Hustled to the ring Spud tried not to wince at the firm grip around his elbow, after that first day together Ethan had grown uncomfortably distance again, even worse than the week right after Dixie went through that blasted table. Ethan had even gone as far as moving into a separate hotel room under the excuse of early morning meetings and not wanting to disturb him. Biting his lip he'd allowed the feeble excuses to stand, staying behind when Ethan ran errands and not daring to complain when phone conversations with his Aunt stopped the instant he entered the room.

In a stark contrast to the last few days Ethan had been suspiciously careful to keep him close once they'd arrived at the arena, so close he didn't have a chance to do anything more than wave at Rhyno. The low growl in response to that action caused a sinking feeling of dread in the pit of his stomach and again he bit his lip against the spat of questions begging to be released.

Waiting on Spud to get his microphone Ethan gestured him to wait in the corner, his mood lightning just a fraction at the ridiculous outfit his bonded had chosen to wear this morning. Honestly where on earth had he found a pac-man themed suit. Dragging his attention back to the task at hand and the only thing that had kept his temper in check these last few days he called out Rhyno, teeth grinding together at the small welcoming smile on Spud's face when the so called manbeast stepped into the ring. The usual flare of jealousy made it easy to lay all the blame of his Aunt going through the table at Rhyno's feet and especially satisfying to fire him.

Not so satisfying however was Rhyno's reaction. Somehow he hadn't anticipated an attack and he barely remembered to pull his punch, the crowd audibly gasping as Rhyno staggered and almost fell. Taking in Rhyno's dazed expression he knew he should stop but once released from its cage his rage had a stranglehold on him. Uncaring of the red creeping across his vision he clamped a hand around Rhyno's throat and squeezed, darkly pleased by the startled surge of fear spreading across the other man's face.

Lost to the pounding rage he only dimly felt Spud's slight weight jump on his back, the desperate pleas for him to stop finally breaking his focus. Inhaling deeply, for once unwillingly soothed by his bonded's scent Ethan let go, not even staying to watch Rhyno crumple at his feet he brushed Spud off and stalked up the ramp. Heading straight for his locker room he glared at anyone who dared get in his way.

"Sir, Sir …" struggling to catch up Spud was uneasily aware Ethan was still furious, the bond fairly throbbing with the emotion. He'd had no choice in stopping Ethan's furious assault on Rhyno, even ignoring the fact he didn't want to see Rhyno hurt Ethan had come startling close to exposing strength he shouldn't have. Not the mention the red swirling and retreating through his eyes he could only hope Rhyno hadn't noticed.

"What Spud?" Snapping Ethan spun around and glared, sighing he pinched his nose and gentled his tone when his bonded actually flinched from him. "If you want to talk about Rhyno I don't want to hear it, he's getting everything he deserves for failing me." The way Spud dropped his gaze guiltily and hunched over further soothed the ragged edge of his anger, momentarily appeased by the clear sign of the smaller man's regret.

"Of course Sir," hating himself just a little for not standing up for Rhyno, who'd technically done more to help him in prison than Ethan had Spud quickly turned away to gather their belongings. Holding back the urge to fill the silence with chatter it was crystal clear Rhyno wasn't the only one Ethan blamed. Thankfully he was ready the second Ethan gestured for him to take the luggage to the car, not surprised they weren't staying for the full length of the show.

The car ride back to the hotel was equally silent and Spud couldn't help but stare at Ethan's profile, wanting more than anything to kiss away the bigger man's slight frown until he forgot he was angry. Flushing dully he hastily dropped his gaze when Ethan turned to look at him with a raised eyebrow.

Reaching across the space separating them Ethan curled his fingers around Spud's wrist and tugged him onto his lap, chuckling unwillingly at the smaller man's startled squeak. Smiling faintly he tilted his bonded's face up, brushing his fingers along the smooth line of his jaw and into the plush thickness of his hair, shining even in the cars dim lighting. The delicious way Spud melted into his touch sent the last of his anger into retreat, "why don't you do what you were thinking about just now." Grinning at the audible spike to his bonded's heart rate he closed his eyes at the hesitant caress along his cheek, nuzzling into Spud's palm in encouragement as those fingers trailed down to his mouth. God he'd missed this, he'd been holding back on his own need to touch that giving in was such a sweet relief.

"Yes Sir," swallowing dryly as Ethan's hands dropped to rest warm and steady against his thighs Spud feathered kisses along the path his fingers had taken. With each teasing brush of his lips he could feel Ethan's breathing hitch, confidence growing at the other man's ever tightening grip. Rocking his hips forward to find a matching hardness heat flashed through his veins, the knowledge Ethan was just as aroused had him claiming his mouth with bold strokes of his tongue, tasting the faint hint of apples and coffee from an earlier snack. Swearing he broke off with a groan as fingers tugged his belt open and slid inside his pants to loosely curl around his dick. "Sir, please," whining he thrust into the hotly possessive grip, shuddering when Ethan growled and pulled his head back, sharp fangs sinking into his neck before he could draw breath to beg. The dual sensations had him panting and light-headed in seconds, unable to think beyond the ecstasy short-circuiting his brain.

Groaning, heart feeling like it was going to pound out of his chest at how utterly perfect Spud felt, all velvety hardness and smooth skin Ethan retracted his fangs and tugged the smaller man's head up. "You feel so good baby," rumbling he dragged his thumb over Spud's lower lip, vision flashing red when his bonded caught his thumb and sucked on it with eyes blown wide with desire. The bond flashed white-hot and he almost forgot where they were, swallowing the needy little moans Spud made when his hand tightened. It was the jarring bump of the car going over a speed ramp that made him aware how close they were to their hotel.

Sucking down a lungful of air when Ethan pushed him back an inch and withdrew his hand Spud couldn't even find his voice to offer a protest, only mutely clutch handfuls of his shirt and try to pull him back. It took a long moment for Ethan's voice to penetrate the racing of his pulse and another long moment to understand his words.

"We're almost at the hotel," doing his best to concentrate on fixing Spud's pants and shirt and not on how easy it would be to continue, to have his bonded fall apart in his hands Ethan nudged Spud's head up, satisfaction blazing through him at the dazed look in his eyes. "Think you'll be able to walk," he smirked when Spud only blinked at him, every part of him deeply thrilled at being able to render his bonded completely undone. In the warm intimacy of the moment he wondered why on earth he had been denying himself this pleasure, surely there was nothing wrong with indulging in their mutual desire.

Slowly regaining control Spud nodded stiffly and climbed out of Ethan's lap, slumping into his side of the car as the usual exhaustion from blood loss made itself known. Clearing his throat he tried not to blush under the self-satisfied smirk Ethan turned on him, "of course I can walk Sir, I …" hesitating he squeaked when Ethan abruptly tilted his head to the side and leaned in, swiping a warm, wet tongue over his skin. "Sir," shuddering he snagged the bigger man's shirt, holding on as Ethan lingered, moving up his neck to his mouth with careful, thorough attention.

Dimly aware the car had stopped Ethan sighed regretfully, nipping Spud's bottom lip in farewell as he pulled back. Chuckling at the smaller man's disappointed protest he grabbed his hand and pressed a light kiss to his knuckles, "don't worry tiger, we have all night."

"Yes sir," eyes closing briefly Spud fumbled to get the door open, the cooler night air doing little to clear his head of the lust still burning through his veins, every part of his body ached for the bigger man to throw him down on the nearest flat service and finally fuck him.

Snagging their bags out of the truck Ethan looked up in time to catch Spud by the arm when he stumbled. "I think I need to get some food into you tiger, help replace some of blood I took." Tucking the smaller man against his side he grinned slyly, pressing his lips to Spud's ear he was unable to resist teasing, "and then maybe get something else into you." Spud made a helpless little sound that had his ebbing erection flaring back to life.

His phone disrupted the hotly charged moment. A quick glance down at the caller ID showed it was his Aunt and the immediate flare up of familiar anger threw a bucket of cold water on his libido, reminding him sharply why he'd been avoiding intimate contact with Spud.

The flush from Ethan's less than subtle innuendo faded fast when the bigger man answered his phone, he'd known instantly it was Dixie Carter from the way Ethan had stiffened and then withdrew. So he wasn't surprised at all when Ethan covered the phone with his hand and told him to head up to his room, that he'd try and see him later. The only reassuring part was the almost absent-minded reminder to order room service. Dragging his feet to the elevator Spud threw one last look at Ethan, hating the creeping tide of dread telling him things were about to get a lot more unpleasant.

Still, after a warm shower and a hot meal he remained cautiously optimistic Ethan would come to his room and finish what he'd started in the car. Flicking the tv on he curled up on the couch to wait, unaware of at what point he fell asleep the next thing he was aware of was waking up in the morning tucked in bed. Rolling over sleepily his hand brushed against a piece of paper, waking up at the rustling sound he sat up and forced his eyes to focus on the familiar handwriting. Ethan must have come in at some point last night and carried him to the bed, the sappy smile at that thought faded upon reading the terseness of the note, really just a sentence ordering him to stay in New York for the rest of the week. Flipping the note over to confirm that was everything written he scowled and balled it up, burying himself under the covers he had no doubt this was going to be one of the longest weeks of his life.