Tommy was so caught up in watching Elliot's pleasure play across his handsome features that his orgasm took him by surprise. One second he was thrusting into Elliot, the next, his knees buckled as the most intense orgasm of his life swept over him.
Tommy roared, his vision blurring as he felt the knot at the end of his cock extend to take hold inside of his mate. More pleasure exploded through Tommy when he heard Elliot cry out, the space between them filling with the man's release.
He sat back on his legs and cradled Elliot to him, smiling into the man's hair when Elliot nuzzled into his chest. His hands gently stroked up and down Elliot's back as he waited for the knot to recede, but glad he had these few minutes connected to his mate.
"You never did tell me what that thing is," Elliot mumbled against Tommy's throat.
"Tell you what what thing is, pretty baby?"
Elliot wiggled his hips, drawing another groan from Tommy. "That thing inside of me."
"My cock?" Elliot's head snapped back. Tommy chuckled at the fierce little glare in Elliot's baby blue eyes. "It's called a knot, Elliot. Every shifter has one, but it only comes out when we have sex with our mates."
"Really?" Elliot's eyebrows shot up.
"Really."
"So, before me, you've never experienced it?"
"Nope, you're the first one I've ever knotted."
Elliot's grin was beautiful and lit up his entire face. "I like that."
"Me too, pretty baby." Tommy leaned in and planted a slow, gentle kiss on Elliot's lips. He grinned when he pulled away, wiggling his eyebrows suggestively. "Sometime later I'll tell you what happens on the full moon. You'll like it, I promise."
Tommy felt the knot finally start to recede and chuckled at the low groan or protest that came from his mate. He didn't want to leave Elliot either but knew it was not something he could prevent at the moment. But maybe later they could try again.
"Come on, pretty baby, let's get dressed. I'm sure everyone is wondering where we are."
Elliot snorted. "I'm pretty sure they know exactly where we are. You're very loud."
"Says the man who just screamed in ecstasy," Tommy snickered. He had no doubt that everyone had heard the both of them. He didn't care. In fact, he was in favor of it. The more the others knew that Tommy and Elliot were mated, the better. He wanted everyone to know Elliot was here to stay.
Tommy cleaned up with some paper towels from the pantry shelf then got dressed. He couldn't help but chuckle at the small grimace on Elliot's face as the man cleaned himself up. Cooking oil might do when you were in a hurry, but it sure left a mess behind.
As Elliot moved toward the door, something intense suddenly flared through Tommy. Somehow, this small, neurotic, chatty man had unlocked his heart and soul, and Elliot was laying claim to it a piece at a time.
"Elliot," Tommy called out just as Elliot reached for the doorknob.
"Yeah?"
Tommy couldn't miss the intensity in Elliot's eyes as they traveled over his face. He felt it all the way down to his toes. He was powerless to resist the emotion he could see burning in Elliot's eyes. And he didn't want to.
Tommy walked over to stand next to Elliot, cupping his hand around the man's beautiful cheek. He swallowed hard, the sudden lump in his throat making it hard to talk. "I … you're mine, you know?" he whispered.
Elliot's expression stilled then grew serious. The beginning of a smile tipped the corners of his lips. "I love you, too, Tommy."
Tommy blinked. He wasn't sure that was exactly what he wanted to say. He wasn't even sure how he really felt about Elliot. Shouldn't they need more than a few days to know if they loved each other? Maybe years?
But the more he thought about the joy that filled him at Elliot's words, the more Tommy began to suspect his mate had phrased their feeling for each other perfectly. Tommy smiled and stroked his thumb over Elliot's high cheekbone.
"Yeah."
Tommy started to lean in and kiss Elliot when a sudden knocking on the door made them both jump. "Chase and Donovan are back," Nate called through the door. "You want to come out of my pantry or should we all just join you in there?"
Elliot giggled.
Tommy rolled his eyes. "We'll be out in just a moment, Nate."
"We'll be in the living room."
Tommy leaned his forehead against Elliot's, chuckling lightly. "I guess we have to go, huh, pretty baby?"
Elliot's baby blue eyes blinked up at him as he leaned into Tommy, tilting his face upward. "We could always pretend that we didn't hear them."
"Somehow, I believe Nate when he says they would all just join us in here."
Elliot's giggle filled the small room. "You're probably right."
Despite his words, Tommy was disappointed when Elliot turned and opened the pantry door. He blinked several times as the light in the kitchen blinded him for a moment. He hadn't realized how dark the pantry was until now. When his vision cleared, Tommy stepped out of the pantry after Elliot and grabbed his hand.
"Come on, pretty baby, let's go see what all the uproar is about."
Tommy was glad Elliot had a smile on his face when they left the kitchen and rounded the corner of the living room. Several people filled the room, two that Tommy had never seen before. He paused at the threshold, pulling Elliot close to him.
"Chase, Donovan." Tommy nodded at the two men. "I take it your trip was successful?"
"In a manner of speaking." Chase snorted, crossing his arms over his chest. "I'd like you to meet our father, Andre Morgan."
"Your father?" Tommy glanced at the older man, noting the way his eyes seemed to be glued to Elliot. He took a step over to place himself between Elliot and Andre. He didn't care who the man was. He didn't like the intense way Andre eyed his mate.
"This is our brother, Flynn."
"I know you," Elliot whispered. He inhaled suddenly "You were in the bed next to me when I was sick."
Tommy heard a low growl come from his left. He turned to see Chase bearing down on him and Elliot. Much to his surprise, Elliot stepped back and pointed his finger at Chase. "Touch me and I will bite your balls off!"
Chase stopped, his eyebrows shooting up to his hairline. Slowly, a grin started to move across the man's face followed by rich laughter. "I'd prefer to keep them, thank you very much. I have a couple of guys to keep satisfied."
"How did you end up in the bed next to me when I was sick?" Elliot asked as he looked back at Flynn.
Tommy followed Elliot's gaze to a man that stood silently next to Donovan. He looked scared to death, his small frame nearly vibrating with fear. His eyes darted frantically around the room until they finally settled on Elliot as he stepped out from behind Tommy.
Flynn frowned, his brow furrowing as if he was trying to figure something out in his head. His hand shook as he pointed at Elliot. "Yo-you were there."
Elliot nodded and stepped farther into the room. Tommy saw everyone step back as they watched the two men walk up to each other. Elliot looked Flynn up and down then glanced over at Tommy. "Flynn was there?" Tommy asked.
Elliot nodded and turned back to Flynn. "He-the things they did to him … " Elliot shook his head. His face had paled. He looked agonized. "He screamed so much. I thought they were killing him but my father said-"
"That man is not your father!"
Tommy growled deep in his chest as he quickly crossed over to stand by Elliot. He didn't care who Andre Morgan was. No one snapped at his pretty baby like that. "Watch your tone, Morgan."
"Philip Spencer is not his father."
"How do you know who Philip Spencer is?" Tommy asked as he slowly placed himself in front of Elliot once again. He could feel both the animosity coming off of Andre and the fear from Elliot. The others in the room, with the exception of Flynn, who was shaking, were tense but still.
"I'm more curious as to how he knows Philip Spencer isn't Elliot's father," Joe said.
Tommy looked over to see Joe standing partially in front of Nate, just as he stood in front of Elliot. A glance around the room found Daniel doing the same with his wife, and Donovan and Jim vying for the protective position. All of them were doing the best to shield their mates from any and all perceived threats.
Tommy let out a deep sigh. "Okay, look, this isn't getting us anywhere. We're all too busy trying to protect our mates to even talk about this reasonably. I think we all need to step back and calm down. I'm sure that Andre will explain things if we let him. Right, Andre?"