Chapter Twenty-Nine
They had a visitor sometime during the evening. Hunter heard them approach and sat up, growling softly under his breath. Whoever it was, they didn’t hang around, leaving something by the door and hurrying away. Hunter got up to see what it was, smiling to himself when he saw the picnic basket, some kindling, and Ollie disappearing into the distance. If there was anyone who’d be happy about their mating, Hunter had a sense it would be Ollie.
He brought the basket inside and set about building a fire. It would get cold soon now that the sun was going down. He didn’t want Cade to feel the chill.
That night, he and Cade had sex by the fire three times. An insatiable need has arisen between them and neither of them could resist the other.
“So, this is what they were going on about,” Cade said at one point, as they both basked in the afterglow of another orgasm. “You know, how amazing the love between an alpha and omega was. I always thought they were talking about the heart and feelings. They were so talking about the sex. If I’d known…”
“You’d have mated with Baelon?” Hunter teased.
Cade shuddered in his arms and swatted him across the hip. “No. Never. But I might have made more of an effort to actually go out and look for a mate. I guess with how things are between the packs, it didn’t seem worth the trouble.”
“And what do you think now?”
Cade propped himself up on one elbow and leaned in to kiss Hunter on the lips.
“Definitely not worth the trouble,” he murmured.
Growling, Hunter grabbed hold of him and rolled him not his back on the floor, pinning his hands above his head and kissing him breathless. And they were lost again.
When he surfaced a few hours later, Cade was no longer sleeping by his side. He glanced around, finding him over at the window, looking out.
“Something wrong?” he asked, getting to his feet. It was early morning, the dawn chorus just fading away.
“No, just thinking.”
Hunter moved to stand behind him, resting a hand on Cade’s shoulders. Heat flared between them again, his body responding without thought.
“Do you mind?” he asked stroking his hand down Cade’s back.
“I could never mind,” Cade replied, smiling at him over his shoulder. “Not with you.” The omega leaned forward, bracing himself against the windowsill. Hunter pushed inside him slowly, feeling Cade’s body yield around him. Then he reached his hands up and grasped the top of the window frame, the only movement of his body the slow shift of his hips.
“How long do you think your heat will last?” he asked Cade. The omega’s eyes were closed, his cheek pressed against the cool glass of the window as Hunter’s shallow thrusts rocked him gently.
“Three days, normally,” Cade said, his breath hitching as Hunter changed angles, thrust in deeper. Cade began to make little sounds under his breath with each thrust. Hunter liked how he was different each time. Sometimes he was vocal, his every feeling audible, other times, like this, Hunter had to read the line of his body, the movement of his lips. He wrapped a hand around Cade’s chest and drew him backward, away from the window, and leaned in so they could kiss. Cade parted his lips and Hunter thrust his tongue into the omega’s mouth in time with the push of his hips.
Cade came with a soft cry, the sound kissed away by Hunter. Then Hunter gently pushed him back against the window before he took him harder and faster, bringing his body right to the brink while Cade gasped for breath, his hands pressed flat against the glass. Hunter came with a groan, pushing forward to rest his shoulder against the wall, holding himself in place and Cade too. To his surprise, Cade managed a second orgasm, sighing in his arms after.
“Think anyone’s watching?” Cade joked sleepily.
“If they are, they’ve had more than an eyeful,” Hunter replied, kissing a ticklish spot behind Cade’s shoulder. Within moments, he had the omega squirming and pleading as he laughed.
“What about after?” Cade asked as they caught their breath.
“After? What do you mean?”
“I mean us, and the den, and your pack. And the pup or pups.”
Hunter slid a hand across Cade’s stomach. “Do you think there’ll be pups?”
They were a natural consequence of mating, of course. But it was so hard to think of those things when all your body wanted to do was meld itself to your mate and never let go.
“I think we’re past the point where we could have safely avoided them.”
“Oh, and what point was that?”
“The day you gave your jacket.” Cade smiled at him but there was hesitation there.
Hunter did he best to reassure his mate. “I know we’re young, but I want these pups of ours. Maybe we can do a better job than my parents. Hell, we could hardly do worse.” He paused, a thought occurring to him. “When you say pups, you mean two, right?”
Cade avoided his eyes, biting his lips to hide a smile.
“What? Three, then? Three seems like a lot. How many in your litter?”
The omega turned in his embrace, throwing his arms around Hunter and resting his head on Hunter’s shoulder. His reply was so quiet, Hunter almost didn’t hear him.
“Six.”
Hunter heard the answer, understood it, but for a moment his brain just refused to compute. “Six?” he repeated back.
“Uh-huh. Me, and five others.”
“In the one litter?”
“Yep.”
Hunter cupped Cade’s cheek and lifted his head so they were eye to eye.
“Six?” he asked again.
“Six. A sextet. Half a dozen. Two times three.”
Hunter couldn’t help it. He started to laugh.
Ollie brought more food the next day but didn’t hang around.
“He’s just being polite, giving us space and all that. Plus, one of us might be a little territorial.”
“That’s omegas, right?” Hunter teased. “I heard they can be like that.”
“Yep, scratching people’s eyes out if they so much as look at our mates.”
“You know, I realize we’re not quite on an even footing yet.”
Cade turned away from investigating the contents of the basket. “How do you mean?”
“You’ve seen me change but I haven’t met your animal form yet, not properly.” Hunter then tried to look at his own back. “Do I have a mark, too?”
Cade laughed as he watched the alpha contorting as he tried to check. “No, you don’t have a mark. Just me.”
“So you’re a tiger shifter, right?” Hunter moved closer, kneeling in front of Cade. He seemed genuinely curious, almost excited, to share this.
“Well, I can also shift into a swan.” Hunter’s face frowned a little at that before he smiled again. “I bet you’re beautiful.”
“I’m an omega.”
“You say that a lot. What am I missing?”
“We can shift into more than one animal.”
Hunter tilted his head to the side. “How does that work?”
“Well, it’s the way the bond works between alpha and omega. The omega takes on the shifter animal of their mate and passes it to their kids. Omegas then inherit a mix of abilities from their parents.”
“Oh.” Hunter’s eyes lit up. “So, swan because your father was a swan.”
“Uh-huh. And wolf, back when I was a baby. And tiger, but not for years until I guess I needed it to help you fight Zane. And since I’ve mated a bear, I should have that, too.”
“But… isn’t that confusing? I mean, how do you know your true identity?”
“You gain an affinity with one of your animals. Or you’re supposed to, anyway. I never really did.” He smiled at his mate. “Maybe I was waiting for you.”
“I think I’d like to shift again, get a feel for my bear. Would you join me? I don’t mean as a bear just… whatever you feel like being, whatever you’re most comfortable as.”
Cade nodded eagerly. Even though he felt a little self-conscious, he wanted more than anything to change for Hunter.
“Should we go outside?” Hunter asked.
Cade giggled, pointing to the bear-shaped hole in the doorway. “It’s not like we won’t be able to fit through the door.”
Hunter growled but Cade could tell he was just being silly.
The alpha reached for him, drawing him to the center of the room and standing behind him. His breath was hot on Cade’s neck, his hands warm on Cade’s arms. His words were whispered huskily into Cade’s ear.
“I want to see your true shifter form, just like I’ve seen the real you. Don’t think about what or why. Let me see you.”
Hunter started kissing the back of Cade’s neck, and Cade was lost in the sensation, in the feel of his mate’s body against him. He hadn’t shifted in so long, bar those few minutes at the Cove, that it would be a relief to change form. He focused his thoughts on Hunter, on their bond, on finally finding the connection he’d always feared he wouldn’t have.
His muscles trembled and Hunter let him go, stepping back, as the change washed over him, head to toe. And then he was on all fours, feeling powerful and strong again. All the fear, the uncertainty, fled and he knew his decisions had been the right ones. His tail swished behind him and he could feel the power in his legs. He was a tiger once again. His favorite shifter form as a kid, but one he’d thought he lost, until Hunter.
He turned, finding Hunter crouching behind him, watching in awed silence.
“Magnificent. You’re beautiful.” He reached out, skimming a hand along Cade’s flank. Cade pushed closer, rubbing his cheek against Hunter’s shoulder, then butting him gently with his head.
“What? What is it?” Cade met Hunter’s gaze, resisting the urge to roll his eyes. “Oh, you want me to shift, too. Sure, I just need a few minutes to appreciate what I’m seeing.”
But now that Cade had changed, he wanted to run. He placed his paws on Hunter’s shoulders, standing up on his back legs and licking his face.
Hunter laughed, pushing him away, and wiping at his face.
“Okay, okay. I get the message.” He nudged Cade away. “You might want to give me some space.”
Cade paced toward the door, turning back to see Hunter mid-change. His bear form was huge, making Cade feel small. He padded back inside, cautious now that Hunter had shifted. Hunter’s bear hunched down as he approached and, feeling bold, Cade went right up and pressed himself against Hunter’s side. Hunter’s nose nuzzled his flank, one paw reached over and pushed Cade closer. Cade’s tail flicked back and forth, comfortable in the bear’s embrace but restless. Hunter got the hint, nudging Cade toward the door. He hurried ahead, feeling the ground shake as Hunter’s powerful paws followed behind him. He turned to look as Hunter stepped through the doorway, his shifter form a perfect match to the holes in the wall.
Thirsty, Cade ran toward the river, Hunter keeping pace behind him. He stepped into the river and bent his head to drink. There was half a second’s warning before a sheet of water fell across him and he turned to see Hunter, using his front paw to splash water at him. Two could play at that game. Cade splashed Hunter, then dived for the shore as the bear simply shook out his shaggy coat, sending a spray of water in every direction.
Cade ran and Hunter gave chase. The bear was too quick for him, and even sprinting flat out across the grass, Hunter overtook him easily and Cade ran straight into him. They both collapsed onto the grass, panting. When Cade tried to move, Hunter settled a large paw across him, grunting softly. Cade settled back down, purring loudly. Real tigers couldn’t purr, but shifters were different. Hunter hummed contently as they lay there, drying off in the sun.
When Cade’s eyes opened, Hunter was back in human form, using his hands to pet Cade in long strokes. He lifted his head and nudged Hunter’s hand, purring when his mate obligingly scratched his cheeks. His whiskers itched.
Hunter laughed. “I don’t know about you, but I’m starving. Unless you feel up to hunting dinner for us, what’s say we go back to the cabin?”
Cade obligingly got up, padding along at Hunter’s heels. It felt right to walk by his mate’s side, regardless of his form.
“Being a bear is… different to what I’d expected. Good different, I mean, don’t get me wrong. Just… not what I thought it would be. Is it like that for you?”
Cade licked his palm and whined.
“I’m going to take that as a yes.”
If he could have, Cade would have laughed.