Page 19 of A Swan for Christmas

Chapter Seven

Kellan finished filling the last set of shakers from his side work, more than ready to be done for the day. He didn’t want to worry Vic, but his ankle had finally begun to twinge a bit. The pain would get better once he rested and used the heating pad, he was sure of it. Better not worry Vic, though. If he let his Alpha know he was hurting, that would be the end of him working at the restaurant. He’d be stuck in the hotel room for days and be bored out of his mind.

He held in a snicker. Unless Vic spends it with me. But he knew his responsible and practical mate wouldn’t shirk his duties.

Which brought him to his next dilemma. As he carried the tray of completed shakers to the counter in order to place them at each setting, he wondered how he should broach the subject of his impending heat. Over the course of the evening as he’d struggled to keep his rock-hard dick from betraying his arousal and had resisted the urge to jump Vic in front of the dinner crowd, he’d realized what was going on.

When he’d met Vic in the beginning, the spark of attraction had been immediate. Then, he’d been charmed by how kind Vic was, by how much he enjoyed spending time with him. But he’d now reached the point where the only thing he cared about was Vic pounding into him over and over, so he could get rid of the unscratchable itch plaguing him.

Kellan bit his lip. I’ll worry about being an egg-layer later. He doubted it would be an issue, however. He’d never heard of swans mating with wolves. Or any other predator, for that matter.

Vic emerged from the kitchen, talking over his shoulder as he pushed through the door. “I am serious about the you-know-whats, Skip. Can you make sure you take care of it first thing when you get in?”

Skip’s booming voice carried through the now-closed door. “I still say you’re gonna have them coming at you with pitchforks! I never heard of Christmas trout before!”

Vic rolled his eyes and let out a grunt.

Kellan hoped Skip was only yelling because of how he liked to be loud and that nothing was actually wrong. “Is he really mad at you?”

Vic tugged Kellan to his side. “Skip fears change, that’s all. He’ll get over it. Ready to call it a day?”

“Yeah.” Kellan called forth all his nerve. “At least as far as the restaurant goes.”

Vic’s eyebrows shot up. “Did you have something else in mind?”

Kellan peered around the room. No customers remained, the closed sign was up, but the busser and Dora were still there. However, they seemed to be out of hearing range. Looks safe. “Can we go to your cabin and be alone together?”

“Oh.” Vic furrowed his brow and for a horrifying moment, Kellan thought he might be rejected. Then Vic lowered his head and spoke in a low voice next to his ear. “Are you sure? I haven’t been wanting to pressure you.”

Kellan was aching for that kind of pressure. “I’m so sure that I think we should leave soon before I embarrass myself.”

Vic’s gaze traveled to the front where Dora stood counting down the register then adjusted himself. “Yeah, good plan. I might be in danger of similar embarrassment.”

Kellan laughed, something he hadn’t done much of in recent years. It felt damn good.

Vic smiled down at him. “That was a wonderful sound. I hope to give you reason to do it more often.” He took Kellan’s hand then brought it to his lips, kissing his knuckles. “We should go.”

They said their goodnights to Dora and the busboy, then traveled hand in hand to Vic’s cabin. They’d bundled up before leaving the restaurant, so they could take the outside entrance to the parking lot and go around the back to Vic’s place. It would be Kellan’s first time inside and the scheming, swan part of him wanted to finagle a way to never have to leave. However, the biggest part of him, the part that cared about and wanted to please his mate, would do no such thing. He’d let Vic take the lead.

Even if I was the teensiest bit pushy just now.

Right as they got to the long pathway that led up to Vic’s cabin, Kellan lost his footing on a patch of ice. Vic scooped him up in his arms before he could land on the ground and it was almost the same as when Vic had rescued him.

Except that time, we were both naked.

Kellan rested his head against Vic’s chest, allowing himself to be cradled by the strong man. Once Vic reached the entrance to his home, he shifted Kellan’s weight to turn the door knob. He shouldered it open then carried Kellan to a long sofa placed in front of a river rock fireplace that bore a strong resemblance to the much larger one in the inn’s lobby. After setting Kellan gently on the couch, Vic smiled down at him, brushing his hair back from his face before going back to shut the door.

“Rest your ankle while I fix us a fire.”

Kellan knew he should be more nervous about what they were about to do, but instead, he craved it. His cock had been half-hard most of the day, threatening to betray him at every turn. But his longing was so much more than a passing lust.

At his core something had begun to build, something different than he’d ever experienced. He’d begun to change inside in a way he didn’t understand. His heat wasn’t a shock to him, he’d been expecting it to appear soon, considering his age. However, his body no longer seemed as if it belonged to him. It was as if he’d been taken over by a wanton creature who wanted nothing more than to present his ass for Vic to claim it. All he could think about was Vic fucking him, filling and stretching him wide open.

Kellan wiped away some beads of sweat that had formed on his upper lip. The room might be ice cold still, but he was bundled up in his coat and slowly being consumed by a desire he hadn’t known could exist.

Vic replaced the fire poker on the stand then turned to face Kellan. He advanced toward him, predatory, but not in the way Kellan had feared in the beginning. Once he reached Kellan, Vic fell to his knees.

“I’ll keep you warm, sweetheart. But let’s get you out of these clothes.” He met Kellan’s gaze. “I’ll be careful with you. We’ll go slow.”