Page 32 of Bound By Alphas 1: Bound

“Damn it,” he muttered, examining his paint-splattered skin. “It’s everywhere.”

He moved to the small utility sink in the corner, wetting a clean cloth and beginning to wipe at the blue streaks on his chest. Water trickled down his torso in rivulets, following the subtle definition of his lean muscles, disappearing beneath the waistband of his shorts. His movements were unconsciously sensual as he ran the damp cloth over his skin, across his nipples, down the flat plane of his stomach.

All three alphas went utterly still, their wolves surging forward with such force it took everything they had not to shift right there.

“I think I got most of it,” Finn said, twisting to look over his shoulder. “But there’s some on my back I can’t reach.”

“I’ll help,” Keir volunteered before his brothers could speak, his voice strained with forced casualness. He took the cloth from Finn’s hand, their fingers brushing momentarily.

His skin is so warm. Keir’s internal voice was reverent as he moved behind Finn.So soft.

Finn stood perfectly still as Keir began gently wiping the paint from his shoulder blades, his fox ears twitching nervously, his tail swishing with obvious uncertainty. Keir’s hands were careful, methodical, but through their bond, his brothers could feel the effect this simple touch was having on him—desire coursing through him like electricity, his wolf howling to claim, to mark, to possess.

Control, Cade reminded him, though his own restraint was hanging by a thread as he watched Keir’s hands move across Finn’s skin. Water droplets clung to the curve of Finn’s spine, catching the light like diamonds against his pale skin.

Logan had gone completely motionless, a predator so still he barely seemed to breathe. His eyes tracked every movement of Keir’s hands, every twitch of Finn’s ears, every subtle shift in their mate’s scent as it filled the room—honey, cherry blossoms,and fox musk, along with something deeper, headier that made all three alphas' nostrils flare.

Arousal. Confusion. Need.

“There,” Keir said, his voice husky as he finished his task. “All clean.”

But he didn’t step back. His hands lingered on Finn’s shoulders, thumbs tracing small circles against damp skin. Through their bond, Cade and Logan could feel what he felt—the silken texture of Finn’s skin, the heat radiating from his body, the way he unconsciously leaned back into the touch.

“Here,” Cade said, his voice rougher than intended as he shrugged off his button-down, leaving himself in just a fitted undershirt that did nothing to hide his muscular build. “Put this on before you catch a chill.”

Finn turned, his eyes widening slightly as they landed on Cade’s exposed arms and torso. The undershirt clung to every defined muscle, leaving little to the imagination. Finn’s gaze traveled slowly from Cade’s broad shoulders down to where the shirt tucked into his slacks, his fox ears perked forward with undisguised interest.

“A chill? In a glass room in the middle of summer?” Finn’s voice was breathier than usual, his cheeks flushed. “Your protective instincts are showing, Cade.”

“Just take the shirt, Finn,” Logan said, his tone leaving no room for argument as his eyes lingered on a drop of water sliding down Finn’s chest.

“Fine, whatever,” Finn muttered, reaching for the offered garment.

Instead of letting Finn take it, Cade stepped forward, holding the shirt open for him to slip his arms into. The motion brought them chest to chest, close enough that Cade could feel the heat radiating from Finn’s bare skin. His fox ears twitched nervously,but he didn’t back away as Cade helped him into the shirt, large hands smoothing the fabric over his shoulders.

“It’s enormous,” Finn said, looking down at himself as the sleeves hung past his fingertips and the hem reached mid-thigh. “I look like I’m playing dress-up in my father’s closet.”

The word ‘father’ hit all three alphas like a physical blow, a stark reminder of how Finn saw them—as family, as protectors, as anything but what they truly were. Their wolves snarled in protest, rejecting the very notion.

Cade began buttoning the shirt, his fingers working methodically up from the bottom. The domesticity of the gesture was at odds with the primal hunger coursing through him, his wolf clawing to break free as his knuckles occasionally brushed against the warm skin of Finn’s chest.

“You missed a spot,” he said, desperate for distraction as he gestured to a streak of blue on Finn’s neck. Before he could reconsider, he was reaching out, using the corner of a clean rag to wipe at the paint. The proximity was torture—Finn's scent filled his lungs, a mixture of fox, honey, cherry blossoms, and something uniquely him that called to Cade's wolf on the most primal level. This close, he could see the gold flecks in Finn’s amber eyes, the way his pupils dilated as Cade’s fingers brushed his skin.

“I can do it myself,” Finn said, but his voice lacked conviction, and he didn’t pull away.

“You’ll just make it worse,” Cade murmured, focusing intently on the task to keep from doing something he’d regret. “Hold still.”

Finn obeyed, his breathing quickening as Cade’s ministrations brought them closer together. The shirt gaped open at the collar, revealing the delicate hollow of his throat, the elegant line of his collarbone. Cade’s fingers brushed against his pulse point, feeling the rapid flutter beneath warm skin.

“There,” he said, his voice barely above a whisper. “All clean.”

But he didn’t step back. Couldn’t. They stood frozen in a moment of impossible tension, Finn looking up at him with those wide, confused eyes, his fox ears swiveling nervously, his scent broadcasting a mixture of anxiety and something headier, something that made Cade’s wolf howl for release.

Then something shifted in Finn’s expression—confusion giving way to something darker, more primal. His eyes dropped to Cade’s lips, lingering there as his own parted slightly. Without seeming aware of his actions, he swayed forward, rising unconsciously onto his tiptoes, closing the already small distance between them.

The air crackled with electricity, the mate bond between them pulsing with need so intense it was almost visible. Finn’s breathing had grown shallow, his pupils dilated so wide they nearly swallowed the amber-gold of his irises. His fox ears were fully alert now, angled forward, his tail swishing with nervous anticipation.

Cade remained perfectly still, afraid that the slightest movement would break the spell—or worse, that he wouldn’t be able to stop if he allowed himself to begin. Through their bond, his brothers watched in stunned silence, their own control hanging by the thinnest of threads.

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