Chad nodded. He understood what Peter meant, but he still couldn’t grasp how Peter was being so calm.
Was he just used to it? The thought was terrifying.
“Hey,” Peter said, walking up so that he was standing next to Chad’s chair. He stroked his hand down the side of Chad’s face and rubbed his earlobe between his thumb and forefinger. “I don’t go looking for fights, and I give plenty of warning when an alpha starts crossing the line. I haven’t initiated a challenge since I was in my twenties. I don’t take it lightly, if that’s what you’re asking.”
Chad nodded, his earlobe slipping out of Peter’s grasp. That did actually make him feel better.
Stepping away, Peter let out a small chuckle and sat down on the other side of the table.
“What?” Chad asked. He didn’t see what was so funny.
“It’s nothing. I was just going to ask you something this morning, but now it really doesn’t seem appropriate.”
Chad’s heart beat faster. He bit his bottom lip, wondering if the question was what he thought it was.
“You can still ask,” he said, his voice coming out breathless. Peter’s mouth split into a slow grin.
“Yeah?”
Chad nodded. Peter rose from his seat and came back around the table, but this time he pushed Chad’s chair back so that he could crouch down in front of him. It wasn’t the bended knee that betas used when proposing, but that’s what it reminded Chad of.
“Will you let me claim you?” Peter asked, somehow managing to make it seem like he was looming even though he was crouching down. “Bite you? Make you wear my mark on your neck so the whole world knows who you belong to?”
Chad licked his lips and nodded. His heart was racing.
“You need to say the word,” Peter said, leaning in closer as his grin stretched wider. Chad could feel the heat of his body against his skin and his smell was intoxicating. He felt like he was about to be devoured.
“Yes.”
The word was barely out of his mouth before Peter sprang into action. He grabbed Chad by the hair and yanked his head back, biting down over his collarbone and sealing Chad’s fate forever.
Chad could feel Peter’s teeth sinking into his flesh, hot and sharp and painful, but that was nothing compared to the feeling of beingowned. Peter’s claim was like a physical thing inside of him, taking up space and making his skin feel tight and raw.
Peter withdrew his teeth and licked over the wound he’d made, snarling and huffing and acting every inch the caveman. Chad just held on, Peter practically sitting in his lap at this point.
“You’re mine now,” Peter said after a while, his legs spread on either side of the chair, sitting on Chad’s lap. Chad felt overwhelmed, and the sheer happiness in Peter’s voice made him grin so hard his cheeks hurt.
“All mine,” Peter repeated. This time he sounded smug and self-satisfied.
“All yours,” Chad confirmed. Peter’s chest rumbled happily, almost like he was purring, and Chad could feel the vibrations like a pleasant tingle all through his body.
Chad let out an incredulous laugh, hardly able to believe what had just happened.
It almost felt like a dream.
***
Chad was a little disappointed when Peter said he had to go into work, but he didn’t complain. He took a shower, the water making the bite on his neck sting, and then called his parents.
To say they were shocked was an understatement. For an alpha, a claiming bite was about as serious as you could get.
“It just happened this morning?” his mother asked, sounding concerned.
“I know I should have introduced you first, but it feels right,” Chad said. He was smiling, the tender pain of Peter’s bite making his cock half hard.
In the end there was nothing his parents could do but offer their support. While it was technically possible for Chad and Peter to break it off, it was exceedingly rare for an alpha to let go of someone they’d claimed.
He belonged to Peter now. He’d accepted Peter’s offer and all that it implied, and in return for protection, care, and comfort, he would be expected to submit.
