(One of my mom's sports dogs, Jewel running Fast CAT.)

Pretennon could feel Kandza's nervousness growing before the wolf even stepped foot inside his room. He knew that the guy tended to be more anxious than others just by the way he'd acted around him since they'd met, but he needed to get answers before he risked becoming overly-stressed, himself. 

So, he settled himself into his favorite armchair and looked up to watch Kandza slowly step inside. As soon as he was clear of the doors Preto tilted his head and narrowed his eyes the slightest amount, making them slowly swing closed. The click of them latching shut made Kandza jump slightly and glance over his shoulder, but he kept his hackles down and didn't growl. 

"Come here," he called quietly, knowing the reaction he would get. 

No matter how stressed his wolf was, Kandza would never pass up a chance to touch him. And just like that, the pup was at his feet, rubbing the side of its face against Preto's leg. Instead of scratching his ears like he wanted to, Preto forced himself to take a deep breath and focus. 

"Human form, please," he said, doing his best to keep the frustration he was feeling from overtaking his tone of voice. 

He wasn't exactly sure why Kandza reacted differently than most, but he honestly didn't mind it. What he did mind, was the situation he'd had to walk out of the previous day because neither him, nor his alpha, had been willing to speak up. 

Kandza nervously licked his pant leg a few times before his form wavered, then shifted, leaving him completely naked as he hugged Preto's leg tightly. He liked the view. He really, really did, but he couldn't allow himself to get distracted. 

"Now then, you have something you need to tell me about the other day, do you not?" 

He waited, impatiently, for Kandza to become comfortable enough to speak... but that time never seemed to come. The man's heartbeat was still struggling to calm itself even after twenty minutes had passed. He could just imagine it flickering and fluttering in Kandza's chest at the same tempo as the fire currently dancing beneath the mantle several feet away. 

Perhaps he should have just allowed him to speak to his thoughts as a wolf... but at the same time, whenever he took a situation seriously, he wanted to hear words in response, not thoughts.

Deciding to give him a while longer, Preto reached over to the little side table next to his chair and picked up the book he had yet to finish. He knew that it was rude to read while others were trying to have a conversation, but it was clear that Kandza wasn't even close to being able to speak with him yet, so he would busy himself for the time being until he was ready. 

He finished a chapter within eight minutes, then tilted his book toward his chest the slightest bit to look down at Kandza again. The man still had his arms tightly wrapped around his leg and his heart was still struggling. 

Let him have the time he needs...

Returning his attention to his book, Preto went through two more chapters before he couldn't focus on the words any longer. He calmly set the book aside after marking his page, then, very quietly, patted his thigh twice. 

The other man's response was immediate and abrupt. Before he could blink Kandza had scrambled up into his lap. Preto bit back a growl that wanted to slip out due to the werewolf's overexcitement and made himself remain calm. Kandza took no time at all to settle in his lap with his arms snug around his neck and his nose nuzzling and sniffing feverishly against his skin. 

Stubborn pup...

Even while thinking that thought, Preto couldn't help the slight grin that tilted the left side of his lips upward. 

He waited again, until finally, Kandza began to relax against him. The nuzzling slowed, then stopped. His hands, which had been scratching and grabbing at his shirt and hair settled with fistfuls of fabric tightly within their grasp. Once he had stopped fidgeting completely Preto lifted his own arms and wrapped them gently around the naked man in his lap. 

He's so warm...

He had to fight himself not to begin caressing Kandza's backside as he settled his hands the slightest bit above it. 

"I apologize, elder Pretennon," Kandza whispered after a few more moments passed in silence. 

There you are, sweet one. 

"I can handle matters so well as a wolf, but when I shift, it becomes so much more scary," he said as his breath warmed Preto's neck, sending a shiver down his spine. 

Everything in him wanted to tighten his hold on the man in his lap so that he could do absolutely nothing while he sank his fangs into his throat, but he knew that he couldn't do that... yet. He'd taken too much blood from him recently, and they were in the middle of an important conversation, too. 

"There is no physical relationship between myself and my alpha," Kandza said, his words quick and clipped, but they were there. 

Preto felt his own nervous heart calm as the words soothed its worry. 

"Alpha Silas has wanted to start a relationship with me for nearly a year, but... I don't," he said as his fingers moed to grip and twist within Preto's hair, his pup's heartbeat picking up as it thumped quickly in Preto's ears. 

"Being with Silas in such a way makes you uneasy... but what about being with me? What if I tried to pin you down on the carpet beneath my feet? What if I wanted to bite you repeatedly while claiming your body?"

If Kandza's heartbeat had been erratic before, it was flat-out blitzing about his chest now. 

I best learn to bite my tongue a little...

"I-I think I would be okay with that," Kandza said, his voice so quiet that even Preto had to focus in order to hear what he had said. 

The man's cautious whisper actually made him chuckle a little, drawing Kandza's soft caramel eyes finally up to his own. Preto didn't realize that he was even leaning closer until he felt Kandza's breath against his lips, snapping him out of his daze just in time to make himself lean away again. 

Regaining his composure with a few quick breaths, Preto licked his lips and returned his attention to Kandza. Err... The man's eyes were practically glowing with a lust that he hadn't seen in them before. He watched in nervous awe as Kandza slowly moved in his lap until he was straddling it, then carefully rose up onto his knees, easily putting him a few inches higher than himself. 

"Elder Pretennon, I do not understand how to court others properly, nor do I handle stressful situations well while in my human form..." he said as his wolf's ears hesitantly lifted from within his messy black hair, their sudden appearance quite distracting. 

"But I would like to earn my lord's affections." 

Blinking out of his daze, again, Preto couldn't help but smile as he reached up with both hands and took those two adorable wolf ears between his fingers. Kandza immediately hunched back down into his lap in response, clearly not used to the attention to his odd ears, but Preto wasn't going to just release them. 

"Does elder Pretennon really enjoy my ears so much?" Kandza asked, his voice nearly a whine as he pressed his forehead against Preto's chest. 

He could feel the man twitching and flicking his ears as he gently began rubbing them, but even though it made Kandza a little uncomfortable, he couldn't help it. 

"They are absolutely magnificent," he said honestly, his words making Kandza hesitate moving them again as he looked up nervously. 

He watched as the man opened and closed his mouth the slightest bit a few times, but when he finally spoke, Preto felt his heart flutter a little in his chest. 

"I-I like elder Pretennon's long hair." 

He wouldn't have thought that, at all. The guy's hands were completely intertwined within his long locks, gripping them tightly and pulling every few moments. 

Such an aggressive way to show affection, and yet so timid with your words. 

Kandza really was so interesting. He couldn't sit still very well unless he had something to grab or someone touching him in some way, but if something had his attention? 

"So cute." 

A quiet grumble of a growl was Kandza's response at his accidental slip of the tongue. It was no surprise that he wouldn't like being called cute, but there was no other word that perfectly described the werewolf in his lap. Of course, he was also handsome, beautiful, sweet, and a plethora of other adjectives, but he kind of liked the idea of leaving it at the one simple word. He had never seen Kandza irked at him until now. 

So cute.

"—'te."

Huh?

Releasing Kandza's ears, Preto tilted his head as his hands moved downward until they settled upon his lower back. 

"What did you say?" he asked, having honestly missed the man's mumbled words. 

He thought that Kandza would simply repeat what he'd said, but to his surprise, the guy shifted abruptly, returning to his wolf form in an instant. Before Preto could figure out what he was doing Kandza hopped off his lap and hurried over to the closed double doors leading out to his balcony. 

Preto would have jumped up to let him out, but at the same time, he didn't really feel a sense of urgency from the guy. And besides, Kandza could simply shift back to his human form if he wanted to open the doors so badly...

So then, what are you up to now? 

It was clear that he wasn't asking to leave, even though he wouldn't even look back at him and was just staring out at the early morning sun. Curiously, Preto slowly stood from his seat, but instead of going over to the double doors, he walked up to the fire and doused it before turning and heading toward his bed. 

He hadn't intended to sleep yet, but after having stayed up all night being stressed about the situation between himself, alpha Silas, and Kandza, he could definitely use a bit of rest. 

The moment he began tugging off his pajama top he could feel eyes turn to him. Once he let it slip from his fingers and drop to the floor, the sound of panting began to echo around the room. 

Deciding to leave his pajama pants on, he sat down on the edge of his bed after moving the covers aside. He could feel Kandza pacing at the edge of his mind, clearly wanting to speak, but he honestly didn't want to hear him in his mind again. He wanted actual spoken words. 

After giving a big yawn in which his fangs extended, then receded, Preto slipped beneath his blankets and got himself comfortable in the middle of his large bed. He considered telling Kandza that he could see himself out, but for some reason, he knew that the man still didn't want to leave. He wasn't positive, but it seemed like he was simply back to being too nervous to respond properly again. 

So, he closed his eyes and waited. It didn't take long for the sound of pacing paws to meet his ears. He expected the sound to continue so long that it lulled him to sleep, but to his surprise, the paws ended up only doing a few stressed circles before they brought their owner over to the edge of the bed closest to the balcony doors. 

He kept his eyes closed as his ears picked up the faint sound of something brushing against his blankets. 

"Elder Pretennon, I am sorry. I did not want you to be upset with me, but I had called you cute, too..." Kandza finally said, making Preto turn his head slowly upon his pillow, then open his tired eyes. 

Such a little thing to stress so much about. 

Preto took a few moments to enjoy the view of the man staring at him from a kneeling position just beyond the edge of his bed. The moment his eyes had landed on him Kandza had lifted his fuzzy wolf ears, seemingly trying to distract him from being upset at his words? 

There really is no need to do such a thing... but I will never say no to seeing those adorable ears on your beautiful head. 

"You think I am cute, Kandza?" he questioned honestly, his words calm. 

He immediately noticed the man's wolf flash in his eyes... he was about to shift again. 

"I am  not upset with your description. In fact, what else do you think of me?" he asked with a curious, yet-sleepy, smile. 

Kandza seemed taken aback with his nonchalance at such a girlish description. He tucked his wolf ears and looked down. Preto couldn't help but think that he wanted to stare at Kandza's naked lower half, too. Unfortunately, it wasn't within his line of sight and they were having a discussion that really didn't need a distraction.

He waited calmly until Kandza looked back up at him, his dark hair now haloed by the sun directly behind him. 

"I-I think elder Pretennon is the most beautiful person I've ever seen. He is tall and smart, and his hair is soft and beautiful," Kandza said, his nervous, near-silent voice growing stronger and rising in volume as he spoke. 

So adorable... 

"Y-you're also very fair, but can be quite stubborn, too." 

Unable to help himself, Preto let a quiet chuckle slip from his grinning lips. It also took him a few moments to calm himself enough to wipe away the tears that had somehow snuck from his eyes. He then looked over at a blushing Kandza and nuzzled the side of his face into his silk pillow a little more. 

"Rain beta, Kandza... where is it that you would like to be right at this moment?" 

Kandza's ears flicked up in surprise at the question before the left one tilted slightly to the side. He took only a moment to consider his words before replying. 

"I want to be wherever elder Pretennon will have me." 

He wasn't sure how he'd found such a sweet pup, but since he was now sure that he was not involved with anyone else, he knew that he wanted Kandza to be involved with him. 

"I'm quite tired right now, but if you wouldn't mind, pull the curtains over the doors and joining me for a rest...?" he asked, wondering if the guy could honestly simply sleep next to him. 

He knew that Kandza struggled to keep his hands to himself, so he was curious to see if he could. 

The man considered his words, then stood and carefully but quickly tugged the dark red curtains across the two balcony doors. Preto watched him intently, not bothering to even pretend that he wasn't. The man was quite a beautiful sight. 

When Kandza turned back around to face him in the darkness, Preto licked his lips and lifted the blankets in front of himself. It didn't take more than a few seconds for his werewolf to settle right up against him, not bothering with any kind of propriety as he practically glued his body to his every single place they could comfortably touch. 

Guess he really can't keep his hands to himself. 

He wasn't going to bother correcting him, though. After fixing the blanket snuggly over them both, Preto settled in with a content sigh. Kandza had nuzzled his head right beneath his chin with one arm tucked between them while the other wrapped beneath Preto's arm and around to his back so that the fingers of his right hand could tangle within his long hair. 

He was going to try to talk to him a little before they fell asleep, but before Preto could even decide on what he wanted to say, he felt Kandza's body begin to relax against his own. 

He... fell asleep so quickly? 

Preto lifted his left hand from where it had settled against Kandza's back and settled it in the man's thick mess of hair. There was absolutely no response. 

And here I had been worried that I would have to fend off a veracious werewolf... shame. 

Smirking to himself, Preto settled in with one final content sigh. It had been years since anyone warm had been invited to share his bed, and Kandza was definitely the hottest of them by far. His permanently-cold body gladly accepted his extra heat as it began to relax, too. 

He had no idea where their new relationship was going to go, but he was definitely interested in finding out... especially if it involved Kandza's claws, his own fangs, and much, much more of those adorable, fuzzy ears. 

(Edited)