Chapter 4 Marcus #2
As they crossed the sidewalk, Warren slid on a patch of ice. He let out a cry of surprise, his foot flying back as his body careened forward, his arms windmilling.
Marcus grabbed the back of his jacket and prevented him from crashing to the ground.
“Easy there,” he said with a laugh. He held Warren up and let him find his footing before letting go of his jacket. “Are you okay?”
“I’m fine,” Warren said, flushed and breathless. “I slipped.”
He was adorable. Marcus tousled his hair and put his hand back on his neck, moving him over to the safety of his waiting car.
He wanted to see him spread open and stuffed full of cock in the worst way.
First, he’d open him up – Marcus loved rimming and stretching a tight little hole open with his fingers – and then when he was just open enough, Marcus would line up his cock, place a firm hand on his back, and hold him down and fuck him properly.
By the end of the night, Warren would be drenched in Marcus’s sweat, spit, and come, and the scent of the interloping wolf would be just an unpleasant memory.
Marcus’s balls twitched in anticipation.
A short drive later, Warren sending him shy little glances the whole way, they reached the hotel. They handed the car over to the valet and made their way into the lobby.
Marcus was tempted to skip dinner and drinks entirely and take Warren right up to his room, but he reined in his temptation. Marcus and his wolf might be able to tell that Warren was meant to be theirs, but Warren didn’t have the benefit of a werewolf nose to tell him the same.
Marcus had to seduce him – had to show him that they belonged together – and he intended to be both thorough and convincing.
Kidnapping him would be an absolute last resort.
“Are you hungry?” Marcus asked as he wrapped his arm over the back of Warren’s shoulders and pulled him close.
“A little,” Warren said.
They walked through the lobby and into the bar. The hostess recognized Marcus and greeted him by name, taking their coats and guiding them to a private little table in the back.
The bar was dimly lit, with a vintage, smoking room aesthetic, the interior featuring dark wooden furniture with leather padding.
They took their seats and Marcus rolled up the sleeves of his white dress shirt. He smirked at the way Warren stared at his forearms.
Warren seemed to give himself a little shake, tearing his gaze away from Marcus’s arms and licking his lips. “I tried to look you up on the internet,” he said.
Marcus knew that he wouldn’t have found anything beyond his name and photo on the company page board of directors. “I’m not very searchable,” he said. Then he grinned and decided to be honest. “I looked you up too.”
Warren’s eyes widened, and Marcus wondered if he was worried about him finding something.
“You did?”
Marcus had ordered a full background check.
He’d gotten the preliminary results in time for their date – he knew that Warren and his sister were orphans, and that Warren was somehow managing to put them both through college and grad school – but the more in-depth analysis would come within the next few days.
Marcus was extremely curious about what Warren was doing that let him pay for college without any debt. Even with need-based aid and scholarships, that was impressive.
“You look worried.”
Warren swallowed and fiddled with the menu. He shot Marcus a glance out of the corner of his eye. "I’m not. I'm just a little surprised that you bothered."
Marcus laughed and reached over. He tugged Warren back under his arm and held him tight against his side. He bent his neck and nuzzled into his hair, ignoring the discordant notes of the other alpha and whatever product Warren used to make his hair look so artfully messy.
“You shouldn’t be. I want to know everything about you.”
Warren was blushing even harder than before. His shoulders had gone tense when Marcus pushed his nose into his hair. “I’m not that interesting.”
Marcus decided to ease up a little. He was coming on way too strong – he knew that his behavior was off by human standards – but it was hard to rein himself in when all he wanted to do was open his jaws wide and devour the boy whole.
Marcus scooted away, putting a few inches of space between them as he grabbed a menu. “I disagree.”
Warren’s shoulders relaxed, just a smidge, but he also looked disappointed at the loss of contact.
Marcus suppressed a wolfish grin. Warren might be nervous, but it was clear that he was just as attracted to Marcus as Marcus was to him.
Warren put down his menu. “Can I ask a question?”
His gaze was somewhere at the level of Marcus’s chest, and Marcus couldn’t help but flex his pecs a little.
“Of course.”
Warren fidgeted with his menu. “I was just wondering if the reason you asked me out was that I smell good?”
Marcus froze. Of all the questions Warren could have asked, that was the last one he would have expected.
“Why do you ask that?”
Humans didn’t jump to the conclusion that they smelled good – though saying that Warren smelled good was a little like saying that the sun was hot.
It wasn’t part of how humans operated. Sure, humans were susceptible to pheromones, and of course, scent mattered to them, but not like it did to werewolves.
The interloper who had gotten his scent all over Warren must have said something.
“No reason,” Warren said, shrugging.
“Did the werewolf you spent time with earlier today tell you something about your scent?”
Marcus carefully kept any hint of censure or displeasure out of his voice.
Warren’s eyes widened, and the blush on his cheeks turned beet red. He cleared his throat and nodded. “He was talking about how werewolves know when they’re supposed to be with someone. You kind of came out of nowhere. I was wondering if that was why you asked me out?”
Warren bit his bottom lip as he waited for an answer, his gaze moving up to the level of Marcus’s chin.
Marcus placed his hand on the back of Warren’s neck, taking a firm grip, and relished the feeling of Warren tensing up and then immediately relaxing into his grip.
“Your friend is right, though maybe a little superstitious. I can tell from the way that you smell that we’re compatible, and I’d like to find out if that’s something we can build on.
Obviously, we need to get to know each other, and the fact that we’re compatible doesn’t mean that we’ll magically work out.
” Marcus stroked his thumb over the rapid beat of Warren’s pulse.
He was lying through his teeth, not wanting to scare the boy off.
He’d never believed in fated mates, but the second he’d caught Warren’s scent, it had made him a believer.
“But yes. You smell really, really good, and that’s why I wanted to go on a date with you. ”
Warren took a gulping breath before he replied. “Okay, I was just wondering. You smell pretty good, too.” He looked away. “Not that it’s the same thing. I know I don’t have the sense of smell of a werewolf, but-”
Marcus cut off the increasingly anxious blabbering by clamping his hand down over Warren’s mouth.
Warren’s eyes widened, his expression shocked, and Marcus took a second to admire the sight of his hand over Warren’s face.
Marcus was a large man, even for a werewolf, and the size of his hands reflected that.
His palm covered Warren from the top of his nose and down to his chin, and his grip easily reached to the back of his ears.
“Thank you. I’m glad you like the way I smell.”
Releasing Warren from his grip, Marcus smirked at the lingering expression of shock on the cute little human’s face. He didn’t look displeased, and judging by the way he reached up to touch his lips, he hadn’t minded the rough treatment.
That was good. Marcus could make an effort to be gentle when it was needed, but it didn’t come naturally to him. It would have been disappointing if Warren had reacted negatively to these early forays into manhandling.
“Let’s order drinks,” Marcus said, cutting the lingering tension and resetting the mood.
Warren nodded, looking relieved to be moving on from talking about his scent.
Marcus gestured for the waitress who had been waiting off to the side to come to the table.
Warren, noticing that they had the attention of a third party, startled and shot Marcus a glare.
After the waitress left with their order, Warren turned to Marcus. “Was she watching us?” he hissed.
He looked around, as though checking for people spying on them. He looked like a disgruntled squirrel.
It was adorable.
“Don’t worry. It’s not like I had you under the table sucking my cock and humping my leg.” Marcus laughed. “She was just being polite and waiting for us to finish our conversation.”
Warren blinked, and Marcus smirked at the sudden look of pure want on his face.
“You like the sound of that, huh?”
Warren shuddered and took a deep breath, ducking his chin and shaking his head.
“No, I just-”
“It’s fine. Good, even.” Marcus cut him off. It was getting more and more difficult to rein himself in. Knowing that he should pull back, Marcus instead pushed forward. “You said that you like the way I smell?”
Warren nodded, his expression guarded and careful, but also desperately aroused.
“I did.”
Marcus gripped his cock through his suit, kneading the bulge of his shaft as he spread his thighs open and leaned back. Pre-come was leaking from his cock like a faucet, the dark color of his suit hiding the growing wet spot on his leg.
“My scent is stronger down here.”
Warren furrowed his brow in confusion, his gaze moving briefly down to Marcus’s hand on his crotch before lifting determinedly up above the line of his chest.
“Okay…?”
“I want you to put your face in my lap and smell my cock,” Marcus said, loving the look of outraged embarrassment on Warren’s face.
“I’m not-”
“You want to.” Marcus cut him off, grinning. It was obvious that Warren was only objecting because he thought that he should.