(Not) Really Scary Halloween

by Sophie Martin

  Reality 4

  (Not) Really Scary Halloween

  Jason and his pack settle into a rhythm of mostly-normal life. Toby wants to carve some pumpkins and celebrate Halloween with his mates. The plan is somewhat thwarted when Tyler’s superstitious hate of Halloween is revealed. Then, Toby starts to hear voices…

  With the arrival of an unexpected visitor, the pack learns of another attack coming—on Halloween nonetheless. With some quick thinking and a little bit of magic, they manage to avoid catastrophe. But who are these people attacking them?

  Dominic’s wolf’s jealousy is also causing him problems with his mate. Will his sudden idea for a gift help?

  Tim has a surprise for his mate, as well. But will Joel enjoy it?

  The pack is growing as new members pledge their loyalty to Jason. All in all, it proves to be a (not) really scary Halloween, after all.

  (Note: This is a quick look into the lives of characters from the first three books. This book is part of a series and cannot be read as a standalone.)

  Genre: Alternative (M/M/M, M/M, Gay), Contemporary, Ménage a Trois/Quatre, Paranormal, Shape-shifter

  Length: 33,127 words

  (NOT) REALLY SCARY HALLOWEEN

  Reality 4

  Sophie Martin

  MENAGE AMOUR

  MANLOVE

  

  Siren Publishing, Inc.

  www.SirenPublishing.com

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  A SIREN PUBLISHING BOOK

  IMPRINT: Ménage Amour ManLove

  (NOT) REALLY SCARY HALLOWEEN

  Copyright © 2017 by Sophie Martin

  E-book ISBN: 978-1-68295-694-6

  First E-book Publication: January 2017

  Cover design by Harris Channing

  All art and logo copyright © 2017 by Siren Publishing, Inc.

  ALL RIGHTS RESERVED: This literary work may not be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, including electronic or photographic reproduction, in whole or in part, without express written permission.

  All characters and events in this book are fictitious. Any resemblance to actual persons living or dead is strictly coincidental.

  PUBLISHER

  Siren Publishing, Inc.

  www.SirenPublishing.com

  Letter to Readers

  Dear Readers,

  If you have purchased this copy of (Not) Really Scary Halloween by Sophie Martin from BookStrand.com or its official distributors, thank you. Also, thank you for not sharing your copy of this book.

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  This is Sophie Martin’s livelihood. It’s fair and simple. Please respect Sophie Martin’s right to earn a living from her work.

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  Table of Contents

  Title Page

  Copyright Page

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Epilogue

  About the Author

  Landmarks

  Cover

  (NOT) REALLY SCARY HALLOWEEN

  Reality 4

  SOPHIE MARTIN

  Copyright © 2017

  Chapter One

  Toby came into the kitchen and went to give each of his mates a good morning kiss before pulling out a chair and taking his seat. Before his butt even hit the chair he was reaching for a piece of toast, snagging it from Tyler’s hand. He grinned unapologetically at his big mate and reached for a knife.

  “So, are we going to carve some pumpkins?” Toby asked, spreading some peanut butter on his toast. Breakfast with both of his mates was one of the most peaceful times of the day. He loved it. Sitting at the table, asking to please pass the salt, it felt like they were a real family. A family Toby had never had before.

  “Pumpkins?” Ty looked startled.

  “Yeah, pumpkins, you know, for Halloween? It’s just a few days away.”

  “Oh, wow, already?” The big tiger-shifter had a slightly panicked look.

  “What, you don’t like Halloween?” Jason asked, smiling slightly. It was good to see his powerful mate smiling, Toby thought. Jay-Jay didn’t do it nearly enough.

  “Um, no, actually I don’t. The whole dressing up, scaring, grossing other people out, it gives me the creeps!” Tyler shuddered. Toby felt his eyes trying to bulge out of his head and he swallowed quickly.

  “You’re afraid of Halloween!” he exclaimed. Ty looked really uncomfortable. Was the big shifter blushing?

  “Well, maybe I am just a bit. When I was a kid, my siblings thought it was a good idea to scare me half to death on Halloween. I have hated this time of year ever since. It’s creepy! Did you notice how there always seems to be an owl hooting in the dark or a black cat following you everywhere and watching you with those strange glowing eyes? Like a witch’s familiar or a demon or something else foreboding!” Tyler looked flustered, but he stuck to his convictions.

  “Um, Ty, do you even realize how wrong what you’re saying is? Where should I start…” Toby said, holding back a laugh. “First of all, you’re a tiger-shifter! You shouldn’t be scared of cat eyes, you’ve got them, too. Second, did you forget we’ve got a witch and a demon in our pack? Morton is actually pretty cool if a bit nerdy and Doug might be scary if he wants, but I wouldn’t call either of them foreboding.”

  “I don’t care. I hate Halloween!” Tyler pouted and crossed his arms over his chest. He looked more like a petulant child than a strong, muscular shifter.

  “But you don’t hate pumpkins, do you?” Toby decided to turn on his charm. He wanted to carve some pumpkins, damn it! “Cause I was really looking forward to carving them, seeing how it’s our first Halloween as a family. I’ve never done it before, you know?” He gave Ty his sad, puppy eyes, begging for understanding. The tiger’s resolve crumbled under the power of Toby’s eyes and he huffed.

  “Fine! But just pumpkin carving. No scary decorations or costumes and definitely no giving away sweets. It only makes kids�
� teeth rot!” Tyler grumbled. Toby nodded before sharing a look with Jason. They were going to show their big shifter that Halloween could be fun!

  * * * *

  It was Wednesday and Toby was going to school. Even though he loved working with Jason helping the animals, he had discovered that learning was something he enjoyed, as well. The school was adults only and Toby had met quite a few interesting people there, some of whom he could even call friends. Some were his age, some were older, but they were all rather nice. The teachers were mostly kind, too. Some of them were a bit quirky, but Toby didn’t mind. He had a few quirks of his own after all.

  Right now, he was standing on the front porch with his mates. They were going through their goodbye kiss ritual. They had introduced it shortly after getting together and would go through it every time one of them left the house for any amount of time. Toby rather liked it. It made him feel special and loved.

  Ty gave Jason one last peck on the lips and walked his two mates to the street. Jason was leaving for work, too and would walk Toby to the bus stop. The big shifter stopped suddenly, pulling at Toby’s hand and stopping him, as well.

  “Did you see that?” the tiger asked, his voice filled with urgency. “The black cat, did you see it?”

  Toby looked in the direction where Ty was staring but saw nothing unusual. There was no cat, black or otherwise.

  “Um, no. Sorry, love, I didn’t see it. Are you sure it was there?” he answered and looked at Jason. Toby’s other mate shook his head. He hadn’t seen it, either.

  “Of course I’m sure. It was a huge black cat, and it was staring right at me!”

  “Maybe it was a neighbor’s cat passing by?” Toby suggested.

  “No, it wasn’t! I know all the neighborhood cats. I marked my territory so they would keep away. They know better than to come close like that!” Tyler blurted out, and Toby was suddenly speechless. Jason saved him from having to ask.

  “Are you saying you peed all over our property to keep some housecats at bay, love?” Jason’s voice shook with held-back laughter. Tyler had the decency to look embarrassed.

  “Hey, I couldn’t have some pets coming and going through our property at all times, spreading fleas and what-have-you.”

  “Right, so you peed all over it to warn them away, instead.” Jason burst into laughter.

  “I didn’t.” Tyler huffed indignantly and managed to look affronted. “I mostly rubbed against trees and posts. I only peed where there was nothing to rub on. Anyway, you missed the point. It wasn’t any neighborhood cat! It had to be the creepy Halloweeny one!”

  “Lover, I don’t believe there is such thing as Halloweeny cat. Maybe it was just some bold stray?” Jason tried to be the voice of reason, but it didn’t work on Ty.

  “Fine, don’t believe me! But you’ll be sorry when the beast gets you and scares you to death!” The tiger huffed and stomped away after releasing Toby’s hand. “I’m going back home, I’ve got work to do.” He grumbled as he turned his back on them and marched to the front door.

  Toby looked up at Jason and asked with worry, “Do you think he’s mad at us? I mean, maybe there was a cat there and we just didn’t see it? What if he’s right?”

  “Right about what, sweetheart?” Jason asked with a gentle smile. “That there is a strange, magical, and foreboding cat who brings death? I seriously doubt that, but if there is it still wouldn’t be able to hurt us. Or did you forget that Ty turns into a massive tiger and I can change reality? As opposed as I am to using my power unnecessarily, I think dealing with a death-bringing cat would fall under emergency.” As Jason finished and started walking, Toby hurried to catch up to him.

  “Okay, but Ty seemed really distressed, I think we should do something to cheer him up once we’re back home.”

  “Oh, I’ve got an idea or two.” Jason smirked and wiggled his eyebrows. Toby couldn’t help but laugh.

  “I bet you do! But I meant something more innocent. How about I buy some pumpkins on our way back and we try to convince our tiger that Halloween might be as fun as it is scary?”

  “I think it’s a great idea!” Jason agreed. Then he gave Toby one last quick kiss and smacked his bottom. “Now run, I can see your bus coming from around the corner. You wouldn’t want to be late for classes, would you?”

  “Oh, damn!” Toby exclaimed and ran. He reached the bus stop at the same time the bus did and quickly got on it. He definitely didn’t want to be late!

  * * * *

  The day passed incredibly quickly to Toby, and by the time he finished his classes, it was dark outside. After his fateful meeting with the “fairy bitch,” as they came to call the criminal mastermind of fey origin, Toby had had to promise his mates to never go through the park after dark alone again. He had no problem promising that. The magical attack the woman had launched at him had really shaken him up. He tried not to show it. His mates had enough on their plates as it was, they didn’t need to worry about him, too. So ever since, he would walk to the bus stop, taking the route that was longer by a block. Well, that is, he did that now, once he managed to convince his mates that he really didn’t need a babysitter. It had been really embarrassing having the two men take shifts picking him up from school as if he was five!

  Toby said his goodbyes to a few of his friends and started walking to the bus stop. The streets were well lit, and there were still a lot of people milling around. Despite that and the cheery-scary Halloween decorations in the shop windows, Toby got an uneasy feeling. It felt almost as if somebody was watching him, yet no one on the street was paying him any attention. He was sure because he checked every single person he passed to see if they were watching him. They weren’t.

  Toby felt the strange tension between his shoulder blades, the weird tingling that usually announced danger. He looked around discretely from where he had stopped to wait for a bus. There was nothing unusual, yet his instincts screamed at Toby that someone was following him. Toby had learned early on to trust his instincts. Growing up in foster homes hadn’t been a walk in the park. It didn’t mean he was outright abused. No, it was simply that he had never actually belonged. Kids at school could be mean, too, and he had no one to fight for him. So Toby had learned to trust his instincts, they warned him who to avoid, when to keep his mouth shut, and when to run and hide. Right now they didn’t scream immediate danger, but more like be aware, someone’s watching.

  Toby was relieved when his bus finally came. He got on it, showed his online ticket to the driver and sat, taking first free seat. He looked out the window and noticed a big black cat watching him from a spot on a nearby wall. It was watching the bus, Toby corrected himself. He laughed softly and shook his head. It seemed that Tyler’s paranoia was contagious and Toby was getting worried over nothing. It wasn’t like the cat was dangerous, even if he was the biggest damn house cat Toby had ever seen! Shaking his head at his overactive imagination, Toby closed his eyes and tilted his head back on the seat. He relaxed for the twenty-minute ride home.

  The evening was strange. Tyler was really jittery, jumping at the slightest sound, and Jason was rather quiet. Toby’s nervousness from before returned every time he passed the kitchen window. Jason had brought home some pumpkins, and they did have fun carving them. Even Ty relaxed slightly as he tried to cut a tiger face into one of them. The end result didn’t resemble a cat in any way, but it still had been fun. Unfortunately, once they finished and went outside to take all the rubbish to the bin, there was another incident that freaked Tyler out. An owl was hooting nearby. They had never had any owls in the neighborhood, and even Toby could admit it was a bit odd that it would show up right around Halloween, but the big tiger totally flipped. He dragged them home and nearly barricaded the door. It took them a long half-hour to calm him down and then they proceeded to distract him with sex. They ended up distracting and exhausting themselves. Toby thought it was a perfect ending to such an odd day.

  Chapter Two

  Thursday was another sc
hool day, and Toby once again went into his studying mode. Nothing existed for him beside classes. Still, during each break, he took advantage of the beautiful weather and went outside. Unfortunately, after his third break, he decided it had been a bad idea. He’d started hearing voices! He was obviously going crazy! It must have been all of Tyler’s stories about devil cats and scary owls.

  The voice he was hearing seemed to belong to an adult man. Every time he would go outside to enjoy some sunshine, the voice would start to call to him, try to convince him that he had something important to tell him. The only problem was, there was no man there! Actually, besides the two girls sitting on the bench opposite him and talking quietly, there was no one there. And to add to that, the voice seemed to be coming from a tree above him. Insane, right?

  The first time that voice had spoken to him Toby turned and asked “what?” He was sure that someone had been speaking from behind him. To his surprise, there was nobody there, and the voice went quiet, as if surprised that Toby answered him. Freaked out, Toby hurried back to the school building. After that, the voice had tried to get his attention a few more times and Toby tried really hard to ignore it. A couple of times it had been impossible and Toby had snapped at it to shut up.

  Leaving school, Toby was even more paranoid than Tyler. He constantly looked around, trying to spot the owner of this mysterious voice. He had no luck, not until he reached the bus stop and saw the bus leaving before he had a chance to catch it. Sighing Toby sat down on the bench and pulled out his mobile to text Jay-Jay and Tyler. His mates worried when he wasn’t home on time, so he preferred to inform them about the delay. The next bus wasn’t due for another twenty minutes, and he knew his men would totally panic if he was that late. Toby sent a text, adding a kissing emoticon at the end, and put away his phone. He sat back and looked around and was startled by the same big-ass black cat he had seen the day before.