3. Sacha Lupescu

Chapter three

Sacha Lupescu

M y hands were still shaking hours after kissing that man in the lobby. Not with nerves or shame or horror, but with barely restrained desire. There was nothing I wanted more than to track him down and start again. Hold him and kiss him and make him mine .

And I had never once been attracted to another man in my life.

Well, okay, I'd admired a few. Seen the appeal. But with celebrities and pro athletes. I was pretty sure everybody did that.

But everybody did not pin hotel guests to pillars and kiss them like their life depended on it. Didn't grind on him and get a thrill from feeling another cock harden against mine. Didn't want to do it again even though the poor guy had bucked me off of him because, hey, consent mattered, asshole .

I needed to apologize. I was not a horrible person in general and, as the owner's son, for fuck's sake, I couldn't risk the reputation of my mother's work by molesting guests. Sure, it had felt like the guy had been into it, but that didn't mean shit. That could've just been instinct or something, not agreement. I had to make this right.

But could I find the guy and apologize without doing it again? Because everything in me wanted to track down my prey and pounce on him. Like, seriously, my wolf could sniff out the man's whereabouts no problem, but could I control myself? I wasn't so sure.

And then, oh fuck, I realized I'd left the staff areas of the hotel and wandered outside to the pool. The exact place where the man was lounging on a chaise under the stars, looking at his phone, and no doubt trying to relax after getting assaulted in the lobby earlier.

"I'm sorry," I practically shouted.

The man flinched, gray eyes wide. After a moment, he nodded. "Okay."

Clearing my throat, I tried again. "I really do apologize for my behavior. I don't know what came over me." I winced. "That's not an excuse. I'm not trying to excuse myself, just… I really don't know what happened because I've never kissed a guy before."

Open-mouthed blinking was all I got in return, so I took a step backward, ready to turn and leave. I had apologized. Whether I would be forgiven wasn't up to me, and I couldn't expect an immediate answer either.

"What made you do it?"

I felt a blush light me up, but there was no one else out here at this time of night, so I could keep going without fear of witnesses. "I don't know. I saw you and…I had to kiss you."

The tiniest of smiles lifted the corner of the man's mouth and his eyes seemed to sparkle for a second. It gave me a sudden burst of hope. Hope for what? I really wasn't sure, but there it was pulsing inside me right along with my heartbeat. I walked a little closer.

"I know it wasn't something you agreed to at all." I held my hands up. "And that's perfectly understandable, of course." I stuffed my hands in my pockets and just had to ask, "But was it okay?"

"The kiss?"

I nodded.

That smile again. "Yeah, it was…good."

The wolf in me wanted to howl in happiness at that little bit of praise.

"Why don't you come sit down," the man offered, "and we can talk about things."

Though I wanted to look cool and confident, I was pretty sure I sprinted around the pool and threw myself onto the nearest chaise like an overeager puppy. He chuckled at me.

"I'm Zeke Castro."

Even his name was sexy. "Sacha Lupescu."

"Lupescu? Like the author of all those werewolf books?"

I blinked at him. "What werewolf books?"

"There's a shop that has all kinds of weird stuff in it. Crystals and magic supplies and books. There was a whole leather-bound series of werewolf books and the author was somebody named Lupescu."

Considering we were never supposed to talk about what we were, there was no way a member of the pack would ever write a book, let alone a series of them. Zeke had to have read the author wrong or something like that. Or maybe it was fiction? Somebody's attempt at a spooky-sounding pen name?

I shrugged it off, having no idea what Zeke was talking about. I might know which shop Zeke meant—a tourist trap peddling all kinds of crap—so I'd try to remember to pop in tomorrow and take a look at those books.

"So I'm your first same-sex kiss," Zeke said with a grin.

I chuckled, looking down at my shoes in embarrassment. "Yeah. I really don't know what came over me."

Zeke cleared his throat and shifted in his seat. "Well, um, at the same shop where the books are, The Owner gave me a… I mean, he called it a love potion," he said on a laugh, "but that's ridiculous, right?"

A love potion? I took a deep breath, trying not to be weird about it but wanting to see if I smelled anything on Zeke. I couldn't say that I did, just that I was very aware of Zeke's scent. No colognes or essential oils enhanced his natural aroma. He did smell good, though. He'd smelled good in the lobby, too.

"I don't smell anything," I said with a shrug.

Zeke shook his head. "Yeah, no one else could either. I could smell it, though. That's why I went right up to my room and took a shower." A blush bloomed on his cheeks.

"What did it smell like to you?"

"Pine needles, fresh dirt, and…" He chuckled. "Male musk."

While I loved two of those scents, that wasn't what he smelled like to me at all. Still, I had to wonder if the shop owner could've possibly done something to draw me to Zeke by amplifying his natural scent. Could he? Why would he? If it was the souvenir shop owner, the man was surly and definitely not any kind of a matchmaker. No one I knew would've ever gone to him looking for relationship advice. What possible purpose could he have for making me aware of Zeke?

"Anyway," Zeke said, waving his hand, "I'm happy to talk about the fluid nature of sexuality with you if you have questions or need reassurances. The first thing I'll say, though, is that one kiss does not have to redefine your sexuality at all if you don't want it to."

"What if I want to do it again?" I blurted before I even thought about it. I ducked my head and covered my mouth, mentally kicking myself.

A bark of a laugh jumped out of Zeke. "In that case, you might need to start thinking about things."

Yeah, I kind of figured I should. I was practically having a mate reaction to Zeke and—

Oh, fuck . I was having a mate reaction to Zeke! Sniff him out, claim him, keep him… It was all there! I wanted Zeke to be my destined life mate, the one person I'd spend the rest of my life protecting, encouraging, and loving with everything I had in me. I couldn't stop staring at Zeke who was staring back at me. What the hell was I supposed to do now?

Zeke's smile turned soft and soothing. "Don't worry, Sacha. Things aren't so bad nowadays for the LGBTQ community. And you could be bi, not gay, so it's like opening another door instead of closing one."

I was nodding, taking that in, but what I was really thinking about was how pissed off my mother was going to be when she found out my mate was male. I wasn't meant to be her heir or anything—everyone assumed my younger half-brother would do that—but Mother would see this as a definite disadvantage to her continued rule. She was all about perception, and this would be a black mark against her.

Zeke sat up, putting his feet on the ground on either side of his lounge chair. "Sacha, are there people in your life who won't be happy with such a turn of events?"

I nodded, liking that he could read me so well already. "My mother."

Reaching over, Zeke took my hand in both of his. "I won't even begin to try and tell you how to handle her, but please always remember that your safety is the number one priority, okay? You don't have to do anything that makes you feel unsafe."

I heard him, but Zeke was also lightly rubbing his thumb in circles on the back of my hand. It was hypnotizing and…arousing. Not just for me, either, because I could smell Zeke getting turned on, too. We were both breathing deeper, and the eye contact was making me feel hot all over.

I had all of a second to gasp before Zeke lunged toward me, flattening me back against the chaise and taking my mouth in a hungry kiss. Fair's fair? Yeah, I wasn't going to say boo about getting jumped without permission if that was what Zeke wanted to do. Not just reacting to my fumbling kisses this time, Zeke was owning my entire soul with his lips, tongue, and even some teeth.

That there was another man on top of me would've previously had me feeling threatened, shifting, and defending myself, but this time… Aw, man, all I wanted to do was hold Zeke closer and make sure he couldn't get away. I rolled, getting Zeke partway underneath me, and wedged my thigh between his. Both of us moaned, and Zeke hooked one leg across mine like he didn't want me to go anywhere either.

Some little rational part of my mind was sure that we should absolutely not be doing this out here where anyone could wander by and see us. Even though it was fully dark out, the area was decently lit, and it was one hell of a dumb move if I wasn't ready for my pack to know that my mate was a guy. I needed to prepare, think things through, come up with a plan, but then Zeke's fingers eased between us and rubbed against my fly, teasing my cock.

I pulled back, staring at Zeke as I gasped for breath. His eyebrows hopped up, asking a question, and he took hold of the button on my jeans. Gulping, I nodded. I shouldn't, but oh god, I needed to feel Zeke's hands on me.

Zeke grinned, biting his bottom lip, and popped the button free before finding the zipper and gliding it down. My breath caught when he reached in and found my cock, pulling me free.

"Commando and uncut?" Zeke said. "You wicked beast."

I chuckled. If only Zeke knew how beastly I could be. But then he stroked, and I moaned with my head thrown back and eyes closed. That was such a perfect feeling. A moment later and Zeke wrapped his other arm around behind my neck, pulling me back in for more devouring kisses.

Thrusting with Zeke's hand, I realized I needed to touch him, too. Holding onto his bare back under his shirt or gripping his denim-covered ass wasn't nearly enough. Working a hand between us, I opened Zeke's jeans, pushed cotton out of the way, and lifted out his long, stiff cock. I had a moment to gasp about having another man's dick in my hand before I matched Zeke's stroke and reveled in the way he moaned for me. That I was pleasuring my mate… Fuck, knowing that felt better than what he was doing for me.

When Zeke wrapped his long fingers around both of us, I saw stars. I couldn't help the pleasure-filled holler that left me as I bucked against him. I had to look down, see us rubbing against each other, my cock and my mate's. Why was that sight so perfect? So beautiful? It felt like nothing I'd ever known before.

And then there was the low-lidded, swollen-lipped look on Zeke's rugged face. He was losing himself in the sensations, too, and watching him was overwhelming me with emotions I'd never experienced during sex. A desperation, a need , filled me and exploded out of me as I came, clutching Zeke as close as I could get him.

I was trembling as I held onto Zeke and stared into the darkness. I'd crossed a line by doing this. There was no going back. Not only would I have to do everything in my power to win over this human man, but I'd also have to convince my mother to let us stay. Neither would be easy to do. And, strangely, only keeping Zeke really worried me. I'd do anything for my mate.

"Are you okay?" Zeke whispered.

I gulped and nodded. "Yeah."

Zeke rubbed both hands against my back like he was trying to soothe me. "First times can be kind of overwhelming."

Nodding again, I tucked my nose into Zeke's neck, breathing in his scent and trying for calm.

"You can freak out if you need to."

I chuckled and lifted my head. "I'm not freaking out."

Zeke grinned. "Okay, good."

Kissing Zeke this time, I tried to show him how much his reassurances meant to me. Because they meant everything.

"Hey!" a voice shouted from the darkness. "What're you doing over there?"