Page 11 of The Devil on my Chest

“I just wish you could tell me. I just wish you could give me an idea – let me know if you wanted this, too. If you wantedmeas much as I’ve always dreamed of being with you. I heard what yousaid on the plane. But to claim somebody who doesn’t want it? It would devastate me if I did that to you.”

Pushing through Mal’s hands, Rocky rested his nose on the edge of Mal’s neck.

Mal gasped, touching the warm nose. “Is that a sign? Is that what you’re telling me? That you want it, too? Do you want it because you want me? Or...”

It was almost as though he could hear Rocky’s words in his head. Mal knew it wasn’t possible, but in that instant he swore he could hear Rocky say, “You always overthink things, Mal. Sometimes you’ve just got to go for it.”

“That’s more your thing than mine.” Mal chuckled. There had been so many times in Rocky’s past where he had “gone for it.” He damn near got himself gored by a buffalo shifter because he went for it. He came off his bike in spectacular fashion when they first started riding with Ra, because he was so damn sure he could make a jump that not even Evel Knievel would make. There were so many similar examples Mal could think of where Rocky had just dashed in because he was dared to, or because he cared so much for his friends, he ignored his personal safety.

Mal knew in that instance if the boot was on the other foot, if Rocky was the one who had to make the decision in an effort to save Mal’s life, he would do it in a heartbeat because that’s who Rocky was.

“All right then,” Mal said, because when it came down to it, no amount of thinking was going to change the outcome. He had to try and then deal with the outcome when it happened. “You’d better let me get my clothes off and no perving. You always seem to want to lick my ass every time I pull my pants down. It’s not funny.”

Shuffling back, Rocky sat down, and then when Mal kept looking at him, he laid down and rested his head on the ground and put one paw over his eyes again, just like he’d done in the office.

“Oh, for goodness’ sake,” Mal said as he quickly tugged his t-shirt over his head. “Are you seriously trying to convince me that you’re not watching me? Your eyes aren’t completely covered. I can still see them and if I can see them, then you can see me.”

Rocky sat up again, his mouth wide open, his tongue hanging out, his lips stretched in the closest thing to a wolf smile that was possible. Ignoring him, and the way heat rushed to his cheeks, Mal quickly took the rest of his clothes off and let his shift come through.

His wolf bounded up to Rocky’s animal side, always happy to see him. In a lot of ways, the next five minutes were just like any other time they had shifted together. Rocky would sniff him over from head to toe, always giving him a lick on the butt. Mal never knew why Rocky did that, and he was determined to ask him one day.

We’ve got to get rid of this curse first, he thought, as his wolf accepted Rocky’s greeting.

Then it was Mal’s turn, moving quickly, sniffing Rocky from the tip of his ears to the end of his tail – not licking Rocky’s butt – but appreciating his friend in fur still smelled the same. Rocky would just stand there like the magnificent beast that he was and let Mal check him over, almost as though it was his due. Mal had always loved that about Rocky’s wolf.

What would normally happen after the greetings were over was that Rocky would hunker down his front end, wag his tail as an invitation, and they’d play together until they were too tired to move. But this time Rocky just stood there, his tail wagging slowly, nudging him with his nose and Mal understood that wasRocky’s way of telling him that it was all right. It was time to bite - that he wanted Mal to at least try.

Sniffing along Rocky’s furry neck, it wasn’t as easy as Mal thought it should be. It’s not as if he ever went hunting, or tore into flesh before. He couldn’t remember if he’d even eaten in wolf form in the last thirty years or more.

Pushing his humanity back, Mal let his wolf take over. His animal side had no reservations, biting down hard with sharp teeth until Rocky’s blood filled his mouth. As he swallowed it, Mal tried not to grimace. He was sure it was all in his head, but he would swear he could taste the glitter stuff in Rocky’s blood. Once he was sure Rocky was as bitten as he could be, Mal disengaged his teeth and licked over the fur, making sure not one drop of blood remained. There was no way of knowing if the bite would scar until Rocky was human again. Rocky’s ruff was really thick.

This is it.Mal sat down, and tilted his neck as far over as he could. This time it was Rocky who hesitated, sniffing along Mal’s neck.Maybe he’s looking for the mate link that’s just not there, Mal thought, buried deep inside his wolf psyche.Please let this work, please let this work.Because one thing was certain. If their mating didn’t take, then Mal had a definitive answer to all the hopes and dreams he’d carried for so many years.Please!

Mal closed his eyes as he felt the painful bite, and while there was none of the euphoria that Mal had heard so often from his friends about the wonder of a mating bite, as the pain melted away he felt it, when both wolf spirits clicked – it was honestly as if two halves became one and Mal’s battered hope started to grow.

Who needs butterflies, unicorns, rainbows, and birds tweeting? This is the shifter I gave my life to a long time ago. And now whether we’re mated or not, that bond has become a full circle.

Rocky kept his teeth in a bit longer and Mal realized that he was actually lapping at Mal’s blood, determined to get some inside of him in an effort to break the curse and to make sure the bite stuck. Mal kept his eyes closed throughout, waiting until Rocky was finished, and the bigger wolf licked him clean. Rocky rested his head next to Mal’s, their necks curled around each other.

Thank you, my mate.

“It took?” Mal realized he was barking nonsense instead of speaking, as he danced away from Rocky, whirling around to stare at him with what had to be wide eyes.We’re actually mates? You can feel me now? Hear my thoughts?

Rocky nodded, his tail wagging furiously.Now can we please go back to that doctor and tell him, so he can help me shift back and I can hold you in my arms the way I’ve always wanted to?

You did?Mal was so surprised he flopped down on the grass.You wanted me too.Mal wasn’t sure he could believe it, but Rocky would never have said it if he didn’t mean it.

Are you all right?Rocky’s wolf was sniffing at him again, licking his face and nudging at his shoulder.You’re not getting dressed. You’re our voice right now, babe. Get up. Get up. I want to hold you so bad.

If Mal could’ve, he would’ve laughed. Rocky was going to be all right. Their relationship was going to need some adjustments, but they would be all right, too. There was no idea for how long, if the curse was broken or anything else like that, but Mal and Rocky were finally one.

The doctor might make you stay in your wolf form until he’s checked your blood again,Mal warned as he bounced to his feet.I don’t think that cursed stuff in your blood is going to disappear in the space of five minutes.

You won’t know until you ask him. Come on. Come on. Shift and put your clothes on quickly. No one gets to see your body but me.

Welcome to mated life,Mal thought with a chuckle, but he kept that thought to himself. It was time to shift and see what Doctor Nelson had to say about their new developments.

Chapter Eight

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