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Chris arrives at the Hale loft way after everybody else: Derek raises an eyebrow as he doesn’t like when people arrive late, Stiles’ hand fast on his thigh in the silent plea not to be annoying. It’s a distraction good enough for Derek to forget growling disapprovingly to the hunter. Stiles smiles at Chris is as to say “I’ve saved you” but it seems he has forgotten the other Hale sitting in the room.
Peter looks Chris up and down, without moving from his armchair “You not only arrive late, but you also stink terribly. Where do you guys have your hunters’ meeting: in a stable?”
“Well, it’s not that we can book a room at the Hilton to save your nostrils, Hale. I have news, I came as soon as I could, apologies for not delaying myself even more stopping home for a shower.”
“You can shower here, I can lend you something clean to wear, the sooner the better.” Peter steps up and walks towards his room with en-suite and pulls out some clothes for the hunter.
Chris rolls his eyes but complies. He has learnt it the hard way: an unsettling scent can be very distracting for werewolves and he needs them to listen. A shower won’t kill him for sure.
When Peter gets back in the living room Stiles nudges at him “Does he know what you are doing?” he asks.
“I’m not doing anything, Stiles.”
“So you too are oblivious?”
“Derek keep your mate at bay or I’ll put a muzzle on him.”
“Hey! I’m the one who’s supposed to make dog jokes!” Stiles protests
“It wasn’t a joke.”
Derek pulls him closer, to protect him. As soon as Chris reemerges from the bathroom Peter rumbles softly. It’s almost inaudible, but Stiles knows that sound very well: he can’t believe he is the only one who’s seeing what Peter is doing with Chris.
Chris informs that the hunters are waiting for a pack of nomads werewolf to cross the preserve and it’s their intention to kill all of them. Derek is not aware of any pack wanting to cross his territory, but usually, nomads werewolves ask for permission when they are close to a claimed territory and can smell another pack.
“If you know where they are coming from we can try to meet them before they reach the preserve and we can help them cross it without losses.” Scott intervenes, eyes on Derek to seek his approval.
“I know where they are now, so maybe some of us can go and try to have a civil discussion with them.”
“You are not going,” Peter states abruptly.
“You are not the one in charge, Peter. I know where they are, I know they guys looking for them…”
Chris and Peter begin to argue aggressively: Peter accuses the hunter to be reckless and not strategic at all, Chris counters that Peter doesn’t like when he is not the one with all the information. Derek settles the argument stating that both of them will stay at the loft while he, Stiles, and Scott will go to discuss with the nomad pack. Chris shoots daggers with his eyes at Peter, Peter glares at Derek for being benched.
They still have to sit down at the kitchen table with a map of the region so that Chris can explain exactly where the other pack is located. Peter stands right behind Chris, his hands on the chair’s backrest. When he decides to suggest a path of the map he sneaks an arm between Chris and Derek, accidentally brushing his wrist against the hunter’s neck. Stiles takes a mental note of the gesture, he will confront Peter later on.
It’s three in the morning when Derek, Stiles, and Scott come back with a couple of members of the nomad pack. As soon as Peter smells them he pulls Chris closer and brushes his nose along the columns of his neck.
“What the fuck Hale?!”
“For your fucking safety please play along, Argent.”
Chris is puzzled, but as soon as Derek unlocks the door and he sees the werewolves he understands what Peter is talking about. One of them looks at the men in the loft and exclaims “You have many humans in your pack, Derek. How come?”
“He is my mate,” Peter answers before Derek can open his mouth, his hand cupping the back of Chris’ neck in the usual werewolves’ couples gesture. Derek nods and Stiles controls his heartbeat not to give away his surprise at the statement, luckily Derek has trained him in doing so.
It takes a couple of hours to finalize the plan for the nomad pack to escape the hunters and for the whole two hours Peter’s hands never leave the hunter: sometimes it’s a hand on a knee or the arm. Chris doesn’t even flinch, it’s admirable. When Chris offers to prepare some coffee for everyone Peter stands up and follows him in the kitchen: they make a cute couple, Stiles can’t deny it.
When they finally leave Stiles jabs Peter on the shoulder “You should have given me a warning before lying. I barely had time to control my heartbeat.”
Peter looks at Stiles “There was no lie”
“What?!!” Stiles squeaks but Derek is fast to drag him away from the living room admonishing him to mind his own business. Scott bids them goodnight and rushes out of the loft. Chris is still looking at Peter as waiting for a further explanation. Peter shakes his head “There is no need for you to act on it or even to acknowledge it. It’s not a big deal.”
Chris is encompassed by a blind fury: why Peter has to be so dismissive?!
“Hold your horses, Hale. You are not getting out of this telling me that it’s not a big deal. Since when do you know?”
“Years, Christopher. Wolves smell out their mate, don’t you know?”
“Why didn’t you say anything?”
Peter wants to punch Chris square in the face mate or not “Let me think: it might be because you are a fucking hunter? Because you were married? To a woman, if we want to be precise.”
Years… Chris quickly scans his memories of his interactions with Peter, now that he is paying attention Peter has always found a way to touch him accidentally, to lend him clothes; he has always been the only one offering, he was thinking because it was customary for mated wolves not to have somebody else smelling like them, but now he realizes that everyone has always done it out of respect toward Peter.
“So you settled to secretly scent marking me to placate your wolf, instead of talking to me.”
“It has worked well until now.” Peter shrugs, his heart sinking at the thought that he is about to face Chris’ rejection and everything will be so hard from this moment on.
Chris sees the change on Peter’s face and steps towards him “You should have talked to me, you know?”
“I don’t need your pity, Argent,” Peter snaps unnecessarily harshly.
“No, but if you’d have the nerve to bring this to the table you would know that I had a crush on you when we were younger, that I am bisexual, and that I found yourself quite annoying but also extremely charming.”
“You should have said something too if you feel this way…”
“And save us years of mutual pining? Probably yes. Now you want to come here and see if this whole mate thing works for us or you want to wait even longer.”
“For the love of God, no. No more waiting.”
Chris is expecting to be kissed, but instead, he is pulled in Peter’s embrace and he is aggressively scented by the werewolf who rubs his nose under Chris’ jaw and along his neck. Chris lets Peter have his way, he has waited long enough.