Chapter Twenty-Five
There was so much that Viktor wanted to say, but he ruthlessly bit his tongue and kept his thoughts as shielded as possible from his exhausted mate. They got a cab home, back to Ant's house, and Viktor stayed silent as Ant shuffled around, making sure Able had plenty of water, a fresh bowl of kibble, and a chance to water the bushes outside. Then, when Ant was satisfied that Able had been fully appreciated and tended to and had curled up on a blanket at the foot of the stairs, Viktor swept Ant into his arms again and took him upstairs to his bedroom, bypassing the bed and going through to the bathroom.
In a few short moments Viktor had set Ant down on the bathroom counter and ran a beautifully deep bath, adding a bath bomb he found in a jar on the side of the bath. It was Ant who stayed silent as Viktor slowly undressed him, peeling back the layers of clothing making sure he made no jarring or jerking movements as he moved him from the counter to standing on the floor. Ant’s eyes stayed on his face, lending an intimacy to the moment that tugged at Viktor’s control, and within a very short time, Ant was naked, and Viktor encouraged him into the water.
It didn’t take Viktor long to get rid of his clothes. He sighed with appreciation as he stepped into the bath, feeling the warmth of the water on his legs. Sitting down, Viktor made sure he had his back to the non-tap end. As soon as he settled with his arms along the edges of the bath, Ant swirled around on his butt and parked between Viktor’s legs, nestling his back against Viktor’s chest.
Perfect. While his mind was still teaming with thoughts not fit for relaxing moods, Viktor forced his body to relax. Ant was in his arms, and at the end of the day, that was the most important thing. The smell of jasmine from the bath bomb teased his nostrils, mixing with the faint wisp of Ant’s arousal.
“Did you want to talk about it?” Ant asked quietly, his eyes closed, his hands resting on Viktor’s knees.
“No.” Ant didn’t deserve Viktor’s rant, and while in the past Viktor had never given a damn what anyone thought about his opinions or ideas, he did care about his mate.
That made Ant chuckle. “You don't have to talk about it. I can feel it in you. There's a lot of chaos, confusion, frustration, and a strong need for vengeance in that head of yours.”
“I'm still not talking about it,” Viktor said. He ran his hands up Ant's shoulders, using his thumbs to gently knead in the muscles in the back of Ant's neck. “You’re stressed. You’re tired. It's been a very long day. Just relax.”
He soothed the tight muscles with his thumbs and then used the base of his palm to run along either side of Ant's collarbone. Its effect was almost electric, the way Ant moved, leaning forward, letting out another sigh as Viktor's hands moved down his back on either side of his spine.
“Sometimes you just need a bit of pampering.” Viktor kept his voice low. “It's not like I'm asking for anything else from you in this moment, we’re just strengthening our connection. You’ve made it clear how difficult any intimacies are for you when there is a conflict between my actions and what I might be thinking. So just accept this – allow me to soothe your jagged nerves and encourage you to relax through touch.”
Ant’s chuckle was low and sent a jolt of electricity to Viktor’s balls. “Why do I get the impression that you're just trying to lull me into a deep sleep so that then you can go out and wreak havoc and mayhem on the people you believe have caused us harm this evening?”
“I did say I wasn't going to talk about it,” Viktor said firmly. “You will learn that I can be a very stubborn vampire. I know that your energies, the energies you expended today, far exceeded anything that could or should be asked of any normal person. My focus is getting you to relax. I want you to know how much you are cherished and cared for…seeing as you have such a callous disregard for your own life."
Viktor bit his tongue, actually that time, tasting his blood that trickled down his throat. “I’m sorry,” he said. “Scrap that last remark. I said I wasn’t going to talk about it.” He focused on his fingers that were kneading up and down the muscles on either side of Ant’s slender spine.
“You can no more stop being you than I can,” Ant reminded him. “I thought we'd already agreed that we would be ourselves, at least when we’re alone together.”
Viktor snorted. “That’s definitely true, but I’d like to suggest that doesn’t always work when two parts of a couple are very independent people. For example, if I was being myself right in this minute, we wouldn’t be having a leisurely bath. You would be sprawled on the bed, gripping onto the covers with both fists while I rutted into your ass with a cock that wouldn’t quit until I had claimed every inch of you all over again.
“Tonight scared the fuck out of me. I’m not ashamed to tell you I don’t process those feelings very well and honestly, I don’t know how to deal with it. Sometimes it’s better to say nothing at all. You don’t need me going barbarian over your ass.”
“You should do it,” Ant said simply. “Remind me that I am still alive. Remind me that life is precious and full of pleasure, instead of the shit I see day in, day out. Remind me that we have a connection that's worth fighting for, because I believe that too. I just think that there are different ways of fighting than using your fists or vampire claws. Can you understand?”
Viktor tilted his head slightly, turning Ant's chin so that he could see into his mate’s eyes. “You have a plan?”
Ant shook his head slowly. “If I had a plan I would share it with you just so we could get to the sexy side of an evening. I worry I may fall asleep before we get to it, and I don’t want that to happen. I want to help you relax, and I want that most instinctual of connections with you, too.”
Narrowing his eyes, Viktor shook his head slightly. “If no plan, then what?”
Ant let out a long breath. “So much for not talking about this. I might not have a plan” - he pointed to his own chest - “but I have a sister. I have a sister who is a genius at creating strategies and bringing down our enemies, in a legal way. With Bridget’s help we will make sure that the people who came so close to killing us tonight will know never to mess with us again.
“But please. Are you going to hate me if I just want to forget about it for five minutes? That maybe I want to feel your hands on my skin. Maybe I want to feel the way your body presses me into the mattress. Maybe I want to scream loud enough to rock the ceiling at the way your cock plunders my hole because that might be the best way I'll get a good night's sleep tonight.”
“So, it's not just because you're horny then. I’m a sleep aid.” Viktor laughed in spite of everything that had been going on. His mate wasn’t wrong – Viktor was stressed, tired, furious, all jumbled in with a million other feelings he didn’t know what to do with.
Scared? Did he mention scared? Viktor had never been scared in his whole damn life but seeing his SUV explode and not reacting fast enough to stop Ant flying through the air to land on the pavement…yeah, scared was front and center.
The one person he was certain of was his mate. The one thing he was certain of was their mating. Viktor was certain he didn’t have the right mushy words to make Ant feel special, and it seemed his mate didn’t need them. They both just needed to shut off their brains and let their bodies do the communicating for five minutes.
Standing up, Viktor brought Ant with him, water streaming off the pair of them as he stepped out of the bath and padded back through to the bedroom. He barely managed to remember to grab a towel on his way past.
“We're going to get the sheets wet,” Ant murmured, although he didn't seem unhappy about it, snuggled against Viktor’s chest, his hand firm around the back of Viktor’s neck.
“That's what the towel's for,” Viktor said briskly. He couldn't help himself. Just looking at Ant's innocent face and knowing somebody came so close to stealing the life he could see in Ant's eyes…
Yes, there were deep shadows under Ant's eyes. Yes, it was clear from the way Ant’s limbs were lax in his grip that his body was tired. Even through their bond, Viktor could sense that exhaustion and he did his best to put a leash on his energies as he laid Ant out on the bed and started to gently dry his body.
If there was a system for drying someone, Viktor had never learned it. He barely swiped a towel over his own wet body every time he stepped out of a shower. But tuning into their bond, Viktor took the towel and rubbed up Ant’s arms, one at a time, and then used small circular rubbing motions over his mate’s throat, neck, and chest.
Kneeling on the bed, Viktor got distracted for a moment by the way the dark towel rippled down Ant’s torso, tenting as it hit the groin area. Determined to do things right, Viktor ignored the cock. He was ignoring his own, it was only fair. He ran the towel down Ant’s right leg and then his left, picking up each foot as he reached it and carefully wiping in between each of Ant’s toes. Ant wiggled and chuckled, but Viktor kept at it until every inch of Ant’s front was dry.
“Toss the towel away.” Ant’s gray eyes had darkened and his nostrils flared. “Remind me…”
The towel was tossed to the floor. Viktor surged up, sliding his hands under Ant’s shoulders and rolling him so that his mate’s body was on top of his. Viktor had to kiss him, so he did, nipping and sucking, kissing the top lip and then sucking the bottom lip in between his own. It hit Viktor’s mind that he might be holding his mate too tightly, and he tried to stay firm rather than grabby.
But it was fear that was driving him – fear on so many levels. People he'd been associated with, people he had brought into Ant's life, were trying to take that life away, and Viktor couldn't even think about that without his other half wanting to come through.
He knew – there was no question – he would rampage like no vampire had done before, if anybody harmed a hair on his precious Ant's head and yet even as he thought that, Viktor realized somebody already had. He felt a lump on the back of Ant's skull, and he carefully moved Ant's head to one side and shifted his fingers, so he wasn't pressing on to it, but the kissing couldn’t stop.
It's not as though Ant was lying like a bump on his body. Viktor had no idea where his mate was getting the energy from, but it was there. Ant was clinging to him, kissing him back with a passion, feeding their emotional link, Viktor realized. He could feel Ant’s desperation the same as he could feel his own, but there was longing there as well – another sensation that was shared by them both.
They rolled together, Viktor’s legs hooked over Ant’s to keep their bodies together. The kisses turned frantic - at one point Ant was nipping at Viktor’s neck and his cock could feel every graze of Ant’s teeth as though it was his shaft being attacked by Ant’s mouth and not his neck. Viktor started doing the same to Ant, hoping to make him feel the same way.
Penetration wasn’t going to happen. They were both too primed, too ready, and Viktor didn’t want to lose that momentum by doing the necessary prep. He wasn’t going to ask Ant to use his magic either – that man had done enough that night.
Sliding his hand down Ant’s back, Viktor increased the pressure on his mate’s ass, their cocks making a mess as their abs rubbed together. Ant was getting swept away, moving entirely on instinct.
Oh, babe when you let yourself go you’re incredible. Viktor waited with the patience of a predator – he was sure if he had a tail he’d be slowly wagging that, too, just like a cat ready to strike. Waiting, waiting… Viktor struck, sliding his fangs into Ant’s neck, pressing their bodies together so hard not a breath of air could get between them.
The first drop of Ant’s blood on Viktor's tongue cemented their bond even further. He felt the click. As he took a few cautious sips, Viktor could almost see their bond grow and why. The way Ant clung to him as a protector but more importantly, as a man who let the respected mage be himself.
Ant’s orgasm hit short and fast, and Viktor’s cock quickly followed without him even thinking about it. Needing his mouth to breathe, Viktor released his fangs from Ant’s skin and quickly licked over the wound before he wrapped his arms fully around his mate, holding him close as their panting eased to soft breathing.
Easing his head back, Viktor could see his mate's eyes were already closed and the spunk was cooling between them, threatening to stick them together. Oh babe, he thought with a sigh, I probably should put you back in the bath. But as he didn't want Ant to drown, Viktor rolled Ant gently over onto his back, peeled their bodies apart, and went looking for a washcloth. He could use some of the scented bath water to give Ant a sponge bath before he drained the bath.
I wonder what Bridget's going to have to say in the morning , Viktor thought as he got what he needed and went back to the bedroom. Ant hadn’t moved from where Viktor had left him, and he quickly washed over his mate’s body before lifting him and tucking him under the covers. As he followed and held Ant close, Viktor winced as he checked the shadows from the window. Gods, Bridget will be here in just a few hours. So much for my mate getting a sleep in.
Viktor couldn’t sleep. After the night they’d had, he didn’t expect to. He stayed quiet and watchful, matching his breathing with his mate’s, and soothing his mate with soft gibberish and strokes on his skin every time his sleeping Ant twitched or frowned. There would be no nightmares on Viktor’s watch.