Page 16 of Off Limits
Which wasn't far from the truth.
Would Gabriel even remember this? Or would he wake up tomorrow with only fragments, with just enough awareness to know something had happened but not the details? Would Asher have to look him in the eye and pretend nothing had changed, carrying the secret weight of this night alone?
Fuck.That might actually be worse than Gabriel remembering.
Gabriel's rhythm was starting to falter, his breathing harsh and ragged against the back of Asher's neck. Close, then. Thank God, because Asher didn't know how much more he could take. Every nerve was firing, every muscle trembling with the effort of staying upright, of taking what Gabriel was giving him. His arms shook where they braced against the ground, threatening to give out entirely.
"Mine," Gabriel kept growling, the word punctuating each thrust. Not sentences anymore, just that single possessive claim over and over, like he was trying to fuck the truth of it into Asher's body.
Not yours,Asher thought with bitter clarity even as his body surrendered completely, opening for Gabriel like it had been made for this.
But he wanted to be.
Then Gabriel was coming with a sound that was more howl than human, pulsing deep inside Asher, filling him with wet heat. The sensation of it—being marked from the inside, claimed in the most primitive way possible—made Asher's spent cock twitch weakly, trying to respond despite having nothing left to give.
Gabriel's weight collapsed onto his back, driving him flat against the ground, both of them panting in the aftermath. The night air was cool against overheated skin, sweat cooling rapidly, bringing reality creeping back at the edges.
What they'd done. What Asher had let happen. What couldn't be taken back.
For a moment, neither of them moved. Asher could feel Gabriel's heart hammering against his back, could feel him still inside him, softening slowly. Could feel the moment stretching between them, fragile as spider silk.
Then Gabriel was pulling out, the loss of it making Asher whimper before he could stop himself. The sound seemed to break something, to shatter whatever spell the moon had woven. Asher collapsed onto his side in the pine needles, every muscle trembling, feeling Gabriel's release starting to leak from him, undeniable evidence of what had just happened.
When he looked up, Gabriel was kneeling above him, and for the first time all night, his eyes were clear. Human, not wolf.
The expression on Gabriel's face was devastating.
Horror. Pure, absolute horror as he took in the scene—Asher sprawled naked in the dirt, covered in bites and bruises, scratches and dirt, Gabriel's come leaking from him. Evidenceeverywhere of what had happened, what Gabriel had done. His gaze tracked over each mark, each bruise, and with every second that passed, the horror in his eyes deepened.
"No," Gabriel whispered, stumbling backward like Asher was something dangerous. "No, no, no. What did I—Asher, I?—"
Shit. “Gabriel, wait—" Asher tried, reaching out despite the protest of abused muscles. He needed to explain, needed to tell Gabriel that he'd wanted it, that it was okay, that he'd chosen this.
But Gabriel was already moving, already fleeing. He shifted—man to massive grey wolf between one heartbeat and the next—and bolted into the forest, leaving Asher naked and alone on the forest floor, still feeling the ghost of Gabriel's hands on his skin.
The silence that followed was deafening.
Asher stayed there for a long moment, staring at the spot where Gabriel had vanished into the darkness. His body ached in ways that should have been familiar but felt entirely new. He'd been fucked before, many times, but never like this. Never by someone who mattered.
Never with the kind of horror Gabriel had just shown.
"Fuck," he whispered to the uncaring moon.
He'd gotten everything he'd ever wanted—and he'd destroyed Gabriel in the process.
9
The silenceafter Gabriel's departure was deafening.
Asher lay sprawled on the forest floor, naked and marked. He could still feel Gabriel inside him, could taste him, could smell their combined scent hanging heavy in the night air.
The guilt hit him in waves, each one worse than the last.
Asher had said nothing. Had let it happen because his own selfish desire outweighed everything else—Gabriel's wellbeing, their friendship, basic human decency.
Gabriel thought he was a monster now. Thought he'd forced himself on Ray Sutter's son in a moment of supernatural madness. The horror in his eyes when he'd come back to himself, the self-loathing in his voice—Asher had put that there. Had let Gabriel believe he was a monster rather than admit how badly Asher had wanted it.
A distant howl echoed through the trees—raw, anguished, barely recognizable as anything that had once been human. The sound went straight through Asher, making him flinch.
