Page 65 of Heat Clickbait
"I want to challenge you to something where your muscles are actually useful, not just decorative." She was already pulling off Ghost's hoodie, revealing a sports bra underneath that made my mouth go dry. "Unless you're scared I'll beat you?"
The competitive spark in her eyes lit something in my chest. Not the usual need to show off, but genuine excitement. "You're on."
I set up the pull-up bar while she stretched, trying not to stare at the way her body moved. She'd filled out since the heat, looking healthier, stronger. The sight of Milo and Nova's marks on her neck made my jaw clench, that possessive Alpha need surging through me like electricity.
"Rules?" she asked, bouncing on her toes.
"Simple. Whoever drops first loses." I pulled off my tank top, not for show this time, just practical. The way her eyes darkened as they tracked over my torso sent heat straight through me. "Ready?"
We jumped up together, gripping the bar. The first thirty seconds were easy, muscle memory from countless training sessions. But then I made the mistake of looking at her.
Callie hung with surprising grace, her face set in determination. A bead of sweat rolled down her neck, following the curve toward her chest, and I had to look away before I lost my grip entirely. My body wasn't just fighting gravity anymore — it was fighting the overwhelming urge to drop down, grab her, claim her right here on my gym floor.
"This is harder than it looks," she gasped at the ninety-second mark, her grip starting to slip.
"You're doing amazing," I said, meaning it. Most people couldn't last thirty seconds, but here she was, pushing two minutes through sheer stubbornness.
She lasted another forty-three seconds before dropping, landing with a curse. I held on for another ten seconds out of principle before letting go, my shoulders screaming.
"You won," she panted, hands on her knees.
"Barely." I flexed my fingers, working feeling back into them. "You're stronger than you think."
"Not strong enough." She straightened, and something in her expression shifted. Became more vulnerable. Without warning, she grabbed the hem of her sports bra and pulled it off, then shimmied out of her shorts and underwear until she stood completely naked in my streaming room.
My brain short-circuited. "Callie?—"
"This is when I feel most vulnerable," she said, arms wrapped around herself but not hiding. "Not the nudity itself, but... my body. I know I project confidence, savage energy, but I've neverbeen comfortable in my skin. Too soft here, not enough there. I see you, how comfortable you are in your body, how you inhabit it completely, and I want that. Want to feel strong, capable, not just... decorative."
The parallel to my own words made my chest tight. I moved toward her slowly, giving her time to change her mind, to cover herself. She didn't.
"You're perfect," I said, letting my hands hover near her waist, not touching yet. "Every single inch of you."
"I'm not?—"
"You are." I dropped to my knees in front of her, looking up so she could see the truth in my eyes. "But if you want to get stronger, to build muscle, to learn how your body can move... I'll teach you. Not for content, not for anyone else. Just for you. Because you deserve to feel as powerful as you actually are."
Tears gathered in her eyes. "You'd do that?"
"I'd do anything for you." The words came out raw, honest. "Callie, I've been dying watching Nova and Milo's marks on you. Not because I'm jealous, I mean, I am, but because I want to give you everything too. Want you to choose me too."
She tangled her fingers in my hair, pulling me up until we were face to face. "Then let me."
Before I could process her words, she'd pushed me back onto the workout bench and straddled me, her naked body pressing against mine in a way that made coherent thought impossible. Her mouth found my neck, kissing and nipping at the sensitive skin.
"Callie, wait?—"
"No more waiting." She bit down hard on my shoulder, not quite breaking skin but close. "I know my bite can't initiate the bond, but I want to mark you first. Want you to know I'm choosing you, Eli Wolfgang Reyes. Not Blitz, not the thirst trap, not the so-called himbo. You."
The words broke something open in me. When she bit down again, harder this time, drawing blood, I lost all control. My hands gripped her hips as I flipped our positions, pressing her into the bench. She looked up at me with such trust, such certainty, that my vision blurred.
"Say it again," I demanded, voice rough with need.
"I choose you, Eli Wolfgang Reyes. Bite me. Make me yours."
I didn't need another invitation. My teeth found her neck, sinking deep into an unmarked section opposite where Milo had claimed her. The bond slammed into place with overwhelming force, her emotions flooding through me, her pleasure, her certainty, her love. It was too much and not enough and absolutely everything.
She came just from the bite, her body arching beneath mine as the bond settled. I followed her over, the most intense orgasm of my life ripping through me without removing the rest of my clothes.
