Ten Wyatt

Ididn't know what to do. My jaw hung open as I stared at Tanner, the last person I expected to see when I'd snuck out for dinner that night. The Chinese place down the road had good food, and he always stayed locked up in his room every night. The chances of running into him were less than zero, but I definitely didn't expect to run into him while I had my dick in my hand.

He stared for a long moment before his eyes flashed downward, then back up, his bottom lip bitten between his teeth. It was at that moment I realized that I'd turned to face him, and my cock was still hanging out of my jeans.

"Fuck!" I yelped, turning around and stuffing it back into my pants. "S-Sorry."

He didn't reply.

"I… uh… didn't expect to see you here, bro … I mean, dude." I zipped up my pants and turned back, keeping my gaze pointed at the floor. "You caught me off guard."

"It's fine," he said, his voice filled with a bit less irritation than I was used to. "Whatever."

He turned away, heading over to the sinks to wash his hands. I took a deep breath before following suit to the second sink. A massive mirror covered the wall in front of us, and no matter which way I looked, I could still see him in my periphery. His tan skin glowed in the warm light. For the first time, I noticed the trail of freckles up his forearms. I was suddenly taken with the urge to kiss each one of them.

"I… uh… can go somewhere else if you want," I said at last, shaking my head. There was no way I could think clearly around him. Not when his vanilla scent was slowly overtaking me. "There's plenty of other places to go."

Grabbing a paper towel, he began to dry off his hands as he leaned his left hip against the sink. He stared at me for a long moment, contemplating the situation. I was fully prepared to leave. Just being near him was already making my body react in ways that I knew would piss him off. A quick glance down would be all it took to spot the chub filling out my jeans.

"You don't have to leave."

I looked up. "I… I don't?"

"No." He gave me a small shrug. "It's a big restaurant. You eat your meal, and I'll eat mine. We live in the same apartment, for fuck's sake, I think we can handle an entire buffet."

"Right," I nodded, feeling stupid for even suggesting it. "Sorry."

He sighed, clearly still irritated with me. Without a word, he turned and left the bathroom, the door swinging closed behind him.

I stood there for a long moment, every thought imaginable running through my head. Of course, I was embarrassed for basically flashing the poor guy. After my behavior earlier in the week, I had a feeling the last thing he wanted to see was my cock staring at him. Then again, the way he bit his lower lip reminded me of that night in the hotel. It was how he'd told me to keep going, and I couldn't help imagining how great it would be to have him slam me up against the wall and have his way with me.

Reaching down, I shifted my dick off to the side, my wandering thoughts and the tight fabric not making a good combination. It was pathetic how much I wanted him. After talking with Parker, I understood that what I was feeling was the mate bond. However, I'd yet to determine if Tanner felt it, too, or if he just plain hated me. With a few days to think about it, I'd come to the conclusion that I wanted him. How long it would last, though, was the question.

Lots of wolves said mate bonds were forever. But at the same time, I knew quite a few divorced werewolves who had moved on to other mates. Whether they were bonded or not was a mystery to everyone except them. Was I going to fall for Tanner only to realize a few months down the line that I actually wasn't gay, and it had all been a fluke? Maybe I was going through a weird phase. Or perhaps it was because I'd fucked him under a full moon, and there was some weird magic associated with that. I really had no idea. Not to mention, he was a human. If I even attempted to mate with him, I'd be kicked out of the pack and probably disowned by my father. Then, it was goodbye to the future and fortune for me.

But I was sure that I wanted to be his friend at least, even if only to make his stay here a bit more enjoyable. From what little he'd told me, things were rough for him back home. I could relate to that. I didn't know if I could ever admit how I felt about him out loud, but being a decent person shouldn't be too difficult. Wolves and humans could be friends. My father practiced that every day. They just couldn't be more than that.

And that's the way it had to stay.

Taking a deep breath, I summoned up my courage and headed back out into the dining room. I grabbed a plate at the buffet, loaded it up, and headed back to the table. The nerves twisting up my stomach made it hard to feel hungry, but I had to eat something. Work was too busy to squeeze in a meal most days, so dinner was my only chance.

I was back at my table and sitting before I heard a small sigh near me. Turning to my right, I saw Tanner sitting there, staring in my direction. He'd been sat at the table right next to me. I couldn't reach out and touch his shoulder if I wanted to.

"S-Sorry," I apologized again. "I can get my food to go."

My hand was halfway in the air to get the waitress"s attention before Tanner reached over and pulled it back down.

"It's fine," he said. "Maybe we should just sit together."

My jaw nearly hit the floor. "Y-You don't have t-to do that."

"No, I think we need to talk." He grabbed his plate and drink, bringing them over to my table and sitting across from me. "We can't keep pretending the other doesn't exist. It's exhausting."

I had to nod in agreement. It was exhausting. However, I wasn't sure I wanted to have this conversation in a public place.

Tanner picked up his chopsticks and took a bite of his food. I followed suit, not wanting to be the first to broach the subject. It was going to be hard enough to answer him, much less drive the conversation myself. I still didn't know what the fuck to say to him.

"Are you still claiming the hotel thing didn't happen?" he asked suddenly.

I paused mid-chew and looked up at him. Those brown eyes were boring a hole in me again, staring straight through to my wolfy soul. I took a deep breath and shook my head. It was the best answer I could muster.

"Okay." He let out the breath he'd been holding. "I… I understand this is hard for you. I get the feeling that you don't… do things like that very often. It was probably the first time, yeah?"

I nodded, feeling a rush of respect for him. He was being extremely delicate with the subject and did not force me to say anything I wasn't ready for. Maybe he understood more than I was giving him credit for.

"What happened wasn't shameful. I hope you know that."

I didn't respond.

"And… I'm sorry for being so pissed at you."

My gaze lifted to his once more, and my brows furrowed.

"I was forced to go to that conference by my dad, and he had a lot of expectations about what would come of it. When you snuck out, it kind of left me in a hard place. On top of feeling a little abandoned, I'd lost my chance to satiate my father. He's been riding my ass about it ever since, and I think it was the determining factor for firing me." He leaned back in his chair. "None of that is your fault. That's my baggage. But I think I've been placing all the blame on you because… well, I'm just plain pissed off."

There I was, sitting across from the man who I was sure hated me more than anyone else in the world, and he was pouring his heart out to me. I didn't have enough context to understand the full story, but I thought I knew what he was getting at.

"My dad forced me to go to that conference, too," I replied, putting my fork down. "There's a lot of expectations coming from him, and I feel like I'm being crushed sometimes. So I think I understand where you're coming from."

Tanner let out a sigh, a small smirk coming to his lips. "Dads are the fucking worst, right?"

I nodded. "Yeah, they are."

"Sounds like we have more in common than I thought."

He returned to his plate, and I followed suit. We ate in silence for a couple of minutes, my mind racing. For the first time since I met him, I didn't feel a seething hatred coming from his side of the table. His shoulders relaxed, and he seemed almost at ease.

"I'm sorry I snuck out," I blurted out, almost by accident.

Tanner looked up, a piece of chicken halfway to his lips.

"I… I was terrified. I still am, if I'm being honest." I glanced up, too afraid to hold his gaze for long. "This… This has never happened to me, and I d-didn't know what to do."

His expression shifted from one of confusion to pity in an instant, and I suddenly felt somehow worse. I didn't want him to pity me. I just wanted him to understand.

"I'm sorry it made you feel bad. That wasn't my intention."

"You're a strange person, Wyatt Trombley," he replied, giving me a once-over. "Usually, guys don't apologize for me tricking them into something."

"You didn't trick me into anything," I replied. "I put you in a really bad situation." I gestured to myself and the world at large. "Look at this mess I put you in, bro!" I stopped. "Dude. I mean, dude. Sorry. I know you hate that."

Tanner began to laugh, his warm smile spreading over his face, making him even more beautiful.

"You are a mess, you know that?"

Heat flushed to my cheeks. "I know…"

"Hey," he replied, reaching across the table and patting my hand. "I am, too. It's cool." He leaned back once more, the warmth of his skin leaving me longing for more. "I guess both of our lives are pretty fucking complicated, huh?"

"Sure seems like it," I nodded.

He glanced up at me. "I think we should probably just get it over with and be friends then."

My heart swelled in my chest, and I had a sudden burst of butterflies in my stomach. I could almost feel my tail wagging even though I wasn't in wolf form.

"I… I'd like that, I think."

"Me too," Tanner said, taking another bite of his food. He pointed his chopsticks at me. "Just no more kissing without asking, all right?"

My cheeks flushed bright red in embarrassment. "Right. Of course."