“Sam,” Foster said when he’d recognized the omega, voice low so as not to awaken anyone.
The omega wolf’s eyes were huge as he took in Crow, who stiffened and squeezed Foster’s hand.
“Is that him?” Sam asked quietly. “Your true mate?”
Foster nodded, unable to keep the happy smile from breaking over his face. “Sam, this is Crow. Crow, my best friend, Sam.”
Crow gave a wary nod, and Sam tilted his head in submission, showing Crow the omega considered the coyote alpha equal in status to a werewolf alpha.
Crow visibly relaxed. “Hi, Sam.”
“Don’t tell Leo tonight,” Foster whispered, giddy with happiness. “I’ll introduce him tomorrow.”
The omega wolf peered curiously at the alpha coyote from under the fringe of his hair and nodded. Foster led Crow into his bedroom, shutting and locking the door behind them. The house was quiet, and Foster heard the faint click of Sam closing his door followed by the squeak of the bed in the next room. Foster turned on the portable fan he’d brought from the apartment, hoping its constant whir would cover any noises, although sounds of love-making were a regular thing among the werewolves and unlikely to get anyone out of their beds. Of course, if they realized the sounds were coming from Foster’s room, the whole pack would likely charge in there.
Foster turned to look at Crow, really taking him in for the first time. The man’s naked body was a masterpiece of muscle and sinew. His beautiful nutmeg skin shone in the moonlight pouring in the curtainless window. The hair on Crow’s legs and sprinkled over his chest was as dark as that on his head, and Foster found himself fascinated by the small trail leading to the patch around Crow’s large cock. Without thinking, he dropped to his knees in front of the alpha, breath coming in short, aroused pants and mouth salivating. With a noise somewhere between a growl and a groan, Crow stepped forward until the wet tip of his cock touched Foster’s lips.
Eagerly, Foster opened his mouth and took Crow in, sucking hard. The last man he’d done this to had been Sam, before the omega had mated Leo, but that had been nothing like this. Sam was a young omega and a friend, and Crow was an adult alpha coyote, Foster’s true mate, created for him by the coyote gods. Spit trickled from the corners of Foster’s mouth as he sank farther down on Crow’s cock, the alpha’s scent filling his nostrils. Foster felt almost high on it, and remembered hearing stories about true mates told around the bonfire at night in his old pack and how their scent could drive each other wild. He couldn’t get Crow’s entire shaft in his mouth, so compensated by using his hand. He turned his eyes up, watching the alpha watching him. The whole thing was so decadent and felt so, so right, Foster’s cock leaked in his pants. He pressed his hand against it, a shiver running through him.
“No,” Crow said, voice full of authority.
Foster immediately took his hand away, overwhelmed at how arousing it was to obey his alpha’s command. His own cock aching and ignored, he bobbed his head, slurping and sucking, loving the taste of his true mate’s silky skin and the smell of the alpha’s fragrant musk. The first salty taste of Crow’s pre-cum made Foster moan, and the vibration around the alpha’s cock had Crow moaning in return. He fisted his hands in Foster’s hair and guided the beta, forcing more of his cock into Foster’s eager mouth. Foster managed not to gag when Crow hit the back of his throat. He wanted to take it all perfectly. He wanted to make his alpha true mate proud. He loosened his throat muscles and felt Crow’s cock slide downward. Breathing carefully, Foster took it, the tremor of pleasure that ran through his alpha’s body his reward.
When Crow was rock hard and dripping, he slid out of his mate’s mouth and guided Foster to walk over to the bed. Foster stood, dazed, as Crow stripped him of his clothes. Freed, Foster’s cock stood at rigid attention, the small knot thickening at its base. Foster’s balls hurt, they were so full. He needed relief.
“Please, Crow.” Weak with desire, Foster collapsed on the bed.
Crow’s dark eyes ran over every inch of Foster’s nude body, and Foster couldn’t help but thrust his hips upward in eager anticipation.
Crow’s answering growl was low and feral, and Foster almost came at the sound of it. He closed his eyes and squirmed against the sheets. Is this how an omega in heat feels? He couldn’t imagine needing it any more than he already did.
“Turn over,” Crow said, and Foster scrambled to do so.
Foster wondered if Crow would enter him dry and found he didn’t care. Pain or pleasure—either was acceptable from his true mate. He felt Crow parting the cheeks of his ass and spit hit his hole, which twitched in anticipation of being filled. Crow massaged the wetness into Foster’s pucker, and then, when Foster was sure Crow would push inside him, the feel of his mate’s warm, wet tongue brought a cry from the beta’s lips.
Crow alternated lapping and probing, and Foster found himself holding his breath at each swipe and poke of the wet muscle. He gasped when Crow’s tongue breeched him, lapping at his inner walls.
“Oh, gods…please!” Foster begged, squeezing his eyes shut and fisting the sheet in his hands.
Crow withdrew his tongue and sucked hard before pushing spit inside Foster until the coyote beta’s hole was sopping wet. Then Crow flipped Foster onto his back and lifted the beta’s knees so Foster’s ass rose an inch off the bed.
“Look at me,” Crow demanded, and although it was an order, Foster heard the devotion there.
Opening his eyes, the heavy desire Foster saw in Crow’s gaze took his breath away. Crow breached Foster in one quick surge that brought Foster’s mouth open in pleasure. Foster tried to hold the alpha’s gaze while the smooth hardness was buried deep inside him, but it was difficult. Being full of Crow felt like what Foster’s body had been created for. His knees shook, and Crow tightened his grip on them.
The bond Foster had felt for months strengthened as their bodies crashed together, Crow moving inside Foster with slow thrusts of his hips, eyes locked with his mate’s. Leaning forward, the alpha covered the beta’s body with his own, and the skin on skin contact brought a spurt of cum from Foster’s cock. He whimpered, fingers scrambling on his alpha’s smooth back. The soft slide of Crow’s cock against Foster’s prostate had the muscles in the beta’s belly rippling with tension. With feet still planted on the floor, Crow lifted his body and pushed Foster’s knees higher, curling the beta inward until the penetration became so deep, Foster keened, his eyes fluttering shut.
“Watch me, mate,” Crow said, voice husky with emotion.
Foster trained his gaze on Crow again. The dark orbs seemed to devour him as sensation rose, and Foster catapulted toward the peak.
Nothing. Nothing could ever feel better than this. Even the tremendous stretch of Foster’s rim felt good. His knot throbbed, balls aching for release, but he obeyed his mate and did not touch himself.
“You will not come until I knot you,” Crow said, and Foster could die at the way he felt when his alpha commanded him. He’d be happy to die, right there on the spot, with Crow’s cock buried deep inside him and the alpha’s eyes locked with his.
Foster took a deep breath, trying to ward off the climax curling inside him as Crow moved in and out, the muscles in the alpha’s face, neck, and shoulders tense with impending release. The dark eyes never left Foster’s as the smacking of skin on skin grew louder, overriding the sound of the oscillating fan and the creaking of the bed. Foster lifted his arms, grabbing the top of the mattress, body stretching as the prickling sensation of impending release overtook him.
“I’m…I’m…”
“You will wait for me,” Crow said.
Foster groaned. He saw Crow’s eyes glazing over seconds before the bulging knot popped inside.
Crow whispered, “Come.”
Foster shot off like a rocket, body jerking and garbled sounds leaving his throat. His calves locked around Crow’s neck as a ripple of pleasure flowed all the way up his body, coalescing in his brain, leaving him dizzy and sex-drun
k. Crow had knotted him, and Foster completely blissed out. The beta was barely aware when the alpha slid his arms under his and lifted him up, still attached, arranging them on their sides, facing one another with their heads on the pillows. Foster had one leg draped over Crow’s, and he smiled into his alpha’s eyes. Crow leaned in and kissed him, pulling him closer while they waited out the knot.
* * * *
Foster lay with his head resting on Crow’s chest, their legs tangled together. The clock on the table, something the pack had never bothered with before coming to the city, read nearly three AM. Body so relaxed Foster felt disconnected from it, he yawned and idly ran his hand down the soft skin of Crow’s side. He felt sure the pack would welcome Crow, but Foster didn’t think his mate would be content to stay. Foster smiled and ran his fingers over the healed mating bite Crow had given him.
“Tell me more about yourself. Your pack,” Foster said. They’d been talking between bouts of sex, and Foster loved hearing about Crow’s coyote pack in the Mojave Desert. He’d already learned it wasn’t large, only around forty coyotes, and their pack alpha was called Koi. Most fascinating to Foster, the pack lived in underground dwellings beneath the desert where it was cooler in the daytime and warmer at night.
Every breath Crow took dipped Foster’s head on the alpha’s chest. He could hear the coyote alpha’s heart beating, and when Crow spoke, the words rumbled against his ear.
“I’ve told you everything about them.”
“You couldn’t have.” Foster turned his head to look at his mate. “You haven’t said anything about your family.”
“It’s just my grandfather. He’s old and a healer. There isn’t much else to tell.”
“That’s interesting.”
Crow smiled at him. “Is it?”
“Everything about you is interesting. Why did you leave your pack?”
Crow’s dark eyes met his. “To find you, of course. I knew you were out there somewhere, waiting for me. I could feel you.”
Foster smiled and laid his head down again to hide the tears prickling his eyes, although a moment later, they were pooling onto Crow’s chest. A gentle hand smoothed Foster’s hair back from his face.
“Nothing will come between us now, my mate.”
Foster pressed a kiss to Crow’s skin, the alpha’s sparse, dark chest hair tickling his nose. “Nothing,” he agreed. After a moment of heavy silence, Foster took a breath and spoke again. “When will we leave?”
Foster felt the slight jolt of his alpha’s body. “Leave?”
“For your pack.” Foster held his breath until strong arms tugged him upward, and he found himself straddling his alpha.
“You want to go back there?” Crow’s eyes were two pools of darkness.
Slowly, Foster nodded. “Unless there’s some reason you don’t want to take me back to your pack.”
“I want that more than anything,” Crow said, “but I also want what makes you happy.”
“I’ve been waiting for you. I’ve always planned to leave with you.”
Crow looked as though he couldn’t quite believe it. “You would really return with me?”
“Of course.” Foster leaned in and wrapped his arms around his mate’s shoulders.
“I thought…perhaps you’d want to remain with your friends.”
The knowledge Crow wanted to be with him so much he’d stay with the werewolves squeezed Foster’s heart. The thought of leaving his friends hurt, but Foster knew his place was in his mate’s pack.
“I think it would be better to live with our kind in your pack. I belong with you, Crow.”
Crow took Foster’s face in his hands and kissed the beta, hard and long before burrowing his nose into Foster’s neck and sinking his teeth into the area of the mating bite he’d given Foster earlier that night.
Foster stiffened for a second, an odd sound, half-gasp, half-whimper, escaping his lips. It hurt, but the rightness of it overrode the pain. One of Crow’s big hands possessively clutched Foster’s ass while the other threaded through the beta’s hair, keeping the younger coyote still as Crow’s canines sank deeper into the flesh of Foster’s neck.
Foster’s breathing sped up, every nerve feeling his alpha’s dominance until he gave in and went limp. Crow let go of Foster’s hair, and his left hand joined his right on the beta’s ass. He aligned their cocks, and with one more sharp dig of his teeth, Crow let go. Foster sagged forward, neck stinging and heart still beating fast. When Crow began thrusting his hips so their cocks slid against one another, Foster shuddered and groaned, thoughts swimming in the dazed head space the bite had inflicted. He spiraled toward climax almost without realizing it, the force of it leaving him shaken and spent. Crow stroked Foster’s back, murmuring words Foster later wondered if he’d imagined, the slickness of their release covering their bellies.
Foster fell asleep before he could ask Crow again when they would leave.
* * * *
Foster stood at the sink in the bathroom down the hall, brushing his teeth, when the sounds of two growling alphas reached his ears. Tossing down his toothbrush, he ran back to his room to find Leo crouched near the door and Crow by the closet, each ready to spring.
Foster rushed to Crow’s side, ducking under the alpha’s arm. “Leo, stop!” Foster shouted over the snarling of the werewolf.
The alpha werewolf’s muscles tightened. Crow’s low, menacing rumbles were no less frightening, and Foster cast a worried glance at his alpha.
Sam came in from the hall and rushed to put himself between Leo and Crow. With a terrible growl, Leo yanked the omega to his side.
“What is he doing coming into our bedroom?” Crow asked.
“I was checking on Foster,” Leo said, upper lip lifting in a snarl.
“He heard you,” Sam said. “I didn’t tell him, Foster.”
Leo growled again, as though annoyed his mate had kept the information from him.
“I’m Foster’s mate,” Crow said. “I take care of him. You don’t need to worry about him anymore.”
“All you’ve done for months is skulk about in the bushes,” Leo said, eyes accusing.
Crow’s nostrils flared. “I’ve been watching you. You’re entirely too familiar with my mate. That stops now.”
Leo inhaled deeply. “Foster, I’d like a word with you.”
Foster had expected it. Leo wasn’t going to just accept Crow in Foster’s life.
“Sam, go wait for me downstairs, please,” Leo said. He looked at Crow. “Would you step into the hall a moment?”
Crow scowled and glanced at Foster, who nodded.
Crow stalked out of the room, and Leo shut the door behind him. Foster could hear Crow growling through the wall.
Foster had already slipped on a pair of blue jeans, and he grabbed a shirt from the closet.
“Do I smell breakfast?” Foster asked, hoping to dispel the remaining tension lingering in the air.
“Don’t change the subject. When did he show up?”
“Last night while I was out by the stables.”
There was a moment of silence while Leo stared at Foster. “Are you happy with him?”
Foster pulled the shirt over his head. “His name is Crow, and yes. I am. I’m going back with him, Leo. To his pack.”
Leo sighed, shoulders sagging. “Sam is going to be heartbroken.”
“Don’t do that,” Foster said. “Don’t try to make me feel guilty. I belong with my true mate and the coyotes.”
“I know.” Leo’s face had lost all signs of ire, and Foster couldn’t stay angry with him.
“We’re going to miss you.”
Foster’s eyes filled. “I’m going to miss all of you, too.” He stepped into Leo’s arms, accepting the wolf’s warm embrace. When he walked out of the room, Crow stood leaning against the wall. He sniffed Foster and growled.
“Settle down,” Leo said from behind Foster. “It was only a friendly hug. Let’s go see what’s for breakfast.”
The wolf alpha’s cordial tone surprised Crow into silent acquiescence.
They found Sam, Josiah, Briar, and Sid cooking in the kitchen, with David, Jax, River, Kane, and Brooks eating at the long wooden table. They all stared curiously at Crow as Sid placed a tall stack of pancakes in the center of the table and took away the empty one. Josiah began to feed the girls.
“I told them he was here,” Sam said.
“Everyone, this is Crow, my true mate.” Foster began introducing each werewolf in turn, and was happy when each greeted Crow in a friendly and welcoming manner. Foster saw when each took note of the mating bite on his neck.
“Coffee?” Foster offered Crow in the ensuing silence.
His alpha nodded before taking a seat.
Foster poured the dark liquid into a bright red mug and handed it to his mate before pouring himself some. Leo had seated himself beside Sam at the table and was already half-way through his plate of pancakes.
Crow glanced at Foster and cleared his throat. “I would like to thank you for taking care of my true mate.” He looked around the table. “And I also would like to say I’m sorry for your loss.”
Foster knew his face had to look as surprised as the others.
Crow looked at Sid. “I had been watching all of you from a distance. I witnessed—the end of it.” Crow’s eyes clouded over. “Those…creatures. Your mate and the others didn’t have a chance. Those things were vicious. I’ve never seen anything like them.”
Sid shivered and sank into a chair, and Briar put a hand on his back.
“They’re called the Turned,” Foster said, slowly stirring milk into his coffee, trying to hold onto his composure as the awful memory of that night assaulted him. “They’re humans who have been bitten without wanting it and are now feral and thirsty to multiply or just to kill.”
“I think Jax’s scent attracted them that night,” Sid said, and all eyes turned to him.
Jax put down his fork. Foster wasn’t sure if Sid was blaming Jax or simply stating a fact.
Crow ran a hand down Foster’s arm. “As I said, I’d been watching Foster, trying to decide how he fit into your pack. I’d wanted to approach him several times, but I kept losing my nerve. I wasn’t sure what to think and wanted to observe until I felt more certain. That night, I’d just returned from bathing in the lake. I wanted to help, but it all happened so fast, and then it was over.”