Hagen, Lynn - Knox [Zeus's Pack 3] (Siren Publishing Ménage Everlasting ManLove)

by Lynn Hagen

  “Am I being that obvious?”

  “Yes, little darling. Your bottom lip is hanging to the floor.”

  Sammy sucked said lip in, not wanting to come off unappreciative. It had been a wonderful night—except for the start of it with Knox pushing Trevor down—and he didn’t want to spoil the cheery atmosphere.

  The vampire pulled around to the back entrance and cut the engine. Sammy felt a little awkward. Was he supposed to give Trevor a kiss of thank you and good night? He wanted to. Still not sure about all the stuff that was laid at his feet or how Trevor felt about him, Sammy unbuckled his seatbelt and climbed out of the car.

  Trevor had gotten out on his side and walked Sammy to the door. “I had a nice time.”

  Sammy was a nervous wreck. Were you supposed to feel like throwing up when you liked someone? “Me, too.” He reached for the door when Trevor bent down and kissed him.

  He was extremely nervous now but opened for Trevor’s probing tongue. The vampire wrapped his arms around Sammy and pulled him close, kissing him like nobody’s business. His toes were even curling in.

  It was Trevor who broke the kiss. “Sweet dreams, little darling.” His fingers traced down the side of Sammy’s face, and he leaned into them.

  “Uh-huh.” He reached for the door handle and missed the first two times. Trevor chuckled and opened it for him. Sammy reached into his pocket and pulled his keys out, unlocking the door and looking back at Trevor. “Tonight?”

  “Tonight, little darling.”

  Sammy nodded and went inside. He was floating on cloud nine. His feet were light as they carried him upstairs and to his apartment. He ran through the door and fell on his bed, grabbing a pillow to his chest as he grinned from ear to ear. “Oh god, look at me. I’m grinning like the biggest fool.” He giggled.

  Sammy sighed and turned over, thinking about the dark and mysterious vampire and how utterly handsome he was.

  Trevor watched the light come on in Sammy’s apartment. He wanted to go up there and make sure it was safe and secure. Hell, who was he kidding? He wanted to go up there and pick up where they left off.

  It had taken a great amount of control for him to step back and let his mate go inside. But he was being a gentleman about this. Trevor had to prove to his mates he wasn’t the savage they thought him to be.

  Or at least to Knox.

  “Did you claim him?”

  Trevor closed his eyes, a tight grin pulling his mouth back at Knox’s voice. “No.”

  “Why not? I would have thought you would jump at the opportunity.”

  Trevor turned around, finding Knox leaning against the hood of his car. The shifter was devastatingly gorgeous, but he kept that to himself. “Because I’m not an animal.”

  “What’s that supposed to mean?” Knox stood straight. “You know, just because fate thought we should be together doesn’t mean I agree.”

  “Then I guess we’re on the same page,” Trevor lied. “Now if you don’t mind, I have a sun to beat home.”

  “By all means.” Knox stepped aside. They stood there staring at each other like a Mexican standoff. Trevor was the first to move, grabbing the handle of the car door and opening it.

  “You know, Sammy is a nice guy. The least we could do is try to get along for him,” Trevor said as he got into his car, not waiting to hear Knox’s answer. He probably wouldn’t like it anyway. The shifter watched him drive away, his eyes narrowed on Trevor as he passed him.

  Trevor stopped, rolled his window down, and stared up at Knox. “You may not like me, but I can see the want in your eyes. Just to let you know, it wouldn’t be your neck I would want to suck.” He saw Knox’s nostrils flare as he rolled his window up. Unsure if it was from lust or anger, teasing Knox had felt good, but it may not have been a smart move. Trevor couldn’t help it, though. The jackass deserved it.

  “Fuck,” Trevor bit out once back on the street. “Just my luck to be mated to a damn dog.”

  As much as he bitched and moaned, Trevor wasn’t going to lie to himself. He wanted Knox. The challenge was a turn-on.

  Chapter Three

  Knox sat and listened to Zeus talk about the design and build of their new home. He, like the other soldiers, was glad this place would be destroyed. It held too many memories of Jackson’s time as Alpha and the sadistic way he led.

  He still had nightmares and woke up in a sweat on occasion. The new home would be a welcome haven. They were bringing in a construction crew today. The plans were to have it built within six months. Six months too long in Knox’s opinion. But after decades of hell, six months was a drop in the bucket.

  “I want anyone here that has the free time to help the crew out,” Zeus was saying. “We are trying to give as much business to Hunter at the hardware store as we can. He’s part of our community, and I want them to benefit from this as well.”

  “Theo and Harold will benefit feeding them, too,” Toby, one of Zeus’s mates, added.

  The mention of Theo’s set Knox’s thoughts on a different path. Sammy and Trevor. His blood had been set on fire last night at Trevor’s parting words, and for the life of him, he couldn’t get it out of his head.

  Knox needed to think of something else and quickly. He didn’t need these men to scent his arousal. Although they were in many ways like brothers, it was still none of their damn business.

  “Everyone still needs to remain alert. Avanti and Jesse couldn’t find out who that mystery person was out at Hank’s farm, so we have no clue who we’re dealing with here.”

  “Too bad Dirk killed Hank. We could have gotten the information out of him.” Torem looked down at his hands. Knox knew exactly how they would have gotten that information and knew why Torem couldn’t look at anyone.

  When Knox left the office, his mind was on Sammy and wanting to go see him. Unfortunately he had to meet the construction crew. Zeus made it clear that he wanted all the soldiers and his Betas to know who would be working on pack land.

  Knox drove over to the site where they would be meeting the crew. There were humans already there, equipment being brought in, and hardhats all around.

  “Looks like the party is waiting for us,” Taz, one of the soldiers, joked.

  Knox looked over the men walking around, his thoughts only half there.

  “Who’s the foreman?” Torem called out. A man with rolled up prints in his hand waved them in the air.

  “That would be me. Can I help you?” The guy walked over to Torem and Knox, eyeing them suspiciously.

  “I’m Torem. Zeus sent me.”

  The suspicion was replaced by a smile. “Names Dino.” He shook Torem’s hand.

  “That short for something?” Knox asked.

  “Names Dominique, but everyone calls me Dino.”

  Torem laughed. “Another Italian.”

  Dino frowned. “Is that a problem?”

  “Not in the least. Inside joke, no offense to you whatsoever.” Torem smiled.

  Knox eyed Torem. He was acting awfully strange. The laid-back, brooding wolf was openly laughing and…flirting?

  He looked up at the sky to make sure it wasn’t falling. Since when did Torem become chatty?

  “If there’s anything you need, just let me know.”

  Okay, Knox was taking a step back. Lightning was about to strike in a minute if Torem kept acting this way.

  “Will do.” Dino pointed the blueprints over his shoulder. “I’m gonna get back to work.” He tugged at his hand. Torem hadn’t let it go yet. “Nice meeting you.”

  “You okay?” Knox asked when the foreman walked away.

  “No,” Torem bit out and turned on his heel. Now that was the Beta he knew.

  “What’s got Torem’s panties in a ruffle?” Taz asked as he approached.

  “I have no fucking clue.” Knox shook his head and walked over to the crew. They all seemed nice once introductions were made. He caught Dino looking over at Torem a few times, as if he were studying him.

  Knox lo
oked over the twenty-man crew made up of laborers, drywallers, electricians, carpenters, and so on. He knew there would be more once construction was in full swing. It was his job, as with the others, to memorize the faces and names of them all.

  He spotted Rave snapping pictures with his phone and then typing something in. That wasn’t such a bad idea, and it would help until he became familiar with the crew. Knox pulled his cell phone out and spent the next hour snapping pics and adding names.

  Once he was done, he shoved it in his pocket and headed for his truck, Sammy heavy on the brain. He wanted to go see his mate, the need making him walk faster.

  “Hey, don’t forget the groundbreaking ceremony and Jasper’s dinner this evening,” Taz called to him.

  Shit, he had forgotten about that. Knox climbed into his truck and turned it toward town. He parked in front of Theo’s and got out.

  The tavern wasn’t too full. It was only ten in the morning. The lunch crowd would start coming in about another hour.

  “Hey, Knox.” Theo shook his hand. “What’s got you here so early?” He snickered.

  “Where is he?” Theo knew and was fucking with him about it.

  “In the kitchen, you can go back if you want.”

  “Can he leave with me now?”

  Theo shrugged. “I can call Benny to come in and work Sammy’s shift. What’s up?”

  “We’re having a groundbreaking ceremony and dinner. I wanted to take Sammy with me.” Knox’s thoughts touched on Trevor. Even if he could accept the fact that Trevor was a vampire, it would still be daylight out when the ceremony took place. His attendance wouldn’t be a welcomed thing if it meant him harm.

  “Go ahead and invite him. I’ll go call Benny.” Theo set down the glass he had been wiping as Knox walked to the kitchen.

  He found Sammy singing to himself as he scrubbed some pans out. Knox just stood there watching him. The man couldn’t sing to save his life, but it was a sight nonetheless. Sammy looked good happy.

  “Hey.”

  Sammy screamed and whirled around, his hand clenching his shirt right where his heart lay. Knox hadn’t intended to scare the poor guy. “I’m sorry.”

  “I was just in my own little world. I didn’t hear you come in.” He shut the water off and dried his hands. They both stood there silently for a moment.

  “I wanted to invite you to a groundbreaking ceremony my family is having for the new house we’re building.”

  Sammy’s eyes widened, and he shifted from foot to foot. “I can’t. I have to work. But thank you for the invitation.”

  “Theo’s letting you have the rest of the day off. He said he’d call Benny to finish your shift.”

  “I can’t afford to take time off.”

  Knox could scent agitation and wondered if Sammy wasn’t hiding something. “Is that the only reason?”

  When Sammy’s eyes lowered, he knew it wasn’t. “Tell me.”

  “It’s too…oh, heck, I don’t have a thing to wear.”

  Knox chuckled. “Wear what you have on now. My family doesn’t stand on ceremony. Wear what makes you comfortable.”

  “Are you sure? I don’t want to be underdressed.”

  “I’m wearing this.” Knox splayed his hands at his jeans and shirt.

  Sammy wasn’t sure. He really, really didn’t want to feel like the poor man at a rich man’s ceremony. “Do you promise no one is going to be dressed up?” He couldn’t believe he was actually considering this.

  “I promise. So is that a yes?” Knox’s voice was so full of hope that Sammy didn’t have it in his heart to refuse the guy.

  “That’s a yes.” Sammy found himself smiling widely at Knox. He found his excitement mounting as they left the Bar and Grill and headed toward Knox’s home. Sammy stole glances as he watched Knox drive. The firm hands on the steering wheel once again made him wonder what they would feel like caressing his skin. The way the black T-shirt stretched over well-defined muscles had Sammy growing hard, fast.

  His erection quickly deflated when he saw how many people were here. Knox had told him the ceremony wasn’t until late afternoon, early evening. So what was with the crowd? “Is there something else going on?”

  “No, it’s just my family. I brought you a little early so you could meet everyone.”

  Who took a guy they just met to meet the family? What if they didn’t like him? Sammy knew he wasn’t as fun-loving as some guys. As a matter of fact, he was pretty antisocial. That was one of the things Connolly had complained about him.

  His ex had been a social butterfly while Sammy liked staying at home with a good movie and cuddles. Apparently Connolly didn’t think staying at home was fun. He would go out without Sammy, and Sammy swore when Connolly got home he could smell another’s cologne on him. Not one to stir the pot, Sammy never questioned him about it.

  “Hey, where are you?”

  Sammy blinked a few times and saw that Knox was staring at him. “Sorry.”

  “If you don’t want to be here, we could go somewhere else. I don’t want you uncomfortable.”

  Sammy remembered what Trevor said about mates and that Knox was one of his. He was still having a hard time swallowing all of it. Looking closely at Knox, he couldn’t see a wolf. All he saw was a very handsome man. “We can stay.” If Trevor was telling the truth, and Sammy couldn’t see why the vampire would lie to him, then he needed to get to know Knox’s family. It was scary, though.

  “Come on, babe. It’ll be fine.”

  “Will you eat them if it’s not?” Sammy curled his lips in when he realized he let the cat out of the bag. He wasn’t sure if Knox intended for him to know.

  Knox had his door opened but still sat in his seat. He eyed Sammy for a long moment and then asked, “How did you find out?”

  “I asked Trevor.” Sammy was just sinking his foot deeper into his mouth. Knox already didn’t like Trevor, and this wasn’t helping his case any.

  “I see. So what else did the vampire tell you?” Knox shifted around and waited for an answer.

  “Are you mad at him?”

  “No.”

  “Promise?”

  Knox ran his fingers over Sammy’s face and smiled, knocking all of his defenses to hell. “I promise.”

  “He said all three of us were mates.” Knox’s eye twitched, and Sammy wasn’t sure if that was a good thing or not. Knox promised he wasn’t mad, but his face was telling a different story.

  “Is that what he said?” Knox groused.

  “Uh-huh.” Sammy prayed he hadn’t knocked Trevor’s chance out of the water to be accepted by Knox. “Why don’t you like him, besides him being a vampire?”

  Knox sighed and sat back. “The only vampires I’ve come into contact with were out to kill. I haven’t met a decent one yet.”

  “But Trevor is,” Sammy quickly defended. “We went driving last night, and he was really nice and funny, too.” He placed his hand on top of Knox’s. “Will you try and give him a chance?”

  He watched the play of emotions run across Knox’s face before resignation settled over it. “For you, I’ll try.”

  That’s all he could ask. “So let’s go meet your family.”

  “Since you already know we’re shifters, it’s called a pack,” Knox informed him before getting out.

  “A pack, okay, that makes sense. I think,” Sammy mumbled and opened his door and met Knox by the front of the truck. The large man took his hand and led him over to the men milling about.

  He was happy to see he knew a few faces. Jesse and Craig were there, and he remembered a few faces from the tavern. What made Sammy’s head spin was the sheer magnitude of the one Knox introduced as Zeus. Holy mother of saltines, the guy was huge!

  Sammy would need a step stool, on top of a ladder, on top of a step stool, just to be eye level with the guy. And here he thought Knox and Trevor were tall. He was getting dizzy just staring up at the man.

  Knox guided him over to some guys named Taz and Rave. These tw
o seemed pretty nice.

  “So you found your mate?” Rave asked as he smiled at Sammy.

  He could see Knox hesitating with his answer. Was he going to deny Trevor? Sammy waited to see how Knox handled this.

  “One of them.” He rubbed the back of his neck and stared over at Taz.

  “So you think you have two like the others?” Taz asked and winked at Sammy with a smile. He liked Taz.

  “I have another,” Knox said as he wiped a hand over his mouth, mumbling his words. Sammy glared up at him.

  “What was that?” Rave asked.

  “I said I have another.”

  “Well, where is he?” Taz asked.

  Sammy could see the sweat on Knox’s face, so he decided to help him out. “There is a third. His name is Trevor, and he’s a really nice guy.”

  “Didn’t he want to come?” Rave asked Sammy.

  “Well, it’s kinda hard when he can’t come out in sunlight. Besides, Knox and Trevor have technical difficulties they need to work out.” There, that should help.

  Taz and Rave gaped at Knox. “Can’t come out in sunlight?” Taz asked with a questioning tone. They both looked from Knox to Sammy, and then back to Knox.

  “Yeah, so?” Knox asked with attitude.

  “He’s a vampire, and the two don’t see eye-to-eye. As a matter of fact, they don’t see at all. Knox refuses to listen to Trevor and wasn’t very nice, and Trevor likes Knox but won’t admit it because Knox wasn’t very nice.” Sammy smiled up at Knox. That should help.

  Sammy started to think he wasn’t helping when Knox groaned and Taz and Rave started laughing hysterically.

  “Come on.” Knox pulled him away, leaving the two still laughing as Knox briskly walked over to another pair talking.

  Trevor sat back in his car. He was waiting for Sammy to come out so they could go for another drive. The little bugger had wormed his way into his heart last night. That wasn’t something Trevor allowed.

  He sat back and thought about his coven. It angered him every time he thought of the argument he had with Michael, the coven leader.

  The leader had advised him to keep his sexual deviance hidden. How was being gay a deviant? When he didn’t agree, even went so far as to openly admit it, Michael had lost his cool and a fight had ensued.