side and nibbled a path up his neck. Mark willingly bared his throat. Chill bumps raced across his skin from Hunter’s hot breath.

  “Your scent is so….” Hunter sniffed deeply. “It’s dark and sharp—like mint chocolate. Have I mentioned that?”

  Mark swallowed. “No. No you haven’t.”

  “Love mint chocolate.” Hunter nipped Mark’s earlobe. He let his ripped T-shirt drop to the floor, then yanked the borrowed T-shirt over Mark’s head. Then Hunter spun them. Mark’s hands hit the wall as he braced himself. Oh shit, that was hot, but two could damn well play that game. Reaching back, he wrapped his arm around Hunter’s neck, dragging him closer, and leaned his head against Hunter’s shoulder.

  A nice size bulge pressed against his ass. His breathing hitched when Hunter placed his clawed hands on Mark’s stomach. Glancing down, he saw the long fingers, exaggerated knuckles, and bone-white nails against his skin. Hunter dragged his hands up Mark’s chest, careful not to break the skin, but definitely leaving red marks behind.

  “Oh fuck, that’s hot.”

  Hunter growled against Mark’s neck.

  “Fuck,” Mark gasped when Hunter flicked both his nipples. Holy shit, his control was mind-boggling. One wrong move, and he’d really hurt Mark with those deadly nails.

  “Like that?” Hunter whispered, teasing both Mark’s hard nips with his fingers. “Like walking on the edge, don’t you?” Hunter trailed his claws back down Mark’s chest and across his stomach. “Good.”

  Groaning, Mark pushed back, grinding his ass into the bulge pressed against him.

  Hunter rested his hands at the top of Mark’s sweats, and Mark was pretty sure he stopped breathing. Those claws near his junk wasn’t something he was sure he was ready for.

  Walking on the wild side was all well and good, but even that might be too much for him. As he watched, Hunter’s hands returned to normal, and Mark exhaled noisily.

  Hunter chuckled darkly against Mark’s neck. “I would never hurt you, but a hint of fear can spice things up.”

  “I’ll remember that,” Mark swore. “For next time.”

  “Can’t wait.” Hunter rubbed his fangs against Mark’s neck.

  “Aw fuck.” The feel of those things against his skin drove him wild.

  His cock throbbed. By fuck, he’d had enough of this wall deal. It was time to get down to business. He needed that dick in his ass pronto and wasn’t in the mood to do a whole lot of playing around.

  Turning in Hunter’s arms, he stepped out of the borrowed flip-flops and wiggled out of his sweats, tossing them across the floor too. “I want that cock in me.”

  With another evil grin, Hunter quickly stripped. He picked Mark up and tossed him over his shoulder.

  “Son of a—” Damn showoff. He was nearly two hundred pounds, and Hunter manhandled him like he weighed nothing. He braced his hands on Hunter’s back, and that ass caught his attention. Mmm, he bet he could bounce a quarter off that. And hell, since he was here—he slapped Hunter on the ass. Hard.

  “Huh. Was that supposed to hurt?”

  “Ass.” Mark complained as he watched various walls pass by as Hunter carried him. And speaking of that—he slapped it again because… reasons. Damn that thing looked fine bouncing.

  Hunter crossed the bedroom, and the next thing he knew, Mark was sailing through the air. Laughing, he flopped back on the bed, letting his legs fall open, and started stroking his cock. Hunter hummed in approval as he opened the night table and grabbed the lube.

  One knee hit the mattress, then the other, and Hunter crawled across the bed and sat down between Mark’s knees. Hunter bumped Mark’s hand out of the way. More than happy to let Hunter take over, he crossed his arms under his head and settled in to watch Hunter work his magic.

  His toes curled when Hunter ran his finger down Mark’s cock, which was nice, but he flexed his hips, trying to hurry Hunter along. He didn’t want slow and sweet. Not right now. Need more. Need you in me.

  Raising his eyebrow, Hunter closed his lips over the dome of Mark’s shaft. He sucked the crown, and Mark sighed in pleasure. But this taking an inch at a time was driving him mad.

  Hunter bobbed up and down, applying the right amount of suction. Then he took Mark to the root, and his whole body lit up. Unable to help it, Mark tangled his hands in Hunter’s hair.

  Glancing up, Hunter watched Mark, his eyes still yellow. It was the hottest thing he’d ever seen. A low whine escaped him. With a last lick to his cock, Hunter released it.

  “I need you in me,” Mark gasped. “Now, Hunter. No more playing around.”

  Reaching for the lube, Hunter squirted some in his hand, slicked himself, then slid a finger down to tease Mark’s hole. He played there, pressing without entering Mark. The pressure increased until finally Hunter slid a finger inside.

  Mark arched his hips, taking more. Hunter worked him open, then pulled his finger out and added more lube before he worked two back inside. Hunter nailed Mark’s hot spot, and electricity raced through his body. His wolf howled in his mind. Another howl answered him.

  Mark thrashed his head back and forth on the pillow as Hunter finger fucked him. Sparks of desire spread throughout his body. Hunter kept rubbing his hot spot, then he added another finger and scissored them. That did it. He was about to come.

  Mark grabbed Hunter’s hand. “Going to come. Fucking hell. I want…. I need….” To hell with it. He’d show Hunter what he needed. Moving swiftly, he surged up, pushed Hunter onto his back, and straddled Hunter’s hips.

  “Oh fuck yeah,” Hunter groaned.

  “Told you I liked this position.” Smirking, he reached back, grasped Hunter’s thick cock, and lowered himself down. A groan escaped as the head slid inside. “Fuck, you are big.”

  “No rush.” Hunter’s hands clutched Mark’s hips. “You’re so damn tight. Just hold on and get used to me.”

  The pain receded and a tingling started. Mark wiggled his hips and dropped down a bit more. He rocked up and down, trying to loosen enough to take Hunter. Finally, his ass relaxed, and he eased down the last bit. Hunter was all the way in him.

  “You fill me up. Fuck, you feel good.” Mark leaned over Hunter, raised up, and then slid back down.

  “Mine! You’re mine, my mate.” Tightening his grip, Hunter braced his feet on the bed.

  “Damn straight I am. You’re mine too.” Looking down into Hunter’s flushed face, he bared his fangs. “My mate. Mine! Now fuck me.”

  Hunter howled.

  Mark swore he felt the tight control Hunter held over his desire snap, and Hunter thrust hard into him. He sunk his fingers into what chest hair Hunter had and pulled. Hunter swore at the slight bit of pain, and his claws pierced Mark’s hips.

  He twisted Hunter’s nipples. Sweating, shaking, he lost himself in the pleasure. He slammed back down as hard as Hunter thrust up. He tilted his hips and Hunter nailed his hot spot repeatedly.

  The pleasure built, and his spine tingled, but Mark fought it. He wasn’t ready for this to end. A bead of sweat trickled down his face, and he glanced down. Hunter’s eyes were screwed shut, his jaw was clenched, and the tendons in his throat stood out in stark relief. That power, though. How was he lasting so long? The man was a damn machine.

  “Come for me,” Hunter finally demanded. “Jack yourself off if you need to. I can’t….” Hunter’s body strained, and he whimpered. “Going to come. Need you to also. Come on my dick, babe. Now!”

  Mark didn’t have a chance to reply before his body bowed to the demands of his mate. His come covered both of them while Hunter still bucked up into him. Then Hunter pulled Mark back down and froze, his eyes still screwed shut. With a long, dr
awn-out moan he flooded Mark, his seed shooting deep.

  Chapter Sixteen – Hunter

  HUNTER RELAXED, and Mark collapsed against him. “Dear goddess,” Hunter whispered. “It just keeps getting better, doesn’t it?”

  “It sure does.” Mark rolled off Hunter and collapsed next to him. “You’re going to have to tell me about this goddess of yours. You’ve mentioned that name several times.”

  “The goddess of the moon, or Moon goddess as we call her, is the goddess of life and death, wisdom, magic, shape-shifting, and war. She can be a fierce and aggressive goddess with a yearning for blood on the battlefield. She takes no prisoners and shows little mercy to her enemies.”

  “Huh. That sounds like the hybrid form.”

  “Possibly. I never thought of it like that. Anyway, she loves her children, meaning us, and will do whatever it takes to help them. Folklore says that she saw human beings attacked by ‘others,’ but since humans were selfish and destructive, she decided to combine them with her loyal wolves who were going extinct. Thus, the first werewolf was created.”

  “Nice.”

  “The moon is so very important to us. It’s the one time we can’t resist changing.”

  “Am I expected to worship her too?”

  “Expected? No. But I would hazard a guess you will eventually. There’s no denying the moon’s pull on our wolf. Something created us, and we believe she did. Do you believe in the human God?”

  Mark shrugged. “I believe there’s something greater than us, yes. Now, the Christian God? No. I don’t like how they use their religion to perpetrate hate.” Mark patted Hunter on the stomach then rolled off the bed. “I need to take a quick shower. I’ll be right back.”

  Hunter yawned. “Hurry.” He tried to stay awake, he really did. But the sheets were soft, the room dark, and he was tired. Closing his eyes, he drifted off.

  HUNTER WAS up before Mark the next morning. Wanting to do something nice for his mate, he eased out of bed, pulled on a pair of night pants, and padded to the kitchen. He certainly couldn’t cook like Sissy, but he figured he could handle bacon and eggs. After he got the coffee maker going, he started breakfast.

  Mark joined him just as Hunter finished the bacon. The first of the eggs were about done too. “Good morning.”

  “Hey. Have a seat. This won’t take long. Oh, coffee’s ready too,” Hunter said, grabbing some plates from a cabinet.

  “I smelled the bacon. It woke me up.” Mark poured himself a cup. “Noticed you were out cold when I got back to the bed.”

  “Yup. Would you get us some forks, please? And some napkins?”

  “Sure. Where are they?”

  Hunter pointed at a drawer.

  Mark got what they needed and sat down.

  “But I did try to stay awake.” Hunter slid the eggs onto the plate and added some bacon. After he fixed his, he brought both plates to the table. “I failed.”

  “I saw. Looks good.”

  “Thanks. I was pretty sure I couldn’t screw this up.”

  Mark scooped some eggs up. He chewed happily. “They taste fine.”

  “Good.” Hunter sat down and dug into his. Once the plates were about empty, he brought up the subject he’d been meaning to broach. “So, I thought we’d talk a bit about Alphas and you since we’re about done.”

  “Sure.”

  “Alphas are the pack leaders. They’re always born werewolves too, and I’ve told you about bitten verses born wolves. Bitten wolves, if they’re strong enough, are always Betas.”

  “A lot of ‘always’ in there.”

  “I know. Anyway, Betas are never any higher in the hierarchy. It takes bitten wolves three days to go through the change.” Hunter picked up his coffee mug and took a sip. “Then we have you.”

  “Then we have me.” Mark snapped off a piece of bacon. “So I’m an anomaly.”

  “I guess so, but the thing is, you’re not even supposed to exist. There has never been a record of a bitten wolf turning into an Alpha. Never. It just doesn’t happen.”

  Mark chewed his bacon, frowning. “Hmm.” He swallowed. “You know, just because there isn’t a record doesn’t necessarily mean it’s never happened.”

  Hunter’s coffee mug hit the table with a thump. “Good goddess.”

  “Seriously?” Mark rolled his eyes. “That never crossed your mind? I mean, if it happened to me, why couldn’t it happen to someone else? Maybe I’m not that unusual. Maybe all the past born werewolves didn’t like the idea of some bitten wolf being the all-powerful Alpha and kept it quiet. Or worse.” Mark shrugged, taking a last bite of his eggs. “Or maybe I really am a fluke.”

  “I honestly don’t know. If something like this was kept secret because of bigotry—”

  “Humans aren’t the only ones who are racist, and we are part human. Just saying.”

  “Fuck, Mark.” Hunter leaned back in his chair. “If that’s true, it could set werewolf society on its ear.”

  “It may not be. You don’t know. Like I said, maybe it’s something that only pertains to me. Maybe there’s something weird with my genetics. Could that be it?”

  “I honestly don’t know.” Hunter took a deep breath. “You said you don’t remember anything about the first time you changed, right?”

  “Right.”

  “Well—and I didn’t want to bring this up, but I don’t think I have a choice now—it wasn’t normal. We were talking, and you got upset.” Hunter scooted back up to the table and scooped up the last of his eggs. “I could feel it. Then your eyes flashed yellow. It startled me.”

  Mark nodded. “I remember that. I thought it was because of my awesomely mean glare.”

  “Which was impressive, don’t get me wrong, but that wasn’t it. You were doing things you shouldn’t have been able to do yet. Then your voice dropped and had a slight growl too. Again, something you shouldn’t have been able to do.”

  Mark wiped his mouth with a napkin. “I don’t remember sounding like that, but I do remember how mad I was.”

  “Then your claws extended.”

  Mark stared at his fingers. “Something I shouldn’t have been able to do, right?”

  “Right. Then the fangs appeared, and the next thing I knew, you howled.” Hunter used his napkin too and set it aside. “Not to mention that it was an Alpha howl, something you absolutely shouldn’t have been able to do. I knew then something was different about you.”

  “I was damn mad.” Mark fiddled with his napkin, slowly tearing it into pieces. “We were talking about fated mates. I didn’t understand it then. I do now.”

  “After you howled, you started to change, but it wasn’t normal, like I said. You basically seized. If that wasn’t terrifying enough, various body parts started transforming into a wolf then back to human, and the changes were becoming more intense and rapid.”

  “Jesus Christ.” Mark dropped the napkin he was in the process of shredding and picked up his mug instead, taking a sip of his coffee. “If that’s the case, then I’m glad I don’t remember.”

  “I was terrified you were going to die.” Hunter shuddered. Terrified might be putting it mildly.

  Mark set his mug down and reached across the table, holding out his hand. Hunter took it and immediately calmed. It was odd how nothing more than a simple touch from his mate could soothe him.

  “I’ve never been so afraid. That’s not how a first transformation goes, and for a bitten wolf, it never happens before the three days are over.”

  “What about a born werewolf?”

  “It usually happens around puberty, and there are warning signs it’s approaching, like increased aggression and moodiness. But it’s never like yours. We just shift. Then we’re done.”

  “Wow. That’s, um, that’s a lot to take in. So I’m a bitten werewolf, who’s an Alpha but shouldn’t be.” Mark squeezed Hunter’s hand then let go. “No wonder the other werewolves I’ve met recently reacted kinda weird. They know what I am, don’t they? And they don�
��t know what to make of it.”

  “Yes. You’re powerful like an Alpha, which is very apparent, but you smell off. You done with that?” Hunter pointed at Mark’s plate.

  “I am. And thank you again. It was good.”

  “Well, I don’t know if I’d call it good, but at least it was edible.” Hunter picked up their plates and carried them to the sink. “Anyway, there’s a distinct humanness to you. Most bitten wolves have that. Born wolves don’t.”

  “Great. I’m an oddball.”

  “Well, yes, but you’re my oddball.”

  “Yay,” Mark deadpanned. “Lucky you.”

  “Hey, now. I am very lucky. Not all of us find our fated mates. I did. I will be forever happy for that, no matter what. You’re the light of my life, babe.”

  “Well shit, this sappy side of yours makes me want to take you back to bed.”

  “Totally on board with that.” Hunter finished rinsing the plates and put them in the dishwasher. “I’d—” Hunter’s cell beeped. “Hold that thought.” Walking to the other counter, he took it off the charger, unlocked it, and opened his text messages. “That was Don. He owns the store where I got the new mattress and rails. They’re delivering it today.” He slipped the cell into his night pant’s pocket. “It should be here in two hours.”

  “Guess we won’t be going back to bed then. But speaking of that, I do have a question. At some point can I get my personal stuff? I mean, I rented an apartment that was really small, so there isn’t much, but hopefully Michael will… will… shit.” Mark winced. He looked down to see his claws were out again. “Dammit.”

  “Emotions, remember? Those test our control, but it’s especially tough for a new wolf.”

  “And talking about my family certainly gets me emotional. At this rate, I’m never going to be able to see my brother.” Mark stared at his hands until the claws disappeared. “Anyway, Michael’s not only going to have to deal with Mom and Dad’s things but mine too. This fucking sucks.”

  “I know. I’m sorry.” Hunter crossed the kitchen. Stopping next to Mark’s chair, he leaned down and kissed Mark on the cheek. “Do you think he’ll store your things?”