Good luck, and don’t forget to comment 😘❤️

————-

Hagen’s P.O.V

Everyone was looking at him. Fucking everyone.

When I first noticed it, I thought I was going crazy. Residual effects of Max’s attention on my mate, ya know? But I’d been sure to put as many miles as I could between that fiend and us, and the distance had calmed whatever was going on with me, so it wasn’t that.

It wasn’t some shit in my head or me being foolishly paranoid. No, it was the fact — and it was a fact — that everyone in this stupid restaurant wouldn’t stop staring at my fucking mate.

I glare at them: at the staff who couldn’t seem to stop themselves from stealing glances as they passed by, at the girls in the window seats who kept looking back with no discretion, and at the couple beside us that kept sneaking glances at Nikola, who was somehow none the wiser.

I glare at them all! Wanting to put up a sign that said, ′Get a life! Especially you guys that are CLEARLY together! Be happy with the mate you do have!’, but I didn’t have a pen or paper… and I wasn’t crazy. But these sounded like crazy people’s thoughts…. Jesus, maybe I was.

“Do you want to leave?”

I jolt a little as I pause my attempt at visually mauling everyone in our vicinity to look at Nikola. He was frowning at me with a confused little dip wrinkling the skin between his brows. He looked concerned, which made sense when my leg was shaking like a jackrabbit’s beneath the table.

I stop that immediately and force a smile. “No, this place is great. I’m excited to try the food.”

Nikola studies me for a moment longer before he nods stiffly, but I could tell he doesn’t believe me. Instead of pressing, he takes a look around, searching for the problem, but his gaze sweeps right over all his onlookers as if they didn’t exist. He just– zoops! – passes them right by before he looks at me again with a timid smile.

How did he not notice? How didn’t he see it? Fuck, how had I never seen it?! What if this always happened, and I was only just noticing it?

It would make sense, as infuriating as it was to consider. A few weeks ago, Nikola was just Nikola, the hybrid that had tormented me for the majority of my life. But now, he was Nikola, the hybrid who was trying to be better, the almost too-serious guy who was actually kind, funny in his own way, and also… well put together.

Well put together? Well put together?!?! — Zyair exclaims with obvious offence — Do better than that, Hagen! Our mate is our very own Adonis! He’s more than just well put together! He’s a fucking gift from Goddess herself! He’s GORGEOUS!

Usually, Zyair’s hysteria was just that, but this time, I couldn’t find it in me to deny it. The truth was, objectively or subjectively speaking, Nikola Amorenia was gorgeous.

His skin was golden, like he was always perfectly tanned, even though he barely spent any time in the sun. It made him look like he was constantly glowing. Then there were his long dark brown curls and nose, his thick brows and firm jaw that all made him look like a dream.

Then there were those eyes. Good Goddess, those eyes. Those stormy grey eyes that seemed like they were stripping you open whenever they settled on you. Not to mention his fucking body.

Most wolves had a great frame just from the constant running in our second form, but Nikola’s body wasn’t like most wolves. It was better. He was muscled like a warrior, with a broad and well-toned back, his chest wide and firm, and his arms were practically guns. Fuck, not to mention his thighs.

I used to be a boob guy. I mean, I loved tits, and I was pretty sure I still did, but now… now when I looked at Nikola’s body, I got the same blinding rush I used to get for hot chicks.

“What is it?” Nikola asks, thankfully snapping me out of ogling his body before I get to the drooling stage. “Is there a stain?”

Pulling at the fabric of his dark sweater, Nikola searches desperately for the non-existent stain, looking half a second away from having a heart attack.

“It’s nothing. There’s no stain, Nikola,” I promise him, ignoring the way my neck begins to heat. “I-I just zoned out.”

Sighing with relief, Nik relaxes in his seat before he eyes me again with so much concern the strings around my heart tighten, “Are you alright, Hagen? I feel like… something is wrong.”

“Nothing’s wrong,” I reply quickly, but that just makes his frown deepen. “I’m just trying to decide what to eat.”

That wasn’t a lie. I had yet to pick something from the menu because every time I tried, I got distracted, first by Nikola’s fans and then by the man himself. Goddess, this felt like a setup. I almost wished it was, but I knew it wasn’t. When I looked at Nikola, he just looked confused and worried, not like he was plotting something.

Nik wasn’t like that anyway.

“Alright,” he allows, reluctantly lowering his gaze back to his own menu.

I do the same, determined to pick a meal and be done with it, but then I hear it.

‘He’s so hot. I mean, fuck me,’ one voice groans, sounding drugged. ‘I feel like I’m dreaming.’

‘Same,’ another replies. ′He can’t be real. He just can’t. Think I can sneak a pic?′

‘Ew no. Don’t be weird. We can just look and appreciate.’

I look up, meeting the heart-shaped eyes of the girls seated by the windows. They were trying to be subtle, and maybe they were to everyone else, but I knew what they were doing. They were checking out Nikola.

They were checking out my Nikola.

A growl rumbles in my chest as I glare at them until one of their gazes shifts from Nikola to me. I barely manage to keep my sneer in, but my eyes flash before I can stop it, threatening them in an embarrassingly primal gesture.

Bright eyes widen in shock before they immediately swivel and force their friend to do the same. While Zyair snickers, I relax a little, rolling my shoulders before I glance back at Nikola. He’s looking at me again, but this time he’s almost pouting.

“I’m sorry,” we say together.

My eyes widen. What the hell did Nikola have to be sorry for? I was the one not paying attention to him right now. Nik hadn’t done a thing.

“I’m sorry,” he repeats, his gaze struggling to hold mine as shame weighs his shoulders down. “I thought I was kind to them, but if I was not properly amicable with your friends, I apologise.”

I shake my head quickly, “What? No. You were fine, Nikola. In fact, you were plenty ‘amicable’, if you ask me,” I mutter that last past through gritted teeth as I remember the way Max and Nikola had got on.

Stupid fucking biology and engineering.

“But you’re upset,” Nikola states, leaning himself forward. “I’ve upset you.”

My face flames, but I shake my head again, “You didn’t.” He hadn’t. He’d done nothing wrong, just been friendly the one time I wished he wasn’t, but that was me being a psycho– not him. “I’m just feeling a little off today, I guess.”

All the colour drains from Nikola’s face, “You’re ill?”

“What? No,” I promise, but Nikola’s distraught eyes were already roving all over me as if he were making a scan as we spoke. “I’m fine, Nikola. Please don’t call an ambulance or try to perform surgery. I’m good, promise.”

Nikola’s wide eyes hold mine before he gives me a stiff nod and visibly forces himself to relax. I can’t help but smile, my heart aching with a longing that almost overwhelms me when he squints, clearly still performing his own assessment of my health even while he pretends not to.

Giggling, I lift my menu to block his view, grinning behind it like a fool until one of his fingers settles over the top and tugs it down. I get a quick glimpse of his stern yet amused grey eyes before the menu is back up, shielding me from Dr Amorenia.

I wait for his next move, half-expecting the menu to turn to dust in my hands, but instead, Nik’s boot nudges against mine beneath the table.

I stiffen, feeling my face flame behind the menu as he moves it closer. It was just his foot against mine, for fuck’s sake, but for some reason, it made the air around us suddenly disappear. Nikola’s boot prods me again, giving my shoe a little poke, and I return it.

Nikola’s rich scent immediately spikes, spreading with his pheromones so quickly I have to swallow past it. But it doesn’t stop. The intoxicating traces keep rising with undeniable lust that makes me squirm as we keep nudging and rubbing our feet beneath the table until I finally lower the menu. I couldn’t keep it up, even if it meant letting Nikola see just how affected I was.

The second our eyes meet, Nikola’s eyes harden and his body turns rigid. My heart drops from worry until I feel the faint touch of his magic before it surrounds me, cocooning around me like a shield. It felt kind of like his arms when he hugged me, like something firm but fading, but it didn’t really matter since it was him, and it felt great.

But then it goes. Retracting without warning, as if it were never there, forcing me to blink past the dizzying pleasure.

“Our waitress is coming,” Nikola states rigidly.

Waitress? Oh, the waitress. Because we were in a restaurant. In public! With people all around us!

I scramble to sit up as I drag my leg back, trying my best to look normal, just as a chipper girl with hot pink hair stops beside our table.

You have to be fucking kidding me.

“Hello and welcome to The Nook,” she greets politely. “I’m Brooke. I’m sorry I took so long to get back to your table. Are you guys ready to order?”

No. I had no idea what I wanted to eat, and I probably never would when the universe was hellbent on fucking me over in every imaginable way.

I peek cautiously at Nikola, and when I catch the way he eyes Brooke’s hair, I’m pretty sure one of my teeth cracks under the pressure in my jaw.

“Yes. Can I get the mango smoothie, the Caprese salad and a chicken quesadilla,” Nikola lists swiftly, closing his menu and handing it over to our beaming waitress.

I knew better than anyone that almost nauseating hospitality was part of the job, but I was pretty sure that the manager hadn’t told Brooke to look at Nikola like he’d just come down from Olympus and asked for her hand in marriage!

That was not a part of optimal customer service!

I clear my throat, forcing her to look my way. The moment she does, I give Brooke a tight smile and look at her with what I hoped said, ′I know what you’re doing, and if you don’t stop, I’ll do some crazy shit in here, Brooke! And you won’t like it, Brooke! You really really won’t like it!′.

“Um,” she clears her throat a little, “and for you?”

Your head on a nice shiny plate, lady! — Zyair snaps, pushing forward with every intention of clawing her eyes out.

I glance at the menu quickly, “Can I have the Nutella and Strawberry stacked pancakes, with two sides of sausages, and four sides of bacon?” Her eyes widen as she jots it down, but I wasn’t done. “And can I get the strawberry smoothie too? Oh, and a peanut butter brownie?”

“Sure,” she replies with her best customer service smile as she takes my menu. “We’ll get that out for you guys as soon as we can.”

Nikola waits until she’s out of earshot before he asks, “Are you sure you’re not unwell? You barely got anything.”

I shrug, watching Brooke’s retreating figure until I’m sure she doesn’t even risk a glimpse back before I face him. Yeah, that’s what I thought.

“I’m just not that hungry I guess,” I mumble before sending a mock glare his way. “Maybe it was the water you forced me to drink this morning. Did you stuff it with vitamins or something?”

Nikola’s expression falls flat, but I spot the way his lips twitch a little, “No. It was just water, Hagen.”

“Uh-huh, sure,” I reply as I sink into my seat. “I know you’re trying to poison me.” When his face crumples with alarm, I have to bite the inside of my cheek to stop myself from laughing. “I know what you’re doing. Knots told me your evil plan.”

“Knots?” Nikola repeats in a near sputter. “You’re afraid of Knots, and besides, Knots would never snitch. He is a loyal pet and an even more loyal conduit.”

“I notice the way you didn’t deny that you’re trying to kill me,” I note, eyes squinted with suspicion.

“I’m not!” Nikola protests, his eyes widening with honest terror. “There is no poison.”

I grin, loving how serious he was when I was just fucking with him.

“Maybe, but I don’t know,” I shrug. “All I know is that Knots shared a lot when I told him I might let him hug me later.”

That makes Nikola pause as he twists his lips from side to side before admitting, “Knots is notoriously weak for affection.” I snort as Nikola shakes his head, “Even so. You are afraid of him, so I’m sure you’re just saying things right now.”

“He’s a python,” I deadpan because any sane person would agree that that was reason enough. Though in Knots’ defence, he was the cutest python I’d ever seen.

“He’s harmless,” Nikola dismisses because of course, he didn’t see anything wrong with his twenty-foot-long magical python. “But I am not trying to poison you, Hagen. I would never.”

Heart lurching with silly delight, I can’t help but nudge his foot just a little as I prop my face in my hands, “I know. I’m just messing with you.”

Relaxing a little, Nikola nods tightly before he allows himself to smile as he nudges me back beneath the table, “Do you enjoy toying with me, Hagen?”

My body forgets how to function for a second from the way he asks that, his voice smooth and husky. I shrug, mumbling, “Maybe. You do it to me all the time.”

Nikola doesn’t even attempt to deny the accusation. Instead, he just smirks while his eyes slowly travel down my neck to where my pulse was beating a cruel beat. “Yes, I do,” he admits, his smirk widening when our eyes lock again, “I like watching you squirm, Hagen.”

Breath-catching, I sit up and force my gaze away from Nikola’s, only managing a nervous laugh, “T-That’s… uh, you shouldn’t say that.”

“Why not?” Nikola asks, tilting his head to one side with wicked amusement. “It’s the truth.”

I try to respond, I really do, but with Nik gazing at me like he could read my every thought, it just comes out as a jumbled mess of “still” and “whatever” and “lying is okay sometimes”.

Basically, I end up saying nonsensical rubbish that only gets worse with every passing second.

“Whatever,” I mumble for probably the millionth time as I try to tuck my legs in, but something stops me. Nikola stops me.

His magic takes hold of my thighs like firm fingers, digging in and forcing my legs together so that his can lock around mine. They cage me in, those muscled thighs offering me nowhere to go beneath the table.

I’m pretty sure I die for a second. I must have because the feel of his body against mine paired with his magic–

I can’t breathe. I can’t look at him. I can’t fucking think. I can’t do a thing trapped like this, with my mate keeping me captive.

“Hagen,” he whispers, and I quickly shake my head.

He’d ask me to look at him, and I couldn’t do it when he sounded like that. Like he had in the night when his magic had touched me– like he was seconds away from snapping.

“Hagen,” Nikola repeats, voice measured despite the way his magic roved over me. “Look at me.”

Maybe if he’d asked, I’d have been able to deny him. Maybe. But he didn’t ask. He’d told me to do something, and with a quickness that stunned me, my body betrayed me.

I look up, and my insides immediately turn to molten lava.

Oh, good Goddess, spare me.

Nikola’s gaze was like electric heat, and it sets off a hurricane inside of me. I struggle to hold it, squirming– or trying to. I could barely move with him keeping me locked beneath the table.

“Is this too much?” he asks, each word purposefully pronounced. “Tell me if it is, and I’ll stop.”

It was! It was too much! It was driving me insane! He was driving me insane!

The words were on my tongue – fuck they were right there – but I couldn’t speak them. I can’t. I felt like I was enduring a heart attack, but at the same time, it felt so good.

It felt like Nikola was silently claiming me, and that was a deliriously wonderful thing when everyone had been falling head over heels in love with him all day.

I shake my head a little and the second I do, Nikola’s magic flares in response, tightening its hold on me. It almost brings a whimper out of me, but somehow– by the grace of Goddess herself, I manage to bite it back.

“Good,” he breathes, seeming to relax as his legs brush closer against mine and his magic strokes up my thighs. “I only want you to feel good, Hagen.”

Fuck.

I nod, hastily reaching for my glass of water on our table. I gulp it down, looking anywhere but at Nikola, even though I can feel his gaze on me.

What the hell was happening right now?

Euphoria — Zyair whispers like a passing ghost. He sounded like he was floating or flying high in Goddess’ Plains. This is paradise, Hagen. Make sure you enjoy every second of it.

Magic receding a little, Nikola lets me catch my breath while he sips his water as well. Despite the fact that I felt like I might not make it to the end of the day, my body gradually began to relax. It wasn’t really voluntary, but more of an instinct that had my muscles unwinding and giving into the safety of his magic and him.

Slowly, the world began to fade away, becoming blurry where Nikola wasn’t. It felt like it was just us. I knew there were people around us, but it didn’t seem like it and in this little bubble… I felt more at peace than I wanted to admit.

Thankfully, I don’t have to as Brooke returns with our smoothies. She deposits them without any lingering looks, leaving just as quickly as she came. I try not to smile too hard as we sip our drinks, quiet in the fairly busy restaurant.

I didn’t know what to say, but I didn’t feel like I had to. For now, just being close like this was more than enough. It seemed to be the same for Nikola who was smiling happily at me every time I looked at him, as if I’d given him the greatest gift ever.

That made it easier too, knowing that he was happy. With our checkered past, I knew we were both trying to find our footing, but Nikola always put my happiness first. So I figured that maybe for once, I could do the same.

It wasn’t that bad either. Actually, it wasn’t bad at all.

══════════════════

“When was the last time you went for a run?”

I look up from our bill with a frown that I hoped expressed enough.

“As a wolf?” Nik supplies, taking the bill from me.

“Probably the day before we came up here, so not long,” I muse while I search for my wallet. “Why?”

“I was thinking perhaps we could run together,” Nikola says, trying to keep his voice gauged, but his hopefulness kept slipping through. “If you would be open to it.”

Cute wasn’t the word I’d ever think to associate with Nikola Amorenia, but like this, with him trying to act all cool when he was anything but, it was the only word that came to mind.

“I am,” I reply with a smile that grows when Nik’s grey eyes get all big. “Did you want to do it today or…”

“Tomorrow,” he answers immediately. “I need to prepare myself.”

I laugh because, of course he did. Knowing Nikola, he was either going to prep our entire route to ensure we weren’t endangered or he just needed to give himself a pep talk before exerting himself physically.

“Sounds good,” I reply, tugging a twenty and five from my wallet. “Half?” Nikola nods, his half appearing out of thin air as he sets the bill down.

I begrudgingly leave a big tip for Brooke. She had been great, and once I could feel Nik’s magic on me, I could ignore the fact that her hair was my mate’s favourite colour.

“Home?” I ask, looking up at Nik as we start walking. He nods eagerly, and I raise a brow, “Too much time out in public.”

“I have my limits,” he admits before quickly adding. “Unless there was something else you wished for us to do?”

“No,” I reply almost too quickly. “I’ve had more than enough time out in public today.”

Nikola frowns but doesn’t comment as I lead the way back to my apartment. I usually wanted to take a walk or stop in shops, preferring being out and about than cooped up in my place, but today, I wanted to get behind my own four walls.

I hadn’t been lying when I said I had more than enough time out today. I was tired of the lingering gazes on my mate– it was driving me incomprehensibly insane, and it needed to stop.

We should never leave the apartment again — Zyair declares, completely serious. He’ll be all ours there, and his scent will be all we know.

That idea shouldn’t have sounded so damn good.

We’re only a short distance from my building when my phone buzzes in my pocket. I dig it out lazily, wondering what nonsense Josey was sending me when my eyes settle on the new message that was not from Josey.

Max – That man is F.I.N.E. FINE! NIKOLA IS FINE!

Max – Please tell me he’s single, Hagen! Please!

Max – If he is, do me a solid and give me his deets. I NEED to see that man again.

The edges of my phone dig into my palm as I squeeze, almost shattering it in my hand as I stare at the message.

Was it just me, or had the world suddenly become red?

I’m typing before I even realise, my fingers stabbing at my screen in a reckless fury.

Me – He’s not. In fact, he’s very much taken. So the next time I see you making eyes at him, I’ll tear them out of your skull 🙂

“Hagen?” Nikola asks at my side, trying to peer at my phone. “Is everything okay?”

“Everything’s fine,” I bite out as I hit send before I shove my phone in my pocket and carry on.

Is he single?! Of course, he wasn’t single. He was my fucking mate; he was mine. Not anyone else’s, just mine. Mine. And I knew he was gorgeous. Max didn’t need to tell me that. Anyone with eyes just needed to take one look at Nikola to know he was ten steps above the rest of us.

Fuck Max. Who did he think he was? Actually, fuck everyone! Fuck every single fucker who kept staring at my mate as if they had no home training. Didn’t people know not to stare! IT WAS RUDE!

I’m seething by the time we reach my apartment, but I make sure to lock every latch on my door the second Nikola steps inside.

With Zyair pacing like crazy in my head, I quickly work off my coat and shoes, stripping the extra layers off in a rage as I head for the kitchen.

I don’t make it far when a steady hand grips my arm. I glare up at my mate, trying to pull myself free, but Nikola doesn’t let me, only tightening his grip.

“Let go,” I snap, pushing against his chest as he grips both my arms.

“You need to tell me what’s wrong first.”

“Nothing’s wrong,” I groan, but that just makes anger flare behind his eyes as he tugs me to him.

“Something is wrong. Something is very wrong,” he corrects stiffly, wavering between anger and worry. “You’ve been upset since we saw your friends this morning. What happened?”

“Nothing, Nikola,” I grind out as I look up at him. “Now, let me go.”

Nikola wavers for a moment, his jaw clenching before he loosens his grip and takes a step back. I move into the kitchen, not even sure what I was in here for anyway. I yank my fridge open and grab a beer from inside, flicking the lid off before I take a much-needed gulp. I sigh as I scoot onto my counter and take another.

“What did I miss, Hagen?”

Nikola moves in from the arching doorway, looking so miserable Zyair howls sadly.

“You didn’t miss anything,” I promise, setting the beer down before it could slip from my fingers and I made an even bigger mess of things.

“You’re lying,” he states, moving closer until he’s stood right in front of me, my knees brushing against his legs. “I know something is wrong. If it was me, I’m sorry, Hagen. I’m sorry for whatever I did.”

“No. You didn’t do anything wrong,” I vow, looking directly at him so he couldn’t doubt that it wasn’t the truth. “It wasn’t you.”

“Then who was it?” he asks, his gaze hardening. “Who hurt you?”

“Nobody hurt me, Nikola,” I promise, trying to quiet the storm I could already see brewing.

“Something or someone upset you,” he states, his eyes flashing with barely contained rage. “I’ll deal with it. You only need to tell me who it was.”

I shake my head, closing my eyes in a feeble attempt to cope with the wild need he sets off inside of me. Goddess, I needed to get a hold of myself. I was being crazy, and Nikola acting like he was going to bulldoze the entire city for me wasn’t helping.

“Nik, it’s not what you think,” I say, trying to slip from the counter but he just moves closer, forcing me to stay put.

“Then explain it to me,” he pleads, his anger shifting to confusion. “Please, Hagen. I don’t like you being upset. I want to fix it, and I will. I just need to know what happened.”

With anyone else, I’d keep my mouth shut and play dumb forever. I’d leave them guessing so that I’d never have to admit it out loud. But Nikola wasn’t just anyone— he was my mate.

No matter how embarrassing and shameful it was, I couldn’t leave him reeling with worry when I knew that was all he would do; stress about it and play the day over and over again in his mind, blaming himself for something he didn’t even do. I couldn’t do that to him.

“Hagen,” Nikola whispers, reaching up to take my face in his hands. I lean into him, already melting as he peers at me. “Tell me what happened.”

I sigh, knowing that nothing could stop me from doing just that.

“It wasn’t you,” I mumble, looking down at his nose instead. It was easier to put my focus there and pretend I wasn’t actually doing this. “It’s nothing for you to fix. I was just—” fucking hell. “I was jealous.”

Nikola’s face goes from confused to even more confused as his eyes grow wider than I’d ever seen before. His expression crumples and twists all around as he takes it in, clearly struggling to compute it.

“Jealous?” he whispers eventually, mumbling the word as if it wasn’t English and he wasn’t sure how to pronounce it.

I nod, feeling my entire chest and neck heat quickly with embarrassment.

That’s what this madness was. Jealousy. Jealousy and an alarming amount of possessiveness.

“Hagen, why—” he stops, sounding like he didn’t know what was going on for possibly the first time in our lives. “I’m confused.”

“Me too,” I mumble, but that was barely a half-truth. “You were great with my friends, Nikola. I know you were trying to be nice, and you were, but—” I pause. I didn’t want to tell him not to be nice and discourage it in the future. “Let’s just say Max really appreciated how nice you were.” The world turns red again. “He likes you.”

Nikola blinks owlishly at me, now looking slightly alarmed, “He likes me?”

I nod, “Yeah, he spent that whole conversation trying to wiggle his way into your pants,” I grumble, eyes rolling, “All, ′where are you from’ and ′I studied food biology’.” Just thinking about it made me want to skin him alive. “He was flirting with you, Nikola.”

Nikola does more of his dismayed blinking, “I didn’t notice.”

I narrow my eyes, “You didn’t notice?”

How could he not notice Max basically begging him to fuck him on the pavement with his eyes?

“You didn’t notice him throwing himself at you? Did you not notice all the people staring at you, either?”

“Who was staring at me?” Nik asks with obvious concern and horror. “When did that happen?”

“All day!” I exclaim, pushing free of his hands as I look up at him. “All day, everyone was staring at you! The entire restaurant, Brooke, uhh everyone we passed on the walk home. Everyone!”

“Why?” Nikola asks, sounding genuinely fearful.

“Because you’re hot!” I bellow before my words replay themselves, and I bite my lip. “I mean, p-people think you’re hot, and they find you attractive. So everyone was looking at you today.”

“Oh,” Nikola breathes, sounding mostly surprised and just a little bit concerned.

“That’s it?” I repeat, almost glaring at him. “Oh.”

Nikola nods, “It’s surprising news. I didn’t notice. So I’m surprised,” he deadpans.

“How the hell did you not notice?!”

Nik blinks at me and laughs, “Because when I’m with you, I don’t notice anything else, Hagen.”

“What do you—” I pause, faltering as his words take root. “What?”

Smiling, Nikola settles his hands on either side of me as he steps a little closer, “When I’m with you Hagen, I only see you. I have to physically force myself to recognise that there’s a world around us. But even so, I only think of you.” Nikola breathes, making my heart stutter as I stare at him. “My attention is only on you. I’m not stupid enough to look at other people in case I miss one of your smiles. Nothing else— nobody else, is as important to me as you are.”

I stare at Nik like a fish out of water, my heart hammering so hard I was pretty sure it was going to break a rib.

“Hagen, even when we’re not together, I’m thinking of you,” Nikola confesses as he lifts one of his hands to comb through my hair. “I’m thinking of what we will next do together. What I can say to make you smile and laugh, and what I can do to make you happy. I’m only ever thinking of you, so no,” he shakes his head, laughing a little, “I did not notice anyone else staring at me today.”

Sometimes, Nik barely said a word, and then other times, he said everything. He bore his heart open, sharing everything he could, no matter how vulnerable, and expected me to cope when he did. It was a dangerous expectation because his words had me breathing so fast that I thought I might pass out any second now.

“I—” What did someone even say to that? What could anyone ever say after that?

If being mated was like this, then everyone deserved to have this gift.

“But you noticed?” Nikola questions, a single brow rising as he settles his gaze on where he was playing with my hair. I shudder as he pushes the tangled mess behind my ear, his knuckles brushing against the burning skin there.

“W-What?” I ask as I desperately shift back a little, but there’s nowhere to go.

“You noticed today,” Nikola repeats calmly, but his muscles were too tense for him to just be relaxed. “You noticed others looking at me, and it upset you.”

I look down, but that only gives me a view of Nikola’s legs forcing mine apart as he steps closer and invades my space.

“Nik,” I murmur, breath hitching as his fingers slip into my hair while his other hand settles on my hip.

“It upset you, Hagen,” he repeats, forcing my head back with his firm but gentle grip. I bite my lip to stifle the moan that itches at my throat when our gazes meet, and his immediately drops to my lips.

“Yes,” I whisper, my eyelids getting heavier with each passing second.

“You were jealous,” he groans as he leans in, bringing his body closer to mine. I shake my head, but Nik tightens his grip, forcing me to stay right where he wants. “Answer me.”

Shit!

“Y-Yes,” I whimper, cheeks flaming at the sound, but I can’t help it.

Nikola breathes in deeply as he drags his nose against my cheek. I shudder against him, instinctively trying to close my legs, but that just makes them brush against his. For some reason, it makes lust steer deep inside of me.

My breaths falter as I try to breathe around Nikola’s scent, but it’s impossible. He was everywhere now, closer than we’d been in ages, and after so long, I couldn’t fight it.

“I only see you, Hagen,” he whispers, lips brushing against my skin.

“Nik,” I moan, hands rising to grip his shoulders. I claw at his skin, needing to feel him as his fingers tighten around my waist, tugging me in the remaining distance. His body presses into mine, and despite the alarms sounding in my head, I don’t try to pull away.

“Do I need to convince you?” Nikola whispers in a near growl, his body plastered to mine in every way it can as I pull him closer. “Let me convince you.”

Oh fuck.

Eyes clenched shut, I try to calm my breathing, to remember how to form a logical thought that wasn’t made of lust, but my mind fails me. I could only think of Nikola and how much I needed him– how much I wanted him. Goddess, I wanted so much more.

“Nikola,” I breathe, trying to say something other than his name, but all I manage is, ”Nik.”

With each breathless whisper of his name, Nikola’s hold on me grows tighter and rougher, until it’s almost painful, but fuck I love that too. He discards any space left between us as he holds me firm, his lips dragging lazily across my skin, all over my neck and face, until I feel them press against mine.

I stiffen, and so does he.

Eyes popping open, I stare blankly into his grey eyes.

Our hearts rattle without our chests, but we don’t dare breathe.

Nikola had just kissed me. He kissed me.

He’d kissed me, and… pleasure sparks to life inside my core, sprouting free and spreading uncontrollably from only that brief brush of his lips. He’d just kissed me, a guy— Nikola, and it had felt… Goddess, it felt…

“Hagen, I’m sor—”

I fist his shirt and drag him to me until I slam my mouth against his, our lips meeting in perfect bliss. I moan as those mind-numbing sparks return, casting pleasure throughout my body and tearing me apart.

Fuckkkk, it felt soooo good.

I kiss Nikola like I’m starved for it. Fuck, I felt starved. Ravenous, I move my lips against his, shivering from the rough brush of stubble against my jaw. Goddess, even that felt good. I worship Nikola’s pliant lips, lost to how good he felt, barely noticing that he wasn’t kissing me back until he was.

But then he was, and oh Goddess.

Nikola’s hand in my hair yanks my head back, making me whimper as his lips press in, moving over mine to claim without pause. His rough fingers force my hips into his, and he growls as I part my lips on a moan.

I feel the sharp jab of his canines as they descend, brushing cruelly against my lips as his tongue slips in to make me his. I cling to him, trembling from head to toe as he pulls me apart, flooding my mind with more pleasure than I knew existed.

It was euphoric. Perfect. Fucking insane. And I wanted more.

“Nik, please,” I breathe between rough kisses, craning my neck. ”Please!”

A rush of magic locks me in place, sending shrill warmth over me as it forces me to keep my legs spread and my head back while Nikola’s hands push beyond my shorts to rub roughly against my inner thighs.

I’d meant my neck. I’d wanted him to scent my neck, not… n-not…

“Anhg! F-Fuck!” I moan, trembling as he palms the skin there, rubbing his thumbs in and forcing his scent into my body. “Oh fuckkk! Nik!” I yelp, but he swallows it with another bruising kiss.

Eyes rolling, I buck and moan, feeling like my mind was falling apart from the feel of his wide, rough hands leaving his scent all over me. God, after so long, it felt so fucking good. I missed this. Missed forgetting everything else as the scent of leather and safety became all I knew, and all I could think of was my mate.

“Yes!” I whimper, body opening for him. “Oh, Goddess! Yes!”

I was a trembling moaning mess, but Nikola didn’t make a sound. Besides his grunts and pants, he was quiet, speaking only with his claiming mouth and frenzied hands that had my cock hardening in seconds when it brushed against it.

“W-Wait,” I try, but it turns into a series of embarrassingly shrill whimpers when Nikola’s hands abandon my thighs and shoves their way up my shirt instead. He scrapes his fingers along my skin before he drags them over my hard nipples. “Ngh! A-Ahh! Oh, God! N-Nik!”

Growling so low my chest buckles, Nikola’s lips nip into mine, kissing and licking into my mouth as his hips begin to thrust against mine. Oh God, no. He does it once more, driving his body against mine and my cock bucks in response, leaking with an eagerness, but it was too much– too much.

It was supposed to just be a kiss. Just a kiss.

“N-Nik,” I try to draw back even as my hips thrust wildly against his, and my clawing fingers pull him even closer to me. We move desperately against one another, Nikola grinding me into the counter while his fingers tugged cruelly at my nipples, “Anh! Ugh! Nikuughh!”

Distantly, I’m aware of the fact that we’re humping on my counter, that I’m spread open for my mate, moaning with every flick of his tongue and scrape of his nails against my skin. It’s all distant, a far-away worry for later with the way I could feel myself racing to the edge, my balls tightening.

“We— Nik, we— ahh!” Fuck, I forget my thought when he sucks on my tongue.

“So good,” Nikola growls making my body go haywire for him. I part my lips and spread my legs even wider, wanting to hear it again, “So good for me.”

I whine into his mouth, giving him everything as those words send wave after wave of pleasure rippling down my spine. I wanted to be good, wanted to be good for him.

Moving up, Nikola’s hands force my shirt to ride up as his hands escape the neck hole and surround my neck. Yesss!! They grip me, holding me firm, forcing me to surrender to him, then they squeeze, a little too tight–just right, and the world becomes a white blur.

“I-I’m gonna cum,” I whimper, and Nikola’s growl turns deadly. Fuck, I really was going to cum.

Wait, I was going to cum.

“Stop!” I shout, voice a strained, hoarse mess. “S-Stop! Stop!”

Nikola jumps back so quickly he almost falls, taking with him his hands, mouth and magic right before I reach my peak. I shudder, my near orgasm making my eyes cross as I grip the counter for dear life. I shut my legs quickly, whimpering at the brush of my sensitive balls, but I force myself not to rub off as I look at my mate.

My mate. Nikola, who almost made me cum.

That single thought does a swift job of bringing me back to earth. I meet Nikola’s eyes, those dilated eyes that were glowing purple now and blown wide, his chest heaving desperately. I slip from the counter in a near haze, almost falling, my knees so weak, but I manage to stay standing as Nik, and I stare at one another.

We don’t even blink, our gazes so wide, I almost didn’t think this was real. But it was. It had all been real. His hands, his mouth, the way I’d moan and almost cum.

“Hagen—”

I run, moving as fast as I can on shaky legs until I’m in the safety of the bathroom. I look around wildly, catching my dishevelled reflection in the mirror, and my stomach rolls when I do.

I snatch my gaze away as I stumble into the shower and sink down in the corner. Shaking all over, I try to breathe as the world begins to tilt on its axis. Fuck, I could still taste Nikola on my tongue.

Whimpering, I grip the ends of my hair with my hands and stare at the white tiles.

What the fuck had we done?

————-

The wayyyyyyyy….

I actually don’t know how to formulate my words right now😭

Just know that I’m not okay. I. AM. NOT. OKAY.

Thoughts?!??!??!!

Thoughts on Jealous Hagen?? Thoughts on the mini breakfast date???

THOUGHTS ON THEIR FIRST KISS??!??!!!!!!!AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHJJJJJJH

I AM STILL REELING GOD THAT WAS SO GOOD😮‍💨😫😤 NIKOLA! NIKOLA THE MAN THAT YOU ARE😭 FUCK!

let me relax. Let me actually relax.

If you can’t tell, writing this chapter made me very happy and I hope it did the same for you all. I really really do😭

Predictions going forth?? What about hopes??

Don’t know when the next chapter will be, so hopefully this will sustain you😭 please vote and comment if you enjoyed!

Until next time,
Byeeeeeeeee Humanssssssss