Page 2 of By the Blood Moon

Yes, Finn wanted to cozy up with Jaime under the covers and never leave, but with the ongoing situation with Sam and all of the shit they were dealing with from the Salt Creek pack, Jaime's nightmares had surged.

He was working through the relapse well. Returning to weekly sessions with his therapist, along with being able to paint again, to express and process his emotions in that way, had really helped Jaime to manage the trauma and grief that still plagued him.

But when he woke from those nightmares gasping for breath and coated in sweat, not knowing if he was still trapped, or if Jackson Bishop hovered just out of view, Finn knew how much Jaime appreciated the physical reminder that he was safe, and that he was home.

Sometimes all Jaime needed was to be held. Sometimes he needed Finn’s voice,so blue,he’d mumble, lips moving against Finn’s skin as he spoke. And sometimes he needed more—needed Finn’s grip and gentle command and the way they came together slow, and tender.

One of those nightmares had driven Jaime from sleep last night, and he’d clung to Finn, shaking in his arms before he’d collected himself enough to shower and change, tumbling back into bed exhausted.

He’d looked better this morning, warm from sleep with the color back in his cheeks, but even still… Finn hated to leave him.

Stepping up onto the porch, he shook off those thoughts for now. He was home, and Halloween was almost upon them. It had been many years since it was anything more than another day on the calendar for Finn, and being excited to spend it with Jaime, with his family, made him feel like a kid again.

His youthful exuberance was boosted even further when he opened their front door to find Jaime had clearly spent his day decorating. Kicking off his shoes, Finn looked around and noted that Jaime had taken his advice to “Go for it babe, decorate the house to your heart’s content,” quite literally.

Strung up across the mantle, a fire indeed crackling merrily within, was a garland of black paper bats, dangling between twinkling orange and purple fairy lights. Even more lights hung over the archway leading into the kitchen, and draped around the books and trinkets that decorated their built-in shelves. Faux jack-o'-lanterns of varying sizes were artfully arranged in front of the mantle and along the shelves, and a four-foot tall light-up ghost stood in front of the floor to ceiling windows, its arms raised as if to say, “Boo!”

Finn snickered. If Sam were here, he might have made a joke about not realizing he’d dressed up early.

A Halloween-themed ambience YouTube video was playing on the television, completing the living room aesthetic. Finn fucking loved all of it.

He stepped around the tote bags stacked by the door, full of even more decorations Jaime hadn’t gotten around to yet.

“Jaime,” he called out, peering into the kitchen. Finding only a clean counter and an empty breakfast nook, Finn was about to check the backyard when he caught Jaime’s scent.

Drifting down from the second floor, a beacon the predator inside him honed in on immediately, the smell of Jaime's arousal told Finn exactly where his mate was. Forever beholden to that siren song, he let it guide him up the stairs and into their bedroom.

Unlike in the past, when he’d sped home at the promise of Jaime flushed and ready, nearly feral and desperate to root himself deep inside his mate, this time Finn kept his strides sure and measured. He let the sound of his steady climb up the steps heighten the anticipation for them both, even as he began to harden in his pants.

The light sounds of water gently lapping against the porcelain tub pulled him into their bathroom, and he stepped into the dimly lit space, humid warmth fogging the mirror. At the sight before him, Finn began untucking his shirt and unbuckling his belt, sliding it free.

A few seconds ago, he may have thought to make Jaime wait, to edge him with anticipation just a little. But he was only a man.

And his mate had clearly thought ahead.

Jaime lay soaking in a hot bath, steam rising around him as a flush bloomed across his cheeks and down his chest. His hardcock peeked out from the surface of the water, the tip pink and glistening. Jaime’s e-reader was propped up on the edge of the tub, telling Finn exactly how he’d spent his day after he finished decorating for Halloween.

Finn slowly drank in the display, certain that Jaime had intended for him to do so. His sleek, freckle-dusted legs emerged from the hot water, and he sat up just enough to expose the rest of his bare chest. Jaime’s eyes were hooded and soft, watching Finn, and his mouth tipped up in a small smile when he leaned his head back against the tile and took himself in hand, lightly stroking up and down.

Finn wanted to swallow the tiny gasp Jaime let out at the movement, his thumb slipping along his cockhead. He reached out with his other hand, beckoning Finn forward. “Welcome home, baby. I've been thinking about you all day, please come join me?"

Finn didn't need to be asked twice.

He hastily finished undressing, clothes scattered across the floor, and slipped into the oversized tub behind Jaime, cradling his body between his thighs and wrapping his arms around his middle, pulling him back against his chest.

Jaime reached up with both hands to grasp the forearm Finn had wrapped around him and peppered a line of kisses along it, the teasing bravado gone as he nestled close. “Hi,” he whispered.

Finn pressed his smile, teeth and all, into their mating mark at the base of Jaime’s neck. “Hi. That was quite the greeting you gave me.”

Jaime shimmied further into his embrace. “The Halloween decorations? Or… this?” He pulled one of Finn’s hands down to wrap around his cock.

Finn growled. “You know the answer to that already,” he said, giving Jaime’s shaft a gentle squeeze for emphasis, pumping him once, twice.

Jaime whimpered. “How was your day?”

“Fine. Fairly boring, actually. Which I won’t complain about, all things considered.” Finn teased his thumb along the sensitive crown, drawing out another one of those small sounds he lived and breathed for. “What about you, baby? What did you get up to today, other than turning our living room into a Spirit Halloween?” he asked, continuing to lightly stroke Jaime’s cock.

“I—um—fuck, Finn, I can’t think when you do that.”

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