He nodded again. “I think so.”
“I want that. Feeding you when you need me to, helping you dress, getting you off. I would really, really like to do all those things.”
“Me too. It doesn't have to be more than that.”
“All right.” I smiled against his ear and whispered, “Sweet Sebastian.”
His cheek warmed beneath my kiss.
The night before, shock had held me in awe of what was happening between me and Sebastian, but now my body let me know in no uncertain terms that I should participate.
By the time I turned on the water, Sebastian’s hard cock had reddened. It leaked a long string of slick to his belly where it slid down until it disappeared into a manscaped triangle of silky blond hair.
I used foamy shower gel to clean Sebastian’s body, but it was mostly an excuse to touch every single inch of his skin. My cock was so hard I gasped with need as I stroked him off. When he begged me to go faster and harder and oh, God, more, I fumbled my jeans open, brought out my cock, and pumped myself with the same frenzied rhythm I used on him.
Sebastian moaned. He clung to me as best he could one armed. My orgasm was a runaway train going downhill until we went off the rails together.
Sebastian threw his head back and wailed.
His eyes met mine, helpless with surrender, and I knew in that moment that whatever Sebastian wanted from me, whatever he needed me to say or do, I'd tear myself apart to give it to him.
I came down slowly with Sebastian curled in my lap, lifted my cum-soaked hand to my lips, and licked his jizz. He let out a shuddering almost-growl while he kissed and licked into my mouth. We were grown men and I needed to be mindful of his arms, but we made out like animals with no other aim but to feel the next press of lips, the next touch, and the next, and the next…
He dropped his head onto my shoulder and preened while I whispered stupid things in his ear that I wouldn’t want repeated—”You’re so beautiful, baby,” and “I want you beneath me,” and “Don’t ever think I didn’t want this with you.”
“Kiss me. Kiss me,” he begged against my neck. “Please, Stone.”
The little wolf was mine.
I would keep him safe and happy and far, far away from the things that waited in the heartless world beyond the sanctuary walls to hurt him again.
I dried Sebastian carefully and carried him to bed where I tucked him safely beneath the covers and kissed his forehead and nose and cheeks and lips…too many times to count.
Morrigan nudged me forward.
“I wish we could sleep here too.” I wanted nothing more than to curl up at Sebastian’s back and wrap him in my arms, but with his arms the way they were, I stood a better chance of hurting him than providing comfort.
“You could,” Sebastian murmured. “I wouldn’t mind.”
“It’s safer for you alone, sweetheart.” One last kiss deepened and nearly melted my resolve. “See you in the morning?”
He nodded. “I see my new doctors tomorrow.”
“Molly told me. We'll eat together before you leave.” I let my fingers play over the planes of Sebastian’s face. His cheekbones, his jaw, his throat. “I’ll be here when you get back.”
“You wanted me tonight, didn’t you?” Sebastian grinned sleepily. “You wanted to tap my fine ass.”
“I did.” The fantasy of being inside him was a boner in progress. “We’ll get there someday.”
“Mmhm.” He smiled so sweetly I couldn’t help kissing his swollen lips again. When I could catch my breath, I left the room with Morrigan padding softly in my shadow.
Molly sat at the kitchen table with a glass of wine and a Clive Cussler novel. She glanced up at me and then went back to reading.
“I won’t ask,” she said. Sebastian had been a little loud.
“I won’t tell,” I replied, though I’d noticed the rising level of sexy noises at the time. I’d liked his cries way too much to stop them. “Hypothetically speaking, am I necessarily required to accept my heart’s desire if it collides with my bland but comfortable reality?”
“Would you like a glass of wine while we ponder that?” She held up her bottle—white this time—a pinot grigio.
“I’m beginning to sense a theme with you.” I opened the cupboard and retrieved a bottle of bourbon and a shot glass.
“I don’t work for the California wine board if that’s what you’re thinking.” She topped off her glass. “And to answer your question, reality’s totally overrated.”
Ask a silly question…
“Good talk.” Morrigan plopped onto my feet. “Ow. Morrigan, must you?”
My dog made herself comfortable in stages, wriggling, then crossing her paws one over the other, then finally placing her muzzle on them with a hearty sigh.
Molly watched the show. “That is a human in a dog suit.”
“Is not. I’ve checked.” I poured a shot and knocked it back. Then I poured a second.
“What’s got you lining up shots tonight?”
“Change is inevitable, isn’t it?” I spun the glass on the table clockwise. Counterclockwise. Maybe there was some combination I could dial and the answers would all become clear.
“Are you worried about falling for Sebastian because he’s a dude?” Molly asked. “How will your family take it?”
“Honestly? Tag and Ariel won’t care. My parents might, but I’m almost forty. That’s not what I’m worried about.” I hesitated before spilling my guts. “I haven’t seen my ex-wife or my kids since the divorce four years ago. I’m more ashamed than sad about how the marriage ended. What’s killing me is the way I left things with my kids…I didn’t even keep in touch.”
“That doesn’t sound like you,” she said gently. “Why would you do that?”
“I couldn’t be around them while I was in denial about my PTSD. So when things between me and their mom finally fell apart, I’d already put them through too much pain.”
“I’m sorry your family went through that.”
“My wife had someone else by then. A good man.” It hurt to think back on those awful final months. “My kids were scared of me.”
“Obviously you’ve had some breakthroughs since then.” She lifted her glass to her lips and drank. “More than just Morrigan, I mean.”
“Yes, but when I got better, I let things continue the way they were. I thought it’d be easier. They seemed happy with Serena and her new husband. All I could do for them was dredge up a painful past.”
“What does this have to do with Sebastian?” she asked. “Why is this an issue now?”
Why now? Because Serena would be at Artemis’s naming ceremony. But even without that, was it time—past time—that I made things right.
“Serena will be at a family event on Saturday. I’ll have to face her then.”
“At the Wiccaning?”
“Guess Tag invited you?” I asked.
“Ariel mentioned it. She asked if Sebastian and I would like to come.” She frowned and tapped her finger idly on the table. “Are you worried about having Sebastian there? Because if that’s the case, we should stay here. We won’t go if it will make things uncomfortable.”’