(R18) Skip if needed.
Tanner's breath catches as he enters the room, his eyes locking onto Jess sitting on the floor.
His body, still in just his briefs, is curled into himself, arms hugging his knees as silent sobs wrack through him.
The sight rips through Tanner's chest, his wolf stirring violently within, unable to stand the pain in Jess's eyes.
Tanner's heart pounds, and before he can stop it, his wolf pushes forward, urging him to act.
He kneels beside Jess, gently taking him by the arms and lifting him. Jess doesn't resist, his body trembling, his face buried in his hands.
Tanner's wolf growls inside him, urging him closer, desperate for comfort. Tanner guides Jess back to the bed, almost lifting him like a child, as if his broken heart cannot handle this distance anymore.
Their eyes meet as Tanner lays him down, his pulse a heavy drumbeat in his ears. Jess looks so fragile, so vulnerable.
His hand hovers over Jess like a man reaching toward fire, terrified but entranced.
Trembling fingers suspended in air, unsure where to touch, unsure what's right.
Touching a man like this should feel wrong. It should be wrong. But it doesn't. It feels inevitable.
Tanner's mind screams don't, but his body doesn't listen. It hasn't been listening since the moment Jess looked at him like that... soft eyes, parted lips, surrender written in every line of his face.
He's not even conscious of moving until his fingers brush Jess's skin. Heat. Skin softer than anything he's ever touched. Real. Alive.
It jolts something inside him. A hunger he's trying to bury, it's only growing claws and teeth in the dark.
He leans down. Lips brush Jess's like a breath. A whisper. And Jess sighs.
A sigh that leaves Tanner helpless.
Everything Tanner thought he knew fractures.
His hands rise without thought, cradling Jess's face like a sacred thing, as if he could shatter this moment by touching too hard. Jess leans into it like he's always belonged there.
Tanner's kiss deepens, no longer hesitant. It's desperate. Hungry. Starved.
The moment of denial unravel between their mouths. He tastes everything he tried to ignore_ longing, fear, confusion.
Jess's lips part for him, welcome him. His hands clutch at Tanner's shirt, anchoring him, urging him closer.
Tanner's mind is a blur, he doesn't remember moving, but suddenly Jess is beneath him, briefs gone.
His legs open with trust, like Tanner is something holy, not something breaking every line he's drawn for himself.
His fingers trace the smooth skin, the world narrows to that single touch.
"What am I doing? Why do I want this so much?" Tanner whispers, the words torn from his chest before he can stop them.
But Jess hardy hear's him.
He reaches for Tanner's shirt, Tanner's breath hitches as Jess's fingers glide over the buttons, each one undone with purpose, with intention.
The fabric slips lower, revealing the taut muscles beneath, and Tanner feels a shiver run down his spine.
His chest rises in quick, shallow breaths, part anticipation, part need. Jess's touch is soft, reverent, and Tanner can't help but tremble under it.
Tanner doesn't stop to think. His hands shake as they move to his own trousers, the urgency in his movements betraying his restraint.
The zipper is pulled down, his waistband loosening. The moment his clothes fall away, he's fully exposed. No barriers, no distance left between them.
The cool air meets his skin, and the sensation is a jolt, a shock to the senses, a reminder of just how raw and real this moment is.
He climbs back onto Jess, his bare chest pressed to the warmth of Jess's. Every inch of their skin that meets is an explosion, a rush of heat that makes his body trembling.
He doesn't think about touching Jess. He just does.
His hand slides up trembling thighs, and Jess opens for him like blooming nightshade, dangerous and beautiful. Tanner groans, low and guttural, his restraint threadbare.
This is a man, his mind tries to remind him. But it's not enough to stop him.
He tastes his throat, slow and reverent, dragging his mouth down Jess's skin like a man marking sacred ground.
Each inch of Jess is a revelation. Every sound, every shift, every sigh sinks deeper into Tanner's bones.
"Tell me to stop," he whispers.
But it's a lie.
Because even if Jess said it, he doesn't know if he could. Not anymore. He's too far gone.
He aligns himself with Jess. He moves without thinking, like his body knows something he hasn't dared admit.
Jess arches beneath him, offering everything, and Tanner's hips press forward, seeking, chasing that unbearable need between them.
But he barely pushes in before it hits him_ too dry, too tight, his breath catches, the resistance a sharp shock that jerks him back to himself.
He curses under his breath.
He reaches blindly for the drawer beside the bed, hand fumbling until it closes around a bottle of lotion, slick and cool. He doesn't even check the label. It doesn't matter. Nothing does, except getting back to Jess.
He squeezes some into his palm, clumsy and impatient, slicking himself fast, then reaches between Jess's legs, fingers stroking over tender skin, easing the lotion in.
Jess gasps, hips twitching, eyes wide and shining from the sheer rush of sensation.
Tanner's breathing hard, almost shaking. He lines himself up again, this time gliding in slow, giving Jess time to take him in, time to adjust.
But even with just the tip breaching that impossible warmth, Tanner nearly loses it. His whole body stutters, chokes on a moan that won't come out.
It's too much. It's insane.
He presses his forehead to Jess's, fighting the urge to just give in, to thrust, to fall apart completely.
"Fuck..." The word rips out of him, low and broken, the only thing he can manage as he sinks in.
He clutches the sheets, jaw clenched so tight it aches. His eyes squeeze shut, breath stalling in his chest.
Every inch inside drags a tremor through him, like his nerves are catching fire one by one.
His hand finds the curve of a thigh and he holds on, grounding himself, barely. It's too much. Too warm. Too tight. It wraps around him like a vice and a vow.
His hips still, every muscle locked, because if he moves, if he dares, he'll lose it.
Another curse slips out. His forehead drops to a shoulder, skin damp beneath him. He can't think. He can't breathe.
He just feels.
And it's unbearable.
And it's perfect. Something he's never imagined.
He moves slowly, gasping, clutching Jess close, breath shaking like a man on the edge of breaking. Inside Jess, everything stills. Everything clicks. And that forbidden, sacred truth echoes in his ears:
This is right.
Jess's body accepts him, surrounds him, clings to him like he's the only answer to a question neither of them knew how to ask.
Their bodies move together, clumsy at first, then in rhythm. The world narrows to skin, sweat, sound.
Tanner grips Jess's hips, grounding himself, grounding them. His mouth finds Jess's throat again, and something primal overtakes him. His teeth sink in, involuntary, and the moment explodes around them.
Jess cries out. Tanner breaks apart inside him.
It's not just release. It's surrender. A falling. A claiming. His body, his soul, gives in completely.
The mark pulses with heat, bonding them in a way he doesn't understand but can't deny.
~~
Hey guys, I'm really, really sorry... I know I keep publishing and unpublishing like a maniac, but I swear this is the last version. I've finally got it.
Also… it would seriously help if you said something, just so I know if I'm actually doing okay or just totally bluffing.
I low-key blame you for my chaotic behavior, because when no one says anything, I start doubting myself!😁
Anyway, thanks a ton for sticking with me and being patient. Love you for it!
I refined from chapter 5.