Chapter 14

Eli

"You won!" Matty yelled in exaggerated delight and he held up his hand and gave me five.

"I can't believe it," I said with a laugh as my eyes lifted to meet Mav's. My stomach dropped out at the look I saw there and I found it difficult to swallow after that. I wasn't sure, but it felt like something had shifted in our relationship this morning after I'd jerked him off. It should have been such a simple thing – a quick, down and dirty act meant to get Mav off and nothing more. But that wasn't how it had started and it definitely wasn't how it had ended.

As soon as I'd asked Mav to come with me this morning to let Baby out, I'd sensed a profound change in him…like he was finally letting his guard down and letting me see the real him and not just the parts he wanted me to see. But letting those walls fall had come at a price too, and his vulnerability had made my heart ache. The way he'd kissed me had been unexpected and as amazing as his mouth had felt against mine, there'd been an edge of panic in every brush of his lips. Like he was afraid to stop. My instincts had taken over and I'd begun trying to ease his fear by bringing him pleasure. But his reaction hadn't been at all what I'd thought it would be.

Yes, he'd gotten off. But I hadn't missed the whimpers that had bubbled up from his throat. And I'd finally understood that as strong and powerful as Mav was, he was plagued with the same raw neediness I'd been experiencing the night before. Except my need had been sated by the way he'd made love to me, the way he'd held me and spoken to me and told me how beautiful and perfect I was. I just hadn't known how to give that back to him. But when that sob of relief had slipped from his throat as he'd come, I'd known I'd done something right. The way he'd lovingly washed my body in the shower, and I his, had been proof that whatever darkness had been rolling through him when I'd first woken up had subsided…for now.

I'd been surprised to learn that Mav had been following me and then had turned that responsibility over to someone else, but it hadn't bothered me as much as it probably should have. Maybe because I was used to overprotective men. Maybe because I liked knowing what it meant. But all of the conflicting emotions I'd been struggling with had slipped away as soon as Mav had told me that being with me the night before had been the best night of his entire life. I'd made the decision then and there that I was going to fight for whatever this thing with Mav was, because every second I spent with him was better than the last. I'd had some great moments in life, but few compared to what I'd found in his arms, his touches, his looks.

"Here," Matty said as he handed me the magic marker. I wrote a big letter E on the bottom corner of the page and when I looked up, I saw Matty nodding at his grandfather, Magnus, who was sitting in the far corner of the room. The older man nodded back and got up and reached behind his chair.

"Close your eyes," Matty ordered softly and I quickly complied. I heard some commotion next to me, but kept my eyes closed. I was sitting close to Matty's bed so I felt his little body shift on the mattress and then his hand touched my arm as he steadied himself. Something lightweight dropped on my head, but I pretended not to notice as I awaited further instruction.

"Okay, open them," Matty said gleefully.

I opened them to find Matty sitting on his knees, his fingers clasped in front of him. I reached up to feel what was on my head. I knew what it was even before I carefully pulled it off and I couldn't help the sting of tears that burned my eyes as I studied the carefully colored paper crown with my name on it.

"Oh wow," I whispered and I didn't even have to pretend that I was choked up.

"Do you like it?" Matty asked. "I colored it myself."

I nodded, needing a minute to get myself together. "I love it," I managed to get out before I reached out to wrap my arms around him. He hugged me as hard as he could and then took the crown from me and put it back on my head.

"Don't tell Seth," he whispered, even though Seth wasn't in the room. "He might get sad. I'm going to let him win tomorrow," Matty added.

I nodded. "I won't tell him." I glanced at Mav who was still watching me with the same look of pleasure on his face. I noticed Dante over his shoulder. The young man was standing in the doorway of the room, but his eyes weren't on me or Matty. I followed his dark gaze to Magnus who had returned to his chair. I didn't miss how the older man shifted uncomfortably at Dante's intense look, but kept stealing glances his way.

I didn't have much time to dwell on the interesting turn of events because Dante quickly slipped back out of the room and a few moments later, Tate, Hawke and an older woman with long red hair entered. Mav immediately stood and moved out of the way so Matty's fathers could reach his side. I also stood and walked around the bed to give them space. Concern went through me at the sight of Tate's puffy red eyes, but when he kept smiling at the woman who was clutching his hand in hers and who had equally puffy eyes, I realized whatever was happening was a good thing and not a bad one. I went to Mav's side and took his hand when he held it out.

"Bye, Matty," I said as I gave him a wave.

"Bye, Eli," he returned as he reached out to hug Tate.

As Mav led me from the room, I heard Tate say, "Buddy, I have someone really special I'd like you to meet, okay?"

"Okay, Daddy," Matty said with absolute trust.

Mav and I passed Dante, but the young man didn't look at us as he scanned the hallway. In all the times I'd interacted with Dante, albeit briefly, he'd always had an easy smile on his face…like he didn't have a care in the world. There was no smile today and as I glanced over my shoulder, I saw Magnus leaving the room. His and Dante's eyes met for a long moment, and I could practically see the air sizzling with electricity around them. But then Magnus hardened his jaw and began walking the opposite direction and he didn't once look back at Dante.

I returned my attention to Mav as he led me towards the parking garage. "Do you know who that was with Tate and Hawke?" I asked. I loved that he had yet to release my hand. Many of the nurses and doctors I had met in the weeks since I'd started volunteering at the hospital murmured greetings as they passed us, but none looked at me and Mav with judgement or disdain. Several actually even ventured a smile when their eyes lit on Mav's and my joined hands.

"Tate's mom, Layla."

"His mom?" I asked in surprise.

Mav nodded. "Tate's father kidnapped him and his older brother when Tate was really little. He never knew about her until Hawke and Ronan found her a couple months ago. They've been talking on the phone a lot, but Tate was scared to meet her until now. He and Hawke met her this morning at the airport and were planning to bring her to meet Matty if everything went well."

"Why was he afraid to meet her?"

Mav's hand tightened on mine as he said, "Tate's been rejected by everyone who was supposed to love him. I think he thought she'd do the same thing."

"You guys remind me of Dom and his brothers," I murmured.

Mav looked at me. "How so?"

"You guys are making a family for Matty. For yourselves," I said. I glanced up to see that Mav's expression had fallen and I pulled him to a stop just before the door leading to the stairwell. "What?" I asked.

"Nothing," Mav said and tried to tug me forward, but I held my ground .

"No, tell me. Please."

"I'm not part of that," he finally said after a long, drawn out silence.

"Part of what?"

"I work with them, that's it," he clarified.

I finally got what he was trying to tell me, but I suspected he was actually trying to tell me something else and that had me worried. "You don't consider them family?" I asked.

Mav sighed and looked like he'd rather be anywhere else. "They're good men…great ones. And you're right, they are a family."

"But you're not a part of it."

"Don't do that," Mav grumbled as he dropped my hand.

"Don't do what?"

"Don't feel sorry for me. Not everyone needs what they have. What you have."

I struggled with how to respond since I didn't want to fuel his growing irritation and ruin the night we had planned, but I suspected we were treading dangerously close to yet another turning point in our relationship. I could press him and try to figure out why he didn't feel like a part of a family that clearly included him whether he wanted it to or not, or I could back off and drop the whole thing and we could continue pretending it wasn't a glaring sticking point. I finally settled for somewhere in between.

"I don't have it," I admitted. "That big family," I clarified.

"Dom Barretti loves you, Eli. I have no doubt the rest of the Barrettis do too."

I nodded. "I know they do," I said softly, suddenly wishing I hadn't brought the topic up. There was no way I could make Mav understand without seeming like a jealous, petty child. "We should get going so Baby doesn't make a mess in your hotel room," I said quickly as I tried to push past Mav. It had been Mav who'd suggested we take the dog back to the hotel with us this morning and I hadn't argued since it meant I could spend an entire uninterrupted night and morning with him.

Mav caught me around the waist and held me there as he bent down to brush his lips against my ear. "They love you, Eli."

I closed my eyes at that and finally said the words that made acid churn in my belly. "They shouldn't." With that, I managed to escape Mav's hold and hurried down the stairs. He caught up to me at the landing and grabbed my arm, but instead of questioning me further, he kissed me hard and used his body to pin me against the wall.

The kiss was brutal and greedy and I eagerly returned every desperate swipe of his tongue over mine. I was panting when he finally released my mouth, but held me against the wall with his big body, his hard cock pressing against mine. "I think you should collect your prize as soon as we get back to the hotel," Mav murmured against my mouth. His teeth gently caught my upper lip in their hold before releasing it and soothing the skin with his tongue.

"Even though you let me win?" I bit out as my dick swelled painfully and pushed against my zipper.

We'd ended up working out for nearly two hours in the gym at the hotel this morning, but mostly because we'd ended up getting distracted so often. It had helped when other guests had come into the gym to work out, but the second they'd left, Mav and I had been all over each other and at one point he'd started jerking me off as he'd had me pinned on the mat beneath him. He'd only stopped when a wide eyed, older woman had coughed to get our attention to let us know we were no longer alone. By the end, I had actually learned some additional moves, although I'd been too horny to really care and while I had managed to throw Mav over my shoulder when he'd grabbed me from behind, I'd had no doubt that he'd helped with that quite a bit. He'd declared me the winner and then dragged me up to the hotel room. We'd showered together and jerked each other off, but had run out of time to do much else since I was due at the hospital.

"You want a rematch?" Mav asked as he teased my lower lip in the same way he had my upper one.

"Fuck, no," I groaned and then I grabbed his hand and practically dragged him to his waiting Harley. I used the ride back to the hotel to run my hands all over his thighs and ass, not caring who saw us and when he got me into the hotel elevator, Mav returned the favor by lifting me and pressing me against the wall and grinding his cock against mine. I was half tempted to tell him I'd changed my mind when we got to the room and ask him just to fuck me right there against the door, but my eagerness to know what Mav's tight ass would feel like as it engulfed my cock had me barely acknowledging my dog as he greeted us. I promised the confused animal I'd take him out later as I dragged Mav to the bedroom and slid the double doors shut so Baby wouldn't crawl into bed with us like he was prone to do at home.

Mav separated from me long enough to ask, "Where do you want me?" and I barely found my voice long enough to speak when he made a move to start stripping off his clothes.

"Slowly," I murmured as I leaned back against the doors.

Mav's eyes lit up with molten desire at my order and I filed that away. It would definitely come in handy tonight. "Shoes first," I said and instead of staying where I was, I walked to one of the big plush chairs in the corner near the bed and sat down to enjoy the show. Mav worked his boots off along with an ankle holster of some kind that I hadn't even known he wore and then he took his socks off too. Since I hadn't actually ordered him to remove the socks, I shot him a questioning look which had him hardening his jaw. But I knew it also excited him to know I was in charge because the bulge in his pants grew even more impressive.

"Shirt," I said. "Turn around first."

Mav turned around and slowly pulled his shirt off. Saliva filled my mouth as I watched the snakes shift and dance along his back with every rippling flex of his muscles.

"Turn back around," I ordered when I'd taken my fill. Mav turned around, shirt still in hand. When I nodded, he dropped it to the floor.

"Button and zipper, but nothing else," I murmured as I shifted in the chair, trying to find some more space in my pants. Being sexually aggressive wasn't something I'd ever even conceived of, but it was like an all-consuming drug .

Mav's fingers were slow and deliberate as he unbuttoned the jeans and the slow descent of the zipper had my dick notching up with every little click of the teeth separating. "Come over here," I said when Mav had released the hold on his pants. As turned on as Mav was, he didn't lose any of his confident swagger as he approached me and stopped until he was almost touching my legs.

"Take yourself out," I managed to say, though my mouth felt exceedingly dry.

Mav took his time pulling his cock out and the sight of the clear fluid trickling down his engorged shaft had saliva suddenly flooding over my tongue. "Taste yourself," I said as I lifted my eyes to his. Mav's gaze held mine for a split second before he ran his fingers over the head of his dick. I couldn't take my eyes off his hand as it slowly lifted to his mouth. His tongue lapped out to lick the fluid off, but I barely let him have a taste before I said, "Now kiss me."

Mav stopped moving his mouth, presumably to make sure he didn't obliterate the taste of himself and then he leaned over me and slid his mouth against mine. But to my frustration, he kept his tongue in his own mouth and I was too impatient to order him to do anything else so I shoved my tongue past his lips and slid it over his. I sighed when his flavor hit me. We ended up kissing for several minutes before I remembered our little game and I had to force myself to let him go. But before he could step back, I said, "On your knees."

Heat flashed in Mav's eyes as he hovered over me and I could hear his breathing ratchet up a notch. He was playing the cool character, but I now knew better. I held Mav's eyes as he dropped to his knees between my spread legs. His hands were resting on my thighs, but he didn't move them. "Take the rubber band out of your hair," I said as I let my eyes scan the length of Mav's chest and then down to his bobbing cock that was now glistening with pre-cum. Mav's black hair slipped over his shoulders as he tossed the rubber band to the floor. I couldn't stop myself from reaching out to let my fingers play with the slight curls on the end.

"Undress me," I murmured as I released his hair and leaned back. Mav took his time working my shoes and socks off and then his big hands skimmed over my belly before searching out the very last button on my shirt. I hadn't given much thought to my clothes when I'd grabbed a fresh change of them when we'd picked up Baby, but now I was insanely glad I'd picked a button down shirt because the feel of Mav's fingertips brushing my skin as he separated my shirt with every button he worked free was heaven. By the time he reached the top button near my neck, I was struggling to get enough air and I was suddenly desperate for him to finish so I could give my next order. I leaned forward to help him work the shirt completely off of me and then I sat back and waited. I held my tongue as Mav slowly began working my pants free and I realized at some point he'd become the one in control because by the time my pants and underwear were gone, I was writhing with need.

"Suck me!" I demanded harshly.

I was glad that Mav seemed eager to do my bidding because I'd lost all interest in playing around and when he sucked me to the root on the first pass, I let out a hoarse groan. I thrust up into his hot mouth, pulled back and then did it again. I'd ordered him to suck me, but in reality I was fucking his mouth. On my third pass, I fisted my fingers in his long hair and held him still as I shoved my cock as far down his throat as I could. He gagged slightly, but when I gentled my hold and pulled my hips back, his hands grabbed them and yanked them up. Fingers bit into my ass as Mav swallowed as much of me as he could. But I was too close and there was no way I was going to miss out on the chance to get inside of him, so I had to forcibly pull him off with what I was sure was a painful hold on his hair. I leaned down to kiss him hard and then I lowered my arm over his shoulder and ran it along his back. His tongue began licking my dick gently, but he didn't take me back in his mouth. My fingers skimmed down his lower back and then dipped past the waistband of his pants and underwear and into his crease. I stretched until I was able to reach his hole.

I couldn't see the puckered flesh, but it fluttered beneath my touch. I removed my finger long enough to wet it with my mouth and then I put it back against his opening and began massaging him. Mav groaned and began pushing against my hand with his ass so I gave him what he wanted and carefully pushed my finger inside of him.

"Yes," Mav whispered. His head was in my lap, his hands resting on my hips, but he was just lying there enjoying what I was doing to him. I loved the way his soft hair felt against my thighs. I toyed with his hole for a while, but the position didn't allow me to get my finger completely inside of him so I removed it and then settled my hand on his head.

"Do you want me inside that pretty little hole, Mav?" I asked gently as I stroked his hair.

Mav just nodded against my lap, his face nuzzling my aching dick with the movement. I lost all interest in ordering him around so I leaned down and pressed my lips against his ear and whispered, "Take everything else off and get the lube and a condom and lie down on the bed on your stomach."

I stayed where I was as Mav lifted off me. His eyes met mine as he began to get up and while they were still heavy with lust, they were filled with something else too. He brushed his lips over my mouth and then rose and went to the nightstand. But all he pulled out was the bottle of lube and I felt my insides clench at what that meant. I'd thought going bare last night had been a one-time thing – something he'd given me only because I had begged him to.

Mav placed the bottle on top of the nightstand, stripped his pants and underwear off and then lay down in the middle of the bed, his head resting on the pillows. He turned his head so he was watching me. I stayed where I was for several long seconds just so I could drink my fill of him. I began playing with myself as I let my eyes roam his body and when I saw that Mav was enjoying the show, I decided to give him more of one. I didn't spend too much time working my dick because I was already too close to the edge, so I massaged my balls for a little while and then ran my hands all over my chest. I tweaked my nipples several times and heard Mav groan, but it wasn't until I lifted my legs and put my feet on the edge of the chair that Mav went completely still. I shifted my ass forward until I knew he would have the perfect view and then I went to town on my hole. By the time I was fucking myself with two fingers, Mav was humping the bed and gripping the pillow beneath his head and I was doing everything in my power to make sure I didn't come. I forced myself to stop impaling myself on my fingers, but I kept them inside myself as I caught Mav's eyes and held them.

"Do you want to fuck me, Mav?"

Mav nodded.

"Say it."

"I want to fuck you, Eli," Mav nearly snarled.

I removed my fingers and let Mav take in the sight of my stretched hole for a moment before I climbed to my feet and went to the bed. I knelt next to him and leaned down until my mouth was just above his ear. "If you don't come while I'm fucking you, I'll let you fill me up again," I whispered.

Mav groaned and closed his eyes. He managed a nod, but he definitely wasn't looking so sure of himself any more.

I got back up and went to the foot of the bed so I could study Mav's gorgeous ass. "Spread your legs," I murmured as I reached out to trail my hands up his calves. Mav did what I said, exposing his hole. I licked my lips in excitement and then put my knee on the bed. I crawled up between Mav's legs, but only enough so I could get the position I wanted. It meant my lower half was hanging off the bed, but I didn't really care because for what I had in mind, I didn't need my dick just yet. I let my hands massage over the snake tattoos that curled over his smooth skin and then followed with my tongue. Mav flinched when I licked him, but then he stilled again. I took my time working my way to his hole and when I finally licked the puckered, wrinkly flesh, Mav let out a strangled moan. Since I'd never done anything even remotely close to this to another man, I was running on pure instinct. I kept licking, kissing and sucking on Mav's hole until it relaxed enough that it began to open a little bit and then I dipped my tongue inside of it.

"Yes!" Mav shouted so loud that I almost stopped what I was doing. But when he added "Eli, please," I did it again and then I took a deep breath and began pushing more than just the tip inside of him.