Sage's Mystery (7 page)

Wetting his fingers with saliva, the only thing he had available to him, Sage reached down and circled his fingers around William’s entrance. William’s legs lifted as he planted his feet on the floor, raising his ass slightly, giving Sage more room to do with what he wanted.

He locked eyes with William as his finger slid into William’s body and then back out, repeating the move a few more times before pushing it in all of the way. There was no way he could fight it now.

Sage had felt a small part of what things would be like between them, and he was hooked.

Groaning, Sage twisted his fingers. William’s channel was as soft as silk, grabbing Sage’s fingers and pulling them in. He could feel the need in him rising like the hottest fire, clouding his brain as he watched his fingers play.

William watched him, raising his lower half even higher as pure, liquid lust radiated from his eyes. Using his free hand, Sage reached forward, curling his fingers over William’s shoulder, pushing at it slightly to keep the man in place. William nodded his understanding as he stilled.

Sage glanced back down to what he was doing, his fingers a hypnotic pull for his eyes as they glided in and out, adding a third, and then scissoring them. Sage’s lips parted, his breathing labored as he fought not to take William in the ways of his people, savagely, swiftly, and snarling for the right to mate. William was human, needing him to be gentler than Sage was used to.

Pulling his fingers free, Sage yanked William closer and then pressed the head of his cock against the stretched hole. He pushed just the very tip of his cock in, feeling his control slipping fast.

This was a bad idea. Very bad, but Sage was too far gone to stop it now. His entire body shook as he exhaled, trying to take William in a human way, slow, gentle.

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But he wasn’t human. Sage was a beast. A werewolf. A
vârcolac
.

Sage gasped as he thrust forward, his muscles quivering as he stilled, straining against the need to fight William for the right to claim him.

William cried out, his legs leaving the floor and wrapping around Sage’s waist as his fingers curled into Sage’s bare chest. The cry broke through his restraint as Sage’s pupils dilated and his claws started to slip from his fingernails. Sage clenched his jaw as his canines grew longer, extending far beyond normal.

This had never happened before. It was only a partial shift, but an unmated
vârcolac
never shifted before the full moon rose high above the earth. He couldn’t understand what was happening, and he was powerless to stop it.

Sage slid his hands under William’s soft and fragile body, pulling him from the floor and holding him tight to his chest. He rested one hand behind William’s head, the other cupping his ass as Sage’s head fell back onto his shoulders. He didn’t want William to see him like this. William would be terrified, and that was the last thing Sage had wanted.

He could also feel his cock growing as he thrust deeper into William’s giving body. His human was mewling, clinging to him as Sage took him, his heart rate steadily climbing. Sage thrust forward as he pulled William down harder onto his shaft, growls erupting from his chest every few seconds.

“Sage, oh god, Sage,” William cried as his body took Sage in over and over again. It was a cry of pleasure. This Sage could hear.

William was taking pleasure in what Sage was giving. William’s tight, puckered hole gripped his cock perfectly, milking his orgasm closer.

“Fuck, William,” Sage said between gritted teeth. He wasn’t going to be able to stop the bite. He could feel it in his bones. His mouth was gearing up, saliva pooling as Sage sniffed at William’s succulent flesh, the soft skin between neck and shoulder.

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His teeth snapped, clamping tight as his cock erupted, sending him into a spiral of out-of-control thrusts. William cried out, bathing their bodies with his seed as he clung tightly to Sage.

Sage released his arm, his own arm that he had bitten into to stop from biting William as he slowly lowered the human. He kept his face turned, unwilling to show William who the human had just given himself to.

Pulling his softening cock free, Sage yanked William’s back to his chest, keeping him from seeing the beast that was partially exposed.

William burrowed under him, sighing softly.

Sage was going to have to leave tomorrow before the change took place. If he didn’t, his own arm wasn’t going to be what he bit into the next time.

* * * *

William stretched, feeling achy in all the right places as a smile spread across his face. Last night had been fantastic, wonderful, everything he knew it would be.

He stiffened when he realized the heat he had felt all night against his back was gone. Disappointment flooded William, but he had only asked for a few hours, which Sage had given him.

Was he expecting roses and breakfast this morning? He got what he asked for, and nothing more. So why did he feel like he’d been used and tossed aside? Maybe there was a small part of him that was hoping Sage would want to keep him after the night they had shared together.

William shook his head at the romantic scenario playing through his head as he got up from the floor and went to the bathroom. There wasn’t going to be any romance and declarations of love. It had been sex, plain and simple. Two people reaching out to each other in the middle of the night.

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After washing up in the cold water, he walked downstairs, looking but not looking for Sage. He didn’t want to seem needy and clingy.

They had spent the night together. Since he woke up alone, it didn’t mean anything to Sage, and William refused to show that it meant anything to him.

Even if it meant the world to him.

He might not want Sage to know how he felt toward the man, but he couldn’t stop the images from reminding him why his ass was sore this morning. Sage had looked glorious above him before scooping him from the floor and holding onto William like he mattered. No one had ever treated William that way, and now all he had was a memory of that one special night.

Terror came running toward him, barking and running around William. He glanced around, but didn’t see Sage. William let the dog out as he walked through the empty house. “Where the hell did he go?”

William saw a piece of paper sitting on top of the cooler. Cold fear ran down his spine as he slowly walked closer. Was Sage going to tell him to get out now that he had given up the ass? Sage didn’t seem the type, but how much did he really know about the guy? His hand trembled as he picked the paper up and unfolded it.

He swallowed hard and then read Sage’s messy handwriting. The note said that Sage had to attend to a personal matter and that he would be back tomorrow. William turned the note over and then glanced at the one sentence again as if more words would suddenly appear.

Well, at least Sage hadn’t asked him to leave, although he had wished the note said more. “Like what, words of undying love? Get over it,” William mumbled as he shoved the note in his front pocket.

He ate breakfast and then started on another bedroom. He would work to keep his mind preoccupied. Lord knew there were plenty of bedrooms for that.

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Lynn Hagen

As the day went on, William started dreading the night. It had only been a week, but William had gotten used to Sage sleeping in the same room, making him feel safe. He still didn’t like the noises from town at night, and he still wasn’t going to investigate them either. If they were the same noises he remembered vividly from his past, William wasn’t going anywhere near that place.

But oddly enough, they stopped when Sage showed up. He was relieved about that. William grabbed a few trash bags from the bedroom where his supplies were and made his way to the next room down the hallway.

William couldn’t help but miss Sage as he cleared cobwebs and swept the floor. He knew it was sappy to wish for a life with the man.

Sage didn’t seem like the type of person to be tied down. He was a rebel who needed to be free, and taking up with William wasn’t the man’s idea of being free.

Terror barked as she trotted into the bedroom, wagging her tail.

William glanced down at her, giving her a slight smile. “I don’t know where he went, girl,” he said and then headed downstairs to feed the Chihuahua.

William had even liked the nickname Sage had given him. In his eyes, only someone who liked another bothered to give them a nickname. Maybe he had been wrong. No matter, William could still feel Sage touching him, caressing him, and fucking him until his eyes crossed. His skin still tingled where Sage had touched him.

He’d have that memory at least. He cleared his throat around the lump that had formed, and shook his head, clearing that as well. What a damn sappy wuss he was.

He got what he’d asked for, and now he wanted to cry? No wonder Sage took off. He would take off from himself, too, if he could. “Man up, jackass.”

Terror chose that moment to come into the room and bark, solidifying William’s chastisement toward himself. No matter what
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fantasy he had in his head of a happy life with the man, Sage wasn’t going to profess his undying love or build a life with William.

He needed to get over it.

William swept the room, tossing larger pieces of trash into the bag, and trying his best to lose himself in his task. It wasn’t working, but he was determined not to pine after the rebel. They had a good working relationship right now, and William wasn’t going to ruin that over a broken heart.

He dragged the trash bag down the hallway when it was full and picked it up, tossing it down the chute. He worked through the day, taking a break to eat lunch and then dinner. He wasn’t very hungry, but he needed to keep up his strength to finish his work.

As the night drew closer, William started getting nervous. Would he hear the howls from town now that Sage wouldn’t be there?

He hoped not. There was nothing worse than being a chickenshit and locking himself in the bedroom so the boogeyman wouldn’t get him. It sucked being afraid, but William knew that was who he was.

Why deny it?

He had every reason to be afraid after the horrific event from his childhood. Any sane person would be a wreck.

“Where the fuck is Sage?”

William spun around, gaping at the very large man standing in the doorway, growling like he was about to pound William into dust.

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Lynn Hagen

Jeremiah glared at the short man standing there gaping at him.

Too much was going on for Sage not to be there. He had followed the directions perfectly, so he knew he was in the right place—albeit, a pretty fucked-up place. What in the hell had the wolf been thinking when he bought this piece-of-shit town? “I asked you a question.”

The human dropped his broom and reached into his front pocket, his hand shaking badly as he handed over a crumpled piece of paper.

Jeremiah snatched the paper. His eyes still narrowed on the small man and then glanced down at Sage’s shitty-ass handwriting. So, he had gone into hiding for his shift.

This wasn’t good. Jeremiah had no damn clue where he was, except in the middle of nowhere, and he hadn’t a clue where to start searching for Sage. “He didn’t say anything to you about where he was going?” Jeremiah knew the answer before the human shook his head back and forth. Sage wasn’t the type to check in with anyone, let alone tell anyone where he was going.

Fuck.

Jeremiah turned from the bedroom and headed back downstairs.

He had to be careful because his foot had already gone through the second-to-last step outside. He looked around, feeling as though the house was going to cave in on him at any second.
What a dump.

“Excuse me,” the small human called from upstairs. “Who are you?”

Jeremiah could hear the nervousness in the man’s voice. He should be nervous. There were far more dangerous things to worry about than a stranger showing up. “Jeremiah,” he growled and then
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pushed open a screen door with no screen. A small dog stood at the top of the steps with the human, barking its little head off. Jeremiah could still hear the dog barking as he stood on the front porch.

Where in the hell could Sage have gone?

This was bad.

* * * *

William scooped Terror into his arms as he watched the stranger walk out onto the front porch. There was something about the guy that screamed
danger
on seven hundred different levels. The guy looked like the type that would rather cut someone’s throat than answer anyone’s question. He backed away from the banister and walked back down the hallway, heading into the room that he and Sage had shared.

“What is going on around here?” William asked Terror. “First Sage gets all moody, fucks me, and then disappears. Now this guy shows up out of nowhere wanting to know where Sage is. Do you think he wants to hurt Sage?”

There was no way William was going to allow anyone to hurt Sage. The man looked like he could handle his own, but still. The problem was that William wasn’t sure how he was going to go about taking Jeremiah down. The guy was huge. He had to think.

Maybe he should sleep on it and see if the guy was still here tomorrow. Sage wasn’t supposed to be back until tomorrow, so that would give him time to devise a plan. William knew that wasn’t the right solution, but he honestly didn’t see how he was going to take Jeremiah down by himself. He’d see if Sage needed his help taking the stranger down when he got back.

Besides, William was so tired he could barely keep his eyes open.

He had accomplished a lot that day with cleaning away the debris, and even his eyeballs were tired. The room with all the newspaper and
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Lynn Hagen

bric-a-brac was almost empty, and William planned on finishing it up tomorrow.

“Come on, girl,” William said as he yawned and closed the bedroom door, locking it. He wanted to go downstairs and tell Jeremiah to get lost, but he knew that wasn’t going to happen.