by Lynn Hagen
Dino noticed a can sticking out of the guy’s pocket and wondered if he wasn’t some delusional alcoholic. Was Torem even his boyfriend? Dino wasn’t in the mood to dig any deeper. He wanted to go finish his lunch and get back to work. And if he was lucky, forget about this whole ordeal with Sidney.
“Look, I don’t have time for this.”
“Good, that’s right, we never even met.” Sidney winked at him and then took off, running down the sidewalk.
“What kind of fucking town is this?” Dino wondered as he walked back into the deli.
“You fucking fell over the damn thing like a greenhorn.” Mickey chuckled and tossed a beer cap at Quinn.
“Only because you left the damn thing lying out.”
Dino chuckled as the men who worked for him bantered back and forth. He loved his life and the men he employed. Not everyone on the site worked for him. When a job was this big, he contracted a lot of the work out, but he did have six men who worked for Tiziano’s Contracting.
“There he is,” Quinn teased and nodded toward the door. Dino twisted around and saw Torem walk into the tavern. For some reason, every time Dino looked at the guy, his mouth started salivating. He felt like Pavlov’s dog, only Torem was the bell. Dino turned back around. He knew Torem would find him and he didn’t want to look desperate.
Mickey whistled low. “He is one good-looking guy, if I swung that way.”
Quinn cuffed Mickey on the back of the head. “He’s Dino’s, back off.”
Dino ignored the two. He was too busy concentrating on not turning around as he felt Torem’s presence behind him.
“Can I speak with you?” Torem’s deep voice vibrated down Dino’s spine and straight to his cock. He nodded as he slid from the booth and followed the guy out to the sidewalk right outside the tavern.
“Okay, talk.” Dino waited to hear what Torem had to say and wondered if he would mention Sidney. Torem smoothed his hand over his head and Dino’s eyes followed the action.
“Can we go for a ride? I have a lot of explaining to do, and I would prefer not to do it in front of the tavern.”
“Sure,” Dino said as he followed Torem to his truck. They headed down Route 22 as Dino sat in the passenger’s seat, stealing glances at the handsome man.
“How did your back window get busted out?” Dino asked after fifteen minutes of silent driving.
“There is no easy way to say this,” Torem said. Dino noticed how the guy ignored his question.
“That you’re a cheating bastard?” Dino had tried to hold it in, but the thought that Torem was stringing him along pissed Dino off. He wasn’t going to end up another notch in the guy’s bedpost.
“What the hell are you talking about?” Torem asked in shock. His eyes left the road for a moment to stare at Dino in utter confusion.
“I met Sidney.”
The truck jerked, but Torem quickly righted it. “When?”
“So he is your boyfriend,” Dino snarled darkly. “Pull the fucking truck over now.”
Torem shook his head as he continued to drive. “No, not until you tell me what he said.”
Dino couldn’t take it anymore. His anger hit the roof as he snapped his head around to glare at Torem. “If you think for one fucking second I’m going to help you cheat on your partner, you have balls the size of Texas. I met Sidney. He’s a little off, but he seems like a nice guy. How the hell can you do that to him?”
Torem slammed on the brakes. When the truck stopped, the large man spun in his seat to face Dino. “I’m not cheating on him. I would never do that to either of my mates.”
Some of the wind left Dino’s sail as he studied the man sitting next to him. He was slightly confused now. “Sidney used that word, too. What the hell does it mean?”
“I’m a fucking werewolf. You and Sidney are my mates.”
And Dino thought Sidney needed medication? He casually unsnapped his seat belt and shoved the truck door open.
Dino had had enough of the crazy-ass people in this town. Why did all the hot guys have to be nuts? Or straight?
He gave up on trying to gain a sane explanation from Torem as he headed back in the direction of town. It would take him awhile, but he was going to foot it. To hell with Torem and to hell with Sidney, they deserved each other.
“Not so fast.” Torem closed the distance, grabbing Dino’s upper arm. Dino swung around, his fist balled up ready to knock Torem on his ass. The guy was faster and ducked as Dino swung on him.
“I will fucking hurt you if you don’t leave me alone,” he warned. “There is nothing going to happen between us…ever!”
The look on Torem’s face said, wanna bet me? Dino was ready to pound Torem into the ground when he noticed Torem’s face turn ashen.
“Get into the truck,” Torem said in a warning tone.
“Who the hell do you think you are?” Dino growled. Enough with this macho shit and enough with the insane crap, he just wanted to get away. Dino was way too attracted to the guy and couldn’t condone having sex with him. None of this made sense and Dino needed to remove himself from Torem’s presence since he couldn’t think straight.
“Now.” Torem grabbed him and used strength Dino wouldn’t have thought the guy possessed.
Dino’s eyes were drawn to where Torem was looking, and he saw a large black truck coming slowly down the road, a little too slowly. Dino didn’t waste time asking questions. He jumped into the passenger’s seat as Torem got in on the driver’s side.
Torem put the truck in drive and spun the truck around, hitting the gas, almost giving Dino whiplash. “What the hell is going on?”
“Those men want to kill my baby brother, and I’m not going to let that happen.”
Dino looked into his side mirror and saw the other truck giving chase as Torem picked up speed.
“Why don’t we just kick their asses?”
“Because they’re shifters, and you can’t just kick their asses.” Well, that just cleared everything up, now didn’t it? Torem pulled his cell phone out and dialed someone as Dino grew more confused and frustrated by the moment.
“Eagle, those men that want to kill Chey are here. I’m heading toward the police station now.” He hung up and tossed the phone on the dashboard.
“Did you just get me involved in some kind of gang war?” Dino snarled. If Torem had, he would have to call his cousin Romano. No one called Romano unless they meant business, and Dino meant business. He was five seconds away from telling Zeus to kiss his ass and pulling his men out of there.
Dino shoved his feet onto the dash as Torem cut a hard right into the police parking lot. His jaw dropped when he spotted at least half a dozen wolves emerging from the forest behind the building. Was this Torem’s backup, fucking dogs?
“Get out and go into the station,” Torem ordered him as he unbuckled his seatbelt and opened the driver door.
“Fuck you, I don’t take orders from nobody. I’m getting my men and getting the hell out of this town. Tell Zeus to find someone else.” Dino climbed out and slammed the door. He started across the lot when Torem tackled him.
“Are you fucking crazy?” he argued as he fought to get the man off of him.
“Stop,” Torem commanded, and for some damn reason, Dino listened. He heard low growls and snarls getting closer.
“Your dogs gonna attack me?” he asked in amazement.
“No, they’re going to defend you.”
Dino turned his head when he heard truck doors slamming shut. The men in the black truck were here and they were large as hell. Dino pushed to get Torem off of him when he saw…he blinked, making sure his eyes weren’t out of focus as he stared at the impossible.
“They changed into wolves,” Dino said in a panic.
“Lie still. That’s what I’ve been trying to tell you.” Torem blanketed Dino’s body as Torem’s pack drew the others behind the building. Once they were out of sight, Torem got up and pulled Dino to his feet. “Let’s go.”
Dino was too stun
ned to argue. He ran for the truck just as one of the wolves came back around the corner. Skidding to a stop, Dino wasn’t sure what he should do.
“Holy Mother Mary,” he yelled when Torem shifted right in front of him. This couldn’t be real. It couldn’t be happening. “I’m getting the hell outta here.” Dino turned to run but was trapped between the truck and the two fighting wolves.
He reached into the truck, looking for something to beat the crap out of the other wolf with. Fuck it, he wasn’t one to run anyway. And besides, Torem was defending him after all…even if he just changed into a dog right in front of him.
Dino found a four-way and figured it was his best bet as he curled his fingers around it and pulled it from the backseat of the truck.
“You want a piece of this, you dumb mutt,” Dino waved the four-way around as he shouted. The wolf snapped and lunged, but Torem cut the wolf off. Dino swung, hitting the offending wolf dead on. The wolf stumbled and then shook the blow off. He began to growl at Dino as he moved closer.
Dino backed away when Torem spun around and got between them. He didn’t want to accidentally hit Torem, although the guy deserved it right about now.
Torem finally took the wolf down. “About fucking time.” Dino growled and tossed the four-way into the bed of the truck. “Can we get out of here?” Was he seriously standing here talking to a wolf?
“Let’s go.” Dino’s head spun when Torem became human again. His eyes darted down Torem’s naked flesh to the well-hung cock between the man’s legs. He almost drooled at Torem’s naked and tanned flesh. Dino found it difficult to think with all that skin exposed.
Once seated in the passenger side, Dino kept taking quick peeks at Torem. The man may be off-limits, but damn he had a hard-ass body. The ridged planes and taut muscles made Dino want to reach out and touch him. The idea that Torem was a wolf wasn’t freaking him out like he thought it would. Maybe it was Torem’s naked state that was distracting Dino from flipping the hell out.
Dino shook his head to clear it and then looked out of the passenger window. “Just take me home.”
“I am,” Torem said as he drove in the opposite direction from the rental Dino currently occupied.
When they pulled into the driveway that Dino knew for a fact belonged to Zeus, he began to wonder what the hell was going on. “This isn’t where I was talking about.”
“Come on, you’ll be safe here.” Torem got out of the truck and left Dino sitting there.
“I guess that means I should follow,” he said sarcastically.
Sidney jogged down the steps and spotted Torem coming through the front door. He did a one-eighty, hoping to get away before his mate spotted him.
Fuck, what was Dino doing here? This was bad, real bad.
“Sid, come here.”
Crap, he knew that tone. It was universal. Sidney was in deep trouble. He walked backward, afraid to see the hard look on Torem’s face. “You rang?” If Torem was upset, then Dino ratted him out. The snitch.
“Turn around, Sid,” Torem’s tone brooked no argument.
The first person Sidney saw as he began to turn was Dino. He narrowed his eyes at him before facing Torem. Sidney was expecting to see disapproval in his mate’s eyes, not a gentle smile. “I was going to tell you about Dino.”
Both men stared at Torem. “So you knew?” Sidney asked incredulously.
“I knew from the moment I was introduced to him,” Torem confessed.
“Oh.” That took a load off of his…wait a minute. “And you didn’t tell me? I made a fool of myself in that deli.” Sidney growled indignantly.
“Actually I thought it was kinda cute.” Dino chuckled. “Now does someone want to tell me what the hell is going on?”
Sidney stared wide-eyed at Dino. “He didn’t tell you?”
“He told me about you guys being wolves, but what’s this mate thing?”
Sidney was stunned that Torem hadn’t told Dino what was going on. There was no way in hell Torem was leaving the explanation up to him. No way.
“Can we talk about this upstairs?” Torem asked.
“He’s trying to lure you into his Batcave. Don’t let him tempt you, Robin,” Sidney whispered as he wiggled his brows, trying to make Dino laugh.
“Err, right.” Dino looked at him strangely and then followed Torem.
Sidney sighed. Dino was a tough sell. He felt better knowing Dino was their mate and not a side lover of Torem’s, but something told him life just got a little more interesting with this hot construction man around.
“Did you tell them?”
Sidney damn near jumped out of his skin. “Fuck, Chey, you scared me half to death. Don’t creep up on a guy like that. I could have hurt you by passing out and crushing your toes or something.”
“Answer me, Sidney.” Chey gave him that familiar look. The one that said he knew Sidney was avoiding the subject.
He snapped his head around, making sure no one was around before leaning closer to Chey. “No, I’m waiting for the right time.” Like June of never.
“Tell them,” Chey warned.
Sidney leaned past Chey and looked up the steps. He really did need to get up there. If Torem or even Dino had to come looking for him, they would ask questions. “I will. I was right in the middle of devising a plan to do just that when you interrupted me.”
“You’ve never been a good liar, so stop trying to pull the wool over my eyes.” Chey huffed. “Tell them.”
When Chey got his teeth into something he felt adamant about, the guy wouldn’t let it go. “I will.”
“Soon.”
Damn, the man knew him too well. Sidney’s hand ran over the can in his pocket. “Okay, I will. Now I have to go before they come looking for me.” Sidney sidestepped Chey and headed for the stairs.
“And Sidney?”
Oh man, he had almost escaped. “Yes?” He didn’t bother turning around. Sidney knew what was coming.
“Lay off the energy drinks.”
Sidney mouthed his best friend’s predictable words the same time Chey said them. The man had been a broken record for the last six months since Sidney tasted his first Red Bull and became instantly addicted to the things.
He walked up the steps and down the hallway slowly, counting each door as he went along. When he reached the sixth door, Sidney poked his head in. Torem and Dino were standing in the middle of the bedroom talking.
Dino looked relaxed enough in Sidney’s opinion.
Shit, he was going to have to tell them…later.
Much, much later.
Chapter Five
Torem watched Sidney slide into the room and shut the door quietly. His eyes zeroed in on the can protruding from his mate’s pocket. “Let me have it.” He waved his hand at Sidney to give him the can.
Sidney turned sideways, blocking any view of the can. “Have what?”
“What’s in your pocket, Sid?”
Sidney dug into his pocket and produced what looked to be a receipt from a store. “Here you go.” He took one step toward Torem and held out the piece of paper between his fingers. Torem snagged his mate’s hand and pulled him into his arms.
“You know that’s not what I was talking about.” The little devil’s face flushed, and Torem could scent his arousal growing stronger. He slid his hands over Sid’s back, leaning in to kiss him.
“Hey.” Sidney looked up at Torem with a pout when Torem’s hand came away with the can, handing it over to Dino.
“Red Bull? I thought it was beer.” Dino smirked. “That explains his edginess.”
“Get rid of it, please. Sid gets too hyper when he drinks it.” Torem could see his mate wanted to argue but twisted his lips up in disapproval instead.
Dino took the can to the bathroom as Torem cupped Sidney’s face, leaning down to kiss him. Sidney closed his eyes and pulled Torem the rest of the way down, smashing their lips together. He ran his fingers through his mate’s hair and tugged, breaking their lips apart. “We have
to explain the concept of mates to Dino.”
“Later.” Sidney panted and tried to lock his lips onto Torem’s again. Sidney’s right leg came up and wrapped over Torem’s hip. “I want more of that cock you hide behind your jeans.”
Torem felt the lust double in the room and saw Dino standing by the bathroom door, watching the two. The front of the construction worker’s pants were straining.
Torem pulled his mate off of him and spun him around, pressing Sidney’s back to his chest and wrapped his arms around his shoulders. That should hold him still, for five seconds. “Mates are people fate thought would be perfect for one another.”
Dino held his hand up. “I watch enough animal channels to know what a mate is in the wild kingdom. Is it the same for you two? That’s all I really want to know.”
“Yes, all three of us are mates,” Torem confirmed for Dino. Dino leaned against the doorframe of the bathroom. He studied both of them intently.
“So we have a ménage mating?”
Torem proceeded with caution. He wasn’t sure what that look on Dino’s face meant. Sidney fidgeted around, and Torem held him tightly. If this wasn’t what the guy wanted, he didn’t want Sidney running to Dino to try and convince him. Too many things were forced upon him throughout his life to do the same to anyone else. “Yes, we do.”
Sidney tapped his nose. “It’s all in the scent. I knew as soon as I smelled you. It was like jellybeans and hot chocolate for me.”
Torem chuckled. Leave it to Sidney to describe it that way. He kissed his mate’s hair and smiled at Dino. “We Grey wolves can scent our mates.”
“And I stunk, huh?” A small smile pulled at Dino’s lips.
“Oh, hell no, you smell better than fresh laundry.” Sidney pulled, but Torem held. He was waiting for Dino to give the green light, to accept what was being explained to him.
“So you two are it for me?” Dino asked.
Torem growled. “There will be no one else.”
He had to take a deep breath. His eyes were shifting at the thought of another man touching Dino.
“If you thought the scene in the deli was cute, then you’ll think I’m sexy as hell if I catch you with another man.”