Chapter 16
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
“Was that… what you had in mind… when you mentioned marking me?”
Emmett bit back another groan at Jonah’s innocent question.
Technically, sex was the best way to mark a partner, but seeing Jonah covered in his release was proving to be a bit much for him.
He wanted to go again, to actually get inside the gorgeous man, and he needed to settle down.
He was vaguely aware they were too exposed, and Emmett had gotten a little loud there in the end. He didn't want them to get caught.
“Yep. That should work,” Emmett panted.
Jonah, his cheeks still flushed and his hair all mussed up, looked adorably wrecked, and Emmett’s tail started to whap against the seat before he could stop it. He saw Jonah smirk, and he quickly set to distracting him, licking his lips until Jonah opened up with a groan and let him inside.
When they broke apart again, Jonah looked down at his cum-covered body, then back up at Emmett, barely masking a grimace. “Am I not allowed to clean up?”
Snorting, Emmett sat back, finally extricating himself from Jonah’s arms. If he didn’t put some space between them, he was going to maul the man again, and he promised Jonah would get home on time.
“You can clean up. Even if you wash it off, the scent marker is still on your skin. And when you stop smelling like me, I’ll just fix it,” he winked.
Jonah blushed, but his grin said he wasn’t unhappy with the plan. “I’ll make sure to park my truck farther from the entrance of the parking lot. You know… Just in case.”
Emmett was once again glad he was sitting on his tail because he was sure it’d be wagging wildly at the seductive teasing. Stupid appendage was bent on embarrassing him.
He gave Jonah a hand cleaning up with some helpful wipes tucked under the passenger seat that Jonah used sometimes to clean up after farm work.
It explained why his truck wasn’t a complete mess if he was fastidious enough to clean up before getting inside.
And, because he couldn’t help himself, once Jonah’s skin was clean, Emmett leaned in and licked up his neck, giving him a good sniff just to be certain.
“Yep. You smell like mine,” he growled.
Jonah let out a little moan, fingers digging into the fur on his chest, but before they could start anything else, the alarm he’d set on his phone went off, reminding him that Jonah needed to head home.
Jonah’s sigh said he was about as happy about it as Emmett was.
He seriously needed to figure out a way to convince the man to stay the night at his place sometime soon.
Once was probably enough to make Jonah smell like him, but if they really wanted to be thorough about it, all night long would be a lot better to get the job done.
Jonah was floating the entire drive home.
It didn’t help that Emmett called him to keep him company during the drive, telling Jonah stories about his pack and the kinds of shenanigans they got up to.
They sounded a lot like Taron, and Jonah got the feeling it would be both chaotic and hilarious if Taron was invited to play.
He wondered if he should suggest it, but selfishly kept it to himself.
He wanted to meet the pack Emmett gushed so much about before inviting anyone else over.
He pulled into the driveway and parked in front of the garage, considering his day.
It hadn’t started off great with the interaction with the douchewolf, but that incident turned out to just be a blip in an otherwise amazing day.
He got assigned a job he was excited about, got to go on a date with Emmett, and had the most amazing sex of his life all in the span of a few hours.
He was actually glad for the first time that his dad demanded he go out and get a job. Being isolated out here was stifling compared to how he felt at Spellbound and with Emmett.
He hung up with Emmett after a sweet good night, and stared at his phone for a while, smiling at the cheesy jokes Emmett had sent him throughout the day. The dad jokes were awful, but they made Jonah laugh, which was probably Emmett’s intention.
His truck door wrenched open, making Jonah yelp and drop his phone. It disappeared in the passenger foot well under the seat, which was annoying, as was his brother’s scowling presence.
“Why are you home so late?” James demanded.
Jonah rolled his eyes, crossing his arms over his chest. He couldn’t go anywhere with James blocking the way, and he didn’t trust his older brother not to hurt him for trying. It didn’t matter that they were both adults now, James would still throw hands if Jonah pissed him off too much.
“I went out for a drink with a coworker. I’m not that late, it’s barely ten.”
James leaned into the truck, his lip lifted into a sneer, but he cut himself off before he could say anything, his nose wrinkling as he jerked back. “Why does your truck smell like sex?”
Jonah’s spine stiffened, and it took work not to let the panic show on his face. He hadn’t thought anyone would get anywhere near his truck, or he would’ve driven with the windows down to expel the scent. Because yeah, it sort of smelled like sex in his truck.
James’s eyes narrowed on Jonah. “Who were you fucking? Or should I say, who was fucking you?”
In an attempt to distract from the truth, Jonah blurted out, “Why do you want to know? Do you seriously want to know about my sex life? You really want to know about the guy who had his dick–”
“Ugh, shut the fuck up,” James growled, shoving away from the truck, exactly like Jonah had hoped.
James had always thought Jonah’s preferences were gross.
He didn’t usually say anything, he didn’t care enough to bother, but if Jonah said too much, James would make a face and back away from him.
Sometimes he’d pretend to retch too, just to add to the effect.
It never fazed Jonah, he didn’t care about his brother’s opinion of his sex life, but it was an ace up his sleeve he wasn’t ashamed to use while James was asking too many questions.
Glaring at him from a respectable distance away, James snapped, “You’re sick.”
“Says the guy grilling his little brother about his sex life,” Jonah shot back.
That pissed him off enough that James stormed off.
When the front door slammed, Jonah let out a breath of relief, slumping a little in his seat.
That was too damn close. He never checked the back seat to see if there was any hint of who he’d been with, and he’d been texting Emmett werewolf jokes when James opened the door.
He needed to be more careful. He wasn’t going to lose everything he’d gained just because he was being careless.
After digging around under the passenger seat to find his phone, he headed inside, going straight to his room to change.
He needed to shower, but based on the living room light being off, he got the feeling his parents were already in bed and turning the shower on would wake them up.
He’d be surprised if they hadn’t heard him come in.
Sure enough, his dad appeared in his doorway just as he was tossing his dirty clothes into the hamper. He looked pissed, and Jonah braced himself for whatever was coming his way.
“Where were you tonight?” Dad growled.
“A coworker invited me out for a drink after work,” Jonah lied. It wasn’t entirely a lie, but it wasn’t the whole truth either. That, he’d take with him to the grave.
Dad didn’t seem interested in arguing with him about it like James had been.
He grunted in annoyance, jabbing a pudgy finger at the clock on Jonah’s nightstand.
“It’s fuckin’ late. Next time you come home this late, you sleep on the porch.
You ain’t wakin’ up your mother just because you care so little about your family that you don't bother comin’ home at a decent hour. Understood?”
“Understood,” Jonah gritted out. He wanted to point out that James came home at all hours and never got this lecture, even when he was stumbling drunk and yelling at his friends who’d dropped him off, waking the whole house. It didn't matter. James could do no wrong. Jonah was the problem.
With another grunt, his dad stormed off, closing his bedroom door with a loud click.
Jonah lunged forward, locking his door and leaning against it.
The longer he spent at Spellbound, around people who actually cared about him and his happiness, the harder it was to come back to this house.
He was starting to think it wouldn’t be that bad if his family never spoke to him again.
It still made his chest hurt to think about, but he planned on setting aside as much of his paycheck as he could after rent for a place of his own.
Maybe after a little time apart, they’d remember they cared about him once and miss him.
He dropped onto his bed with a sigh, throwing his arm over his eyes.
He wished things were different. That his family didn’t despise him just because he didn’t think the same way they did.
A stupid part of him still wished they’d accept him.
That maybe if he made money and contributed, they’d at least pretend they didn’t despise him.
But was that ever really going to happen?
Or was he just deluding himself and dragging out his own misery?
Tossing and turning all night didn’t give him any answers.
He got up early to help with farm chores like he did every day, then showered and left for Spellbound before his brother got up and started asking more questions.
No one noticed him or said anything, even when his dad passed him on his way out to do some of the bigger tasks like he did every morning.
Jonah didn’t get any thanks for his efforts.
Being invisible was the most he could hope for. And after feeling so seen with Emmett, it was a hard pill to swallow.
Pulling into the nearly empty parking garage, he found a spot near the back and parked, but didn’t immediately get out.
He stared at the wall in front of him, his mind replaying the way his dad glared at him, the way his brother looked down at him.
His mom ignored him, and whenever his sister came to visit, she did the same.
Why was he fighting so hard for their approval when they clearly couldn’t stand him?
A gentle knock on his window, so different from the way James had confronted him the night before, made Jonah jump.
He spun in his seat, letting out a breath of relief to see Emmett standing there, head cocked curiously and a sheepish grin on his face.
When Jonah opened his door, Emmett said, “Sorry. You looked so lost in thought, you didn’t notice me approach. Everything okay?”
It was a question he hadn’t heard from his own family in years, and it made tears prick the backs of Jonah’s eyes.
He refused to let them fall, but when he slid out of the truck and Emmett opened his arms for a hug, Jonah didn’t fight it.
He sank into the embrace, letting out a slow breath as the tension in his shoulders finally relaxed and he breathed a little easier.
“Yeah. I’m good,” he finally answered. And he was. Yeah, his life wasn’t perfect, and he had a lot to think about, but right in that moment, he was good where he was.