Pack and Mate (6 page)

Cort finished his steak and went to find Kyle. Again. He
tried the man’s office first.

No luck, but Bryan, Kyle’s secretary, looked up, tilting
like the sweet bird he was. “Can I help you, sir?”

“I need Kyle.” He could sort this out.

“He’s trying to work out housing needs for the new Master.
Dragons are large. I can page him and get an ETA for when he’ll be available.”

Cort sighed. “Do you know what arrangements he made for the
pups that came in last night? There would have been five of them.”

“He put them in the respite quarters, sir. They all wanted
to stay in a single room together. I met them all this morning—so charming.”

“They’re, uh, young.” Cort wasn’t sure about charming, he
only had eyes for his mate. “How long can they stay?”

“I don’t have any control over that, sir. That is decided by
the owner.”

“But what arrangements has Kyle made?” Cort could pay for
rooms if he needed to. He had money.

“The current rooms are reserved.” Bryan tip-tapped on his
laptop. “For two weeks with meal privileges. After that, I’m not sure.”

“Oh. That’s wonderful. Thanks, Bryan.” He turned to go then
remembered. “If you can let him know I’m looking for him when he comes back,
please.”

“Absolutely. I’ll put you on his list.”

“Thanks, Bryan.”

He left, wondering what he was going to do now. He had the
whole day open ahead of him and no one to share it with. His mate was out
there, the moon was coming and the bond was new and raw, itching at him,
keeping him on edge. He understood that it was important for Finn to help his
family, but he could help with that, make it so Finn didn’t need to be away
from him. He was the only one left of his pack, he had means.

His phone buzzed, a text showing.

Miss u.

It warmed him deep in his belly. Just those five little
letters.

Carefully typing, he sent back
Miss u 2
.

Lunch 2day?

yes. where?

Finn texted him a picture of a little sandwich shop then a
street sign.

noon?

yes.

See u soon.

The day suddenly seemed much shorter and better. His pup
wanted him. Was calling to him.

Cort took a cab to the sandwich shop, looking and scenting
for his pup as soon as he got into the restaurant. This was owned by the same
man who owned the diner and he soon found Finn working in a cordoned-off area,
painting.

Cort sat on a bench, watching Finn work, seeing the tension
in his pup, in the two smaller boys. They didn’t belong here. The thought was
sure and strong. It was the truth. This wasn’t the place for any of them. They
needed a home.

A large man came in and the littlest pup cringed, hid behind
Finn. Finn was calm though, polite. It made Cort want to growl, his fingers
curling into his palms. The man nodded though, shook Finn’s hand then passed
over an envelope. Everything was all right.

Relaxing back against the wall, Cort waited for his pup to
notice him. The three pups came out from the cordoned-off area, Finn coming
right to him as the other two bounded away. Cort opened his arms, hugging his
pup tight and not caring who saw.

“They want to eat at Pat’s. The boss says to call next week
if we want to work.”

“You have time off?” That was such good news.

“He says next week. Monday. If we want work.”

“So that’s five whole days?” They could really celebrate
their bond in five days. Especially as those five days fell over the moon.

“Yes. Yes, five whole days. I—can I be with you? Please?”
Finn asked.

As if Cort would allow anything else. “Yes, I insist. And
Kyle has a place for Pat and the other pups for two weeks.”

“Oh. Oh, really?” Finn squeezed him tight.

“Yes. And that’ll give us time to figure the rest out.” He
squeezed right back. “And if you’re finished for the day, we can go home and
eat—you never got more than a bite of your steak.”

“Oh, is it waiting for me?” Finn nodded, walking with him. “I
worked extra hard today and we finished all the trim. We got done early and the
Al—boss was very happy. He said we did good work.”

“You were motivated.” There didn’t seem to be any cabs and
it wasn’t too far back to the club, besides, the urgency had abated now that he
was with his mate. So they could walk.

“Uh-huh. I wanted to have lunch with you.”

“And now you can have more than just lunch with me.” Cort
was totally taken by Finn. Such a sweet pup.

“We can have a bath!” Finn’s eyes were lit from within.

“And I haven’t seen your wolf yet. I want to groom you in
both forms.” His fingers itched to feel Finn’s fur.

Finn looked at him. “I thought the rules said only during
the moon.”

“Maybe those were your pack rules, and certainly you don’t
want to be shifting on the streets in the city. But you can shift whenever you
want at the club.” It was one of the pluses of a club that catered to weres.
Besides, most of the club subs were wolves and many of them spent a lot of time
in their wolf form.

“Whenever you want?” Finn stared at him as if he were doling
out state secrets.

“Yes. It’s a safe place. Like in the wilds.”

“Oh. Oh, we have to tell the others.” Finn bounced a little.

“Of course. If I’d realized they didn’t know I’d have said
something yesterday.”

They crossed the road, the club only a few blocks away now.
Cort couldn’t help but hurry as they got closer, eager to get his pup home.
Finn laughed, running along beside him. They went to the side door and Cort
tugged out his card, running it through the reader.

“Almost home,” he promised his pup.

“Almost. Five days, Cort.”

Five days. More if Cort had his way. “I’ll have to get a
membership card for you so you can get in on your own.”

They went down the hall, turned right, then right again and
came to his rooms. Finn petted the door, bouncing on his toes, and Cort
unlocked it, groaning as his phone rang.

He pushed the door open, ushering Finn in as he answered the
call. “Hello?”

“Cort, it’s Kyle. What did you need?”

“Oh, Kyle. Hi. I wanted to make sure Pat and the pups were
sorted out. Bryan said they were good for two weeks?” He went to the kitchen
and opened the little fridge where Finn’s steak was sitting, entirely
untouched. He’d finished his own. He grabbed a couple of new eggs. He’d eaten
the ones that had come with Finn’s steak so they wouldn’t go to waste.

“Yes, two weeks and then we’ll have to make some decisions.”

“I need them taken care of. I have money.” He wouldn’t have
his pup worrying about his family.

“Let’s schedule a meeting after the moon, hmm? It’s a busy
time of month for me.” Kyle did sound a little more stressed than his usual
calm.

“I can do that. We have two weeks to figure it out.” Cort
smiled at Finn.

“Five days too. We have five whole days.” Finn was nearly
vibrating.

Cort nodded to Finn. Five whole days together, and two weeks
before he had to worry about where the rest of Finn’s family was going to live.

“Perfect. I’ll email you a date and time. Have a lovely day,
Cort.”

“You too, Kyle. Thanks.” He hung up and turned his phone
off. “Now we won’t be disturbed.”

He put the pan on the stove and heated it up.

“I’ll go put my work—Cort. Cort, I don’t have any clothes
but my work clothes.”

That made him smile. “I don’t have a problem with your skin.”
They could go to one of the stores in the club and find some clothes together.
But it would wait.

“I want to take these off. They smell bad.”

“Take them off. We can burn them.” He began to strip so that
Finn didn’t feel awkward about being the only one naked.

Finn chuckled but stripped off, padding into the bathroom
where Cort heard the sink.

Tying an apron around his waist, Cort put butter in the pan
and tossed in the steak. They would have to share it but he figured that was
okay. It was a huge steak and Finn was a slender pup.

Soon his pup was back, shining with water and smelling of
soap, his stomach growling vigorously. “All clean!”

Cort pulled Finn in close, not caring that it made him damp,
and put his nose in Finn’s neck, breathing in. “You smell like mine.”

“Mmm. Makes me shiver.”

“Did the others see my mark?” He stroked the dark spot.

“Pat did. He said that he was so jealous that I’d found a
mate.” Finn gave him a serious look. “I told him you said we were all still
family.”

“We are, Finn. I made you a promise. Kyle will help me find
a way to keep everyone together after two weeks.”

“Someone will find him, want to be his mate, right?”

“Pat? Of course. You know he’s not like you though, right?”
Cort could tell that Pat was a Dom like he was. It was why he managed the young
pups so well.

“He’s a wolf, Cort, I promise.”

That had him chuckling. “I know that. I meant he isn’t a
sweet sub like you—he’s a Dom.” He could see the confusion in Finn’s eyes and
added, “He’s an Alpha.”

“Oh. Pat? I think he could be, yes. With a pack, but he’s
like me. He doesn’t want to start a family.”

“He doesn’t need to, he already has one.” Cort kissed the
top of Finn’s head. He didn’t think Pat’s mate was among the pups, though, or
Pat would have already made his move.

Cort pulled the steak off and threw the eggs on, frying them
quickly, then they headed for the table and it was déjà vu all over again. He
even made Finn sit on his lap. This time, though, he cut the steak and offered
Finn a piece from his fingers.

Finn leaned forward, snapped the bite up. Oh, his pup was
hungry. Had Finn had anything but that one bite of steak from this morning to
eat? Cort guessed not. He offered a second piece over.

“Thank you.”

Finn ate eagerly, wiggling on his lap. Cort’s prick, which
had already begun to fill, continued to do so, getting firmer with every
wriggle.

He fed Finn the lion’s share, dropping kisses on the sweet
lips as Finn’s hunger ebbed. The eggs needed a fork and he almost pouted at not
being able to feed them to his pup with his fingers. Almost. They were messy
enough anyway, drops of the runny yolk falling on his chest. Finn swooped down,
lapped them off. Such lovely instincts.

Humming, he stroked Finn’s back, fingers tracing Finn’s
spine. Finn’s lips found his nipple, the suction gentle and steady, fine enough
that his eyelashes fluttered. He wrapped a hand around Finn’s skull, not
wanting his pup to stop. Finn slid to the side, moaning against his skin,
tongue flicking the tip of his hardened bit of flesh. Jerking, he grabbed hold
of Finn’s hip with his other hand so he didn’t buck his pup off.

Finn sat up, licking his lips. “Eggs then bed? Is that okay?
Bed? I want to touch.”

“Not only okay, I insist on it.” Smiling, he stroked Finn’s
cheek, his cock pressing hard against Finn’s thigh.

“Oh, good.”

It took them seconds to wolf down the last of the eggs and
as soon as they had he picked Finn up and carried his pup to bed. Finn’s hands
moved over him restlessly, petting and pushing.

He put Finn down in the middle of the mattress, climbing up
after him and lying down on the slender body. Finn stretched, the smile on his
lover’s face pure bliss.

“Mate.” The word purred out of Finn.

Cort stole a kiss, meaning it to be quick, but once he was
there he sank into it, tongue pressing between Finn’s lips. Finn’s hands pushed
into his hair, fingers curling and holding on. Moving against Finn, he
undulated and rubbed their entire bodies together. The most amazing little
sounds filled his lips, his pup calling to him. It made his balls ache to hear
those sounds.

He’d had a dozen subs, more, but none who gave themselves so
easily. None who belonged to him, body, heart and soul.

Feeding a moan of his own into Finn’s mouth, he rolled them,
put Finn on top of him so he could touch.

“Cort.” Finn moaned and ran calloused hands up his belly,
counting his ribs.

He shivered at the almost tickles, such a lovely sensation.

“Touching you.” Finn hummed the words, singing softly.

“You are. You’re touching me good.” He ran his own hands
down Finn’s back, cupped the pert little ass.

It was fascinating to watch Finn respond, arch his back and
push into the touch. Cort squeezed tight, his fingers digging into the warm
flesh.

“Mmm.” Finn smiled, growling happily as one cheek slid along
Cort’s chest.

He wanted to leave bruises on Finn’s ass. He wanted to leave
bruises all over his pup, mark every inch as his. He wanted to expose his sweet
pup to things they didn’t teach in the woods. Right this second, though, he
wanted to smell Finn’s need.

He slid a finger between the tight cheeks and tapped Finn’s
hole.

“Oh.” Finn’s eyes flew open.

“I’m going to take you.” He met Finn’s eyes. “I’m going to
make you fly.”

“It didn’t hurt before. I felt you everywhere.”

He smiled, so pleased he’d made it good for his pup.

“I’d never felt that before.”

“I’m going to do all sorts of things to you that you’ve
never done or felt before.” Everything was new to his pup and that was
exciting.

“As good as joining?” His pup was so curious, so fucking
alert.

“I don’t know if anything is as good as joining with your
mate. But we’ll have that always, no matter what else we do.”

That answer seemed to satisfy Finn, who went back to
exploring, tasting and touching him. He loved how sensual his pup was, how much
Finn wanted to learn him, to bring him pleasure. He moaned as his cock was
licked, nuzzled.

“Oh, Finn, yes, please.” He nodded, pushing toward those
sweet, hot touches.

“Love your scent, your flavor,” Finn told him.