by Liv Rider
Thomas squeezed his hand. “They sound like assholes.”
He blinked, letting out a surprised laugh. “What?”
Thomas looked angry. “Your family. Your friends. They sound like assholes.”
Joel stared at him. “They’re shifters.” Thomas was supposed to take their side. That was how it worked.
“Yes, asshole shifters. They should never have treated you differently from anyone else in town.”
Tears threatened to well up in his eyes again, not from anger or frustration, but from relief. Whenever he’d told friends or colleagues at the café about how his parents had treated him, leaving out the shifter side of the story, most of them had said the same thing. That they were assholes and Joel was right to leave town. The support had definitely helped, but it wasn’t the same.
Now Thomas was saying it, and he was a shifter himself. He was a Keeper of the Peace. If he said that his parents had been wrong, they really were. The whole of Barnhill had been wrong. Joel wasn’t alone.
He looked down at their hands again, blinking to keep the tears from falling. He didn’t want to cry, not in front of Thomas. He focused on his breathing, trying to keep it slow and steady, and on the warmth of Thomas’ hand.
“Joel?” Thomas sounded concerned. “Hey, are you all right? Look, I’m sorry, it’s none of my business. We don’t need to talk about this, I was just—”
“It’s fine.” His voice trembled. It wasn’t Thomas’ fault. He’d brought it up himself. “It’s fine.”
“It is not fine!”
The anger in Thomas’ voice made Joel tense up. What had he done wrong?
Both of Thomas’ hands wrapped around his own now. “Joel, can you look at me?”
He raised his head to see anger simmer in Thomas’ bright eyes.
“What you just said… that should never have happened to you. If I scared you just then, I’m sorry.”
“It’s fine,” he mumbled, and that made Thomas grimace.
“It shouldn’t be.” Thomas took a deep breath, looking down at their hands before meeting Joel’s eyes again. “This isn’t how I imagined this was going to go.”
“Neither did I.” Joel smiled a little, even though he still felt on edge.
They sat in silence for a while, then Thomas frowned. “Wait, you thought I wanted to talk about this on Saturday, right? Why?”
“I, uh, when I left Barnhill and moved here, my parents kept calling me and telling me to come back home. I assumed they were looking for me in other ways too, you know, contacting nearby towns and spreading the word. That was why I avoided shifters as much as possible. I thought maybe you recognized me.”
“When I asked about wolves, you thought I was asking about your parents.”
“Exactly. I figured you wanted to be certain who I was before taking action.” It was easier to talk about that than about how he’d been treated years ago.
“You thought I was going to tell your parents. Get you sent back.” Thomas let out a deep breath. “No wonder you freaked out.”
He was glad Thomas understood that without him having to explain any further. “Yeah, I didn’t know why else you’d want to talk me.”
“Right, yes, of course you wouldn’t know.” Thomas looked uncertain for a moment and Joel wondered why. He hoped Thomas would now explain why he’d been so interested in Joel. “We should have dinner.”
Joel hadn’t expected him to say that. “What?”
“Dinner. We have a lot to talk about. There are some things I should probably tell you too and I need to think before I do anything.”
That made Joel feel more confused. “What do you mean, before you do anything?” And what did Thomas want to tell him?
Thomas sighed while squeezing his hand. “I want to tell you, but I don’t think right now’s the time. I mean, it’s obvious that what you just told me was hard for you. So, tonight, let’s have dinner. You can tell me more about Barnhill if you want.” Thomas gave him a significant look, letting him know that was entirely up to him. “Or we can talk about anything else. Work. The weather.”
It sounded wonderful and Joel definitely wanted to have dinner with him. He wanted to spend more time with Thomas, especially if it involved more hand-holding, but he wondered what Thomas had on his mind. “But not the things you just said you should tell me about?”
“What I need to tell you can wait. It’s nothing bad and has nothing to do you having left your hometown. But having two serious, heavy conversations in one day might be a bit much.”
“Fair enough.” He could understand Thomas not wanting another conversation where Joel was on the verge of tears half the time, but he remained worried. Did Thomas have issues because of his own past too? “What time do you want to have dinner? And where?”
“Oh, uh, I guess you’d prefer a human-run restaurant, right? I only really know the shifter ones… But that’ll give me a chance to try something new!”
Joel was glad Thomas didn’t push for a shifter-friendly place. “What kind of food do you like?”
Thomas insisted he liked everything. Joel was sure that wasn’t entirely true, and eventually they agreed to meet at an Italian restaurant a few blocks away from Hampton’s Café. It was strange to leave the park and part ways with Thomas knowing that in only a few hours he’d see him again. As he walked home, he missed the gentle touch of Thomas’ hand. He was exhausted both from work and telling Thomas about his youth, but rather than wanting to collapse on his couch, he counted the minutes until he could see the other man again.
6
Thomas
He had thought of a lot of ways his conversation with Joel could go, but not in a million years had he expected this. His dragon was burning with anger and rage, wanting to go over to Barnhill right now.
We should burn the town. We should turn his parents’ house to ash.
How could anyone turn their back on their own child like Joel’s parents had? He knew some shifters looked down on fellow shifters who had relationships with humans and kids who didn’t shift. He could imagine that in a shifter-only town there were plenty of shifters who were like that. But for parents to feel that way about their own child was something Thomas couldn’t imagine. He had met several couples who had moved to Lewiston to get away from towns like Barnhill, but in all cases the shifter had been fiercely protective of their human partner and kids.
It made sense Joel had avoided shifters ever since and that he’d been scared around Thomas. He had been waiting for the other shoe to drop the entire time.
He wondered if Joel had been right to worry so much about his parents or someone else from Barnhill tracking him down. He didn’t doubt that Joel’s parents had contacted him, but would they have contacted other councils? Would they have bothered reaching out as far as Lewiston?
When he got back to his own apartment, he decided to look into the records. As Keeper of the Peace, he had access to a lot of information. If Joel’s parents had formally contacted the shifter council in his district, there would be a report. How long had Joel said it had been? Four years? He was in his early twenties, so it couldn’t be much longer than that.
As he sat in his favorite chair by the window, laptop in his lap and about to log in, he wondered if Joel would want him to look into it. He looked out the window, at the streets below. His apartment was on one of the top floors of the building and the view was one of the reasons he liked it so much. As a dragon shifter, he liked being high up, and being able to see everything. It gave him a sense of security and control, like he was literally keeping an eye on his district.
But he couldn’t keep an eye on Joel. He didn’t know where his mate lived. They hadn’t even exchanged phone numbers yet.
There was still so much they had to discuss.
Thomas logged in, thinking about how Joel would feel. Joel didn’t know they were mates, and still didn’t know why Thomas was so eager to be with him.
He told himself that he’d just check if ther
e was anything related to Barnhill. He wouldn’t look at the report and he would tell Joel about it. Then Joel could decide if he wanted to know what was in it.
As he searched the council’s website, he steeled himself and hoped he’d have the self-control needed not to click on the report. He already needed most of his self-control to keep himself from shifting and flying to Barnhill. His dragon was still furious with everyone in Barnhill for the way they had treated Joel, but also with letting Joel go home by himself. Our mate should never be alone ever again!
Thomas definitely wanted to be there for Joel and hoped tonight would bring them closer.
He got a couple of results for ‘Barnhill’, but none that involved Joel from what he could see. There were annual updates from the local Keeper of the Peace, and a few reports on conflicts between shifters from Barnhill and some other neighboring town, but that was it. Going by the results, Barnhill was just another small, shifter-only town that was quiet and had a council that resolved most issues by themselves.
Thomas kept scrolling, thinking there had to be something. Joel had been avoiding shifters for years. He wouldn’t do that without a good reason.
Unless the reason was simple. All of Joel’s experiences with shifters had been bad, so why would Lewiston be any different?
Thomas’ heart broke for his mate again, while his dragon’s rage burned hotter.
He remembered Joel’s quiet ‘they’re shifters’ after Thomas had called his family assholes. He’d been so worried his remark had been pushing it that he hadn’t thought about Joel’s response.
Joel thought his treatment was normal for shifters. That he would get more of the same if he hung around shifters in Lewiston.
Thomas hissed in anger. If he ever laid eyes on Joel’s parents, the council, or even the Keeper of the Peace over there…
He took a deep breath. No, he had to focus on Joel first. He would prove to Joel that his family was the exception, not the norm. He would prove that shifters could be friendly. Not just himself, of course, but he could introduce Joel to other shifters if he wanted. He could ask Mitchell and Parker how they felt.
Okay, meeting Parker wouldn’t exactly convince Joel that shifters could be warm and friendly towards humans, but Thomas would be friendly enough for the both of them.
Oh, he wanted to be very friendly with Joel. He wanted to make him feel special and make sure he knew he’d never have to be alone again. He had wanted to wrap his arms around Joel in the park, but had settled for holding his hands. Joel had been so open with him. Thomas felt bad not telling him about being mates, but it would be too soon. Joel was human, so he didn’t feel the connection as strongly as Thomas did. He hoped Joel at least knew about the mating bond and being true mates. You couldn’t live in a shifter-only town and not have heard about it.
There was only one way to find out, but tonight, he would not bring up shifter-related matters again. Not unless Joel did.
He was ten minutes early and waiting outside the Italian restaurant, certain the staff inside had spotted him already. It wasn’t a restaurant he’d been to before, but the smells that came wafting through whenever the door opened were promising.
He grabbed his phone so he could pretend to do something. There were a few messages from Mitchell and Parker, both his friends asking how things were going. Parker had only sent one message, brief and to the point. Mitchell had sent several, and one them was a list of good restaurants in case Joel agreed to get something to eat. The name of the restaurant they were at wasn’t on there. Well, Mitchell didn’t know everything, and maybe Thomas could be the one to recommend him a restaurant for a change.
After sending both of them a message that things were fine with his mate and that they were about to have dinner, he went back to looking at the menu beside the door and trying to ignore his growing nerves. What if Joel didn’t show up? What if his fears got the best of him?
What if he didn’t like Thomas?
Even his dragon, usually so confident and sure, shrank in on itself.
No, they were true mates. Even if Joel was human, he had to feel an attraction. Tonight would be fine. They would talk and get to know each other. Maybe if things went well Thomas could invite Joel back to his apartment or the other way around, and then maybe Thomas could do more than hold Joel’s hands reassuringly.
He was just thinking about how good it would feel to hold Joel in his arms when his dragon perked up. He’s here!
Thomas whirled around, but he couldn’t see his mate anywhere. He could smell him, though. Delicious and sweet, so much like a wolf shifter and yet not. His scent was coming closer and Thomas was pretty much bouncing on his feet with impatience when Joel turned the corner.
“Hey.” Joel smiled shyly as he looked at Thomas. “Am I late?”
“No, I only just got here myself,” he lied and checked his phone for the time. Joel was a few minutes early.
“Good.” Joel ran a hand through his short, brown hair. Thomas could smell the citrus from his shampoo that hid some of his natural scent. “Shall we go in?”
The restaurant was pleasantly busy, and they were seated in one of the corners. A waitress handed them their menus, took their drink orders, and then left.
“Do you want a starter?” Joel asked.
“Um,” Thomas replied, thinking about how his appetite had to be bigger than Joel’s. “Do you want one? I’m fine either way.”
“I usually just go for a pizza and dessert here. I mean, those are the best courses. Their tiramisu is awesome.”
“Let’s do that, then.” Thomas glanced at the starters. There was nothing he really wanted to try. While he’d looked at the menu while waiting, he’d been so busy thinking about Joel that he hadn’t actually taken anything in. “You recommended the pizza here?”
“Yeah, they’re good, although I pretty much always order the same one.” Joel gave him a little smile, looking almost embarrassed.
“There’s a couple of places I order take-out from where I always have the same thing. Have you ever told yourself that you’re going to try something new this time, and then no, you end up ordering the same as last time?”
“Oh, way too often.” Joel’s smile grew and he shook his head at himself.
Thomas was glad to see Joel looking more at ease. His eyes lit up when he smiled and Thomas could look at him forever.
They went back to browsing the menu, although Joel muttered that it was pointless for him, since he knew what he wanted anyway.
It took him some effort to tear his eyes away from Joel and focus on the words in front of him. He skipped the vegetarian options and decided he’d go for the chicken barbecue pizza. You couldn’t go wrong with that. Joel ordered the funghi and they sat in silence once their menus were taken away.
Thomas took a sip from his beer, wondering what he should talk about now. “You eat here often?”
Joel nodded as he leaned forward. He seemed eager to break the silence too. “I’ve been a few times with colleagues. You know how it is, it’s the end of a shift and no one wants to go home and cook for themselves…”
“We usually go for take-out,” Thomas replied, thinking about council meetings that went on for too long.
“We?”
“My colleagues.” Dammit, should he say he was the Keeper of the Peace of the district? Joel would know what it meant, and it was only fair to tell him something after how he’d opened up about himself. “From the council,” he added, lowering his voice.
“Ah, of course! Sorry, it’s just weird to think of a council doing something as normal as ordering take-out.” Joel was smiling, but his mouth was strained. He was obviously thinking about the Barnhill council.
“We do plenty of normal things.” He should just tell Joel about his own job now, then he could change the subject to something more fun. “Although I’m not technically part of the council. I’m Keeper of the Peace.”
“Yeah, I know.”
That wasn’t the reacti
on he’d expected at all. “You do?”
Joel leaned forward, gesturing for Thomas to do the same.
Thomas didn’t need much convincing. “What do you mean?” Joel’s face was so close, his skin warm in the light of the candles and the soft lighting of the restaurant. He was close enough to kiss.
Joel licked his lips, which didn’t help Thomas’ urge to lean even closer at all. “I mean I did some research when I moved here. I looked up who was in the council, where you met, regular places used for events… and I looked up who the Keeper of the Peace was. I kept up with that information. So, when you introduced yourself on Saturday…” Joel shrugged, and leaned back. He picked up his own beer, not looking at Thomas.
“You already knew who I was.” He was surprised Joel had managed to find out so much. The websites of the shifter council and related matters were difficult to find, but then Joel had the advantage of having a shifter background even if he wasn’t a shifter himself. “That’s why you thought I wanted to talk to you about your parents and sending you back there.”
If there had been a report and he’d spotted a runaway shifter, it definitely would’ve been his job to talk to them, but he would never send someone somewhere they didn’t want to be. Knowing Joel thought that was part of Thomas’ job hurt. What kind of Keeper did they have in Barnhill?
Joel shrugged again. “And why I was surprised when you said it was none of your business.”
“Oh.” Right now it was definitely Thomas’ turn to be surprised. “Right.”
Joel fiddled with his coaster. “Maybe I should’ve mentioned it this afternoon.”
“No, it’s fine. I was just surprised. I didn’t think you would’ve found out on your own.”
