“Zach tells me congratulations are in order,” Kameron said as he got up and walked toward them. Noah offered him his hand, but the alpha grinned and pulled him into a bear hug. Noah gave Duncan a helpless glance, but Duncan just smiled at him. “Gotta get used to us, hon.”
Noah hesitantly brought his hands up and patted Kameron’s back. He was obviously relieved when Kameron let go, but he was immediately engulfed in a gentler hug by Zach.
Kameron turned to Duncan and Duncan had no problems hugging his alpha back now that it was his turn.
“Congrats, Duncan. It was about time you found your own other half.”
“Tell me about it.”
Once everyone had hugged everyone and made Noah all flustered, Jago made two plates of pasta salad and they sat back at the table. They ate in silence for a bit, until Noah brought his father up.
“So, we told my father about us.”
“How did that go?” Kameron asked.
“Ah, a lot better than I thought it would. He apparently has no problems with me being gay and mated to a shifter.”
“You made it sound like an impossible thing the last time we talked.”
“It looks like I don’t know my father as well as I thought I did. He thought he was doing the right thing for me... anyway, he was surprised at the fact that I was a shifter’s mate and he’s still a bit wary, but he wants to come visit.”
“Visit?”
“The pack.”
Kameron set his fork down. “He wants to come visit pack territory.”
“Yes. I know you don’t have to say yes, but he really is interested in meeting you and other shifters. I told him you’re very different from what we thought, and I guess he wants to see it with his own eyes.”
“He probably wants to make sure you’re safe when you’re here.”
“That, too. You could talk with him about the council if he comes. I’m sure he’ll be more able than me to point out suitable candidates and convince them to meet you.”
Duncan listened as the men talked. He didn’t interfere because the council wasn’t something that concerned him directly, and concentrated on eating his meal instead. His thoughts were going a mile a minute now that he’d been accepted by Noah’s family, part of it anyway, and he couldn’t stop the questions he’d been asking himself during the past few weeks from coming back.
Noah hadn’t told his father he didn’t want to work with him in the man’s company yet, and they hadn’t talked about the house yet. Would Noah want another one? Would he want to decorate it differently?
Those were all questions he had to wait to ask, though, so he just finished eating in silence. He did the dishes once everyone was done and was relieved when it was finally time to separate from the others. He wanted his mate for himself, and not only in a sexual way.
“You’re silent tonight.”
“I know. I didn’t want to interfere with your chat.”
“I wouldn’t have minded.”
Slender arms slid around Duncan’s waist and he hugged his mate back. “Let’s go upstairs, all right?”
“Sure.”
Noah pressed a kiss on Duncan’s chest and let go, although not completely. He took one of Duncan’s hands in his and pulled him up the stairs, as if he was afraid Duncan would make a run for it before they had the time to be alone.
Noah let go only once they were in Duncan’s room. “Come on, spill it. What’s wrong?”
Duncan took his shirt and dress pants off and flopped on the bed. He stretched, happy to be able to take off the stuffy clothes he’d worn to impress his father-in-law. “Nothing’s wrong.”
“Why were you so silent at dinner, then?”
Noah was undressing too, and Duncan had to remind his brain that he was supposed to be having a conversation with his mate rather than ogling him. “The council isn’t my thing, that’s all.”
Noah climbed on the bed, dressed only in his underwear, and straddled Duncan’s hips. Duncan suppressed a groan when Noah’s ass settled on his hardening dick and he grabbed Noah’s hips with both hands. “What are you doing?”
“Torturing you until you tell me what’s wrong.” He pressed his ass down just for a few second. The contact wasn’t enough to do much more than torture Duncan.
“Ah, it’s working. Press down a little more?”
“No.”
Duncan sighed. “You’re evil.”
“Isn’t that what demons are supposed to be?”
“Please. I’ve met humans who were more evil than you, hon.”
Noah arched a brow and pressed down again. “You’re sure of that?”
“Okay, okay. I surrender.”
“Good. Now talk.”
“I was just thinking, really.”
“Thinking about what?”
“About where we are going to live.”
Noah frowned. “We did talk about it.”
“No, you just said you wanted to live with me.”
“Why are you restructuring a house if you think we might move away?”
“Wishful thinking? I know you might want to go live in your town or even with your parents—”
“God, no. That’s the last thing I want. My father might be okay with us, but there’s no way I’d be comfortable if we had him around every day.”
“Okay, so what about your demon town? Wait, would you even want me to live with you there?”
“Of course I would, if I wanted to live in the demon town.”
“So that leaves...”
“We can move in our house as soon as we’re done restructuring it. If you still want me there with you, of course.”
Duncan beamed and pulled Noah down. He kissed him until the man was breathless. “You don’t even have to ask.”
“Okay. Good.”
Duncan laughed.
“Why are you laughing?” Noah asked.
“Because I’m happy. And because I just imagined how you’ll look after spending an entire day painting the walls of our home.”
Noah tried to make an angry face, but it was crumbling so fast it wasn’t worth it. They collapsed on the bed, laughing like crazy and ready to start their new lives together.
* * * *
Noah wiped his forehead with his arm and looked at the wall with satisfaction. The painted tree with its red flowers looked incredible and lightened the living room up.
Noah was delighted by the fact that Duncan had left most of the painting to him. Sure, he and other pack members had helped with the neutral color Noah had used as a base, but he was in charge of the actual decorating. It had taken him quite a long time to plan everything, from the ocean landscape in the bathroom to the garden in the living room. The only room Noah wouldn’t decorate was the kitchen, both because it had to be a more practical room and because that would be Duncan’s domain, since Noah had never even boiled water.
He might have to learn, though, because between his official job and the patrols he had to do for the pack, Duncan didn’t have much time left to dedicate to their house. Noah was happy to be the one doing it for now, but he knew he would start resenting Duncan if they didn’t change it soon. He might have a job he did from home, but that didn’t mean he didn’t work, and the chores were a job on their own.
Duncan and he were still living in the alpha’s house, but it wouldn’t be for long now. They were adding the last touches to their new home, and the furniture would arrive the next week, once the paint on the walls was dry and the last details were done.
Noah couldn’t wait. It would be the first time something was really his. His parents hadn’t paid for the house, and they hadn’t paid someone to work on it. Noah had spent hours slaving on the projects, the colors, the designs. His back had hurt from the time passed crouched in front of the bedroom wall and his neck still hurt after he’d spent two days working on the living room ceiling, but he’d never been happier.
Noah heard vo
ices and the front door opening and closing, but he didn’t give it more than one thought. He took his brush and added a bit of color to the bird nestled on one of the tree’s branches, then took a step backward to admire the finished wall. If it was up to him, none of his paintings would ever be deemed finished enough. There was always the tiniest thing that didn’t work, but Noah knew he couldn’t work on them infinitely.
Someone gasped behind him and he turned around, expecting to see one of the pack members he’d become friends with. He found himself looking and gaping at his parents instead. Seeing his father and his mother outside of their usual luxurious surroundings was weird to say the least.
“Mother, Father. I didn’t know you were coming.”
Noah was painfully aware of the state he was in. He’d worn old jeans and one of Duncan’s T-shirts to work in, and both now exhibited speckles of variously colored paint. He was sure he had some on his face and his braided hair too, and he didn’t even want to look at his hands. His parents had never seen him so dirty, not since he’d been six at least.
“I had a meeting with Kameron about the council and your mother asked to come with me. She wanted to see you.”
Noah remembered all too well the last words his mother had told him, and he hoped they weren’t heading toward a repeat of that. “Mother. Now you’ve seen me.”
Noah’s mother reached out to him with one hand, as if she wanted to hug him. She stopped before actually doing it, and Noah’s heart squeezed painfully in his chest. “This... this is amazing, Noah.”
“Thank you.”
“I knew you painted, of course, but I haven’t seen one of your works in years.”
It was true. Noah had shown his parents his work until he reached the age where they expected him to treat it as a mere hobby, and that wasn’t something he could do. When they expected him to study law and accounting, he’d done it only enough to be able to answer his father’s questions decently, and dedicated the rest of his time to his art.
“Well, this is it.”
Noah looked around, but there was no trace of Duncan, even if he had to be the one who had let them in. Noah was so going to make him pay for not giving him at least a warning.
“It’s beautiful. You are so talented, Noah. You shouldn’t waste that talent working in an office.”
Noah’s head whipped so hard in his mother direction he hurt his neck. “What?” His mother gave him a stern look, so he corrected himself, “Sorry, Mother. Excuse me?”
She walked closer to him and extended a hand again, and this time she didn’t move away. She squeezed Noah’s arm, in the only spot that looked more or less clean. “Your father and I talked, and while I won’t pretend to understand the choices you’ve made lately, I also know it’s not my place to try to change them.”
“Mother... that’s a rather abrupt change of mind.”
“I was afraid of losing you. My life always was guided by my parents, and I was less inclined to rebellion than you clearly are. I think the fact that I never found love or a strong passion before meeting your father had a lot to do with that, or maybe I was just too meek to do it. I saw what you told me that day like a step away from us, and I was afraid. I’m sorry for what I said. Even if I don’t approve of what you want to do with your life, you’re the one living it, and you’re the one who will have to live with the consequences of what you’ve done.”
His mother’s speech was oddly between an apology and a warning. Noah wasn’t sure how much of it was honest—he was sure some of those words had come directly from his father. It looked like he never really understood his parents, since he’d always thought his mother would be the one to be fine with him and who he was, and she wasn’t.
Noah had underestimated his father, too. He wasn’t the cold man he’d imagined, the one uninterested in Noah’s life and future. It looked like Noah would have to spend some time with both of them and get to know them.
“Can we see the rest of the house?” Noah’s father asked.
“Of course.”
Noah wiped his hands on an already dirty rag and gestured to the arch that led back in the hallway. He couldn’t even offer coffee because the kitchen wasn’t completely done yet. Duncan had forbidden him to go in because they were working on the floors, so he just gestured at the door as they passed it. “This is the kitchen. We can’t go in, so you’ll have to come again if you want to see it finished.”
The visit was both nice and painful. The stilted conversation, when Noah could actually think about something else other than the house to talk about, reminded him exactly how much distance there was between him and his parents. It was even more obvious after the weeks Noah had spent in Gillham. He’d discovered another way to be a family, one that had very little rules.
In Gillham, no one cared if Noah was dressed in jeans and a T-shirt for dinner. No one cared if his clothes weren’t perfectly ironed, or if he was reading a romance instead of a too-thick book on corporate laws. The parties were real parties, with balloons, candles and gifts that were bought with the heart, not with the head. The pack members really cared about the answer when they asked how Noah was and what he thought about the latest book or movie.
When the visit was over, Noah walked his parents back to the front door.
“You have to come home next weekend, sweetheart. The Jenkins are having a party and I know for sure that both their daughters will be there. We’re invited, of course, and—”
“Mother, I’ll come only if Duncan is invited too.”
Noah’s mother looked a bit bewildered, but she hid it almost right away. “Of course. I’m sorry, it’s going to take me a bit of time to get used to. I don’t know how our friends are going to take it, really, and I thought we could introduce Duncan slowly, but if you want him to come...”
“Of course I do. We’re mated. It’s as good as being married.”
“I think your mother would have an easier time getting used to this if you have a ceremony,” Noah’s father said. “You don’t have to, of course, but maybe you could think about it.”
Noah sighed. He knew his mother wanted it. She’d started talking about his wedding when he was only fifteen. It would make it easier for her to save face in front of her friends if she could present Duncan as Noah’s fiancé and talk about their upcoming wedding. “I’ll think about it.”
The smile his mother gave him was blinding. “That’s all I ask for, sweetheart.”
Noah couldn’t wait to have this conversation with Duncan. Not.
* * * *
Duncan so didn’t want to be there. He really, really didn’t want to, but his mate hadn’t wanted to come alone, and how could he tell Noah no?
He sighed and looked at the people around him. At least this last council meeting was less stuffy than the previous one he’d attended. That time Nick hadn’t been able to go because of his job, and the rest of Kameron’s inner circle had mysteriously disappeared as soon as the man had explained he needed at least one of them to go. Duncan hadn’t been able to tell Kameron no that time, just like he hadn’t been able to tell Noah no this time. He really was too soft when it came to making the people he loved happy.
“It’s not that bad,” Zach pointed out from his right side.
Duncan scowled at him. “It’s boring. Don’t tell me you actually like this. The only thing they’ve done in the past hour is talk about enforcers, wendigoes, and about that guy who took over the Glass Company.”
“The food is good, at least.”
Duncan couldn’t say that wasn’t true. The food was good, and he wondered who had taken care of it. He didn’t think Kam had hired caterers, because he knew all the people he’d seen going in and out from the kitchen.
He grabbed another puffy pastry and took a bite, his eyes searching for Noah as he ate. The man was standing next to his father and another demon. Noah had talked about the woman with reverence, and if Duncan remembered it correctly, the black s
wirls on her skin meant she was head demon or something like that. Not that Duncan cared about that—not much, at least.
He knew the woman could have created problems when Noah had announced he would move to Gillham during their engagement party. God knew several blue swirls demons had, and even some differently colored ones. The head demon woman, though, hadn’t batted an eyelash at Noah’s words. She’d congratulated them and told Noah she was curious about the council, which had resulted in Noah talking more to her than to Duncan. During their engagement party.
At least Duncan hadn’t been bored. He’d become friends with Demi and had found out that when the man wasn’t trying to keep him away from Noah, he wasn’t bad at all, and he’d seemed to lack the holier-than-you attitude most of the other guests had had.
This small party wasn’t as elegant as the one Noah’s mother had organized, and at least Duncan knew everyone this time. He finished his pastry and immediately looked around for another one. “Who did these?”
“You won’t believe it, but it’s Rick.”
Duncan froze before the next pastry could end up in his mouth. “Rick? You mean Rick Cantrell?”
Zach smirked. “Why, you know another Rick?”
“I knew Kam was trying to reform what’s left of Erskine’s inner circle, but I can’t believe he trusts Rick not to poison us or something.”
“Rick wouldn’t do that. I know he’s nearly a hermit and that it’s the reason why you don’t know him, but he’s not a bad guy. He didn’t want what happened, it was more the circumstances that made it happen.”
Duncan was skeptical, but Zach was right—he didn’t know Rick. He probably could count the times he’d talked to the man on the fingers of one hand, and none of those had happened after Erskine had died. Rick wasn’t only a hermit, he was also almost mute. He could talk if he wanted to, but he stuttered so badly that Duncan could understand why he didn’t more often. “As long as you two trust him, I’ll give him a chance.”
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