STORY EXCERPT

“Dallas?” Mick asked.

Realizing his mind became preoccupied, he asked, “What?”

“Do you want that last piece of bacon?” Mick nodded to the last piece on the plate.

“All yours, little cat.”

Watching Mick eat made him smile, and the Omega cat shifter seemed to notice.

“What are you smiling about?” Mick sounded curious.

“You. The first few days you came here, you didn’t eat much and you were far too thin. It’s nice seeing you regain your appetite.”

“Well, you keep feeding me too much good food,” Mick grumbled.

“That a complaint?” Mick shook his head, and Dallas decided to turn their attention to what they’ll be doing today. “You told me you want to spend time with me. What are our plans?”

His inner jaguar had purred in agreement when Mick gave him that response. God, thinking about the determined look in Mick’s eyes made him rock-hard. This was exactly what he was talking about when he told the Omega he had a steel spine. Dallas had seen plenty of glimpses of Mick when Mick became all confident and sure of what he wanted.

“I don’t have any plans yet. I was hoping we could stop by the art store. There’s also an exhibition that I want to see. Will that be okay, or will it bore you?”

He knew Mick liked to sketch and paint.

“Let’s do that,” he agreed.

“Really?” Mick said, wide-eyed.

Fuck, Dallas would give Mick anything he wanted as long as he would be at the receiving end of that brilliant smile every day.

“Of course.” Dallas was more of a rough and tumble guy than an art guy, but spending the entire day with Mick was worth it.

Mick would truly be a force to be reckoned with, once the scars on his heart started to heal and revealed a caring submissive shifter who also knew when to stand his own ground. What a mate Mick would make. Mate. Yes, that was the right word. Dallas had known right away when he first laid his eyes on the tied-up Omega when a nasty Orange Tail enforcer had used Mick to lure Steve out of Damon’s house. Dallas didn’t tell Mick they were mates yet, though. The last thing Dallas wanted was to scare Mick right off the bat.

Sooner or later, the little cat would learn that once Dallas started pursuing him, there was no stopping the hunt. He knew Mick felt the same about him, and he had every intention of making Mick admit it.

“Are you just agreeing because you’re being nice to me?”

“Believe me, little cat. I’m being nice for a reason. There’s something in this for me, too.”

Mick dropped his fork.

“But I’m not going to push you to doing anything you don’t like. We’ll take things slow. This will be our first date, just to make things clear that I want you, in the romantic sense.”

Fuck, but Mick looked too adorable for words when his cheeks and neck turned pink.

“I once overheard Damon say you don’t do romance,” Mick finally said, meeting his gaze.

True enough. Dallas never imagined finding his mate, never thought he’d want to settle down, either, but that was before Mick entered life. He never really connected with the men he’d slept with in the past. With his looks and charm, Dallas never had a problem getting anyone in bed, but all of his ex-lovers only wanted to find out what he was like in bed. None of them wanted to know the real him.

Mick was different. Mick was it for him, even though the Omega didn’t know it yet.

“That was before I met you,” he told Mick softly. “Go on, take the shower first. I’ll clear up here.”

* * * *

Before I met you.

Those words circled Mick’s head numerous times as he let the water pound against his skin. Mick rested his forehead against the tiles. His heart continued to beat rapidly. Dallas finally spelled it out for him, that he wanted more than friendship. So did he.

Closing his eyes, he curled his fingers over his tormented shaft and let his imagination run wild. In his mind’s eye, Mick saw Dallas standing inches from him again, both of them naked. Dallas would push him against the wall in this fantasy, kiss him senseless, before slipping his big callused hand to his cock, working him until Mick begged for mercy.

Then Dallas would flip him so his ass faced Dallas, then take him from behind, fucking Mick like he owned him. Mick groaned as pre-cum smeared on his fingers. The erotic image in his head turned filthy as he imagined Dallas’ mouth on the nape of his neck, Dallas pounding him against the wall.

Mick groaned as he came, spilling his seed all over the tiles.

God, that was intense. Sometimes, when he couldn’t sleep, he’d do this, fantasize about Dallas and him. That vision, he realized, could be a reality. All Mick had to do was not screw things up.

After his shower, he dressed in his favorite pair of light blue jeans and a dark blue sweater. Since moving into Dallas’s apartment, Steve had taken him shopping, so all of his clothes were new. His cousin understood his need to leave the past behind, and for that, he was grateful to Steve. Mick found Dallas in the living room, ready as well. Dallas looked preoccupied with his phone. He noticed the jaguar shifter always furrowed his brows when he thought too hard.

He took a couple of moments to admire Dallas in his favorite worn in jeans with holes and a thin black sweater, which molded over his pectorals and corded arms. Dallas caught sight of him and grinned.

“Ready, Mick?”

ADULT EXCERPT

“I don’t know how to go about this. I want you, too, to find out where this is going between us, but I’ve never—” Mick began.

Smiling, Dallas unbuckled his seat belt, fisted Mick’s shirt, and leaned in close for another kiss. Sweetness exploded on his tongue as Mick responded. Heat travelled down his throat and went right to his prick. He was rock-hard in seconds and knew his inner jaguar couldn’t wait any longer, either.

He pulled away, only to see Mick’s pupils dilate, lips still slightly parted.

“No need to worry, little cat. I’ll guide you. Let’s head back inside so I can do plenty of dirty things to that tempting body of yours.” Dallas exited the truck and grabbed Mick’s purchases from the backseat.

Once back in their apartment, Dallas left Mick’s purchases in his room and found Mick in the living room. Desire surged through his entire body. He couldn’t believe after weeks of waiting, Mick was finally all his, that Mick wanted him the same way he did.

Dallas knew he had to start slow. While it was tempting to rut Mick right there in the living room, his little cat deserved foreplay and a little romance. He tugged off his shirt, watching with some amusement as Mick’s jaw dropped. Liking the appreciation in the Omega’s eyes, he sat on the sofa and patted his lap.

“Come here.”

Mick smiled shyly at him and straddled his lap. The Omega didn’t protest when Dallas lifted the hem of his shirt. Mick even raised his hands so Dallas could get rid of the shirt with ease.

Dallas banded one hand behind Mick’s back to keep his little cat in place. He groaned, running his hands over Mick’s lean body, loving how smooth Mick’s creamy skin felt under his fingers.

“Kiss me again?” Mick made it sound like a request.

“Always so polite, little cat? Don’t be shy. Tell me what you want and I’ll give it to you.” He leaned in close, brushing his lips over Mick’s, then kissed his Omega, rough and deep. Mick clutched at his shoulders and parted his lips so Dallas could deepen the kiss.

With his free hand, he unbuckled Mick’s jeans and freed the Omega’s cock. Dallas thumbed away the pre-cum gathering on Mick’s tip and gave Mick’s cock a few tugs and pulls. Mick moaned when he released Mick’s mouth.

“Let’s see if I can get you to purr for me, little cat,” Dallas said.

He began to leave a trail of kisses down the side of Mick’s neck, collarbone. Reaching Mick’s left nipple, he took the flat bud into his mouth, sucking hard. Mick buckled on his lap, as Dallas continued stroking Mick’s shaft back and forth, until it turned from half-mast to full.

Dallas left his bite mark on Mick’s nipple. The Omega cried out, sinking his nails into his skin, but he didn’t mind. He liked the thought of him leaving his marks on Mick and vice versa.

“Jeans off,” he told Mick. Faint color rose to Mick’s cheeks as the Omega slipped off his lap and, taking initiative, took off his jeans, then his boxers.

“You too,” Mick said.

“My pleasure, little cat,” he said, rising to get rid of his bottoms.

Mick widened his brown eyes but didn’t look like he wanted to back out, either. He sat back on the couch and Mick climbed his lap, hooking his hands behind his neck.

“Before this goes any further, I want to know you’re all in, little cat,” Dallas said, in case he went to the point of no return. Both jaguar and man knew what they wanted. He never believed in destiny until fate brought the two of them together. The night only had one outcome, with Mick becoming his in every sense of the word.

* * * *

Mick’s heart beat so fast, it felt like a bird eager to be free of its cage. He knew what he wanted, had recognized Dallas as his mate from the moment Dallas arrived on the scene with Damon and Vince to rescue Steve and him from a psychotic Orange Tails enforcer who wanted Steve dead.

“I’m all in,” he whispered, then snuck a kiss on Dallas’s lips.

The jaguar shifter gripped him hard, but he didn’t mind Dallas’s rough touches, each stroke and caress from Dallas screamed one word—mine. Dallas was his, too, born to be his mate. Dallas took control of his mouth, the kiss scorching, able to melt his insides.

His dick felt full, ready to burst. He squirmed when Dallas slipped his hand over his dick again, tracing every ridge and bump, before moving lower, past his balls, his crease, and finally reaching his hole. Dallas’s eyes widened slightly in surprise as he pushed one finger in to the knuckle.

Mick blushed. “We Omega tabby cat shifters are self-lubricating.”

Would Dallas find that strange? Dallas widened his smile.

“Fuck, but that’s convenient. That gives me plenty of ideas.”

“Wicked ones?” he dared ask.

“I’ll tell you next time,” answered his infuriating mate.

Before meeting Dallas, Mick had never enjoyed sex, but with Dallas he easily became aroused.

Dallas added a second finger inside his puckered entrance, widening him for access. He rocked himself on Dallas’s fingers, eager to feel something much bigger inside him. When Dallas brushed against his prostate, he gasped, tightening his hold on Dallas’s shoulders. The sneaky jaguar teased him a few more times, leaving him gasping and wanting more.

“You’re ready,” Dallas said, taking his fingers out.

Anticipation made his entire body tense as Dallas positioned his generously-sized prick into his entrance. Then Dallas pushed in, making him moan. He sunk fingers into Dallas’s powerful back muscles. A burn started, but it swiftly passed once Dallas moved past the thick ring of stubborn muscles.

Finally, Dallas sheathed himself fully inside Mick, resting his balls against Mick’s ass.

“Fuck, little cat. You’re so tight, and your ass feels so perfect around my dick.”