He pressed his hand to Ward’s heart and smiled softly. “I will,” he whispered, “just like you show me.”
Without another word, he reached for the nightstand and found the tube of lubricant. They didn’t have much left, but it was just enough for what Mathias needed today.
Mathias reminded himself that after the night before, Ward would undoubtedly be sore, so he was extra careful as he prepared his mate. At the same time, though, Ward was already stretched, and his flesh yielded easily to Mathias’s gentle touch.
When Ward released a low whimper, the sound only held pleasure and encouragement, a wordless demand for more. Mathias gladly complied, adding more lubricant and sliding another finger into his mate’s hole.
He crooked them slightly, searching for that spot inside Ward that would make his mate see stars. Despite the mellow mood, he couldn’t help a grin when he drew an even louder moan out of Ward. Moon be blessed, he didn’t think he’d seen anything more beautiful than Ward writhing underneath him, in the throes of ecstasy.
Enthralled by that beauty, he never once looked away from Ward’s face, from his eyes. As their gazes met, Ward stilled, and time seemed to slow, sabotaged by the crackle of the energy building between them.
Like a man in a dream, Mathias pulled his fingers out of Ward’s ass and used the rest of the lube to slick up his cock. He positioned himself at Ward’s opening and slowly, ever so slowly, slid home. His breath caught as the velvet heat of Ward’s body engulfed him. “Ward,” he murmured under his breath, just because he had to say something, to express the emotions building up within him.
Ward didn’t answer, but he didn’t have to. His blissful expression told Mathias everything he needed to know. It urged Mathias on, and he pulled out of his mate, only to thrust back inside mere seconds later. This time, he was rewarded by a beautiful gasp from Ward, and that further encouraged him, fueling his resolve and his desire.
Aiming for Ward’s prostate, Mathias started to move. Ward met him thrust for thrust, and they fell into a perfect rhythm that was as fluid and as right as the beating of their hearts. He didn’t purposefully set the pace—instead, he let it guide him. Pleasure and rightness engulfed them both, and he stole sweet kisses from Ward’s lips even as he lost himself in the haven of Ward’s body.
Even if he was the one to move in and out of his mate’s channel, Mathias felt claimed as well, Ward’s heat clinging to him, branding his skin, making him more aware than ever of their connection. Mathias’s magic sang as their energy mingled, until Mathias could no longer tell where he ended and Ward began.
The rapture finally reached its natural conclusion when Ward tilted his head and offered his submission to Mathias. Mathias bit down, and as he buried his fangs in Ward’s throat, the flow of the rising sexual pleasure exploded like a geyser, swallowing them both whole.
Given that they’d climaxed just minutes before, Mathias might have expected this second orgasm to be more sedate. He had no expectations, and that was probably a good thing, since even now, after everything the two of them had done and lived through, he was not prepared for what Ward stirred inside of him. For a few beautiful moments, Mathias felt like he ceased to exist—at least, as an individual. He was a part of something greater, each and every one of his atoms in complete union with his mate. As he thrust one last time inside Ward’s beautiful body and fell over the edge, the two of them connected at a level beyond the carnal.
He and Ward orgasmed at the same time, his mate’s ass muscles clenching around him as Ward spurted jets of hot cum all over their abdomens. Mathias filled Ward with his seed, and the head of his dick swelled as his werewolf nature kept them bound, cementing the closeness and the depth of the moment. It was a biological imperative, a natural response of his body to having intercourse with his mate—but for Mathias, that knot meant something more. It meant Ward was his, and Mathias belonged to Ward in turn.
Ward’s voice drifted into his mind, sharp, clear, and yet tremulous with rapture and awe.“Yes. Yours. Mine.”
“My mate.”
Their words, memories, voices and emotions tangled, and at one point, Mathias lost track of himself altogether. He only came to when the haze of orgasm finally started to settle, and he was forced to slide out of Ward’s ass.
His mate curled close to his chest, breathing hard, but no longer in any distress. Mathias could empathize. Their bond had banished all of the angry possessiveness he’d felt earlier, leaving behind only the love and the desire to protect. The poison of his fury and jealousy had been chased away by Ward’s affection and warmth. The wolf was content.
There was only one thing that Mathias could say now, and it came naturally to his lips, like the easiest thing in the world. “I love you.”
Ward kissed his shoulder and smiled. “I love you too.”
Mathias closed his eyes and smiled. For two people like them, with so much baggage, an “I love you” carried a lot of weight. In the end, it wasn’t the words that conveyed the message best, but the fact that Mathias and Ward had been able to speak them without hesitation.
Starting today, they’d left their pasts behind. Together, they’d build something better, a future for both of them, and perhaps, for a pup. It would take a lot of work, but Mathias was more than ready. His life as a warrior was over, and from now on, he could just be Ward’s mate.