The Lamb Who Cried Wolf (13 page)

Oddly, it made sense to Carson as well, even if he would never forgive the elder Alpha for what he’d done to him and Brody. He very much doubted Brody’s father wanted his forgiveness in the first place, anyway.

“So where does that leave us then?” he asked Soren. “Are we on the run from other shifters? Will we be hunted down?”

In answer, Soren retrieved two envelopes from his jacket and offered one to each of them. “From Father. I haven’t read them, but I do know that he means to let you go.”

More confused than ever, Carson opened his. In a clear, masculine penmanship, a few lines sketched the elder wolf’s message for him.

You win, lamb. Wolves aren’t going to be a problem for you and
Brody any longer. But remember, your task won’t be easy. Brody
traded his pack for you, and you’re going to have to make up for that.

Good luck. You’re going to need it.

It didn’t say anything else. Brody’s letter, however, seemed longer, and as Carson folded his own piece of paper, the other man continued to read. Carson was curious, but he didn’t prod in Brody’s mind. His mate would tell him when he felt ready.

Finally, Brody tore his eyes from the piece of paper. “It seems he’s allowing the use of my old accounts. We’re free to go, but I don’t belong to any pack anymore.”

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Once more, Soren seemed saddened. “I know. I wish things could be different, but—”

“Hey, no one’s stopping you from contacting Brody from time to time,” Carson piped up. “And then, there’s Liam.”

Perhaps he could not offer Brody a pack yet, but it was a beginning. Soren nodded hesitantly. “Of course, if Brody agrees to see me.”

For a few moments, Brody just gazed at his brother in silence.

“You’re my brother,” he said finally. “I haven’t forgiven you yet, but perhaps in time…”

Soren’s eyes shone with emotion, and Carson considered slipping away to give the brothers a moment of privacy. He didn’t get the chance. Liam made his way to their side and said, “Come on, guys.

We need to go before the sleeping beauties awake.”

It seemed everyone agreed with Liam’s assessment. Between Soren, Liam, and Brody, they tossed around vials holding something that smelled suspiciously like urine. They were masking their scent, Carson realized, so that the guards would not later know who’d attacked them.

When the distasteful job was done, Liam and Soren led Carson and Brody out of the forest and to a car. It seemed they’d come on foot through the woods, probably to avoid leaving more traces.

Together with his mate, Carson climbed into the vehicle and leaned against the bench. The slight weight of the envelope sent to him by the elder wolf seemed to burn in his pocket. Would they really be left alone from now on? God, he hoped so.

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“Fucking hell!”

Brody tossed the hammer on the ground as once again he failed in the simple task of securing two boards together. Damn it. Perhaps they should have stayed in the city after all. Better yet, maybe they should have used contractors. It seemed shape-shifters might be good at hunting, but not so much at fixing homes.

He and Carson had bought a beautiful property in the Rockies.

The first time they’d seen the old house in the middle of nowhere, they’d fallen in love with it. Sure, the building needed work, but Brody and Carson trusted they would manage. Together, they’d be able to create a home for whatever pack or family they would gather in time. Carson had confessed to being sick of the town and yearning for greenery and pasture. But the price for the land and the house had been quite a strain on Brody’s accounts, and they’d decided to go with fixing their place, themselves.

Unfortunately, neither Brody nor Carson knew too much about construction work. Since they’d refused accepting help from either of their friends, it was also damn slow. Okay, so it had its advantages, namely having a certain lamb close at all times, but still, Brody felt like an utter failure for not being able to provide Carson with the home they both dreamed of.

Frustrated with himself, Brody jumped off the stairs and landed on the grassy ground. He took a deep breath, inhaling the fresh mountain air. It was lovely out here. Perhaps he should just take a break and
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enjoy the day with his mate. He and Carson had been through so much. They deserved some time off.

All of a sudden, Brody sensed his mate approaching, as if Carson had guessed his thoughts. Grinning, he turned, and found himself facing an unlikely sight. A beautiful white lamb stood in front of him, watching him with big blue eyes.

Carson’s white fleece shone so white it almost hurt Brody’s vision. Brody had a flashback of the moment they’d first met, only this time, there was no terror in Carson’s stance, or his heart and mind, just expectance.

“What are you up to, little lamb?” Brody asked, as he started walking toward Carson.

Still in animal form, Carson began to back away. As Brody approached more, Carson turned and started running.

Surprised and amused at his mate’s behavior, Brody chose to go along with it. So, Carson wanted to play. Brody would show him the rules of the game.

He shifted into his wolf form and began to chase after his errant mate. His senses immediately tracked down the scent of his oh-so-sweet prey. Because yes, Carson was his prey, but not in the way any of the wolves of Brody’s pack had judged it. He was the prey Brody could never get enough of, the one he loved to catch over and over, and who’d managed what no one else had, to tame the beast inside him.

Inwardly grinning, Brody ran through the greenery, following the occasional flash of fleece he spotted in front of him. However skilled Carson might be in some physical aspects, he remained a domestic animal, and one not meant to blend in with the environment. He didn’t have much chance to escape Brody. But Brody knew that Carson didn’t even want to outrun him, not really. The game was about the delicious moment when Brody would catch Carson and devour him in a way most pleasurable for both of them.

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For a little while, Brody allowed Carson to elude him, enjoying the simple glee of the chase. He loved it out here, because from time to time, he could actually go and hunt without being bothered by anyone. But this hunt held a far greater prize, and impatience began to grow inside him.

He sped up, and within seconds, was gaining on Carson. With a lunge, he jumped on the still-fleeing lamb. They went crashing down to the ground, rolling into the soft, green grass.

Instantly, they both shifted. “It seems you caught me, my big bad wolf,” Carson said in a breathless tone. “Now, what are you going to do with me?”

Instead of replying, Brody crushed his lips to Carson’s. The adrenaline of the hunt still coursed through his veins, and his beast howled in demand that he claim his mate. They were both naked, courtesy of the change, but unfortunately, they also didn’t have any lubricant. Besides, Brody enjoyed rolling around in the grass as much as any wolf, but there were benefits to a home—namely, some sort of furniture he could tie his mate to.

They hadn’t decorated the inside of their house yet. Mostly, they used portable cooking utensils and things like that. However, Brody had made an exception with regard to their bed. It had been the first, and only item they’d brought inside the house. Thankfully, the sleeping quarters were well preserved, and no one had made a comment as to why he’d insisted on a certain type of headboard.

His mind already on the many things he could do to Carson, Brody separated their lips and gave his mate a heated look. “You’re going to get it now, my lamb.”

He shot to his feet and pulled Carson up. As he draped his mate over his shoulder, Carson “baah”-giggled, his hands exploring the muscles of Brody’s back. Arousal coursed through Brody at the feel of his mate touching him like that, as if he couldn’t get enough. His lamb cupped his buttocks, experimentally squeezing the cheeks.

Brody growled in frustrated lust and slapped Carson’s ass. “Careful
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now, little lamb, or I might lose it. You wouldn’t want me to fuck you right here and now, would you?”

Carson moaned, his cock twitching against Brody’s skin, and Brody gathered that actually, his mate did want to be fucked, and fucked hard. Brody started running, heading back the way they’d come. He reached their house in record time and burst through the front door, up the stairs, and toward the bedroom.

The floorboards protested to his thumping as he sped, and Brody made a mental note to reinforce them as soon as possible. At last, he reached his destination. He ran into the room they shared and dumped his mate on the bed. Before Carson could even say a word, Brody joined his mate on the mattress and covered his lamb’s body with his own.

Once more, their lips met in a delicious, mind-melting kiss. Brody explored every recess of Carson’s mouth, and, as always, his mate surrendered so beautifully that Brody almost came just from it. But he owed Carson a little something for the chase, and he knew his mate expected it. Damn lamb was more manipulative than a fox.

With great difficulty, Brody tore himself away from Carson’s mouth. Moving as quickly as he could, he rummaged into the bag they kept next to the bed for such occasions and retrieved a paddle and a vibrating butt plug. The toys weren’t like the ones they’d bought for their first few times together, but they didn’t have to be, either. Brody and Carson were starting a new life, and here and now, they brought everything that made them who they were, including their kinks.

Brody hastened to the adjoining bathroom, where he proceeded to clean the butt plug. It should have been somewhat problematic to keep their toys here, but they’d lucked out. The house had running water and electricity, thank God, alimenting itself from its own private supplies, and strikingly, the piping didn’t have any significant problems. It had sealed the deal for Brody and Carson, and Brody was even more thankful for it now.

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With his task finished, Brody returned to the bedroom and gulped when he saw what his mate was doing. Carson had two fingers up his own ass, thrusting them in and out of his body, writhing on the bed at his own touch. Their connection was flooded with desire and need, as Carson begged,
“Please, Brody. Please fuck me.”

Brody made his way back to the bed. “That’s mine,” he growled.

He pulled Carson’s fingers and analyzed his mate’s now-slick hole.

“Impatient, aren’t you, Carson?”

Carson nodded with so much enthusiasm that Brody’s arousal increased even more. He flipped his mate on all fours and caressed the tight globes with greedy hands. With a grin, he exposed Carson’s hole, his mouth watering at the sight of the twitching opening that seemed to beckon him closer. Still, he resisted, remembering the punishment his mate had earned.

He took the butt plug and slowly, ever so slowly, inserted it into Carson’s anus. His mate whimpered, trying to push back against the toy. “Hold onto the railing, Carson, and don’t move,” Brody ordered.

“I’m going to make your ass glow.”

Carson obeyed, his body tensing even as he struggled to stay still.

Brody took a few seconds to inspect his handiwork. Seeing Carson’s sweet hole stretched by the plug made him yearn to be inside his mate even more.

Instead, he pressed the button that activated the toy. He’d bought the item on impulse, but the results told him that he’d made the right choice. Carson cried out as the plug massaged his anus. Through their connection, Brody could feel his mate’s pleasure increase more and more.

Smirking, he grabbed the paddle and struck, keeping the blows aimed toward the area he knew would not hurt Carson. His mate actually howled this time, insofar as he could howl without being a wolf, at least. Brody might have even mistaken the sound as protest, had he not sensed all of Carson’s emotions inside him. It brought a
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whole new dimension to the sex, and Brody distantly wondered how in the world he’d gotten so lucky.

* * * *

Carson tightened his hold on the headboard as Brody continued his sensual torture. As blow after blow fell, he began to fall deeper and deeper into a mind space reserved only for these moments, a space where the boundaries between pleasure and pain faded. The warmth that spread from his thighs and buttocks pooled straight into his prick, making him dizzy with want. The harsh kiss of the paddle drove him wild. His connection with Brody remained the only thing real and true.

With every hit, Brody jostled the vibrating toy inside him, making the vibrations even more intense. It felt so good, and yet, not enough.

Through their bond, Carson heard the order,
“Don’t come, little lamb.

Don’t come until I tell you to.”

So Carson bit his lip and struggled to keep himself anchored when the wave of pleasure threatened to sweep him off his feet. He could no longer even speak, having become a being of pure emotion.

Thankfully, Brody understood his desires. All of a sudden, the spanking stopped and the toy disappeared from Carson’s ass. Carson shivered as his lover pressed kisses over his heated buttocks, then over his spine until he reached his neck.

Brody was so close now, so close to where Carson wanted him to be. The toy had just whetted his appetite for something much better he wanted to have inside him. Carson ached to be filled by his mate, to feel Brody stretch his anus to capacity, to have the wolf touch him like only he could.

He felt Brody inside his mind, and then, Brody’s cock nudged at his opening. Carson clung to the railing as his mate slowly pushed inside him. His ass burned from the hits and the toy Brody had used
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on him. He trembled, his entire being focused on obeying his lover, his mate, his master.