Chapter 44 Vann
VANN
Orion’s been gone for two hours now, and I’m losing my shit. I get why Tanner suggested this, but I hate waiting my turn. We should all be with her right now, showering her with affection and praise and more orgasms than she can stand.
The movie isn’t holding my attention anymore.
After Rhodes left, it just fizzled out. Like all the tension was actually coming from him rather than the actors on the screen.
I felt bad for making him uncomfortable, but there was something about the way he squirmed that felt different from the innocent indifference I normally sense from him when it comes to sex.
I’m not sure I could name what it was, though.
His clean, fresh-ice scent was even sharper than normal. Almost like he was turned on. But it couldn’t have been that, right?
He told us about being demisexual when he joined the pack. It wasn’t something I knew anything about—I’m still not sure I fully understand it—but I didn’t care how he identified. I just knew he was ours.
None of us were really looking for romantic relationships at the time.
I was hung up on Raven. Tanner and Orion were happy with each other.
Rhodes seemed like a great fit. Somehow we knew he was pack when we scented him, and he was a curler, which seemed perfect.
It didn’t matter that he just wanted to be platonic.
Packs can form around lots of different relationships.
But there’ve been a few moments in the past year when I’ve wondered if maybe Rhodes wants more. When I’ve wondered if I might, too.
The beta is hot as hell. With his tan skin, muscular form, his luscious fucking man-bun—he’s a walking wet dream.
So, of course, when he explained he needed a deep connection to feel sexual attraction, I hoped maybe one day he’d want something more.
But at the time, my dick was being a fucker, dead set on my omega, and wouldn’t work for anyone but Raven. So it wasn’t really an issue.
But tonight, during the opening of this movie, I was rock hard. It was the first time I’ve been hard while thinking about anything other than Raven since high school graduation. I wasn’t sure what to make of it.
Until Rhodes left. And I was instantly flaccid again.
It was definitely him. Not the actors on the screen or the situation. It was all him.
Rhodes doesn’t stir my blood in the same way that Raven does, but he does warm something in my chest. He’s comfort and laughter, safety at the same time as fresh adventure. His scent makes me feel alive in ways nothing else does. Not better or worse than Raven, just different.
Needing to burn off some energy, I do squats while half watching the screen. It’s dark out, the village quiet now that quiet hours are in effect.
My head swirls with thoughts of Raven and Rhodes. Man, even their names sound nice together. They would look so good together, too. His darker skin tone with her pale ivory.
When the hell is Orion gonna get back so I can hear about his date?
Fuck this. I’m going to sleep. Time will go faster that way, and I won’t be able to keep ruminating on everything.
I don’t bother turning off the TV before stalking down the hall and opening the door to the bedroom I share with Rhodes. The light’s still on.
There’s a deep, breathy yelp from the direction of Rhodes’ bed. He scrambles with the comforter, pulling it up, but not before I glimpse his boxers pulled halfway down and his long cock standing erect. His eyes are wide as they meet mine.
“Vann,” he breathes out.
Has my name always sounded so good in his deep baritone?
“Don’t mind me.” I smirk and lean against the doorframe.
He stares back like a scared animal caught in a trap. I should probably do something to set him at ease, pretend like this didn’t happen. But I’m too on edge. I want to push him.
“Tell me what you were thinking about, and I’ll leave. Maybe.” I wink at him.
He bites his lower lip, staring at me like he can’t decide. Then he flings an arm over his eyes and whispers something I can’t hear.
“What was that?” I don’t move closer.
He whispers again, only marginally louder, but the single word rings in my ears like a bell.
“Come again? I didn’t quite catch that.”
“You, okay?” Rhodes says in a disgruntled tone, dropping his arm so he can look at me. “I was thinking about you. Now will you drop it?”
A slow smile splits my lips. Rhodes was thinking about me. My cock thickens. It isn’t an unwelcome development, and now that I know the beta wants me back, I need to see if he’ll let me take it further.
I slowly close the door and lean back against it, keeping eye contact with Rhodes. “Don’t let me stop you.”
“With you… but…” His flustered expression just turns me on even more.
“There’s no pressure here, Rhodes,” I say, more gently. “But I love watching, and I’d really like to see what you look like when you come. Will you let me?”
Somewhere in the building a door slams. Muddled voices sound through the wall, someone defying the quiet hours.
Rhodes stares at me. He doesn’t answer my question, but he slowly kicks the comforter off without breaking eye contact.There’s an eagerness to each movement, but his hands tremble. The blanket falls to the floor silently. Neither of us break the quiet of the room.
With one hand covering his cock, he pushes his boxers further down his toned legs. His subtle icy scent intensifies, edged with a nervousness that appeals to me more than it should.
“You’re sure?” I ask.
“Um…” The hand he’d spread over his cock to hide himself pulls back, revealing his full length. “I think… uh… I might like being watched.” The words come out quiet, hesitant, like he’s afraid to admit them. Or maybe like he’s surprising himself.
“Do you think you’d like a little voyeurism, too?”
His cock kicks against his chiseled abs. He hesitates, eyes flicking down, then back up as he slowly nods, teeth scraping over his bottom lip. “I kinda watched you before,” he admits, surprising me even more.
“When?”
“In the locker room showers.”
Ah, I thought I heard someone. Guess I was right.
Heart pounding, I unzip my jeans, pulling my cock out through the slit in my boxers without dropping my pants. I’m shockingly hard already. This is new territory for us both. I haven’t been aroused when thinking about anyone but Raven since I was eighteen. But right now, all I see is Rhodes.
I give myself a lazy stroke, and he copies the action. Neither of us look away.
The room is silent except for our heavy breaths. The tight muscles of his stomach flex, and I take one step closer before stopping, holding myself back. He’s not ready for more. Maybe I’m not either.
His gaze skims away from my face, down my body to land on my tight fist.
The heater kicks on, a steady hum serving as a backdrop for our panting.
The veins on Rhodes’ forearm stand out as he grips his cock tighter, pre-cum dribbling from his tip, coating his hand as he slides it over his head and down to his base.
Fuck, that’s hot. My normally active mind is quiet, focused only on the feel of my hand gliding up and down my length, the way his chest rises and falls, the fearfully hungry look in his eyes.
The moment feels heavy with anticipation.
“Are you gonna come for me, beta?” I say, gravelly and rough.
His Adam’s apple bobs as he swallows. “I didn’t expect… I’m not sure I…”
In two strides, I’m standing beside the bunk bed. Leaning in, I rest my forearm against the upper bunk while my other hand works faster over my length. “I know. I didn’t either. It doesn’t need to mean anything.”
Even as I say it, I know it’s a lie. This means something. I want this. I want more than this. My mind conjures images of Rhodes and me with Raven. My cock in his ass as he fucks our girl. Her between us. His lips around me as she pegs him from behind—hmmm, I wonder, would they be into that?
My cock releases a stream of pre-cum that drips onto Rhodes' sheets. He watches it, licking his lips. The tension between us is so thick you could cut it with a knife. Our eyes meet.
“I… I want it to mean something,” Rhodes gasps just as he throws his head back and ropes of cum spurt over his toned stomach.
With one hand still gripping the top bunk, I bend over and kiss him before he can catch his breath, adding my cum to his as I find my release, hard and fast.
We’re still panting when we look at each other again.
Rhodes gives me a nervous smile, and then he laughs. The sound, sweet and giddy.
I brush a lock of messy hair out of his face. “I don’t think there was anything funny about that.”
“It’s just…” He’s laughing so hard now he can’t finish the sentence. His hand is still around his cock, stomach still coated in the mix of our cum. I draw back, but he reaches for me, stopping me, taking a big breath to calm himself down. “I’m just so surprised. And… happy.”
I sit down on the edge of the bed and trail a finger slowly through the mess on his abs, painting the dips and valleys of his six pack. “But… it feels right, doesn’t it? You’re pack, and, well, you know.”
He shakes his head, brows pinching together. “I don’t know.”
“This is just… an extension of what we already have.” I shrug, not sure how to explain it better. “Plus, we’re about to get our omega, and we’re gonna do a lot more than this around each other when we help her through her heats.”
Something shutters in his gaze. He looks away, staring at the blank wall. “We should go to sleep.”
“Yeah, okay. Let me just…” I pull my shirt off and use it to wipe the cum from his stomach, the muscles flexing under my touch. I expect him to get up and maybe go take a shower, but he just gives me a weak smile, says goodnight, and rolls over.
The fact that he’s going to bed marked by me feels significant in a way I’m not sure I’m ready to examine.
“Night,” I whisper, before climbing up onto the top bunk and staring at the ceiling. It takes me a while to get to sleep, but when I do, I dream of more than just Raven this time.