Chapter 6 Spike
SPIKE
Twenty-four hours.
That was all it had been since I found Tyler stranded in snow, his little car buried up to the axles. A single day since I'd caught his unique scent that made my antlers itch and my human skin emerge.
Was it even possible that the most incredible, life-altering moments I'd ever experienced had all happened since yesterday?
Apparently, it was.
As I sat across the dinner table from my mate, a heavy weight of guilt blanketed over me. I was keeping a massive secret from him, and I hated myself for it. How could I claim this beautiful man as mine when he didn't even know what I truly was?
He sipped the French onion soup with homemade croutons as if he didn’t have a care in the world. But he didn’t know the truth. And until he had all the information, he couldn’t truly give himself to me.
And I couldn’t take anything more from him.
He was so goddamn beautiful it hurt. And he was mine. My omega. My mate. As long as he didn’t hate me when I confessed my true identity to him.
"You keep staring." Tyler glanced up with a shy smile that made my heart clench. "Do I have food on my face or something?"
I shook my head and reached across to brush my thumb along his jaw. "Just can’t believe you’re actually mine."
His cheeks flushed that delicious pink that made me want to devour him whole. “Me neither.”
Last night, when I'd found him begging for relief from his heat, the mating had been primal, instinctual. His body recognized mine as surely as I'd recognized his. But today, even with his heat subsided, we couldn't keep our hands off each other.
My secret had been on the tip of my tongue all day, but he was just too damn distracting, with his big eyes and soft mouth and intoxicating scent.
I should have told him this morning during the lazy breakfast we'd shared after I'd fucked him against the kitchen counter. Or during lunch, when he'd draped himself across my lap while we ate sandwiches. Or any of the three other times we'd made love during the afternoon.
But I'd been too afraid to break the spell we were under. Worried that the revelation might change something between us or make him look at me differently.
"Hey." Tyler's soft voice pulled me from my thoughts. "Where'd you go just now? You seem...I don't know, upset about something."
I set down my spoon and took a deep breath. The cabin suddenly felt too small, but that was mostly my courage. The truth pressed against my chest like a physical weight, and I had to let it out. "Tyler, sweetheart, there's something I need to tell you. Something I should have told you right away."
His eyes widened slightly, and I caught the hint of anxiety in his scent.
Dammit.
I reached across the table and took his hand in mine, grounding both of us to each other. "It's nothing bad. At least, I hope you won't think it's bad." I swallowed hard. "It's about me. About what I am."
“What you are?” Tyler's head tilted slightly, and that little furrow appeared between his brows that I already knew meant he was confused. “You're an alpha."
"Yes, but I'm more than just an alpha." I squeezed his hand and inhaled a deep breath. "I'm also a shifter, Tyler. A reindeer shifter."
His face remained perfectly still for several heartbeats before his lips quirked up at the corners. "A...reindeer shifter? Like, Rudolph? Dasher and Dancer and all that?"
I didn't laugh. I couldn't. This moment was too important.
"Actually, yes. I can change physical forms. From this…" I gestured to my human body. "To a reindeer. A big one."
Tyler pulled his hand back slowly, and the loss of contact felt like a physical ache. "You're joking, right? This is some weird northern woods humor I don't get?"
I shook my head and reached for his hand again. When he didn’t pull away, I finally exhaled. "No joke, sweetheart. I should have told you as soon as your heat broke, but I was…afraid."
"Afraid of what?" His voice was low and still confused.
"Afraid you’d be scared or disgusted by me. Or that it might change how you feel about me." I looked down at my cooling soup. "I've never told a human about this side of myself before. I didn't know what to expect."
When I looked up again, Tyler was studying me, searching for any sign I was pulling his leg.
Finally, he bit his lower lip and slowly nodded. "So, you're telling me animal shifters are real and that you're one of them? And specifically...a reindeer?"
I shrugged. "We're rare, but yes. There are a few herds scattered around the northern regions. I’ve been on my own since my parents passed, but most live in groups."
Tyler leaned back in his chair and ran his hands through his hair. "I've heard stories, of course. Urban legends about people who can change into animals. But I always thought they were just stories."
"Most humans do." I stood up slowly, careful not to spook him. "I can show you, if you want to see."
His eyes snapped to mine, and he grinned. "You’ll show me? Like, right now?"
"It's important that you know what you’re signing up for with me." I held out my hand for him to take. "I need you to know all of me."
He took my hand and stood up. "Okay. I wanna see."
Without another word, I walked to the cabin door and stepped outside onto the porch. The night air bit at my skin, but it didn’t bother me. I loved the cold.
Tyler stood in the doorway with his arms wrapped around himself against the chill.
I stepped out of my clothes and went deeper into the snow. "Don’t be scared, okay?"
He nodded, and I could see the excitement in his eyes. He wasn’t scared. He truly wanted to see me. All of me.
"Might want to close your mouth, little omega." I waggled my eyebrows and then winked. "You'll catch snowflakes."
He snapped his mouth shut and shook his head, blushing furiously. "Sorry, it's just...you're beautiful. Even in the freezing cold."
"Watch closely." I closed my eyes, took a deep breath, and called my beast.
The shift rippled through me like a wave. Completely painless, the magic lengthened bones, shifted muscles, and coated my skin in a thick fur. Once I felt the familiar weight of antlers on my skull, I turned to meet Tyler’s awed gaze.
I held perfectly still, giving Tyler time to fully process the moment.
For several heartbeats, he didn't move or speak. Then, his hand lowered, and he laughed to himself. "Holy shit," he whispered. "Holy fucking shit."
I stamped a hoof in the snow and tossed my head slightly, letting my hot breath cloud in the frigid air.
"You...you really are..." Tyler stepped out onto the snow. "Can I...touch you?" His voice was filled with wonder as he lifted his hand toward me.
I dipped my head in an obvious nod and stepped closer to make it easier for him.
He gently touched the fur on my neck, then ran his fingers up until he was at the base of my antlers. “They’re so soft." He leaned against my flank and wrapped his arms around me. "And warm."
I nudged him gently with my muzzle and made a happy sound.
"Thank you for showing me, Spike." He kissed my snout then stepped back. “You’re incredible.”
I huffed softly and nudged him with my nose, trying to convey without words that he needed to go back inside before he froze.
As if on cue, a violent shiver ran through him, and his teeth chattered audibly. "Okay, it’s a little chilly out here." He took a step back and rubbed his arms. "This is...a lot to process. But amazing. You're amazing."
Once he’d retreated a couple of steps toward the porch, I closed my eyes and shifted back, the transformation just as quick in reverse. A moment later, I stood naked in the snow as the man Tyler was used to seeing. “You okay?”
"That was so awesome!" Tyler was giddy. "Aren't you freezing?!"
Grinning with relief, I went straight toward him. "I’m never cold." I scooped him up in my arms and carried him inside. “Unlike you, little omega.”
I carried him straight to the hearth where the fire blazed and lowered us both to the thick rug spread before it.
I pulled off his wet socks first and rubbed his ice-cold feet between my hands.
"Your feet are like little blocks of ice.
" I brought one to my mouth and blew my warm breath across his toes.
Tyler shivered as his eyes darkened from his widening pupils. His sweet omega scent intensified with arousal. "I’ve got a few other places that could be blown…" His voice dropped to that husky register that made my cock twitch.
"You’re so smart…" I kissed his chilled skin as I removed every stitch of clothing from his perfect body. “And gorgeous.”
He gasped and arched into the contact, his hands tangling in my hair. "Alpha…"
"Look at you.” I ran my hands up his thighs, tickling him as I went. "My beautiful omega."
"Still can't believe you're an actual reindeer." He trailed a finger along my chest, inching down to my thickening cock. “A big, strong, alpha reindeer.”
I chuckled and rolled over so I was on top of him. "You know, our kids will probably be shifters too. Are you okay with that?"
“Our kids?” His eyes got glassy for a moment before he nodded. “Yeah, that would be really cool.”
Relief and desire crashed through me in equal measure. I captured his mouth in a searing kiss and poured all my emotion into it.
His lips parted for me instantly, his tongue meeting mine in a frantic dance. "Need you, alpha." He moaned against my lips. "Inside me now..."
I reached between us to find him already slick and loose for me. "I’m always gonna give you what you need, omega."
I positioned myself between his legs with the head of my cock pressing against his opening.
The glow from the flames played across his features, highlighting the trust and affection in his eyes.
Slowly, I pushed inside him until we were both groaning from his tight heat enveloping me.
"You feel like home," I whispered into his ear.
"Like I wasn’t truly living until I met you. "
"Spike." Tyler moaned and rocked his hips up to meet me. "Move, please. Fast."
I began to thrust in and out of him, establishing a rhythm that had us both panting with sensation. The only sounds were our heavy breaths and the crackling fire beside us.
"Is there..." Tyler gasped between thrusts, "anything else...I should know about you?"
I smiled down at him, slowing my movements to a grinding pace that made him whimper. "Just that I think I love you."
His eyes widened, and then a smile bloomed across his face. "I think I love you too," he whispered. "I know it's fast, but—"
"It's not fast." I pressed my forehead to his and slowed down my hips, drawing out the moment a bit longer. "Not for fated mates. This is exactly how it should be."
“Mm…” His eyes closed, and he gave himself into the sensations. “It’s so good.”
I pressed a kiss to his mouth as my hips picked up speed again.
Maybe he could hold off for a while longer, but I sure as hell couldn’t.
I was ready to coat his insides with my seed as I rode out my climax.
“That’s right, baby,” I growled against his ear, feeling the base of my cock beginning to swell.
"Gonna fill you up with my knot and make you mine all over again. "
"Yes," Tyler cried out, with his back arching off the rug. "Want your knot, alpha. Want it so bad."
With a final thrust, I buried myself to the hilt, my knot swelling inside him, connecting us together.
My fist closed around Tyler’s cock, and he came with a shout, painting his stomach with creamy stripes. The clenching of his body around my knot triggered my orgasm to last longer than ever before, and I roared as I filled him, fully claiming my mate now that I wasn’t hiding anything from him.
We lay panting together afterward with my weight braced on my forearms to avoid crushing him, while our bodies were still joined by my knot. I peppered his face with kisses because I just wanted more contact.
"So." Tyler yawned, and a mischievous smile played on his lips. "Do you pull Santa's sleigh in your spare time?"
I shook my head and nipped playfully at his earlobe. "My grandpa did, but no, I can’t fly."
His eyes widened. "Seriously? Reindeers fly?"
"Not exactly." I chuckled. "But we can jump really far distances, especially in deep snow. So, if you were watching from a distance, it might look like flying."
"That's amazing." His fingers traced patterns on my chest, and I was getting drowsy too. "I have so many questions."
"And I'll answer every one of them." My knot went down enough that I slipped out of him, so I rolled to my side and held him against me. "We have plenty of time to learn every little thing about each other."
“Yeah.” He yawned again and sighed. “Okay, then I’m gonna rest my eyes for a few minutes.”
“You go ahead, sweetheart. I’ll be right here when you wake up.” We lay together on the rug for a while as Tyler napped.
I reached for my carving knife and a small block of wood I kept near the hearth and began to mess around. With practiced movements, I shaped it into the one thing I wanted Tyler to have close to him at all times. Me.
"What're you making?" Tyler mumbled as he shifted his position against me.
"A little something." I kissed the top of his head. "Go back to sleep."
He hummed contentedly and snuggled closer. A few seconds later, his breathing evened out again.
I continued carving a reindeer that was small enough to fit in the palm of my hand. When I finished, I held it up to the firelight and examined my work with a critical eye.
It was good. Simple but elegant.
An ornament to remind us of our first Christmas together.
"Merry Christmas, my sweet omega," I whispered to his sleeping head. “You’ll never know how precious a gift you are to me.”