#bite guard

"You're going to kill me, darling," Rico complained into the quiet space between them.

"Am not," Max protested feebly into Rico's neck. "Just giving you extra cardio."

Rico started rubbing Max's shoulder, carefully picking his words. The memory of Max' stress heat several years ago still haunted Rico and plagued his thoughts every time Max's heat lasted longer than normal. He began to voice softly, "Still…that was kind of intense. Are you feeling alright?"

He had to stop himself from flinching when he felt Max freeze in his arms, his breath hitching slightly as if he was caught doing something wrong. Slowly, Max started to mindlessly run his fingers over the muscles of Rico's flank.

"I have to tell you something," Max admitted, voice low and hesitant.

"Yeah?" It didn't help Rico's heart rate, which had been steadily increasing until it was thundering beneath his skin. He had to force himself to not flinch away from Max's feather-light touch.

"…I got my implant removed."

For a brief moment, Rico feared that smoke was going to start pouring out of his ears from the way his brain felt like it was short circuiting. Gently, he put his hands on Max's shoulders to push him back a little bit, just to see the cautious but excited look on his husband's face.

"…Really?" Rico whispered, now breathless once more with probably the most stupid expression on his face if he were to guess.

"Mmhm," Max hummed and nodded microscopically. He turned his left arm a little bit, revealing the band-aid over the inside of his bicep that Rico had been vaguely aware of since they fell into bed together several days prior. "This heat was intense, I think, because I'm letting my body have what it wants."

Rico could only sputter, having so many thoughts running through his head that it was impossible the properly articulate them all coherently. "You mean you—we can—we're finally—?"

"Uh huh." Max had been biting back the grin that was now spreading across his face, his wide mouth pulled into his beautiful smile. The tip of his tongue was lightly trapped between his two rows of perfectly straight teeth. "My gyno did say, though, to not be too disappointed if it didn't happen right away. Because of my hormones normalizing."

Rico had to admit he was only half listening. He was too busy trying to stare down at where Max's softening tummy was pressed up against his own. Where maybe…maybe they finally had…

He scrambled his hands off Max's shoulders to cup his cheeks instead, pressing a firm kiss against his lips and breathing in his mate's startled laugh.

"God, I love you," he mumbled against Max's mouth, forgetting in an instant his exhaustion, his soreness. He suddenly felt like he could run a marathon for do twenty workouts.

"You're happy?" Max asked with a chuckle that was still colored with hesitancy around its edges.

"Am I happy? Maxy, I'm over the moon right now!" Rico release Max's face to wrap his arms around his shoulders and crush their chests together. He had to tell himself to breathe, lest he hyperventilate and pass out from his joy. "I mean, we might finally be having a pup! Our pup!" He squeezed Max again, rocking the both of them side to side like a child would their treasured plushie.

The din of the reception hall quieted with the dimming of the lights. Guests and family members scurried to seatsat the round tables scattered about. From the corner of Max's eye, he could spot his mother proudly holding her phone aloft with both of her delicate hands, obviously filming. Victoria beside her was doing the same, only more discreetly. He didn't flinch when he felt Rico's caloused hand slide into his, and the two of them stepped out into the dancefloor where a single spotlight highlighted them from above. They kept their hands intertwined, Max shifting so that their fingers were threaded while their other arms found their resting places around each other—Max's at Rico's shoulder and Rico's around Max's waist. Two bodies slotting against each other like it was their destiny to never part ever again now that they'd found each other.

From either side of the DJ's table, the sound of piano keystrokes swelled from the speakers. A simple progression standing alone until a lone voice joined it.

"Despardo, why don't you come to your senses?"

They began to sway, their feet just barely leaving the ground as they shifted their weight back and forth. Max had shot down the suggestion of a learned dance for the two of thrm months back when they were still planning their special day. It made Rico laugh at the time, he too also breathing a sigh of relief at not having to go through weeks of dance classes. No stepping on toes or forgetting the next move or motion while all their loved ones looked on in anticipation—his footwork was good as a kickboxing, but he didn't have that type of coordination. Later that night in bed, Max must've felt the need to explain himself, quietly telling Rico that he didn't want their first dance as husbands to be something rehearsed or planned in advance. He wanted it simply to be the two of them moving they way they felt like in the moment.

Thinking about it now, as Rico looked down at Max, all handsome in his white tux and his same absurd oversized style bow tie, he thought it was the perfect decision. As if reading his mind, Max looked up at him, his eyes half-lidded in adoration. Sighing, he relaxed further into Rico's hold, resting his head on Rico's shoulder.

"Now it seems to me some fine things have been laid upon your table. But you only want the ones that you can't get."

Rico squeezed Max to him lightly, and pressed a kiss onto the crown of his head as the rest of the room dissolved around them. He kept his nose buried in Max's fluffy blond hair, closing his eyes as his body moved on its own accord. They had sunk a lot of time into planning this night, down to the food and the decorations and the guest list. There had been a few arguments and a few apologies, the whispered insistence that they just wanted everything to be perfect. Now, with just the warmth from the lights and the music and the boneless weight of Max in his arms—the rest of the world having fallen to the wayside, even for just a few short minutes—Rico though that this was perfect, because it meant that he ans Max were each other's forever, and their bond would only continue to strengthen from here.