The Lamb Who Cried Wolf (12 page)

The intensity of their joint climax wiped away the bonds that kept Brody tied to Roxanne. The artificial connection burst into a million pieces and immediately, Brody felt liberated. A sense of complete happiness filled him as his bond with his mate was back in place.

For a few moments, Brody just allowed himself to revel in the renewed connection and in the aftermath of the orgasm. He almost couldn’t believe he had his mate back. The bond he’d yearned for through two years of tortured solitude returned.

All of a sudden, Carson’s voice emerged in his mind. “
Brody?
”

He sounded tentative, almost fearful, and Brody couldn’t help but kiss Carson once again. “
I’m here, little lamb
,” he whispered through their bond. “
I’m never going away again
.”

In their kiss, Brody tasted both arousal and release. His beast howled inside him, yet again demanding that he consummate their union and mark his mate as his own. Even if he’d come mere seconds ago, his prick was already rock hard.

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Brody gathered his and Carson’s semen and used it to lubricate his cock. With the excess seed, he proceeded to prepare Carson as thoroughly as possible. He inserted a finger in his mate’s hole, hissing at the tightness that engulfed his digit.

“
I was waiting for you
,” Carson sent through their bond.

Brody’s wolf growled in satisfaction at Carson’s explanation. He knew Carson had not slept with others. Even with their bond damaged, he’d still been able to sense it to a certain extent. Still, it felt good to hear it out of his mate’s mouth.

Gently, Brody added another finger and scissored the two digits inside his mate. He probed deep inside his mate, seeking for the spot he knew would make his mate fly. Seconds later, his fingers hit the spongy gland and Carson cried out, the sweet “baah”-moan that Brody remembered so well.

“Oh, God, Brody,” he gasped. “Please, please. Fuck me.”

Brody added another finger, continuing to prepare Carson’s hole.

“Patience, Carson. Good things come to those who wait.”

But even as he spoke these words, he knew he could not wait any longer. He’d been waiting for too long already, and he’d reached his limit.

Focusing to control his passion, Brody finger-fucked his mate, until at last he deemed Carson as prepared as he could get. He removed his digits and positioned his prick at Carson’s entrance. In one single thrust, he pushed inside.

Tight heat engulfed him in a velvet fist, and he stilled, just barely managing not to come again on the spot. Carson whimpered, their connection flooding with his emotions. “Brody,” he practically sobbed. “Move.”

His mate’s words seemed to work magic on him. Brody pulled out of Carson and thrust back inside, gritting his teeth at the pleasure so intense it almost fell into pain. Over and over, he fucked Carson, and his mate pushed back, impaling himself on Brody’s cock. They moved together like they’d never been parted, like time hadn’t flown
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over them. Nothing else mattered except this moment, their reunion, and their true bond.

Who cared that they were lamb and wolf? Certainly not Brody. It would take more than that to separate them this time. He’d learned his lesson. Carson belonged to him, and Brody would never let his lamb go again.

Mixed emotions swirled inside of him as the scent of sex and sweat assaulted his nostrils. There was so much he wanted to say, so many explanations and apologies, and Brody tried to tell his mate everything through his soul and body. Their connection buzzed with sensations and feelings. Carson’s eyes filled with tears, and the sight of it, and the knowledge that his mate truly understood made Brody awed and humbled.

But deep inside, he was a wolf, not a man, and he needed to reassure himself of their continued bond. He pushed in and out of Carson, never once letting up, each moment increasing both his desire and his need to come. Carson’s cries echoed around him, beautiful and pure like the man himself, and Brody’s mind spun as his senses were assaulted from every direction. Sight, touch, hearing, smell, taste, and so much more, blended in a cocktail that made Brody drunk, no, high. Not even in his darkest times when he’d tried to drink himself under the table to just forget had his mind been so fogged.

This time, however, it was because of pleasure, not pain, and Brody embraced the nirvana, opening himself to Carson and the beauty of their bond.

Soon, his balls began to ache with the need to come, and his orgasm threatened to take him over again. But he didn’t want to climax before Carson. He yearned to feel his mate come around his cock, and to see the ecstasy painted on Carson’s face. Increasing the pace, he always aimed for Carson’s prostate. Lowering his body over Carson’s, he pressed their lips together once more. When he broke the kiss, he whispered in Carson’s ear. “Come for me, little lamb.”

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Instantly, Carson’s body tensed and with a choked cry, his mate found his release for a second time. The feel of Carson’s climax was even more incredible than Brody remembered. Burying himself one last time inside Carson, he flooded his mate’s passage with his cum.

Exhausted, he collapsed on top of Carson, somehow remembering to roll off his mate and not squash him. Carson cuddled by his side, sighing in contentment. “I love you, Brody,” the lamb said.

Brody froze. In their short time together, words of love had never been spoken. Brody had been too busy worrying about finding his mate, then protecting the man from the rest of the wolves. After that, they’d been parted so quickly they didn’t even get the chance to know each other.

And yet, Brody’s wolf knew Carson so well it rivaled long-term matings. Against all odds, their bond had persisted, and even if Brody had been unable to speak to Carson, he’d seen it in Carson’s heart.

From his point of view, their souls were one.

Smiling to himself, Brody answered, “I love you too, little lamb.”

The words came with striking ease, and even in the darkness of the pit, Brody felt happier than he had in years.

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Time passed as Brody and Carson remained stuck down inside the pit. Carson was, indeed, thrown the occasional bale of hay, and in order to eat it, found himself forced to shift into his lamb form. Not that it made any difference. Given the low temperature inside the pit, they spent more time in their second shapes, using their clothes as bedding.

Brody seemed to be quite adept in coming up with food out of nothing, but the strain was beginning to show. More often than not, both he and Carson spent their days digging into the hard ground, looking for the occasional worm. It was gross, but the animal inside Carson acknowledged these things were, for Brody, food, and it would help his mate survive.

Carson’s only comfort was that they were carefully watched. Each day the wolves above looked inside the pit, checking on Brody’s condition. Brody snarled at them, and Carson would have considered telling his mate to tone it down if the situation didn’t look so dire. As it were, he doubted any change in their behavior—other than a severe health problem—could convince the wolves to let them out.

Perversely, he was glad he had Brody with him, because otherwise, he’d have lost his mind. They had little food, no way to bathe, not to mention that they needed to do their private needs in the same place they slept. Of course, such sensibilities faded when compared to Carson’s worries about Brody’s welfare.

Brody tried to distract him, and somehow, in that way, they ended up telling each other of the time they’d spent apart.

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“Shiloh really helped me out,” Carson told Brody one day. “I’d have never thought he could be that sort of person when we met him in the sex shop.”

Brody chuckled. “Goes to show you not to judge people.”

Carson sighed and pressed himself close to Brody. He didn’t know how much time they’d spent here. The days and nights were so very similar in the pit. That was probably the worst thing about their incarceration. Shape-shifters did have an internal watch, and Carson judged something like a week must have passed since they’d seen the sun. It seemed like more. How could Brody’s father possibly allow this to happen?

For a while, Carson thought the man would abandon them here to die. Sure enough, Carson didn’t think he could survive without Brody, and with each passing second, his mate was weakening.

But just as he thought this, something happened Carson hadn’t anticipated. So far the only motions above them had been those belonging to the wolves guarding them and providing feed for Carson, but all of a sudden, Brody tensed. “Something’s going on up there,”

he said.

Indeed, if Carson paid close attention, he could hear the dim sounds of a struggle above them. Hope surged inside him, but then Brody whispered, “It’s Soren. I can feel him.”

“What would your brother want with us now?” Carson asked, biting his lip. Soren hadn’t been very nice to them. In fact, the last—

and only—time Carson had seen him he’d hurt Brody in the challenge. Carson hoped only circumstances pushed Soren into doing so. He supposed they would find out soon.

As if in answer to his dilemma, the grate above the pit lifted.

“Brody?” Soren’s voice came from up above. “Are you in there?”

“Why?” Brody shot back. “You want to throw in hand grenades, or what?”

Soren didn’t answer the sarcastic comment. A rope fell down, almost reaching the ground, but not quite.

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Carson and Brody pulled their clothes on. Whether for good or ill, Soren clearly intended to meet with them. They got up and made their way to the rope. Brody tested it to see if it was safe. It held, but they still looked at each other in doubt. “My brother has disappointed me before,” Brody said.

“Everybody deserves a second chance,” Carson answered, “and in the end, it’s not like we’re missing out on the Ritz down here.”

“Good point.” He took a deep breath and said, “Okay, you go first. In case you fall, I’ll catch you.”

Carson shook his head at Brody’s concern. Contrary to what Brody might think, sheep were actually good climbers, something they must have caught from their distant cousins, goat-shifters. But it did feel good to be fussed over, and besides, if it made Brody feel better about it, who was Carson to question it?

“Wait,” Brody said, having apparently changed his mind. “Let me go up first and see if it’s clear. Then I’ll come back down and get you.”

Carson rolled his eyes. “Whatever happens, happens, Brody. If they’d wanted to kill us, we wouldn’t be able to do much from down here anyway. They have no reason to get us out.”

With that said, Carson gripped the rope and began climbing. His own doubt stemmed from something different, rather than the fear he’d get hurt. If they left this enclosure, would they be forfeiting their last chance to be together? Would the time they’d spent down there be for naught? He didn’t know, but he wasn’t willing to lose the opportunity to get out either. Seeing Brody get weaker and weaker had to be the hardest thing he’d ever done.

Truth be told, he feared the starvation Brody had suffered through might prevent him from being able to climb the rope. It was a long way, after all. Perhaps he should have been the one to go up second, since he’d kept most of his strength and could catch Brody if something went amiss. But he needn’t have feared. Brody kept comforting him with soft words through their bond as they climbed.

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Sooner than Carson expected, he was out of the pit. Seconds later, Brody joined him, taking his hand and squeezing it as they breathed fresh, free air once again.

For a few moments, Carson’s eyes struggled to get used to the sun after the time he and Brody spent in almost complete darkness. When his vision adjusted, he caught sight of Soren and Brody’s friend, Liam, standing in front of them, looking uncomfortable. Three other men, probably the guards who’d been in charge with holding post over Brody and Carson’s prison, lay at their feet, unconscious. Soren wordlessly offered Brody some food, and, after sniffing it a bit, Brody fell upon it like the starving wolf he was.

Carson had not expected the two men to bring him anything, but Liam provided him with a vegetarian meal as well. A diet of hay, while enough to keep him alive and healthy, wasn’t exactly his choice of gourmet meals, and he felt thankful for the gesture.

Water was next. The wolves thankfully provided the needed supply during his and Brody’s enclosure, but somehow, it seemed to taste different up here, with the wind blowing through his hair and the sun’s rays shining on his face.

But of course, the moment of simple glee could not last. Brody finished his own meal and turned to his brother. “As much as I appreciate this, Soren, why are you here?”

Soren sighed. “I came as soon as I heard. I assure you, I didn’t know about this, Brody. Had I been told, I’d have never allowed it.”

Brody narrowed his eyes at Soren. “And how did you find out?

I’m assuming Father isn’t exactly forthcoming with the information regarding our imprisonment, and besides, you don’t live with us.”

Soren hesitated, then pulled Brody and Carson away from the pit.

Liam proceeded to bind the still-motionless guards to trees, while Soren whispered, “Okay, first of all, no one is supposed to know this except us four. Father acknowledges the fact that his decision was extra-harsh, and told me and Liam to bust you out.”

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Carson blinked, not understanding anything anymore. “But…Why couldn’t he just waive the sentence?”

Soren looked pained, while Brody rubbed his eyes. “I hate to say it, but I actually understand,” Brody said. “He’s an Alpha, the elder Alpha. If he did that, he’d look weak. His position would be in jeopardy.”

Soren nodded. “I know it doesn’t set things straight, but it can’t be helped.”