by Toni Griffin
His deep, rich voice slid over Declan's skin like warm melted chocolate, even if it did waver slightly. That surprised Declan. Why would this man be nervous?
He watched as the blond god opened the door wider and stood to the side, allowing Declan entrance into his house. Declan usually didn't enter strangers' houses naked, but after what he had been through over the last twenty-four hours he'd take a chance. Plus, anyone who smelled that good couldn't be a bad person. Right? Declan tried to convince himself as he slowly walked forward.
His muscles protested their use but he took it slow.
As he got closer to the man, the scent that had been tormenting him all day became so strong. Declan wanted to surround his body in it and roll around on the floor until completely covered. His cock throbbed again and not until he had taken his first steps into the house did his cold-addled brain finally catch up with his body and he realised exactly what it all meant.
He turned around sharply, gasping, and stared at the other man. His mate. The incredibly appealing man still standing in the back doorway was his mate.
Liam's head reeled. He never thought the day would come, especially not on a cold night in his backyard. He wondered what had caused his mate to turn up at his house naked as the day he had been born. Liam figured something happened and he'd been forced to shift. The one downside to changing form? Complete nakedness before and after shifting. Better, however, than leaving a large pile of rags as the realigning of limbs tended to rip clothing seams.
Stripping down saved getting caught up in the remnants.
Realising he'd been standing in the doorway gazing at the other man for far too long, Liam shook his head to get his brain back into working order.
Closing the door, he moved past the man. "Would you like a shower? I think the warmth will do you some good." Liam hadn't gotten around to starting a fire in his little potbelly stove yet, now he wished he had.
As soon as he saw to his mate he would get right on it. The man had started to turn a bluish purple in places.
Being out in the weather naked hadn't been good for him.
Declan blushed and another shiver racked his body.
"Thank you. That would be great."
Liam's heart skipped a beat at the first sound of his mate's voice. The light, almost musical sound made him think of warm honey.
"I'm Liam Anderson, by the way, and this is my home." He really wanted to know his mate's name and thought if he introduced himself it might entice the man to follow suit.
"Declan Morgan," his mate said with a slight smile.
"Declan. Morgan." Liam would be happy to stand there and repeat that name all day.
He would never tire of saying or hearing Declan's name. "It's a great pleasure to finally meet you. Come with me and I'll show you to the bathroom. I'll get you some sweats and a shirt for you to put on when you're finished."
"Thank you," Declan replied softly, tight lines on exhaustion marring his beautiful face.
Liam's cock throbbed painfully within the tight confines of his jeans but he made his way out of the kitchen and into the hallway making sure Declan followed. He paused and grabbed a clean towel out of the linen press and opened the door to the bathroom.
"Help yourself to anything you need. I'll be back in a sec with some warm clothes." Liam put the towel on the rack and exited the bathroom before he did something inappropriate like shove his sexy mate up against the wall and plunder his mouth like his life depended on it.
Liam walked to the end of the hallway and into his room. He collapsed onto his bed, his right arm coming up to cover his eyes, his left hand going down to thump his raging erection. He needed to control his rampant libido.
Declan had obviously been running from something otherwise they would have met like every other couple.
Fully clothed.
When Liam finally regained control of his body and his cock had softened sufficiently, he rose from the bed and searched through his closet for something that would fit the smaller man. Not finding anything, he settled for a pair of his sweats with a drawstring and one of his long sleeve shirts.
Heading back down the hall, he heard the shower running. Taking a deep breath to gather his nerves, Liam knocked once then opened the door. All the air rushed from his lungs when he saw the silhouette of his naked mate standing under the running water. The glass shower door did absolutely nothing to hide his appearance.
"Here are some clothes." Liam couldn't help the fact his voice deepened. He placed the clothes on the counter next to the sink and bolted from the room before he could strip and join his mate.
He heard a muffled 'thank you' as he quickly closed the door behind him. In his living room, Liam pulled himself together and quickly started a fire in the potbelly stove before he headed back into the kitchen to get dinner started. He'd bet his mate had to be hungry, and Liam's stomach rumbled, reminding him he hadn't eaten either.
Stabbing some extra potatoes, he put them in the oven to cook. From the fridge, he pulled out some carrots and cabbage, and grabbed a red onion from the pantry.
Halfway through grating the carrot Liam felt the air shift around him and the smell of his mate mingled with soap drifted to him.
He turned around to find Declan standing in the doorway looking shy and unsure.
Liam stopped and wiped his hands on a dish towel before walking over to face his mate. He gently caressed Declan's cheek with his fingertips.
"Do you know who I am?" he whispered.
Declan's eyes closed and he nodded.
Liam didn't miss the slightly haunted look in his mate's gaze.
Liam leant forward and placed a gentle, chaste kiss on his mate's lips before stepping back. "I'm not sure what's happened or what you're running from but I will never hurt you."
Declan gave him a jerky nod and Liam changed the subject. "Now, is there anything you need before dinner?
You can go and sit in the living room and warm up in front of the fire for a while if you'd like."
Declan seemed to hesitate for a minute before finally talking. "Um, could I—um, possibly use your, um, phone. I have to call my brother."
His man looked so sweet, standing there acting so unsure of himself.
"Of course. You can have anything you want."
Liam reached into his pocket and grabbed his phone. "The pin number is one three zero eight."
Declan's eyes went wide for a moment before he reached out and took the phone. Liam had no idea where the number came from but when he needed to enter a pin on his first bank account, those four digits stuck in his head. He used the sequence for everything now. It probably wasn't smart of him but he couldn't seem to bring himself to stop using them.
"Why don't you go into the living room where it's nice and warm and give your brother a call? Dinner should be ready in about fifteen minutes. It's nothing special, just some steak, a baked potato and some coleslaw," Liam said as he pointed the way to the living room.
Declan nodded and turned to leave the kitchen. He paused in the doorway and looked back. "Thank you."
Liam sighed. He could already tell it would be a fight to keep his hands off Declan. He licked his lips trying to gather any remaining taste of his mate that might still be lingering after the brief but wonderful kiss Liam had taken earlier.
He chuckled and got back to dinner. No matter how big or strong the wolf, they always seemed to turn to jelly as soon as a mate came into the picture. Jake Richmond from the Leyburn pack proved that last year when he visited with Rick. Now Liam figured his turn had come to follow in every other wolf's steps. He looked forward to it.
Smiling, Liam got to work; he heated the inside grill pan and put the steaks on to cook before he finished making the coleslaw.
CHAPTER 4
Declan collapsed on the couch, overwhelmed by everything that had happened to him in the last twenty-four hours. The large, deep mahogany leather sofa nearly swallowed him whole. The fire in the corner filled the room
with its warmth. Declan snuggled down into the luxurious couch, pulling the blanket from the back and covering himself.
Sighing deeply, he lifted the phone in his hand, a little rattled Liam had used his birthdate as his password.
At least he wouldn't likely forget it. Unlocking the phone, he dialled his brother's number.
The line on the other end had barely even rung once before Tommy picked up.
"Hello?" His brother's voice sounded so good.
"Tommy," Declan barely got out around the lump in his throat. He needed to get himself together.
"Dec? Oh my God, where the hell are you? No one seems to know where you disappeared to." His younger brother sounded slightly hysterical.
"Hey, kid, I'm okay. Please try and calm down. Are you there by yourself?" He desperately needed to know if the Alpha had tried to contact his brother.
"Chase and Jackson are here with me. Bro, what the hell's going on? Why did you take off like that?" Tommy asked, worry clearly evident in his voice. His brother paused a moment before continuing "And I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but after not rocking up to work today and no notification, they called earlier and said not to bother coming back."
Declan cringed, although he shouldn't have been surprised. He didn't really like his job anyway. He had been working in a factory-type setting, making large amounts of the same recipes so they could be delivered to various cafés and restaurants. Declan much preferred the smaller, more intimate feeling a bakery offered. Could be why he dreamed of owning and operating his own place.
Now with no job, he'd be hard pressed to earn the money he needed to realise his goal. But first he had to deal with the fact he'd been chased by his deranged, drug-dealing, murderous Alpha and his two Betas for witnessing them kill Nigel.
"Declan?" Tommy sounded concerned again.
Shit. He had to get his head on straight and talk to his brother. He didn't want to cause any further worry.
"Yeah I'm here, sorry. Was just thinking." Declan steadied his nerves before he continued. "Listen, kid, I need you to do something for me, okay?"
"Whatever you need, you know that." No hesitation, even after everything. Declan really loved his brother.
"Yeah, I need you to lay low for a while; please don't ask me why, it's probably best if you don't know. And please promise me if you see Alpha Wallis or either of his Betas you'll run, get out of the house and go somewhere safe." He had to be scaring the crap out of his brother but he didn't know what else to do. He needed Tommy safe.
"What the fuck's going on, Declan?" Apprehension filled Tommy's voice.
He wished he could do more to reassure Tommy.
God, why the hell did he decide to take a run after getting off work? Why couldn't he have just gone home like every other God damned night?
"I'm sorry, Tommy, but I need you to promise me.
Run if you see the Alpha or the Betas. Please." Declan would do anything if it meant keeping his brother safe.
"Okay, Dec. If I see them, I'll hightail it out of here and head over to Chase's place. Now where are you?"
Declan hesitated. He really didn't want to say anything that could cause any problems for his brother. "It's not important" he finally answered. He quickly added, "But in all this shit there is a silver lining, well at least I think there is." Declan thought of Liam and hoped to Christ he was a good thing. He hoped to distract Tommy from the fact he didn't answer his question satisfactorily.
"What do you mean it's not important? And what silver lining? I've been going out of my freaking mind with worry over you."
Declan cringed. Tommy would've been worried when he hadn't made it home last night.
"I know, and I'm sorry it's not entirely safe for me to tell you where I am." Tommy couldn't tell others what he didn't know. "And the good news, I met my mate tonight."
"What?" Tommy screeched over the phone, all traces of fear gone. "Seriously, dude? What's he like? Is he hot? Oh God, please tell me it's a he?"
Declan had sat his kid brother down years ago and told him about his sexuality. They'd had a long talk about being gay and what it meant. Their parents had been accepting of his sexuality and his brother proved no different.
Declan laughed for the first time in days. "Yes, it's a guy. And holy Jesus, Mary, and Joseph, is he hot. All big and strong with muscles that just won't quit and this tattoo I just want to lick. With everything else going on, the timing sucks, but I don't really care."
"Sounds nice, Declan. You know as well as I do that everything happens for a reason. Take a chance, bro.
You've been alone for far too long." Tommy sounded genuinely happy.
Declan sighed. He had some thinking to do but felt too exhausted to focus on anything. His stomach chose that moment to let it be known it wanted food. He felt dead on his feet and really didn't want to move. He needed rest.
"I know. Hey, I have to go. I need some sleep. I'll call you in a couple of days to check on you. Could you have one of your friends head to the pack grounds and check if my car's still there? It should have my wallet, phone, and keys in it." He hoped no one had stolen it.
"Yeah, will do. Get some rest and enjoy your mate.
I'll talk to you soon. Love ya, Dec," Tommy said.
"Thanks. I love you too, Tommy." Declan hung up the phone and sighed.
Liam hoped someday Declan loved him as much as he obviously cared about his brother. Declan lay curled up on his couch, covered from his feet right up to the base of his neck by Liam's favourite blanket. The only parts of Declan peeking from under the blanket were his head and the fingers of his hand, as he held the phone to his ear.
Liam had to bite his tongue when he walked in to hear Declan describe him to his brother. He didn't know whether to laugh or stalk across the room and kiss the man until their lungs burned from lack of oxygen.
Instead he'd waited patiently for Declan to finish his conversation. He didn't want to embarrass the other man by letting him know he'd been overheard.
Liam cleared his throat and rapped twice on the wall, hoping he would get Declan's attention. Declan started slightly and tried to cover it by sitting up, but Liam still saw it, he'd hoped to make enough noise that he wouldn't startle Declan.
"Dinner's ready," he announced casually.
"Thank you, I'll be right there." Declan's voice sounded barely more than a whisper.
"Take your time." Liam offered a friendly smile before turning and heading back into the kitchen.
Liam plated up the food and placed it on the table before going back for drinks and cutlery. Grabbing two beers from the fridge, he set them on the table and sat down. He only had to wait a moment before Declan slowly walked in and sat opposite him.
"Thank you," he said again quietly.
"You're welcome. Now eat up, you look dead on your feet." Liam cut into his steak.
Declan quietly chuckled. "I'm so tired I can barely lift my knife and fork, but I'll force myself because this smells amazing, and I'm starving."
"It's nothing special. I'll show you to the guest room as soon as we're done here."
Declan nodded in understanding but seemed too intent on his food at the moment to converse further. Liam took a long drink of his beer, trying to cool his awareness of the other wolf, before he turned back and concentrated on eating his food. Before he knew it they were both finished with dinner and Declan's eyes were drooping.
Liam picked up Declan's plate and his own and took them back into the kitchen and placed them in the sink. He'd worry about cleaning them after he settled his mate down for the night.
His mate! Liam still found it a little hard to believe he had finally met the man fated to be his. Let alone the fact he had just rocked up on his doorstep completely naked. Liam shook his head to dislodge the thoughts and images. He would be hard as stone if his kept thinking about what Declan looked like under his clothes.
After several moments, willing his body not to betray him, Liam got himself under contro
l and walked back into the dining area. Declan remained at the table, holding his half-finished beer. He looked so tired Liam thought he might fall asleep where he sat.
"Come on, Declan, let's get you tucked into bed. I don't think it's safe for you to try and stand in another shower at the moment, and I don't think either of us is ready for me to be getting in there with you to help. As much as I would love to see you all warm, wet, and naked, some other time maybe?"
Liam helped Declan stand, the smaller man turned into his side and seemed to snuggle in. Liam felt the soft laugh vibrate against his body.
"Yeah, definitely some other time," Declan said.
Liam held Declan close and they made their way down the hall to the guest room nearest Liam's bedroom.
Liam wouldn't sleep with his mate under the same roof, even if they were in separate rooms. If they couldn't share a bed yet, at least Declan would be as close as possible. Liam turned the light on when they entered the bedroom, and not too soon either. Declan's body had been getting heavier and heavier as they walked up the hall. Liam leant down and pulled the sheets back on the bed before manoeuvring Declan to sit down on the side.
Liam reached down and grabbed the hem Declan's shirt. "Up," he said quietly, not wanting to startle the nearly asleep man.
Declan's arms moved sluggishly upwards and Liam struggled a little to remove the much too large shirt. As sexy as he found his mate in his clothes, he didn't want the man to get tangled in his sleep.
The sweats on the other hand he would leave. Liam threw the shirt over the tallboy at the end of the bed.
Laying Declan down, he lifted his mate's legs and got them under the blankets. He then pulled the doona up until he completely covered his mate leaving nothing showing but his head on the pillow.
Liam tucked a stray lock of hair behind Declan's ear before he bent down and placed a quick gentle kiss on Declan's lips. "Sleep well, my mate."
Declan's hand shot out from under the blankets in a surprising show of alertness and he gripped Liam's mid-retreat. "Thank you," he whispered and squeezed Liam's fingers once before dropping back to the bed.
