Twenty-Five
Gareth
Care and acts of service were part of the bonding. I quickly toweled Riley off, eager to get to the next part. He wrapped the towel around his waist and then did the same for me, ensuring I was properly dry. This time, it was his turn to lead while I followed him into our bedroom.
Though they were slightly damp, we laid the towels down on the bed and got a couple of jars of lube open. I took hold of Riley’s wrist as he went to climb onto the bed. “Are you sure? There’s no going back if we do this.”
The magic had wound so tight around us that it was almost painful to give Riley an out like that. I was grateful when he nodded. “I want this. Do you?”
Instead of answering, I got onto the bed and pulled him on top of me.
He braced himself above me, and I took the chance to study him.
His stubble was growing in, giving him a roguish look.
His deep brown eyes were bright with the light of the bonding magic.
I saw flecks of green and gold in there, something that had never been there before.
I loved that his nose was slightly crooked, though not the story about how it came about.
No one had ever looked as beautiful to me.
Those full lips quirked in a smirk before he leaned down and they captured mine.
I twisted us onto our sides so we could kiss and touch each other easily. In this position, my cock brushed his, making me gasp against his mouth. Burying my face in his neck, I took us both in my hand and stroked. Riley added some lube and helped stroke us.
It was awkward, but we both wanted to be joined in as many places as possible.
The magic only happy when we were touching.
I wriggled an arm under his ass and some lube from the pot onto my fingers.
My arm wanted to fall asleep with the weight of his body trapping it against the mattress.
The tingling sensation in my fingers made it difficult to prep him properly.
Riley huffed a laugh against my collarbone as he tried to do the same to me.
We were just too impatient. The magic was pulling on us almost painfully.
He pushed me down onto the bed and positioned himself over me.
Taking my cock in his hand and placing it at his entrance, he sank down slowly with a loud moan.
“You okay?”
“Fine,” he muttered. “Just burns a little.” I laughed, and he groaned. “Gimme a minute.”
I ran my hands over his hairy thighs, loving the feel of them against my skin. He was so warm, solid, real. Best of all, he was all mine. After this, no curse could keep us apart. I would always find him.
After a minute, Riley began to rock.
We lost ourselves in sensation, just following our instincts and the magic that was binding us together. With this last act, our bond would be complete. “I take you into my body. You and I are one. Never to be parted.”
Tears flowed even as Riley controlled our pleasure. He brought me to the edge, slamming down hard on my cock until I filled him with my release.
Riley pulled off me slowly and raised my ankles to his shoulders, my knees pressed to my chest. “Okay?”
“Yes!” He pressed inside. “I take you into my body,” I gasped. “You and I are one. Never to be parted.” His thrusts were fast and wild, his orgasm cresting quickly. The magic soared and filled the room with a kaleidoscope of colors.
His sweat dripped onto me, and he was grunting sexy sounds in my ear when finally, he went rigid and I felt him pulse inside me. He kissed me sweetly and rested our foreheads together.
The room lit with sparks of magic as the bond settled into place. Complete.
We spent the night basking in our new bond, not getting much sleep. Neither of us ventured far from the other, just to the kitchen or the bathroom, but usually, the other followed after. It was almost painful to be apart.
This was nothing to be worried about. We’d actually been warned that it would happen. Newly bonded mates needed time together to settle their bond.
When we woke after a few hours of sleep the day after Christmas, the skies were clear, the snow melting on the sidewalks. It seemed almost like a sign that things were going to get better from here. It gave me hope.
It was Riley’s last day in Greyhaven until we could break his curse.
Once he left, I would follow him now that I had someone to cover me for the wards.
Eason hadn’t been particularly receptive to hearing me out, especially since I was asking him to stay so I could follow my mate, but when he’d felt the state of the wards himself, he’d agreed to it.
I still had to thank Keeley for that intervention.
She and Eason had grown close while traveling to other sanctuaries and was pretty much the only person who could get through to him.
Guilt had churned in my gut over asking Eason for that favor.
I knew he felt trapped by expectations in Greyhaven.
It was something we’d argued about constantly during our relationship.
It had played a large part in our breakup.
Now here I was, his ex, asking him to stay behind while I finally left the town I loved enough to give him up, to follow my mate across the country.
When I looked at my mate resting peacefully next to me, I couldn’t regret it. As selfish as it was, I would do anything for Riley. I knew he felt the same about me.
Paxton and Oscar arrived at our place pretty early so they could help us pack. We had already planned to head to Westhaven first, since Keeley said there were a couple of powerful warlocks there that would help us.
With Paxton and Oscar’s help, it was easy enough to get the camper stocked with gas, fuel for the stove, and everything cleaned and ready for life on the road.
It would take a few days to get to Westhaven, more if the curse pulled Riley far away in the opposite direction from where we wanted to go.
It had happened before. He made his way out of the town before the deadline and somehow still found himself a thousand miles from where he had been.
The unpredictability of his curse was almost as bad as the constant time limits. I didn’t know how Riley could stand it.
There had been a brief argument over who would take the car to tow the trailer.
Riley reasoned it was better that he leave on foot, then I would catch up with our stuff.
He could shift and carry his bag. It was more convenient than having to ditch my car somewhere when I finally caught up with my mate.
Eventually, I gave in. I didn’t like the thought of Riley walking out of Greyhaven, but it was better than him vanishing in front of me.
We filled our day with quality time together.
There were plenty of sweet touches and kisses as we settled further into the bond.
More than once I caught Paxton gagging at us, Oscar laughing beside him.
I wouldn’t apologize for loving my mate.
He was everything I had never thought to want, yet also exactly what I needed.
Riley would never be soft, except for those vulnerable moments that he chose to show me.
He was always going to want my best self.
More than that, I wanted to give that to him. To be worthy of his love.
“Why don’t we have a nap? I’m exhausted,” Riley asked after we finished putting the last of the dinner dishes away. He wore the signs of stress and tiredness all over his face and leaned against the counter as if it were the only thing holding him up.
“Sounds like a good idea. I don’t want to drive this tired.” My body ached with fatigue. Sleeping for a little while next to my mate sounded heavenly.
The others left us to it with promises to meet as soon as I was ready to leave to find Riley.
I was grateful to them for their support.
In such a short time, Riley had repaired his relationship with his brother, smoothing over the fractures their curses had wrought.
He’d also made loyal friends who were ready to put their own stuff aside to help him. I was lucky to have him as my mate.
We both lay fully clothed on the bed. Riley wriggled into place, putting his head on my chest, a leg over one of mine so I couldn’t escape even if I wanted to. “Gareth, are we doing the right thing?”
“What do you mean?” The room was lit with only a lamp, the darkness complete outside. We only had a handful of hours before Riley had to leave or risk triggering the curse. He said it was painful to be pulled away. I didn’t want him to hurt, so he had to leave.
“Going to Westhaven instead of just going to Boyce with Paxton.”
I sighed. His worry was valid. It felt counterintuitive to be heading away from our target. “I know. It’s important we do this, though, because he will absolutely use his hold over you to harm both me and Paxton. You’d be his weapon against us.”
“Yeah, I just needed to hear it again. I’m nervous that we’ll get to Westhaven and they won’t be able to help me.”
“If that happens, we’ll track down my mom and dad.
As much as they suck as parents, they really are the best at what they do.
Their magic works in harmony together, better than anyone I’ve ever seen.
Between them, I know they could break it.
” I squeezed him close, sensing his other worry.
“Then they’ll fall in love with you. Maybe they could come kill Boyce with us. ”
Riley chuckled, reassured. Our bond pulsed with his love for me. “That right?”
“One hundred percent true. Maybe I should just call them once I pick you up and we could meet them somewhere…”
“No. Let’s try Westhaven first. I don’t want that to be their first impression of me. Or to think that’s why we rushed to bond. Could you imagine? Telling any kids we have—”
I cut him off, as hope bloomed in my chest. “You want kids?”
Riley laughed. “We really did do things backwards. We should have talked about this before.” He nuzzled into my chest. “I’d love to have kids.
I was thinking we’d maybe adopt some. Older ones who people don’t take a chance on because they want babies.
” He let out a strained sound. “There are probably plenty of supernaturals who would take those kids in.”
“Less than you might think. A lot are too fucked up from their pasts to even think about taking on some kid’s baggage.
Babies are easier since they don’t come with the same trauma.
” I was silent for a moment, just picturing our future.
“I’d really like that, y’know. Taking in some kids.
Giving them love. Teaching them how to be good people.
Seeing them grow.” I had to push back the emotion that threatened to choke me.
“To do that with you would be something special.”
We lapsed into our own thoughts for so long that I wondered if Riley had drifted off. Finally, he spoke. “When I wake up, I’m just going to slip out. Stay asleep if you can. I’ll call you once I’m on the other side of the barrier, okay?”
“Are you sure?”
“Yeah. I won’t want to leave if I have to say goodbye. Even if it is only for a couple of hours.”
“Don’t you want Oscar to take you? Do you have to shift?”
“I don’t want to risk any backlash on him. You’ve seen how nasty this curse is. I don’t have enough friends to risk Oscar,” he joked.
Laughing, I tugged him closer, pressed a kiss on his head, and closed my eyes. “As soon as you call, I’ll be on my way.”