The Siege of Kadenburg by T. E. Ridener

TV, no radio, no anything.
    Strange , Dimitri thought as he pushed himself up into a sitting position. His back was absolutely killing him, which was also strange. Why did his back hurt so much? He always slept comfortably in this bed…..
    And then he felt fingers brushing along his spine, causing him to immediately freeze.
    Who. Was. In. Bed. With. Him?
    Dimitri slowly turned his head to stare down at the slumbering creature by his side. He instantly released a sigh of relief and rubbed at his eyes. Damn, he’d nearly had a heart attack. At least it wasn’t the little wolf girl currently residing on his couch.
    Yes, he could remember now. He’d let her have the couch but made Rutley come to bed with him.
    Wow, what a douche I must be. He frowned. He really did demand Rutley to sleep in the bedroom with him-away from her.
    Am I jealous? He asked thoughtfully, running his fingers through his messy auburn hair. That seemed like a decision made out of jealousy, but they’d talked about this already. Nothing would ever happen between them. They could never have a repeat of what happened the night before. They would always be JUST fri-
    “Mornin’,” Rutley said lazily as he opened his eyes to stare up at Dimitri. “Sleep well?”
    “Yeah,” Dimitri replied hoarsely. He cleared his throat, trying again. “Yeah, I slept just fine. You?”
    “Well,” Rutley grunted as he sat up in bed, stretching his arms over his head in an exaggerated manner. He yawned loudly, shaking his head from side to side before a loud pop sounded from his neck. “Oh, yeah. I slept great, thanks.”
    “Good.” Dimitri mumbled, rubbing at his eyes again. He needed to be fully awake for this conversation. He needed to apologize for how moody he’d been and the bullshit attitude he’d had towards his new beta. Rutley didn’t deserve that. He needed guidance, not shit.
    His mind was racing as his eyes swept over Rutley’s exposed torso. He took note of the muscles beneath his somewhat pale skin. He admired the light hairs dusting over his chest and the two single freckles that rested over his left nipple. God, why was he looking at Rutley’s nipples?! He didn’t need to look at him at all. Every time he did his mind tried to wander back to the night before…..
    “Hey, dude. Are you okay?”
    Dimitri snapped his eyes back to Rutley’s, noting the intense blue hue of his eyes. Had they ever looked so beautiful before? Warmth spread throughout his entire body as his mouth fell open and any words he might’ve had in his mind were soon blocked by a thick cloud of lust; pure, relentless desire that was screaming to be unleashed.
    No! He thought. Rutley and I are just friends. Nothing will ever, ever happen between us. Again. We can’t do that to Liam. I will never do that to Liam, no matter what. I don’t care if it means I’m alone for the rest of my life……
    “You don’t mean that,” Rutley frowned, cocking his head to the side. “Surely you don’t want to be alone when you die.”
    Shit. He’d forgotten that Rutley could read his thoughts pretty much anytime he pleased now. Well, damn. He was embarrassed by his thoughts. If Rutley heard that, then he was definitely aware that Dimitri wanted him in the worst of ways, too.
    Well fuck a duck. Dimitri scowled inwardly.
    Rutley was suddenly much closer than before. Their close proximity made Dimitri want to leap out of the bed, yet his body refused to do that. The static electricity between them was undeniable-but it was still wrong. This couldn’t happen. Rutley was better off with the she-wolf.
    “You don’t mean that either.” Rutley whispered huskily, his fingertips sliding down Dimitri’s biceps.
    “Yes, I do,” Dimitri managed to say after a few seconds of struggling to find his voice. “You’d be good with her,” he nodded gently. “She could give you the pups you want. You could get married and settle down somewhere nice after all of this blows over.”
    “I