But this was more than I thought I’d get away with. The pulse of Xen’s alpha order hovered at the edge of my awareness, threatening to put an end to this any second. So I kept doing what I was doing, working my way down Jake’s body, my teeth the only thing touching him.
“Fuck,” Jake whispered, and I glanced up to see his eyes fixed on me, bottom lip caught between teeth that were as inhuman as mine. “I wish you could touch me.”
“I can try?” It wasn’t as though I didn’t touch him every day. There was more than likely a cut-off point, a place on his body where I couldn’t go, but I had no idea where that started.
“Please.” Jake begged. “I want to feel your hands on me.”
Kneeling up, I pressed a hand to the base of his throat, both of us holding our breath, waiting.
When nothing happened, I added my other hand, fingers splayed out as I trailed them lower, touch featherlight, loving the way he strained for more.
“Max,” he whined, reaching out to grab my thigh. His hand landed higher than I was expecting, fingers dangerously close to my cock, and then it was gone. “Motherfucker.” His eyes screwed shut, his low growl born of frustration this time.
“Hey.” I cupped his jaw with both hands, waiting until he met my gaze. “It’s okay. We can just do this. Like you said.” I knelt up, keeping eye contact, and I reached for the lube.
Jake pushed up onto his elbows. I had his undivided attention as I wrapped slick fingers around my length, sucking in a breath at how good it felt. Far slower than I was used to, I slid my hand down to the base, then dragged it back up at the same agonising pace.
Jake’s lips parted as he watched, tongue licking over fangs I wanted to feel on my skin. But I daren’t risk it. Not when I had Jake looking at me like that, when I could smell how much he liked this. I’d told him this would be enough, and I meant it.
“Get naked.” I scooted back enough to give him room to slide his underwear off. They disappeared over the side of the bed.
Positioning himself against the pillows again, Jake grabbed the lube and drizzled some over his fingers. His gaze caught on my hand again, claws safely away now, eyes darkening as I trailed a thumb over the head of my cock. When he finally reached for his, I lifted my hand and sucked my thumb into my mouth.
“Goddess.” It rumbled out of him, so low and rough I felt it. “I want to do that.” His hand started to move, matching the rhythm I’d started up again. “When this is all over, I’m going to taste you everywhere,touchyou everywhere. We won’t leave this room for fuckingdays.”
I grinned at him, ignoring the fact that neither of us knew if that would ever happen. “I’ll hold you to that.”
Our eyes met, the flash of uncertainty the only indication that his doubts matched mine. By unspoken agreement, we ignored it. Ignored everything except watching each other get off.
The scent of sex filled the air around us, and I greedily drew in breath after breath. If I closed my eyes, I could almost pretend that my hand was Jake’s, that it was him touching me, but that would mean missing out on seeing his muscles clench and release, the strain in his whole body as he edged himself again and again.
“Close,” I murmured, my strokes getting faster as I watched him do the same.
Jake scrambled to his knees, shuffling over to me. His eyes met mine, the fire in them almost enough to push me over. Then he uttered three words that were my undoing: “Come on me.”
“Fuck.” Pleasure exploded throughout my body, every nerve ending alight with sensation as I did as he asked. My cock pulsed, coating Jake’s belly, his hand, and his cock with every last drop of my release.
I wanted to collapse back onto the bed, wrung out and floating on the afterglow of one of the most intense orgasms I’d had by my own hand. But I needed something else from Jake first. “Now you.”
“Lie down,” he ground out, tension in every inch of his body.
As soon as my back hit the bed, Jake’s growl filled the room and he came all over my stomach, eyes flashing with a possessiveness that made me tip my head back on instinct. In that moment I wanted it, wanted him to mark me all over, to bite down at the base of my throat and—
“Stop.” Jake stared at my neck, hands curled into tight fists, chest heaving as he fought for control. “You have to stop whatever the fuck you’re doing right now, because I can’t—” He closed his eyes, drawing one shaky breath after another until his shoulders relaxed.
My heart hammered against my ribcage, and I forced my breathing to match Jake’s until the urge to have him sink his fangs into me receded enough that I could think clearly. “Shit.” I exhaled like I’d been holding my breath for days.
Jake’s laughter had an edge to it as he shook his head. “For fuck’s sake, Max, I almost bit you.”
I leant up on my elbows. “Do you think you would’ve been able to?” Surely Xen’s order would have kicked in before Jake could sink his fangs into me. Just the idea of it sent a shiver through me.
Jake slumped down beside me. “I have no idea.” He turned to face me, expression serious. “Is that something you’d want?”
Yes.
It was the first thought that popped into my head. But was that the after-effects of what we’d just done? Deep down I knew the answer, but now was not the time for this discussion. There might never be a right one, but I wasn’t going to talk about this when Jake was promised to someone else. So instead I lied. “I’ve not given it much thought.”
His expression told me he knew I was full of shit, but all he said was, “Me neither.”
