And with that, he was gone.
It was at this point that we managed to reach peak awkward. Silence covered the room in a thick blanket, choking all reactions and responses. All I could hear was the creaks of the house and the sounds of the guys breathing.
"Sorry about that," Hawk said. "Jack, he can't fucking help himself. Has to try and 'fix' things. Look, you've got a night ahead of you, with your newly bonded and your petitioners. He didn't talk to me about doing this. All my gear’s at home..." His big hand fell limply by his side. "I'll head back there and—"
"Aren't you his token?"
"What? I mean, yeah, I guess. Who even does that shit? Fucking Jack."
"Fucking Jack," Finn agreed, ruefully rubbi
ng his forehead. "He's always pulling stunts like this."
"Not to this degree. His mum already wants to disown him. After this..." Hawk fell silent as he considered it, his eyes filling with pain.
"Didn't I accept you as his token?" I said.
"Yeah, but you were just trying to help him save face. You had to be." Those deep brown eyes searched mine for evidence for or against. "Weren't you?"
"I don't know what I did, to be honest. This day has been..." I rubbed at my eyes, but the ache in my head didn’t subside. "What I really need to do is have a shower, lie down, and have a rest." I turned to Slade. "This is a shit wedding night for you, but I don't think I've got anything else in the tank."
His arm went around my shoulders, and he hugged me to him. "Love, this morning was fucking smoking. My balls are still aching from how hard I came." I snorted at that. "But we're mated now. It's not one long fuck fest. I told you, it’s about who you can live with. I'm knackered myself, to tell you the truth. How about whoever's staying strips off and gets in the shower, and whoever’s leaving fucks off so we can have some sleep?"
"I'm off, unfortunately," Finn said. "All the latitude I got during the heat is now gone. I've got work piled up to the ceiling. I'm gonna have to knock off some paperwork before collapsing in bed. Sorry, love."
"That's OK, I knew that was never going to last. See you tomorrow?"
I hated the wheedling tone in my voice. He'd been a mainstay in my life since arriving in Sanctuary, and the thought of not sleeping beside him felt weird and wrong. He seemed to have no such problem with my tone, smiling and coming in close to hold me.
"Of course, love. Just try to keep the drama to a minimum until I get here after work, yeah?" I nodded, and then he kissed me, long and sweet but obviously trying to hold back the heat for now. "Sleep well and rest up." His eyes flicked over my shoulder. "I think you're going to need it."
"I'm staying," Aaron said, taking Finn's place as he walked out. "For the next two days, if you'll have me. I brought my gear in the car, just in case."
"Of course," I said, throwing my arms around his neck. "You must be fit to burst."
Heat flared in those hazel eyes, and his smile became carnal. "If you knew what I thought about, rubbing one out in the barracks every night..."
"Well, if it was me, it'd be all of those hot soldier boys getting naked and covering you with their cum," I replied.
"This seems to be a recurring fantasy," Slade said drily. "Anything you want to share, love?"
"Oh, you know. One hot guy is awesome, many hot guys is exponentially better. Then, when all of the hot guys are getting off on how sexy each other is..." I heard the sharp intake of Hawk's breath as I shrugged, turning around to see him stare at the four of us. He scanned the group, his expression unreadable, but the shift of his eyes indicated he was searching for something.
"Well, when you decide to put that little fantasy into practise, you give me a call," Brandon said, pulling me back against him, and my arms instinctively went back and around his neck. Aaron watched my breasts pull up higher with rapt interest. "I believe I can add a little something to the scenario."
"You just want more guys to boss about," I said.
"For your pleasure? Always, but not tonight." I almost groaned when he turned me, placing a gentle kiss on my lips. "I think you're right. You're at your limit, and you should respect that."
"Topping from the bottom?" I said, remembering Slade's words.
"Where did you hear...? Slade." I grinned at him. "I'll be by in the morning, I'm bringing your supplies. Later, love."
"Alright, that's that then," Slade said. "I don't know about you guys, but I'm looking forward to enjoying a proper mated quarters shower."
"What?"
Four people shouldn't be able to get excited by a bathroom so much, and yet, here we were. Palatial was the only word for it. With grey marble tiles throughout, the room was dominated by a huge multi-person cubicle with several showerheads and sides built up enough you could plug in and fill the whole area as a bath. A long bench with multiple sinks and mirrors made up the back wall.