Seth's Chance [Brac Pack 27] (6 page)

Chance was a little surprised that Seth had stayed until Dr. Samuel had shown up to sign off on Chauncey’s transfer. It was noon, and Chance was irritated and ready to get the hell out of there. The doctor who had taken care of Chance since being admitted had cleared him to leave on his own, which was a damn good thing, considering Chance was about to walk out on his own two feet.

What shocked Chance was that Seth had agreed to allow his pa to take Oscar home to the ranch. Yeah, Oscar always smiled like a goof whenever Pa was around, but he never thought Seth would allow his nephew out of his sight.

“Oscar begged until I couldn’t do anything but say yes. You did vouch for him, right?” Seth looked like he was going to run for the door and rescue the whelp.

Chance grabbed his mate around his waist, pulling Seth close to his body. He wasn’t sure what happened with the man, but since arriving last night, Seth had changed. He stuck close to Chance, touched him a hell of a lot, and was very receptive to Chance touching him.

Maybe the near-death experience had been a good thing, at least for Chance. “Oscar’s fine. Don’t forget my baby brother’s at home. Oscar will have a good time.”

“Oscar said there were bears on the ranch. Do you guys get them often?”
Chance almost bit his damn tongue off.
No one had shifted in front of Oscar or Seth. How in the hell did the little guy know? That pipsqueak had some explaining to do. “My pa will protect Oscar with his life.” He didn’t want to lie. He’d already omitted so many truths to Seth that he was sure the man was going to start asking for better answers. He had been damn close last night in telling Seth that Chauncey needed to shift to heal. But that wasn’t something he wanted to discuss in a hospital.
It wasn’t something he wanted to discuss at all, but Chance knew why his pa had taken Oscar. It was time for Chance to come clean with his mate. He was going to wait until they got to Seth’s apartment, but Chance could feel his heart already beating out of control. He was terrified Seth would turn on him and walk away.
“You ready?” Chance asked as he walked Seth to the parking lot. Chance could not believe how damn nervous he was.
Oh, how the mighty have fallen
. He used to be carefree, not a worry to his name. Now he had a mate who had no clue he was a mate, a son/nephew to raise, and a twin who might suffer brain damage if the shift into his bear form didn’t work.
Damn if things weren’t a mess.
Seth opened the apartment door once they made it back to Brac Village. Chance could smell the nervousness coming off of Seth in waves. This was the first time they’d been alone together. Although Oscar had grown on Chance, he was glad for some long-overdue privacy.
“Would you like something to drink?” Seth asked as he set his keys down and glanced around the apartment as if he’d never seen it before.
“Water or juice would be fine.” Chance took a seat on the sofa.
It was the only thing to sit on in the living room. The couch was comfortable as hell, but a light-green couch with daisy prints wouldn’t have been Chance’s first choice. The coffee table in front of the couch had seen better days, scratch marks and small nicks scarring the dark wood.
Chance knew that Seth slept on the couch, so sitting here now made things feel a little more intimate. There was a slim rectangular table that stood taller than the coffee table over by the door where Seth always deposited his keys, and a small entertainment stand that held a television.
Chance wasn’t aware that tube televisions were even sold anymore. The entertainment stand held only one more item, and that was the DVD player. The remotes sat on the coffee table, and the movies sat underneath in their cases. It was plain, but homey.
Seth walked back in with two glasses of apple juice, setting them on rounded coasters. Chance ran his hands down the front of his jeans, removing the excess moisture from the palms of his hands. He’d had sex before, and lord knew he was an expert at the subject, but this was different. Seth was his mate. He wasn’t even sure if they would get that far tonight, but the possibility of being with Seth intimately had Chance’s cock perking up.
Unfortunately he was going to have to tell Seth about his bear before they had sex. For a bear to make the bond between mates work, they only had to sleep together. It would be pretty fucked up to have sex with Seth and then say, “Oh, by the way, we’re mated for life.”
Yeah, not gonna happen.
“This is all I had. I hope you don’t mind,” Seth said as he sipped his juice, his eyes darting around like they were following some laser light flashing all over the wall.
Chance inched over just a fraction, stretching and then resting his arm on the back of the couch behind Seth. It was a move as old as time, but hey, if it worked, why change it?
“Why don’t you sit back?” Maybe if he made out with Seth, he could break the news and Seth wouldn’t break Chance’s body.
Seth sat his juice down and scooted back, smiling nervously at Chance. “Are you sure Oscar isn’t a burden with your father?”
Chance shook his head. “No, my pa loves whelps. He’s happy to have them running underfoot again.”
Chance leaned closer, cupping Seth’s chin and then pulling it around until his mate was staring up at him with his green eyes. He blinked, as if noticing just then that Chance was real close. Seth licked his lips, parting them slightly as Chance lowered his head. Seth took a deep breath that seemed to shake just a little before Chance closed the distance, Seth’s breath feeling like a hot wind across his face.
Seth moaned, opening his mouth fully for Chance as Chance leaned back on the couch, taking Seth with him. He wrapped his arms around Seth, smoothing his hands down Seth’s back.
Seth’s fingers touched lightly on Chance’s upper arms, gliding lightly across his skin and making Chance shiver. It was the barest touch, but it felt so intimate. Chance tried to pull Seth onto his lap, but Seth resisted. His mate finally pulled back from the kiss, his lips swollen and wet. Chance wanted to run his tongue over them, to taste them once more.
“Slow down, big guy.”
Chance took a deep breath, letting it out slowly. He hated the fact that the contact was broken, but Chance knew Seth was right. They had to slow down, and he needed to explain to his mate what he was. He just wasn’t sure how he should begin the conversation.
Chance glanced at his mate, seeing Seth’s trusting green eyes watching him. His eyes were laced with the black lashes, making the green more vivid, more alive. Chance wanted to run his hands through his mate’s black hair, pull his body in, inhale his aroma, and rub all over Seth until his mate carried Chance’s scent. He wanted to feel their skin touching, their bodies entwining, and hear Seth shout his name as Chance brought him so much pleasure that they both passed out. Seth was fascinating in ways that Chance had no words for.
But first he had to explain the whole bear thing.
“Remember in the hospital when you asked what I wasn’t telling you?” It was a lousy way to start, but Chance had to go with what he had to work with.
Seth nodded.
“What I started to say was that Chauncey would heal if he just shifted.” Chance knew that Seth didn’t understand, but he was waiting for his mate to absorb what he was saying.
“I don’t understand,” Seth said as his green eyes took on the look that said Chance was actually a nut job and Seth wasn’t sure if he should run screaming or humor him.
“If Chauncey had shifted into his bear form, he would have healed a lot faster.” Chance watched as the confusion only deepened in Seth’s eyes. He was probably screwing this up, but Chance didn’t want to just blurt out that he was a bear. Seth would definitely kick him out after that one.
“You’re starting to worry me, Chance.”
That wasn’t what Chance wanted, but he couldn’t sleep with Seth, or bond his mate to him in good conscience without letting Seth know what would happen. If he was a rat bastard, he’d just fuck Seth and then tell him. But Chance was raised better than that.
“I’m not trying to worry you, Seth. Honestly. But I have to tell you what I am before this goes any further. I have to tell you.”
Seth inched away from Chance, his eyes darting toward the door. Chance wanted to tell Seth he didn’t have anything to worry about, that Chance would never hurt him in a million years, but if the shoe were reversed, he’d have kicked Seth’s ass by now just from the sheer fear alone.
“I’m listening.” Seth said it more like he was calming a crazy man than if he was really listening. Chance sat up.
“Please don’t run, Seth.” It was a clear warning. Bears, worse than any other preternatural creature, loved the chase. It was odd in the paranormal world. One would think wolves would be the ones to chase whoever ran from them, and they probably did, but bears had a love for the chase game, more than sweets.
“Why?” Seth asked as he eased from the couch. It was a tiny apartment. There really wasn’t anywhere Seth could go. Chance would catch him before his mate reached the door, but he had to warn the guy.
“Because I will chase you down. Don’t tempt my bear.”
“Your bear?” Seth squeaked.
“I’m trying to explain this without scaring you, Seth. But if you run, I can’t promise that I won’t come after you.”
Seth shot toward the door, and the chase was on.

Seth grabbed the door handle, twisting it around only to find the damn thing locked. Why, oh why did he have to secure both locks and the chain tonight? Couldn’t his paranoia have been forgotten for at least one damn night?

Chance was coming for him. He could feel it as if the man were a freight train heading straight for him. He fumbled, but couldn’t get the lock to cooperate. Seth slapped his hand against the door, willing the damn thing to open. When he felt the rush of air around him, Seth spun around, slamming his back into the door. “Stay away from me, Chance.” Seth held a hand up, as if it could stop the massive mountain of muscle from bearing down on him.

Chance paced back and forth in front of him, his moves mimicking a predator as he lifted his face and
scented
the air. Seth licked his lips and blew out a breath at the same time. Chance was acting like he was an animal, a bear as he claimed. Seth wasn’t sure if he could believe the man. Things like that just didn’t exist, weren’t possible. It was almost like a lion watching a gazelle as Chance moved closer.

“Do you think I would hurt my mate, Seth?” Chance asked as he took a step closer, his thick body seeming even bigger as he stood an inch closer. “Have I ever given you a reason to fear me, mate?”

Seth’s heart was beating like it was ready to burst from his chest and sprint away. His mouth was excessively dry, and his palms, hell, his entire body was coated in a sheen of sweat. “No, never.” He wouldn’t lie. Chance had never raised his voice or been anything but nice. Well, except for last night when he turned into a barbarian, but the attitude wasn’t aimed toward him, but Seth’s neighbor.

“Then you should know that I would rather lay down my life than harm you.”
“But you are scaring me,” Seth countered.
“And that is not my intention. But you need to know, Seth. You need to know what Oscar can already see without seeing.”
“That’s just downright confusing, Chance.”
Chance grinned, but the smile was more predatory than humorous. Seth’s hands pressed against the door behind him, his fingers digging into the wood when he saw tips of teeth right past Chance’s upper lip. He had never seen that before and knew for a fact that Chance had even, white teeth. “What are you?”
The grey eyes seemed to drift into the background as the honey color Seth swore he saw earlier appeared, dominating the pupils and almost bleeding into the whites of his eyes. Seth held his breath, waiting for Chance to change into some monster and tear into his flesh. Chance moved closer and Seth whimpered. He couldn’t stop the sound.
“Easy, mate. I swear on all that I hold dear that I will not hurt you.” Chance raised a hand, as if coming near a wild animal with the intent of petting it. Seth stiffened but didn’t move. Chance’s hand touched Seth’s shoulder and then ran down the course of his arm, the most tender of touch, soft, gentle.
That still didn’t make Seth relax. “As much as I hate to admit any weakness in front of you, I’m scared, Chance.” He wasn’t sure admitting his fear would excite whatever Seth was seeing. Chance was human in all the ways a man was, but his teeth and eyes told a different story. No man, or woman for that matter, could make their teeth grow or change their eye color without the help of contacts.
“I know, love. Do you trust me, really trust me, Seth?”
“Yes,” Seth admitted without hesitation. The word had spilled from his lips automatically, without thought. “But I still fear you.”
Chance held out his hand. Seth stared at that scarred-fingered, tanned hand, strong yet gentle in everything that he did. Seth took Chance’s hand, praying he wasn’t about to make the biggest mistake of his life. Chance pulled Seth close, gently enveloping him in the man’s strong arms. “Believe that I would never hurt you, love.”
Seth rested his cheek against Chance’s chest and nodded. He was afraid to speak, afraid he might sound less than manly if he whimpered again. Instead, he stood there and listened to the strong pounding of Chance’s heart. It was almost soothing to listen to. Seth’s shoulder slumped a fraction, his body leaning a little into Chance’s.
Chance didn’t make any moves on Seth. He just stood there and held him. Was he crazy? Shouldn’t he be fighting Chance off and running? Seth wasn’t sure what he should do, but he knew being held by Chance was like being held by…Seth frowned. Why did Chance’s arms feel like home?
Better than home. Seth, for once, felt safe, utterly and totally safe. Seth shuddered and sighed when Chance’s hands slid into his hair, his fingers massaging Seth’s scalp. He was afraid to speak, afraid of breaking the moment. “What are you?” He repeated the question from moments before.
“I’m a bear shifter, Seth.” The voice rumbled over Seth’s cheek, making Seth’s body hum with the deep vibration. Seth held on a little tighter, needing an anchor as he ventured into unknown territory. His mind was trying desperately to grasp what Chance was saying, but it was too much. Seth knew when the brain couldn’t grasp a concept, couldn’t understand what it had seen, it either shut down or totally dismissed the idea as absurd. Seth was trying desperately to make his brain accept what it was hearing.
“A real live bear?”
“I want to say yes, but I don’t want to scare you any more tonight.” Chance’s fingers tightened slightly in Seth’s hair and then relaxed.
“We are way beyond trying not to scare me, Chance.”
Seth could feel Chance’s erection pressing into his lower stomach. He suddenly became very aware how close they were. He knew it already, but feeling that trapped hard-on almost made it seem like surround sound in his mind.
Seth had convinced himself that he wasn’t ready for anything more than friendship, and he wasn’t sure what to make of what Chance was saying. Was he ready to go further? Was he ready to take that plunge with a…bear shifter?
As embarrassed as he was to ask the question, Seth needed to know before anything else happened between him and Chance. “You don’t do your bear thing during sex, do you?” Because there were some things Seth was willing to explore with a lover, but involving animals was nowhere on the list. Not even at the bottom.
Chance’s chest rumbled with laughter as he pulled back, cupping Seth’s face. His grey eyes were back, and they were sparkling like stars in a dark swatch of midnight sky. “No, Seth. My teeth may grow, my eyes may change into my bear eyes, I may even grow claws, but I don’t go all fuzzy.”
Seth was more relieved than he thought possible. As long as Chance remained human looking, maybe he could do this. “What’s a mate? You’ve called me that twice now.”
The glittering dance in Chance’s eyes faded, hesitation and worry replacing it. “It means you are it for me, Seth. I’ll have no other.”
Boy, was that a solid commitment or what? Seth wasn’t sure he was ready for that. “I’ve only known you two months, Chance. How can I make such a big commitment? I not only have myself to think about, but Oscar as well.”
“What do you feel when you look at me, Seth? Can you think of me walking out of your life and never seeing me again? Can you stand to watch me go? Do you feel happy when you think of us together?”
Seth thought about Chance leaving out his door and never returning. The thought twisted his stomach and made him feel sick. He always knew Chance was coming back when he left Seth, but to think of Chance never returning made him feel so cold that ice would be warmer. He was always happy when Chance was around. Seth held the goofiest smile and couldn’t make it go away when Chance walked through his door. But was that enough to make a commitment, to build a life on?
“I see home when I look at you, Chance.” Nothing but the truth. No lies.
“It’s called the pull, love. It’s fate’s way of bringing us together. You were chosen for me and me for you by fate. I know you’re scared, Seth. But trust me, I would never hurt you. It is a shifter’s honor to make his mate happy and protect him from harm.”
Wow. Just…wow.
“Let me see if I got this right. If we mate, then you’ll do whatever it takes to make me happy, truly happy, and protect me from bullies?”
Chance chuckled. “Something like that.”
“And what do you get in return, Chance?”
“You.” Chance pulled Seth in for another kiss, a softer one, a more fulfilling one that made Seth’s toes curl in his shoes.
“The thought of never seeing you again makes me feel as though the sun will never rise,” Seth said into Chance’s mouth.
“Same here, love.” Chance backed up, pulling Seth with him. Seth went, clinging to Chance’s shirt with his fingers. Seth knew how he felt toward the man when he saw Chance lying in that hospital bed. He felt like his world was crashing down around him. And Seth knew that he had fallen hard for the man, but a lifetime commitment? Boy, shifters didn’t hold back. They were all or nothing.
Seth yelped when Chance fell back onto the couch, pulling Seth down with him. Seth managed to brace himself with his hands on Chance’s chest, but Chance pulled at Seth until he was lying flat against a solid wall of muscle.
“If we have sex, that’s it. There’s no going back.”
Seth straddled Chance’s lap, staring into Chance’s eyes, eyes that had turned into two dark storm clouds, lust riding the irises hard. He leaned forward, taking Chance’s lips, kissing him with hunger as his hands explored Chance’s chest, shoulders, arms, and anything else his fingers could touch.
His fingers tingled with any skin Seth touched. His mind was buzzing with the intoxication of Chance’s body, the feel of it, the rush of knowing what they were about to do. He couldn’t think, and in all honesty, he didn’t want to. All Seth wanted was to feel. Chance’s hands smoothed up Seth’s back, gripped his shoulder, and then smoothed back down, pulling at the hem of Seth’s shirt.
Seth raised his arms when Chance pulled Seth’s shirt up and off, making Seth shiver as the cool air in the room surrounded him. He could feel his body blushing as he was slowly revealed to Chance. Seth wasn’t a virgin, not by far, but Chance was a handsome man, and having him stare at Seth while he sat there naked from the waist up and straddled over Chance’s lap was a bit intimidating.
He was nowhere near as built as Chance was. Seth was lean, his biceps paling in comparison to Chance’s. His chest looked like a damn ironing board compared to Chance’s washboard abs and thick pectoral muscles. Seth bit his bottom lip when Chance curled his fingers into Seth’s hips, pushing up as Seth glided forward. He could feel just how hard Chance was under his jeans.
Shivers raced down Seth’s back and arms as he felt Chance’s erection graze across his ass. He wanted to feel Chance’s cock buried deep into his ass. Seth’s breath hung in the air as Chance pushed up from the couch, his hand keeping Seth attached as he turned, placing Seth on his back as Chance hovered over him.
Chance began at Seth’s neck and worked his way down, kissing Seth gently in some places, harder in others. Seth’s legs were on either side of Chance, his knees bent as Chance worked his way down to Seth’s navel. Chance kissed his way from one side of Seth’s hips to the other, his tongue tracing along the hem of his jeans along the way. Oh god, he was going to come in his pants. There was no way Seth could take this for much longer. “Take my pants off,” he said breathily.
Chance nipped Seth’s button on his jeans, glancing up at Seth with those vivid grey eyes. Chance grinned, something mixed with seduction and anticipation as his tongue licked down the front of Seth’s jeans. Seth swallowed, praying he didn’t lose it before they even got started.
“Chance.” It was a low warning, pleading, begging Chance to get rid of his jeans. Chance peeled back the zipper, his nose burying in Seth’s groin as he pulled the two sides apart.
Seth’s fingers gripped Chance’s hair, tugging on it as Chance curled his fingers into the waistband of Seth’s pants. Chance tugged and Seth lifted his hips, feeling the rush of excitement as his cock was freed and Chance tossed Seth’s pants aside.
Seth felt naked and exposed, on display for Chance, but seeing Chance kneeling before him, eyes raking Seth’s body, didn’t embarrass him. It turned Seth on. It was on the tip of his tongue to ask Chance if he liked what he saw, but Seth held back. He wasn’t going to fish for compliments. He wanted Chance to give them freely. Seth wasn’t the type to think himself praiseworthy, but the look in the man’s eyes was slightly unnerving. Seth wanted to know what Chance was thinking.
Chance’s hand slid down Seth’s chest, his nails slightly raking Seth’s skin. Seth shivered. He saw a deep hunger in Chance’s grey eyes, something that told Seth the man really liked what he saw. That was a relief. For a second there, Seth thought Chance was going to ask him why he was so damn pale. Seth couldn’t help that. It was the Irish in his blood. He’d never been good at tanning. But he was damn good at burning.
“Hon, you have one fine-ass-looking body,” Chance said as he lowered himself to hover his mouth over Seth’s groin. The anticipation had Seth’s cock throbbing, pre-cum leaking in rivulets onto his stomach and sliding down his hip. Chance lapped at the clear liquid as if he was enjoying every single drop. Seth groaned, his hips chasing after Chance, trying his best to get the man to suck his cock.
“Is there something you want, Seth?” Chance asked, knowing damn well what Seth wanted. It was what any man wanted. To bury his dick between moist lips.
Seth wanted to shout his triumph when Chance wrapped his lips around Seth’s erection, his tongue smoothing over the heated flesh. Seth’s left leg swung up to land on the back of the couch, his other leg on Chance’s back. His head lolled back as he bit his bottom lip, praying Chance was good at giving head. Just because a man had a dick, didn’t mean he knew what to do with one. Normally, that would mean a straight man, but even some gay men were clueless.
“Shit,” Seth said as Chance lapped at his balls. The man definitely knew what he was doing. Chance’s throat opened, and Seth’s cock slid toward the back. Holy shit, Chance hadn’t even gagged! Seth was keeping Chance.
Chance licked one long path up his erection before kneeling before Seth. Seth gaped at Chance. “How did you get your pants off?”
And how was he going to fit all of that inside of him? Chance looked like the gods were
very
kind to him.
“I have many talents to share with you, love.” Chance’s voice was a mixture of teasing and strangled restraint. Seth looked down to see the very tip of Chance’s tongue teasing the head of his cock. Seth’s eyes rolled back.
Seth could feel the tips of Chance’s fingers playing lightly over his hips as he took Seth back into his mouth, exploring every line and every ridge that Seth’s lower half possessed. He cried out underneath Chance as the man trailed his tongue down Seth’s sac.
“Please, Chance,” Seth begged.
A low chuckle came from between Seth’s legs, and he knew Chance was torturing him on purpose. Chance pulled from between Seth’s legs, looming over him, his cock jutting out long and thick. Seth could feel sweat beading on his skin as he licked his dry lips, wanting, no, needing to feel Chance inside of him.
Seth pulled his legs from under Chance and then turned over, presenting his ass to the man. “Take me.”
Chance dipped down, licking a long line from Seth’s tailbone to his sac. Seth shivered the whole time. The moist tongue lingered around his entrance, and then Chance slipped into Seth, two fingers deep. Seth cried out again, his shoulders dropping onto the edge of the couch as Chance knelt behind him, fingers stretching Seth. He could feel Chance’s erection sliding along his sac, the silky-smooth skin grazing nerve endings as Seth’s lips parted slightly.
“I’m going to claim you, Seth. After this, you are mine.” Chance’s free hand wound around Seth until Chance’s fingers were curled around Seth’s cock. Chance’s applied the slightest pressure, making Seth’s erection throb between the man’s fingers.
Chance’s words were trying to penetrate the fog that was surrounding Seth’s head. There was a tickling at the back of Seth’s mind, telling him to pay attention, but with Chance’s fingers buried so deeply inside of his body, Seth couldn’t think with a clear head. The thought was lost in the pounding of Chance’s fingers.