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“I need to do… something,” I whispered. “I just need to get out of my head.”

Rhodes didn’t answer right away. The mattress dipped as he moved closer, and his hands braced on either side of my knees. He studied me carefully, his nose nearly brushing against mine. I could see the way his mind worked, like he was trying to decipher all the things I didn’t know how to say.

Closing the distance between us, his mouth brushed against mine. My eyes slid shut at the contact. For the first time all day, something cut through the numbness, and I leaned into it. Rhodes kissed me once slowly and a second time briefly before pulling away. I instantly missed the contact.

“Tell me what I can do to help,” he said softly.

The question nearly undid me because he wasn’t deciding for me. He was just there, asking what I wanted from him and leaving the answer entirely in my hands.

Unfortunately, I didn’t know how to explain it. I didn’t want to think or remember. I didn’t want to make another decision or sort out another feeling. I wanted out of my own head for a while—wanted something simple enough that I could just follow Rhodes’ lead and let everything else fade into the background.

“Help me feel something else? Please?” I begged. Leaning forward, I brushed my lips against his once more.

His careful softness shifted as he understood I wanted to drown in him rather than the thoughts in my head. His hands settled on my knees, his fingers digging lightly into my skin. I shifted under his touch, inching closer and reaching up to tangle my hands in his hair. He dragged his teeth over my bottom lip and pulled back. Those dark eyes held my gaze for a long moment before he straightened and stepped away from the bed.

“Stand up,” Rhodes ordered, and I stood without hesitation. He touched the hem of my shirt, his fingers sliding hot against my skin. “Arms up for me, little wolf.”

The low timbre of his voice, coupled with the command, made me shudder. I did as he asked, and he lifted my shirt over my head. As he tossed the shirt aside, his free hand slipped down my chest and stomach, leaving a hot trail in its path. I felt my dick twitch slightly at the contact, but that was it.

He hooked the waistband of my pants and pushed them down, lowering to his knees as he did. For a heartbeat, I forgot how to breathe. Rhodes had put me down on my knees more times than I could count. He’d looked down at me with that commanding confidence of his that made giving him control feel effortless.

But this? Seeing him on his knees, his face tipped up to stare at me, sent something unfamiliar weaseling through my chest. It didn’t feel like the balance between us had suddenly flipped. Even on his knees, he was still so clearly in control—of me, of the situation, of whatever he wanted.

“Sit down on the edge of the bed,” Rhodes ordered. I did as he told me to, and his hands landed on my knees again. He ran his palms up over my bare thighs. “Lean back a little for me. Make yourself comfortable.”

I leaned back on my hands and let out a deep sigh, feeling some of the tension ease from my shoulders. Surrendering to Rhodes was easier than breathing. Just a few simple orders began to cut through the numbness.

“You’re going to sit there and take everything I give you,” he continued. “No thinking, no worrying, nothing. I’m going to focus only on you.”

“But—”

“Only you, Theo,” he reiterated, cutting me off. His fingers dug lightly into my skin. “Do you understand?”

“Yes,” I replied, the word catching in my throat. I wasn’t used to being the center of his attention—at least not like this. I always had his attention, but not without some kind of reciprocation.

“Good boy,” Rhodes murmured. His praise melted through me, settling low in my core, as his mouth found mine again. He kissed me with a thoroughness that left no room for thought. His tongue pushed past my lips, tasting of the cheap coffee he grabbed on our way over. I groaned, and he swallowed it as he kissed me harder.

His mouth drifted along my jaw, alternating between quick nips and open-mouthed kisses. He licked and sucked his way down my neck until he found the curve of my shoulder. A sharp sting made me gasp as he bit down and held it. My head fell back, and my eyes fluttered shut. My dick thickened between my thighs as the pain melted into a blanket of pleasure over my nerves.

His hand slid up my thigh and teased my balls, cupping and rolling them lightly in his palm. I moaned, and he did it again, squeezing a little harder. The grip of his hand was maddening as he kissed, licked, and bit his way down my chest and stomach. Every bite was harder than the last. Precum gathered on my slit as I tried hard to hold still.

Rhodes pulled back just enough to breathe, and his hold remained on my balls, a firm pressure that held me in place. He watched my face—cataloging my every twitch and every gasp as he tested the pain with every squeeze and roll. My dick was painfully hard between us. Whatever he planned to do, I needed him to do it.

“Please,” I begged a little pathetically.

Dipping down, he dragged the flat of his tongue over the slit. My hips jerked toward him on instinct, and his free hand planted against my stomach to pin me in place. He did it again, slower this time, and pulled a broken sound from me.

“Don’t move, little wolf,” he said against my crown. The vibration ran straight to my balls. “I told you I’m taking care of you tonight.”

He took just the tip of my dick in his mouth and sucked once. My hands fisted in the sheets as I tried to hold still for him. He licked a slow line up the underside and traced the ridge with the tip of his tongue before pulling me into his mouth once more. Lick. Trace. Suck. Repeat. Over and over, he did the same thing until my thighs were shaking as I panted. All the while, his grip remained tight on my balls, squeezing but not painfully so. The dual sensations were overwhelming in just the way I needed.

His hand slid off my balls and wrapped around the base of my cock, holding me steady as he took all of me in one quick glide. I felt my crown hit the back of his throat, but he didn’t stop until I was buried deep in his throat. He swallowed once, and the world damn near tipped sideways. The sound I let out would’ve been embarrassing on any other occasion.

He held me there. I don’t know for how long, but I forgot how to breathe as his throat worked around the crown of my dick. I was dying—hot and shaking all over. The slow suction as he dragged his mouth up my shaft until just the head sat on his tongue threatened to undo me. His tongue swirled around the ridge once before he dove back down.

He set a rhythm I felt in every single nerve in my body, the wet sound of his mouth and my heavy breathing filling the room. He took me deeper with every pass, and his throat worked around me. Heat pooled hot and fast in my lower core. My balls tightened as he pushed me closer and closer to the edge.

“Rhodes,” I gasped, my voice cracking. “I’m… fuck, I’m close. Please… please… I’m going to…”