Mal flinched as Everett held his hips and drew him deeper into his mouth. The spray of the shower rained down on his face as his mouth worked against the swollen member of his partner.
Everett had woken in a mood. He'd gotten up and made breakfast. Then he'd done yet another load of laundry while he'd waited for Mal to wake up. He'd wanted to jump the werewolf because he didn't want to get up.
After the arrival of Donovan Sandoval, the Alpha of Mal's pack, Everett had learned several new things. Was he surprised the chief of police knew about their relationship? No, not really. He was more surprised no one had asked them about it beore now.
He was more surprised that everyone knew about his random side job. He'd thought Mal had taken care of all of those wallets, phones, and other random things he'd stolen. He figured they could only look the other way for so long.
But the icing on the cake had been they'd called him Mal's boyfriend. Lover? Yes. Confidant? Absolutely. Boyfriend? They hadn't confirmed that title, partly because Mal hadn't even asked how Everett felt about it.
If Mal wanted him to be in a relationship with him, Everett was going to make sure he knew what he was getting into. He was going to make the werewolf beg for it.
He'd cornered him when he'd gotten up to shower for the day. Mal had been surprised but he'd been curious as to what the man would do. He'd been pinned against the wall as Everett's hands wandered freely on his damp flesh.
Everett knew what Mal liked. He enjoyed the soft touches, fingertips fluttering on his skin. Because his senses were heightened, even the smallest touches sent fire through his blood. He was barely able to contain himself.
Whenever his member was touched - either completely flaccid or semierect - he was immediately at full attention. Everett took it as a sign that he was weak for him. Mal was always so confident in himself that sometimes he forgets to act human. The actual human took great pleasure in bringing the werewolf down a few pegs.
The water was starting to cool, but the temperature was still hot in the shower cubicle. Everett skimmed his hands up Mal's abdomen then chest where his fingers wrapped around his nipples. His mouth was preoccupied, gently sucking moans from the other man as he laved his erection with his tongue.
"Ev?" Mal said. He couldn't stop the movement of his hips as the other man let his tip hit the back of his throat. "Ev, I'm about to cum. Ev? Ev!"
His words were cut short as his lower abdomen spasmed. He held Everett's head as he pulsed inside his mouth. The younger man didn't react, tongue lapping at the nerve on the bottom of the muscle as his cheeks hollowed out.
Mal exhaled heavily as he caressed Everett's face. The younger man let his tongue trail along his length as he pulled away slowly. He ran the tip of his tongue at the slit briefly, smirking at the way the werewolf's hips twitched again.
He stood, trailing kisses as he went. Mal could only watch as his chest heaved from the intense orgasm. When the other man was level with his face, he grabbed him and crushed his mouth to his. He wanted to punish him, to push him against the wall and take him roughly. If he did, they'd be late for work.
Coming down from his high, Mal pulled kisses from Everett. It was gentle and very controlled, each kiss shorter than the last. Mal looked at him, enjoying the skin on skin contact. When Everett smiled at him, he tucked his head into his shoulder and held him.
"Sometimes I want to beat you," he laughed. He pressed a tender kis to his temple. "We're going to be late."
Everett held on to his arm as he tried to leave then pulled himback to him. He kissed Mal this time, breathing through his nose to make sure he tasted his unique flavor.
"What is it?" Mal asked. He reached over and turned off the water.
"What are we?" Everett countered. Mal raised an eyebrow at him. "What am I to you?"
"Is this what's been bothering you lately?"
The young man nodded. "I've been thinking about it a lot. If we only have sex between us, I don't want to do this anymore."
"So you corner me in the shower to see how I'll react?" Embarrassed, Everett nodded again. "What do you think I'll say?"
"Mal, I don't want to play mind games. I want to know what I am. Am I your partner, or just someone who warms your bed every so often?"
The werewolf watched him look at the floor. It had taken a lot of courage for him to ask that, but he was certain that Donovan showing up and saying everything had made his wheels turn. After being called Mal's boyfriend and now knowing he had protection from the pack, he wanted to secure his position. These questions would make it even more dangerous for both of them if they went unanswered.
"Everett? Look at me." The younger man took a minute before he raised his pained violet eyes. "If you need closure, I'll give it to you. You're not someone I want to throw away. I don't just want to sleep with you. I sincerely want to be with you and see where this goes."
The smile that brightened Everett's face took Mal's breath away. He had never realized how much this had eaten at the other man. Four months of sleeping together and he'd enver seen the tense emotions behind his eyes. He was really good at hiding his innermost feelings when he thought they were a burden. Maybe Mal should stop looking at the external and ask what the other man felt and wanted.
When Everett hugged him this time, there was no sexual tension. He was happy and it rolled off him in waves. Mal should have known it was all it would take to make him like this, and he never should have beat around the bush.
~~~~~~~
The precinct was a flurry of movement. Carver had been there since three in the morning. There'd been another murder in the middle of the night, this time at another bar three blocks away. It wasn't anywhere near Everett's club, but they were connected in that they allowed supernatural admittance.
Everett looked around as people shuffled here and there. A uniform gave Mal several papers and a couple of files as they walked in. He saw another officer he knew as Lieutenant Don Strictland. He was Mal and Carver's direct boss, and another member of Donovan's pack.
"Malcolm, it's good you're finally here. Chief Sandoval said you were bringing a witness to keep safe. He's set him a place in the break room so he's within sight but out of the way," he said.
"His name is Everett, Strictland," Mal advised. There was a low threat in his voice. He was demanding respect for his other half. "Also, he's a hacker and a thief. If he can help, let him know."
Everett slapped Mal out of habit. He looked at him in shock only because they were in the precinct and no one struck an officer period. Everett seemed to know what he'd done as he'd shrank back even though he was slightly offended.
"Ev, everyone already knows I've been covering up your pickpocketing. You've come across our systems a few times for hacking. It's not a lie to tell them," Mal explained. "As long as you're here, you can be useful under supervision."
Strictland touched Mal's arms gently. "Go easy on him. He's coming out to the pack at the same time someone is killed in his business. That takes its toll."
The lieutenant showed the glass room. "Go in there and set up your space. I need to talk to Malcolm for a bit."
Everett walked into the break room and sat down stiffly. Mal watched him pull out his computer and set it on the empty table. He looked small and lonely in this group of people. He was used to being nondescript as that's how he'd always worked. Now, almost the whole precinct knew who he was.
"We think the person is targeting the lovers of supernatural creatures," Strictland said. Carver sidled up with a notepad and several files. "Everett's cub tailors to specific people, those who enjoy the furry aspect. Tails and ears and the such. Someone knows he's your lover."
Mal understood. He opened his file and looked through the notes. Everything on the person killed in Everett's club was in that file. Everything they could put in that is. Every shred of evidence was listed as they'd found it.
"Last night, Flanagan's was hit. Double homicide. Two women aged twenty-one and twenty-five respectively," Carver said.
"Isn't that owned by Declan O'Reilly's girlfriend?" Strictland asked.
"Declan owns it, but Becky runs it. She had just closed up shop when it happened."
"The smell?" Mal asked.
"It's the same as at Everett's. This time there were no apartments above the clubs. With Everett, they were looking for something." Carver met Mal's gaze. They had the same idea.
It was one of two things. Either Everett poked his nose into something they didn;t want him to see, or something in his past was coming back to haunt him.
Everett didn't remember much about his life before age fifteen. He was in an awful wreck and lost all his memories before that. He'd been raised in a group home all his life so he hadn't lost much other than the faces of his friends he'd lived with. There was no telling what he'd witnessed before that age.
"Do you think Flanagan's was a cover up? They knew we were looking into it and needed a diversion to cover their trail?" Mal asked.
"I'm not sure." Carver looked at him dead on. "You need to look into Everett's past. You're the only one who can without getting your head chewed off."
Strictland looked between the two of them. "What do you mean?"
"Ev doesn't remember anything before age fifteen," Mal explained. "He had blunt force trauma to the head and was in a coma for a month. I haven't asked him about it since he first told me. But it makes a little sense because he wasn't afraid of me when we first met."
"Maybe you should look into it," Strictland advised. He held his hand up when Mal went to argue. "I'm not saying it to hurt him, but if it is something with his past and not yours, you owe it to him to look into it. And you're the only one who can."
"He's not wrong," Carver agreed. "If the pattern holds up, they'll attack again. Everett owns two other clubs. Maybe we should send people to stake them out and see what comes of it. While we do that, you should take him to his hometown and look into his past."
Mal looked between his partner and lieutenant before looking back at Everett. He didn't want to bring up hard times for him, but he also wanted him safe. He had to be safe for Mal's piece of mind.
"Give me a couple of days. If the pattern holds, there will be another attack in forty-eight hours or less. Let me see what I can dig up before I take him halfway across the state," he said. He didn't want to put any more lives in jeopardy, but there wasstill too much they didn't know.
"We'll need a list of all the supernaturally owned bars, clubs and restaurants to see if we can find a pattern with those. Right now we know they looked through Everett's house, and wherever these attacks take place, their scents abruptly disappear," Carver explained.
"I know who can get that list faster than we can."
They all looked at Everett again. He was typing quickly, his fingers flying over the keys with lightning speed. If they were betting men, they would make a lot of money on what he was doing.
Strictland tapped his shoulder and nodded at him. Carver smiled tightly then went back to his desk. They were giving him the honors of asking his partner for help.
He walked into the break room. Everett didn't pay him any attention, eyes focused on his screen. Mal walked behind him and saw he was watching CCTV footage again. He'd been obsessed with it, but nothing new showed up.
"Ev?" he called. The young man didn't move. Mal ran a finger under his chin to get his attention. "What are you doing?"
"Hoping for a break," he muttered. He rubbed his eyes under his glasses. "What is it?"
Mal dropped the file in front of him. "You get your chance to help. We need a list of supernatural owned businesses. You can get it faster than anyone we know."
Everett opened the doctored file and looked over the new information. "Can I hack CCTV for more video footage? It may help us figure out who they are."
"Only the traffic cameras. We're looking into getting the rest."
The young man nodded and turned his violet gaze back to his computer. He opened an icon and went to work. Mal didn't try to keep up with his movements. This was Everett's bread and butter. If he could help, this was the best way for him.
Mal left him to work, opting to help Carver with witness interviews. He would give his lover as much space as he needed to finish his task, even if it delved into the dark web.