by Liv Rider
Mitchell smiled down at him, and for one moment Shaun was absolutely convinced that everything would be all right. “Where would you like to go?”
The hotel room he shared with Chris was the safest option. They wouldn’t be disturbed. “Up to my room. But can I get something to drink first? I think I’m gonna need it.”
14
Mitchell
Mitchell tried not to let his impatience show as they got drinks. Shaun looked around, then told Mitchell to wait a minute before going up to his room.
He hated the furtive way he had to sneak around, although he understood why Shaun didn’t want anyone seeing him head back to his hotel room with Mitchell.
The gossip surrounding him was bad enough already.
He dutifully waited a minute and not a second more before heading up the stairs. His own stomach twisted nervously. Shaun had looked panicked. Whatever was going on, it was bad.
We will come to our mate’s aid!
It was only a question of how.
He knocked on the door, relieved when Shaun opened it to let him in.
Shaun was still holding his cocktail as he glanced down the hallway. “No one saw you?”
“I don’t think so, no.” He walked further into the room, and a flash of jealousy welled up at the sight of the suitcases under the bed. He was here to help his mate, and his mate had a boyfriend. But then he noticed the couch had a pillow on it. He turned to look at the bed. Only one pillow.
Shaun had closed the door, taking a long sip as he walked past Mitchell and over to the window. “You’ll think I’m an idiot.”
Mitchell tried to ignore the spark of hope inside of him. There were plenty of reasons that pillow was lying on the couch instead of the bed. Maybe Shaun or Chris slept without a pillow. “I won’t know until you tell me.”
Shaun snorted at that, taking another sip as he stared out the window at the trees. His shoulders were tense, and while Mitchell longed to go over there and put a reassuring hand on Shaun’s back, he sat down on the couch instead. He would let Shaun talk when he was ready.
“I definitely think I’m an idiot.” Shaun turned to face him. He glanced at Mitchell before looking down at his cocktail again.
Mitchell remained quiet, sipping from his own.
“You said you like helping people, right?” Shaun fiddled with the straw in his drink.
“Yes.”
“And that includes people who aren’t shifters?”
Mitchell nodded. “Shaun, I told you downstairs, I want to help you, but you have to tell me how.” He hated seeing his mate so worried.
“Okay. Just keep in mind you said that when you get angry with me.” Shaun glanced at the door.
Our mate fears us? His dragon sounded puzzled.
“Why would I get angry?” Mitchell asked, getting more worried. He made himself sit back against the couch, trying to look calm. Going by the look on Shaun’s face, it wasn’t convincing.
Shaun was silent for a long moment, looking miserable. “I lied. About a bunch of stuff. I don’t own a bar, I’m just a bartender. Chris isn’t my boyfriend. He’s my roommate I talked into coming with me because I thought... I don’t know what I thought. That it would help, I guess.”
“Help what?” Mitchell’s mind was a whir of thoughts and emotions. Anger at Shaun for lying, and with himself for not realizing what was going on sooner, and for making Shaun feel like he couldn’t confide in Mitchell.
And did this mean Shaun was single?
Shaun gestured at the room around him. “With all of this. The wedding, the bridesmaids, the other guests…”
“You thought you had to impress them?” He couldn’t believe it. What Shaun had done was impressive enough.
“I thought that if I impressed them, they’d be less likely to give me a hard time.” Shaun eyed him. “I thought you’d be angrier about me lying.” He sounded guarded, as if he was still expecting Mitchell to get mad with him.
We let our mate down.
Mitchell had come to the same conclusion. He’d tried his best to explain shifters and dragon shifters in particular to Shaun, but he’d failed to explain how the whole ‘dragon shifters value honesty over everything else’ worked. And yet there was still a part deep inside of him that was angry with Shaun, because how dare his mate lie to his face? How dare his mate not trust him?
“It’s complicated.” Mitchell sagged back against the couch. “I am angry. With you. With myself. And with Natalie and Caroline, because they made you think you had to lie. I’m angry with the people from Millersburg who still think you’re a car thief and treated you like dirt back then and still do now, because no one should be treated like that. Of course I wish you hadn’t lied to me. Of course I don’t like it. But what I don’t like even more is how you’ve had to put up with backhanded sneering and distrust from Natalie, Caroline, and their husbands all weekend.”
“That does sound complicated.” Shaun’s smile was hesitant.
Mitchell sipped his cocktail, smiling back. “You have no idea.” He wouldn’t complicate things further by telling Shaun they were fated mates right now. Shaun still hadn’t told him what it was he needed help with. “But those are the two things you lied about? The bar and Chris?” He needed to be sure.
Claim our mate! his dragon insisted.
Help him first.
Shaun nodded, his shoulders sagging. “Yeah. Everything I told you last night about Millersburg, that was true.”
Mitchell was glad to see Shaun looking more at ease. “I know. I also knew there was something you weren’t telling me about the bar. But I didn’t want to pry too much. I figured that maybe you were close to bankruptcy or something. Just because I can tell someone is lying, doesn’t mean I know what they’re lying about. I’m not a mind-reader.”
“That’s probably for the best.” Shaun glanced out the window as his cheeks flushed, taking another sip from his cocktail and finishing it.
Considering Shaun had to feel the attraction between them, Mitchell suspected he knew what Shaun had been thinking about. He put his cocktail glass down on the small coffee table and got up to join Shaun by the window. His palms were sweaty. Despite everything, he was still nervous. What if there was some other reason Shaun couldn’t be with him? Maybe he should focus on helping Shaun first, and then they could discuss their future.
No, he’d decided to take charge more often. Time to act on that.
“You’re not the only one who messed up this weekend.” He glanced down at Shaun, who looked surprised. “Last night.”
Shaun shook his head, his cheeks reddening further. “Oh please, I ran off like some damsel afraid of her virtue. I should have told you the truth then, but I panicked.”
“Understandable.” Guilt still churned inside of him. “I had just told you all about how much I care about honesty.” He’d messed up in more ways than one.
“And how impressive it was that I kept a bar going.” Shaun ducked his head as he put the empty glass down in the windowsill.
His attempts to reassure Shaun had only made things worse. “If it helps, I’m impressed with regular bartenders too.” He kept his tone light.
Shaun snorted at that. “’Course you are.”
It shouldn’t surprise him that his mate was dismissive like that, and yet it rankled. “Everything you told me about Millersburg and how you came to Lewiston is true, right?”
“Yeah, but—”
“Then you still turned your life around. You realized you’d made mistakes and did something about it. Not everybody manages that.”
Shaun still looked skeptical. “Does being Keeper of the Peace mean you’re also a motivational speaker?”
Mitchell laughed at that, making Shaun smile too. Maybe he had sounded a little cheesy. “But you know I hate lying.” He held Shaun’s gaze until the other man flushed again and looked out the window. “We both messed up this weekend. Can we have a fresh start?” His heart raced in his chest as Shaun remained quiet.
&
nbsp; “You want to?”
Mitchell hated how hesitant Shaun sounded, but then, he didn’t know they were fated mates. Mitchell just about stopped himself from saying ‘Of course!’ because it wasn’t so obvious to Shaun. “I’d like to try.” His heart was pounding. “Unless you’d rather not—”
“Oh, I do!” Shaun’s reply was immediate and heartening, and he looked embarrassed at his own enthusiasm. “I mean, I thought you wouldn’t, but—”
Mitchell was done reassuring Shaun with words and cut him off with a kiss instead. He rested one hand on Shaun’s shoulder, planning on a quick peck, but Shaun had other ideas.
His mate surged forward, wrapping his arms around Mitchell’s neck and deepening the kiss.
Oh yes.
Heat flared inside of him as he held Shaun, trying to pull him closer. All the pent-up feelings he’d been trying to ignore burst out in a tidal wave. Kissing Shaun like this was everything he’d hoped it would be.
Shaun pressed his body flush against Mitchell’s, moaning into the kiss.
Finally he could touch Shaun the way he wanted to. He could slide one hand up Shaun’s back and run it through his curls. He could cup Shaun’s chin and tilt it as he nuzzled and kissed his way down Shaun’s neck, smiling at the soft noises coming from his mate. He could do all that, and so much more.
Claim our mate!
They were in a room with a bed. What else was Mitchell going to do? He felt Shaun’s hands tugging at his jacket. His mate had the best ideas.
But as Mitchell started to shrug off his jacket, Shaun pulled back, looking wide-eyed and flustered. “This isn’t why I brought you up here.”
“It’s not?” It took him a few seconds to remember Shaun had asked him up here to talk. His mate was in trouble, and Mitchell still didn’t know exactly what the problem was. “Right. You needed my help.”
Shaun laughed, hands resting against Mitchell’s chest. “Yes. I do. Sorry, this is very…”
His mate had to be as overwhelmed as he was, and he still didn’t know why. Mitchell pulled him into a tight hug, feeling Shaun relax against him. Should he tell Shaun the truth about them being fated mates right now? Was he postponing the inevitable because he was being a coward, or was it for the best? “I know.” He rubbed Shaun’s back.
Shaun was in trouble. That had to be his priority.
“So, what’s going on?”
Shaun let out another laugh. He pulled back to look up at Mitchell. “Aaron figured it out. Natalie’s husband.”
“The taller one?”
“Yeah. Well, he said Caroline figured it out. It doesn’t matter. They did some searching online and I bet it only took them a few seconds to discover I was lying.” He rested his head against Mitchell’s shoulder and groaned in frustration. “They found Facebook,” he added, his voice muffled. “I hadn’t even changed my relationship status, and they found some pictures of Chris. Same for Orion’s. It’s so dumb.”
“Orion is the name of the bar you work at, right?” Mitchell was trying not to get distracted by having his mate in his arms while there was a nice, comfy bed only a few feet away. He felt Shaun nod against him. “And they found out you’re not the actual owner?” Another nod.
Shaun raised his head again, his curls mussed. “If I had thought things through, I’d’ve known this would happen. I should’ve at least looked myself up online! I should’ve known Natalie or Caroline would do that. Chris said it’d be easy. You know, just lie a little here and there, stick as close to the truth as possible, it’d be fine.”
A part of Mitchell was far too pleased to hear Shaun be annoyed with Chris. “The truth always comes out.”
Shaun didn’t look impressed. “It would’ve come out slower if I hadn’t been so terrible at lying and covering my tracks, and then things would’ve been fine for the weekend.”
“Well, I for one am ecstatic you’re terrible at lying and covering your tracks,” Mitchell told him, and Shaun let out a derisive snort.
“You would be,” Shaun muttered, but he smiled.
“So, Aaron and the others realized you were lying. Then what’s the problem?”
Shaun raised his eyebrows at Mitchell as if the problem was obvious. “They want me to confess after dessert, or else they’ll tell everyone for me. Not just that I lied about Chris or the bar, but about the cars.”
Bitter anger bloomed inside of him. “Which you had nothing to do with.” But they were so convinced they were right that they wanted Shaun to confess regardless.
“I know that, and you know that, and, well, my parents and Emily know that. But Natalie still has it in her head that I stole her first car, and—why are your eyes doing that?”
Mitchell blinked. His eyes must have shifted without him realizing it.
Destroy them. His dragon hissed. They are hurting our mate. Drop them all in the lake from a great height!
His dragon’s anger burned so much brighter than before. The constant desire to throw Chris in the lake had been mere frustration. This was something else.
Mitchell wanted to do it. They wouldn’t be able to bother Shaun during dinner or tonight’s party if they were all busy swimming ashore and changing into something dry.
But that wasn’t how you solved your problems, even if his dragon disagreed.
“I do it without thinking. It’s an instinctive response,” he replied, trying to find an inner calm. Shaun had confided in him, and Mitchell would help him in a way where no one ended up in the lake. “It’s just the eyes, no other partial shifts. No need to worry about sudden scales or wings or a tail.”
“But why did you do it?”
“It happens when my dragon gets very passionate about something.” He hoped Shaun wouldn’t ask any further questions. Mitchell couldn’t explain much more without getting into fated mates.
Shaun stared up at him, his brows furrowing. “Like injustice?”
He wasn’t that far off. “Something like that,” Mitchell replied, relieved. “My dragon is furious they’re hurting you like this. They—they want you to lie. They’re blackmailing you. Them feeling annoyed or angry because they found out you’ve been lying is one thing, but what they’re doing is despicable. They don’t care about the truth. They only care about being right.” Admitting you were wrong about something was hard, and Mitchell hated doing it, but he did it.
We are rarely wrong! his dragon insisted. A dragon’s pride definitely made it more difficult.
“Are you sure you’ve never met them before this weekend?” Shaun smiled up at him.
Mitchell shrugged. “I know the type. But is this why you wanted to leave?” If he hadn’t come looking for Shaun, would Shaun and Chris be packing their bags right now?
“Yeah. I figured that if I weren’t here to humiliate, they wouldn’t bother telling anyone.” Shaun’s smile didn’t reach his eyes.
Mitchell pressed a kiss against Shaun’s forehead. He couldn’t believe he’d been this close to letting Shaun walk out. If he had waited for Shaun to come to him…. “That’s the impression I got too.”
“So, what do we do? How do we stop them from telling everyone after dinner?”
Having Shaun look up at him like that, so hopeful, so certain Mitchell would know what to do, made his breath catch. He wouldn’t break Shaun’s faith in him.
He did, however, need to think, which was a lot easier when he didn’t have Shaun in his arms. Mitchell stepped back, sitting back down on the couch with Shaun joining him. It wasn’t any less distracting.
“You giving in to their demands isn’t an option. You leaving also isn’t an option.”
“Them leaving would be great,” Shaun muttered.
It would be, but Mitchell wasn’t sure how they’d manage that. “Not doing anything and letting them tell everyone about you, Chris, and the bar isn’t an option either, since they’ll lie about you being a car thief.”
Shaun frowned. “Which leaves us with no options.”
Mitchell shook his
head. “You can try to convince them to forget about it. Yes, you lied. Yes, they found out. But there’s no reason for them to tell everyone about it.”
“There’s no way they’ll agree to forget about it. They’ve held this stupid grudge against me for years. They won’t let it go now.”
His mate made annoyingly good sense. “Have they considered finding a hobby? What are they doing with their lives that they’re still so focused on something that happened such a long time ago?” He understood why Natalie was still angry with whoever had stolen her first car, but the way they all hounded Shaun over it was ridiculous.
“I don’t think we’ll get them to embrace crossword puzzles or gardening in one night.” Shaun’s tone was dry, and Mitchell had to smile.
“Okay, let’s assume they won’t drop it. There’s got to be another option.” As he said it, Mitchell realized what that option was. He looked at his mate. “But you won’t like it.”
Shaun smiled, making Mitchell’s heart skip a beat. “Try me.”
“You tell the truth yourself.”
15
Shaun
Shaun stared at Mitchell for a long second, wondering if he’d heard him right. “You’re right. I definitely don’t like it.”
“I can’t think of anything else that doesn’t involve you or them leaving. Like you said, they’re unlikely to drop it.”
“Are you kidding me?” Didn’t Mitchell understand? “I’d be playing into their hands by humiliating myself like that.” How was he supposed to explain to his parents? To Mitchell’s parents?
“I doubt they’d see it coming.”
“There has to be another way. I can’t do that. C’mon, you’re supposed to be good at helping people.”
Mitchell looked hurt for a moment, then got up. “I think it’s the best solution. The truth coming out is inevitable. You might as well do it yourself.”
“I don’t want it to come out!”
“It already has.” Mitchell sounded infuriatingly calm as he picked up Shaun’s empty glass from the windowsill. “Why don’t I get us more drinks, and we can think about what to do?”
