Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Derek opened his eyes slowly, blinking repeatedly in an attempt to focus on his surroundings. He heard a door scraping across the floor as it opened fully. Felt a sting in the side of his neck. Heard a struggle and a familiar voice snapping out insults. The door was slammed shut as someone landed in a heap beside him.

“Ow! Was that really necessary?!” the familiar voice demanded.

Derek winced as he struggled to think clearly. Stiles. That voice. It was Stiles.

“S’iles…?” he mumbled in confusion.

“Heeyyyyy, Der. How ya doin’, big guy?” she asked in an overly cheerful tone as she hauled herself back up onto her feet.

“What’s…? What’s happening?” he asked, squinting and fighting back a wave of dizziness and nausea.

“Um… hold that thought,” she answered, sounding a bit strained – as if she was climbing something.

Derek flinched a second later when something smashed on the concrete floor just before Stiles let out a whoop of triumph.

“Yeah! That’s right, you sick fucks! No free show for you tonight!” Stiles shouted victoriously toward the door.

With a bit of effort, Derek managed to turn over, distantly aware of the shackles on his wrist that were attached to rings on the floor.

A few feet away, a security camera was lying in a dozen pieces, clearly the cause for Stiles’ celebration.

He let out a hum of approval before directing his attention back to her. “Where’re we?” he asked, scrunching up his face and attempting to push his senses outward. Everything was muted. Not gone completely, but noticeably subdued.

“Standard weekend getaway,” Stiles answered with a smile. “Locked up at the mercy of crazy hunters. No hopes of a rescue. Little to no chance of survival.”

“You really need to find better friends,” Derek deadpanned.

Stiles snorted in response. “By the looks of it, they shot you with wolfsbane after smashing you upside the head,” she informed him, crouching down beside him and inspecting the remnants of the wound by his temple. “Almost healed up, so it’s been there for a while.” She got back up onto her feet and started pacing the room, eyes narrowed and flitting over every inch of the space. “You’ve been missing since last night. Possibly earlier. Scott wasn’t answering his phone – surprise, surprise. Your puppies were all getting worried, though. So, I started looking around and – ta da! Got myself caught. As usual.” She sighed and shook her head. “Anyway, we have a little bit of a situation brewing and you’re really not gonna like it.”

Derek’s features went slack as he sat upright. “I’m listening,” he said apprehensively.

Stiles sighed and crouched down in front of him, leaning forward and picking up an empty drug dart of some sort from the floor beside him. She held it up for his inspection as she said, “So, these guys? They sorta dosed you up with something a minute ago. I don’t know what it is, but – as they so gleefully informed me – it is going to turn you feral-Alpha-crazy-cakes as soon as the moon is up.”

Derek’s eyes widened in panic, and he reached out, snatching the dart from her hands. He sniffed it carefully, struggling to identify the compound it had contained. “I don’t recognize it. Definitely laced with some kind of wolfsbane, but not one I’ve ever encountered.” He looked up at her worriedly and demanded, “What did they say?”

Stiles stood and returned to pacing the space, clearly searching for an escape and seeming increasingly anxious. “Uh, just that the plan is for you to turn crazy and gut me. This stuff they shot you with is supposed to, like, bring out your primal instincts and turn you into a mindless beast. Then something about using it as proof that they were justified in killing you, yada yada. How are you feeling, by the way? Any insatiable homicidal urges yet?”

Derek frowned deeply and assessed himself. “Temperature is higher than normal,” he answered simply. He shifted his jaw, feeling his gums itch as his wolf stirred beneath the surface. “Heart rate’s up a bit. A little restless. More than I would be just from the approach of the moon.”

“Fuck. I was really hoping they were bluffing,” Stiles breathed. “Okay. Alright. So, we have, what? Like an hour? This is workable. This is fine. I can… I can totally get us out of here.”

10 minutes later:

“I totally cannot get us out of here,” Stiles declared, chewing on her bottom lip and tugging at her hair as her panic rose. She turned and walked back to Derek. “Okay, we need a Plan B because I am not in any hurry to die. What do we know? You’re going to be in fully wolfed-out mode… feral. So, like, stripped down to the basics and amped up. What can we expect?”

Derek shook his head, fighting down his rising fear for her safety. “A wild animal,” he answered simply. “If this really does turn me feral, my human side will be gone. There won’t be any way to communicate with me. Everything will be purely instinctual.”

Stiles chewed on her thumbnail as she thought it through. “Uh huh. Right. So, I won’t be able to talk to you… But I need a way to tell you not to kill me… You’ll be relying completely on your senses for an indication of how to react… So, the only way to convey anything to you will be through sounds, scents, chemosignals… Playing to your basic instincts: feed, fight, f--” Her eyes went wide as she said, “Oh. OH! What if - ? I mean…” She winced and tilted her head. “Oof, this is gonna be hella awkward for us… but honestly, it’s the only option we have at the moment…”

“What?” Derek demanded.

She interlocked her fingers and played with them nervously as she said, “Well… if we have to put me into a category for your wolf… and we don’t want it to eat me… or fight me… then… if my scent makes it clear that you and I just finished – ”

Derek’s jaw dropped as he caught on and he was instantly shaking his head. “No. Not gonna happen. You’re only sixteen, Stiles!”

She snorted. “Not that I don’t appreciate where you’re coming from, but I’m actually seventeen. Admittedly, still illegal, but closer to the – “

“NO.” Derek snapped with finality, eyes going out of focus as he recoiled from the thought.

He could not do this. Would not be like… Kate. Stiles was too young. Too innocent. Like Derek had been back when he got his family killed all because he was stupid enough to sleep with someone older than him…

He dazed out, retreating into his mind as he fought down a rising tide of traumatic memories and dealt with the subtle initial effects of the drug coursing through his veins.

He was barely cognizant of Stiles’ final, panicked sweep of the room in the hopes of finding a way out.

The next thing Derek knew, Stiles was stepping into his line of sight and speaking in a tone he had never heard from her before. It was soft and quiet. Weary.

“Hey… it’s okay,” she assured. “It’s not your fault. Don’t…” She swallowed audibly and shook her head. “I’m sorry I even brought it up after everything that’s happened to you. It was seriously stupid of me. Just… forget I even said anything.”

His brow furrowed as he replayed her words, ‘…after everything that’s happened to you.’ His heart dropped into his stomach as he realized… Jesus Christ… Stiles had figured out what Kate had done. Stiles knew… and, as a result, was utterly unwilling to pressure him into anything. His jaw trembled as he struggled to process this.

Stiles cleared her throat and looked down at the floor. “Listen, um… if you do manage to make it out of here… after…” She gritted her teeth as her eyes filled with tears. “…you need to know that whatever happens isn’t your fault, okay?” she managed wetly as she dared to meet his gaze briefly. She tucked a strand of her short hair behind her ear as she looked down at her feet.

Derek frowned, noticing for the first time that she was not wearing any shoes. Where were her shoes? Her feet were bare and bleeding in a few places. His nose twitched at the scent of her blood. The scent of her fear and despair was growing stronger and sharper. His senses were returning to where they should be. That was not necessarily a good sign…

“I don’t blame you at all,” Stiles continued, drawing his attention back to her face. “Don’t have me on your conscience. The only ones to blame are the sick bastards that did this to us. They did this to both of us. I need you to remember that for me. And maybe…” Her voice broke, a few heavy tears slipping down her face. She paused, wiping at them in frustration. Her throat worked as she swallowed down the sobs that were attempting to break free. She had to clear her throat a few times before she could say, “Just tell my Dad that I love him, and that I still want him to take care of himself, okay?” Exhaling heavily, she whispered, “I’m just… I’m gonna… go… sit down now.”

Derek watched with wide, watery eyes as she walked to the far end of the cell and sank down to the floor, drawing her knees up to her chest and hugging them. He watched as – for the first time since he met her – she sat still. Completely and utterly still. Her unfocused eyes were trained on the dirty, barred window.

She did not make a sound. She did not try to joke to lighten the mood. She did not cry or fight or waste any more energy trying in vain to escape. She did not beg him to see reason – to admit that her suggestion was their only chance of saving her.

She had absolved him of any guilt, and now she was accepting her fate. Waiting resignedly. Waiting to die. Waiting for him to turn feral and kill her.

Derek felt like he was going to throw up.

He swallowed hard and crawled toward her, frustrated to find that she was beyond his reach. For now, at least. Until the moon rose and whatever they had injected him with kicked in, he would not be able to break the chains.

“Stiles,” he said quietly.

She did not reply or flinch.

A minute passed in silence and his heart was in his throat.

“Stiles?” he repeated more urgently. His brow furrowed as he listened to her pulse. It was slow, steady… completely unlike her normal rhythm.

She was going into shock.

He bit back a sob and tugged on his chains as he called hoarsely, “Stiles?! Stiles! Look at me!”

Finally, she blinked and drew a staggered breath, seeming to become at least somewhat aware of her surroundings again. “Hmm? Yeah. ‘m here,” she croaked back dazedly.

“Look at me, please?” Derek repeated, now desperate for her to return to her normal level of fire and fight. Anything other than this husk of resignation.

She exhaled slowly and with sluggish, stilted movements, turned her face toward him. It took another few seconds for her eyes to drag up to his face and struggle to focus.

“We’re not giving up,” Derek said firmly.

Stiles huffed a weak laugh and shook her head. “I’m not ‘giving up,’’ she whispered. “I’m accepting reality. This is checkmate. No moves left on the board.” She shrugged and said, “We’re out of options.”

Derek swallowed hard and shook his head. “No, we… we do have an option,” he stated firmly. “Even if I didn’t want to admit it.”

Stiles gave him a worried look. “Der… you don’t…” Her jaw flexed and she fought back tears, eyes locking on the floor.

“I know you’re going to say I don’t have to,” he cut in. “And I know you mean it. I know you do.” He scoffed as he said, “You already made that perfectly fucking clear when you went and sat down rather than trying to knock some sense into me. Just… this will work,” he said with determination. “It will. You were right. And it’s the only way. So, just… come over here, please?”

Stiles studied him for a moment before gradually standing and making her way over. She sank down onto her knees in front of him.

“How long do we have?” she asked weakly.

Derek assessed the pull of the moon before answering, “Half an hour – probably less.”

“Okay… maybe we should just…” she said nervously before moving closer and resting her hands on his shoulders.

Despite himself, Derek recoiled at the scent of her. The stench of the hunters was all over her.

“Sorry,” she said, looking wounded by his reaction. “I guess they… uh… wanted to make sure you perceived me as a threat, hence…” she said weakly, motioning down to the oversized men’s clothing draping her body. “Is it…? Should I…? Or would you rather…?” She sighed, biting at her bottom lip and eyeing him worriedly. “Tell me what I can do to make this less uncomfortable for you.”

Derek’s eyebrows rose in surprise. “Uncomfortable for me?” he repeated disbelievingly. “You’re the one who’s a virgin trapped in a literal fuck-or-die situation with a werewolf.”

Stiles shrugged. “Yeah, but I stink like hunters, and you’ve already had more than your fair share of trauma when it comes to sex,” she said bluntly, then winced at her own words and gave him an apologetic look.

Derek bristled, feeling his walls come up, slipping on his emotionless mask to hide his panic over being seen so clearly. He wanted so badly to run. To get away from this dangerously observant girl. But then she went on with a nervous laugh…

“Besides, I am way too relieved to be uncomfortable right now considering you’re going to be my first instead of –”

She stopped talking abruptly.

Her grip on his shoulders tightened involuntarily.

Her scent betrayed a rush of panic and fear.

“Instead of…?” Derek prompted in confusion, trying to look into her eyes.

His body went rigid as it suddenly clicked. He looked down at the clothes she was wearing again and his eyes glowed red in enraged understanding. He could not prevent the growl from rumbling in his chest. Suddenly, the scent of the hunters on her body had his wolf clawing under his skin furiously. She had implied the presence of their scent was just a trick to rile him up. She had intentionally downplayed it, and it felt like a punch to the gut to realize she had not intended to tell him. She was going to try and protect him from the truth and, were it not for her faulty brain-to-mouth filter, he probably never would have known. He could feel his hold on his wolf rapidly slipping away.

They touched her…

“I’m sorry,” she whispered, lips trembling as she held back tears and backed away from him.

It was the shame and guilt in her scent that caught him before he slipped off the edge. His face contorted in confusion as he met her gaze. “For what?”

“It’s my fault this is happening,” she whimpered. “They weren’t planning to bring me in here. They were just going to… do what they were going to do… and then kill me. Probably still make it look like you did it, but… then they were pulling off my clothes… and they started…” She winced, shaking her head and closing her eyes tightly as tears escaped them. “I was just so scared and I… I called for you. I didn’t know where you were or if you could hear me, but I… I just wanted them to stop, and I was so afraid and I just… I didn’t think… it just came out.”

Derek was reaching for her without thought, pulling her closer and struggling to stay calm as he listened. It felt like whiplash. Just a minute prior, he had wanted to run away from her. Now, he wanted to wrap himself around her protectively.

“And when I screamed… they all started laughing,” she recalled brokenly as her lips quivered with restrained sobs. “And that’s when they came up with all of this. They said it was my own fault. That if I wanted you so bad, I was gonna get you. They were so fucking excited. They said it would hurt you so much worse if they made you kill me. And now I’m in here and you’re in this messed up position you’d never want to be in and I’m sorry. I’m so freaking sorry, Derek. It’s all my fault,” she sobbed.

Derek shook his head, cradling her face in his hands. “Hey. No. No. Listen to me, Stiles. This is not your fault. Not at all. You were in danger and your instinct was to call for me. You didn’t do anything wrong. And God, if I’d been able to… If I’d heard you and been able to… You know I would’ve come, right? You know that? That I would always…” he whispered a bit desperately.

“I know,” she cried, nodding against him as tears rolled over her lips. “I know you would, Der.”

He closed his eyes and pressed his forehead against hers, wishing he had the power to draw this pain from her. It made his heart clench to imagine what she had been through. He recalled the sound of her shouting his name so many times in dangerous situations in the past – warning him to lookout or to alert him to her presence when she showed up to help him or to call for his help. His mind overlaid that sound over an image of her being groped and taunted, and he trembled with the overpowering instinct to protect her. He was torn between being horrified over what they had nearly done to her, and immensely relieved that calling his name had resulted in her being brought to him, rather than raped by hunters.

“Shh… you’re okay now. You’re okay. I’ve got you,” he whispered, trying to reassure them both of this fact.

He stroked her cheeks with his thumbs, aching for her as she cried softly and gripped the backs of his hands. He pressed his lips to her brow as she wept, willing his wolf to see this, to feel it, to hold onto this emotion and use it after he shifted. Taking a page out of her book, he decided to try to lighten the mood.

“And I’m flattered that you put so much faith in me,” he said. When she looked up at him, he made a show of frowning and glancing around the cell before joking, “Which… honestly seems a bit misguided at the moment…”

Stiles gave a wet laugh in response, and it was the most beautiful sound he had ever heard. Stiles was laughing. Stiles should always be laughing.

“We’re gonna be okay,” he whispered reassuringly, regardless of whether or not it was true. He pulled her closer, guiding her to climb into his lap. Glancing down at the grimy men’s t-shirt she was practically swimming in, he asked, “Can I…?”

Stiles followed his gaze and nodded, looking briefly shy before determination swept over her features. “Yeah. Get it off me, please. I don’t want to smell like them.”

Derek’s wolf agreed wholeheartedly. He carefully pulled the shirt off over her head, tossing it as far away as possible before letting his eyes slowly slide over her body. He exhaled tremulously, his mouth watering at the expanse of pale, mole-speckled skin that had been revealed to him. His cock stirred at the sight of her bare breasts, and he licked his lips, taking a steadying breath as the hunger in him began to build. He had always tried so hard to never think of Stiles like this. Had stuffed it down every time he felt a surge of want, refusing to let it see the light of day.

But now…

His hands moved of their own accord, sliding up her smooth back, drawing her closer until her sweet, little tits were pressing against his bare chest. His eyes rolled closed as he groaned. He had to stop for a few seconds to rein in his primal instincts to take, mount, mark, claim, breed. He was getting harder by the second, but he wanted to try and go slow, no matter how close to the surface his wolf was.

“Oh, you’re so warm. Thank fuck. I’m freezing my ass off,” Stiles joked shakily.

Derek huffed a laugh in reply against the side of her throat, beyond relieved to hear her being playful again. He guided her to wrap her legs around his waist, then brought his arms around her back. He took a moment to just hold her, to breathe her in, find her scent under the others.

With a frown, he pulled back enough to glare down between them. She was wearing one of the bastards’ boxers and the stench of the man was obstructing Stiles’ scent. It was infuriating him.

“These have to go,” he declared, looking up into Stiles’ eyes and asking, “Is that okay?”

“Really not sure how we’d manage to do this otherwise,” she teased, but he could see the nervousness in her gaze.

His eyes slid over her shoulders, and his heart stuttered when he focused on a telling bruise that was still forming. He fought to keep his breathing steady as he took in the distinctive imprint of human teeth set into her perfect flesh.

They had bitten her.

His vision went red in time with his eyes.

Those motherfuckers… had touched her…

…dared to put their hands and mouths on her…

…and fucking bitten her.

He leaned in close, inhaling deeply and catching the scent of the one responsible, saving it for later because, so help him God, he was going to eviscerate the bastard. Slowly. He was going to teach the man what it felt like to be on the receiving end of angry teeth. His wolf rippled under his skin, practically frothing at the mouth with the need to tear them apart.

“Der?” Stiles said softly, sounding entirely too small and unsure. “You still with me, big guy?”

He took a steadying breath and willed the beast back, reminding himself that – in this moment – Stiles needed him for a far gentler purpose.

With this in mind, he reached up and caressed her cheek, holding eye contact as he leaned forward and pressed his lips against hers softly. Stiles let out a little sigh in response and they both closed their eyes, sharing breath and warmth. With his hand splayed across her back, he felt the tension begin to drain out of her body. He pulled back enough to meet her gaze again, checking in, and found a light smile on her face. He gave one of his own in reply before leaning in and kissing her sweetly again, and again, and again, not daring to breach her mouth just yet.

Carefully and slowly, he used his claws to slice down each side of the boxers. Stiles was so distracted by the feeling of their tender kisses that she did not realize what he was doing. He wrapped his arm around her back, urging her to lift up off of his lap a bit, then tugged the remaining material of the boxers out from beneath her.

She pulled back in surprise when she felt the press of Derek’s jeans against her without the expected barrier. Eyes wide as she worked out what he had done, she commented, “Well, that’s handy.”

Derek chuckled against the nape of her neck as he admitted, “Didn’t want to let you up.” He reveled in the unobstructed scent of her, knowing it was going to get a lot more intense here in a minute once he started.

With a sigh, he glanced around them at the cell disappointedly. There was nothing but cold concrete with large, dark stains surrounding a drain at the center.

Stiles clearly would not have been the first person to die in here…

Derek’s expression turned pained, and he held her a little closer, as if he could protect her from their surroundings. He did not even want her to touch the floor.

“Not much to work with in here, huh?” she commented quietly, studying the expression on his face.

“Not much I can do to make it comfortable for you,” he answered regretfully as he met her gaze.

“Yeah, but… it’s still you,” she said softly with a shrug, carding her fingers through his hair. “And I trust you, Sourwolf. The rest of it doesn’t matter. As long as it’s you, I’m happy.”

Derek’s eyes flicked to her chest then back up to her face in wonder. She was telling the truth.

He leaned forward then, capturing her mouth with his hungrily, groaning at the taste of her. He gripped her shoulders, pulling her down as he rocked up into her. He was hard as a rock, jeans digging into him painfully. The material was quickly growing damp from both sides as they started grinding together.

“Fuck, that feels better than it has any right to,” Stiles joked breathlessly as he moved to bite at her jaw. She tugged on the belt loops of his jeans. “Come on. Off. Get these off. Wanna feel you,” she urged, moving to get out of his lap.

He held onto her tightly, refusing to let go. Instead, he got up onto his feet while holding her in an impressive display of core muscle control.

“Werewolf strength for the win!” she cheered.

He scoffed. “I’m barely stronger than a human right now. You just weigh next to nothing.” He pinched her cute little ass to punctuate that statement… which had the unanticipated effect of her squeaking and thrusting forward into his crotch as she tried to avoid getting pinched again.

Derek groaned, reaching out a shackled hand to lean on the wall as the jolt of pleasure nearly took his knees out from beneath him.

“Sorry,” she whispered, fighting back a laugh.

“LIE,” he declared with a strained smirk.

Stiles shrugged, completely unrepentant. “Hurry up, Sourwolf. The faster you get naked, the faster you can get me covered in your scent. You need to sex me up like my life depends on it.” With wide eyes, she stressed, “Because it literally does.”

“Right. No pressure,” he said deadpan.

“Aww don’t get performance anxiety on me,” she teased before singing, “You can do it, put your back into it!”

He arched a brow, doing his best to mask his amusement and how adorable he found her to be as he declared, “I should just eat you. It’ll be less hassle.”

Stiles squawked in feigned offense but smiled down at him. And Derek could not help but smile back. This was familiar and easy. This was who they were together. This was them, just a new aspect.

Derek claimed her mouth again, a low rumble building in his chest as he managed to shed his jeans and boxers with one hand while holding her steady. The feeling of their naked bodies pressing together was fucking mind-blowing. His cock pressed up beneath her the instant it sprang free, coming to rest nestled between her ass cheeks, and he nearly whimpered in response to how incredible it felt.

“Actually… I am gonna eat you…” he muttered against her lips with a wicked grin between hot kisses. “Wanna taste you first… then take you just like this… against the wall…”

“Anything you want, Der,” she urged breathlessly. “Taste me. Take me. Make me smell like I’m yours.”

He growled deeply in response. His wolf was surging just below the surface already, challenging him for control, wilder and stronger than ever before. His eyes flickered red as he fought to keep his wolf in check, but he was already starving for her.

With a chuckle, he told her, “God, I’m already so fucking riled up. I’d say it’s from whatever they dosed me with, but I think it’s just you.”

Stiles huffed a laugh in reply before sucking on his bottom lip and earning a groan. “Hey, I always get you riled up, big guy,” she teased. “You shoulda known that’d be the case in this situation.”

He hummed and kissed her hungrily before saying, “True. But shit, there’s no chance I’m gonna be able to keep this all soft and vanilla and sweet for your first time.”

She grinned up at him with a mischievous glint in her eyes. “Virgin or not, I am a red-blooded American teenager who runs with wolves and has constant access to all the porn the internet can provide.” Nipping at his lips, she whispered, “Now, Derek… do I really strike you as the innocent type who only wants soft and vanilla and sweet?”

He rumbled in approval and shook his head as he conceded, “Not at all.”

Turning, he pressed her back against the wall before setting her down on her feet. With a bit of maneuvering to accommodate the chains on his wrists, he dropped to his knees in front of her, guiding her to spread her legs until he had one of them draped over his shoulder.

Stiles reached out and gripped a handful of his hair to steady herself, afraid she would fall over, but she did not anticipate the effect it would have. Derek snarled as his eyes lit up crimson, but the expression on his face was clearly not anger. Stiles gave him a cautious, deeply interested look before giving his hair another tug. She watched in amazement as his eyes rolled closed.

“You can hang on like that,” he encouraged. “You’re gonna need to hold onto something,” he teased, flashing a cocky smile before surging forward and tasting her eagerly.

“Oh… fuck… Oh… my God…” she gasped, mouth hanging open in disbelief as he buried his face between her thighs, nipping and sucking hungrily.

Derek groaned at the sweet taste of her, at the way her scent was no doubt soaking into the stubble on his face for him to enjoy later. He wished he could do this for hours – spread her out on his bed and take his time taking her apart, not stop until she was a quivering mess begging him to fuck her. He groaned as he imagined it…

But they did not have that kind of time. And – if, by some miracle, they both made it out of this alive – the fact remained that this decidedly illegal act was probably never going to happen again.

With that disappointing knowledge in mind, he focused on getting her off as quickly and intensely as possible, determined to make sure she would never forget this.

“So fucking wet for me already,” he praised, looking up and catching her heavy-lidded gaze. “Now, let’s get you open…” He latched onto her clit, sucking as he thrust – first one, then two fingers – into her slick heat.

“Hoo-llyyyy shit, Derek!” she whined and held on for dear life. She tugged at his hair as he curled his fingers, working her g-spot for all it was worth. “Ah… ah… ah… ah…” she cried in time with his movements.

He rumbled in approval, wondering if she would sound the same when he finally got his cock inside of her. Her grip on his hair tightened in time with every muscle in her body, rapidly building in intensity until she finally let go.

She threw her head back against the wall, wailing and shuddering, gasping his name as he lapped up her juices.

“Fuck… you’re delicious, baby. Could eat you all day,” he groaned, kissing her drenched, delicate folds of skin while stroking his cock where it hung heavy and hard between his legs. He continued fucking into her with his fingers, grinning when it triggered another orgasm. “That’s it, Stiles. Let go for me again. Doing so good…” he encouraged. “Gotta get you nice and open if you’re gonna take this thick cock. You want it, baby girl? Want me inside of you?”

Stiles sobbed and nodded frantically. “Yeah… yeah, please, Derek.”

He gazed up at her, smiling at the pretty picture she made – hair all messy and face flushed, lips red and wet from her biting at them while he worked.

He slid his hand up and down the length of his cock, gathering up as much precum on his hand as possible. When he stood, he dragged his slick hand along her body, massaging his scent into her pulse points. He ran his tongue all over her skin, leaving behind the intermingled scents of his saliva and her cunt. He needed to make her smell like him. Like them. Like their sex and desire for one another. Needed his wolf to remember even after all other truths slipped away: Stiles is mine.

“Mmm… Wanna fuck you nice and hard… Maybe I can go twice before we run out of time… Wanna come inside you, then all over these tits…” he muttered into her skin before sucking one of her nipples and kneading the sweet, little mounds of flesh with his hands. He took a second to enjoy the way she whimpered in response, then kissed his way up her throat. “Wanna bust all over these pretty lips, too…” he groaned before licking into her mouth. He smiled when she moaned at the taste of herself on his tongue. “You like that, baby girl? Like that I taste like you?”

“I do,” she panted. “I really, really do,” she admitted unashamedly.

“Yeah?” he asked with a grin. “I like it too. Wish we had time for you to suck me off. Wish I could taste myself in your mouth,” he muttered before picking her up abruptly. He chuckled when she yelped and gripped his shoulders. “But we can’t. Gotta hurry and paint you up inside, don’t I? You ready for me?”

“God, so ready. Need you inside me already,” she pleaded.

He held her gaze as he reached down to line up, sliding the head of his cock teasingly against her wet cunt. “You’re gonna feel so good around me. Can’t fucking wait.”

And he didn’t.

With a slow, steady thrust, he drove up into her, feeling her walls shudder and clench around him, trembling with the aftershocks of her orgasms.

Once he was balls deep, he kissed her frantically. Eyebrows drawn together and brain shorting out, he gasped and whined against her lips, “So good, baby girl. So fucking good. So tight. The way you feel… you have no idea…”

“Ditto. Oh my God, your cock is a monster,” she huffed, laughing a bit deliriously and gazing at him in awe. “Like, an actual monster. I’m creating a new entry for it in the bestiary and everything. I’m getting you a t-shirt made for Christmas that says, ‘I’m not a monster (but my cock is.)’”

Even in a life-or-death situation, even while trembling and dazed by pleasure, Derek could not help but burst out laughing. He shook his head, loving how she could stroke his ego while being so utterly ridiculous. Leave it to her to joke with him while she was getting fucked for the first time. He pressed his face into the side of her hair to hide the pure affection he knew was written all over his face for her.

God, he was so royally screwed. He knew there had been a reason he kept his distance. Had secretly worried that it would be like this – that if they got close enough, they would just snap together like magnets, unable to fight the pull any longer. And the way they fit together… not just their bodies… but their souls, it was like fate.

He shook his head again, trying to stop his thoughts from venturing any further down that dangerous path. “Well… then I guess we’d better focus on keeping you alive until Christmas, huh?”

“Yes. Do that. Focus,” she encouraged with wide eyes and an eager nod. Her lips quirked into that mischievous little smile that always made his blood boil in the best possible way just before she batted her eyelashes and teased breathily, “Focus the shit outta me, Der.”

“Fuck,” he groaned in defeat as he claimed her mouth again.

She was so damned perfect. Funny and sexy and brilliant and…

And he was in so far over his head and he knew it.

He set a slow rhythm to start, letting her adjust to the girth of him, the push and pull as he made a place for himself inside of her.

She gripped his shoulders and made the most delicious little gasps and whimpers as he moved.

As he picked up the pace, he marveled over the fact that they had yet to look away from one another – they were both caught, staring into one another’s eyes in wonder.

Before long, her mouth dropped open, and brows drew together, her expression growing increasingly tense.

He smiled knowingly. “You’re gonna come for me again, aren’t you, baby?” he asked, fucking into her harder and watching her nod frantically. “Mmm… good girl… I’m getting close, too. Bet you can take me with you.”

He sped up his thrusts, growling in appreciation as the sounds of their sex echoed off the walls of the cell – the slap of skin, their frantic breathing and moans. The rhythmic clink of the nearly forgotten chains on his wrists.

His release was fast approaching, and the intensity of it was surprising. He was too far gone to worry over it, could only focus on chasing the building pleasure.

“Oh, fuuuccckkkk…. Come on, Stiles,” he panted as he slammed up into her wildly. “Come for me, baby girl. Wanna feel you clenching down on my cock while I bust.”

Stiles’ body arched in his grasp, her every muscle going rigid as she let out a strangled cry.

Derek sobbed in ecstasy as she locked up around him, so tight he could barely move, but he had to… couldn’t fight the instinct to drag her down and drive up into her harder… deeper… had to keep going… just a little… bit… more…

THERE.

His eyes went wide in realization a second too late.

Oh God.

Was he actually…?

With Stiles?

He was.

In fact, he already had, and holy fuck, it was incredible.

“Derek! Oh my GOD!” she wailed before losing the power of speech and regressing to high-pitched cries of pleasure so intense they could have been mistaken for pain.

His eyes rolled closed, and head lolled back as she started clawing at his shoulders frantically. The base of his cock continued to rapidly swell, already securing him inside of her and prolonging her orgasm.

He pressed his mouth to her temple, gasping for breath. He smiled deliriously at the fact that her scent confirmed she was not in any pain. She was taking him so fucking well. Her body was opening right up for him without any issue, welcoming him like she was made for him, acknowledging that this was right where he belonged, where no one else had ever been, where no one else would ever be again.

He wanted to praise her, tell her how perfect she was, how amazing she felt… but he was so far beyond speaking. He let out a strangled groan and his whole body shuddered as his cock finally began pulsing, filling her with stream after stream of come. His toes curled against the cold concrete floor, and he had to reach out blindly and hold onto the wall to keep himself standing.

He felt drunk, too high off the pleasure to address the panic he knew he should be feeling.

He had been right. Stiles was his. Always had been. There was no denying that fact now.

Mine.

MATE.

His control slipped from his grasp at an alarming rate. His thoughts dissolved into the simple, wordless, nonlinear mentality of the wolf. He tried to speak, to warn Stiles that the drug-induced change was coming on earlier than they anticipated…

But when he opened his mouth, only a guttural growl came out...

Chapter Text

When Stiles’ brain finally came back online, she realized that she was still trembling and moaning. Derek’s (literal monster) cock was still buried deeply inside of her, stretching her to capacity, and she shuddered as she felt it pulse again.

“Welp… guess this answers whether knots are a thing…” she mused.

Derek rumbled, fully engrossed in the task of licking at the nape of her neck.

“How long will we be tied?” she asked, fully aware of the danger they were still in, as well as the unexpected vulnerability of their current position.

No response came.

The Alpha continued dragging his hot, soft tongue over her skin, lapping at it while he alternated between greedily inhaling her scent and letting out hot puffs of breath against her skin. He gave pleased little grunts and growls as he worked to, evidently, soak her throat in his saliva.

“Okay, honestly, that seems a tad excessive,” she commented after a moment, scrunching up her face. “I mean, I’m obviously no expert in sex or anything… but that’s a little too wet, don’t you think? We’re fast approaching the point of this classifying as slobbering.”

She tipped her head back in an attempt to dislodge him… and earned a deep, warning growl in reply…

A growl befitting a canine when someone attempted to take away his favorite chew toy.

Stiles’ heart leapt up into her throat when a clawed hand came up to grip the side of her head and hold her in place.

Eyes wide, she swallowed hard and whispered shakily, “Der… y-you still with me, big guy?”

He gave no indication that he heard or understood. When he began dragging his stubbled cheek up the side of her neck, she could see why. The tell-tale glimpse she caught of a pointed ear and bumpy brow caused her to whimper in fear at the implications.

And that did earn a response.

The Alpha swiftly lifted his head, cocking it to the side. He grunted and sniffed at her inquisitively, fanged mouth turning down in concern but – tellingly – making no attempts to form words. There was a decided lack of… something in his curious, red eyes. The layer of humanity that could normally be found swirling in Derek’s gaze – the piece that usually kept his ever-present animalistic instincts in check. It was entirely absent now.

And Stiles was struck with the sobering knowledge that she was seeing Derek’s wolf side stripped bare of any human influence.

She exhaled tremulously as she whispered, “Woo, boy… the lights are on, but you… you are very definitely not home, are you?” She swallowed audibly, unable to keep her fear from passing over her features. She knew it must be blatantly obvious in her scent.

Well… at least he hadn’t attacked so far. That was promising, right?

The Alpha leaned in, and Stiles could not help but flinch away at first… only to freeze as he brought their faces close together. She watched in awe as he slowly nuzzled his nose alongside hers, all the while letting out a soothing rumbling sound, clearly seeking to calm her.

She nearly deflated with relief as she exhaled heavily, all of the fear draining away in response to the Alpha’s gentle touch. She could not help but let her eyes roll closed as she leaned into the tender gesture.

Their plan had worked. His wolf clearly accepted that she was not a threat.

Although… she supposed it would be sorta hard to find her threatening when the wolf came to the surface to find her still stuffed full of his knot.

“We’re okay,” she whispered, stroking at the hair at the base of his neck and nuzzling him back. “We’re gonna be okay.”

The Alpha rumbled in reply, clearly approving of her swift acceptance of his comfort. Slowly and carefully, he dragged his fangs down her cheek before gently biting at her jaw. He let out a pleased growl at the way she trembled in response – this time for reasons having nothing to do with fear.

Pulling back to intently watch her reaction, he shifted his hips experimentally. An involuntary, keening moan fell from her lips as her head fell back against the wall.

The Alpha gave a purring sort of a sound in response, moving his hands back down to her ass and squeezing as he let out wet puffs of breath against her throat. He rolled his hips again, clearly approving of her response to him and seeking more.

“Fuck…” she groaned as she urged him to pull back far enough to see one another’s faces again. “Have mercy, dude. You’re putting nonstop pressure on my g-spot in there, and we can’t go for another round. We’ve got a bigger issue to deal with.” She smirked as she said, “Even bigger than your cock, which is really saying something.”

The Alpha studied her curiously in reply, but clearly had no idea what she was saying.

Awesome.

Stiles sighed and bit her bottom lip, trying to decide how she was going to communicate with the Alpha in order to get them out of this situation.

Luckily for her, they had a bit of time.

It took, by her estimate, at least twenty minutes for his knot to start softening. Another five beyond that before it was small enough to slide free and unleash the flood of come he had filled her up with. Another few minutes beyond that were devoted to convincing Wolf-brain-Derek that he did not need to immediately get to work knotting her back up again.

The way he shamelessly pouted over her unwillingness to go for another round was unfairly adorable.

Eventually, she managed to get him to set her back down onto her feet. When she had to lean onto the wall to hold herself upright, she turned to find a smug, fang-filled grin on his face over how wobbly her legs were.

She rolled her eyes and patted his chest. “Yes, yes. Big, strong Alpha turned the puny, little human’s legs into jelly. I’m sure you’re very proud of yourself.”

The chuff he gave in reply made it clear that he most definitely was.

She sighed and shook her head as she glanced around their surroundings. “Okay, as happy as I am that you managed to turn into a lover-wolf instead of being all, you know, ‘Grrr! Kill Stiles!’” She made an angry face as she growled the words and hooked her fingers like claws.

The Alpha huffed and tossed his head in response, giving her a perplexed look over her pitiful mimicry of an angry werewolf. (Tough crowd.)

Stiles went on, undeterred. “We still have the whole issue of getting out of here to contend with and, before long, those asshats are gonna come in looking to kill you.”

With the Alpha’s eyes glued to her, she set out across the cell. She only made it a matter of a few feet before two sounds startled the shit out of her. 1) The chains on Derek’s wrists jangling before coming to an abrupt halt and 2) his resulting outraged roar that she had ventured where he could not follow.

She spun back to face him and found him snarling and fighting wildly against the restraints, positively frantic to reach her. Part of her wanted to sooth him, to assure him that she was not leaving. The rest of her realized that if she held off and let him go for just a little longer, thanks to that cocktail of hunter drugs in his bloodstream, he was going to –

The chains snapped a fraction of a second before she was tackled and pinned down by 200 lbs of furious, protective Alpha werewolf. Red eyes glared down at her. Fangs snapped at her in warning. Clawed hands stroked her hair and back, as if to reassure himself that she was safe, even as he growled and grunted at her in admonishment.

“It’s okay. I’m right here,” she soothed, reaching up and cupping his cheek. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to scare you. I’m not leaving you.”

He snarled angrily, attempting to appear as reluctant as possible to accept her touch. He lasted all of two seconds before his eyes rolled closed and he nuzzled into her palm, enthusiastically dragging his lips and tongue across it.

By the 6^th slick pass of his tongue, she wrinkled her nose, but sighed in resignation.

So, his wolf was a licker.  🤷🏼‍♀️ She would take slobber over slaughter any day.

After a moment, she turned and looked across the floor, trying to locate what she had originally set out to retrieve. Spotting it, she sighed in relief that it was within reach, all she had to do was lean out a little bit.

“Alright… I…” She attempted to move, but quickly realized that was impossible. Smirking, she said in amusement, “Yeah, I’m gonna need that hand back, dude.”

She laughed fondly at the blissed-out look on his face once she finally managed to pull it from his grasp. She wiped her drenched hand on her bare thigh, and the rumble he gave in response made it clear that he found this to be an acceptable place for his slobber to reside.

Clearing her throat, she began again, “So, since scent is the only way that I can communicate anything with you while you’re like this, let’s see if I can make the gravity of our current situation a little clearer for you.”

She leaned to the side, stretching to snag the edge of the hunter’s t-shirt and shredded boxers.

The Alpha watched her intently, head cocked to the side as he let out inquiring grunts she figured were the wolf equivalent of, ‘What the hell are you doing now, Stiles?’ She did not miss the way his grip on her hips tightened ever so slightly, the Alpha clearly anxious that she might somehow venture beyond his reach again.

Once she had the clothes in hand, she closed her eyes and recalled her time in the hunters’ clutches… the way they had shoved her down and stripped her bare… the threats they made… the feeling of their hands on her skin… the panic and terror she had experienced… her desperation to reach Derek…

A low, warning growl shook the cell as the Alpha instantly perceived her distress. He hauled her back into his arms, red eyes flitting all around the room and over her face and body seeking a cause for her drastic change in mood.

With shaking hands, Stiles held up the items of clothing to him.

The Alpha inhaled deeply… and then went completely rigid. He looked to her expectantly, then watched as she turned in his arms just enough to present the bite wound one of the bastards had left behind on her shoulder. A high-pitched wolf whine escaped him as he leaned forward to inspect the injury, sniffing at it before nuzzling at the bruise, dragging his tongue and cheek over it carefully in order to cover the offensive lingering traces of the hunter’s scent.

When he looked to her once more, clearly waiting for further information, she recalled her fear again, then turned and pointed at the door against the far wall.

Message received, evidently.

Loud and clear.

The Alpha let loose a stentorian roar of warning to the threat hidden away beyond the door. While he clearly could not sense them beyond whatever barrier they had placed around the cell, Stiles was immensely relieved that he trusted her assurance they were there.

She yelped in surprise as she found herself being snatched up and carried to the corner of the cell, as far from the door as possible. The Alpha arranged her carefully, pushing and nudging and shoving at her until she was in precisely the position he wanted. Then, he turned and hunched down in preparation for a fight.

Eyes locked on the door, he settled in to wait.

And wait.

Annnndddd wait.

Stiles grew antsy before long. She tried talking a few times, only to be snarled at. (Snarl translation: ‘Shut up, Stiles.’)

She shivered and ran her hands over her arms. Thankfully, it was not cold enough to pose a serious risk to her health, but sitting naked on a cold, dirty, concrete floor was certainly not comfortable. She was sore all over (some places far more pleasantly than others.) And shit, she was exhausted. The events and stress of the past 24 hours started to catch up with her.

Eventually, she found herself leaning into the Alpha’s back more and more, seeking out his wondrous warmth, as well as the sense of safety and comfort she gained from his solid presence. When she sighed and rubbed her forehead and cheek sleepily against his back, she smiled at the pleased rumble it earned.

Apparently, the Alpha deeply approved of this whole scenting thing going both ways.

She grinned and, just to be a little shit, she dragged her tongue up the center of his back.

The Alpha shuddered and grunted in surprise, then glanced back at her over his shoulder with a smoldering expression that was CLEARLY the wolfy equivalent of, ‘Don’t start none, won’t be none.’

Stiles huffed a laugh at that and smiled up at him, then watched his crimson eyes soften with such open affection that it stole her breath. She cleared her throat and dropped her gaze as he returned his focus to the door.

She was unsure of what to make of everything that had transpired between them that night. Sure, she had always been… aware of how insanely hot Derek was. I mean, shit, she had eyes. And, yeah, as time passed and she got to know him, she had developed certain feelings for his grumpy ass. But she had always assumed that it was one-sided, and that Derek barely tolerated her. They relied on one another for survival, yeah. And there was a sort of mutual, grudging trust that they had managed to build over time. And, true, they both seemed to enjoy their constant verbal sparring, but none of that necessarily equated to mutual warm and fuzzy feelings. Or even hot and sweaty ones, for that matter.

Confusingly, however, there now seemed to be all of the above going on.

Maybe she was reading too much into it, she decided. Maybe this was just her being a stereotypical, clingy teenager, over-romanticizing their first time and believing it meant more than it really did.

Ugh, but she was too freaking tired to deal with any of that at the moment.

Yawning, she closed her eyes and snuggled against the Alpha’s back, knowing that if she drifted off, there was no way in hell she would sleep through the –

She woke with a jolt when the room erupted in violence.

All she could do was curl into a ball in the corner, covering her face and ears to block out the gunfire, screams, roars, and all of the squishy, sickening sounds of hunters meeting  their (fully justified, extremely gory) ends.

The room went quiet again in the span of a minute.

Stiles stayed in place, trembling in terror, fighting to keep her breathing in check, and far too afraid to look.

What if Derek had been killed?

What if they captured him again?

What if they were coming for her next?

Seemingly in an effort to announce his presence, the Alpha gave a low grunt before he gently touched her shoulder.

Stiles could not even attempt to hold back the sob of relief as he pulled her up into his arms. “Holy fuck, we survived. We made it. Oh my God. Are you - ? Did you - ? Are you okay? Did they hurt you?” she rambled tearfully, pawing at him while trying to check him over for injuries.

Her efforts were hindered because A) he was absolutely coated in blood which made it difficult to discern whether any of it was his own and B) the Alpha was doing exactly the same thing to her. His quiet grunts and whimpers seemed to translate into the same things as her spoken words.

When they both seemed satisfied with one another’s safety, they clung to each other. Stiles wept into his shoulder as the Alpha rumbled and frantically scent-marked every part of her that he could reach. (She was far too thankful to have survived to notice the blood he was smearing into her skin.)

Stiles gave them a few minutes to soak in the relief of surviving before she forced herself to sit up. She glanced around the room, then immediately cringed and looked back at the far more pleasant image of Derek’s chest and abs. True, they were slick with blood now that she was actually paying attention… which… eww… but it was definitely preferable to the absolute gorefest that surrounded them.

Fuck, and now that she had seen it, she realized she could smell it.

She gagged before grimacing and covering her nose and mouth. Her lips twitched in ill-timed amusement when she realized… her hand smelled like Derek. Or, well, his slobber, at least. But hey, it was easily a thousand times better than the scent of viscera, blood, and other bodily fluids covering the walls and floor.

The Alpha studied her reaction and grunted, trying to understand what was wrong. He pulled her closer to his chest, pressing his nose into the space just below her ear and sniffing appraisingly.

Stiles’ brow furrowed as she wondered, does revulsion have a smell?

Whatever he managed to perceive, he was able to interpret it properly because the next thing she knew, he was scooping her up and climbing to his feet. He rumbled to her soothingly and urged her to tuck her face into the nape of his neck, effectively hiding away from the scene around them. Once he was satisfied that she was following his instruction, he set out.

Stiles held on tightly to him as he made his way through the building. She tried not to tremble too badly as random fears and terrifying scenarios raced through her mind.

What if there were more hunters waiting nearby?

What if there was some sort of self-destruct shit rigged up to prevent them from leaving?

What if – ?

What if – ?

She drew in a surprised breath of fresh air when the Alpha brought them outside. Blinking to try and adjust to the unexpected brightness, she abandoned her hiding place beneath his chin in order to survey their surroundings.

They were out in the forest somewhere, and thankfully there were several vehicles parked. She motioned for him to set her down and then attempted (ha! Dumb move.) to step away from him.

The Alpha snarled thunderously in warning and hauled her back to his side, giving her a deeply disapproving, fang-filled scowl as he cast a purposeful look around the area.

“I know. I know we’re not safe yet. But we need to get out of here,” she sighed. Hoping for him to understand, she pointed to her eyes, then their surroundings and said, “I need to look around.” She tugged on him and pointed to his position beside her as she said, “You can stay glued to my side the whole time.”

He huffed and grunted at her, seemingly agreeing because, clearly, she was an idiot if she thought he would be anywhere else.

Chapter Text

Over the course of the next half an hour, with her werewolfy hanger-on, Stiles managed to find keys to a truck with a full gas tank, their current location, and several cell phones (sadly hers had been smashed and Derek’s was nowhere in sight, likely dropped at the scene of wherever they abducted him.)

She made several failed attempts to put on articles of clothing she found lying around. Each time, the Alpha would snarl and shred the offending garments. Grudgingly, she accepted that he was never going to allow her to put on something soaked in the sweat of their deceased captors.

Steadying herself for her own reactions as well as the Alpha’s response to what awaited inside, she entered the room where she had been stripped down upon arrival. She managed to take all of two steps into the interior of the space before he was on red alert again. Apparently, the lingering scents of her terror and the hunters’ (gross) arousal had him snarling and practically vibrating with rage.

Stiles allowed him to paw at and snuffle all over her until he was fully confident that she was safe and unharmed. Once he settled down, she gently coaxed him to let her explore the room. With obvious reluctance, he allowed her to lead them across the space to the pile of her clothes.

“I can’t just, like, stay naked, dude,” she informed him. “I know nudity is pretty much your default setting, and, honestly? No complaints here. Just… NONE. At all. You have, like, every reason to want to show that off. All of that…”

Her eyes slid over his body, and she had to blink repeatedly to prevent herself from getting lost in recollections of being fucked into the wall by… all of that.

In response to her roving gaze and the scent of her interest, the Alpha rumbled and stood up taller, puffing out his chest while giving her a fang-filled grin that promised a whole plethora of wondrous and filthy things.

Noting that the possibility of sex already had his cock twitching and thickening, Stiles whined and shook her head.

“Nyuh! NO. Nope. Nuh-uh,” she declared firmly as she shook her head. Covering her eyes, she chided herself, “Focus, Stiles! Gotta escape. Can’t afford to play around with super-sexy, feral Derek right now.” Frowning to herself, she pulled her hands away from her eyes and tried out, “Ferek?” then waved off the derailment of her thoughts. Clearing her throat, she said, “But anyway, back to my point: nakedness. That’s just you. You can be nature boy all you want, and nobody is going to mind. As for me? I like to keep this pasty, scrawny, little ass covered from prying eyes, thank you very much. So…” She held her rumpled clothes up for inspection and winced as she asked hopefully, “Please tell me these are acceptable?”

The Alpha’s brow furrowed (well, as much as it could, given its current rigid, bumpy state). Once he worked out what she was requesting, he leaned down and sniffed all over the garments appraisingly. Satisfied, he grunted, and – for once – did not freak out and shred them. Evidently her base scent on the garments was stronger than the hunters’ scents.

Stiles sighed in relief and proceeded to dress, a process which the Alpha seemed to find generally fascinating, if a bit confusing. He seemed briefly annoyed with her decision to cover her body – namely her crotch – but he did not press the matter. (Likely because they were still in enemy territory, the clothes were serving to lock in his scent on her skin, and he knew he could just rip the clothes off of her any time he wanted.)

Unsurprisingly, the Alpha, himself, had zero interest in covering up. Stiles just prayed they could pull off their escape without running into any civilians… or law enforcement.

Clothed and clutching the truck keys in hand, she planned out their trip back to Beacon Hills before disabling the phone’s GPS. She did the same with the other phones before shutting them off. She did not want to risk a hunter tracking them before they were back home and, at least relatively, safe. She resisted the instinct to call her dad or Scott (ha! As if he would even answer and, yeah, she was still bitter about that), or any of Derek’s pack. She did not want to risk tipping any other hunters off that they had escaped.

She memorized the route home and nodded to herself. It was not too far of a drive – less than 45 minutes, all told. The real challenge came when attempting to convince the feral Alpha to allow her to climb inside a vehicle saturated in the scent of their enemies.

He growled suspiciously at the metal, cage-like shape of the truck’s cab as she worked to convince him that it was safe. He went along with it, albeit with great reluctance. The second she started the engine, however, all bets were off. He promptly flipped right the fuck out and dragged her out the door, roaring at the vehicle while shielding her.

Mercifully, he did not attempt to ‘kill’ the truck.

Another twenty minutes were spent convincing him that the big, noisy, hunter-scented contraption was  not actually a threat, and that the rumble of the diesel engine was not, in fact, a challenging growl.

It took a lot of sweet talking, scenting, and cajoling, but finally, finally she managed to get them both into the vehicle and closed the doors. She nearly melted into the seat in relief that they were finally making progress… but froze just before putting it in drive when she got a look at the wolf beside her.

The Alpha’s expression betrayed his deep confusion and frustration over everything that was going on. His bumpy brow was furrowed, and fanged mouth was turned down as his eyes flitted around the truck’s cab. He was trusting her assurance that this was okay, but he just could not understand what was happening. He was clearly fighting to make sense of it all, searching for the missing part of his mind that would help him comprehend.

Stiles’ heart ached for him.

She scooted closer to him. “Hey…” she said softly, cupping his cheek and looking up into his bright red eyes. She waited for him to meet her gaze and grunt in reply. She gave him a soft smile and stroked his face as she told him, “We’re okay. We’re gonna get back home safe. That crap is gonna work its way out of your system and everything will be alright. You’ll see.”

He let out a soft rumble in response to the soothing tone of her voice, eyes looking a bit heavy lidded as he leaned into her touch.

Biting her lip, she considered what she could do to comfort him. He was clearly too feral in that moment to kiss. And besides, even if he wasn’t feral, it was not as if she and Derek were on kissing terms. Right? The (holy GOD, so amazing) sex had just been a life-or-death thing. He would totally be pissed if she tried for anything else… right?

So, instead, she leaned in and pressed their foreheads together, nuzzling her nose against his. He gave a pleased purr as he eagerly reciprocated the gesture.

Sighing and smiling at him one last time, she turned back to the steering wheel and reached for the gear shift.

He freaked out again the second the truck started moving.

The trip back to Beacon Hills was, thankfully, uneventful.

Stiles was thrilled when the Alpha slumped over, shoving his way up under her arm before collapsing with his head in her lap. He nosed around for a minute, managing to shove her shirt aside so that he could press his nose into her bare stomach. She grinned at the little contented ‘oof’ sounding sigh he gave once he finally settled into a comfy position.

Man, she was going to have dog jokes for dayyyssssss once this was all over. She could not wait.

In an effort to comfort him and keep herself calm, she carded her hand through his hair. Before long, his breathing evened out as he drifted off. Good, she decided. Poor guy could definitely use a nap.

She drove to the loft first, knowing that it would be the safest place for him while he was still like this.

The Alpha woke and perked up as soon as she pulled into the parking lot. His head tipped back, nose in the air as he grew increasingly excited.

Stiles laughed. “Recognize the scent of your own den, huh? Oh, man… I bet you mark your territory, don’t you? Just walking around out here, peeing around the perimeter every night. God, I’m gonna bust on you about this so bad later.”

But wolf-brain-Derek’s happiness was not the least bit diminished by her teasing. He was quick to exit the vehicle and carry her into the building - only pausing to allow her to handle opening the (clearly baffling) doors. (Because, as he found, simply growling at them did not make them move for him.) Evidently deeply pleased with her ability to get them back home safely, he spent the entire trip up to the floor where he resided licking and nipping affectionately at her neck.

She did her best not to respond too obviously, but there was only so much she could do when the guy could smell her arousal.

With a bit of work, she managed to wriggle out of his grasp. Clearly far more at ease now that he was in his own territory, he left her side for the first time and ventured around, checking everything.

Stiles took the opportunity to find one of the spare prepaid phones Derek kept on hand. (Phones did not survive long in this lifestyle, unfortunately. Someone in the pack was always waiting for a replacement for their personal cell, so the spares came in handy.)

She dialed the first number without hesitation, then listened as it connected. There was no sound on the other end, but she knew this was a precaution on his part.

“Chris, it’s Stiles,” she said.

Instantly, the Alpha was venturing back into the main room of the loft, head cocked to the side as he grunted curiously, clearly trying to discern whether she was speaking to him.

“Stiles? Where are you? Are you with Derek?” Chris demanded, his questions making it clear that her overnight absence had not gone unnoticed.

The Alpha gave a low, warning growl at the male voice on the other end of the line, but Stiles held up a hand toward him in what she hoped was a calming gesture.

Instead, he took it as an invitation to snuffle all over and lick her fingers.

Stiles sighed in defeat, then remained as relaxed as possible as he pressed into her side and sniffed at the phone, as if to reassure himself that this strange, disembodied voice did not belong to anyone able to actually touch Stiles.

“We’re at the loft now,” she informed Chris. “Been through a hell of a night, but we’re safe now. I’ve got a truck parked here that’s gonna need to disappear fast and the address for a cabin that needs to be thoroughly cleaned.”

“Any idea how many?” he asked gravely.

Stiles winced. “It was… very messy. I didn’t want to look, to be honest,” she admitted. “But there were at least a dozen the last time I saw them up and about. It’s gonna be a big job.”

“No worries,” he assured. “Peter will help with cleanup. Just text me the address. Have you called your father yet?”

Stiles frowned and took a steadying breath. “No. He’s my next call. I wanted to make sure you were on cleanup duty first. Having their truck sitting right outside is making me nervous as hell. I didn’t see anything they might use to track it, but you never know.”

“I’ll see that it’s handled. How are you both? Any injuries?”

“Amazingly, nothing beyond bruising this time,” she relayed with her surprise plain in her voice. “They did lock us up together after dosing him with something to turn him feral… which it did, but thankfully his instincts were to protect me, rather than rip me to shreds like they intended.”

“Shit…” Chris said, clearly understanding the gravity of the situation.

Stiles got a chill as she considered how badly things could have gone for them. In response to her brief flaring of distress, the Alpha wrapped his arms around her and nuzzled into the side of her throat as he rumbled reassuringly.

“Oh…” Chris breathed in immediate understanding, clearly able to hear Derek now that he was so close to the phone. “And from the sounds of him, I take it Derek’s still feeling the effects. Has it worn off at all?”

Stiles looked up at the Alpha who was currently glaring at the phone in her hand and baring his fangs at it in warning. She tried not to laugh. “That’s a big ol’ negative. He is still very much all wolf at the moment.”

“How the hell did you manage to get him back home?” the hunter asked in disbelief.

“Excruciatingly slowly and with a shit ton of coaxing,” she assured matter-of-factly.

“I’ll bet,” he said with a huff of laughter, still sounding thoroughly astonished. “We’d better keep everyone else away until he’s back to normal. And I do mean everyone. Considering what he must’ve been dosed with, I have absolutely no idea how you’re still alive, to be honest. I don’t know how you managed to trigger his protective instincts, but I highly doubt that anyone else – even his own betas – would be able to enter his den right now and live to tell the tale.”

“Yeah, my thoughts exactly,” she agreed as the Alpha attempted to draw her attention away from the phone in her hand. She smirked up at him and ran her hand through the coarse stubble on his cheeks and up through his hair in order to appease him. He gave a pleased growl as he enthusiastically accepted the affection.

“Okay, you just focus on yourself and keeping him calm. I’ll reach out to Scott, and we’ll warn everyone to stay away. I’ll text you before we pick up the truck – I’m sure Derek is going to thoroughly dislike having anyone in the vicinity. He’ll most likely be extremely agitated and defensive of you from the time we arrive until we’re out of range of his senses again.”

“Oh, goody,” she said sarcastically.

“I know. We’ll try to be quick,” Chris assured. “He should be back to himself by this evening – tomorrow morning at the latest. It’s going to come in stages – he’ll start to regain bits of his human consciousness at a time.”

“Good to know. It’ll make things a lot easier when I can order takeout without risking him eating the delivery guy,” she said wryly. “I think what he needs most right now is sleep, though. He’ll probably wake up feeling a million times better. I got him to nod off for a little bit on the ride home, but he’s pretty much just running on adrenaline and that shit they injected him with.”

“The fact that he slept at all is honestly incredible,” Chris said, sounding thoroughly impressed. “Alright, sit tight. Call if you need anything. And Stiles?” He waited for her to hum in reply. “I’m glad you two are alright. Let us know once he’s back to himself, okay?”

“Will do. Thanks, Chris.”

She ended the call and bit her lip, knowing that she needed to call her father. She really did not want to get into what she had done to secure her safety and she knew damned well that once he got started questioning her, he would know she was leaving something out.

“Now or never,” she sighed to herself before calling.

“Sherriff Stilinski speaking,” her father answered almost immediately in a terse tone, clearly struggling to stay calm given her disappearance.

“Dad,” she breathed.

“STILES! Oh, thank God,” he gasped, sounding dizzy with relief. “Where are you? Are you hurt? What happened?”

“I’m fine. I’m safe,” she assured. “I – We – Derek and I were both captured by some extra asshole-ish hunters but… we, uh… we’re okay. We made it out safe.”

“Where are you? I’m coming to get you,” her father insisted.

“HA. Yea, no. Not the best idea, I’m afraid.”

“Why the hell not?” he demanded before putting on his sternest Dad voice. “Stiles. What’s going on?”

“They, um… well they kinda gave Derek something that’s making him, like, super wolfy.”

There was a pause as her father no doubt closed his eyes, gripped his forehead, and prayed for strength.

After a few seconds, he asked in a strained voice, “Are you telling me that you are currently alone with a drugged, violent, feral, Alpha werewolf… and you expect me to actually LEAVE you there?”

“Well… yeah,” she confirmed with a frown. “But no worries! He’s no threat to me, whatsoever. I swear. The only reason I don’t want you to come here is because he is still in, like, red alert, uber protective mode. He won’t let anyone come near me until this wears off.”

There was silence for a moment.

Stiles winced, practically hearing the wheels turning in her father’s head. (As if it required a great deal of sleuthing to piece this together. Like, gee, why would an Alpha werewolf be super protective of the teenaged girl in his den?)

“Right. SO.” Stiles went on quickly. “Uh. Gonna go eat and sleep and whatnot. I’ll let you know as soon as things settle here, okay?”

And now she could practically hear her father grinding his teeth.

Swallowing audibly, she insisted, “I would totally offer to do, like, hourly text check-ins, but I didn’t exactly sleep much last night, what with being locked in a cell, and with the adrenaline crash that’s coming on, I’m gonna zonk out soon.”

Annndddd there was that long sigh of fatherly resignation.

“Just… please text or call me as often as you can, okay?” he pleaded tiredly.

“I will, I promise. Love you, Dad! Go eat a salad! Kisses! Night-night!” she said in an overly cheerful tone and grinned at the grumbled reply she received.

She sighed as she set the phone back on the table. Putting her hands on her hips, she looked up at the still very naked, still caked in dried blood Alpha attached to her side.

“You seriously need a shower, dude,” she declared.

She frowned to herself, wondering how in the ever-loving fuck she was supposed to pull this off. Hoping for the best, she snagged one of his big, meaty, warm, heavy, incredibly-fucking-sexy hands (and seriously, how could a hand be so sexy?! This guy had broken her for all future men.)

Clearing her throat, she urged, “Come on. Follow me, big guy.”

He eyed the bathroom with mild apprehension, but his nose was twitching as he tipped his head back and sniffed appraisingly. Seemingly content that this was still his own personal space and, as such, safe territory, he allowed her to venture away from his side.

He growled and bared his teeth when she turned on the shower head, but settled when she demonstrated that it was only spraying clean water.

Getting him to understand that she wanted him to stand under the spray and wash was impossible. After several failed attempts, and with her hair dripping and drenched clothes sticking to her body uncomfortably, she finally accepted defeat.

“F-fine. Fucking… just… FINE!” she huffed in exasperation as she started the difficult process of peeling her soaked shirt and bra off over her head. She groused under hear breath the entire time.

The Alpha’s head tilted in interest as he watched her struggle. Once he understood that she was removing her clothing, he gave a fang-filled grin and rumbled deeply in approval.

She paused in shimmying out of her pants to cast him a light scowl and hold up a finger. “Don’t you get any ideas!” she warned (in vain, but she had to at least try.) Sighing as she kicked off the last of her clothing, she waved for him to come closer and urged, “Now, get over here and let me…” She winced, closing her eyes and flailing her hands as she finished, “…wash your fucking ridiculously hot body and oh my GOD, this is going to end so badly.”

The Alpha was apprehensive, to say the least, about her scrubbing his hair and stubbly face. Still, he allowed it, even working with her as she carefully rinsed away the suds. (Because can you imagine how badly he would respond to her getting soap in his eyes? No fucking thank you.)

His opinion of the bathing process swiftly changed when she moved on to washing his body. He was VERY MUCH on board with her using her hands to lather up his arms, pits, throat, chest, and stomach. He purred and leaned into her touches as she washed his back and ass, every muscle tensing and rippling beneath her fingers.

She lied to herself that she was doing an excellent job of focusing strictly on the task at hand and not getting turned on at all. The Alpha leaned in close, eyes heavy lidded as he sniffed and licked at her neck, wordlessly calling her out on being a lying liar who lied.

She whimpered as she went back to working down the front of his body, moving on to his thighs and desperately trying to avoid his now rock-hard cock as it jutted out, shamelessly demanding her attention. When she gave up on trying to keep her eyes averted, she realized that she would have to get her hands on it anyway. After all, he had been absolutely covered in blood from his jaw down as a result of killing their captors. And while the vast majority of that blood had dried up and flaked off in the time since, there was still enough left behind to warrant several very thorough head-to-toe wash/rinse cycles.

“Okay… okay, I can do this,” she said in a strained voice, tipping her head from side to side and shrugging her shoulders in an attempt to psych herself up for it. “Just… just gotta keep it clinical, that’s all. Doesn’t need to be sexy,” she reasoned as she poured more body wash into her hands and rubbed them together. “After all, you may have signed up for one lifesaving screw, Sourwolf, but you very definitely did not grant me blanket consent for all manner of sexual shenanigans while you are unable to make the choice for yourself. And I am going to try my very best not to… t-tooo-oooooooh fuck!” she whined as the Alpha caught her wrist and guided her to wrap a sudsy hand around his cock.

He let out a long, low growl of pleasure. His glowing red eyes rolled closed, and head fell back as his hips began rocking forward into her grip.

Stiles’ mouth hung open uselessly as she watched him slow-fuck her hand. (And great, now she would never be able to look at her own damned hand again without getting horny!)

“Oh… sweet… merciful… friendly, fuckable Fenrir…” she whimpered.

After a moment, her brain came back online, and she gave herself a forceful shake. Making a series of incomprehensible sounds and sputters, she managed to pull her hand away.

The Alpha growled in condemnation, eyes snapping open as he frowned at her, silently demanding an explanation for why she stopped.

Stiles blinked rapidly as she stammered, “Y-you… you need to… huh… um… get cleaned up, dude. And I’m calling it – that is a very… FUCK… very clean dick. Yup. All clean. All done. No… no need to… unff… to touch that anymore. Ever again. No, sir. Gonna… just gonna finish washing the rest of the hunter scent off now…” she rambled as she swiftly moved to scrub down his legs.

It wasn’t until he rumbled happily and eagerly turned his body toward her that she realized her mistake.

She winced and breathed shakily as he brought his cock close to her face, obviously assuming that was the reason she was crouching down.

“Ha… No. That’s not… nyuh…” she laughed nervously, ducking her head and trying not to focus on the thick, uncut, dripping temptation before her. “No offense, big guy, it’s a great cock. Like… so, so incredibly great. You have every reason to be proud of it. But that thing looks like it could easily break my jaw and – full disclosure? – I’ve never actually given head before. And I’d like to be able to communicate with the recipient while I’m learning, you know? Seems like that would be pretty important for, like, safety or something.”

The Alpha rumbled in confusion, frowning down at her as she continued not stroking or tasting him. After a few seconds, he grunted and hauled her up onto her feet.

Stiles let out a startled squeak when he pressed her up against the tiled wall. She watched in confusion as he lifted the bottle of body wash from the shelf and sniffed it curiously. With his tongue passing over his fangs, he tipped the bottle over and watched it drizzle down the front of her body.

Her eyes grew wide in realization. He must think the bathing was a pre-sex requirement, some sort of confusing human mating ritual, and he was looking to reciprocate in hopes of speeding things along.

“Oh! N-no, th-that’s fine,” she stammered as she laughed nervously. “You really don’t have to – nyuhhh….”

She trailed off, thunking her head back against the wall and shuddering as he began oh-so-carefully massaging her skin with his large, clawed hands. Glowing red eyes watched intently as he followed her example and washed away the traces of the hunters’ blood from her hair and body.

He seemed deeply interested in her breasts… kneading them and thumbing at her hardened nipples while letting out low rumbles. He leaned in close, nuzzling her face and rubbing their cheeks together as his hand dipped down between her thighs.

She went completely still, terrified that one wrong move would result in serious injury. To her amazement, he was incredibly careful, allowing his palm and the pads of his fingers to slip between her sensitive folds of skin, but keeping his claws away.

When he was finished, and Stiles’ brain was a puddle of insanely turned-on mush, she somehow managed to guide them both beneath the spray to rinse off. He attempted to pick her up the second she shut off the water, only pausing when she squawked and insisted on drying them off first.

Once she was finished with that, however, he hoisted her up and guided her to wrap her legs around his waist.

“Oh, this is not good...” she whined as he set out in the direction of the bed.

Chapter Text

Stiles attempted, pointlessly, to talk her way out of this as the Alpha carried her toward his bed.

“Listen, dude. Other you? Human side you? Is not gonna be happy about this, okay? Like, us having sex was the only way to save my life, and that was greatly… GREATLY appreciated, I assure you. But now? This is extra. And I have a feeling the other half of your psyche is gonna be, like, uber mad if I don’t put a stop to things now.”

The Alpha purred (rather unhelpfully) at her in reply, licking at her throat and ear before nipping gently. She shivered and sulked that she was already soaked. Her body was clearly more than eager for a repeat performance of being knotted.

“Mmm… mmmmm…” the Alpha breathed.

“NO. No, ‘mmm…’” she insisted. “Stiles is not on the menu, okay?”

The Alpha opened his mouth, but stopped mid-step when a chime echoed through the loft – a text notification.

“Oh…” she gasped, recalling that Chris was going to text once he and Peter arrived. She looked up at the Alpha worriedly. “Oh, no… you are not gonna like this,” she breathed, tensing up and waiting for him to pick up on it.

The change in him was instantaneous. His head whipped around in the direction of the parking lot as his eyes widened. A deep, enraged growl rumbled through him as he held Stiles tightly.

She attempted to calm and sooth him to no avail. It only aggravated him further that she was making noise when a threat was nearby.

Before she knew what was happening, she was being pushed into the bathroom and the door was being shut in her face.

She frowned as she processed this and tried to figure out what was off…

Not his choice of where to put her because that actually made sense. The bathroom was the most defendable room in the loft.

It took her a moment to realize that Derek… had closed the door to keep her inside.

Derek… closed the door.

Derek… recognized what a door was… and he used it.

Huh.

Progress!

Smiling to herself, Stiles took the opportunity to empty her bladder. She had not wanted to do so with an audience before. (And great, now she was picturing Derek as one of those dogs with zero respect for personal boundaries, sitting at the bathroom door, staring at her while she tried to pee.) So, hey, if he was gonna lock her in the bathroom, she was going to take full advantage of the brief privacy, thank you very much.

She tried not to laugh wondering whether Derek was outside right then, peeing around the exterior of the building to warn Chris and Peter off.

Minutes ticked by until, finally, the door was pushed open to reveal the Alpha in all his buck-naked and fanged glory.

“Welcome back,” she greeted in amusement. She struggled to hold back her laughter as she teased with a grin, “Did you bark at the mailman until he ran away?”

The Alpha let out a growl in reply and stalked over to her, picking her up and tossing her over his shoulder.

She squeaked and tried not to gape at the utterly fantastic view she was being treated to of his perfectly sculpted ass.

“Hey! Since when are you doing the over-the-shoulder throwing?” she griped. “This is very, ‘Me Tarzan, you Jane.’”

Faster than she was prepared for, she was being tossed onto the bed on her back.

“Nope!” she yelped as she tried to scramble off the mattress, but he was on top of her before she made it very far. “Oh… fuck, Der…” she whined as he easily slipped between her thighs.

He buried his face in the nape of her neck and rutted down against her, dragging his rapidly hardening cock along her stomach and over her clit. She trembled as she gasped in pleasure. Her knees quaked with the conflicting instincts to close her legs and spread them apart even further.

“Please don’t make me try to fight you on this,” she begged. “I don’t know how you’d respond, and I know you would never want to hurt me. Besides, human-you would be far more upset than I would if you keep going despite my protests. Like… you have to know how fucking bad I want you,” she whined. “Human you or wolfy you, just… you. Period. Any version of you. Any time. Any way I can get you. But I don’t want you to be pissed off at me or feel like I took advantage of you because, I swear, I would never in a million years – ”

“Mmmm…” he hummed purposefully, effectively cutting her off.

She froze in place, blinking up at the ceiling.

“Mmmm?” she mimicked curiously as her brows drew together.

That did not sound like a wolfy noise.

Before, she had assumed he was just horny…

But now… the more she considered it… the more it seemed like a deliberate sound.

Like a precursor to speech.

Her eyes widened.

“Mmmm?” she repeated hopefully.

The Alpha leaned his head back enough to look down into her eyes. “Mmmm…”

Stiles grinned up at him and stroked his cheeks.

“You’re trying to talk, aren’t you?” she asked excitedly.

He rumbled happily and worked his jaw, trying to get it to cooperate. His tongue ran over his fangs as his lips twitched restlessly. “Mmmm… may…”

Her brows drew together as she studied him, trying to work out what he wanted to say. “May…? May you…?” She scrunched up her face and declared, “No, that can’t be right. You’re not polite even when you can talk.”

“Mmm… mmm…” He huffed in frustration, scowling as he continued trying to get it out.

“Hey… it’s okay,” she soothed. “Be patient with yourself. You’ll get there. This is already a great sign. Means you’re starting to shake off the drugs.”

Swallowing audibly, he tried again. “Mmmm… mmmay…ttt… mmate… mate.” His eyes widened slightly, as if surprised that he had managed to say it clearly. “Mate,” he repeated proudly with a fang-filled grin.

Stiles deflated in disappointment as she sighed, “Oh.”

Derek flinched at the blatant disappointment in her features. Everything was still so confusing and muddled inside of his head. He was only just becoming cognizant of things again. His senses were all over the place, the world felt as if it was spinning, and he could not even begin to understand why Stiles looked so let down by his attempts to speak.

Unable to voice a question, he grunted down at her worriedly.

She sighed and shook her head before speaking. With his sluggish brain, Derek could only catch little clips of her words, fast as they always were, but he focused as hard as he could on trying to decipher what was wrong.

“….thought… were back… just… wolfy… using words… saying… wanna screw,” she said with a sad laugh.

He growled in frustration at how his singular word had been misinterpreted as a verb rather than a noun. In an effort to calm himself, he nuzzled into her cheek before pressing his brow against her temple.

Frowning deeply, he tried again. “Mmmm…”

“…stop you there,” she huffed. “…you only consented… one time… I can’t… though I seriously want… you’ll… mad at me… won’t… advantage of…”

It was almost impossible to deny his wolf’s instincts to simply pin her down and claim her. The animal in him had no patience or use for words – especially when it was fully aware of how much they both wanted one another. Words were only overcomplicating things.

Stiles attempted to sit up and pull away at that point, but Derek had snarled in displeasure and hauled her back into place beneath him before he could even attempt to stop himself.

He regretted it immediately as her body went rigid and scent turned sour with fear. Fear of him.

A series of high-pitched whines left him as he nuzzled her frantically – the gesture a feeble attempt at an apology. He hoped she understood that he had not meant to frighten her. He was just growing steadily more agitated over his inability to speak, and he was irrationally terrified that he would lose her if he could not make her understand somehow. The combination was threatening to derail the little bit of progress he had made in his fight for the return of his human consciousness.

“Ssssss…” he tried, squeezing his eyes shut and willing his uncooperative brain to work properly.

Thankfully, his attempts at a different word caused her to relax slightly.

“Der…?” she whispered.

He exhaled heavily in relief and got his head to bob once in what he hoped she recognized as a nod.

“Ssss… Sssss…”

“Sssscott?” she guessed. “Ssssstop?” She frowned suddenly as she warned, “You had better not say ‘sex’, dude.”

“Sti… Sssstttiii…”

Her face instantly lit up in a beaming grin of recognition. She nodded in encouragement and waited for him to continue.

“Ss…ttttillle. Ss…iles. Stiles,” he finally managed, and panted at the effort it had taken. The world righted in his perception for a second and he felt as if he could breathe again.

“Yes! Stiles! You got it!” she cheered excitedly.

He did not pause to celebrate, though. The fog was swiftly closing in on him again, muddling his thoughts and clouding out his fleeting mental clarity.

“Sssssttay. Stay. Stiles. Sssssttay,” he pleaded.

She gripped his shoulders and nodded. “Yeah. I’m right here. Right here, Der. I’m not going anywhere. I’ll stay.”

He sagged in relief and pressed a clumsy, fanged kiss to her temple before purring, “Mmmate. Mmmy. My. M-mate. Stay. Sssstiles. Stay.”

She exhaled sharply and tipped her head back, waiting for him to meet her gaze before she rambled fretfully and faster than he could keep up with.

He squinted and watched her mouth closely as it rapidly formed words.

“…not… your head right… you can’t…” she insisted.

He grumbled incomprehensibly and shook his head, resolutely dismissing her worries that he was not able to think clearly. Everything else was murky. But this he was completely sure of. This was crystal clear.

“Mmmmiinne,” he insisted as he stroked her hair and gazed down at her. “Mine. Mmmm… My. Stiles. My.”

He smiled at the shudder she gave in response. The way her heart skipped a beat. The way her scent turned spicy with lust and sweet with affection. His crimson gaze slid down to her mouth… Her pretty, pink mouth with those perfect cupid’s bow lips… He winced in longing. He wanted to kiss her so badly…

He barely noticed that his fangs had receded before Stiles was surging up and kissing him, wrapping her arms around his shoulders and, God, it felt like coming home.

He groaned and quickly deepened the kiss. His hands were everywhere, mercifully clawless, and absolutely trembling with need while touching, groping, squeezing, kneading…

He wanted to be wrapped up in her, wanted nothing more than to drown in her scent and touch. He caught her behind her knees and urged her to wrap her legs around him.

He desperately wanted to talk. To tell her that he was so fucking relieved that she was safe, thankful that he hadn’t hurt her. To tell her what it meant that he knotted her, what it meant that his wolf had claimed her in such an intimate way.

But his brain was still a whirlwind of fragmented thoughts, memories, and instincts, and the one thing – the only thing that was clear to him was how much he wanted her. Needed her. Needed the reassurance of her touch. The pleasure of her body beneath his own. His anchor.

“Nnnneeeed… need… y-you…pp… pllleee… please, Stiles… please…” he panted desperately against her lips, hoping it was enough to make her understand.

“Oh, fuck…” she gasped in reply and, given the way she instantly started grinding up against him and tightening her legs around him, she understood completely.

He surrendered and lost himself to the pure bliss of the act, kissing her breathless and rutting against her before finally, finally, sliding back inside of her tight, slick heat. The sounds she made for him were incredible. The way she clutched at him and murmured praise and pleas against his skin…

It was everything.

She was everything.

He never wanted to stop. He would never stop. He did not care what it took – he would have this with her for the rest of his life. He would give her anything. Give anything to have her. To keep her. To protect her. He would bleed for her. Die for her. Live and breathe for her happiness and safety.

With each resolution his heart and mind made, he could feel his bond to her growing stronger, sharper, more defined. His gums itched with the instinct to bite, but he would wait for that. Wait for his brain to work enough for him to explain what it meant. Wait for her to say yes.

“Der… come on… fuck… come with me,” she begged beautifully against his lips.

He groaned, giving it to her harder and faster until he felt himself coming undone for her – with her – all because she had asked him to. His eyes rolled closed as he frantically thrust in deeper, desperate to fill every void inside of her as his knot swelled. She gasped and whimpered his name as she came, her inner walls clenching tightly around him, begging to be filled. His body eagerly obeyed, giving her everything he had.

He lost a few minutes after that.

When he came back to himself, he found that he was lavishing her with affection – alternating between kissing her in a purely human way, and nipping / licking / scenting her as his animal instincts urged him to do. Stiles was blissed out, eyes closed with a tired smile on her face as she went along with whatever he wanted.

He focused all of his concentration on asking, “Y… good?”

She laughed and opened her bleary eyes. “I’m so fucking good,” she assured. Stroking his hair, she said, “Tired, though. Really tired. Safe. Fucked out. Happy. Could totally use a nap.”

He hummed at this, gathering her up in his arms and turning over so that she was lying on top of him. Carefully, as they were still tied, he reached down and pulled the covers up. He draped them over her as he kissed her brow.

Stiles yawned and snuggled into his chest, and he gazed down at her, utterly enchanted.

“Man, I hope you remember this when you wake up,” she sighed. “I don’t wanna be tied together if you’re pissed off at me.”

He frowned and stroked her hair in what he hoped was a reassuring way, but she was asleep so quickly, he was not sure she even registered it.

Stiles was hungry.

And thirsty.

And, for some odd reason, very wet and sticky from the waist down.

But she was also warm.

And comfortable.

And felt inexplicably safe.

Her pillow shifted beneath her, and she frowned as she realized that it was warm… and smooth… and covered in surprisingly soft hair and OH MY FUCKING GOD it was Derek Hale’s chest!

Her eyes snapped open as it all came back to her.

With great trepidation, she lifted her head. Pressing her lips together and scrunching up her face worriedly, she peeked up at him.

Glowing red eyes gazed back at her.

She gulped.

“Hey, Der… You, uh… You feeling talkative yet?” she asked cautiously.

In response, he simply tilted his head to the side on the pillow and studied her.

She deflated a bit.

“Guess not,” she sighed.

His brows quirked incredulously before he asked in a sleep-roughened voice, “When am I ever ‘talkative’?”

Stiles just about jumped out of her skin.

“Jesus!” she yelped, clutching her chest, and earning a smirk from the Alpha. “Dude, you can’t just do that! Give a girl a little warning that you’re not in K9 mode anymore.”

He rolled his eyes.

“How long have you been back to normal?” she asked.

He shrugged. “Wore off while we were sleeping, I guess.”

“Fuck, what time is it?” she groaned as she pushed off of his chest.

The movement caused both of them to moan quietly because – despite his cock being soft and his knot having gone down – he was evidently still inside of her.

Stiles winced. “You… do remember that you were on board with this… right?”

Derek gave a smoldering smile and licked his lips as he gripped her waist and stroked the small of her back with his fingertips. “I remember being very much on board with this. Pretty sure I even said, ‘please.’”

She grinned as the tension left her. “You did,” she confirmed. Widening her eyes, she added, “Twice, in fact.”

“Twice,” he repeated in amusement as he continued running his fingers across her back.

Stiles fought to suppress a shiver, but she knew he could hear her heart rate picking up. In a slightly strained voice, she teased, “I’ll have mercy and refrain from making any dog jokes about you ‘sitting up and begging’ for the time being.”

He fought to hold back a chuckle as he said, “How magnanimous of you.”

“Magnanimous?” she echoed with an impressed smirk. “See? You are talkative.”

“Hmm… I have my moments,” he said with a grin, biting his lip as he shifted his hips slightly.

Stiles did her level best to ignore the way he was starting to thicken up inside of her. It was only natural, she reasoned. Didn’t mean anything. She closed her eyes and struggled not to respond. Her breathing was noticeably choppy, but she hoped – given their current position – that he could forgive her for being turned on. But she would tamp it down, damn it. After all, the crisis had been averted. They were both okay and alive. And, besides, Derek had clearly just been overwhelmed with animal instincts during their second romp. He couldn’t have meant anything with all that ‘my Stiles’ / ‘my mate’ stuff. No. That had just been the lingering effects of the drugs talking, so she should just bow out gracefully. Give the poor guy an out without making this whole thing more uncomfortable than it probably already was for him.

“Well… good,” she said in a shaky voice as she opened her eyes again. She forced a smirk as she said, “I’m glad you remember. Otherwise this conversation would’ve been awkward as shit.” She started to climb off of him and out of the bed, but did not make it far before she realized her legs were still ridiculously wobbly.

The Alpha gave a pleased little rumble as he caught her and helped her stand upright.

“Thanks,” she said and patted his shoulder in appreciation before starting off toward the bathroom.

“Wait… you’re hungry,” he stated simply as he caught her elbow and tried to redirect her toward the kitchen.

Stiles huffed as she resisted his attempted detour. “Yeah, but I’m also squishy and sticky over here. And before I can get out of your hair, I desperately need a shower.”

When she glanced over at the Alpha who was still refusing to let go of her arm, she found an adorable pout on his gorgeous face.

She frowned in confusion before realizing, “Oh… my God… Are you…?” She fought back a bemused smile. “Are you seriously disappointed that I wanna get clean?” she asked in disbelief.

With a shrug, he offered roughly, “Smells good.” He arched a brow and insisted, “Smells fucking incredible, actually.” He slowly pulled her in until she was pressed against his chest, then ducked his head to whisper seductively into her ear, “Smells like us…”

“Nyuh…” Stiles whined and shuddered as her mouth hung open. Her breathing picked up as she leaned closer to his mouth. “I, um… I figured… with you back to normal… you’d be eager to get rid of that scent.”

Derek growled and shook his head, nipping at her earlobe before panting against it, “No. I wanna fucking roll around in it. Wanna make us smell like this every day.”

She winced and whimpered at that, gripping his biceps for support as her knees threatened to give out from beneath her. “So… not just a one-time thing?”

He smiled as he kissed his way down the side of her throat. “I’ve knotted you two times so far…” he reminded playfully. “And I definitely don’t want that to be all. What about you? What do you want?”

She looked up at him in amazement before teasing, “Oh, you know damned well what I want. Use your wolfy nose.”

He rumbled happily and breathed her in – the intense, intoxicating scent of her arousal and affection. He cupped her cheek and kissed her deeply, then slowed it down to something sweet and soft when her stomach rumbled.

“We’ll shower…” he grudgingly conceded as he pulled away. Holding up a finger, he stressed, “…but only to rinse off. No soap.”

Stiles squawked indignantly, and Derek laughed before scooping her up and heading for the bathroom.

Once they were both rinsed off and dressed, they went to the kitchen. Derek made them something to eat in between staring over at her in awe.

She was the single most beautiful thing he had ever seen – sitting there at his counter in the evening sunlight, wearing one of his shirts and a pair of his boxers. Both items were entirely too large for her. The boxers were rolled up several times to keep them from sliding off her hips and one of her bare shoulders was peeking out of the collar of his shirt. Her hair was damp and messy, and she was still absolutely saturated in the lingering scent of their sex.

She was perfect.

He placed a plate in front of her (his wolf ridiculously pleased to provide her with food) before taking a seat beside her. They ate in comfortable silence for a while before she spoke.

“So… the, um… the knotting thing…” she began, glancing over at him anxiously and tucking her hair behind her ear.

The corner of his mouth twitched in amusement. Clearly, she knew something about its significance.

“Uh huh…” he prompted, waiting for her to continue.

“Um… well, it’s just… I was just, uh… remembering something I read once… in the beginning… when I was first trying to understand all things werewolfy… a little note in one of the books I found...” she said with a shrug.

“Right…” he said, taking a bite in an attempt to keep a smile from forming on his lips.

She cleared her throat, and quickly lost her nerve – far too nervous to ask directly, it seemed. Changing tactics, she asked nonchalantly, “Is that something that happens often for you?”

“Nope,” he answered simply and smiled as he felt her eyes lock on him.

“Nope?” she repeated tentatively.

“Hmm,” he confirmed with a nod. “Nope. Never before, actually,” he answered before smirking over at her.

Her expression went slack as she gaped at him.

“Sssooo…” she exhaled tremulously. “…when you were saying… ‘mate’… and ‘mine’… you…?”

“Meant it?” he prompted. “Yeah. I did.”

Her jaw dropped open as she stared at him in disbelief.

Smiling at her, he turned his body toward her in his seat and held out his hand. “Come here,” he urged.

Slowly, anxiously, she stood and walked the short distance to him. He lifted her up and settled her into his lap.

Stroking her cheek, he said softly, “I meant it. You’re mine. I’ve always wanted you, despite my best efforts to ignore and deny it, but my wolf chose you. And I get the feeling you have an idea of what that means?”

She nodded slowly, still looking shellshocked.

“Tell me,” he coaxed.

“It means… your wolf bonded to me… for life,” she whispered.

He hummed and nodded, tracing the swell of her bottom lip with his thumb. “It’s not the same for a human. You’re not obligated to feel the same or to stick with me.”

She scoffed and sputtered at that, flailing her hands, and tipping her head back. “DUDE. In what freaking universe would I possibly not leap at the chance to be with you?”

He grinned and kissed her sweetly. “Then it’s settled.”

She took a steadying breath and let it out in a rush. “We’ll have to tell my Dad.”

He nodded and conceded, “That’s going to be… uncomfortable… but I think he’ll understand.”

Stiles hummed and tilted her head as she said, “Yeah, that whole ‘I only did it to save your daughter’s life’ thing should earn you a bit of leniency. Especially when I tell him how you initially vehemently shot down the suggestion, despite the imminent mortal peril I was in.”

Derek squinted. “Maybe we won’t word it quite like that.”

She laughed and dropped into thought for a minute before saying, “We might have to tell your pack.”

“You mean our pack,” he corrected and shrugged, completely unconcerned. “And of course we will.”

“Really?” she asked in surprise. “Just like that? You’re okay with them knowing?”

He gave her an utterly perplexed look. “Why wouldn’t I be?”

She huffed and shrugged as she said, “Well, I don’t know. I’m… you know… me. And you’re…” She motioned to him as if his mere existence illustrated her point. “Almighty Alpha… tied down to a scrawny, nerdy human? I figured you might want to, like, hold off on announcing anything. Give yourself time to come to terms with it or whatever.”

Derek’s confused expression swiftly shifted to anger when he caught on.

His eyes glowed as he ground out in disbelief, “You seriously think… that I wouldn’t be proud… to tell them you’re my mate?”

She grimaced in response to his tone and averted her eyes. “I dunno… a little?” she admitted reluctantly.

The Alpha tipped his head back and howled without warning, the thunderous sound echoing around the loft and all across the entirety of Beacon Hills.

She stared at him in astonishment as he stood from his chair and carried her toward the door.

“What are you – ?” she tried, but he snarled, demanding silence. She snapped her mouth shut in surprise.

In a matter of minutes, she could hear them all racing up the stairwell.

The door was pulled open to reveal Erica and Boyd in the lead.

Derek did not even have to speak. He simply stood tall and waited.

It took less than a second for Erica’s eyes to widen and a grin to form on her cherry red lips. She flashed her eyes as she declared, “Hell yeah!” Stepping closer, she clapped Stiles on the shoulder as she gave her an impressed look. “Way to bag the big one, Stilinski,” she laughed. “See? We knew you’d find him! Didn’t know you’d fuck him when you did, but good for you!”

Isaac and Jackson came in behind them just as Boyd was holding out a hand and shaking Derek’s in congratulations.

Isaac tilted his head in an uncannily puppy-like move, nose twitching as he worked it out. He gave a beaming smile when he understood. “Really?” he asked, stepping forward and shaking Derek’s hand. “Good. Nice to have some good news around here for a change,” he said with a nod of approval.

Jackson struggled to maintain his trademark unimpressed expression, but his eyes flashed as his wolf happily recognized that his Alpha had taken a mate. “Freaking finally,” he huffed as if he had known this was coming all along.

The spare cell phone rang, and Derek – still carrying Stiles – crossed the loft to answer it. He held it up between their ears so that Stiles could listen.

“Peter,” Derek greeted without even needing to look at the screen.

“Am I correct in assuming that roar was your way of announcing that you and Stiles are mated?” Peter asked casually.

“How – ?” Stiles breathed in disbelief.

“Oh, please.” Peter said dismissively. “How else would you have survived, if not by getting my nephew to finally acknowledge the torch he’s been carrying for you all this time?”

Stiles’ eyes widened and she looked at Derek in disbelief.

Derek arched a brow, looking a bit surprised that others were aware of his repressed feelings.

“Bravo for that, by the way,” Peter went on. “I’ve always said you were the cleverest in the bunch, Stiles. I’m glad you’re not dead. Derek would have been utterly impossible to live with, had he been forced to kill you. And, well… I suppose I would have missed our bantering if you died.”

Stiles scoffed and shook her head. “Gee. Thanks.”

“Don’t mention it,” Peter said cheerfully. “Anyway, congratulations on your mating. Once Chris and I finish incinerating all of this evidence, we should celebrate. My treat. Leave the reservations to me. Ta!”

He disconnected the call, and Stiles stared at the phone in bemusement. “We’re sure he’s not crazy anymore?”

“Oh, he’s always been crazy,” Derek assured. “But I don’t think he’s overtly homicidal now.”

“Well, hey! At least, that’s something,” she granted sarcastically.

Derek smiled down at her before leaning in and kissing her, slowly and deeply, earning a chorus of wolf whistles and cheers.

“Man, Alpha sure was thorough, wasn’t he?” Erica joked in amusement once Derek finally set Stiles down on her feet.

Jackson scoffed, “Seriously. It smells like he hosed her down with his – ”

They all turned as Scott rushed through the door.

“Hey! What’s going on?” he asked as he approached, paying no attention to anything around him as he made his way toward Stiles. “Chris said you called him earlier. I heard you got caught by hunters. Man, that blows. Are you okay?”

Stiles sighed, looking at her best friend and shaking her head. He seemed oblivious to the fact that he was about a day late in worrying about her.

His sneakers squeaked on the floor as he came to a complete halt, and Stiles nearly forgave all of his flakiness the moment his features twisted in revulsion.

A grin formed on her lips as Scott covered his nose and let out a startled cry.

“DUDE!” he wailed. “What the – ?! Is that – ?” His eyes widened as he caught on. “Nooooo.”

“YES.” Jackson confirmed with a wide grin, eyes twinkling as he reveled in Scott’s misery.

“Seriously?” Scott whined. “Stiles? You? And Derek? Ohhhh God!”

Stiles watched in delight as Scott gagged. He was looking progressively greener.

“This is the single greatest day of my life,” Erica declared in amazement watching Scott trip over his feet in his haste to back away. “Quick, Stiles – go hug him!” she urged gleefully, giving Stiles a nudge in his direction.

“I can – “ Scott gagged again and held a hand out in front of him as if he could ward off the scent. “Oh my God, I can taste it.”

The betas all burst out laughing at his horror.

“I can’t… I can’t even…” Scott stammered.

Shaking his head, he finally turned and raced out of the loft.

“Ah, that was glorious,” Stiles declared.

Derek hugged her from behind, nuzzling in behind her ear before saying, “See? Told you we shouldn’t use soap.” He grinned as she tipped her head back and laughed.

One by one, the betas settled into the living room area.

“So, what does this mean for you two?” Isaac asked curiously. “Are you going to turn Stiles?”

“No,” Stiles answered at the same time as Derek said, “Not unless she wanted me to.”

They looked over at one another.

“I couldn’t risk it not taking,” Stiles said with a shrug. Her smile turned warm as she said purposefully, “I’ve got way too much to live for.”

Derek rumbled and nuzzled her cheek. “I wouldn’t want to risk losing you.”

“Awww!” the betas cried in varying degrees of sincerity and sarcasm.

“You’re adorable,” Stiles said with a grin and kissed the tip of his nose. She gave him a serious look as she clarified, “But if it was a life-or-death type of deal, I would totally take the bite.”

Derek nodded. “And in that case, I would give it to you without hesitation.”

“But, like, you still have to bite her, though, right?” Erica asked as she flopped down onto the couch.

“Yeah, a mating bite – I read about it in one of Peter’s books,” Isaac chimed in.

Stiles arched a brow and looked over at Derek expectantly.

The Alpha sighed and answered, “That’s a conversation for me and Stiles to have privately.”

“Do you have to bite me?” Stiles asked, far too impatient to wait.

Derek reluctantly replied, “Not… really.”

“Yes, he does,” Jackson scoffed, earning an eye flash of warning from Derek.

“What will the bite accomplish, exactly?” Stiles asked, curiosity fully piqued now.

“It’ll bond you to one another,” Erica answered.

Derek sighed and crossed his arms over his chest. “What part of ‘privately’ did you all fail to understand?”

“But aren’t we already bonded?” Stiles asked in confusion, stepping closer to the betas.

Boyd shook his head. “No. Derek is bonded to you, but you’re not bonded to him unless he bites you and completes the bond.”

“Meaning you could walk away from him at any time and not be affected at all, but he would suffer without you,” Erica declared. With a wide, knowing grin, she said, “Which I’d be willing to bet Der would’ve kept to himself for fear of tying you down or something.”

Derek clenched his jaw as Stiles turned and scowled up at him.

“And on that note…” Boyd sighed, getting back onto his feet.

“Yeah, as entertaining as this has been, I’m not sticking around to watch Mommy and Daddy fight,” Jackson declared as the rest of them stood and followed Boyd toward the door.

Erica held up a hand and stage-whispered to Stiles from behind it in passing, “Give him hell!”

Stiles waited for the betas to make their hurried exit before speaking.

“Would it hurt you if I left?” she asked.

Derek ground his teeth before grudgingly answering, “…yes.”

Stiles’ eyes narrowed. “And were you planning to keep that little tidbit of information to yourself for as long as possible so it wouldn’t impact my life choices?”

His eyes rolled closed for a moment and he took a steadying breath before admitting, “…yes.”

“You’re an idiot,” she sighed as she draped her arms around his shoulders.

He frowned and arched a brow as he asked, “Am I now?”

She looked up into his eyes and said, “Yup. A big, beautiful idiot.”

He hummed at that as she scratched her nails lightly over the back of his head, causing his eyes to become heavy lidded. “Why am I an idiot?”

She huffed and asked, “You do realize that – even if you and I hadn’t ended up together – I would’ve stayed here, right? My Dad is here. My home is here. Scott’s dumb ass is here. And I’m admittedly invested in the wellbeing of your puppies.” She narrowed her eyes before adding, “Well, not so much Jackson as the rest of them.” She sighed and told him, “Look, if you’re already locked in and committed to this, then so am I. So, if that means you gotta make with the teeth, then let’s do this.”

Derek gazed down at her in awe and shook his head. “You’re amazing, you know that?”

She shrugged and joked, “Meh. I’m alright, I guess.”

He chuckled and considered it for a moment as he let his eyes pass unhurriedly over her face. “I’ll make a deal with you,” he said finally.

“I fully reserve the right to negotiate the terms of this deal, but continue,” she said with a grin.

“For obvious reasons, we skipped a ton of steps to get to this point…” he began.

“Reasons like me not wanting to die a gruesome and gory death. Yes, I remember,” she joked.

Shaking his head fondly, he asked, “So, why don’t we slow down and take our time with this part?”

She curled her lip. “You’re losing me with the ‘slow down’ stuff.”

He went on, undeterred, “We talk to your father first – hopefully, he’ll give us his blessing and not just shoot me in the ass.”

“You're an optimist, I see,” she teased.

“You graduate and turn eighteen,” Derek continued. “And then, whenever you’re ready to move in with me, on our first night living together, I’ll give you the mating bite.”

Stiles hummed as she thought it over. “Okay… counteroffer.”

“Shocking,” he deadpanned.

“We do all of that…”

“Uh huh…”

“And we still have, like, so much sex. Like. ALL the sex,” she stressed with wide eyes. “At literally every opportunity.”

He fought back a smile as he said, “I am obviously fully on board so far… Although, I will add that we need to get you on werewolf-grade contraceptives first. I obviously was not thinking about that part while I was dosed up, but we do need to take precautions.”

She gaped up at him and asked, “Soooo… regular over-the-counter pills aren’t gonna cut it, huh?”

He arched an incredulous brow. “You mean when you’re being knotted by a born-wolf Alpha ‘at literally every opportunity’?” he asked purposefully.

She scrunched up her face. “Good point,” she granted. Her eyes widened as she asked, “Wait… you don’t think…?”

He shook his head quickly. “No. Not possible. You weren’t ovulating and won’t be at any point in the next few days. If we keep going, though, your body will change its cycle to, uh, accommodate me?” he said with a smirk.

She sighed in relief that she was not already knocked up, then laughed and said, “Seriously? Your supercharged werewolf sperm could convince my body to offer up eggs on demand?”

He snorted and lifted a shoulder. “Basically? Yeah.”

“Good to know,” she said with an impressed nod. “Okay, so super-effective, supernatural contraceptives ASAP because – as much as I want a big family someday – ”

“Me, too,” he cut in quickly.

“ – I’m not trying to pop out a litter of Sourwolves before I earn my diploma,” she finished with a grin. “I’d be a show on MTV, like ‘SevenTEENWOLF and Pregnant.’”  

Derek frowned before teasing, “Okay, now I’m imagining your father giving me the shovel speech after I’ve accidentally knocked you up and I’m suddenly feeling way less on board with the constant sex…”

“Whoa, now. Let’s not be too hasty,” she chided. “Don’t break out the mountain ash chastity belt just yet. There are, like, a ton of things we can do in the meantime that don’t involve you biting me or risking knocking me up. We are still totally going to be naked and wrapped up together in sweaty bliss every chance we get.”

“Say for instance… right now?” he asked, arching a brow.

“Holy fuck, I thought you’d never ask!” she sighed in overdramatized relief before hopping up and wrapping her legs around him.

Derek laughed loudly and wrapped his arms around her, palming her ass cheeks as he kissed her hungrily. Turning to carry her back to the bed, he wondered in amazement, ‘How the hell did I get this lucky?’

THE END :)