Chapter 18

CHAPTER

EIGHTEEN

JACK

Since Cal had gotten off the phone with his brothers, he’d been out of sorts. Through our mate bond, I could sense his confusion and general disquiet, and I didn’t like it. Not that I’d ever liked seeing Cal upset, even before we were mated.

“What’s wrong, sweetheart?”

He turned my way. Cal had taken the seat across the aisle from me in Reuben’s plane, and he’d been picking at his cuticles, a frown creasing the skin between his dark eyebrows. We were waiting on the tarmac for the pilot to finish the final checks and to be cleared for taxi and takeoff.

“Nothing.” He held out his hand, and like he’d been doing since right after we’d claimed each other, he twined his fingers with mine the second our palms connected. I wondered if it was an orca shifter thing, but I didn’t think now was the time to ask. And I liked it, so it really didn’t matter. “I’m fine.”

“Cal, you’ve always been a shitty liar, and now that we have a mate bond, you definitely can’t lie to me. So I’ll ask you again. What’s wrong?”

Cal blew out a breath that ruffled the hair that hung over his forehead. “Things are weird with Quin and me right now.”

“How so?”

“We’ve always been able to sense each other’s emotions, kind of like how it is with you and me since we’ve mated, but it was never as intense as our bond. But ever since we hit our teen years, Quin and I have grown apart, and I stopped tuning in to the bond as often. I guess Quin never did. He said he knew something was up because he couldn’t feel me as much as before, and I feel like a total asshole because I didn’t even notice, but now it’s the only thing I can think about. And he’s right. Our connection is still there, but it’s definitely not as strong as it used to be. I can tell he’s alive and not in danger, but that’s about it.”

I gave his fingers a squeeze. “I’m sorry. That sucks.”

Cal shrugged. “It is what it is.”

“Doesn’t mean it sucks any less.”

Half of Cal’s mouth tipped up in a smile. “Thanks.”

“When all this is over, you and Quin should find a way to reconnect.”

Cal’s smile spread, but it was still sad. “Yeah. I think it’s time. I miss him, and I think I hurt him more than he’s letting on by not telling him you were my mate when I figured it out after Colombia.”

I squeezed his fingers as Andrea poked her head out of the cockpit. She and her copilot, Robyn, who also served as the cabin steward, were the only crew members. It was another nod to Reuben’s paranoia that he kept his staff to the bare minimum. But an idea had taken shape in my mind, and the small crew would work to my advantage.

“We’ve been cleared. Robyn is going to fly us out, and I’ll be her copilot for this trip.” Andrea closed the cabin door and smiled as she locked it. “Do you need anything before we take off?”

Cal shook his head. “Thanks, but I’m good.”

I stood. “I just need a quick word.”

Andrea looked surprised but schooled her features into a professional smile. “Of course.”

“With you and Robyn.”

“Oh, okay.” She turned and headed back to the cockpit.

Andrea slid into the copilot’s seat. “What can we help you with, Mr. Grayson?”

All of a sudden, this felt a little awkward, but I cleared my throat and pressed on. “Cal and I are mates, and we just claimed each other while in Prague, so it’s really new?—”

Robyn held up a hand. “Say no more.” She reached over and gave Andrea’s thigh a squeeze. “We were the same way when we were newly mated.”

Andrea beamed at her mate. “I knew something was different between you two, but I couldn’t put my finger on it. Congratulations. And don’t worry. I will stay out of the cabin. If you or Mr. Hunter need anything, you know where to find it.”

I turned to walk away, but Robyn grabbed my arm. When I looked back at her, her cheeks were pink. “Just so you know, Mr. Machas insists on being prepared for anything. If you need, uh, supplies, check the bathroom cabinet under the sink.”

Andrea giggled, and Robyn let me go.

“I’ve got that covered, but thanks for the info.”

“Anytime.” She waved and turned back to the controls while Andrea stood and closed the cockpit door.

The second I returned to my seat, the plane began taxiing.

“Everything okay?” Cal asked. “You were up there for a minute.”

“Everything’s fine.” The plane picked up speed, and I gripped the armrests. I just needed to make it through takeoff, and then I had plans for Cal that would hopefully take us both out of our heads for the hour and a half it would take us to get to Amsterdam.

“You sure?”

“Yes.” I gritted the word out through clenched teeth, putting on a bit more of a show than I really needed to. “But if you wanted to, you could get on your knees and take my mind off the flight.”

Cal’s eyes widened. We had lifted off into the air and were quickly approaching our cruising altitude. The second the little light near the cockpit went off, I would make the request again in a much different way. For the moment, I unclenched an armrest and held Cal’s hand, the chaste contact good enough.

For now.

We sat in silence, and I could almost hear Cal’s brain whirring with the offer I’d made. I also knew him well enough to know he didn’t want to make the choice. The plane leveled out, and a chime sounded throughout the cabin at the same time the light went off.

“Sweetheart, I thought I told you to get on your knees.”

Cal’s gaze swung to mine, and the heat I saw there, as well as the desire I felt pulse through our bond, made my dick so hard, so fast, I was sure I was going to have the imprint of my zipper on it as it tried to punch through my pants.

“Jack…”

“On. Your. Knees.”

He didn’t need to be told again. He threw off his seat belt and scrambled out of the seat, landing on his knees on the plush carpet in front of me. He waited for my next command. Despite not wanting to take orders when it came to running an op or fieldwork, Cal was beautifully obedient in the bedroom, which suited me just fine because I needed a lover who let me lead, and Cal did so perfectly.

“Unzip my pants and take out my cock.”

He rushed to comply, being careful as he lowered the zipper. When I’d changed out of my suit, I’d forgone underwear, and Cal groaned when he saw there was nothing else between his mouth and my cock. He licked his lips and held my shaft in a tight grip, the pressure just right.

He watched a bead of precum pearl at the tip of my dick, and his Adam’s apple bobbed as he swallowed hard.

“Lick it off.”

The first swipe of Cal’s tongue was heaven, and it took every ounce of my willpower to keep from holding his head still and fucking his mouth. There would be time for that later.

When the drop of precum had been cleaned away, Cal pulled back.

“Suck me, Cal, but don’t make me come.”

His mouth closed around the head of my cock, his tongue dancing along the spot under the crown that made me squirm and reach a hand into his hair to hold him in place. He slid down farther until his lips met his hand, and he hollowed his cheeks and slid back up, tonguing that spot again.

“Fuck, your mouth. God, I’ve missed this.”

Cal moaned around my length, and I watched his other hand slide from where he’d been gripping my thigh to the fly on his own pants. We’d done this enough that he knew there was no way in hell I was going to let him jerk himself off while he was sucking my cock, but he could unzip his pants and free his dick. It would save me time later.

His rhythm never faltered, and he was driving me mad. “Deeper, sweetheart. I know you can do it.”

Cal’s hand fell away, and on his next slide down my shaft, he took me all the way down until his mouth met my balls. My fingers tightened in his hair. “Do you know how fucking perfect you look with your lips stretched around my dick?” His eyes closed at the praise, and I brushed my thumb along his jaw. He took me even deeper until the head hit the back of his throat, and he swallowed around it before pulling off and sucking hard again.

“Will you let me fuck your face, sweetheart?”

Cal pulled off my dick with a lewd pop, his eyes watery and lips red. “Yes, please.” He positioned his mouth over my erection, and I grabbed his face in both my hands, pulling him down onto me, his beard rasping against my palms. After that, I set a quick pace, pushing into his mouth on short strokes while Cal tightened his lips.

It was too good, and in what felt like seconds, I was close to the edge. Too close.

“Stop, Cal. Stop.” I released his face, and he pulled off my dick. “Your mouth is fucking perfection, but I don’t want to come down your throat.” He sat back on his heels, and I stood, holding out my hand. “Come on, baby, there’s something I want to do.”

He took my hand, and I helped him to his feet. His pants were open, his cock so hard it brushed against his stomach. “Let’s get you out of these. Kick off your shoes.” He did as I asked, and my hands found the waistband of his pants.

“Wait. What about Andrea?” Cal’s voice was rough from sucking my cock.

“She and Robyn are giving us privacy. That’s what I was talking with them about.”

“So they know we’re back here fucking?”

I nodded. “Probably.”

Cal moaned. “Why is that so hot?”

It was hot, and there wasn’t a good answer for why we both liked the idea of someone hearing us have sex, at least not one that needed to be discussed right at that moment, so instead of responding, my lips found Cal’s in a searing kiss. I tugged his pants and underwear down, and he kicked them away while I backed him toward the single seat across the aisle that he’d been occupying earlier.

Cal’s calves hit the edge of the seat, and I broke our kiss just enough to pull his shirt up over his head and toss it somewhere behind me with the rest of his clothes. Then, I pressed my palm flat to his chest and pushed him back so he landed in the chair.

“What—”

Holding a finger to my lips, I shushed him. “This is my show. You’ll do what I say and take what I give you.”

Cal’s eyes burned, and a shudder slid down his spine as he relaxed. “Yes.”

“Good.” I divested myself of the rest of my clothes and reached for my bag that I’d stashed in the chair behind where Cal was currently on display. While we’d been packing, I’d rolled up both of the silk ties Cal and I had decided not to wear and stuffed them into the front pocket of my laptop bag next to a tube of lube. I grabbed both ties and the lube.

As I returned to Cal, I pressed the button on the seat to lower it. Cal struggled to stay seated until I put my palm against his chest again and encouraged him to lie back. I’d draped the two ties over my shoulder, and the second Cal spotted them, his mouth dropped open, and his eyes closed. His dick leaked, a pool of precum collecting on his abs.

“Jack, please.”

“I know what you need, sweetheart. I’ve always known.” Reaching out, I cupped his chin. “Open your eyes and look at me.”

His lids fluttered open, revealing blown pupils, the dark brown of his irises almost completely swallowed up by the black.

“Do you remember the day we arrived at Reuben’s?”

He nodded. “How could I forget? That was the day you bit me in the pool.”

“Yes.” I took his hand and gently lifted his arm over his head. Reuben’s plane had seat belts that were more like a car’s than the ones on a commercial jet, which made them even more perfect for playing out this fantasy. “I saw you in the shower.”

For a heartbeat, Cal didn’t react, then his expression cleared, and he looked at me with wide eyes.

“I watched you get yourself off, and I heard you say my name when you came.”

“Jack.”

I pressed a kiss to Cal’s lips and whispered the next part against his ear. “I got myself off thinking of you just like this.” Tugging the seat belt to give myself some slack, I wrapped it around his wrist, then grabbed his other hand and pulled it over his head, wrapping that wrist in the seat belt too. In this position, his ass was in perfect position at the edge of the seat.

Stepping back to survey my handiwork, I pulled one of the ties—the one I was supposed to have worn—over my shoulder and trailed the cool material down Cal’s body. His eyes fluttered closed again, and his cock jumped.

“Lean forward.”

Cal obeyed without question, and I folded the tie in half, then covered his eyes with it, tying it at the back of his head.

“Jack.” Another whine.

“I know, sweetheart. You’re almost ready for me. Bring your knees up.” He didn’t hesitate for a second, his abs contracting as he pulled his knees to his chest.

I popped the cap on the lube and squeezed some into my hand. Usually, I loved to tease Cal until he begged, but today, that wasn’t what I wanted, and it wasn’t what Cal needed. I circled his hole with one lubed finger, pressing against his opening until he relaxed enough to let me in. I slid inside him to the second knuckle. He was so hot and tight, and he contracted around the intrusion, letting out a long, keening moan.

Pressing in as far as I could, I sought out his prostate, massaging the tip of my finger against the spot before pulling back. Cal tugged against his restraints, chasing my finger, and I repeated the same move again and again until precum trickled down his shaft in a steady stream.

“Please, Jack. I need you.”

I added more lube to my fingers and slid two inside him, stretching him for me. Watching my fingers disappear into his tight channel made my head spin and my cock ache. Through our bond, I felt his pleasure, and I wasn’t sure how much more prep I could handle before I came without even being inside him.

“I need your cock, goddamn it. Please, Jack. Fuck me.”

His need echoed in our bond, and the last of my restraint snapped. I pulled out of Cal’s body, reached for the lube, and coated my cock.

I tapped the head of my dick against Cal’s hole and watched as he gripped the seat belt restraints so tight his knuckles turned white as I slid into his body, bottoming out on the first thrust.

“Jack!” Cal screamed my name while I felt what he was feeling through our bond, and my vision whited out for a second, the dual sensations of pleasure threatening to overwhelm me before I could play out every aspect of my fantasy.

Cal’s hips wriggled against me, and I braced my hands on the back of his thighs as I slowly pulled out and thrust back in hard. My mate whined with pleasure, so I did it again.

“You’re so damn perfect. Made for me. Mine .” The last word was little more than a growl, and Cal’s body squeezed hard around me as his head fell to the side, exposing his neck and his saddle patch with my claiming mark in the center. Seeing the mark made me feral, and I lost control, driving into Cal’s body over and over until my balls drew up and I shot my cum deep inside him. I kept thrusting until my dick stopped twitching inside him, and then I pulled out, watching as my release leaked from his body.

I swirled my fingers around his hole and pushed my cum back into him, leaving my fingers there as I thrust my still-half- hard cock against his, spreading lube and cum all over his balls and stomach.

“Jack, please. Please. I need to come. I need it, Jack.” His babbled begging made me smile, and I pressed my fingers deeper into his body, tagging his prostate again.

Bending forward, I kissed over the scar in his eyebrow he’d gotten during our fight in Budapest, visible just over the edge of the tie covering his eyes, then licked down his neck, tracing the swirl in his saddle patch, the visual reminder that I was Cal’s fated mate, with my tongue. Traveling lower, I found one of his nipples and tugged it into my mouth. Cal enjoyed a little pain with his pleasure, so I teased the flesh with my teeth until his legs locked around my back and held me close as he rocked his hips, trying to find friction against my cock. With him holding me tight, it was hard to keep my fingers inside him, but I managed it as I turned my attention to his other nipple.

“Jack. Need. You. Please.” His legs squeezed me tighter.

My cock was fully hard again, and I wanted nothing else but to be inside him where I belonged.

“You need to let me go, sweetheart.”

“No. Never. You’re mine.”

“I can’t give you what you want like this.” I pushed back against his legs, and he seemed to realize what I was saying. He let me go, bringing his knees to his chest again, and a smile spread across my face. Cal really was perfect for me.

Lining up my cock, I pulled my fingers from Cal’s hole and drove into him on the next breath. This time, there was no tease, no buildup. I fucked him wild, the force of my thrusts pushing him along the plush leather of the seat, the sounds of our flesh slapping together mixing with our ragged breaths in an erotic soundtrack.

“More.”

I wrapped my palm around his shaft, barely able to match the pace of my strokes to the tempo of my thrusts, but Cal still begged for more.

“More, Jack. More. Please.”

My mate rolled his head from side to side, and I pressed a palm to his cheek, holding his head against the seat and clamping my mouth down on my claiming bite, sucking hard.

Cal came with a shout that rang in my ears, his hot cum spilling between us as I came deep inside him again.

For a long time, neither of us moved. My tongue teased lazily along my bite on Cal’s neck while Cal shuddered through the aftershocks of his orgasm. Finally, my cock softened, and I slid from my mate’s body. He whimpered a little at the loss, and I pushed myself off him.

The makeshift blindfold had slid down Cal’s face, and he looked at me with so much love in his eyes that it made my vision blur.

“I fucking love you, Jack.”

“I love you too, Cal. So goddamn much.”

I gently unwound the seat belt from around his wrists and brought the seat to the upright position while I massaged Cal’s arms and hands. From Cal’s side of the bond, all I felt was contentment and bone-deep satisfaction. As I’d hoped, he’d forgotten his worries about his brother. I wasn’t naive enough to think I could fuck the problem away, but for now, it seemed to be the last thing on Cal’s mind, and that was good enough for me.

We both cleaned up in the airplane’s tiny bathroom, and while Cal got himself together, I straightened the cabin, doing my best to wipe things down with some leather cleaner I found under the bar near the rear of the plane.

When Cal came out of the bathroom, I handed him a bottle of water, and we sat side by side, our fingers intertwined until we touched down in Amsterdam.

I could honestly say it was the best flight I’d ever taken.

And when we arrived at the hotel and there was only one bed, we both laughed.

This time, there would be no pillow wall separating us, and I couldn’t wait to fall asleep with my mate in my arms.