The KinKaid Wolf Pack Trilogy (15 page)

"What?" Evin's gaze darted from the frown on Jocelyn's face to the two men staring at him over the altar. "Yeah. Yes, I hear you."

The holy man cleared his throat, then continued. "Under the light of the full moon, declare your oaths and taking of each other."

Jocelyn thrust her arm in front of his face and gave him an expectant look. Evin rolled his sleeve up and jutted his wrist toward her. Jocelyn coiled her fingers with his and yanked, snagging his gaze before spouting the words of bonding.

"Take of me, my essence is yours. See into my soul, as I see into yours. Forever join me on this path. Forever bond with me in this life and beyond. An eternity sealed in blood."

Evin followed suit, murmuring the pledge, his tongue thick as if he were regurgitating the words.

As the last syllable left his lips, Jocelyn threw her head back, revealing her elongated canines, and then jammed them into his flesh. The sharp bite into his vein triggered his matching response. Evin sank his teeth into her exposed skin. Warm blood filled his mouth and clogged his throat. The foreign, metallic taste of Jocelyn's essence overwhelmed his senses.
So wrong.
Every fiber of his being screamed in rebellion. Evin jerked his head back on a cough, but managed to force enough down his esophagus, fulfilling his duty.

"Well done, my son." His father's voice cut through the air, drawing their attention.

Jocelyn was the first to jump to her feet, a large grin on her face. Evin straightened, and the alpha joined him at his side.

"Congratulations," Barron said. "You have yourself a mate. As it should be."

Slowly Evin turned and met the other man's smug gaze. "You have your mating. Why don't you go celebrate with your new daughter? You two deserve each other." Evin didn't wait for a response; he swung around and headed toward the house.

"Where are you going?" Jocelyn's footsteps tapped behind him, matching his pace.

"I need a shower," he growled and glanced at the bloodied wound on wrist, forcing back a cold shiver. He could do this. Mason was alive. If he held on to that thought, Evin could make it through anything.

"And then what?" The sound of her heels ceased on the pavement. "Don't forget we have the alpha exchange of power at dawn—six a.m. sharp." Evin stopped but didn't look back. Like he could actually forget? After tonight, he had the rest of his life to deal with the woman standing behind him and the responsibility of the pack. But the next few hours were his, and right now, there was someone he had to see. One more time. He had to say good-bye.

"I'll be there," Evin said. "That's all you need to know."

Forty-five minutes later, Evin made his way through the breezeway that took him to the exterior guest quarters. Anticipation sat like a hard knot in his chest. He couldn't wait to see Mason again. Yet the thought of saying good-bye was suffocating him. During his shower, Evin had gone over and over in his mind what he was going to say when he saw Mason, all the while doing his best to wash away the evidence of his mating. A futile attempt. Over time her mark would somewhat fade, but the shadow of a scar on his wrist would be a permanent reminder of this night.

On a deep breath, Evin grasped the doorknob to Mason's quarters. With a twist of his wrist, he discovered it was still unlocked. Good. He didn't want to have to knock, in case Mason was still sleeping. Evin stepped inside and found that would not have been a problem.

Mason sat on the loveseat with his back to him, facing the dark void outside his window. He'd changed from his tattered shorts into a pair of charcoal running pants, leaving his chest bare. Evin's heart rate leaped at the sight. Would there ever come a time when Mason wouldn't affect him? Evin braced his hand on the door, watching, then leaned his temple onto his knuckles.

"You going to just stand there, or are you coming inside to get whatever it is off your chest?" Mason's words jolted him from his trance. He had no idea how long he'd been there, studying the other man's form.

Evin pushed the door closed and strode the rest of the way in. Mason braced his elbows on his knees, still not meeting Evin's gaze.

"It's over, I take it?" Mason addressed the floor more than Evin.

"Yeah," Evin uttered. "About an hour ago."

Mason nodded. "Let me see."

"What?" Evin shoved his hand into his jeans pocket.

Slowly Mason lifted his head, his brown eyes meeting Evin's gaze with a glare that said
try me
. "I want to see. Show me where she bit you."

"Fuck, Mason," Evin groaned. "Why?"

"I need to see." Mason's voice rose. "Now, dammit. Show me!" He lunged to his feet, going for Evin's hidden wrist.

"Fine," Evin huffed and wrenched his hand free.

The other man latched on to his arm, his gaze falling to the crescent-shaped wound. Mason's grip tightened, and a low growl rolled from his throat.

"Fuck. How could you do this?" Mason yanked his hand away. "I still can't wrap my head around why. You know what my life's been like." Mason whirled, stabbing his fingers through his hair as if he were trying to claw the reality from his mind. He halted, then swung his head in Evin's direction. "Did you really think I'd want to survive at the cost of you having to live a miserable lie? Shit! I know what that's like. It's fucking hell."

"I did it for you," Evin muttered, looking everywhere else but at the accusatory glare Mason threw his way.

"There could have been another way." Mason marched closer. "But you didn't even try to find out."

"I couldn't take the chance." Evin snapped his gaze to Mason.

"Something else might have worked," Mason spit back.

"And it might
not
have, and I wasn't willing to take that risk."

"It was
my
life to risk," Mason shouted. "Why would you sacrifice yours for me?"

"Because I love you!" Evin grabbed Mason's upper arms, then pulled him to his chest. "Dammit. You're mine," Evin growled against Mason's lips and buried his fingers in the hair at his nape. "Mine."

Their mouths clashed. Teeth clicked against teeth, the sharp edges nipping at tender flesh. Their tongues soothed away the sting and the coppery taste of blood that followed. Hot. Hungry. Hard. The only words that could describe the need Evin had for the taste of Mason at that moment.

Yes. So damn hard.

Evin sucked in a breath on a hiss and jerked back.

"What's wrong?" Mason inched forward, closing the distance between them again.

"I-I..." Evin looked down to the front of his jeans, where a very distinct ridge pressed against the fly, then back at Mason. "That."

Mason's eyebrows shot up. "
That
shouldn't be possible, right?"

Evin shook his head. "Unless..." But that couldn't be. Could it? Mason had still been human when he'd bitten him. But how else could he be aroused right now? The vows, the holy man, the exchange... It should have been ironclad.

"Unless what?" Mason's palm glided over Evin's bicep. "You're freaking me out here."

The memories of Mason's voice inside his head over the past twenty-four hours replayed in his mind. The fierce protectiveness he'd felt over him. It had to be... That night, when he'd marked Mason the second time,
after
his DNA had already been introduced...

"This has never happened before. At least, no one has ever revealed something like this to me." Evin grasped Mason's face. He couldn't fight back the grin he knew was blossoming if he tried. "Unless I was already mated."

"What? Are you serious?" Mason's eyes grew large. "Are you saying you think you're somehow mated to me?"

"That's exactly what I think is going on. It's all making sense now." Evin planted a hard kiss to Mason's lips before continuing. "I never mated Jocelyn." He licked the seam of the other man's mouth. So fucking sweet.

"Thank God," Mason breathed. "But tell me why you think we’re mated?"

"First"—Evin thrust his hips into Mason's—"I shouldn't be hard as a damn rock and about to lose my mind if I can't have you in the next few minutes."

"Likewise." Mason grinned.

Evin went on to reveal how he'd heard Mason telepathically more than once that day and how he'd wanted to kill anybody who'd touched or threatened him in any way, including his father. Evin stroked his thumb over Mason's lower lip. "It had to have happened the other night when I bit you—twice—along with the incredible sex we had. I'd never felt so connected to another living soul as I did that night." He smiled. "Now I know why."

"So the ceremony with Jocelyn tonight—"

"Didn't work. It couldn't, because I was already taken," Evin said, his voice suddenly deeper, raspier.

"Fuck. Me." Mason released the words on a sigh.

"I'd be more than happy to."

Before Mason could ask twice, Evin had him pressed into the wall, his hands over his head, Evin's mouth devouring his. God, touching him, knowing he didn't have to walk away, had Evin's head spinning. Evin dropped his head to Mason's shoulder, needing to lick the evidence of their mating.

"I love you," Mason breathed into his ear.

The declaration tugged Evin back to center, his heart thundering against his chest. Mason stood there, desire smoldering in his gaze, his lips swollen and parted. Gorgeous.

"You don't have to say it—" The rest of his words stuck in his throat. Evin dropped his hold on the other man's arms.

Mason cupped Evin's cheek, the tips of his fingers digging into his hair. "I'm saying it because"— Mason cracked a smile—"I'm so fucking in love with you."

Evin didn't know what to say. In the last five minutes, his world had spun out of a cesspool in hell to smack dab in the middle of his wildest dream. There were no words.

"I would have said it earlier," Mason added, "but your tongue was too far down my throat at the time."

A laugh bubbled up and out of Evin's chest, breaking a bit of the spell the man in front of him had cast on his soul.

"Now come here." Mason slid his hand around to the back of Evin's neck and pulled him closer. "I need you so bad. I think I'm going to lose my mind if you don't fuck me right now."

A growl tore from Evin's throat as he slammed his mouth into Mason's. Evin kissed his lips, his cheeks, his throat, then moved lower and flicked his tongue over Mason's nipples. Mason squirmed in approval.

"My skin... It’s so damn sensitive," Mason groaned, hard pants leaving his throat. "Driving me crazy."

"It's the full moon combined with your first shift." Evin grabbed the elastic band of Mason's pants, knelt, and pulled them down until Mason could kick the material away. The thick, hard length of the other man's cock sprang forward, then flexed up toward his abs. Precum leaked from the flushed head, making Evin's mouth water for a taste. "The effect makes your cock burn for release." Evin leaned in and licked the glistening drop from the tip.

"Don't stop..." Mason's hips rocked forward, begging for more. Evin lifted his chin and quirked his lips.

"Your skin turns hypersensitive, and your senses sharpen." Evin opened his mouth, allowing a burst of warm air to skate over the leaking slit, wringing another moan from his lover. "Your mind and body become a primal beast that wants to fuck so bad, you're nearly insane from need."

"God...yes," Mason hissed.

Evin straightened to his full height and stepped away.

"What are you doing?" Mason moved from the wall toward him, confusion and desperation written on his face.

"I'm going to give you what you need, Brown Eyes." Evin's thighs bumped the mattress. He made quick work of removing his clothes before lowering onto the bed and leaning back on his elbows, his knees bent over the edge.

Mason positioned himself between Evin's legs. "What are you saying?"

Evin spread his thighs wider, and his rock-hard shaft flexed as if drawn to the man in front of him. He pushed back farther onto the bed, making his intention clear.

"Come and claim your mate, Mason."

Mason's nostrils flared right before he crawled onto the mattress and loomed over Evin, his hands braced on either side of Evin's head.

"The alpha is submitting?" One blond brow lifted.

"Only for his mate," Evin growled. "Tonight."

"I think I like this." A hint of a smile curved Mason's lips, and then his weight redistributed. He shuffled forward and placed his cock at Evin's lips. "Suck me," he demanded, his voice deep, animalistic. Evin shivered. Fuck, yeah. He thought he was going to like this too.

Evin opened wide and took Mason's full length. The sound of a muttered curse rolled from Mason's lips, and the broad head hit the back of Evin's throat. He swallowed, massaging the thick shaft.

"Yes. Fuck." Mason pulled back, then pistoned forward. Over and over. The salty flavor of his lover tantalized Evin's tongue, pushing the limits of his own need. His ache for release—to be touched by Mason—was maddening.

Suddenly Mason yanked free from Evin's mouth. "No more." His words were ragged. Sweat beaded on his forehead. "Have to be inside you." Mason scrambled to the side of the mattress. "There were some oils left by the healer." The bedside table rattled; then a corked bottle landed beside Evin. "That should work." Mason straddled Evin's hips once more, and after opening the bottle, poured some of clear liquid into his palm. "I believe they said this was coconut oil."

The cool, slick feel of Mason fingers slid between Evin's cheeks. He arched, opening his thighs wider, wanting more. Evin couldn't drag his gaze away from Mason as he slathered his own cock with the substance while probing Evin's tight ring. Mason's wet, rigid shaft shone in the low lights of the room. Damn. Evin realized he couldn't wait to feel the width of Mason's rod burning him, filling him up inside.

One finger, then two, slipped in deep. Evin groaned. "So good." He pumped his hips in time to Mason's exploration. Then Mason's hand was on him, stroking him. "Yes," he hissed. But it wasn't enough. "More." Evin rocked onto the thick presence in his rear, then lifted, meeting each glide over his shaft. "Shit. Mason." He was so close. "Fuck me. Dammit. Need it," he gasped. "Fuck me."