by Cree Storm
Yes, Nelson was the oldest and a caregiver at heart, and Toby was next in line and did the best he could to watch over everyone and take care of them, especially when they thought Nelson was dead, but Pas was always watching out for them as well. He cooked and cleaned, as well as kept tabs on Ollie and kept him from getting into trouble, which was a full-time job most of the time. And even though Nelson and Toby looked after them, he was the one who toke care of everyone if they were hurt, or not feeling good. Not that shifters got sick, but if his brothers were stressed or sad, Pas was always there to give them whatever they needed, and most of the time he didn’t think of himself or his own needs.
Pas always wanted someone to do all those things for him. Someone he could turn to for comfort and support when things were tough. Not that he wanted someone to do everything for him and he just be a lazy butt, he would take care of and cherish his mate too, but he longed for someone to call his own who would put him first. Someone to catch him if he fell.
That thought brought him back to the present. Zen had caught him. Zen was his knight in shining armor, his strong place to land, his mate. Gods, fate was so good to him. Excitement filled him, as well as fear of losing his mate. Maybe Zen wouldn’t want him? He was so much smaller than the gorgeous man, and his breed would be too much trouble for most to want to deal with. He couldn’t lose his mate now that he’d just found him.
Panic filled Pas and suddenly without realizing what he was doing, he struck. Pas felt his claws extend from his fingers and his sharp teeth drop from his gums. Pas quickly leaned in and scratched Zen’s side with his claws at the same time he sunk his teeth in the gorgeous mans neck. Luxuriating in the taste of Zen’s blood as it washed over his tongue and filled his mouth.
In the back of his mind was a flash of something trying to talk to him, but Pas was lost in bliss. Zen, his mate, smelled so damn good and Pascal just wanted to bath in that scent, but it was nothing compared to Zen’s taste. His blood was so rich and warm, a bit salty but sweet. It was the best ambrosia he could ever imagine.
He felt strong arms flex around him as they drew him in closer, pressing him against a wide, hard chest. A large hand slid from under his thighs and grabbed his ass, shocking Pas how practically his whole tush fit in the palm of one hand. His body lit on fire from the pleasure, desire, and contentment that filled him, and Pas never wanted the moment to end. Maybe he should call Timmy and ask him to come and freeze him and Zen in this moment for all time.
A deep, guttural moan reached his ears, and he could feel the vibration in his chest. At the same time a little voice inside his head said no. Pas was pissed at the voice. How dare it tell him no when he was claiming his mate. But then realization dawned and Pas was filled with shame, horror, and remorse. What had he done?
* * * *
When Zen had walked into the office and saw no one around he had thought about leaving the envelope on the desk that was piled high with paperwork, but then thought maybe he should wait for someone and hand deliver it, knowing how important it was to Rhys. As he stood waiting, he heard a sweet voice humming one of his favorite songs, “What’s Going On” by 4 Non Blondes.
Zen moved to the opening of an alcove off to the side and his breath caught when he saw the sexy man standing on a ladder watering plants. He smiled as he watched the little cutie shaking his tight little ass as he belted out the chorus as if no one were watching. His pretty brown and white hair swishing against his shoulders as he moved. Zen stared at that hair thinking how unique it was to have one side of your head brown and the other white, but those locks sure did look silky. The sight filled him with happiness, but also filled his cock. His jeans became tight as he watched the gorgeous creature, and Zen was afraid he would have zipper marks on his shaft. His cock throbbed as his gaze zeroed in on the swaying ass before him.
Zen just couldn’t help it and found himself starting to softly hum along with the song as he moved closer. Then without thinking, he opened his mouth and sang along. “Scream from the top of my lungs, what’s going on?”
The little man standing on the ladder only a few feet from him now, jumped in surprise and fell backward, arms flailing as he dropped the watering can, and Zen quickly closed the last two feet separating them and caught the man. Water rained down on both of them, soaking their shirts, and flattening their hair, but Zen couldn’t care less.
Their eyes met, and Zen found himself sinking into the most stunning chocolate brown eyes he had ever seen, framed by gorgeous long lashes that were now stuck together, and wet hair plastered around a pretty face. The realization of who this was stopped his heart, but excited Zen at the same time. This beautiful man in his arms was the one they called Pascal. He had never formally met him, or even been close to him, but Zen had see him once or twice at the club from a distance, and Zen had found himself mesmerized by his beauty.
The little Santorini fox was exactly what Zen always found sexy in a man. He was small, petite really, but still all man. Pascal was perfectly toned, but not bulging with muscle like he was, and his body was tight.
Zen had also noticed on those brief encounters that Pascal seemed shy and sweet, which also called out to him. He was a caregiver at heart, and loved to help others and take care of them. Zen always wished that if the day came that fate blessed him with finding his mate, that his mate would be built just like the Santorini fox, and that the man would be sweet and kind, and not be insulted when Zen wanted to take care of him. He didn’t want to be a pest to his mate or a keeper, he just wanted to care for him, make him happy, and let his mate know that he was loved.
And Zen knew he would love his mate when he found him. He knew he would never disrespect what fate made just for him, and that he would treasure his mate until his dying breath. Even beyond that.
His parents weren’t true mates. It was rare for paranormals to find their true mates, even though lately it seemed that so many were finding one another. Probably had to do with all the paranormals finally coming together, thanks to the dragons and phoenix ending their feud and joining their two species again for the greater good.
Seeing as they couldn’t find their mates, most paranormals just did as the humans and found someone to love and made a life together. His father told him that he and his mother hadn’t been mates, hell they hadn’t even been married or bonded, but they did have a relationship. His dad was an African Elephant shifter, just like him, seeing as most shifters took after their father’s breed, but his mom, Lucinda, was a dragon.
His father had told him stories of how they met at a barn raising one night and had a fling. His dad had fallen in love with Lucinda, but she always kept a part of herself back from him. They had been dating, or whatever you called it two hundred years ago, for a few months, but his dad wanted more. Suddenly,one day Lucinda came to him and told him that she was pregnant, which thrilled his father. He said he always wanted to be a dad. But when he asked Lucinda to marry him and bond with him, she refused. She said she didn’t want to tie either of them down in case one of their true mates came along, but his dad got the feeling there was more to it than that.
After he was born his dad took care of him most of the time, and his mom came and went. And when she was around, she wasn’t very motherly. She never showed him any love, and the kindness she rarely showed him was more for his father's benefit. Then one day he remembered her coming into their barn where he was, screaming about how she had to stop someone from finding out about him.
That was the worst day of his life. The day that changed everything. He was five years old and had been sitting in the barn waiting for his dad who was out in the field untethering the horse from the plow. He sat quietly whittling a stick with a small knife his dad had gotten him, when Lucinda, his mother, came rushing in yelling. He had been so scared and started crying, which only made her angrier. She yelled how he was coming and she had to stop him from finding them. She then picked him up and brought him to the back of the barn, throwing him onto a pile
of hay.
Ripping the oil lamp off the post where his father had left it lit so that he could see when he brought the horse back in, Lucinda stood over him and threw the lamp down onto the floor, where it shattered and all the oil splattered out and the flame caught the hay on fire.
Zen had tried to scramble away but he didn’t get far and hit the barn wall. He covered his head with his arms and tucked his chin into his chest as he turned his back to the flames and pressed in against the wooden surface. His heart pounded as terror gripped him. What had he done that was so wrong that his own mother would want to do this to him? She hadn’t been much of a mother to begin with, but what she was doing was the worst thing he could imagine a mother could do to her own child.
Fire raced over his back, burning, as he heard skin begin to sizzle. Then the rancid stench of flesh burning engulfed him and all the fear inside burst out and he began to scream. Suddenly something hit him hard from behind again and again, then strong arms picked him up.
The flames were gone. His father had heard his cries and came running. He grabbed a blanket from the nearest stall and used it to put out the fire on Zen’s back. Once he had Zen safely in his arms, his father turned to his mother as she screamed at him for putting out the fire.
Everything happened so fast after that, and his little body was in too much pain to know what was going on, but he still had flashes of memories of that day and of his dad screaming at her about being sick and how she needed to stay the hell away from them. Lucinda kept going on about if he found out he would cut them both to pieces. Zen didn’t know who she was talking about.
His dad hurried around her and grabbed the reins of the horse. Somehow, he swung them both onto the animal’s back and placed Zen in his lap, then took off away from the barn at top speed. That was the last time he had seen Lucinda.
After they left the barn his dad got him to the doctor in the next town over, afraid that if he had gone to their local doctor that Lucinda would follow. It had taken his dad a day and a half to get him there and the ride was torture, but once they made it, the doctor had taken care of him.
After months of healing, there was nothing much else the doctor could do for him and Zen was left with a back full of twisted, melted flesh that wasn’t pretty, but he was alive. While he recovered, his dad had gone back to their village and sold their farm to his brother. His father's family owned most of the town they came from, so it wasn’t hard for him to get top dollar for it. Then once Zen was back on his feet, his dad moved them far away from there so that Lucinda would never find them. That’s how they ended up in Maddox.
When he was older his dad had told him that it wasn’t until Zen was about three that he found out the Lucinda was actually mated to another man. Not her true mate, but they had bonded so they were as good as married, and that all the years he was with Lucinda he never knew that he was the other man and that their relationship was an affair. Once he did find out was when he told Lucinda he didn’t want to see her anymore.
She did come around a time or two pleading to see Zen, saying he was her son, but once his dad let her in, she never really paid him no mind, she just tried to get his dad into bed. Going to Maddox was to keep not only him safe, but his dad. From what he found out, Lucinda’s husband was a mean bastard who had no problem killing anyone that touched his wife, and if the man found out that she had an affair that lasted years, and there was a child born of that indiscretion, his dad had no doubts that Lucinda’s husband would kill them both.
CHAPTER 3
The scent of jasmine and sage washed over him, bringing Zen back from his thoughts, but now filled him with a sense of peace. He felt like he was floating and his knees were in danger of buckling, bringing him crashing to the hard floor, but he didn’t care. All he cared about was the beautiful creature in his arms, his mate. He remembered them both saying the word at the same time, then suddenly his past came crashing down on him as he thought how his mate would never want him.
His back had never healed fully, even when he shifted for the first time when he was a teen like his father had always hoped it would. No, the damage had been done at such an early age. Too many before his first shift for it to make a difference. So, now he was stuck with the scars from that horrible day. On the rare occasion he had taken a lover in his two-hundred years of life, Zen had only removed his shirt once, and that had been a mistake. The man took one look at it and was so repulsed he quickly made an excuse and left so fast Zen was surprised he didn’t leave skid marks behind. He never removed his shirt again around others.
But this was his mate in his arms. The one that fate had made just for him. Surely, he would be safe with Pascal? Zen had always been told a mate was different and would love him for who he was.
The euphoric feeling had him wanting to stay in this moment forever, with his mate in his arms as he took sustenance from Zen. But his mate wasn’t a vampire so he didn’t need Zen’s blood to live, which meant...Shit, his mate had claimed him with a bite and would now be stuck with him forever. What if Pascal got a look at his back and decided he couldn’t be with Zen because it was just too gross and disgusting?
Damn it! That’s why he was feeling so lightheaded and peaceful. It was his mate’s bite. But even though it felt wonderful, it couldn’t bind them together, right? Zen had always heard the bite was supposed to be during sex to bind them together and claim.
Suddenly his little mate stiffened, then pulled back, gently releasing him. Pascal looked down as if afraid, but Zen caught the look in his eyes before he hid them and the shame he saw within those pretty eyes broke his heart.
“What’s wrong, little one? Why do you look so sad?” Zen asked.
“I’m so sorry. I should never have just bitten and scratched you like that and taken away your choice of if you wanted to mate me. I didn’t mean to and I’m so sorry,” Pascal cried, his voice sounded defeated.
“I’m not mad at you, sweet pea. I’m not even sure if the mating bond takes without sex, so you didn’t take my choice away.”
“But I scratched you, too. And that’s how a Santorini fox mates. They don’t need sex, but the scratch and the bite does it. I am so sorry,” Pas apologized again and wiggled to get out of Zen’s arms.
Zen hesitantly released Pas, making sure he had his footing before he let go and took a step back. “If it makes you feel any better, I don’t think it fully took because I haven’t claimed you,” Zen said trying to comfort his little man.
Pascal’s head snapped up and their eyes met again, but this time Pascal’s were full of sadness and tears. His bottom lip began to tremble and Zen just wanted his mate back in his arms. “You don’t want me,” Pas whispered as a statement, not a question.
“What?” Zen exclaimed and took the step forward that separated them. “Of course, I want you. You’re beautiful and sexy and sweet and Gods, you smell so good. Who wouldn’t want someone as wonderful as you? I’m just not sure you would want to be stuck with someone like me.”
Pascal looked at him with confusion in his eyes. “What do you mean? Why wouldn’t I want you? You’re fucking gorgeous. You’re so big and strong and you have such pretty eyes and hair, and you also smell like the best thing I have ever smelled. And I know how nice you are just from what people have said about you. Everyone always talks about how wonderful you are. And...and fate made you just for me. That’s the way it’s supposed to be. We were made for each other. I know I’m not big like you, or even strong, but maybe we should trust in fate, that she got this right?”
Zen reached out and placed a hand on Pascal’s hip as he looked deep into his eyes. “I’ve heard only good things about you, too, mate and I don’t want to lose you. I don’t doubt fate’s blessings or her wisdom. I just hope that I’m not a disappointment to you.”
Pascal’s eyes went wide as he shook his head frantically. He stepped into Zen and placed his hands flat on Zen’s chest. Zen could almost feel the sizzle of desire from his mate’s hands as his
body lit up. He wanted to pull the little fox against him hard and kiss his lips. Zen’s gaze dropped to those plump, pink lips and wanted to beg to taste them. Pascal’s frantic words, brought him back again and he looked up, meeting his mate’s gaze. “No, Zen. How could you be a disappointment to me? You’re my mate, and you’re everything I have always dreamed my mate would be.”
“Oh lord, this is just too much,” Ollie hissed from the doorway. “You’re both so damn nice and sweet it’s giving me a fucking toothache. Don’t either of you hear each other? Zen, Pas likes you. Not only does he like you, he lusts after you and wants you to bow chicka wow wow with him. And Pas, Zen wants you just as much if that yardstick in his pants is any indication. But if I were you, I would invest in a lube company because da-amn brother, that thing is fucking huge and will most likely hurt so good, you lucky fuck.”
Zen turned a bright shade of pink from Ollie’s words, as Pas turned red, not from embarrassment, but anger. He turned away from Zen and glared at Ollie. “Don’t you dare fucking look at my mate’s crotch, Oliver Everly,” Pas said with a deadly growl. “I know you are my brother and I love you, but if you talk like that about my mate’s penis again, I swear, I will scratch your eyes out to start. Then every week when you least expect it, I’ll do something that will remind you to shut it. Itching powder in your underwear maybe? Or a live lizard down your pants?”
