10. Isaac
ISAAC
Outside Griffin's bar, the town was quiet, the streets nearly empty.
The cold hit me immediately. Our breaths curled in pale clouds beneath the streetlights as the door shut behind us, muting the sound of laughter and music inside.
Beside me, Nico shoved his hands into the pockets of his jacket and looked up at the sky.
"I think I lost track of time,” Nico commented.
"You were explaining Shadowfall lore to Griffin for forty minutes,” I reminded him.
His head snapped toward me. "It was relevant."
I laughed. Nico looked absurdly pleased with himself.
"See? You're getting better at this whole fun thing."
"I've always been fun,” I informed him.
He snorted. "Sure, grandpa."
“Excuse me, did you just call me grandpa?" I demanded.
"You go to bed at ten."
"Because I enjoy sleeping,” I told him.
Nico bumped his shoulder lightly against mine as we walked toward my truck. It felt familiar and dangerously easy, and that was the problem with Nico.
Somehow he'd slipped past every defense I'd spent years building without me even noticing it happening.
Between breakfast conversations and security briefings, coffee deliveries and stolen kisses, Nico looked at me like I was something worth looking at.
I reached for the passenger door and pulled it open for him.
"Thank you.”
The streetlight caught his face as he looked up at me.
His cheeks were pink from the cold, and his hair was slightly windswept, and his eyes were bright from laughter and beer and whatever this thing growing between us had become. He looked adorable.
Before I could think better of it, I leaned down and kissed him. His surprised laugh brushed against my mouth as I pulled back.
"What was that for?" Nico asked.
I shrugged. Did I really have to explain? “You looked cute."
"That's your reason?"
"Seemed sufficient,” I shrugged.
Nico laughed again, and the sound settled somewhere deep inside my chest. I closed the distance between us and caught him by the waist.
The kiss was hungry and warm. The cold night and parking lot disappeared.
There was only Nico's hands gripping my jacket and the way he leaned into me, as though he'd wanted this just as much as I had.
When I finally pulled back, we were still standing close, barely an inch between us.
"I don't want this night to end.” The words escaped before I could stop them.
"I don't either."
His answer made my pulse race, and I couldn’t help but brush my fingers against his cheek.
"Then come back with me,” I said firmly.
His eyes widened slightly. "To your place? What about Logan?"
I pulled out my phone and opened the message that had come through half an hour ago.
Vic: Script reading still not done.
I turned the screen toward him.
"We've got the cabin to ourselves,” I told him.
Nico looked at the message, then back at me. His smile spread slowly. "Okay then."
Two words, enough to make my wolf practically preen. The drive back to the compound felt strangely suspended outside of time. Music played quietly through the speakers.
Every glance at a red light felt charged. The accidental brush of hands across the center console also felt intentional. The cabin lights glowed softly through the trees as we pulled up outside.
For a moment neither of us moved, but finally Nico reached for the door. I caught his wrist gently. He looked over, and I couldn’t help it. I kissed him again. It was becoming a habit, one I had no intention of stopping.
We barely made it inside without losing our balance, the kiss having stolen both our ability to walk in straight lines.
His laugh disappeared into another kiss. My hands settled at his waist, and his fingers tangled in my hair. The world narrowed to just the two of us.
For a moment, we didn’t have to worry about stalkers, security reports or responsibilities.
We stumbled down the hallway in stages. Nico and I stopped, then kissed, then stopped again. We laughed when one of us nearly walked into a wall. I stopped us in time.
“Nice bodyguard reflexes," Nico informed me.
“I could’ve avoided it normally, but I was distracted."
"By what?"
I looked at him, and he immediately turned pink. Nico really didn’t know what kind of effect he had on me. I liked that.
My room finally appeared at the end of the hallway. I pushed the door open behind us, then shut it quietly. Once the door clicked shut, our eyes locked.
"Get on the bed.” The words came out rougher than I'd intended.
Nico's eyebrows lifted, then he rewarded me with a confident grin. The one that always made me question my decision making abilities.
"Bossy bodyguard,” he said.
He sat down exactly where I told him to, without argument or hesitation.
My wolf liked that far more than he should have. I crossed the room and sat beside him, then pressed my lips to his.
I took my time, savouring the heat and taste of him. My hand settled against his cheek, and his fingers curled around my wrist.
His forehead rested briefly against mine when we finally pulled apart.
"You should kiss me like that more often,” he murmured.
“Oh yeah? You liked that, huh?” I couldn’t help but sound cocky.
“I do,” he said.
“Then I will,” I said, brushing my thumb along his cheek.
I trailed my fingers down his chest, then moved to the hem of his shirt.
Nico raised his arms, letting me peel it off. We proceeded to undress each other and finally, there was no barrier of clothing between us. Nico lay on his back.
“You’re so gorgeous,” I murmured, looking him up and down.
Nico flushed. “Come over here.”
I lowered my body to his, then left a trail of kisses starting with his mouth, then lower I went, to his neck, his chest. I took his nipples into my mouth and sucked until he moaned.
I travelled down his ribs, his stomach, and finally reached his member. After pressing a kiss to his tip, I became aware of my own shaft, hardening with need.
“Need you in me,” Nico murmured.
I pressed a kiss to the soft inside of his thigh.
“On your knees.”
I helped Nico to all fours, then fumbled for my pants. After pulling out the lube, I gathered some in my fingers, then started widening Nico for access. I slid one, then two digits in him.
Deeming him ready, I replaced my digits with my member. Gripping his hips, I entered him slowly and carefully. Nico moaned, gripping the sheets in front of him.
Then finally, I was balls deep inside him. I grunted, then began pumping in and out of him with sure and steady strokes.
“Isaac, faster,” Nico murmured.
I complied and sped up. With each entry, I went deeper and soon enough, our bodies were both drenched in sweat and need. At my next push, Nico arched his back and cried out.
I knew I found his sweet spot, and I now aimed for it repeatedly. Soon, my balls tightened against my body and I knew I wouldn’t last long. Several thrusts later, Nico came, screaming out my name.
It sounded like music to my ears, and triggered my own climax. The room fell away from my line of sight as my mind flew, and I emptied my need inside Nico.
He groaned, collapsing on the bed. I withdrew from him slowly, then I made a quick trip to the bathroom. After grabbing towels, I cleaned us both up. With that task done, I slid next to him.
Nico automatically cuddled close and I wrapped my arm possessively around his shoulders. He fitted perfectly against me, like a missing puzzle piece.
For a while we simply existed there together, talking quietly and trading stories.
He looked natural there, with his head resting against my chest. My fingers traced absent patterns against his shoulder. For the first time in years, my wolf felt completely still and content.
I pressed a kiss against the side of Nico's neck.
My wolf surged forward instantly. Mine, the thought hit with startling certainty. A strong emotion that didn’t feel like simple desire or attraction but something much older and primal. Mate.
Claim him. Mark him. Keep him. My wolf pressed insistently against the inside of my skin. The urge was startlingly powerful.
For one dangerous second, I understood exactly how wolves lost themselves to instinct. Then reason returned. Not yet, I told my wolf. Nico trusted me, and I wouldn't betray that trust.
If I marked him, everything would change and not just for us, but for everyone. There would be no taking it back, and no pretending it hadn't happened.
I would deny him the choice and I couldn’t have that. As much as my wolf howled his disagreement, forever was a conversation for another day.
Not tonight, because tonight belonged to our bodies tangled around each other, the steady beat of Nico's heart beneath my hand. I pressed another kiss into his hair.
My wolf grumbled, and I ignored him. Nico shifted slightly against me. He was half asleep already.
"You know," he murmured.
"Hm?"
"Your brother is never going to let us live this down,” Nico said.
Despite myself, I smiled into the darkness. "Unfortunately, you're probably right."
Nico laughed softly. A few minutes later, his breathing evened out.
Sleep claimed him quickly, but I stayed awake a little longer. I watched the moonlight spill across the room, and listened to the quiet sounds of the cabin. Eventually, I closed my eyes and drifted into sleep.
When I woke up, Nico was still asleep with his head tucked beneath my chin, one arm draped across my stomach as though he'd claimed me in the night and intended to keep me. Not that I was complaining.
My wolf stretched contentedly beneath my skin. Mine, the thought came immediately. I pushed it aside for the moment. Nico shifted against me, making a soft sound in his sleep before burrowing closer.
Apparently my personal space no longer belonged to me. Again, I wasn’t complaining. I brushed a hand through his hair, and Nico wrinkled his nose.
"You know," he mumbled without opening his eyes, "if you keep doing that, I'm never getting out of bed."
"That sounds like a you problem."
"It sounds like an us problem."
I snorted. A knock interrupted whatever clever response I might have come up with.
"Isaac!"
Nico groaned, and I closed my eyes, willing whoever was outside to go away.
"Isaac, are you alive?" Logan’s voice sounded loud and shrill this morning. "More importantly, is Nico alive?"
Nico buried his face in my chest, and I noticed his cheeks had turned pink.
"Pretend we're dead,” Nico whispered.
Unfortunately, my brother had superb hearing at times like this.
“So you’re both alive,” Logan said.
I groaned, already picturing his smug expression. “Go away, we’ve just woke up and need more sleep!”
“Aw, don’t be like that, bro,” Logan called out.
I considered murder. When the door opened, I growled, realising I forgot to lock it the night before. Logan stepped inside and I yanked the comforter further up Nico’s body.
Nico kept his face against his chest. A grin slowly spread across Logan’s irritating face.
"Oh, this is incredible,” Logan said. “Hi Nico. Had a good night?”
“Yes, very much,” Nico mumbled.
“Leave. Don’t you have any notion of privacy?” I demanded.
"I leave you two alone for one evening,” Logan drawled, “And suddenly, Cooper's IT specialist is in your bed."
Nico made a strangled noise and attempted to disappear beneath the blankets entirely. Why did Logan have to bring up the fact that Nico was Cooper’s IT specialist?
"I hate him now,” Nico informed me.
“Understandable. I hate him too.”
Logan pointed accusingly. "You called me paranoid when I suggested you liked him."
I reached for a pillow. Logan wisely retreated toward the doorway. "Breakfast in twenty minutes, lovebirds. See you guys at the packhouse!”
The pillow missed him by inches. His laughter echoed down the hallway. Nico emerged from beneath the blankets.
“I didn’t realize Logan could be this childish,” Nico mumbled.
“Now you know,” I said with a grunt. “Let’s get dressed. I have a bad feeling about this.”
My instincts proved right. After a quick shower with Nico, who claimed it was to conserve water, we dressed and headed to the pack cafeteria. I immediately noticed the curious glances pointed our way.
I had forgotten one critical information. Packs were terrifyingly efficient information networks.
Tony frowned at me over his coffee cup, looking like he was ready to murder me for sleeping with Nico. Cooper looked suspiciously amused, and even Griffin who sat next to Cooper, winked at us.
I considered relocating to another continent. Honestly, I was glad to head to the filming site for work.
The day passed in a blur of filming, security briefings, and Logan making kiss noises whenever he thought I wasn't looking. By evening, filming finally wrapped.
Crew members drifted toward trailers and vehicles while the sun disappeared behind the trees. I spotted my truck immediately, as something sat beneath the windshield wiper.
I stopped walking immediately. My wolf rose beneath my skin, alert and suspicious. Beside me, Logan noticed my expression.
“Isaac? What’s wrong?” Logan asked.
I was already moving. I swiped the small white and neatly folded envelope which was held in place beneath the wiper blade.
“Isaac, wait,” Nico called out.
I didn’t have a good feeling about this. Somehow, this letter felt worse than the chocolates and I wasn’t sure why yet.
Logan stepped closer. "More fan mail?"
"Don't touch it,” Nico said, moving up beside me.
“It’s not addressed to Logan,” I said, flipping it to the front.
In fact, it didn’t seem particularly addressed to anyone. I sniffed at it, but only smelled printer ink and paper. Nico gave me a nod. I took a card out of the envelope carefully, and opened it.
To my hero. My beautiful, muscular and majestic Orc King.
I stared at the words and behind me, Logan frowned.
"Okay, that's new."
Inside the envelope sat a small orc pin from Shadowfall merchandise. “That pin’s limited edition, expensive,” Nico commented, sounding unhappy.
I looked at Logan. "This must be for you. At least, it doesn’t seem tampered with.”
Nico was strangely silent, and I was a little alarmed by how pale he suddenly looked.
"Nico? You good?” I asked. “Feeling unwell?”
I reached out, touching his forehead, but he grabbed my arm and shook his head.
"No, this isn’t good at all.”
"What do you mean?" I asked
"The stalker always refers to Logan as Ailwyn, the Elf King,” Nico explained.
Nico pulled out his phone, and showed Logan and I screenshots, forum posts, and comments. Nico was right.
The stalker always connected Logan to the Elf King. He looked back at the card in my hand.
"My hero, the orc king,” Nico murmured. “That’s Ailwyn’s nemesis.”
I frowned, processing what Nico had just said.
“So what does this mean?”
“I don’t know. But we’ll figure it out," Nico reassured me.