Chapter 20
Aiden
My ears twitch, listening closely for the wolf I know is running towards me.
We’d split up this morning for patrols, and while it wasn’t supposed to be a race to see who could get it done faster, something in Julian’s eyes before he’d dashed off said otherwise—and there was no way in hell I was letting that smug bastard win.
I ran like there was a threat, maybe putting a bit too much distance between me and my group … but we’d covered our half of the packlands, which meant I was free to race back to our starting point. The rest of them would catch up. Eventually.
I pump my legs faster, dashing through the trees, knowing I only have a little further to go, but then I spot him. His fur is like a snowflake against black ice, easy to spot but fleeting, and—shit, it’s a close call.
I run faster, and so does he. Blazing blue eyes stare back at me as we race towards the invisible finish line and dive to claim the last few inches. We crash in a heap, and I’m the first to shift.
“I won,” I declare.
Julian’s on two feet a second later, pushing wild blonde strands from his face. “Please,” he chides. “I won.”
“I got here first,” I argue between desperate lungfuls that promise my heart five seconds before combustion.
“No, I did,” he puffs, settling his hands on his hips. “We both know I’m faster than you.”
“Maybe not anymore,” I retort, earning one of those little eye twitches that excite me more than they probably should. “You’re getting slow, Jewels. Eating too much of my good food?”
His lips tug up, but he lifts his chin an inch higher as he watches me step towards him. “I don’t know what this ‘good food’ you speak of is,” he says, eyes sparkling. “I’ve been eating, but I don’t know if I’d describe it as good or even food.”
I snort, as my lips split open into a grin. I used to think Julian was an emotionless, pompous bag of dicks, but he isn’t so plain. He’s got his jabs, he just didn’t go around sharing them with anyone. He shares them with me, though.
“Any problems?” he asks as he steps towards me, nodding towards the woods behind me.
“None, you?”
He shakes his head, tousling the mess sprawled atop.
I reach up, combing my fingers through his hair in an attempt to tame it. Julian eyes me closely, but lets me take care of him while his heart beats the same tune as mine.
Something had snapped into place that night at the drive-in, and after weeks of trying to figure out how we fit, Julian and I finally worked the pieces together. It’s easy now between us. We laugh, talk, and don’t hold back with how much we want each other.
I can pull him against me in bed, push him up against the kitchen wall, kiss him whenever I feel like it—and know he wants it just as much as I do. Because other times, he’s the one pulling me into the backseat of my car for more.
Never thought I’d see the day, but being with Julian Heil makes us happy, Max sighs wistfully, as if he hasn’t enjoyed every second of Julian’s affections. I never said I didn’t.
“So, tell the truth,” I whisper, dropping my hands. “Did you pay some witch for a potion to make you fast?”
Julian rolls his eyes, fingers brushing my wrist. “Shut up. I’m just fast.”
“Yeah, yeah,” I mutter, shifting my weight on my Jell-O legs. “Fuck, why did we do that to ourselves?” I glare at him. “Why did you insist on this?”
As expected, Julian’s eyes widen with outrage.
“That was you!” he protests. “We didn’t even have to patrol today, but you’re the one who said we should! I was perfectly fine with staying in bed.”
“When have you ever been ‘perfectly fine’ with lying in bed?” I bite back my smile and pick up a frown instead. “You were the one who said we had to get out there.”
Julian almost erupts, and fuck if it isn’t the cutest thing.
“No, I didn’t!” he exclaims, and yeah, we both know he’s right, but I just love getting him all worked up.
“Sure, Jewels, whatever you say,” I reply, faking a yawn as both our groups finally catch up. “The others are here. We can talk more about your lying later.”
I get a shove in my back, and a smile that I know will linger in my mind for the rest of the day.
We run through our usual drills while we get dressed. Everyone’s accounted for, the pack borders are still intact, and nothing needs a closer inspection. Then, everyone says their goodbyes, and Julian and I are left alone again.
I turn to him just as he’s turning to me.
Are we going to head home? Is he going to make me admit my lies? Or—
Julian takes me down like a fucking linebacker and pins me to the ground.
He makes sure I stay there, which isn’t hard because I don’t even try to fight him.
My cock is already standing to attention with him in my lap, but when he rests his hands beside my head and smiles down at me, I’m all the way there.
That was another thing that had snapped into place after the drive-in—Julian and I can’t keep our hands off each other. A day doesn’t pass without us getting each other off, and though it’s usually in private places, I’m up for some outside fun.
Only, Julian doesn’t get the fun started. He plays with the ends of my hair, and while that has a legion of butterflies attacking my insides, I’d much prefer them attacking my dick.
“It’s nice,” he whispers while he purposefully shifts atop my cock. “It’s surprisingly soft too.” It felt hard to me, but—“Your hair, Aiden.”
“Oh,” I flick my eyes up from his lips, trying and failing to see the hair in question. “Yeah, I guess.” I glance at him and his mess of blond. “It’s better than that ratty, string-cheese shit you got on your head.”
Julian’s blue eyes darken before fingers dig in and pull my head up by my roots.
“Ow! Julian—” My curse is cut short as his lips peck mine.
“My. Hair. Is. Gorgeous,” he corrects, kissing me lightly in between every word, jolting me with the sparks that come with each one until I’m shivering beneath him.
Proud of himself, Julian loosens his grip and smiles as if he’s not a secret psychopath. And I’m no better ’cause I’m still at full mast.
“You’re insane,” I mumble before I drag him back down for a proper kiss.
We both groan as familiar pleasure surges between us. Julian doesn’t hesitate to grind down on me, plastering every inch of himself to me, while I rock up to meet him, our hips finding a brutal rhythm. He drives his tongue into my mouth, exploring it until I’m drunk on him.
My canines push free as I slide my hands down his back, dragging my nails along his spine, making him arch against me. He hums against my lips, but when my hands sink past his waistband and grab his ass, it turns into a breathless moan.
By the time we’re rutting hard against each other, we’re barely kissing anymore—just breathing against each other’s lips, grabbing at every inch we can reach.
“Aiden,” Julian pants, pulling back to rest his head on my shoulder.
My balls tighten at the sound of my name on his tongue, and when he mouths at my neck, the thin shred of control I’m clinging to nearly snaps.
“We … shouldn’t … not outside,” he whispers, faltering every time my fingers dig into his ass.
“No? That’s a shame,” I pant, kissing his neck gently. “I like the outdoors.”
He sits up, glaring at me. With those dazed eyes and slightly swollen lips, he looks like a tainted angel, and I’m not even done ruining him.
“Let’s go home,” I whisper as I bring my hands to his hips. “So we can continue there. That’s indoors, right?”
Julian’s cheeks tinge pink, and I have to suppress the growl that warms my chest as he shakes his head. “We’ve got work to do,” he breathes. “We have a meeting with the elders, and then another before the Lunar Moon Festival. It’s coming up and they’ll expect a lot for our first joint one.”
“We also need to shower first, right?” I ask while I tease the soft skin under his shirt’s hem. “Let’s go home and do that together.”
“Aiden,” he groans, but I can tell he’s already giving in.
I smirk. “Come on, Jewels.”
“We don’t have time.”
Julian’s stance remains the same the whole way to his place, until the second I shove the front door closed behind me. Then we’re all hands and mouths as we stumble into the house together.
I can’t think beyond him, and I don’t want to. I just want to get lost in his scent and warmth forever, and I think I just might, until someone clears their throat.
We tear our lips apart but keep a firm grip on each other until we spot both of our parents sitting in our living room.
Well, shit.
We separate, all arousal dissipating with our parents sitting there looking at us as if we’re the ones intruding. My eyes dart around for my shades, spotting a pair on the counter, but before I can grab them, Julian slips his fingers in mine and keeps me at his side.
I glance at him, but his face is unreadable and cold, like it always used to be. But he’d started smiling with me, laughing, and then sharing that softer side with others. His parents drag those walls back up, and I glare at them all for already causing shit.
It’s annoying enough to see my parents, but Julian’s? I can feel my rage mounting. It’s been a week since they up and left without permission, and though I’ve been trying my best to make Julian ignore it, they’re here now, throwing out any hopes of keeping the ruse up.
“Julian. Aiden,” his mother greets, standing and adorning the same smile I’ve seen her plaster on for years. It’s harder to buy when the last time I saw her, she was digging her nails into my skin. “I’m glad to see you two have grown closer since we left.”
I’d love to demonstrate exactly how much closer we’ve grown, but odds were, Julian wouldn’t appreciate that.
“What are you doing here?” I ask instead, sliding my narrowed gaze over to my parents. The last time I saw my mother, it hadn’t been pleasant, but I hadn’t seen my father since the coronation. He didn’t look any less pissed than he’d been that night.