Blood Prince [Wolf Creek Pack 4] (12 page)

Devlin leered down at him. “It’s time for your punishment, my prince.”

Zacarius’s eyes widened. He whimpered when Devlin pulled his fingers away. It soon turned to a yelp of surprise when he was lifted and pushed down across Devlin’s lap, his ass in the air. The shirt around his hips was quickly ripped away.

The first swat shocked him speechless. He didn’t think Devlin had been serious. The second swat made Zacarius wiggle madly, trying to avoid the large hand coming down on his tender ass.

“Devlin!” Zacarius cried out as he tried to get away. Devlin just continued to bring his hand down over and over again. Zacarius suddenly knew Devlin wasn’t playing around anymore. Anger rolled off of him in thick waves.

Zacarius was lifted up and crushed against Devlin’s body. He was held so tight he could hardly breathe. His ass burned, his lungs gasped for air. But the fear coming from Devlin garnered his attention.

“Devlin,” Zacarius whispered. He tried to push away from his mate so he could look into his face but Devlin wasn’t having any of it. He just held on tighter. “Dev, look at me.”

Zacarius struggled against Devlin. He tried to get him to loosen his hold and look at him. Devlin fought him, holding him close as he buried his head in Zacarius’s neck and avoiding his gaze. Finally, Zacarius sighed, resigned to talking to the top of Devlin’s head.

“Devlin, this isn’t going to work if you won’t talk to me.”

Devlin shook his head.

Zacarius barely smothered his laugh. The stubbornness of his mate showed through in his refusal to compromise at that moment. Zacarius knew there would be a lot Devlin would compromise on, this wasn’t it.

He could still feel Devlin’s hardness pressed against his stomach, but he knew that sex was the farthest thing from his mate’s mind at the moment. Something else entirely took over and it needed to be dealt with before they could continue.

“Want to tell me why you’re so pissed off?” Zacarius murmured against Devlin’s head.

Devlin barely shook his head, but it was enough.

“Why not?”

Devlin shrugged.

Zacarius rolled his eyes. They weren’t going to get anywhere at this rate. Something obviously upset Devlin, but the man refused to discuss it. Maybe they hadn’t been together long enough for Devlin to feel comfortable discussing things with him.

It had only been an hour or so since they openly claimed each other. They needed more time to get to know each other. Zacarius could only hope they could get to that point in their relationship. He knew it wouldn’t happen overnight or even in a few days. Trust took time.

“Do you think we could get under the covers then?” Zacarius asked. “My ass is hanging out and I’m getting a little cold.”

Devlin chuckled, making Zacarius smile. He still refused to meet Zacarius’s eyes as Devlin carried him to the bed and tucked him under the covers. Zacarius settled back against the pillows and held out his hands.

Devlin quickly undressed and climbed into the bed, curling up next to him. He laid his head down on Zacarius’s chest and wrapped one arm his waist and one leg thrown over his. Zacarius just pulled him close.

“Rest, my darling,” he whispered against Devlin’s hair. “We’ll figure it out later.”

* * * *

Devlin heard Zacarius’s heartbeat slow as he fell into sleep. He knew his mate needed the rest. So much had happened to him in the two weeks of their acquaintance. Sometimes Devlin feared it would be too much and Zacarius would leave him as he did before.

That thought alone kept Devlin from making love to Zacarius again. He wanted nothing more. The intensity that seemed to flare between them every time they touched surprised him.

No one ever affected him the way his mate did. Devlin merely needed to scent Zacarius and arousal swept through him like a wildfire. He couldn’t believe he almost lost this, almost given up his mate. He couldn’t believe he had been that stupid.

Zacarius snuggled down closer to him, and Devlin knew he needed to reexamine his priorities. A little bit of lying by omission seems small compared to not having his mate for the rest of his life.

Devlin pulled the blankets tighter around himself, then Zacarius, before closing his own eyes. The surprising warmth of his mate lulled him into a drowsiness, , thoughts of his future with Zacarius playing over in his head as he fell into a deep peaceful sleep.

* * * *

Devlin could feel Zacarius moving next to him before he even opened his eyes. His mate seemed restless. His heart beat fast enough that Devlin knew Zacarius no longer slept. Still, his body wouldn’t stop wiggling.

Devlin reached around and smacked him on the ass. “Knock it off. You’re waking me up.”

“Well, forgive the fuck out of me!” Zacarius snapped.

Devlin cracked his eyes open to see Zacarius leaning back again the pillows, his arms crossed over his chest and a grim frown on his face. Devlin sighed and scooted himself up to sit next to his mate.

“You’re not a morning person, are you?”

Zacarius’s eyebrow arched. “I’m a vampire, Devlin. Do I seem like a morning person to you?”

“You seem like a bitch right now, but I’ve been known to be wrong before.”

“Bitches are dogs, my darling,” Zacarius said, waving his hand at Devlin. “That would be more your style.”

“My, you are grouchy this morning, aren’t you?”

“I’m not grouchy!” Zacarius snapped. “I’m stuck in some backwater hole, surrounded by people that more than likely want me dead, and someone is trying to kill me. Excuse me if I’m having a bad fucking day!”

Devlin rolled his eyes. He adored Zacarius, really he did, but this attitude of his so early in the morning just would not do. Devlin had no intention of starting his day this way.

Devlin grabbed Zacarius and scooted to the edge of the bed, pulling the prince over his lap. “You need an attitude adjustment,” Devlin explained as he started swatting Zacarius’s ass. “I have no intention of waking up every morning to your prissy mood.”

Zacarius screamed out his obvious outrage. Devlin simply held him down and continued to smack his ass until Zacarius’s shouts turned to quiet little whimpers. Finally, he stopped. He rubbed his hand over the flaming red cheeks then turned Zacarius over and cradled him in his arms.

“Want to tell me what’s really going on, honey?” Devlin whispered against Zacarius head.

“No,” Zacarius murmured.

Devlin tilted Zacarius’s head back so he could look into his amethyst colored eyes. “I think you do, or you wouldn’t have been so grouchy this morning. You obviously wanted my attention, well, now you have it.”

Zacarius’s eyes widened. “You think I wanted you to spank me?”

“Yes, I do,” Devlin replied. “I think you need me to be the one in charge for the moment. I also think that you’re feeling very unsettled right now. You pretty much don’t know which way is up, and you’re pushing to see how I will react.” Devlin winked at Zacarius. “Now you know.”

“I am a man, you know.”

“Honey, I am very well aware of the fact that you’re a man,” Devlin said. “There’s no way around that. You’re also someone that is used to being in control at all times, of having everyone around you jump at your every word.”

Devlin reached down and grabbed Zacarius’s reddened ass, giving it a good squeeze. Zacarius winced, looking as if the touch pained him. Devlin knew differently. Zacarius’s cock twitched and began to fill.

“I think I am the perfect mate for you,” Devlin continued. “I won’t take your shit and I could really care less that you are the prince of your coven. I also have no problem putting you in your place when you need it.”

Devlin moved them back to the bed, lying Zacarius down before covering his mate’s body with his own. “Most importantly, with me you don’t have to be in control. I’m strong enough for both of us, and I’ll always be here to support you, no matter what.”

Zacarius’s brow wrinkled. “Is it really that simple, Devlin?”

“It is if you want it to be,” Devlin replied. “We’re both very stubborn men, used to being on top of things,” Devlin wiggled his hips against Zacarius’s, “in more ways than one, but I think we work well together.”

“You can’t keep spanking me, you know,” Zacarius argued even as he spread his legs to settle Devlin more closely against him. “I am the prince of my coven.”

“Like I said, honey, that doesn’t mean a thing to me. As far as I’m concerned, you are not Prince Zacarius. You are simply my Zac, my mate. That’s all that matters to me. And if I think your ass needs to be reddened, that’s what I’m going to do.”

Zacarius cocked his head to one side, a confused look on his face. “You really don’t care about my status as prince of my coven?”

“Nope,” Devlin said. “As far as I’m concerned our relationship is simply that of mates.”

“You’re serious.” It was more a statement than a question.

“Don’t get me wrong, Zac. I’ll never disrespect you in public or anything, but I also won’t have you commanding me to do things either. You’re my mate, not my mother, my father, or my alpha.”

“Wha—what if I have to?”

“Because of coven or pack stuff, you mean?”

Zacarius nodded.

“Well, I guess maybe that would be different, but understand that if I feel the need to question you, I will. Not in front of others, mind you, but I will question you.”

“Fair enough.”

“Glad you think so, oh royal one.”

Zacarius smirked. He wrapped his legs around Devlin’s waist, their cocks rubbing together. “So, if I commanded you to fuck me right now, you’d have to question me about it first?”

“That’s one command I’m always willing to follow, my prince. No questions asked.” Devlin grabbed Zacarius and rolled them both over until the other man straddled his waist. He tilted his head back in invitation.

Zacarius growled and struck, his teeth sinking deep into Devlin’s neck. Devlin winced at the sudden shock of pain. The rest of his body seemed to have no problem with what Zacarius did. It perked right up and pulsed frantically for attention.

 
Devlin growled when his mate was gracious enough to give him attention by reaching down and wrapping his hand around both of their cocks. Devlin clutched at Zacarius’s hips. He drove his cock up through Zacarius’s hand. He groaned as Zacarius took life giving essence from him.

Devlin didn’t know how it happened, but now he equated blood drinking with desire. The mere hint of Zacarius’s teeth and Devlin became aroused. He felt pretty sure he would continue to think that way for the rest of his life.

With Zacarius’s hand stroking him and the feeling of the prince’s rapid breathing moving against his body, Devlin knew his stamina took a vacation. The scent of sex filled the air around them, flowing over them.

Zacarius lifted his head with just enough time to capture Devlin’s lips before he filled the space between them with his hot seed. The hot creamy liquid gave lubrication to Devlin’s thrusts. With a loud roar he flew over the edge of release to join his mate in ecstasy.

Devlin grunted when Zacarius collapsed down on his chest. He wrapped his arms around his mate, tucking his head under his chin. A feeling of peaceful satisfaction filled him, one he only remembered having when close to his mate.

“Sleep, my prince,” Devlin murmured. “We’ll go home later.”

Chapter 9

Zacarius reached over and grabbed Devlin’s hand as the large vehicle they were in came to a stop. “Are you ready for this?”

“Probably not, but let’s give it a shot anyway.” Devlin chuckled. “If nothing else it’s bound to be entertaining.”

“We could go back to your pack and live there.” Even as Zacarius said the words, he knew they weren’t true. He was the ruling prince of his coven. His place was here, even if he didn’t want it to be.

“We could live on the moon, too,” Devlin said. “You’ll still be the prince of your coven.”

“Spoil sport.”

Devlin laughed as he climbed from the vehicle. Zacarius shook his head and climbed out, moving around the front of the vehicle to join his mate. He could see members of his coven coming out the large double doors of his mansion.

Many curious looks came their way. Some people even frowned from Zacarius to Devlin. A couple of people’s lips curled in distaste. Zacarius knew it wouldn’t be easy for them to accept a werewolf into the coven, but he held out hope that it wouldn’t be impossible.

The last two weeks spent with Devlin at Wolf Creek told Zacarius he would never let his mate go, and that meant Devlin would stay no matter how the other members of the coven felt. Zacarius knew he would give up the coven before he gave Devlin up.

Taking a deep breath, Zacarius grabbed Devlin’s hand and started for the crowd gathering on the front steps. He sincerely hoped Devlin knew what they faced and was prepared for the possible fallout. It would be a doozy.

“Prince Zacarius,” one man said quietly as he bowed his head, “welcome home.”

“Thank you, Stefan.”

“Did you have a successful trip?”

Zacarius glanced over at Devlin and smiled. “Yes, I think you could say that my trip was very successful.”

Zacarius chuckled at the bewildered look on Stefan’s face. He could feel Stefan’s confusion. Alfred told the coven that Zacarius needed to attend a meeting about keeping the peace with the werewolves. Apparently, Stefan believed that was where he had been.

“Stefan, please assemble the coven members present in the grand hall,” Zacarius directed. “I have news I wish to share.”

“Very good, Prince Zacarius,” Stefan replied, hurrying off to do as Zacarius ordered.

Devlin’s quiet chuckle drew his attention. Zacarius glanced at him again, an eyebrow raised. “Yes?”

“Must be good to be king.”

“Prince, my darling, prince,” Zacarius said. He’d never really thought about it. Since his birth he had been educated and trained to be the ruler of his coven. He knew nothing else, but maybe he had become too complacent about the position he held, took it too much for granted.