Chapter 20 The Worst Proposal To Ever Exist
THE WORST PROPOSAL TO EVER EXIST
Mathlin’s heart stopped. Titan just kissed me.
He’s still kissing me!
Titan nipped at Mathlin’s lower lip, sucking it into his warm, wet mouth.
He released it and dragged their lips together, sending a jolt of pleasure down Mathlin’s spine.
Mathlin might’ve moaned. This was too intimate between him and his boss.
But Titan kept going; he flicked his warm, soft tongue against the seam of Mathlin’s lips, slipping into his mouth—a quick hello.
Then his tongue darted away and came back, staying for longer.
Mathlin dared to lick him.
What he didn’t expect was for Titan to groan, pushing deeper.
It was as though Titan was testing the waters, seeing how much Mathlin would let him get away with.
Mathlin would let him get away with anything, really.
He felt a little faint and weak-kneed, more so when Titan kissed him carefully, tangling their tongues together. Mathlin made a soft, helpless sound.
He’d never been kissed like that before.
All at once, the kiss turned scorching. Titan surged inside him, a hot thick presence, exactly like how he had pushed into Mathlin further south.
“Oh,” Mathlin moaned. His body grew hot, the kind of hungry warmth that made him think he might be going into heat, every cell hoping for Titan to pin him down and claim him. In fact, he was so ready to open himself up for his alpha, so ready for Titan to shove his legs open and spread his cheeks—
“Math,” Titan growled into his mouth.
Mathlin shuddered, his brain about to melt out of his ears. “Huh?”
“This kiss,” Titan rumbled. “You’re really something else.”
“I’m not very good at kissing,” Mathlin panted. “If I accidentally bite off the tip of your tongue, I promise to take very good care of it.”
Titan snorted. He laid another light, dragging kiss on Mathlin, a slow thing that left Mathlin’s lips tingling and his heart pounding. It felt like a promise.
Then Titan leaned away, amusement dancing in his eyes.
Mathlin realized that the alpha couldn’t move far—because his own fingers were tangled in Titan’s hair. “How did my hands get there?!”
Titan coughed. “You don’t know?”
“They moved on their own!”
Someone else laughed. When Mathlin jerked his head up, he realized that they had a small audience: Ottis and Gavric typing on their phones, Crush lowering his phone like he had just finished recording a video.
“So... Mr. Benley?” Titan asked.
Oh.
They had been fake kissing for an audience.
“Uh,” Mathlin said, looking around.
“He left,” Vigil said dryly. “About ten seconds in. You went on for five whole minutes.”
“Five minutes?!” Mathlin squeaked.
“He left? Just like that?” Titan asked incredulously.
“Well, no. He tried yelling at you a few times, but you completely ignored him,” Vigil said, amused. “In the end, he threw his hands up and stormed off.”
Mathlin hoped like hell that Titan wouldn’t question the kissing. Because that had been a lot of good kissing. And it had made him wet.
He cast around for something to say. “So, uh, should we cut the cake?”
Titan choked. “Math,” he hissed. “We don’t have a cake to cut. We didn’t plan that far.”
Gavric began coughing, too. “Exactly what are you guys planning?”
“Nothing,” Mathlin said innocently. “Just stay away so you don’t get caught up in it.”
“Cool,” Crush said, wrapping his arm around Killian. “Well, we’re off to enjoy the party. You should do the same.”
“Try the cupcakes!” Mathlin said.
One by one, Titan’s brothers wandered off. Mathlin turned to his alpha, only now noticing Titan’s red lips and pink cheeks. Had the kiss affected him that much?
“So.” Titan cleared his throat, his gaze darting away from Mathlin. “Uh.”
“I didn’t bite off your tongue,” Mathlin blurted. “So I think I didn’t mess up too badly.”
Titan snorted. “That’s how you measure how good a kiss was?”
Mathlin glared. “Hey! It’s not like I’ve kissed a million alphas before you.”
Titan seemed to stand taller at that. “Yeah?” He suddenly looked hopeful. “And how did that compare to everyone else?”
For a pretend kiss, he certainly was invested in it.
“My mouth approves,” Mathlin said. His lips felt wet all over, a reminder of the kiss. But Mathlin didn’t enjoy being wet everywhere else on his body, so he scrubbed the back of his hand over his mouth.
Titan’s gaze darkened. “That’s the first time I’ve seen you clean your face.”
Mathlin froze. “Uh. Okay?”
“It’s adorable,” the alpha murmured, grinning. “But let’s step away from the food in case someone thinks you’re licking your hand.”
“You don’t mind?”
A hazel eyebrow went up. “Sweetheart. I’ve had my tongue in your hole.”
Mathlin’s body squeezed at that memory; heat flickered through him again.
One of the party guests gasped, scandalized.
Titan coughed and said loudly, “I didn’t do that in the bakery. Just FYI.”
More faces looked over. Mathlin cringed, his face burning now. “Oh gods, we should be anywhere but here.”
“C’mon, let’s see if Everdin and her poor victims are around.” Titan stepped closer, bumping Mathlin with his right arm, the one with the torn bicep. Mathlin carefully wrapped his arm around Titan’s and dragged him away.
They didn’t escape unscathed. A few of Everdin’s victims hunted them down, each of them furious in some way. Mathlin let Titan respond to them—because Titan always had sane, reasonable answers.
That, and Titan kept nuzzling Mathlin to show everyone they were ‘together’.
By the end of an hour, they had met the rest of Everdin’s victims, except Everdin herself was nowhere to be found.
“Shall we do this without her as a witness?” Titan murmured, leaning in to accept the mini pastry from Mathlin’s fingers.
“I think she would be soooo mad if she missed out,” Mathlin said. “Everyone would’ve seen it except her.”
They exchanged a look, understanding flashing between them.
“C’mon,” Titan said urgently.
With the alpha hot on his heels, Mathlin hurried over to one of Yasmin’s tables, ducking under its long tablecloth. He gathered the things he had stashed there. “I’m ready,” he whispered, lifting the tablecloth so Titan could squeeze in after him.
It was a tight fit under the table, faint light filtering through the tablecloth. Titan was so close, his warmth soaking into Mathlin’s skin.
Mathlin stuffed the drooping bundle into Titan’s open mouth; Titan bit down on it. Then Mathlin clipped two bouncing, springy toys to Titan’s hair. A huge, fluffy garland went around Titan’s neck, followed by a red sequined cape that draped over his shoulders.
“How do I look?” Titan grinned.
“Pretty and amazing,” Mathlin said, giggling as he drew and colored in large circles around Titan’s eyes. He pinned rings of glittering tassels around Titan’s pant legs. “Now you’re ready.”
“Give me the ring,” Titan said.
“Oh! I almost forgot. Here.” Mathlin hooked the velvet box—attached by a thin, sparkly chain—to the front of Titan’s belt. “There.”
“Nice. Now, it’s showtime.”
They looked over each other—Mathlin a rumpled mess, Titan a chaotic-but-planned larger mess. Then they exchanged a grin.
“This is gonna be insane,” Mathlin said gleefully.
“Do me proud,” Titan murmured.
Butterflies surged through Mathlin’s stomach.
All because of a fake proposal.
He ducked out from under the table, almost crashing into someone. “Sorry!” he called over his shoulder.
He stole two bright pink cupcakes from the tiered plates and carried them to an empty spot in the middle of the party. A live band played cheerful music. The guests mingled, eating and chatting, several familiar faces around.
Mathlin pushed both cupcakes against his face, one over each eye. When the frosting had stuck properly to his skin, he pulled off the cupcakes, wiping his eyes so he could see.
Then he threw his head back, and made the loudest bird call he’d made in his life.
The voices ceased abruptly around him. Mathlin raised both cupcakes high in the air, swaying with his entire body. “I’m a wriggling tree,” he sang. “Swaying in the wind like a busy bee!”
A couple of phones came up immediately. Mathlin searched out Vigil, who was standing with a plate of food away from the rest of the guests.
“I found a tree to dance around,” Mathlin sang—his voice was what Titan would use to track him down. “Such a lovely tree for me and my wolfy—”
There came a loud roar.
It was powerful like a battle cry. Or a mating song. Mathlin’s insides quivered.
Across the grass, Titan stalked toward Mathlin, resplendent in his sparkling cape, wilting flowers clenched between his teeth. Plastic dicks bounced from the springs clipped in his hair. Black circles covered his face like a panda’s eyes, and golden tassels gleamed around his legs.
Titan stopped a respectable distance away and struck a pose, tossing his head.
Mathlin gasped the fakest gasp in the world. “Who are you?!”
“I am the Supreme Alpha Overlord!” Titan yelled around the flower stems, keeping them gripped between his teeth. “And this is my courtship dance!”
Mathlin gasped even more loudly. He pressed the cupcakes to his cheeks. “You may court me... But first, you’ll have to catch me!”
He flounced away in slow motion.
Titan chased after him with exaggerated strides—also in slow motion.
Yasmin’s guests were staring at them, several in shock. Among them was Yasmin herself, with her eyes crinkled and one hand covering her mouth.
Mathlin yodeled terribly, his voice cracking midway and his throat going dry. Vigil was still standing where Mathlin had found him... so Mathlin ducked behind the alpha, gasping when Titan stopped on his brother’s other side.
“Oh omega,” Titan sang, sticking his head around Vigil.
Mathlin stuck his head around Vigil’s other side, so both of them missed each other.
Mathlin pulled back and checked Titan’s side—only for Titan to peer around Vigil’s other side. They missed each other again, like the main characters in those old, corny movies that used to air on TV.