Title: Love's Perfect Ache
Genre: Dark and twisted romance
Rating: M- rough sex, reference to childhood abuse
Pairing: Embry/Paul
Words: 1600

Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended.

AN: This was a drabble I wrote and decided to expand. This an AU of my Paul in Delinquent, so he's a little fucked up. Basically, both of these boys grew up with no outside influence from Charlie, so Embry has issues of his own, too. This is raw, and a little questionable. I don't condemn or condone their behavior- it is what it is.

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Love's Perfect Ache

He slipped out the back door once the pack meeting was over, his absence going wholly unnoticed by his more boisterous brothers. There was only one wolf who never failed to see him.

The storm had tapered off to a light drizzle, the cool moisture soothing to his overheated skin as he jogged silently through the trees. He let the stress and worries melt away with the cleansing rain, mentally resetting himself to be prepared for his volatile lover.

The house was dark, but the heartbeat he knew better than his own was thumping sluggishly on the other side of the door. Taking one last deep breath of the fresh air, he turned the knob and stepped carefully over the threshold.

"Didn't your momma teach you to knock?" The words were growled menacingly into the darkness, but the shiver Embry felt had nothing to do with fear. His mouth tipped up in a half smile at the question—the only thing Embry's mother taught him was how to catch a man's attention, something she would beat him bloody for if she knew how well those unintentional lessons paid off. Embry had snagged La Push's biggest manwhore after all.

With silent steps, he crossed the familiar room and stopped in front of his lover—his mate—waiting patiently for his reaction. Paul allowed Embry to stand higher than him for less than a minute, before pulling him down on his lap with another low growl.

The older wolf looked slightly sheepish when the smaller boy reached out to pry the nearly-empty bottle of moonshine from his lightly trembling fingers. Embry tipped the bottle back for the last few swallows, then tossed it gently aside.

Without his crutch in hand, Paul turned the full force of his attention to the boy on his lap. Embry leaned forward with a knowing smile, moving his lips toward Paul's before ducking at the last minute to gently nip the older boy's sculpted jaw in a calculated lupine gesture.

Paul stood abruptly with a harsh snarl, lifting Embry up, and kicking the table out of the way. He laid Embry down on the plush rug he'd bought for this reason, and covered the smaller boy's body with his own.

Embry threw his head back, exposing his neck and giving the complete submission that he knew his mate so desperately needed. Paul's teeth found purchase in the strained tendon of Embry's neck, as his nose filled with the scent he knew was his.

Thrusting his fingers into Embry's silky hair, Paul took possession of his mouth with a fierce clash of teeth and lips. Completely at his mercy, Embry writhed against the firm body holding him down as strong hands roamed his body, ripping his clothes and bruising his flesh. He was the absolute center of Paul's world, and he was in heaven.

With a loud gasp, Paul suddenly pulled away and sat back on his heels, covering his face in shame. He'd done it again. He'd let his inner demons get away from him, and he'd taken out his rage on his mate.

"Hey, don't do that." Embry's quiet voice was a soothing balm, and the gentle kisses he rained all over Paul's face and hands were healing in their own way. "I love you. I accept you—all of you. Don't you ever tame your demons."

Paul dropped his hands slowly, reaching out to pull Embry into his arms, taking special care not to squeeze him too tightly. Embry sighed and tucked his face against Paul's neck, immersing himself in his dominant mate. "I love you." He breathed the words against Paul's skin, quietly reaffirming his vow.

His lover snorted in derision as he rose and moved toward the bedroom, his smooth stride unaffected by the alcohol still warming his hot blood. "I know. You have to be crazy to put up with me, but I know you want me—for whatever strange reason."

Paul never broke stride as he carried the only person he had ever cared about back to his small, cramped bedroom. He'd shredded his childhood bed not long after his first phase, but had replaced it with a California king mattress that took up a majority of the limited square footage. This was where he tossed Embry down none too gently, before stripping off his own shorts and fisting his cock as he stared down at his panting imprint.

"Please," Embry begged, his hands tangled in his hair as he writhed on the bare mattress. He turned his head to the side, his sensitive nose seeking out the embedded scent of his lover. Paul snarled and dove forward, wrapping one hand around Embry's throat as his other hand landed further south.

Embry melted at his fierce touch, meeting his violent kiss with a passionate, yet still submissive tongue. Paul's calloused fingers moved deftly, grabbing the lube to prepare his lover, before he sat up on his knees and hauled Embry's hips into his lap.

"You're mine," he snarled, waiting for Embry to meet his glowing eyes before he thrust into him with one long stroke. "Only mine."

Paul took up a punishing rhythm, pounding into his helpless mate in a unbridled effort to bring them both to completion. Embry's hands scrabbled for purchase as he was jolted back and forth, all thoughts fleeing as Paul took over his entire focus.

Needing more, Paul pulled out abruptly and flipped Embry over on his stomach. When the younger boy attempted to push up on his hands and knees, Paul pushed him back flat on the mattress, draping his own body over Embry's, covering him—and in Embry's mind, sheltering him.

Paul nudged Embry's legs apart, shuffling down to line up their bodies. He reached forward and twined their hands above Embry's head as he joined himself to his lover once more. "Hang on tight, boy. It's gonna get rough."

Embry shuddered at the danger in Paul's voice—the hint of his wolf coming out to play. He loved it when Paul dominated him so completely. Giving control to his mate was one of the few things that made Embry Call happy.

None of the other wolves understood their rather unique relationship, and they all tended to lay the majority of the blame at Paul's feet. No one could see the subtle ways Embry manipulated Paul to get what he wanted—what they both needed. He was no victim.

A stinging slap to the side of his ass brought his wandering attention back to the moment. Paul had shifted his hold, capturing both of Embry's wrists in one massive fist as the other hand delivered his punishment.

"Where were you?" Paul snarled the words against Embry's neck, his teeth dancing at the edge of breaking the skin. "You weren't thinking of me."

Embry groaned and pushed back against Paul's violent thrusts. "Always," he panted, "always thinking of you."

Paul growled in irritation, not totally convinced though he could smell that Embry was being truthful. He increased his movements, both in frequency and power, until his imprint could do nothing but beg for release.

With a slight shift in position, Paul hammered Embry's prostate, quickly sending the boy over the edge with a blissful wail. "Paul!"

Trying in vain to hold off his own climax, Paul continued to thrust until the intense tightening of Embry's body finally pulled him under. His teeth sliced into his lover's neck, the sharp taste of blood sating his beast for the time being. He collapsed down, letting his full weight fall on Embry as they both fought to catch their breath.

Once Paul began bathing the bite with lazy strokes of his tongue, Embry ventured the question. "Why did you skip the meeting today? Jake was royally pissed."

Paul shifted over, allowing Embry to turn and face him. The contented smile on his face made Paul's wolf preen even as the man worried. "Did the baby alpha give you a hard time? His little bitch is the one sticking her nose where it doesn't belong."

Embry smirked as he ran his hand over Paul's sculpted stomach, dipping slightly lower with each slow pass. "What did Bella do now?"

A look of regret passed over Paul's face as he traced a quickly-fading bruise on Embry's arm. He didn't actually want to hurt his mate—it just always seemed to happen. "She was yelling at me for beating you," he finally whispered, his mouth twisting with disgust at the accusation, unable to meet his lover's eyes.

Embry hid a smile as he tucked his face against Paul's ribs. A small part of him was touched by her well-meaning—if unnecessary—concern. But he had to reassure his mate. "I think if there's one thing you and I know, it's what a beating is."

His hand drifted lightly over the assorted scars of Paul's childhood that he could see—a particularly deep cigarette burn, the half-moon of a broken beer bottle. He knew the worst marks littered the broad expanse of Paul's muscular back. Embry's wolf rose up at the thought of a much younger, smaller Paul curled up in a ball as his father's belt fell again and again. Though he knew the act haunted his lover, he was glad Paul had killed Tommy Lahote the first time he phased.

Shaking off those morbid thoughts, Embry shivered when Paul traced a few old scars of his own. He felt Paul's lips drift over them softly, almost apologetically.

"Don't worry Paul. You can't hurt what's already broken."