He caught her chin between his thumb and forefinger. Gentle. So

impossibly gentle for hands that could crush bone. He tilted her face up, and the gold of his gaze swept over her features like he was memorising geography: the flush across her cheeks, the way her lips stayed parted, the rapid pulse she knew he could see fluttering at her throat.

"Later," he said.

One word.

Low and rough and absolute, like a man signing a contract with his bare hands.

Her tail went absolutely haywire — puffed, swishing, wrapping halfway around his forearm before she could stop it. A soft, traitorous whine built in her throat that she swallowed just in time.

"You can’t just.. " She pressed her forehead against his sternum because looking at him was too much. The cotton of his shirt smelled like cedar and clean skin and something faintly metallic, gun oil maybe, and she breathed it in like an addict. "You can’t just say ’later’ in that tone and expect me to function for the rest of the day."

His chest moved beneath her forehead. A single, low rumble of laughter — barely audible, more vibration than sound.

"Wasn’t asking you to function," he said. His palm settled against the back of her neck, heavy and grounding. "Was asking you to wait."

"Those are the same thing, Ivan."

"No." His thumb pressed into the soft dip at the base of her skull, and her knees genuinely considered retirement. "Functioning is optional. Waiting is required."

She pulled back enough to glare up at him. The effect was probably ruined by the fact that her ears were still plastered sideways and her tail had now fully committed to wrapping around his wrist like a furry handcuff.

"You know what your problem is?" she said.

"Tell me."

"You think being patient is a personality trait instead of a war crime."

That got her the full twitch, both corners of his mouth, a real smile threatening behind that stoic mask, and the sight of it hit her bloodstream like sugar.

He leaned down. Not to kiss her — because apparently he was committed to his role as her personal tormentor, but close enough that his next words landed warm against her temple.

"I’ll make the wait worth it."

Her tail puffed to twice its normal size.

Ivan’s massive hands gripped Felicity’s waist as he pushed her against the crumbling brick wall of what was once a small-town general store. The rest of Snow and Leaf’s team had departed hours ago, leaving them to guard their makeshift camp in this forgotten one-street town.

"You’ve been teasing me all day," he growled, his voice low and gravelly against her ear.

Felicity shivered, not from the autumn chill but from the heat of his body pressed against her back. "Have I?" she whispered, though they both knew the answer.

Ivan’s teeth grazed the nape of her neck, tugging at the collar of her shirt. With deliberate slowness, he used his teeth to pull the fabric down her shoulder, exposing her skin to the cool air. His breath was hot against her flesh as he worked his way down her spine, the sound of tearing fabric barely audible over her quickened breathing.

His tongue traced a wet, hot path from her collarbone up the side of her neck, leaving goosebumps in its wake. Felicity gasped, her body arching against the rough brick wall as Ivan’s massive hand slipped beneath her waistband. Without warning, his thick fingers plunged inside her, curling and stretching her in one brutal motion.

"FUCK!" she cried out, her fox ears flattening against her head as pleasure-pain shot through her core.

Ivan worked her mercilessly, his fingers pistoning in and out while his palm ground against her sensitive clit. The wet sounds of her arousal filled the narrow alleyway, echoing off the decaying buildings.

"Oh my god," Ivan groaned against her neck, his voice strained with need. "How is your pussy so tight around just my fingers? You’re endlessly tight."

Felicity’s vision blurred, her tail thrashing wildly behind her as she struggled to stay upright.

Dimitri stood in the shadows of a nearby doorway, listening to all the details of his fox, his girl being pleasured. His expression remained stoic, but his breathing had quickened, his hips thrusting into his fist with military precision.

"Fuck, Ivan," she whimpered, beyond caring who might hear or see. Her body was on fire, every nerve ending screaming for release.

In one fluid motion, Ivan withdrew his fingers, replaced them with the blunt head of his cock, and thrust forward. The sudden fullness made her scream, her inner walls clamping down around his invasion.

"Daddy! Yes! Fuck me!" The words tumbled from her lips unbidden, her control shattered.

Across the alley, Sam leaned against a rusted fire escape, his hair falling across his flushed face as he stroked himself with frantic urgency.

Across from him in another room, Shadow’s form was pressed against the wall, his hand disappearing into his pants as he listened with hungry eyes, their usual calm demeanour replaced by raw desire.

Ivan’s pace was punishing, each thrust driving her harder against the wall. "You take me so well," he growled, one hand tangled in her auburn hair, the other gripping her hip hard enough to leave bruises. "Always so perfect for me."

Felicity’s claws extended involuntarily, scraping against the brick as she struggled to find a grip. Her enhanced hearing picked up the soft grunts and muttered curses from the others, Dimitri’s controlled breathing becoming ragged, Sam’s whimpers growing louder, Shadow’s quiet, intense focus as they pleasured themselves.

"Oh God," she moaned, her eyes fluttering closed as Ivan fucked her brutally, though making sure he didn’t get near her belly.

From inside a nearby building, Pope and Kai’s muffled voices carried on the breeze. "It’s a miracle," Pope whispered reverently as the sound of flesh stroking flesh punctuated his words.

"Divine intervention," Kai agreed, his voice strained with pleasure.

Tim, the unmated tiger, prowled the perimeter, his nostrils flaring as he caught the scent. "Where is it coming from?" he muttered, his hand unconsciously moving to his own cock as he followed the intoxicating trail, never quite finding its source.

Ivan knew they were all there. The corner of his mouth twitched with satisfaction as he continued to pleasure Felicity with his fingers, watching her body respond to his touch. He loved showing her off, loved knowing that others desired what was his.