“Does that mean you want to keep me?”
“I wanted to keep you before I knew you were my soul mate, baby,” he replied. He captured Gallo’s lips with his, slipping his tongue between them so he could taste this wonderful man. His dick came to full arousal, and Gallo rubbed his ass against him. Catlin had to grip Gallo’s hips in one hand to still his movements.
“There’s one other thing you should know.” Kontra’s gravelly voice interrupted them.
Reluctantly, Catlin ended the kiss and looked at the serious expression on the big biker’s face.“What is it?”
“Shifters heal faster than humans. Our bodies are constantly regenerating.” Kontra leaned back in his chair, the beer bottle balanced on his knee. He tapped it with his index finger as his eyes narrowed. Catlin could tell he was deciding how much to say.
Catlin nodded, already knowing about Gallo’s impressive healing time.“I noticed in the hospital,” he admitted.
“This also impacts a shifter’s age,” Kontra continued. “A shifter can live three hundred, four hundred years if they take care of themselves.”
“What?” His jaw dropped. How can that be? My lover will outlive me by centuries!“How could Fate be so cruel?”
“She’s not. She gives a solution,” Eli stated.
“A solution?” Unconsciously, Catlin’s arms tightened around Gallo. The very idea of having to leave his lover set his teeth on edge.
“Shifters claim their mates,” Payson stated, speaking up for the first time. He grinned, showing off teeth that appeared sharper than they should.“With a bite.”
Catlin’s eyes widened with surprise.
Eli rolled his eyes. “Stop scaring the man,” he admonished. The slender guy popped Payson on the back of the head, causing the other man to chuckle. “During sex, the shifter sinks his canines into his mate’s neck and drinks his blood. It binds them together. If one of them is human, it extends his life to match the shifter.” Eli glanced at question. Kontra lifted a returned his focus to Catlin and Gallo.“On the down side, if something should happen to either one of you, there is an extremely high probability that the other will die of heartache. On the up side, I’ve been told it’s an incredibly pleasurable experience.”
“I see,” Catlin murmured.“So you’re, uh, you’re not mated?”
All four of the men shook their heads.
The room fell quiet for a moment before Payson grinned.“Tell him about the condoms!”
Haben actually chuckled, shaking his head.“You Kontra, a brow rising in hand, waving Eli on. Eli won’t need condoms anymore.”
“Why?” Catlin couldn’t disguise his skepticism.
Eli shrugged.“Shifters can’t catch or pass on human diseases.”
“Nice,” he whispered, impressed. Catlin had to admit that was a nice little trait. He turned to Gallo. “What do you think, baby? You gonna top me?” he teased.
To his surprise, Gallo actually paled.“I don’t—I don’t know if I can do that,” he whispered.
That had Catlin’s brows shooting up.“You don’t want to fuck me, baby?”
Gallo actually trembled. Catlin tightened his grip around him and held him securely against his chest. With his free hand, he rubbed his back in soothing circles. Eli looked like he was about to say something. Instead he mouthed a few words, and Catlin’s eyes narrowed when he figured out what the other man said. Top from the bottom.
Fuck! Am I getting sex advice from Gallo’s former lover? The idea set his teeth on edge. Returning his focus to the man on his lap, he nuzzled Gallo’s cheek, then tried to catch his eye. He didn’t like the glazed look on his lover’s face. It told him their conversation about Gallo topping him had triggered some memory of pain or torture. He needed to bring the man back to the moment. Cupping his cheek, he forced Gallo to look at him, even if he wasn’t seeing him.
“Gallo, focus on me, baby.” He made his voice as stern as possible, while still keeping it soothing. “You’re not in any danger. You’re safe here. No one will hurt you.” Still nothing. Catlin struggled to come up with a way to reach him. He brushed his lips over Gallo’s, allowing their breath to mingle.“Come back to me, baby,” he whispered, his lips moving gently, almost massaging the other man’s.
A whimper worked its way out of Gallo’s throat. He brought his hands up and twisted them in Catlin’s shirt. Catlin smiled against his lips, pleased by the reaction, especially when Gallo kissed him back. He sighed into the other man’s mouth and threaded his fingers through Gallo’s thick black hair.