Page 45 of The Librarian’s Familiar
Charlie wasn’t sure he could even if his life depended on it. He couldn’t remember why he’d been convinced this was a bad idea. He kept his pace slow and even, but he drove into August with enough force that the bed complained. August’s ass clenched around him as he came, cum splattering between them. His pleasure reverberated through the bond. It was enough to break his control, and he moved faster, seeking his own release. The slap of skin on skin and August’s tongue in his mouth pushed him over the edge.
He rested there, still inside him, unable to move, as he tried to remember how to breathe.
“That was…” August murmured.
“Yeah.” Charlie agreed. They didn’t need to spell it out. It was there in the newly strengthened bond. He’d heard that sex with a fated mate could be intense, but he hadn’t expected to feel August’s desire as intensely as his own.
He relaxed and lay on his fated mate, their bellies glued together with cum and sweat, held in place by August’s legs and the hand around the back of his neck. He was sure that if he pushed away, August would let him go, but he didn’t want to move.
August kissed the side of his head.
“You don’t need magic to turn me into goo.”
Charlie huffed out a soft laugh. “That makes two of us.”
“Guess we’ll have to stay here.” His fingers ruffled Charlie’s hair.
“Yeah.”
“Can you tell if it’s permanent?”
“No, not yet. But it is stronger than before, which happens. The more the bond is built and used…”
“The longer it will take your magic to undo it.”
“Perhaps.” He propped himself up on one elbow to look at his fated mate. “Want to stick around to find out what happens, or do you have plans?”
“No plans. Does sticking around mean staying in bed?”
“No, because if we keep having sex, I won’t be able to tell if the bond is unraveling.” But he liked the way August’s hand rested on the back of his neck and the way his fingers messed up his hair.
“At least we know how to stop it unraveling.”
Charlie frowned. “Don’t you think we should let it unravel to see what happens?”
“Can we enjoy it while it exists?”
“I guess.” But he wanted to know if it would dissolve the way the others had. Perhaps if they kept fucking it would never unravel because the bond would be rebuilt faster than his magic could unpick.
August ran his thumb over Charlie’s lower lip. “Do you ever stop to enjoy the thing instead of worrying about how it ends?”
“I’m not very good at that. Because it always ends. And I’m usually the reason.”
CHAPTER NINETEEN
They’d showered and dressed and cleaned up the kitchen, because Charlie was all about order, then they put on a TV show they’d both been meaning to watch but hadn’t got around to. The whole time, August couldn’t forget what Charlie had said.
And I’m usually the reason.
He got through life expecting things to end and to be the cause of the ending because that’s what his magic did. While logically August knew things ended and that nothing was truly forever, he didn’t live for the ending. And he didn’t wait for it to happen. He was too busy thinking about the past and trying to keep up with the present. There was no time to think ahead about what might happen when playing hockey. It was all about preparation, which meant reviewing games and running drills until it was pure muscle memory so that those split-second choices were made almost without thought.
Even when it came to hook-ups or flings, they had a natural expiry, so August wasn’t worried about the ending. It was just something that happened. This thing he wasn’t too sure about. Maybe it would end when Charlie’s magic finally destroyed the bond, and then it couldn’t be remade.
He was a little terrified of that happening, mostly because he had no control over it.
His thumb rubbed Charlie’s shoulder as Charlie leaned against him, feet tucked up on the sofa. An ad break came on, and he tensed. Was now a good time to ask if his magic was undoing the bond?
Charlie lifted his head as if expecting the question. “Yes, it’s being undone, and no, I don’t know how to stop it.”
