Chapter Twenty-Six
Twenty-Six
Atlas
I wiped the sweat off my brow and watched with rapt attention as my cum dribbled out of Tegan’s sweet cunt. It took everything in me not to drag a finger through it and push it back inside, but with the current state of my claws, there was no way they’d be going inside of her pussy anytime soon.
“Let me clean you up, baby,” I said before clambering off the bed.
Her eyes were hooded—likely from repeated orgasms—and she didn’t say anything. She simply bobbed her head in agreement.
I grabbed an empty cup from my nightstand and padded over to the bathroom. Tegan could probably use some water after our little marathon. As I filled up the cup, I thought about how sore she was going to be tomorrow. I should probably get her some pain relievers, too.
Fuck.
She’d felt so tight on my cock that I thought I was going to split her in two. There was no way that she’d be able to take my knot anytime soon.
That didn’t matter to me, though.
For me, sex was something meaningful. I couldn’t just have random hookups like Fallon did. No judgment, but I had to have a connection.
And I had that with Tegan.
I’d had that since the moment we met.
My body—specifically my freaking tail—had told me as much.
Speaking of my tail, the fucking thing wagged behind me as I snatched a washcloth from the linen closet and wet it under the tap.
I draped the damp cloth over my arm and popped two nonsteroidal anti-inflammatories into my hand before heading back to the bedroom with the water in my free hand.
“I come bearing gifts. Hold out your hand.” Tegan cupped her hand, and I dropped the medication into her palm. “Pain meds. I’m worried tonight was too much for you.”
“Thank you. You’re so sweet.” She smiled and took the cup of water, knocking back the pills and taking a long drink.
“I told you I’d take care of you.” I set the cup on her nightstand before climbing onto the bed. “Now spread those legs for me so I can clean you up.”
She complied and I slid between her thighs, using the damp washcloth to gently wipe away my cum as it leaked out of her. Her pussy looked red and slightly puffy.
Shit.
I hoped she wouldn’t hurt too bad tomorrow.
I’d feel like trash if she did.
“Thank you,” Tegan said as I rolled out of bed to put the washcloth in the hamper.
“It’s no problem,” I mumbled. I slid into bed beside her. “Come here.”
Tegan shimmied closer to me, and I wrapped an arm around her, pulling her tight against my chest.
“This is nice,” I said. “Actually, everything about tonight has been amazing.”
I kissed her head, taking a deep inhale of her hair. She smelled like flowers.
“It has been amazing, hasn’t it?” Her fingers absentmindedly played with my chest hair, and I felt her breathing slow. “Tell me more about yourself. I want to know more.”
“Like what?” I asked with a laugh.
“What happened with your ex? Why do you hate this house so much?”
Woof.
She was going right for the difficult questions.
I took a deep breath and watched Tegan’s head rise and fall with my chest. I couldn’t tell her that Jade and I were engaged, at least not yet, but I could tell her why I ended things.
“She just—we—we were too different. She was putting a lot of pressure on me and I—I just wasn’t feeling it. It wasn’t the commitment that scared me. It was her.”
Tegan tilted her head to look up at me, obviously waiting for me to keep going.
“Have you ever been with someone where it just feels like you’re going through the motions?
You’re in so deep that it feels hopeless.
Like you’re trapped and there’s no way out?
” I took a deep breath. “That’s how I felt with her.
And one day, I was just tired of it. I told her it was over and that she needed to leave.
She made a huge scene. Talked shit about me to all her friends.
It was a really low point in my life. I had never felt so alone. ”
“Atlas.” She snuggled closer to me, the physical connection I had with her spurring me to continue.
“Fallon and Cyrus stuck by me the entire time. We hung out every day for months. I threw myself back into training, and that’s about all I’ve been doing since.” I gripped Tegan’s hand. “And then I met you and my stupid fucking tail hasn’t stopped wagging since.”
Tegan giggled and propped herself up on her elbow, putting her face-to-face with me. “Well, I’m glad you chose what was best for you, Atlas Oberon. And I happen to like that stupid fucking tail of yours. Very much.”
Gods, she was everything.
Here we were, lying in bed after having sex for the first time, and I was already unloading my emotional baggage on her. The exact opposite of what Fallon told me to do. But Tegan took it in stride, like she did with everything else.
I leaned forward and pressed the cold tip of my nose against hers. “A moment of discomfort is nothing compared to a lifetime of unhappiness. Knowing that it led me to you, I’d make that choice again and again.”
Fuck.
I couldn’t believe those words just came out of my mouth. She was going to think I was a total creep. I might as well have said that I was in love with her.
Truth be told, I think I was.