Burning Desire

Dakota

Dimples. Zachary had fucking /dimples/. How had he not made this groundbreaking discovery before? All those years he missed out on not seeing this absolutely adorable look the vampire was sporting; what the Hell had he been doing with his life until now? Dakota hadn't realized just how much he’d been gawking until exploratory fingers began rubbing at the sensitive ears atop his head. An immediate hum of satisfaction rumbled up the canine’s throat, the appendages flattering down automatically to give those hands better access. Tilting his head as the immortal leaned up and planted a kiss against one of his fluffy ears, the wolf closed his eyes and shuddered at the playful nip. There was that threat again, though this time it sounded much less menacing and caused the dog to simply smirk and release a quiet chuckle in response. Being an alpha, the brunette had no intentions of letting the other male top him, but he supposed there was no harm in letting Zachary have unrealistic dreams. Ears perking up in interest as the vampire began explaining whereabout his hatred for werewolves came from, Dakota remained still and kept his mouth shut. The continued rubbing of his ears was mildly distracting, but his pale eyes refused to move away from his mate’s face as the man opened up about his past. In all the years they’d known each other, neither Zachary or the wolf had ever stopped their rivalry to verbally discuss where their differences stemmed from. This was a new chapter in their life, and Koda found himself eager to learn more about the vampire in front of him. The abundance of information Dakota was receiving was knowledge he never pictured himself hearing. Zachary had a life before this one; he’d been a young man once, an English major, from a totally different era with a completely different set of friends and loved ones. He’d been murdered unfairly, ruthlessly, by the hands of a lover he trusted. His life had been taken by a monster, and then reborn by another all in the same night. Letting his gaze fall down to the grass underneath them once more, the distrust and hatred that had been storming between them for years suddenly became more understandable - at least from Zachary’s side. Koda had his own reasons as well, and for the first time in his life he genuinely felt like sharing them. Opening up and getting all of his hurt, his anger, his sorrow and loss all out on the table so there would be nothing between them and they could start over. But the words never came. Instead, they remained lodged in Dakota’s throat like a hard pill to swallow, which the boy reluctantly gulped back down into the depths of his heart. Glancing back up at his partner once his hands were grabbed, the canine felt the burden he carried deep within him lighten a bit from the look he was being given. Zachary was smiling again, that sweet, breathtaking expression that Koda knew he would work himself to the bones to see even just one more time if he had to. Flashing a crooked grin at the comment the vampire made directly before their kiss, the brunette leaned into their reunion of lips as though it were simply second nature to him now. It felt easy, effortless, calming... It felt right. “You’re kind of a hopeless romantic, aren’t you?” Dakota teased as they broke apart for breath, resting his forehead against his mate’s and closing his eyes a moment. It had been... A lot of information, a lot of memories and pain that the mutt had never known about despite their rivalry of over ten years. “Unfortunately for you, I won’t allow my mate to just up and die before I do, so I’m afraid you’re stuck with me for the foreseeable future.” Koda stated seriously, slowly untangling himself from the vampire’s grasp and getting to his feet. It had been an eventful start to the day, but they couldn’t stay here forever. The canine had things to do, a pack to run, and... An explanation to think of that would sway most of his tribe into accepting a vampire into their territory. “Do you think you’ll be able to handle me for eternity?” The brunette asked with a smirk, offering Zachary a hand to help the man up.