Page 12 of By the Blood Moon

Grinning at their handfuls of chocolate and sweets, the three fanged children,vampires, bounded down the walkway toward the adults waiting for them on the sidewalk and hastened to the next house, shouting their thank-you’s as they left.

Jaime was a bit ashamed at how long he stared in awe, but,really. “Vampires,” he breathed.

Finn chuckled. “They live in the blue house down the street. Cute family. Oh, I forgot the cider!” He rushed in and out of the kitchen in record time, fisting four miniature paper cups full of steaming cider as he jogged down the sidewalk toward the family group.

The three of them beamed at the sound of the excited exclamations from the children before Finn wandered back over.

They had a steady stream of visitors for the next couple of hours. Most of the street had decorated to welcome trick-or-treaters in some way or another, and as groups of small children being herded across the street by adults turned into slightly older children wandering up and down the sidewalks on their own, Jaime thought this was as close to a scene fromHalloweentownas he’d ever seen.

It wasn’t long before the four of them were posted up on the porch with their goodies, Jaime and Silas running food and cider replenishment service so that Sam and Finn could stay on trick-or-treating duty. Silas would stop and chat with the parents accompanying their kids, and somehow he always managed to wrangle Sam into the conversation.

By the time most of the neighborhood porch lights had gone out, Jaime’s feet were sore and he was ready to strip out of the horribly constricting pants for his favorite threadbare joggers.

But, as they packed up and made their way back inside, crashing onto whatever padded surface was closest, he truly couldn’t think of a time he’d felt lighter; more at peace. Besides Sheppard, Jaime had everyone he loved most in the world rightthere. They had spent an amazing day together, and Jaime had truly forgotten about all of their worries for a few hours.

Plus, he was about to be chased through the woods and railed by his hot wolfy boyfriend. Life was fucking good.

With two cookies in one hand and shoving a third into his mouth with the other, Silas said, “That was so much fun. We have to do that every year.”

The three of them grunted in agreement.

Next to him, Finn tapped Jaime’s foot with his own.

Right, ready to go.

Jaime pretended to stretch, suddenly not tired at all at the promise of what they had planned for the rest of their night. Picking up on his act, Finn yawned. "Well, I'm worn out. Let's head home for some shut-eye, yeah?" he said to Jaime.

Silas and Sam leveled them both with a look, like they weren't fooling anyone.

Jaime stood, and pulled Sam off the couch, wrapping him in a tight hug. "Thanks for dressing up with me. This was a great night.”

Sam gripped him back, hard, and buried his face in Jaime’s shoulder. “Yeah, it was.”

The four of them traded hugs with each other before Finn and Jaime walked out to the truck, arm in arm.

When they were both seated with the doors shut and the heat gently blowing on their feet, Finn reached over and palmed Jaime’s thigh, just below where his cock lay. “I’m requesting one alteration to our plans tonight.”

Jaime quickly looked up, trying to read Finn’s features in the dim light of the truck cabin. Instead of the caution he expected to find, he saw that Finn’s eyes had gone nearly black with want. His canines were as large as Jaime had ever seen them outside of his full shift, but he understood Finn perfectly when he growled, “These fucking pants stayon, until I decide they come off.”

The command zipped down Jaime’s spine like a lit fuse, simmering low in his belly and ratcheting his arousal directly to high. His cock chubbed up, drawing the crotch of his pants even tighter. Finn palmed him there, almost like he couldn’t help it, and Jaime whimpered. “Yes, ok. You decide.”

Finn cursed, and drew his hand back, raking it through his hair. “Those pants should be fucking illegal on you. Do you have any idea how hard it was to keep my hands to myself all evening?”

Emboldened, Jaime leaned over and nipped at Finn’s ear. He slid his own hand down, cupping where Finn lay hard and thick against his thigh. “Why don’t you show me?”

Finn groaned, guiding Jaime back into his seat. “Buckle up, baby,” he said, and dropped the truck into gear.

Jaime steppedout of the warmth of their kitchen into the backyard, the air crisp and nipping at his exposed chest. He’d unbuttoned his ruffled shirt all the way to his naval and tucked it into his tight, high-waisted pants. He’d kept the boots and cape on, too, per Finn’s request.

The air was colder than when they’d left Silas and Sam’s, and judging by the wave pattern on the lake, it looked like the wind was shifting from the north, now. Snow was forecasted for tomorrow, and he could just make out clouds distantly moving in to hide the faint green aurora borealis meandering across the sky above them.

Just as he was about to call out for Finn, Jaime heard a branch snap, and turned to see him emerge from the tree line.

His breath caught at the sight.

Illuminated by the light of the blood orange moon, Finn was naked and partially shifted, with his cock hanging heavy and full. He looked like a forest creature; a beast come to claim what was his—more wild than Jaime had ever seen him. If he wasn’t intimately familiar with the softness in Finn’s gaze, the gentle way he held Jaime through his darkest nights, the tender caress of him as he moved inside Jaime when he needed to be reminded that he was safe, that he was Finn’s—if he didn’t know all of those things, he might have been afraid.

But he did know all of those things. He knew all of Finn. And so Jaime strode over to his mate, a fierce possessiveness rippling through him that this man, this beautiful, wild, loving, gentle, ferociously protective man, was his.

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