6. Dante

6

Dante

E llis is a tornado of emotion in our bond. He barely makes it in the front door before he drops his bag on the floor and curses. I turn to look at him from the couch in the living room. I've been on this couch for too long, playing a video game to let off some steam. Not being able to work out is putting me on edge, even if the rest period is helping my shoulder. The game is fun enough, and I've made it to level thirteen, but I feel like a slug, sitting here with an ice pack wrapped around my shoulder, doing nothing.

Tension rolls off of Ellis like a heat wave. A tension I recognize well.

"I take it you were with the pretty beta again?" I say, a slight tease in my voice.

Instead of answering, he stalks behind the couch, pulls my head back and crashes his lips into mine.

Because of our bond, I've been able to feel Ellis's growing attraction to his sister's best friend over the past week, but this is the first time he's come home from practice this wound up. I don't hate it. But it does make me very curious to meet this woman.

Sensing my feelings, Ellis breaks the kiss. "There's nothing to worry about."

"I know."

Ellis and I made an agreement when we bonded. No sexual relationships outside the pack. We'll occasionally invite McQuinn or Nils into our bed, but only together. I trust Ellis, and I know he wouldn't break that trust. He also would never make a move on his sister's friend. That doesn't mean he won't feel the attraction, though. That's not something he can control.

And I have no problem helping him deal with that little issue.

I tug on his hand. "Come here."

He circles around to the front of the couch while I set the video game controller on the coffee table. Unwrapping the ice pack from my shoulder, I plop it down by the controller then reach for the elastic waistline of the sweatpants he changed into after the pool. He covers my hands with his, stopping me. His nails are a bright purple today, a color I know he only uses when he's feeling tormented.

"It's really nothing, you know that, right?" He says. "I'd never—"

"I know." I can feel all the love Ellis has for me pouring down the bond, and I send it back to him in equal measure. "We're fine, babr."

"Babr." His exhale borders on a laugh. It started as a texting accident, an autocorrect fail. Babe to babr. Now it's been three years, and he's still my babr.

"Let me show you just how fine we are." I pull his pants down, revealing his cock.

The light glints off his reverse Prince Albert piercing, and I savor the sight of pre-cum gathered at the top of his hard length. I tease him with a slow lick, swirling my tongue around the metal, making him moan. Tilting my head, I place slow, sucking kisses along the underside of Ellis's shaft, then lick up the beads of arousal leaking from his tip. When I finally stop teasing and wrap my lips all the way around him, he collapses forward, leaning over me and grabbing the back of the couch for support. I don't let him take the lead. Not this time. I set a punishingly slow pace.

Movement catches my attention out of the corner of my eye, and when I glance over, I see McQuinn leaning against the wall, watching. His shoulders are tight and lifted. His arms crossed over his chest, muscles bulging. That man could use a release, too. He's been wound too tight ever since he learned about my shoulder.

I remove my mouth from Ellis and look at McQuinn. "Want to help our Ellis here relax?"

"Yes. Please, yes," Ellis gasps as I return my mouth to his cock.

McQuinn doesn't bother answering. But I hear the slide of a drawer opening in the end table where we keep an extra bottle of lube. Then the click of a cap and the squirt of liquid.

Within a few minutes, Ellis cries out, and I know McQuinn didn't bother warming him up much. We both know when Ellis gets like this he wants it hard and rough, with just the slightest bit of pain. An ache he can hold onto.

Ellis gasps, then moans. McQuinn's thrusts push Ellis's cock deeper down my throat, and I have to focus on breathing through my nose to keep from gagging. My cock is hard and throbbing, but I ignore it for now, wanting to take care of my bonded.

When Ellis gasps, "I'm—gonna—come," I reach between his legs and grab McQuinn's balls, giving a slight tug. They both explode in quick succession. Ellis fills my mouth, and I swallow everything he gives me. McQuinn's balls tighten, and he curses as he comes.

After McQuinn pulls out, Ellis sinks to his knees between my legs. All the tension drained out of him. His release was fast and hot and exactly what my man needed.

McQuinn kisses Ellis's cheek and then leans over his shoulder and gives me a kiss that's too soft for the hotheaded man. It shows the worry he feels behind his blustering about my shoulder.

Kisses like this make me wonder if McQuinn wants to bond with us. I'm certain he wants to bond Nils, but sometimes I think he wants that connection with Ellis and I too. It's just a feeling. I could be wrong, and it's not something I'm offering. I know firsthand how risky it can be to bond before your pack has an omega to hold you all together.

It took years of asking and a lot of trust for me to bond Ellis. And I did it with eyes wide open, knowing no omega would ever pull him away from me.

It never even crossed my mind until now that there might be a beta who could.

"Thanks, I needed that," McQuinn says, before going to clean up, leaving Ellis and me alone.

I run my fingers through Ellis's hair as he rests his cheek on my thigh.

"Why can't I get her out of my head, D?" he whispers. "I don't usually react this way to betas. To anyone. Sure, I'll find someone attractive now and then, but with her… shit. I'm sorry."

"No. It's okay. I want you to be honest with me." I stroke his sandy blonde hair and contemplate what he's saying as I stare up at the ceiling. "Maybe she's meant to be pack?"

The thought terrifies me, but I try to remind myself that not all packs are like my mom's. "What does she smell like?"

"Nothing. She doesn't smell like anything at all. It's… maddening."

"You've always liked a mystery." I chuckle, and he looks up at me.

"You think that's all this is?"

"Maybe not knowing what she smells like has you thinking about her more than you normally would, projecting your favorite smells onto her… I don't know." I shrug, unsure if I believe my own explanation or not, but it seems to calm Ellis, which is all I really want.

"Maybe I'll have more insight when I meet her," I add.

Ellis sighs and looks up at me with a soft expression. "Thank you. You know you're my favorite, right?"

"Harrison's mine." I quirk a smile, and Ellis backhands my thigh with a laugh.

"I think you're about to have a new favorite." His eyes twinkle, and it's clear he's thinking of the beta again.

I have no desire to bring a beta into our pack. If it weren't for the Olympic rules, I wouldn't even want one on the team. But Ellis already knows that, so instead of responding, I kiss him, determined to distract him and use his obsession to spark another round.