The last of the tension in Matt eased. Yeah, he was.
Chapter Twenty
JESSE
The room was bright when Jesse woke up, unforgiving sun pouring through the window. They’d forgotten to draw the drapes last night.
Matt had been self-contained, right up until they got under the covers together and turned off the light. Then he’d reached for Jesse and pulled him close, burying his face against Jesse’s neck and breathing deeply. So deeply, like he was taking in Jesse’s scent, like Jesse was grounding him somehow.
Jesse, not knowing what else to do, held Matt in return no matter how uneven Matt’s breathing became.
Later, when Matt had fallen asleep in his arms, Jesse was left staring into the dark, trying to ignore his rumbling stomach, and wondering. He’d thought Matt was—not perfect. He was way too bossy to be perfect. But Jesse had never evenguessedat the amount of pain he’d been hiding. Matt had crafted a persona that fooledthe world, and the fact he’d let Jesse see behind it… The trust Matt must have in him left Jesse speechless.
Matt was still asleep, tangled around Jesse like an octopus who’d spotted dinner. Matt’s closeness, his warmth, his scent, the strength of his arms around Jesse and his legs tangled up with Jesse’s—they were all leading Jesse to a very definite conclusion as to what he needed this morning.
He wriggled slightly, seeing if he could work his hand down to his cock without having to shrug Matt off, and it was enough to wake Matt.
He blinked at Jesse, eyes sleepy and soft, his cheek lined with pillow creases, his hair messy, and he wasperfect.He was also waking up—that indefinablealphacoming into his eyes as he grew more alert, and he stiffened slightly in Jesse’s hold, as if he was remembering last night. As if he was regretting being so vulnerable with Jesse.
Which made it the perfect moment for Jesse to roll his hips against Matt, letting him feel how hard he already was. Jesse intended to stop Matt from retreating into his head, which he was learning was not a healthy place for Matt, and also get the good, hard fuck he was craving. He couldn’t spot a single flaw in his plan.
Neither could Matt, it seemed, although he took his sweet time giving Jesse what he wanted. He fingered Jesse until he was sobbing with it, swearing at Matt, demanding he get the fuck in there right now. And gone was the somber, hurt man of yesterday—Matt was all sharp glinting eyes, scratchy stubble, and a wicked curve to his lips as Jesse flopped around like a landed fish under his attentions, trying and failing to get him to move things along.
“For fuck’ssake,Urban.”
Mat leaned forward and kissed him, the movement changing the angle of his fingers inside Jesse and prompting a sound Jesse would swear he’d never made before.
“Don’t youeverstop complaining?” Matt asked.
“Wouldn’tneedto complain if you’d just—oh, fuck,yes.” Because Matt had withdrawn his fingers and was holding Jesse, lining himself up, the blunt head of his cock pushing just inside. “Fuckme.”
“God, you’re pushy,” Matt said, but the teasing glint in his eye became darker, more intense, and Jesse groaned long and low as Matt slid all the way home inside him.
Matt took his time, setting up a slow, steady, relentless rhythm until Jesse lost sense of everything except the way Matt’s cock felt deep inside him as Matt fucked him.
He came with Matt’s long fingers wrapped around his cock, wetness striping his chest as he rode the waves of pleasure that slammed into him, Matt fucking him all the way through it. Matt, over him and in him. Matt was everything he wanted and all that he needed.
And after Matt had come, burying his face into Jesse’s neck, breathing in like he could hold on forever, Jesse knew he should have felt trapped. But this was different. The weight of Matt against him, the slow rise and fall of his breathing, the quiet in the room—it all felt right in a way Jesse didn’t have words for. If he thought about it, that would scare the crap out of him, so he decided to ignore it.
Eventually, Matt stirred, pressing one last, lazy kiss to Jesse’s collarbone before rolling onto his back. Jesse stretched, grinning at the sound of Matt’s satisfied groan. His own body felt boneless, warm, half-asleep in the best possible way.
They should probably shower. Not yet, though, not while Matt was sprawled beside him, comfortable and relaxed. So different from the man who’d taken him to bed last night and held onto Jesse like he was the only thing stopping him from drowning.
* **
When they finally got to the shower, they did so together. At some point since yesterday, Matt had put out two towels. Something inside Jesse twisted, and it didn’t matter that he’d decided to ignore it—hecouldn’toverlook the instinct that had kept him safe all these years. He was gettingwaytoo comfortable here. But he didn’t want to leave Matt. Not yet. He’d just need to remember not to relax. Not to getsoft.
So long as he remembered that, he could stay a while longer, letting Matt rub body wash over him and kiss him softly under the falling water.
By the time they got to the kitchen, the entire pack was there, except for Christian. When Jesse saw how everyone turned to Matt when he entered, he wondered if Matt’s absence at dinner the previous night had caused them to seek out their alpha this morning. It was as if they needed his presence in order to feel safe.
It was as he’d thought—a pack was little more than a hivemind, controlled by their alpha. Though, as he snuck a glance at Karl, the only one whose eyes weren’t glued to Matt’s face, he wasn’t so sure. He couldn’t imagineKarlneeding Matt in order to feel safe.
“Morning,” Matt said, making tracks for the coffee machine. What a surprise.
Whatwasa surprise was that he snagged a piece of bacon from Bryce’s plate on the way past.
“What the hell, Urban?” Bryce yelped, staring at his now-empty plate.
