by Stormy Glenn
Now that would never happen. Sebastian hated him. The man couldn’t even talk to him. Beauregard leaned back in the tub and rubbed the small bump growing at his abdomen. It was small now, but would just grow over the next few weeks.
Beauregard really had no idea what he’d give birth to, considering he had mated with a dragon. Only time would tell. And as much as he worried about that, he couldn’t help but be excited that he was going to have a baby.
He just wished Sebastian felt the same. A small sob escaped Beauregard’s lips as he thought of the likelihood that Sebastian might never want a child created between them. As angry as he had seemed, it was a very real possibility. Sebastian had been shocked enough to be mated to a bunny. This was sure to throw him for a loop.
When the water started to grow cold, Beauregard climbed out and dried off. He emptied the tub and cleaned up the bathroom then went in search of his clothes. He was surprised when he found an outfit neatly folded on the end of the bed but figured someone had laid them out for him. Once he was dressed, his purse safely attached to his belt, he stepped out of the bedroom.
Two very large men instantly jumped up from their seated position. Beauregard started to become scared until he recognized one of them as Harlan. He pressed his hand against his chest until his heart stopped thundering then nodded to them.
“Hello, Harlan, it’s good to see you again.”
“Beauregard,” Harlan said, nodding back. He gestured to the other man. “This is Omar. We’ve been assigned by Sebastian to be your guards.”
“Guards?” Beauregard whispered. “I need guards?”
“You are mated to the dragon prince, Beauregard, and you live in a castle full of dragons.”
“Good point.” Beauregard glanced around the living area. “Is…uh…is Sebastian around?” He knew by the way that Harlan hesitantly glanced over at Omar that Sebastian had left. They didn’t even have to say anything.
Beauregard couldn’t think of a thing to say to break the heavy silence. Harlan and Omar seemed really nervous as well. They wouldn’t even look Beauregard in the face. “Right, well, um, I think I’ll just go back to my room.”
Beauregard turned to head back to the room and relative privacy when he heard Harlan clear his voice. He closed his eyes, bracing himself for what Harlan had to say, but he was afraid he already knew.
“I’m sorry, Beauregard, but you’ve been moved to another room.”
Beauregard’s knees almost buckled as sheer agony ripped through him. Not only did Sebastian not want to talk to him, he didn’t even want him in the same room. Sebastian was kicking him out.
Beauregard knew it would come at some point. He knew that from the very beginning. He had just started to believe that he and Sebastian might actually have something special together. He had started to believe in the dream.
It was stupid, and he only had himself to blame. He should have remembered what it was like back home in the rabbit colony. Being the only white rabbit, things had been pretty rough. He made it day by day by reminding himself that there was someone out there for him, just for him, someone that would love him and want him despite everything.
But there wasn’t. There was no one out there for him. It had all been a dream, and a stupid one at that. Who wanted a white rabbit that got drunk on apples and chewed bubble gum?
“Beauregard?”
“Just let me get my stuff.”
“I moved it while you were bathing.”
Beauregard felt like each word out of Harlan’s mouth was a slap in his face. Sebastian was in such a hurry to get rid of him, he wouldn’t even allow him to pack his own stuff. Beauregard guessed that pretty much said it all right there.
Beauregard pressed his lips together and walked toward the door. Harlan and Omar followed right behind him. When Harlan opened the door for him, Beauregard cast one more look at the room, the place he had been happy for a little while, then turned and walked out.
There didn’t seem to be any reason to stick around. There wasn’t anything for him here and he obviously wasn’t wanted. Beauregard dropped his hands down to cover his abdomen as he realized that not even his baby was wanted.
Beauregard was escorted down the hallway to another set of stairs he had never seen before then up to the third floor. His room was at the far end of a long hallway. Beauregard didn’t care. Any place was better than staying where he wasn’t wanted.
Harlan opened the door, and Beauregard walked in without even looking at the room. He just didn’t care. He felt kind of numb at the moment.
“I’m sorry, Beauregard,” Harlan said.
Beauregard nodded sadly. “It’s not your fault.”
“Once he calms down—”
Beauregard held up his hand. “Please, don’t. He made his choice.”
“Is there anything you need?”
Beauregard couldn’t keep the tears in his eyes from slipping down his face as he turned to look at the small room he had been escorted to, the prison Sebastian had put him in. “No, I don’t need anything,” he whispered. “Not anymore.”
Chapter 9
Sebastian took the last sip from the scotch bottle then smashed it against the fireplace. It was the third such bottle he had gone through, and still he couldn’t forget the words Beauregard had whispered to him.
His mate was pregnant. His beautiful, bouncy, lying, cheating mate was pregnant. Sebastian growled and reached for another bottle. If he ever discovered who had knocked Beauregard up, he’d rip them limb from limb.
“Don’t you think you’ve had enough?”
“No!” Sebastian growled. When Galan tried to take the bottle out of his hands, Sebastian swiped his claws at him. “Leave me the fuck alone.”
“Sebastian, this isn’t the way to handle this. Talk to Beauregard.”
“Beauregard! Beauregard!” He snapped. “I don’t want to hear his name again. He lied to me and cheated on me. He doesn’t deserve to have his name spoken in this house. In fact, I’ll make it a royal decree. His name is never to be spoken in this house again.”
“Sebastian, you don’t want to do that.”
“The hell I don’t!” Sebastian slammed the bottle down on the table with such force that the bottle shattered. “He’s supposed to be my mate. He cheated on me. He told me he was a virgin. He lied. I should have known better. No man can give a blow job like that and still be a virgin. He’s probably slept with every rabbit in his colony. Who knows who fathered his kid?”
The pain in Sebastian’s hand from the broken glass bottle was nothing compared to the pain in his heart. He had been ready to give Beauregard his heart, and the man had spit in his face. No wonder Beauregard had slept so much. He wanted to avoid telling Sebastian the truth.
“You could be wrong,” Galan said.
“I’m not wrong.” Sebastian glared at Galan, who seemed to be on Beauregard’s side. “We’ve been mated all of two weeks, and he already knows that he’s pregnant. No matter how many times we’ve fucked, it can’t be mine.”
“Sebastian—”
“He probably knew before we ever mated. I’ll bet our meeting was all as set up. He probably planned the whole thing.” Sebastian laughed harshly. “Bag a prince and live the high life.”
“Damn it, Sebastian, you’re being ridiculous. Beauregard adores you. He certainly didn’t plan the little decree of the elders. He’s as much a victim here as you are.”
“Oh right.” Sebastian waved his hand at Galan. “He probably has a lover somewhere. I’ll bet the elder’s decree really through him for a loop. He just latched on to the nearest guy, one who just happens to be a prince.”
“God, you are so full of yourself,” Galan scoffed. “I hope he did have a lover. At least then he might have had someone that wanted him for him, and not because he was stuck with someone.”
Sebastian’s mouth dropped open as his oldest and most trusted friend betrayed him. “You don’t mean that.”
“The hell I don’t. You
’ve done nothing but lord your noble title over Beauregard’s head from the very beginning, showing him how lucky he was to be mated to a dragon prince. He should thank his lucky stars.”
Galan slammed his hands down on the table and leaned forward. “I hope he never forgives you for this. You don’t deserve him. He’s sweet and kind, and he loves you, and you’ve treated him like he’s a freak. You disdain his clothes, his choice of shoes, even his nail polish. You make him feel like there’s something wrong with him, which is exactly what everyone has done to him his entire life. Why should you be any different just because you’re his mate?”
Sebastian growled and launched himself across the desk at Galan. He couldn’t remember ever being so angry in his life. He wanted to hurt Galan, to make him hurt as much as he was hurting.
Galan was waiting for him when he came across the desk, and he wasn’t nearly as inebriated as Sebastian was. At least, that’s what he told himself when he picked himself up off the floor a few seconds later.
“Are you done?” Galan asked.
“Not hardly.”
Sebastian lunged again, and once again, Galan was ready for him. This time, Sebastian landed upside down on his desk. He panted heavily as pain racked his body. He knew he could beat Galan. He was bigger and stronger. He just didn’t seem to be able to beat him at the moment.
“Sebastian, I don’t want to fight with you but—”
“Good, don’t, just leave me alone.”
“Sebastian—”
“Just go, Galan,” Sebastian said as he covered his eyes with his arm.
He really did want to be alone so he could nurse his broken heart in private. He didn’t want others to know how much he had been betrayed by Beauregard and how much it had hurt. He felt like his heart was laid bare for everyone to see.
“I’ll leave, but I want you to listen to me first,” Galan said.
“What?”
“You need to really think about this, Sebastian. I truly believe that Beauregard didn’t betray you. Maybe he didn’t know until now. He certainly would have told you if he had known. He’s your mate. He needs you just as much as you need him.”
Sebastian didn’t move until he heard the door close behind Galan. He slowly sat up, noticing the bloody gash on his hand when he did. He must have cut his hand sometime during the fight or on the broken whiskey bottle. It was deep. It was going to need stitches.
Sebastian glanced around until he spotted the phone on the floor. He bent down and picked it up. After hanging it up for a moment, he lifted the receiver again and waited for Carlos to come on the line.
“Yes, sir?”
“Carlos, call the doctor. I think I need stitches.”
“Right away, sir.”
Sebastian hung up the phone, then pulled his shirt off and wrapped it around his bleeding hand. It was stupid to fight with Galan. Sebastian might be bigger and stronger, but they were pretty evenly matched. Besides, Galan was his best friend.
He had just become so angry at what Galan was saying. He seemed to be on Beauregard’s side, not Sebastian’s. He didn’t seem to understand how betrayed Sebastian felt, how much his heart was breaking.
It wasn’t fair. Sebastian never asked for a rabbit mate. He never asked to be mated at all. This was all the fault of the elders. If they hadn’t made their little decree, he would never be in this mess.
And the worst part, the part that really stung Sebastian and made him feel the most pain, was the thought that Beauregard might never have meant all the things he said and did, that it all might have been a lie.
He had been so stunned by Beauregard. The man was amazing. He had caught Sebastian’s interest from the very beginning. Knowing he had been played for a fool was a bitter pill to swallow.
Knowing the child that Beauregard carried wasn’t his made him want to throw up. He could think of nothing greater than to be able to create a child with Beauregard. He hadn’t even known it was a possibility.
There was a part of Sebastian that was excited by the idea, intrigued. A small white bunny that looked just like his mate would have been a dream come true. Even a dragon would have been happily accepted.
And as much as Sebastian hoped he would be able to raise someone else’s child, he didn’t know if he could get past the fact that Beauregard lied to him. If there couldn’t be honesty between mates, then what was the point of being mated?
Mates were supposed to be a team. Sebastian should have been able to trust Beauregard more than he trusted anyone, even Galan. He didn’t know if they could ever get that back, or even if they could. Maybe they never had it in the first place.
“I hear you’re looking for a friend.”
Sebastian glanced up, surprised to see Derek standing in his doorway. “Derek, what are you doing here?”
Derek shrugged and sauntered into the room, trailing his fingers along the back of a chair. “I used to come here all of the time. Don’t you remember? You invited me.”
Sebastian sighed. He really didn’t want to be dealing with this at the moment. He had too much other stuff, important stuff to be thinking about. He didn’t need to be fighting advances from a former fuck toy.
“Derek, what do you want?”
Derek walked across the room and came to stand between Sebastian’s legs. He trailed a single finger down Sebastian’s naked chest. “I just thought I would come and console you.”
“Console me?” Sebastian frowned. There was something not right about that statement. “What do you need to console me about?”
“A little birdie told me that your mate was unavailable to see to your...” Derek glanced down at Sebastian’s groin…“your more manly needs.”
Sebastian instantly figured out that Derek knew Beauregard had been sick. He just didn’t understand how Derek knew. It hadn’t been a secret, exactly, but it also hadn’t been broadcast either.
“My mate takes care of my needs very nicely, thank you.”
Sebastian grabbed Derek’s hands and pushed him away. Within a moment, Derek was back. He had to give it to the man, he was persistent. Sebastian just wasn’t interested. He had a mate that loved him.
Even as he thought the words, the reality of them slammed into Sebastian, and he inhaled sharply. Galan was right. He was being such an idiot. Beauregard was his mate, and that meant for better or worse. It didn’t mean he kicked his mate to the curb at the first sign of trouble.
Beauregard had been honest in his feelings for Sebastian. He didn’t understand how Beauregard could be pregnant, but he knew his mate had said something the minute he knew. Beauregard hadn’t lied. He hadn’t betrayed Sebastian.
Sebastian, on the other hand, had betrayed his mate. He had treated Beauregard so shabbily that he doubted the man would ever forgive him. He wouldn’t blame Beauregard in the least but he had to try.
“Derek, I don’t have time for this,” Sebastian said as he pushed Derek away again. He needed to get to Beauregard and beg for his forgiveness.
“You never have time for me anymore,” Derek whined.
“Derek, you have a mate. I have a mate. Let it go. It’s not going to happen.” Sebastian shook his head as he hopped off the desk then started for the door.
“I’m supposed to be your mate!”
Sebastian swung around at Derek’s outraged scream just in time to see a flash of silver. The next instant, excruciating agony exploded in his shoulder. Sebastian’s knees buckled under the intense pain.
“Derek, wha—” Sebastian stared up at Derek in confusion.
“You’re mine,” Derek snarled. “You’ve always been mine. I won’t let some furry freak separate us now.”
Derek stepped forward and jerked the knife out of Sebastian’s shoulder. Sebastian shouted in agony as the knife was ripped free. He panted heavily until he saw Derek raise the knife in the air. He quickly raised his hands to stop Derek when the knife started to descend again.
“Derek, stop!”
Derek’s eyes wer
e wild, a hint of insanity making them seem brighter. Sebastian didn’t think Derek was going to stop until one of them was dead. He didn’t plan on it being him. He had too much to live for.
“Fuck!” Sebastian shouted when Derek started stabbing at him. Several of his stabs got through and sank into Sebastian’s hands until they were nothing but a bloody mess. Sebastian tried to fight Derek off as he struggled to his feet.
Once he was on his feet, he jumped back several steps and opened his mouth, blasting Derek with a large fireball. He wished his small study was larger and he could shift. He’d just eat Derek. Of course, he might get indigestion from it, but the man would be gone.
Sebastian’s eyebrows shot up to his hairline when the smoke cleared, and Derek still stood there, slightly singed but none the worse for wear. Derek was a cougar shifter. He should have gone up in flames.
“You didn’t think you could get rid of me that easily, did you?” Derek smirked. “My mate won’t let me die.”
Sebastian frowned. This couldn’t be good. On the other hand, Sebastian doubted Derek’s mate knew he was here. No one wanted their mate panting after someone else.
“You will be mine.”
“I don’t think so,” Sebastian said as he slowly backed away from Derek. If he could get out of his study into the large two-story entryway, he could shift, and then Derek wouldn’t be able to fight him off.
Derek screamed and raised the dagger in his hand. Sebastian bolted. He wasn’t stupid. He knew fighting Derek in his human form would be his doom. He wasn’t about to stick around and let the man continue to stab him.
Something heavy crashed into Sebastian just as he reached the doorway. He went flying through, crashing to the hard marble entryway and sliding halfway across it. By the time he turned over, Derek was almost on him.
Sebastian shifted in an instant. He felt himself grow bigger, stronger. When he opened his eyes and looked down, Derek was just a speck, a small, irritating speck. Sebastian’s roar filled the cavernous room. He heard doors open and people start running even as he filled his fire pouch with smoke and prepared to blast Derek away.