Robin flushed. Pointing a finger accusingly at Jay, he retorted, “No fair to make me squirm now. Haven’t I suffered enough already?”
Jay grinned. “Nope. It’s your lucky day.”
“It’s a lucky day for all of us,” Tim said softly, his statement earning him collective nods. “A very lucky day.”
SHORTLY after they all sat down in the Evans’s living room, Raven, the old senser of their pack, knocked at the door. Everyone scrambled around to throw on some clothes while Robin opened the door to the old man. Raven took one look at the people in the living room, then grinned. “I see a lot of good has happened here.”
He revealed that he knew about Robin being a senser as well and congratulated him for finally coming clean. To Tim, he said, “You’re an alpha, no matter if the elders deem you unsuitable for the job. I never agreed to their decision, I might add. So, you found your mate, a mate worthy for an alpha wolf.”
He scrutinized Jay for a long time, causing Jay to squirm and eventually step behind Tim, hiding there. Tim straightened up, puffing his chest out, covering Jay’s hands with his, ready to attack.
The tension in the room was almost palpable. Jay pressed himself up against Tim’s back, his trembling hands tightly locked around Tim’s waist.
Ralf broke the silence, surprising everyone by saying, “That’s Jay, Tim’s mate. As you’ve probably sensed, he’s not a pure wolf. Please keep it a secret for now.”
Raven’s dark eyes transferred from Jay and Tim to Ralf, his facial expression not giving away anything. “Why?”
“He healed Paula. He’s special and also part of our family now.”
“He’s a hybrid,” Raven stated.
“Yes, he is,” Paula agreed. “A wolf-fox.”
Raven nodded as everyone else in the room held their breath. He asked, “You know there are still some of us who’d kill him if they get the chance? Purely because he’s a hybrid? And it will come out sooner or later—an alpha mating never goes unnoticed. I’m sure I’m not the only one who noticed it. It sure was a powerful bonding.”
Raven winked at Tim and Jay, who blushed even more profusely. Tim patted Jay’s hands linked together over his belly comfortingly.
“We have to talk to everyone, make sure people understand he’s no threat,” Paula said, a wistful note in her voice. “Maybe people will listen now that I can show them what Jay did for me.”
Fiercely, Ralf added, “We will also make sure they know I’ll kill them if they dare to threaten or attack him.”
Jay swiveled his head around and stared open-mouthed at Ralf. Did he just say what I heard him say? Is that the same guy who went ballistic maybe an hour ago?
You better get used to the insanity.
Jay sighed loudly. “You know, twenty-four hours ago I led a perfectly normal life. Now… now I’m mated to a werewolf, found out I’m a shifter, as well, but there are people who’d love to kill me simply because I’m not a pure werewolf. I’ve seen my mate’s father go crazy, helped heal my mate’s mother, and now you’re telling me I should get used to the insanity? I already feel like I’ve been thrown into a parallel universe.”
“Hey, what about having had hot mating sex? I’ve heard it’s supposed to be quite memorable,” Robin piped up.
“Robin!” Ralf admonished.
“What? I’m just telling the truth,” Robin replied, batting his lashes innocently.
Tim grinned as he shook his head. “Weren’t you the one yammering about too much information?”
“Ah, oh, right. There was that,” Robin conceded. “Never mind, forget I said anything.”
“Well, you’re not in a parallel universe but you’ll get used to the insanity that is living with a wolf,” Tim said to Jay, slowly pulling him off his back and into his arms.
“What if I don’t want to?”
“You have no choice in this matter.”
“That’s highly annoying,” Jay grumbled.
“You’ll survive.”
“I feared you’d say that.”
Raven interrupted their conversation, saying, “We need to come up with a plan.”
THE plan they came up with was simple. They agreed to send Robin with Tim, Jay, and Walter Cox. That way they could pretend to their pack not to know whether it was Tim or Robin who did the alpha mating. It wasn’t unusual for a newly mated couple to retreat for a while, get to know each other, and strengthen the bond between them.
They all knew they were only buying time. They also put Robin under immense pressure. The chance of him finding his mate was small but there. The chance of another alpha mating was nearly nonexistent, though. They all knew it, but none of them could come up with a better solution right now.
Robin agreed readily to the plan. Tim and Jay were incredibly grateful for Robin’s decision but also felt very guilty.
They also agreed to take Starlight and Ally to the Coxes’ home. Ralf and Paula would have to rearrange the schedules for riding lessons since neither Tim nor Robin were there anymore. Paula insisted she could take over some of the lessons, as could Laura, until they came up with something else. None of them said it aloud, but all of them hoped for the best—that at least Robin could come back home soon.
The good-bye the next day was tearful, especially on Robin’s side. As he wiped his eyes after receiving a hug from Ralf, Tim heard him murmuring, “I always thought moving out would be a big, joyful event, but now that it’s here it’s… not like I imagined it to be. I hate it.”
Ralf ruffled Robin’s hair before handing him his bag with clothes. “You’re not exactly moving out. Your mother and I will try to figure out something. We intend to install laws against attacking or threatening hybrids. I think it’s a good time to nail this project.”
Ralf moved on to Tim, gave him a crushing hug, and said, Protect Jay. Take care of him, and Robin.
I will.
Ralf glanced at Tim, then asked, “May I?” He indicated he wanted to hug Jay, which immediately caused Tim’s canines to drop.
Jay slapped Tim’s arm, but kept hold of one of Tim’s hands as he went willingly into Ralf’s embrace. Ralf let go of him quickly because Tim’s growl increased. “Be sure to listen to Tim, Jayden. He only wants you to be safe.”
“I know,” Jay sighed.
Tim pulled Jay back into his arms, kissed his throat, and after saying good-bye to Paula, led everyone to the car. Walter shook hands with Ralf, saying, “That sure was an interesting field trip.”
They all laughed, then Tim shut the driver’s door, started the engine, and slowly drove away from his parents’ house.
Epilogue
Two days later
WALTER COX sat in a comfortable chair on his porch, a pot of coffee next to him on a small table. Tim was focused on Ally, but he still watched the porch from the corner of his eyes. Even from the distance he heard pounding footsteps racing down the steps inside the house. He reined Ally in to look at the porch, watching Robin running out. Walter shook his head before he commented, “One day you’ll break your neck.”
“Huh? Why?”
“Because you’re always on the run. You can actually walk, right?”
Robin flushed and sat down next to Walter, giving him a one-armed hug from behind on his way. “I can, it’s just a waste of time.”
He poured himself a cup of coffee, added a generous amount of milk, and asked, “How’s your arm?”
“Better, thank you. Just remind me never to get in the way of a wolf again,” Walter replied with a lopsided smile.
“Not everyone is as much of a nutcase as Tim.”
“I heard that!” Tim yelled, startling Ally so she fell into a frightened gallop. Tim quickly reined her in.
Robin ambled over to the riding arena, a teasing smile on his face. “Way to go to spook one of the most placid horses on earth, Tim.”
Jay held up a hand and stopped Starlight in front of Robin. “No riling him up so early in the morning.”
“Why
not?” Robin pouted. “What else am I supposed to do? It’s not fair having to watch you two act like two lovesick puppies.”
Jay’s face softened at Robin’s heartfelt exclamation. Robin rubbed his hands over his face, trying to rub the blush from his cheeks.
“Sorry,” he mumbled, “that wasn’t fair either. I agreed to come with you of my own free will.”
“Doesn’t mean it doesn’t suck,” Jay responded. He bent down to Robin, his face kind and apologetic at the same time. “We do appreciate it, you know that, right?”
“I know,” Robin sighed. “It’s just… I’m nervous. How long will it take them to figure out it’s Tim who did the alpha mating and not me? They’ll get suspicious if neither Tim nor I show up with a mate on the next full moon.”
“Or if neither of us shows up at all,” Tim added.
“How am I supposed to find my mate within three weeks when I didn’t find him until now, huh? Not to mention since I’m not alpha material it’s highly unlikely there can be another alpha mating. God, this is such a shitty situation,” Robin groaned. “Hopefully Mom and Dad can come up with a different solution.”
“That should be easy—as soon as your father is back to normal,” Jay said.
Robin and Tim chuckled, both remembering Ralf looking stunned and wide-eyed. He had been very quiet and withdrawn, clinging to Paula and never leaving her side for more than a short trip to the bathroom. Some of the things Robin and Tim had said to him had obviously hit home, hard. A few quiet talks between him and Paula had done the rest.
Robin forced a smile on his face and said, “The most important thing right now is to keep Jay safe. Mom called an hour ago and told me she’s already able to stand on her own for a few seconds. She can’t wait to walk again, though Raven confirmed she most likely will have to use a walking stick or crutches. She said she doesn’t care, that it’s simply wonderful to regain feeling in her lower half again. She also said Dad has been thinking about resigning from being pack leader.” Pointing a finger at Tim, he added, “She said he wants to install you as the alpha of our pack since that’s your destiny anyway.”
“But I can’t!” Tim exclaimed, worriedly looking at Jay, who looked taken aback.
“Hey, if it is possible for you to become alpha instead of me, I’m all for it. Dad wouldn’t try it if he didn’t think he could be successful with it, and he wouldn’t purposefully endanger Jay.”
Tim felt the good and easy feeling slipping away, no matter how hard he tried to hold onto it. His stomach clenched. Ally, sensing Tim’s distress, sidled.
“How about you two unsaddle the horses while I prepare lunch?” Robin asked. He walked back to the house, hollering, “Walter, you better come inside and help me. These two will probably start smooching in a few seconds, and you don’t want to be witness to that!”
Walter hastily got to his feet and followed Robin inside. Jay chuckled, then fell silent, his eyes gazing into nothingness.
“What are you thinking about?” Tim asked as he dismounted.
Jay dismounted as well, and together they led the horses out of the riding arena and tethered them to the railing of a paddock. Swiftly, they unsaddled Starlight and Ally. While they picked out the massive hooves, Jay replied, “I’m glad your brother is here and keeping my father occupied.”
“He’s good at that—has always been.”
In silence, they finished picking out the hooves, changed the bridles for halters, and brushed the horses down. After releasing the horses into the paddock, where they immediately began munching grass, they closed the gate behind them and stowed away the lead ropes.
Tim pulled Jay into a tight embrace, rubbed their noses together, and whispered, “I don’t give a shit about being alpha. I only want us to be together, and you to be safe. I’d do anything to make sure you’re safe.”
“I know. I’m sure your father has a good reason for wanting to make you alpha of your pack. Let’s try not to worry too much. We lost so much time already. I want to enjoy you to the fullest,” Jay replied, pressing light kisses all over Tim’s face.
“Hmmm, you want to enjoy me? I’m game for that.”
Tim slid his hands around to Jay’s butt, lifting him up effortlessly. Jay crossed his legs behind Tim’s back, his cock filling rapidly. Tim wormed one hand under the fabric of Jay’s breeches and underwear, touching bare skin and eliciting a groan from Jay.
“Hey! I said smooching, not having hot monkey sex,” Robin shouted from the open kitchen window.
Walter stuck out his head as well, which led Jay to duck his head under Tim’s chin.
“Your brother is so annoying!” Jay whispered fiercely.
“A minute ago you were happy about him being here,” Tim replied, chuckling. He nudged Jay’s face with his nose until Jay surrendered and allowed himself to be kissed thoroughly.
“I am, but that doesn’t mean I like him all the time. Uh, keep doing that,” Jay encouraged Tim as Tim brushed a finger along his cleft, dipping the digit inside briefly.
“You two! Get a room! Now!” Walter yelled from the kitchen.
Tim looked into Jay’s dazed blue eyes, smiled, and asked, “Sound like a plan?”
“Yeah, it does.”
Tim’s smile widened as he carried Jay inside and threw the bedroom door closed with a bang, completely ignoring the snickering coming from the kitchen.
About the Author
CHRIS T. KAT lives in the middle of Europe, where she shares a house with her husband of many years and their two children. She stumbled upon the M/M genre by luck and was swiftly drawn into it. She divides her time between work, her family—which includes chasing after escaping horses and lugging around huge instruments such as a harp—and writing. She enjoys a variety of genres, such as mystery/suspense, paranormal, and romance. If there’s any spare time, she happily reads for hours, listens to audiobooks, or does cross stitch.
Visit her blog at http://christikat.blogspot.com/ or add her on Twitter at http://twitter.com/christi_kat. You can contact her at christi_ [email protected].
Also from CHRIS T. KAT
http://www.dreamspinnerpress.com
Also from CHRIS T. KAT
http://www.dreamspinnerpress.com
Read more from CHRIS T. KAT in
http://www.dreamspinnerpress.com
Romance from DREAMSPINNER PRESS
http://www.dreamspinnerpress.com
Table of Contents
Title page
Copyright
Part One
One
Two
Three
Four
Five
Six
Seven
Eight
Part Two
Nine
Ten
Eleven
Twelve
Thirteen
Fourteen
Fifteen
Sixtteen
Seventeen
Eighteen
Nineteen
Twenty
Twenty-One
Twenty-Two
Twenty-Three
Twenty-Four
Twenty-Five
Twenty-Six
Twenty-Seven
Twenty-Eight
Epilogue
About the Author
Also from Chris T. Kat
Read more from Chris T. Kat in
Romance from Dreamspinner Press
Secret Chemistry (Shifters) Page 19
