by Lisa Oliver
“You need to start teaching your children about consequences,” Darwin whispered back. Annabelle was having a great time, laughing and waving her hands about. Despite her small size and young age, she seemed to know that Sebastian and Thomas would be hurt if they hit anything, or maybe it was the magical glow that was keeping them safe. Thinking quickly for a moment, Darwin shifted, scuttling out of his clothing in his mouse form. He figured he’d have better chance of getting to Thomas in his smaller state.
He was wrong. Annabelle’s eyes lit up. “Furry baby,” she cried, wiggling her fingers wildly. Just as Darwin heard Seth say, “Annabelle, no,” Darwin felt his feet leave the ground and he was flying around the living room.
~~~~/
Simon rubbed his head as he closed the front door, dropping his keys in the bowl at the side. Two hours he’d been visiting people who were affected by the class action lawsuit. The money had come through; there was more than enough for everyone. But even so, the meeting at Cam’s had been more than a little volatile at times especially when Simon wanted Cam to get extra to cover the costs to his bar. Money, he thought, some people just get too damned greedy.
Hearing noises coming from the living room, he headed there first. Standing in the doorway, he rubbed his eyes and then looked again. “What the fuck is going on?” Ra in some ridiculous looking costume, jumping around trying to catch his twins and Darwin who were all floating in the air. He snagged Thomas as he came flying past, pleased to see the blue haze his son was wearing disappeared the moment he had him safe in his arms.
“Annabelle was bored and wanted to play with the babies,” Seth said, twisting his hands and peering from under his curls. “Darwin shifted to try and sneak around the room and she got him too.”
“Well, get them down. She’s your daughter and that’s another point. Where are Michael and Sage?”
“I’ve got them,” Brutus sauntered in, looking around the room in interest. “I cleaned their little faces, changed their diapers and put them up in their nursery to play. Lucien’s watching them.”
“Thank you.” Seth’s thanks were heartfelt, but Simon was more concerned about getting Sebastian and Darwin’s feet on the ground.
“Can’t you use magic?” He asked Seth. Poor Darwin’s feet scrabbled around in midair and he looked terrified. Or pissed off. Simon was thinking it was more likely the latter.
“I’m not that good with magic, although playing with Ra seemed to work.” Seth shuffled his feet. “But these are babies we’re talking about. She’ll go to sleep eventually.”
“That’s not good enough.” Simon shushed Thomas who was starting to stir. He didn’t look any the worse for wear from his little adventure, but if he woke up, Sebastian would be awake too and Simon’s heart lurched at the thought of his son waking scared with nothing to hold onto. As for Darwin – Simon would most likely be spending the afternoon house hunting if he didn’t get his tiny feet on the ground soon.
Passing Thomas to Brutus, Simon made his way over to Annabelle, crouching down and cupping her chin gently. “Annabelle, sweetie, you’ve had a lot of fun this afternoon, but my boys need to have their bottles now and I need my mate to help. Can you set them down gently please? I’m asking nicely.”
“Biscuit?”
“Ask your daddy, but put Uncle Darwin and Sebastian down. Now.”
“I didn’t wake them up.”
“No, you didn’t, but I want to hold them now. Okay?”
“Okay.” Fluttering her chubby arms, Annabelle screwed up her face as she landed Sebastian on the couch and then pushed Darwin in his direction. Simon caught him easily and smiled his thanks.
“I’m tired now. Can I have a biscuit?” She held her arms up at Seth who picked her up, his face bright red.
“I’ll talk to her,” Seth promised as he hurried into the kitchen.
Simon looked Ra up and down. “I don’t know what the hell you’re doing dressed like that, but seriously, I do not want to come home and find my mate and children flying. Understood?”
“Not sure how I can stop it, but yep, I’ll see what I can do.” Ra followed his mate into the kitchen.
“I’ll get Thomas his bottle,” Brutus offered. “Smells like he needs his diaper changed too.”
“Thanks. I’ll be there with Sebastian shortly.” Setting Darwin on the floor, he picked up his other son, hugging him close.
Darwin shifted and leaned over, shaking his head. “Mice were not designed to fly. Shit. My head is swimming.”
Simon couldn’t help it. Darwin’s naked form was causing thoughts he should not be having when holding his week old son. But all that flesh…. “Get your clothes on,” he growled. “We feed them, change diapers and then you and I are heading for a nap.”
“In the middle of the afternoon?”
“I didn’t say you’d get any sleep.” Simon grinned. Darwin grinned back. Sebastian started to cry. Such was life in Arrowtown and Simon wouldn’t have it any other way.
Epilogue
Liam crashed into his bedroom door frame, then bounced himself into the room. Lucien looked up from where he was sitting on the bed. “What are you doing here?” Liam should have been embarrassed, being seen in such a state, but he couldn’t hide anything from his brother and didn’t even try.
“I was worried about you.” Lucien put a bookmark in the page he was reading and closed the book. “This is the fifth night in a row you’ve gone off without telling anyone where and come home looking like…this.” He waved his hand at Liam’s disheveled state.
“I was trying to get laid; you’ve got no idea what it’s like. My balls are blue.” Liam tugged off his shirt and slumped on the bed. “What am I going to do?” He whispered, tears stinging his eyes. “This is hopeless. My animal half won’t let me get near anybody and the last time I shifted I found myself halfway to Jackson before I could get control of him again.”
“You are not alone,” Lucien’s arm was warm on his bare shoulders but only his brother’s scent stopped his lion from growling. “Tearing around all over the town, hell the freaking county, it’s not doing you any good. Your lion scented your mate and you’re either going to have to man up and find him, or you’re going to have to find a new hobby or something to take your mind off your balls. You can’t keep doing this to yourself. You’re worrying me. I don’t want to lose you.”
“And that’s why I can’t go.” Tears streamed down Liam’s face but between the smell of booze on his clothes and his windswept hair, tears were the last thing he needed to worry about. “I’m not going anywhere without you. I can’t. I won’t. And besides, fucking Western doesn’t want me. He wanted to get away so bad, he couldn’t get on that plane fast enough. To think of all the years I wasted wanking over that asshole.”
“There’s a good chance you subconsciously knew you were supposed to be mates.”
“Supposed to be, fuck it all. Lucien, I can’t go after him. Even if I did go and by some miracle of the fates he wanted me too, you saw what he did to Simon. What kind of a brother would I be if I claimed the guy who kidnapped my best friend and wanted to keep him as a pet? Simon is as much my brother as you are and what kind of an asshole keeps people as pets.”
“The kinky kind?” Lucien offered a smile, but then he turned serious again. “This shit is eating you up Li, you can’t keep trying to have sex with someone else. Your lion…he’s just not going to let it happen. So, either find something else to do to try and distract yourself, or…or….” He grinned again.
“What? What are you thinking?” Liam was almost afraid to ask.
“Do you fancy a road trip little bro?” Lucien waggled his eyebrows.
“To where? What? What would we be doing?”
“Well, while you’ve been trying to fuck anything that moves, and drowning your sorrows when your dick don’t work, I’ve been doing some research. I’m fairly sure I know where your errant mate is.”
For a moment Liam felt a spark of hope but it j
ust as quickly died. “It would be no use, even if we did find him. He’s made it plain he doesn’t want me. No one wants me.”
“Don’t talk like that.” All at once Lucien was standing in front of him, his hands heavy on his shoulders. “You are a fucking awesome man and with your heart, you’re going to make Western an amazing mate even if he doesn’t deserve it.”
“See, you don’t like him either.”
“I don’t know him that well and from what I do know, yeah, he’s an opinionated ass,” Lucien countered. “But then so was everyone else in our pride. You heard what Simon said. He’s been banished. He’s about due for a change of attitude.”
“Still doesn’t mean he’d want to claim me.” Liam hung his head. He was so tired. Fighting his lion, staying out all night getting drunk in the hopes of finding someone his cock would stay hard for. Another week and Lucien would have to commit him. Did the council have a home for guys rejected by their mates?
“You’re missing one important fact,” Lucien said quietly. “You probably didn’t notice, all fired up on mating hormones, horror at what happened to Simon and trying to keep Western from being killed, but….”
“What?” Liam had gone over that night so many times; his head hurt thinking about it.
“You’re the stronger lion.”
Liam’s mouth dropped open. “Get out of town. I’m not. I can’t be. He’s heaps older than me….”
“It’s true. I’d never noticed it before, but if we were talking wolf pack here, then I’m betting he’s nothing more than a beta wolf and you, my brother, are definitely an alpha.”
“An alpha.” Liam thought about it. Prides didn’t have the same structure as a pack did, purely and simply because it was the female lions that did most of the work in terms of protection and fending for the cubs. But every pride had an alpha male. Their dad was one. It made sense he and Lucien would be too.
“But that still doesn’t make any difference, whether Western submits to me or the other way around. He still doesn’t want me.” And that’s the part that hurt the most. Liam wanted to be wanted.
“Maybe not at first, and it’s not as though I’m suggesting you force yourself on him like he threatened to do with Simon,” Liam winced. He still found that part of Western’s plans sickening. “But if he was in a position where he couldn’t get away…and he’s surrounded by your scent, the power of your lion and your sheer need for him…don’t you think he might come around to your way of thinking?”
It was tempting. So tempting. Liam wanted to be mated, especially now he knew who his mate was. But he wanted what Ra and Seth and now Simon and Darwin shared. A mutual love full of affection and trust; maybe adopt a cub or two. From what he knew of Western the man wasn’t capable of any positive emotion. Even when Liam was a cub and worshipped the man from afar, the guy was still an ass. He always had been. Just an extremely sexy looking one.
Slowly shaking his head, Liam said, “I appreciate it, Lu, you have no idea how much I do. But I can’t. Forcing a mating, even with subtle means, it’s still wrong. I know you think I’m being silly but when I thought about having a mate, I dreamed of being courted, of being treated as someone special. Do you honestly think I’d get that with Western? Be honest.”
Liam could see it. He could see the lie hovering on Lucien’s lips, but his brother wouldn’t do that and with a sad smile, Lucien shook his head. “No, Li. I don’t think he’s the right guy for you at all, but then I’m still pissed at what he put Simon through. But my worry about you far exceeds any ideas I might have about punching him out.”
“I’ll get used to being alone.” Liam rolled back on the bed, closing his eyes. “I’ll find something to do…surely, these feelings will go away in time.” Lucien didn’t answer, but Liam felt him move up behind him, cuddling him close.
“I’m not leaving you. I never will.”
Liam wanted to argue, wanted to ask what would happen when Lucien found his mate, but his brain was fuzzy, his heart hurt and his lion still wanted to break free. Safe in Lucien’s arms, Liam fell into a troubled sleep.
The End
Poor Liam, my heart does bleed for him, but then the twist about his mate came out of nowhere. I do hope you like how Simon and Darwin turned out. They were such an awkward couple at the start and that is possibly why this book took longer to write than most. But now with Ra the mayor, five children in the house and so many men still unmated, you can be assured there will be more coming soon. Who thought Rocky would end up as Sheriff? There are going to be fun times had by him as well in coming months.
If you enjoyed this story, please think about leaving a review on your favorite book site. They really do help authors attract new readers and that makes a big difference to any author whose sole source of income is writing. Don’t forget, I love to hear from you and all of my contact details are at the back of this book.
Have a wonderful day and find the time to hug the one you love.
Huge hugs,
Lisa.
Other Books By Lisa Oliver
Cloverleah Pack
Book 1 – The Reluctant Wolf – Kane and Shawn
Book 2 – The Runaway Cat – Griff and Diablo
Book 3 – When No Doesn’t Cut It – Damien and Scott
Book 3.5 – Never Go Back – Scott and Damien’s Trip and a free story about Malacai and Elijah
Book 4 – Calming the Enforcer – Troy and Anton
Book 5 – Getting Close to the Omega – Dean and Matthew
Book 6 – Fae for All – Jax, Aelfric and Fafnir (M/M/M)
Book 7 – Watching Out for Fangs –Josh and Vadim
Book 8 – Tangling with Bears – Tobias, Luke and Kurt (M/M/M)
Book 9 – Angel in Black Leather – Adair and Vassago
Book 9.5 – Scenes from Cloverleah – four short stories featuring the men we’ve come to love
Book 10 – On The Brink – Teilo, Raff and Nereus (M/M/M)
Book 11 – (as yet untitled) – Marius and (shush, it’s a secret) (Coming soon)
The God’s Made Me Do It (Cloverleah spin off series)
Get Over It – Madison and Sebastian’s story
You’ve Got to be Kidding – Poseidon and Claude
Bound and Bonded Series
Book One – Don’t Touch – Levi and Steel
Book Two – Topping the Dom – Pearson and Dante
Book Three – Total Submission – Kyle and Teric
Book Four – Fighting Fangs – Ace and Devin
Book Five – No Mate of Mine – Roger and Cam
Book Six – Undesirable Mate – Phillip and Kellen
(Yes, there is a spin off series coming and all I can say about that, at this point, is soon, I’m sorry, but it hasn’t been forgotten).
Stockton Wolves Series
Book One – Get off My Case – Shane and Dimitri
Book Two – Copping a Lot of Sin – Ben, Sin and Gabriel (M/M/M)
Book Three – Mace’s Awakening – Mace and Roan
Book Four – Don’t Bite – Trent and Alexi
Book Five – Tell Me the Truth – Captain Reynolds and Nico
Alpha and Omega Series
Book One – The Biker’s Omega – Marly and Trent
Book Two – Dance Around the Cop – Zander and Terry
Book 2.5 – Change of Plans - Q and Sully
Book Three – The Artist and His Alpha – Caden and Sean
Book Four – Harder in Heels – Ronan and Asaph
Book 4.5 – A Touch of Spring – Bronson and Harley
The Portrain Pack and Coven
The Power of the Bite – Dax and Zane
The Fangs Between Us – Broz and Van – a Portrain Coven and Pack Prequel (coming soon).
Balance – Angels and Demons
The Viper’s Heart – Raziel and Botis
Passion Punched King – Anael and Zagan – (coming soon)
Arrowtown
A Tiger’s Tale – Ra and Seth<
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Snake Snack – Simon and Darwin (you’ve just read it)
Also under the penname Lee Oliver
Northern States Pack Series
Book One – Ranger’s End Game – Ranger and Aiden
Book Two – Cam’s Promise – Cam and his secret – (coming soon)
Shifter’s Uprising Series – Lisa Oliver in conjunction with Thomas J. Oliver
Book One – Uncaged – Carlin and Lucas
Book Two – Fly Free (Coming soon)
[I have purposefully removed the dates my new releases may be due – there are two new series currently under development (the B&B spin off and a new dragon series) and of course a whole host of other books that will be written. But I have been having some personal health and housing issues so I can’t promise when new titles will be arriving. All I can promise is that I am still writing and new books will be released as soon as possible. I am sorry for any inconvenience.]
About the Author
Lisa Oliver had been writing non-fiction books for years when visions of half dressed, buff men started invading her dreams. Unable to resist the lure of her stories, Lisa decided to switch to fiction books, and now stories about her men clamor to get out from under her fingertips.
When Lisa is not writing, she is usually reading with a cup of tea always at hand. Her grown children and grandchildren sometimes try and pry her away from the computer and have found that the best way to do it is to promise her chocolate. Lisa will do anything for chocolate.
Lisa loves to hear from her readers and other writers (I really do, lol). You can catch up with her on any of the social media links below.
Facebook – http://www.facebook.com/lisaoliverauthor
Official Author page – https://www.facebook.com/LisaOliverManloveAuthor/
My new private group - https://www.facebook.com/groups/217413318738434/
(You will need to be familiar with the Cloverleah series to be accepted, or a friend of mine on Facebook, as there are questions to be answered to get into the group. It helps stop the group being invaded by people who monitor and report posts.)
My blog - (http://www.supernaturalsmut.com)
