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“Fuck off.”

An exhalation tickled against the hairs on Emilio’s nape, and the arm his head was resting on flexed.

“Takes two to tangle,” Rocco murmured, sounding more than half asleep.

Emilio took stock of all the points their bodies were touching. One of his hands was between the witch’s thighs. Their legs were twined together like ivy, and it was all he could do not to grind his morning wood into Rocco’s hip. Rocco’s scent was everywhere, making him lightheaded.

Rolling his hips away from temptation, Emilio tried to extricate himself from the twisted sheets and muscles, making him drool.

“Where you going, puppy?” Rocco asked, pushing up onto his elbow and blinking slowly.

“To wash my regrets and bad choices away,” Emilio muttered, shuffling to the shower.

How had he fallen asleep naked? With Rocco in his bed? He could feel the witch’s eyes tracking him across the room .

“Stop staring at my ass,” he growled.

“That’s not what you were saying last night.”

“We’re not talking about that. Ever. It didn’t happen.”

“Really? That’s how you’re playing it?”

Emilio spun around to glare at the smug man lying splayed out on his sheets. The morning light had caught on his skin like he was some kind of fallen angel.

“We have a contract. That’s it.”

“Are you sure about that? Because I’ve known enough wolves to know what it means when one attacks someone just for breathing in someone’s space.

Especially when they’re not pack. What it means when you lose control of your eyes and fangs every time things get heated.

The chemistry between us is out of this world.

Don’t try and tell me that’s how it is with anyone you’ve ever been with before. ”

“No.”

“No?”

“Whatever you’re implying, that’s not what’s happening.”

Rocco sat up, ab muscles flexing and begging to be licked, and stalked toward him, not stopping until they were chest to chest. Emilio swallowed hard as the witch pressed a finger to his chin, tipping his head up.

“At the very least, this is a marriage.”

“Not yet.”

“This connection between us is why I couldn’t scare you off, isn’t it?”

Emilio scoffed and jerked his head away from Rocco’s fingers before his wolf convinced him to do something stupid like suck one into his mouth. “You couldn’t scare me off because you’re not that scary. You think some light kink and over-the-top possessiveness is anything new for a wolf shifter?”

Rocco shrugged. “Well, I never tried it with a wolf before.”

“Good. Keep it that way,” Emilio growled, sparking a laugh from his mate.

No, wait. That wasn’t what this conversation was supposed to be.

“Look. Clearly, neither of us wants to be stuck in this arrangement. You were trying to scare me off. I’m not planning to stick around.

Let’s just do the minimum needed for the contract and leave it at that. ”

Rocco searched his expression for something, but Emilio had his poker face on, his wolf pushed down deep inside where he couldn’t make trouble.

“We’ll see,” Rocco said, slapping Emilio’s hip lightly as he turned toward the kitchen.

Tipping his head up to stare at the ceiling, Emilio drew in a slow deep breath, willing his cock to calm down, and headed to the shower.

When he re-emerged, there was a hot cup of coffee waiting on the bench for him, thick slices of bread that smelled divine on two plates, and Rocco was cooking eggs at his stove.

“Why do you keep feeding me?” Emilio grumbled, settling into a chair with his coffee.

“Because it turns you on and pisses you off. The best of both worlds.”

Emilio rolled his eyes as Rocco brought the pan over and served them the eggs. A comfortable silence fell between them as he took his first bite, moaning as the surprisingly complex mix of seasonings burst across his tongue.

“Fuck that’s good. How are you not already married, or shacked up, or whatever you MC types call it?”

“I don’t have the best track record with relationships. My last one went so badly I was forced into an arranged marriage, and the one before that made me move across the country.”

Rocco was focussed on his food. Pensive. Emilio didn’t like it. He might not want to be stuck with him forever, but that didn’t mean he didn’t want him to smile. Time to change the subject.

“What am I walking into at your little clubhouse tonight? Is Brand going to make trouble?”

“Not if he knows what’s good for him.”

“So, yes, then. Because he sure as shit didn’t seem to realise how stupid it was to mess with you last time. What’s his problem?”

“I have no clue. He’s had it in for me since I moved here.”

There was something Rocco wasn’t saying. It was in the slight tension in his shoulders. The hitch in his heartbeat.

“And what are you doing about it?”

Rocco looked up from his meal. “Stay out of it, puppy. It’s not your problem.”

Emilio growled. “If he’s messing with my … fiancé, it’s my problem. No one fucks with my family.”

Rocco’s eyes widened in surprise. His mouth opened, but no words came out. He’d finally managed to leave him speechless.

“Family?” Rocco asked.

“That’s what getting married means, asshole. He thinks you’re mine, so he should know exactly what reaction he’s going to get from me if he comes for you.”

“Is it just him who thinks I’m yours?”

Emilio shoved the last bite in his mouth and grabbed the plates from the table, taking them to the dishwasher. “I’ve got shit to do. Get out of my space already.”

Warmth radiated from Rocco’s body as he paused next to Emilio, pressing a kiss to his temple before he could make himself pull away.

“Can’t wait to see you in my bed tonight, puppy.”

Emilio turned up at the clubhouse around eight in the evening after a dinner with Luca and Cal where his cousin updated him on the rest of his fiancé’s background check.

He could’ve driven his bike over, but he didn’t want to pander to the MC that way, so he was driving one of the pack’s all-terrain vehicles.

It was big enough it would still draw some attention, but not like the Maserati would’ve.

One of the MC’s guards stopped him at the gate into their compound and he rolled the window down, letting his wolf show through in his eyes as he bared sharp teeth in a smile. The guy was young, probably still on probation, and he put his phone to his ear as Emilio waited.

“Rocco’s bitch is here. What should I do with him?”

Emilio’s smile widened. Well, this was going to be fun.

The guard was looking back toward the clubhouse as if he needed to face the direction of whoever he was talking to.

Amateur. Slipping silently out of the truck’s open window, Emilio stepped in close behind the guy before cold-cocking him in the temple with the hilt of his blade.

Scooping up his phone, he hung up on whoever the guard had been talking to and used the security app that was still open to unlock the gate before driving into the parking lot.

And because he was being well-behaved, he even closed the gate behind him, leaving the dick of a guard unconscious on the ground just outside.

Three more MC members came rushing out of the clubhouse as he was getting out of the ATV, an overnight bag slung over his shoulder.

If he’d been trying to break in for real, he would’ve taken them out before they had a chance to draw on their magic, but he knew that might be more trouble than Blaze could let slide.

Speaking of the President of the MC, Blaze and his second, Storm, came striding out the door of the clubhouse shortly after.

“What the fuck did you do?” one of the guards yelled at Emilio as the leather bracelet on his wrist buzzed in warning from the magic he was preparing to use.

“Stand down. The probie got what was coming to him. He’s lucky Emilio was feeling merciful. If he’s still alive, take him down to the cells so he can think about what he did. We’ll decide if we’re kicking him out tomorrow,” Storm said.

The three witches in the lead turned to him with shock on their faces.

“What? You think he gets to run his mouth and risk starting a war with the pack? Do your fucking jobs and get out of here.”

“Sorry about that,” Blaze said, stepping closer and holding out his hand to clasp Emilio’s in greeting.

Emilio shrugged. “It didn’t cause me any delay.”

Blaze, to his credit, ignored the subtle insult to his security measures. “Rocco had to head out on a job. He’ll be back by nine. Come join me in my office and we can iron out the final details of the pack’s engagement present.”

Emilio followed after the men, cataloguing every threat and escape route as he went. The clubhouse was more cosy than he’d expected of a motorcycle club, although the scent of alcohol and sex drifting from the attached bar said his assumptions about what to expect hadn’t been entirely wrong.

“You gonna tell Rocco what happened at the gate?” Storm asked as they entered Blaze’s office.

“Why? You worried how he’s gonna react?” Emilio asked with a grin.

“He’s a loose cannon.”

Irritation filled him at the tone they were taking about his mate. “He’s one of your most valuable assets.”

Blaze leaned forward where he now sat behind his desk. “Are you starting to actually like him? That’s unexpected.”

Emilio huffed under his breath. “Whatever. Let’s talk business. The weapons you requested are en route from our supplier. They’ll be ready for the hand-off. Marco’s clearing out a warehouse on the border of our territories.”

“You gonna gift-wrap them, too?” Storm asked with a smirk.

“Sure. I’ll ask Marco to fill the barrels with heart confetti,” Emilio said, voice wry, before answering the question Storm had actually been asking.

“They’re coming in on a custom vehicle with concealed storage.

Our guys will change the plates and strip the coloured wrap off it so you can drive it straight out of there. ”