“You know everything, eh?”
“Not at all.” Devan stretched his neck. “I have no idea how I’m going to leave your room without kissing you.”
Zio jerked his head up. “You want to kiss me?”
“Among other things.”
“What things?”
Devan rolled his eyes. “You’re worldly enough to know that without me explaining it to you.”
“I’m not. I’m young, remember?”
“Not so young you didn’t know how to jump on me in that club.”
“Youjumped onme.”
“Did I?”
Zio bit his lip. The world—his world, at least—had flipped a dozen times since then. He remembered how Devan smelt, how his hands had felt, so strong and safe, but fuck if he could remember who had touched who first. “Whatever. My point is that you should probably be clear about what you’re saying. I have a habit of assuming things and losing my shit before letting people explain.”
“Shocker.”
“Fuck off.”
Devan snorted. “That might be for the best. It hasn’t worked out so well the last few times I’ve let this get out of hand.”
“You’veletthis?”
“You said it yourself, Zio. You’re young, remember?”
Zio couldn’t tell if Devan was joking, but the idea that Devan had any kind of control over the madness that had occurred between them heated his blood to boiling point.
In a fluid movement, he kicked the bed covers away and pounced, straddling Devan, hands around his neck. “You can’t control this. You can’t controlme.”
Devan swallowed but otherwise appeared unfazed to find a naked Zio suddenly on top of him. “It’s not about controlling you. It’s about doing what’s best for your—forour—pack. I don’t know about you, but I don’t have time for complications right now.”
“Complications?”
“Yes.” Devan canted his hips just enough for his hard length to press against Zio. “Complications. You think Varian needs to be worrying about one of his elite soldiers getting down with the only healer in the world prepared to help his pack in a time of war?”
Every nerve in Zio’s body screamed at him to grind down on Devan’s cock. To rip his clothes away and burn the bed to ashes as their simmering inferno exploded around them.
But... Devan had a point. If Varian disapproved of them hooking up, he might feel the need to send Devan away, and despite every thought Zio had thrown up to the contrary, the pack needed Devan... even more than Zio did.
With a rough growl, he rolled off Devan. “Fuck this, I’m going out.”
Devan caught his arm. “Don’t. You need to rest.”
“You don’t know what I need.”
“I do.” Devan’s grip tightened, and he pulled Zio back on top of him. “And I’ve told you already that I want it too, but we can’t, Zio. We just... can’t.”
Pressed so tightly together, it was impossible to comprehend that Devan could have been right. Zio gave in to the primal urge to grind against Devan and moaned as pleasure ripped through him with a brand new fire.So good, so good, so good.He circled his hips again and again, found Devan’s hands, and squeezed, bending bones that would’ve broken if Devan had been human.
But Devan wasn’t human. He was a shifter with strength that matched Zio’s. Zio’s weight was his only advantage, and he took it, fighting Devan for dominance until he won. Until Devan gave in and let Zio manhandle him and tear at his clothes.
Devan’s T-shirt disappeared, his jeans and underwear gone in a swipe of Zio’s clawed hands. Bare to Zio, he glared up at him. “What do you want, huh? You want to fuck me and let the whole world know? Because they will. They’ll know it the moment we leave this house.”