Breaking the Bonds Read online

  River swallowed his mouthful of grits and lowered his voice, although the old house remained quiet. The floors creaked so badly, even a human would be alerted the moment someone arose from bed. “I know it’s rough on you and David. Have you heard anything from Jax?”

  Brooks didn’t look up from his cup. “Nothing.”

  Sam’s eyes met River’s, each conveying sadness for the beta.

  “I don’t expect him to come here,” Brooks added. “It’s too dangerous. But I wish I knew he was okay.”

  “From all reports, he is,” River said.

  Brooks pushed his chair from the table. “What have you heard? David hasn’t said anything. He thinks it’ll upset me, and he’s right—it will. But I want to know.”

  River looked uncomfortable. “Just that Jax and Blake were married in London last fall, and they split their time between here and there.”

  The news couldn’t be anything Brooks hadn’t already suspected, but the look on the beta’s face pierced Sam’s heart. The omega was equally upset for Jax, who had sacrificed his happiness for the safety of those he loved.

  Floorboards creaked above, followed by footfalls descending the steps. Sam detected his alpha’s scent long before Leo appeared in the doorway looking grumpy.

  “Why didn’t you wake me?” he asked Sam.

  Sam smiled. Leo had marks from the pillow on his face. “You were tired. Here, sit down, and I’ll get you a plate.”

  Leo sat, and he and River began talking pack business. Brooks walked out to the porch to watch the children, but Sam remained inside. The uneasy feeling he’d had since the run made the omega wanted to stay close to his alpha.

  Chapter 2: Jax

  Jax sat drinking a mimosa, gazing out the large glass window of Cascade City Country Club. The golf course spread out in a perfect carpet of green, dotted with the various colors of the golfers’ attire. Jax’s father and father-in-law where currently playing the eighteenth hole, easily recognizable by their similar bright blue shirts. Jax sat beside his husband, mother, and mother-in-law at a square table, the remnants of a delicious brunch before them.

  “Wouldn’t it be wonderful if our sons adopted a child?” Samantha Moreau was saying, causing Jax to almost inhale his drink. He set it on the table and mopped his mouth with the cloth napkin.

  Although happy their son had left his werewolf lovers, Jax’s parents had made no secret of the fact they were annoyed their son’s new love interest wasn’t a woman. Until they found out Blake was the son of incredibly rich and well-known Senator Joe Parker.

  Children with Blake was the last thing Jax wanted. He had a child with David and Brooks. A child who didn’t know him.

  Reminding himself that David, Brooks, and Jarrod-Grant were precisely the reason he was doing what he was doing, Jax put the brakes on that train of thought before his upset began to show. He’d hoped that time would make it easier to tolerate Blake, but the opposite had proved true. He barely kept from flinching when his husband squeezed his hand underneath the table and whispered in his ear, “They’ll have the adoption planned if we don’t intercede.” He was obviously amused.

  The ring of Blake’s cell saved Jax from replying. His husband arose from the table.

  “I’ve got to take this,” Blake said apologetically to those seated.

  “Go right ahead, dear.” Jax’s mother smiled at him before turning back to Rose Parker. “Such a lovely boy you raised.”

  Annoyance crawled up Jax’s spine, and not just at his mother’s about-face where Blake was concerned. There was nothing lovely about Blake Parker. He and his father were both hateful sons-of-bitches intent on eradicating the world of werewolves in ways that Jax had begun to suspect were more heinous than any of them had ever realized.

  Jax glanced to where Blake had disappeared into the hallway, wishing he could listen in on his husband’s phone conversation. As much as he’d given up to gain the other man’s trust, Jax knew Blake continued to keep his cards close to his chest. Jax was working on a plan he hoped would change that. His stomach clenched just thinking about it. How much of himself did he have to give up to save those he loved, and what would be left of him when it was all over?

  Glancing out the window, Jax saw the two older men had finished their game and were walking toward the clubhouse. Unwilling to be stuck at the table with both sets of parents, he excused himself to go looking for his husband.

  The club had become a familiar place over the past year, and as Jax maneuvered between chatting diners, he recalled an incident that had happened in that very room shortly after he’d married Blake. They’d been mingling before dinner, and a couple of Blake’s old friends had approached, congratulating the two.

  “You look happy,” one of the men had said.

  “I am.” A leer had spread over Blake’s face as he’d glanced at his new husband. “He’s very well-endowed.”

  Jax had stiffened, looking incredulously at Blake as the others chuckled before wandering off to freshen their drinks. Although Blake hadn’t said it, Jax had gotten the feeling the comment had a stereotypical edge to it.

  “What the hell?” he had demanded.

  Blake had slipped his arm around Jax’s waist. “Oh, don’t act like you aren’t proud of your big cock, babe.”

  “First of all, it’s ridicu—” Jax lowered his voice, “…ridiculous to think all African-American men have big cocks. Added to that, I’m only a third African American. I’m also Italian and Native American, if you’d ever bothered to ask.”

  Blake had set his drink on a nearby table and stepped closer, booze-laden breath hot on Jax’s face and eyes dark with lust. “Indian, huh? I guess that’s why you’re such a savage in bed.”

  Outraged, Jax had done his best to rein himself in. If so much hadn’t rested on his relationship with the man, Jax would have punched Blake in the nose and walked out. The memory still rankled. The more he got to know Blake, the more Jax disliked the man, and the more difficult it became for him to pretend to be the adoring husband he definitely wasn’t.

  He found Blake in the lounge of the men’s room, legs crossed, and cell phone pressed to his ear. When Blake spotted Jax, he abruptly ended the conversation and stood.

  “Ready to head home, babe?”

  “Yeah.” Jax swallowed his annoyance, reminding himself he couldn’t crack when he was so close. Summoning all the acting skills he’d honed over the past year, he pulled his husband against his chest.

  “I have a little afternoon delight planned,” he said before pressing a kiss to the pulse in Blake’s neck.

  Blake leaned against him. “Is that so? Then, by all means, let’s go home.” His expression heated. “Unless you want to take advantage of one of the bathroom stalls?”

  Blake’s kink for having sex in public places was one of the many things Jax had trouble dealing with.

  “This is going to take a while,” he said, just as a large man with a shaved head exited the inner rest room and passed by him. He nodded politely at Blake and Jax before walking into the hallway.

  Something about the man niggled at Jax’s memory. “Did you know that guy?” he asked Blake.

  Blake smirked. “Jealous?”

  Playing along, Jax said, “Maybe.”

  “That was Dr. Stephen Barrens, an acquaintance of my father’s.” Blake ran his hand down Jax’s chest. “You don’t have to worry about him, though. He’s not my type.”

  Jax frowned. The muscled giant of a man most certainly was Blake’s type. As he led his husband out to the lobby, he said as much.

  “So, you really are jealous! That’s cute. But I have no reason to cheat on you, babe. You give me everything I need.” He pulled his phone out of his pocket. “I’ll text my father that we’re leaving.”

  Jax let the subject drop, but he mentally tucked away the man’s name to examine later.

  The drive to their lavish home nestled in Cascade Hills took less than ten minutes. After the stink that had gotten Jax an
d Blake fired from the Human/Werewolf Congress, Blake had given up the ruse of struggling young philanthropist and gone back to his old life, black Jaguar and all. Years ago, Jax would’ve appreciated being seen in the luxurious vehicle but not anymore.

  Blake tossed his keys on the kitchen counter and crossed to the bar to pour a drink as Jax opened the French doors, letting the cool mountain air into the house. The night before, there had been a full moon, and Jax had lain awake a long time listening to the distant cries of wolves and wondering if David and Brooks were out there running together.

  Blake handed Jax a martini. He’d removed his shirt and unbuckled his dress slacks. A trail of hair led down his lean stomach to disappear inside his black briefs. If Blake’s personality hadn’t been so loathsome, Jax might have found the man somewhat attractive, but as it was, if it weren’t for the many memories of nights with David and Brooks, he knew he wouldn’t be able to maintain an erection with the man.

  Jax downed his glass and set it on the table, welcoming the slight buzz the alcohol gave him as he took his husband into his arms. Part of what Blake liked about Jax was his healthy sexual appetite, and Jax had to keep it up if he wanted to keep Blake fooled. He unbuttoned Blake’s shirt, skating his fingertips down the man’s chest as he did so. Cupping his husband’s face with his other hand, Jax kissed the man hungrily, evoking memories of the men he loved to fuel his desire.

  Blake groaned and pushed his erection against Jax’s thigh as their tongues tangled, loosening Jax’s belt before palming him. Jax thought of David, naked, the gorgeous blond alpha submitting to him, and his cock filled.

  Blake let out a throaty chuckle and dropped to his knees.

  With eyes closed and half his cock nestled in a warm mouth, Jax could easily picture Brooks at his feet, and it wasn’t long before he was hard enough to fuck Blake.

  They moved things to the bedroom, and Jax donned a condom, a source of contention between the couple. Blake believed since they were married and monogamous, they could dispose of the protection, but Jax couldn’t bring himself to do it, as though the piece of latex was the last barrier he could keep between himself and the man he had to pretend to love. So far, he’d claimed to be waiting for the final results of a second test, stating that his relations with the “dirty werewolves” could put Blake in jeopardy.

  The sex was hard and quick, the way Jax preferred it. The nights he had to bring himself to pretend to make love to his husband were some of the longest in his experience. Fortunately, Blake didn’t require romance very often and enjoyed being pummeled into the mattress.

  Spent, they lay panting on silk sheets. Jax tied off the condom and tossed it aside.

  “Can’t get enough of that big rod of yours,” Blake mumbled into Jax’s chest, fingers tracing the lines of his husband’s eight pack while he stared at the long cock resting on Jax’s thigh. “It’s like fucking steel pounding my ass.”

  Blake’s obsession with Jax’s junk had become almost creepy in recent months, and Jax suspected the man had some perversions he kept hidden. But no matter how revolting Blake could be, he didn’t even come close to his smarmy father. Whenever Senator Parker raked his eyes over him, which was frequently, Jax felt like he needed a bath.

  Keeping silent, Jax closed his eyes.

  “All that working out really shows, babe. Your muscles have muscles,” Blake continued.

  As working out was Jax’s only means of letting off steam, he had beefed up considerably over the past year, although he’d always been in good shape. His mind wandering to David and Brooks, he wished for the umpteenth time things could be different.

  As though reading his mind, Blake said, “You don’t ever miss those wolves you used to fuck, do you?” Occasionally, Blake would mention Jax’s past with River Wolf pack, now Cascade City pack, in a bid for reassurance, so Jax felt no need to panic.

  Jax ran his fingers through Blake’s dark hair and smiled sultrily. “With you in my bed? Never.”

  Blake latched onto Jax’s nipple, sucking it almost painfully hard. Realizing Blake had just given him the opening he’d been waiting for, he rolled to his side and stoked a hand over Blake’s body.

  “Funny you should mention the werewolves,” he said.

  Blake arched into Jax’s touch and looked at him with heavy eyes.

  “There’s one thing I think about sometimes.”

  Blake narrowed his eyes. “And what’s that?”

  Jax trailed his hand down Blake’s pale torso to tug at the dark thatch of pubic hair around the man’s cock, considering his words carefully before speaking. “I used to lie in bed at night listening to those omegas in heat.” He curled his fingers around Blake’s hardening shaft. “They’d beg for it. Baby, you wouldn’t believe the sounds they made. I’ve been told their asses leak sweet fluid and cling to your cock like a sucking mouth.”

  Blake moaned, head falling back and Adam’s apple bobbing as Jax slowly stroked him.

  “And they can’t fucking get enough. They want it over and over and over again. I just always wondered what it would be like to fuck one, you know? I mean, what gay man wouldn’t?” He chuckled softly.

  Behind the lust, Blake’s eyes were calculating. “Yeah?” he gasped as Jax continued to work him.

  Jax smiled slyly. “Sure. I’m only human.” With a sigh, he pulled his hand away and lay on his back, leaving Blake panting and needy. “But that’s just a fantasy. Those wolves guard their omegas like gold.” He closed his eyes, waiting.

  Time seemed to slow before a lick to Jax’s ear preceded the words he wanted to hear. “I might know a way to make it happen, babe. Would that turn you on? Both of us cramming our cocks into an omega, all slick and tight and begging for it?”

  Jax conjured a memory of how David used to look riding him, and his cock hardened in reaction. His eyes fluttered open, and he gave Blake a heated look before uttering the words he knew would seal the deal.

  “It’s a nice fantasy, but I don’t think even you could pull that off.”

  The challenged worked. Blake sat up, a promising smile playing about his mouth. “Have a little faith in me, babe.” He straddled Jax’s chest and pressed the tip of his hard cock to Jax’s mouth.

  Sucking and licking, with Blake’s fists tangled in his long dreads, Jax congratulated himself.

  It wouldn’t be long now until he cracked this shit wide open.

  Chapter 3: Josiah

  Josiah sat at a conference table in the Human/Werewolf Congress with Mark, Kane, Keith, and the humans Caleb and Avery. The omega had a cup of coffee in one hand and a pen in the other and alternately drank and doodled while listening to Mark talk about how many new rogues had shown up looking for housing.

  “I’m not surprised,” Kane said. “When I was rogue, I encountered signs all the time of others who’d passed through. The survivors of those torched packs had to go somewhere. Every night since I came to this pack, I’ve thought of others still out there, suffering.”

  “We want to help them,” Mark said. “The only problem is, they’re arriving faster than we can get accommodations built. Hashi Valley pack has agreed to take some in, but because Max’s pack is made of rogues to begin with, he’s leery until potential members can be interviewed. He wants to avoid discord.”

  “Probably afraid one of them will fight him for the title of pack alpha and win,” Josiah mumbled. He didn’t like Max. The alpha had raped Nick and terrorized the omega into leaving Cascade City pack compound with their infant son. Josiah hoped Austin had been able to find them, but there had been no word.

  “Probably,” Keith agreed, rubbing his eyes.

  Josiah could tell the omega hadn’t been getting much sleep since Trevor had disappeared. Hashi Valley had been the first place Josiah had thought of when he’d heard, but the Congress had searched the compound several times since then without finding the missing omega. What had happened to Trevor remained a mystery—one that haunted every werewolf who knew about it.

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nbsp; Startled by a knock on the door, Josiah spilled his coffee on the table. He reached for a napkin to mop up the puddle, only to spill more at the sound of his alpha’s voice.

  “Mind if I join you?”

  Josiah hadn’t expected his mate to show up and wondered that he hadn’t scented River before the alpha had spoken. He couldn’t help but smile. River stood in the doorway looking gorgeous in jeans and a white button-down shirt, long, dark hair pulled back into a leather thong. The pack alpha appeared calm, but a sniff of the air told Josiah his mate was slightly uneasy.

  “Of course,” Mark said, indicating the empty chair next to Josiah. When River sat down, Josiah automatically leaned closer to him. A rich, manufactured scent drifted off River’s clothes. Cologne. That explained why Josiah hadn’t immediately scented his mate. Why was River wearing cologne?

  River’s touch on Josiah’s waist soothed him; he hadn’t realized how stressed he was until that moment. The angry black scribbles on the notepad were further testament to his current head space, and Josiah ripped out the page and crumpled it into a ball.

  “What are you doing here?” Josiah asked. Although River was more or less committed to helping human/werewolf relations these days, Josiah knew the pack alpha still felt uncomfortable around humans. Having left his job as club bouncer, River spent most of his time on the compound, making constant improvements to the pack house and surrounding buildings.

  River had rid himself of most of the insecurities that had plagued him after being ousted from River Wolf pack, but Josiah knew the alpha still felt the need to make certain nothing like that could happen ever again. Josiah understood it, but sometimes River’s protectiveness became stifling. If River had come simply to check up on him, Josiah would let his alpha know in no uncertain terms he didn’t appreciate it.