by C. C. Dado
“What are we going to do, Seth? Christian is going to freak. Did Jack freak? Has he left town?”
“No, no, it’s fine. He didn’t wake up. I snuck out and ran home naked with a leash wrapped around my neck.” Seth hadn’t realized he still had it on until he made it into his apartment, making him that much more grateful no one had been out in town.
“I just love you so much right now,” Max said, snorting laughter through the phone.
Seth hung up, seeing no use in continuing the conversation about his humiliation. He needed to unwind with a shower and a movie and go to bed.
The downstairs buzzer caught him off guard as he was taking off the collar. Seth’s fear of murderers had him sneaking over to the window, his heart thumping double time. He could see the doorstep from the upstairs window. Jack paced nervously back and forth in front of the door, running his hand through his shaggy hair. Seth’s fear shifted to joy so fast he was almost dizzy. Then he remembered he had taken off in his human form and left Jack sleeping in the grass. He’d probably just woken up, missing his client.
Seth jogged down the stairs, trying to think of what to say to Jack. When he opened the door he still had nothing.
Jack stood there with a hand in his pocket, obviously freaked out.
“Is Hans here?” The concern in his voice made Seth’s heart sigh.
“He was here. I called Max and he came and picked him up. I think he likes to be called Solo better, by the way,” Seth said, excited he’d thought of something way more badass than Hans.
Jack’s exhale of relief was audible, his head and shoulders slumping forward. “Solo, huh? That’s a good name,” he said, looking up at Seth. “I don’t know what I would have done if he was lost. You’re a lifesaver.” He ran his hands through his hair again. “I don’t even understand how it happened, I can’t believe I fell asleep. I’m usually very responsible with animals.”
Seth felt awful for how distraught Jack was over the whole thing. “It’s Solo, he’s like a person, I swear.”
Jack smiled at Seth, moving closer to the doorway. “You’re amazing,” he said, reaching out and locking his pinky around Seth’s and pulling him forward. “Thank you for trying to make me feel better.”
“Anytime,” Seth said, his voice squeaking, making Jack smile.
“I’d like to take you out again.”
Seth thought about his plans for a shower and a movie. “I know it’s kind of late notice, but I was thinking about starting a movie.”
“Is that an offer?” Jack asked, tugging a little on Seth’s hand, jokingly.
“Yeah,” Seth said, feeling shy again all of a sudden.
“Well, since I slept most of my afternoon away in my backyard, I’m probably going to be up all night. I’d love to.”
Seth turned without breaking contact with Jack’s hand, pulling him behind him up the stairs.
“Wow, this is really nice,” Jack said once they entered the apartment.
Seth was glad he kept it pretty clean, having learned that lesson while he and Max were in school.
“Do you want some popcorn? My popcorn is kind of famous around here.”
“I’m sure it is,” Jack said, watching Seth grab a bowl out of the cupboard. “What makes it special?”
“I can’t tell my secrets.” Seth feigned shock that Jack would even suggest it.
Jack laughed. “So, what are we watching?” he asked, sitting down on the leather couch in front of the big-screen TV on the wall. Seth was pretty thankful for the upgrades Christian had done to the place for Max.
“Umm, I was just going to watch some action movie that was about to start.”
“Sounds good, I like action movies.” Jack leaned back into the couch, making himself comfortable. Seth’s puppy dog eyes were for sure showing as he put the popcorn in the popper, realizing how perfect Jack looked in his space. He wanted this, all of this, all the time.
“Do you want some help?” Jack asked, gesturing to the bowl Seth held in his hand as he stood there like a statue, staring at him.
Seth chuckled uncomfortably, turning around to the small kitchenette to make up his special recipe. By the time he had a bowl full of popcorn, he was relaxed enough to join Jack. He sat down on the opposite end of the couch, not sure where to sit, placing the popcorn between them. He grabbed the remote and turned to the movie.
Jack looked into the popcorn bowl. “M&M’s?” he asked, looking up at Seth with a smile. “That’s your secret?”
“Take a bite,” Seth said, confident Jack would love it as much as everyone else did. He wasn’t confident with much in life, but his cooking was his comfort zone.
Jack took a bite, licking the melted chocolate off his fingers at the end, making Seth’s toes curl.
“You’re right, it’s amazing. I think we should move it, though,” he said, lifting the bowl up into his lap and patting the open cushion next to him.
“You just want all my popcorn to yourself.” Seth tried to break the awkwardness he was sure was going to happen when he scooted over.
“I’ll share,” Jack promised softly, closing the distance between them, his breath on Seth’s lips. “Is this okay?” he asked, taking Seth’s slight nod as approval before sliding his lips across Seth’s. Jack pulled back, brushing Seth’s bangs behind his ear. “So damn beautiful.”
Seth didn’t look away this time.
“I don’t want to come on too strong, but I’m really into you.” He brushed Seth’s cheek with his thumb. “Like really into you.”
“Me too,” Seth said reaching over and intertwining their hands. Now it looked like it was Jack’s turn to be shy. Seth leaned in and pressed his lips gently to Jack’s, like an unspoken promise.
After that they settled in to watch the movie.
Seth wasn’t sure at what point he fell asleep, but he woke to the credits rolling, his head lying on a pillow in Jack’s lap, Jack looking down at him, softly running his hand through Seth’s hair.
“I fell asleep?”
“About halfway through, and you have the most adorable snore I’ve ever heard in my life.”
Seth turned his head into the pillow, attempting to smother himself in it.
Jack chuckled at the failed suicide attempt and pulled Seth up in front of him. “It was seriously the cutest thing I’ve ever seen. Like, better than YouTube kitten videos,” Jack said, turning Seth’s chin to look up at him. “I should probably go, though.” He leaned forward, his hair tickling Seth’s face before their lips met. This time the kiss lasted longer, Seth lifting himself up until they were chest to chest.
Chapter 11: Caught
THE LOOK on Christian’s face as he and Zeus came into the bakery the next day, flipping the door sign to Closed as they went, left little room for doubt that someone was in trouble. The boys were just restocking the display cases after their morning rush.
Max and Seth looked at each other, questioning which one was in trouble.
“Hey, handsomes,” Max said in an obvious attempt to break the tension in the room.
Christian tossed an 8x10 photo of Seth in a collar, running naked, covering his crotch with branches, onto the counter.
They both looked down at the picture. Max instantly bent over in laughter. “Oh my God, that is so much better than my imagination.”
“I should have guessed you knew about this,” Christian said, giving Max a look of disappointment that stopped his laughter instantly.
“It had nothing to do with him,” Seth assured him. “It was my mistake.”
“Why are you naked in this picture, Seth?”
“Where did you get this? Who took this?”
“I have security cameras all over town,” Zeus answered, moving from behind Christian to place another photo of Seth down on the table.
Seth instantly snatched it up and held it to his chest so Max couldn’t see.
“Ahh, no fair,” Max complained.
“You’re not helping,” Seth hissed at Max.
&
nbsp; “I lost the baby,” Max shouted, covering his face with his hands, obviously still trying to help.
Christian lowered his head in exasperation, which apparently came across as anguish to Zeus, who instantly wrapped them both into his big arms.
“I am so sorry.”
Christian pushed him off. Max stayed huddled against Zeus’s massive chest, taking comfort in the soft caresses Zeus was running down his back.
“Please just stop,” Christian said to Max.
“Fine,” Max said, moving away from Zeus. “Sorry, Zeus, there was never a baby. Seth just made that up to get in to see Christian, and you were being so nice to me I never told you the truth.”
“No baby?”
“No, but maybe someday.”
“Wait a minute, you lied to me?” Zeus asked, turning to look at Seth.
“Don’t worry too much about it. It’s a gift he has,” Max said in an attempt to soothe the beta.
“Did it fool you?” Zeus asked, turning toward Christian.
“No, but almost.”
Zeus did not look appeased as he turned and walked out.
“Talk,” Christian said to Seth.
“I fell asleep.”
“I do not have time for you to tell me in increments how this happened, so talk, all of it. Now.”
“I went for my last training session with Jack, and we fell asleep in his backyard. I must have shifted in my sleep. I woke up and got away without waking him and ran home.”
“He doesn’t know any of this?” Christian asked, pointing to the picture.
“No. He came by last night looking for Solo.”
“Who’s Solo?” Christian asked, obviously confused.
“Oh, we changed my name to Hans Solo instead of Nancy. It’s Solo for short.”
“Oh, that’s soooo much better than Hans,” Max said, nodding his head in approval.
“I know, right?” Seth agreed proudly.
“Wait a minute,” Max said, continuing to ignore Christian. “You didn’t tell me he came over here last night. What happened?”
“I invited him in, and we watched a movie. I fell asleep again. But I didn’t shift this time,” Seth said, turning to Christian to assure him.
Christian watched him for a moment before picking up the picture and tearing it to pieces.
“Noooo! Why would you do that?” Max yelled at his mate. “That was an amazing picture. I wanted to frame it and put it in the bathroom.”
They both looked at him like he was certifiable.
“That was it, Seth. No more,” Christian reminded him.
“I know. I’m going to just be me and see what happens,” Seth said, feeling more confident in the plan himself.
“And you both need to make this up to Zeus,” Christian told them, reaching over the counter to give Max a kiss before grabbing a free peppermint and turning back toward the door, flipping the sign to Open on his way out.
A look of relief settled on both their faces as they returned to work.
SETH WAS cleaning off one of the tables when Jack came in later that day with Winston.
“You guys stuck in here all day? It’s gorgeous outside,” Jack said, gesturing to the sunlight streaming through the front windows.
“Nah, the high school kids come in soon to take over,” Max said, just starting to count the morning till.
“We walked around the lake and saw a bunch of people barbecuing and swimming. Winston and I thought we’d head back down and do some swimming. Just seeing if you guys wanted to come and bring Solo. They could play.” He was now fully focused on Seth.
“Oh, that’s sweet, Seth might, but we’ve been swamped all day, I don’t even think I can make it home. The only thing I’m jumping into is Seth’s bed for a midday nap,” Max informed him.
Seth really wanted to go, but they had customers, and the kids hadn’t showed up for the afternoon shift yet.
“That’s too bad, even Christian was jumping in the lake.”
“All right, everyone.” Max raised his voice so everyone in the bakery could hear. “I’m afraid we have to close up.” He started helping people out of their chairs, shoving their food into their arms. “I’m so sorry, but we have a family emergency, a death even. Feel free to take your food out onto our front patio and enjoy.” He continued rushing them out the door.
Seth and Jack stared at him like he’d lost his mind.
“What’s happening right now?” Seth asked, confused by it all.
“Did you not hear? Jack’s invited us to the lake.”
Seth was still confused over their suddenly empty shop.
“My ma—husband is down at the lake wet and glistening in the hot, hot sun.”
And the light went on for Seth. “Okay, then. Sounds like we’re going to the lake.”
“Bring Solo.”
Seth nodded his head in agreement, for a moment forgetting that he was Solo, so they both couldn’t be there. He froze.
“Oh, he’s out,” Max said, thankfully coming up with an answer, albeit a stupid one.
“Your pet’s out?”
“Umm… yeah, he likes to take walks out in the woods. That’s why the new name’s so fitting. He’s a rogue one. I try not to pin him down. He’ll be back later.” Max’s bullshit stories were so unbelievable sometimes people just went with them.
“You have the coolest pet ever,” Jack said to Max with a smile. “Oh, sorry, buddy, you’re cool too,” he said, rubbing Winston’s head, who didn’t seem to be bothered, by the size of the sloppy tongue hanging out the side of his face. “Okay, well I’m going to go get some trunks on. I’ll meet you guys out front.”
THE LAKE was packed when they got there, just like Jack had said. Winston instantly pulled Jack into the water. Seth and Max walked up to Zeus, who was standing along the water’s edge, watching as usual to make sure everyone stayed safe.
“There’s something you don’t see every day,” Seth said, gesturing to Christian out on the floating dock, soaking up the sun. Their alpha was a sight to see for sure.
“I’m not sure how this one did it,” Zeus said, pointing at Max. “But I’m pretty sure they call that contentment.”
Max smiled up at Zeus, already throwing his shirt off and running into the water.
“Strangest omega I’ve ever witnessed.” Zeus shook his head in wonder.
“But he’s all ours.”
Zeus nodded his head in agreement.
“Listen, I’m really sorry about lying to you. I am insanely good at it, so don’t feel like you weren’t doing your job or whatever.”
Zeus didn’t respond immediately. “I like babies,” he finally said, giving Seth a stern look, obviously not irritated by being lied to but about the lie itself. “They’re cute.”
“Well, there’s still hope that they’ll adopt,” Seth reminded him as they watched Christian pull Max onto the dock and into his arms for a kiss.
“How are things going with your man?” Zeus asked, making Seth look over at Jack, who was knee-deep in the water, throwing a stick for Winston.
“Good, really good I think.”
“I think that one will be good for you.”
“Me too,” Seth said.
“Hey, have you seen Mrs. Stegal’s nephew lately, by the way?”
“No, usually it’s just Mrs. Stegal and Rosetta who come into the bakery. Oh, wait, yeah, I did. The other night I saw him walking the lake path when I was out with Jack. Why?”
“He’s been here helping his aunt with the pharmacy since Mr. Stegal passed away, but his request for permanent residency was denied. The background check came back okay, but the alpha and I both had a bad feeling when we met with him. He was notified he had forty-eight hours to say goodbye to his aunt and head out.”
“I get that same feeling around him.”
“Just keep an eye out, and let me know if you see anything.”
“Will do,” Seth said, heading toward his mate. Life would be so much easier if J
ack was a shifter and understood what all of this meant.
“You coming in?” Jack asked, splashing water toward Seth.
“I think I’m just going to walk along the dock,” Seth said, not a big fan of water.
“I’ll join you, then.” Jack came out of the water, Winston following close behind. “I had a really good time last night,” Jack said, reaching out to hold Seth’s hand as they walked.
He was really into hand-holding, and Seth didn’t mind at all. He loved the feel of Jack’s long fingers wrapped around the back of his hand.
“Me too, even though I slept through most of it.”
“It was nice. I liked that you were comfortable enough to fall asleep on me.” Jack teased him with a smile, which Seth returned, half embarrassed.
“I love this lake,” Seth said when they got to the end of the dock. He leaned up against the railing, looking out at the picturesque lake. He could just barely make out the top of the pack lodge.
“I’m liking everything in this town, more than I ever imagined possible.”
Seth turned at Jack’s words and found him looking directly at him again.
Swoon….
Seth released Jack’s hand to step up on the railing, trying not to look too much like he was reenacting the Titanic, but he was hoping that Jack would step behind him, the higher rail putting them at the perfect height for Jack to wrap his arms around him. But instead he felt something wet and hard pushing into the butt of his shorts. He half turned, seeing Winston instead of Jack. He tilted forward, chuckling awkwardly, hoping Winston would stop. Luckily Jack was looking at the other side of the lake now instead of at him, but when his foot slipped off the rail, he knew he was a goner. Like slow motion, he fell off the dock and into the lake, which for the average person, especially a shifter, should be no big deal. But when you hated the water so much you refused to learn to swim, it was a major problem. Seth flailed around, trying to stop the mermaid of death from taking him. Hearing a splash near him, followed by an arm wrapping around his chest, barely broke through his panic as he was pulled toward shore.
“Are you okay?” Jack asked, winded, stopping when he could touch the ground. He spun Seth around.
