Keaton's Lessons [Brac Village 6] (Siren Publishing Everlasting Classic ManLove)

by Lynn Hagen

  He pulled back, trying to catch his breath, seeing that Kade was just as frazzled, just as focused with what they were doing as Keaton felt. “So you said something about a workshop in the back?”

  Chapter Six

  Oliver stood outside the Lucky Clover, taking in some much-needed fresh air. The place was packed and the air conditioner couldn’t keep up with all the sweaty bodies writhing on the dance floor—and someone in there needed to learn what deodorant was used for.

  He grinned when he saw Micah casually sitting back on the steps of the soon-to-open clothing store. He should have known his mate would keep an eye on him. Cecil was nuts if he thought he could sneak off without Maverick knowing.

  The alpha was creepy-scary when it came to the things he knew. Nothing got by that timber wolf. But Oliver pretended not to see his mate as he leaned against the building, watching as a few people walked past him. Let Micah think he was covertly spying on Oliver. Maybe it would turn into a sexually fun game that Oliver would reap the rewards over later tonight.

  He pulled out his phone and started to text Blair, letting his brother know that their babysitter was close by, when the hairs on the back of his neck stood on end. Oliver wasn’t sure why he suddenly became fully aware of his surroundings—maybe living with the shifters all these years had honed his skills at detecting bad shit—but he was glancing around, noticing Micah moving quickly across the street.

  “What is it?” he asked his mate as his eyes swept the streets. “Why do I feel like there is no more happiness left in the world?” It felt as if something were sucking the very joy from his body and leaving him to wallow in misery.

  “Hell hounds,” Micah stated flatly. “Go get your brother and Cecil. We need to get out of here.”

  “What about everyone else in the club?” Oliver couldn’t just leave them to torture. He knew about the hell hounds. They were nasty and vile creatures that preyed on innocent people. One bite from their lethal teeth and a human would die.

  “I’ll call Nazaryth, but until then, get your ass moving.” Micah spun Oliver around and pushed him toward the club entrance.

  Oliver knew it was serious when his mate said he was calling the winged beast leader. The winged beasts were no joke. They came from some other realm, a mystic realm called Zanthar. There were twelve beasts who resided in their region and it was their job to hunt down and kill as many hell hounds as they could find. He wasn’t sure what one of those creatures was doing here in Brac Village, but he wanted it gone.

  * * * *

  Kade returned to the building the following morning to sign the lease papers. After going through the place last night with Keaton, he knew that it would be the perfect setup for his needs. He had thought so the previous night, but now that he was heading to meet with Kota, Kade wasn’t so sure.

  He hadn’t been filled with so much doubt this morning, but as he walked closer to his destination, negative thoughts began to take over. Who was he kidding? He should not own a business of his own. Kade didn’t deserve that right after what he had done. They never should have let him out of—“Get out of my head.” Kade grabbed his temples, knowing those thoughts weren’t his own. He no more deserved to be locked up than—

  “Who are you talking to?” Kota asked as Kade drew closer. “Are you feeling all right?”

  Kade was not about to tell the beta that a whispering voice was inside his head, feeding him a bunch of bullshit. He wanted to lash out, to make someone pay as the claws of sorrow embedded deeper into his mind. “I’m fine,” he snapped.

  Kota didn’t move, didn’t say a word, but Kade could see fury in the man’s blue eyes. He knew he had just crossed a line. Talking to the beta of the local timber wolf pack in a way that was less than respectful was not tolerated.

  “I meant no disrespect,” Kade said as he rubbed the side of his head. “I just have a massive headache.” Again, he was not going to tell Kota about the negative influence in his mind. There were just some things a man did not reveal to anyone. Sexual dysfunctions were never discussed—which thankfully Kade was not suffering from—along with touchy-feely subjects and insanity.

  “Let’s get this underway.” Kota walked inside, caring a manila folder that Kade hadn’t seen in the man’s hand until now. It had to contain the lease. The voice once again told him that he was only fooling himself, but Kade violently shoved at those thoughts. Ever since he had moved in with Bishop, Kade had been feeling lost and depressed. The thought once again resurfaced that maybe Brac Village wasn’t a place he needed to settle back into. The one thing stopping him from taking off was Keaton. He knew his mate loved living here and Kade couldn’t bring himself to tear the man away.

  “This is a one-year lease,” Kota said as he held up the folder. “It is renewable just as long as none of the terms are violated. I own this building, so I’m pretty flexible. Read it over, and if you agree, sign it.”

  Kade took the folder and began to read over the lease. As his eyes skimmed down the paper, he realized that he didn’t understand half the technical terms being used. He read over it once more and was still stumped.

  “We good?”

  He wanted to ask Kota to explain the lease to him in layman’s terms, but just nodded as he signed on the proverbial dotted line. It was stupid to sign something he didn’t understand, but Kade prayed that Kota could be trusted.

  Kota held out his hand and Kade shook it. “You are now the proud leaseholder of this building, my friend. The loan has been deposited into your bank account. Maverick’s accountant is going to meet with you tomorrow to help you go over the financial side of this.”

  It was all so overwhelming.

  Kota took a seat on one of the chairs that had been left behind by the previous renter. He sat casually back in the chair, one arm tossed over the back, his legs stretched out and crossed at the ankles. The man looked as if he didn’t have a care in the world, as if nothing bothered him.

  Kade used to be that confident. Hell, he had been up until a few weeks ago when he entered this village. “I’m good,” Kade replied with a nonchalant shrug of his shoulders, wondering if he ever would be the same man he used to be before that tragic night.

  The door opened and Keaton came rushing in, looking flushed. “Did you sign it?”

  Kade and Kota glanced at each other before Kade gave a quick nod. He hadn’t been expecting Keaton here today. It was a welcome surprise.

  “Let’s celebrate!” Keaton was so bubbly that Kade was waiting to see if the man popped from excitement. “Oliver is running the hut today, so I’m all yours.”

  Kota pushed to his feet, a grin on his face. “I better go check on my brother-in-law.”

  Keaton watched the beta leave before he spun around and his face lit up. “Come on, Kade, where do you want to go or what do you want to do?”

  God, he loved when his mate said his name. The slipping accent was sexy as hell. It reminded him of what Keaton had done for him last night and Kade was getting hard remembering. He was still hesitant in claiming Keaton. The doc had told him that the vampire who had attacked his mate was indeed infected.

  What if it was only the pull making Keaton agree? What if it wasn’t what he really wanted? Those thoughts continually kept him up at night. Kade did not want to take the man’s free choice away.

  “A fat steak sounds damn good,” Kade said, knowing Keaton would turn his nose up at the idea.

  “How about I stuff you with more of my concoctions until your eyes bug out?” Keaton handed Kade the threat teasingly. Kade wasn’t really in the mood for steak, but he really didn’t know what to do.

  “What is there to do around here?” It had been so long since Kade had hung around town, and it had vastly changed. He wasn’t sure what new businesses were up and running. He had seen a few, but he was pretty sure there was plenty more.

  “There is an art festival going on at the rec center. The kids are selling their paintings. They also have games, food, and a few contests
. Do you want to go check out the famous little artists?”

  Kade had never celebrated anything by browsing children’s art. He wasn’t sure what Keaton was doing, but the man was showing him a softer side to life. Kade liked that. He wanted to see more of it. Softness was sorely missing from his life. “Sounds good.”

  Keaton laughed. “Dude, don’t look like I’m taking you to your execution. It’ll be fun, I promise.” Kade could only stare in wonder as Keaton ran his hand through his shoulder-length blond hair. He was such a…he pictured his mate attending college, hanging out with his friends, and enjoying life to the fullest.

  “Why didn’t you go to college?” He wasn’t sure where his line of thought was going, but the guy seemed like he should be on a surfboard somewhere.

  “What?” Keaton asked as he tilted his head to the side, his sapphire eyes shimmering in the sunlight.

  “School, why didn’t you further your education instead of settling down and starting a business?”

  Keaton gave the easy laugh Kade was becoming addicted to. “It wasn’t for me. Twelve years was long enough. I wanted to start living my life, not be in another classroom. I don’t think I did too bad considering I’m a successful business owner at the age of twenty-three.”

  Jesus Christ. Kade had no idea he was that young. Knowing his mate’s age made him feel old as hell. Snow leopards aged slower than humans. When Kade was finished with high school, he was—in leopard years—twenty-five years old. He was still young for someone from his breed of shifters, but damn…Keaton was…Kade ran his hand down his face and turned. Even if he went by human years, he would be thirty-three, ten years older than the guy.

  Why was he so stuck on age? Kade felt like he was losing his damn mind. He wasn’t acting like himself and he wasn’t thinking like himself either.

  Where were all these downtrodden feelings coming from?

  “I hear there is pie at the art festival. Come on, I’m pretty sure they should have a sugar-free one.” Keaton grabbed Kade’s arm and pulled him along. The only thing he could do was follow.

  “I’ve visited the center quite a few times. I like helping out there,” Keaton was saying as he walked beside Kade. “Thomas is awesome with the kids. His boyfriend Tyler is great with the older teens. I’m told they have a few basketball competitions around here—nothing major, just the local kids.”

  The man was surprising Kade at every turn. Keaton volunteered at the local rec center? He wasn’t sure how—Kade slowed when he noticed a man paying a little too much attention to them. He knew evil when he saw it. He had been immersed with evilness for over a decade. The truly wicked always had a certain look about them, a cunning expression or a deceptive smile.

  “What’s wrong?” Keaton asked when Kade moved his mate to the other side of him, placing himself in harm’s way.

  Kade gave Keaton a tight-lipped smile. “Nothing. What were you saying about art?”

  His mate gave him a droll stare and then began to talk.

  But Kade wasn’t listening. He could hear the voice inside his head again, the voice that was telling him he wasn’t good enough for Keaton, that he was a failure, a loser, and a joke. Kade had never been the type to whip himself over the back. It just wasn’t his style. So who in the hell—Kade glanced at the stranger again who was now on the other side of the street, his long hank of raven hair not quite concealing the wintery chill of his coal-black eyes. The strands were only half covering his face, his grin holding nothing but wicked intent.

  He knew in the moment that it was the guy staring at him who was whispering the disparaging words. It was the stranger who was making Kade doubt everything about himself, Keaton, and his business venture. The guy was even making Kade regret coming home.

  If he could do all that, then he wasn’t human. Kade’s senses went on full alert as he steered Keaton into the local bookstore.

  “Why are we stopping in here?” Keaton asked as he walked inside, Kade’s hand on his back, encouraging his mate to go further.

  “Because we have a big problem,” he said as he pulled out his phone.

  * * * *

  Keaton stood there in disbelief as he listened to Kade tell someone about a stranger following them and putting bad thoughts in his head. Well, those weren’t his words verbatim, but that was the gist of the conversation. Who in the hell could push their thoughts into someone else’s mind?

  Then again, Keaton had learned some astonishing things over the past week. He wasn’t sure why learning that evil truly existed shocked him. Weren’t there murders, rapists, and abusers out there in the world? He just never thought that evil was a living entity.

  “I’m at the bookstore,” Kade said into the phone. “He was right across the street.”

  Keaton watched Kade stroll to the window and glance outside. He wanted to run and see who Kade was talking about, but call him a chicken because he feared that if evil saw him, he would target Keaton.

  “He’s a hell what?” Kade said a little too loudly. “You have got to be shitting me.”

  Curious, Keaton moved a little closer until he was standing right behind Kade—as if the man could shield him—and glanced out of the window.

  Oh, why did he do that? Keaton should have kept his ass where he was. There was a guy across the street, dressed entirely in black—including his damn hair—and staring directly at Keaton. The guy pressed his index finger to his forehead and then bowed his head slightly, as if greeting Keaton. He wore a mocking grin on his face, but his eyes, god, they were so lifeless. He reminded Keaton of some deeply enmeshed Goth. His fingernails and lips were the same color as his hair, the color of black ink. He also had chains draping from the loops on his pants, in every direction.

  How freaking creepy.

  He hurried away from the window, terrified. Keaton wasn’t sure what the stranger wanted, but he knew it wasn’t anything good. He turned when he heard Kade clear his throat. The man was finally off of the phone. “Are we in deep trouble?”

  Kade’s expression wasn’t promising. His mate ran his hand over his short-cropped hair, his teal eyes flickering over Keaton’s face. “And then some.”

  Chapter Seven

  “Can you repeat that?” Keaton said as he stared at Kade, his mind not quite grasping what the guy was saying. “Did you just say that this man…person…creature thing escaped from hell?”

  Keaton considered himself a very open-minded person, but what Kade was telling was even more far-fetched than when the guy told him about shifters and vampires. “You’re saying that the guy outside”—Keaton pointed toward the window—“isn’t human and can kill me if he bites me? Why would he bite me? I haven’t done anything wrong to him. How did he get out of hell? Who let him out?” He was hyperventilating. Just the thought of the word hell and Keaton wanted to move to the other side of the country.

  But would that be far enough?

  “Calm down.” Kade paced up and down the book aisle. “At least I found out that I’m not losing my mind. This thing, hell hound, sucks all the joy out of a person. That is why I have been feeling so damn depressed since I got back.”

  Keaton snorted as he yanked his hands through his hair. “I’m glad you figured that out. Now all we need to do is find out how to get rid of that thing. Can’t we just toss a bucket of holy water over his head?”

  It sounded like a perfect plan to him. The hound thingy should shriek and shrivel. No, wait, that was The Wizard of Oz. Wrong evil being. But it was the same concept.

  “It isn’t that easy.” It was a simple statement, one that should’ve had Keaton exploring other possibilities. But he was so far out of his depth that the only thing that came to mind was calling a priest.

  He began to pace right along with Kade, feeling trapped and lacking air. God help him, he actually wanted to find a way to defeat that horrible thing outside, to stop it from mentally torturing Kade.

  “Don’t look so worried, Keaton.” Kade blocked Keaton’s pacing, placing his
hands on Keaton’s upper arms and holding him still. “Help is on the way. I guess for every evil entity there is a warrior. The timber wolves are getting in contact with someone who is an expert at killing those things.”

  Keaton leaned into Kade’s embrace, needing desperately to grab hold of something solid and strong. His mate’s hands caressed Keaton’s arms, his touch so tender, so warm. Keaton nestled into Kade, laying his head on the strong shoulder, and hoped that his mate was right. If that thing out there was the cause of Kade’s moodiness, Keaton would gladly go out there and shove a spike through the son of a bitch’s skull.

  He had taken the news of shifters and vampires existing in a semi-calm state. Kade was a shifter and he hadn’t attacked Keaton. The town was full of shifters, people he knew and liked. But that hound outside was pure, unadulterated evil. There would be nothing about him to like. There would be nothing about him that made Keaton feel at ease.

  Keaton clung to Kade, balancing on the edge of an emotional chasm that he felt like he was falling into. His mind began to open, truly understanding that nature balanced everything out. There weren’t just humans in the world. Nature balanced that out with paranormal creatures. But within those nonhuman creatures was good and evil—just like with humans.

  But the paranormal evil was a hell of a lot scarier.

  “I swear to you, Keaton. I won’t let anything happen to you. We’ll get through this.” Kade’s thickly chiseled body moved until he had Keaton’s back against the bookcase. “And when that evil bastard is defeated, and these unwelcome emotions are gone,”—Kade leaned in, pressing his lips to Keaton’s ear—“I’m going to claim you and truly make you mine.”

  The growled promise made his blood feel alive, as if it were burning through him. Keaton momentarily forgot about the danger they were in as he tilted his head back, gazing up into a handsomely stubbled face. He wanted Kade to take him right here, right now. But a saner part of him leashed a collar around that thought and dragged it back.