“Hey, I called you from downstairs, and I did knock once I was here, even though the door was open. It’s not my fault you were too busy to notice.”
Zane started pushing clothes into the first bag and listened to Scott and Iggy talking.
“So you’re the bat shifter, huh?” Scott asked.
“Yeah.”
“And you’re my brother’s boyfriend?”
“Ah...”
“He’s my mate,” Zane intervened, smiling because he knew Scott was going to make a big deal out of it.
“Your mate? And you tell me like that?” Scott got up and punched Zane’s shoulder before awkwardly hugging him. “I’m happy for you, asshole. New job, new guy. You have all the luck.”
Zane looked at Iggy, who was smiling at them. “Yeah, I do”
Chapter Two
Iggy led the way through the house he’d lived in for a handful of days when he got to Gillham. It was shared by Malik and Simon, Elliott and Mihaja, Mal and Will, plus of course, Iggy. And now Zane would sleep in Iggy’s room, in his bed, and it felt like it was going too fast, because they were mates and they were supposed to be together, but wasn’t living together already too fast? Not that they’d actually share the room, but still. It felt like a big step, and Iggy had taken plenty of those in the past month or so, and he wasn’t sure he could take another one.
He didn’t have a choice, though.
“Want me to sleep on the couch?” Zane said from Iggy’s side.
Iggy snapped his head toward Zane, and holy fuck, he still couldn’t believe he’d found his mate. He’d never really thought he would, not once he’d been old enough to realize what his place in the nest was—cannon fodder. He’d thought he’d die long before he could find Zane, yet there they were, and Iggy had no idea what to do about it.
“My room’s empty. You can take it,” he answered, because Zane had asked and Iggy didn’t want him to think he wasn’t listening.
“But it’s yours.”
Iggy looked sideways, and he was surprised to see Zane really looked worried about it. He wasn’t protesting just because it was polite to do so. He seriously worried what Iggy thought about it.
“It’s fine,” Iggy reassured him. “I haven’t slept in it a lot. Didn’t have the opportunity after Kameron asked me to be his bodyguard.”
“I can take the couch. It’s still your room, no matter how much you used it.”
“I said it’s fine.”
“But—”
“Look, we’re mates. It would be ridiculous for me to let you sleep on the couch even if you weren’t. We’re probably going to end up sharing it sooner or later anyway.”
He didn’t add anything, but they both knew what he wasn’t saying. Iggy could see it in Zane’s eyes. They’d end up sharing his room if they both survived what was coming. It wasn’t a certainty, especially since they were both bodyguards, and their lives mattered less then Malik’s and Kameron’s. Both of them would do whatever it took to protect their charges, even if it meant dying.
And that brought up another question. “So, do you think we should mate?”
Zane looked at Iggy with wide eyes. “I don’t know.”
“We both know what it means.”
“Yeah, and I’d say yes, but...”
“But what if one of us gets hurt, or worse?”
Zane nodded. “I wouldn’t want you to feel what I feel if I get hurt or if I die, and, well. We both know it might be a possibility.”
“Yeah, but would it really change anything? I mean, even without the bond, you’re still my mate. I’m going to get hurt if something happens to you anyway.”
“Yeah, but it’ll be only your pain.”
Iggy shrugged. There wasn’t an easy solution for them. They could take a risk and mate right away, even though they’d spend most of the near future apart. Mating might actually make things easier, or worse. There was no way to know how it would go.
Or they could wait. It could mean waiting for weeks, maybe months. Would it become hard to continue waiting after a while? Would they cave and mate? Or would the distance between them make waiting easier?
Iggy groaned. “I wish I had an easy answer.”
Zane smiled. “Has anything ever been easy in your life?”
“No.”
“I didn’t think so. Look, we don’t have to decide right now.”
“No, but we won’t be able to be together much. Even when Malik and Kameron are together, we’ll need to be focused on them, not on each other.”
Zane slowly nodded. “Yeah, but maybe mating could help us be better bodyguards.”
“How?”
“Well, we’d feel what the other is feeling.”
“And?”
“We’d know right away if one of us is hurt, scared, or whatever. It would tell us something’s happening, and we could deal accordingly.”
“That’s why you want to mate?”
Zane blushed and looked down. “Not only for that. I mean, it could be an advantage, but I don’t want to mate just for that reason.” He looked up, his cheeks red and his eyes happy. “I want to mate with you because you’re my future. You’re the guy who will love me until I die, and I’m the guy who will love you. I know you had to leave your family behind. I can be your family now. My family will be yours. I’m not sure how you’ll survive having Scott as a brother, but he’s included in the deal.”
Iggy wanted what Zane was saying so much. He missed his mother and his brothers, but the rest... his father had never really been a father. He hadn’t been allowed to be, hadn’t had the possibility to be one. There’d always been a distance between Iggy’s father and the rest of their family, and Iggy knew it hadn’t been his father’s fault.
Iggy’s older brother was like that too—distant, careful of not showing how much he cared—but his youngest brother was different. He hadn’t changed yet, but he would if Iggy left him with the nest. He couldn’t take Alex away, not yet, but he hoped he’d be able to one day. He hoped he’d be able to get his entire family back, but if he had to choose, Alex would be a priority.
In the meantime, Iggy had to be without them, and it hurt so much more than he’d thought it would. Zane’s family wouldn’t be the same, wouldn’t feel the same, but Zane was right. They were Iggy’s family too, no matter if they mated or not.
“I don’t know what to tell you,” Iggy finally said, because he really didn’t.
“Like I said, we don’t have to decide right now. I guess it would be smart to think about it for a few days.”
“And to talk to Kameron about it. He needs to know.”
“Do you think he’ll try to stop us if we decide to mate?”
Iggy frowned at Zane. “You’ve known him much longer than I have. What do you think?” Iggy thought Kameron wouldn’t forbid them anything. He’d probably tell them they could back out of being bodyguards if they wanted to.
“No, I don’t think he will. He still needs to know, though.”
“Of course he does. He’s the alpha.”
“And a friend.”
Iggy didn’t really understand that. He’d seen Kameron with pack members, so he knew he didn’t behave like Iggy’s old alpha had, like no other alpha Iggy had ever met. Kameron was friendly with everyone, but not without being a real alpha. He was powerful, and people listened to him, but there was no fear involved. It was so different than what Iggy was used to, but he liked it.
He was relieved when the house finally appeared between the trees. The conversation was making him even more confused. “We’ll tell Kameron, then we’ll wait and think about it,” he said, hoping Zane would be fine with it.
“All right.”
Iggy looked at Zane, and he didn’t seem angry, or even uncomfortable. He was smiling, actually, looking like a big puppy as he bounded up the porch stairs. Iggy smiled and shook his head as they took off their boots. He opened the front door, not
surprised to smell something cooking in the kitchen.
Simon’s head appeared at the kitchen door and he smiled at Iggy and Zane. “Hey, Iggy. I didn’t expect you to be home. Or did Kameron fire you already?” he teased.
“He didn’t. He appointed Zane as Malik’s bodyguard, though.”
Simon nodded. “I know. Malik called. So are you going to stay with us?” he asked Zane.
“I’m giving him my room,” Iggy said.
Zane elbowed him in the side and he looked so eager that Iggy nodded, knowing he’d understand.
“You’re still living here, though, right?” Simon asked. “I mean, after all of this is over. We don’t want you to leave.”
“I guess we’ll be sharing the room once Kameron doesn’t need me anymore.”
Simon cocked his head, but before he could ask why, Zane blurted out, “We’re mates.”
Simon blinked and his smile widened. “Really? That’s awesome!”
And it was, but Iggy couldn’t help but wonder if they’d end up dead before they could do anything about it. Sometimes he really hated being realistic.
* * * *
Simon thankfully left them alone once they climbed the stairs to go to Iggy’s room. Zane followed, doing his best not to stare at the ass in front of his eyes, but he knew he didn’t completely succeed when Simon snickered at the bottom of the stairs. Zane paused when he got to the top of the stairs, looked at Simon, and scowled at him. He should have known the only effect would be to make Simon laugh, and his own lips twitched in amusement.
Iggy was waiting for him, so he hurried, dragging his bag with him. Iggy was holding the second one, since he’d looked like he wanted to tear Zane’s head off when Zane had said he could carry both of his bags.
Zane knew Iggy was more than able to carry a bag, to defend himself and anyone else. He wasn’t Kameron’s bodyguard for nothing. It didn’t stop Zane and his wolf from wanting to protect their mate and to coddle him, to make sure he was happy, rested and well fed.
Iggy pushed open a door and gestured at Zane to go in. The room was clean and neat. There was nothing that indicated someone lived there, and from what Iggy had said, he hadn’t had the opportunity to really make the room his.
“So this is it. You’ll have to use the bathroom in the hallway, since this was an office, but the guys have been talking about hiring Thomas and other people to have some stuff done. They think I need my own bathroom or something.”
“It’s fine even without a private bathroom.”
Iggy dumped the bag he was still holding on the bed. “You won’t have to share it with anyone. All the bedrooms have their bathroom, so this one is for guests, or whatever. Anyway, this is the bed, the closet is over there, the TV’s on the dresser, and I’ll show you the bathroom before we leave.”
Zane put his bag down and strode to the closet. He was curious to see if there was something belonging to Iggy in it, and he was surprised to see the closet was completely empty. “Are you sure this is your room? There’s nothing personal in it.”
Iggy leaned against the wall. “Yeah, well. I fled my nest with not even clothes on my back, so sorry if I don’t have much stuff.”
“Sorry.”
Iggy shrugged. “S’ fine. I’m slowly buying stuff, and the pack made sure I had clothes and everything. I just haven’t had much time, and what with having to move in with Kameron, well. I don’t want to fill his guest room with junk.”
“You could always buy stuff and leave it here.”
“But it’s your room now.”
Zane cocked his head. “I thought we decided it was our room.”
Iggy shrugged. “Later on, sure. But for now we’ve only kissed, and it’s not the best moment to make this kind of decision.”
Zane walked closer and stopped just inches from Iggy. He leaned forward until their lips almost brushed together. Iggy’s mouth opened slightly and he breathed out. “I think we did a bit more than kissing,” Zane whispered.
Iggy swallowed. “Yeah, we did, until your brother cockblocked us.”
“We can give it another try. Scott’s not here.”
Iggy chuckled and kissed Zane quickly. “We could, but I’m ready to bet Simon would come in, or that Malik would call to ask you where you are and when you’re coming to get him.”
Zane shook his head. “Do you really think he’ll wait there until I come back?”
“He’s supposed to. You’re his bodyguard. He can’t go anywhere without you.”
“Technically, but you know as well as I do that he doesn’t really have to, and nobody expects Quinn to actually do that.”
“Kameron wouldn’t have asked you to be Malik’s bodyguard if he didn’t think he needed one.”
Zane snorted. “Come on. We both know he did it to stick Kir and Quinn together.”
“I suppose it was a plus in his plan.” Iggy leaned even closer, but instead of kissing Zane again, he reached around him and slapped his ass. “Come on. They’re probably waiting for us, and we have to talk to Kameron anyway.”
He walked away. Zane gave the room that was now his one last look and followed him into the hallway. Simon stopped them before they could leave. “Are you having dinner with us tonight?” he asked.
“I don’t know,” Zane answered. “I’m going to go get Malik, so I guess we’ll both be back by dinner time, but Iggy probably has to stay with Kameron.”
“Right. Well, Iggy, when you manage to get a free evening or something, I expect you to come by and eat with us. We miss you.”
Zane could tell Iggy wanted to protest, about what he didn’t know. He didn’t know how he knew it either, but it didn’t matter, because Iggy nodded. “I’ll do that. We need to go, okay?”
He hurried out of the house as if his ass was on fire. Zane wasn’t sure what was going on, but he asked as soon as he got close to Iggy again. He almost had to start running because Iggy was walking so fast. “What’s up?”
Iggy looked at him without even slowing down. “What do you mean?”
“Why are you running away from Simon? He doesn’t mean ill.”
“I know that.”
“Then what?”
Iggy finally slowed down and sighed. “It’s weird.”
“What is?”
“That they accepted me so easily. I mean, I came from a nest that’s allied with Tom and his council. I could be a spy, yet they put me in charge of the alpha’s protection and make me feel like I’m part of a family. I don’t get it.”
Zane wasn’t sure what to say, but he wanted to try to explain. “You know Kameron hasn’t been alpha for long, right?”
“Yeah, I was told about Erskine.”
“Yeah, well, Erskine was an asshole. He’d have tortured you for info before killing you, or letting his guard dogs kill you.”
“He’d have been part of the other council, from what I know of him.”
Zane shrugged. “He’d probably have started it or something, but yeah. He was a mean bastard. We all had to grow up with him as the alpha, and I think we’re lucky so many of us came out of it alive and sane. Kameron is the opposite of Erskine. He’s a nice guy. He uses his alpha power to do good.”
“Doesn’t explain why he didn’t at least lock me up.”
“He gave you the benefit of the doubt. He saw something in you.”
“I guess.”
“Tell me, what did you want to do coming here? Were you planning to hurt Kameron?”
Iggy screeched to a halt. “No! Of course I wasn’t. I wanted to tell him what was happening. I didn’t want the pack to be decimated. No one here deserved it. No one deserves it period.”
“There you go. Kameron was right.”
Iggy chuckled. “I know he was. I just don’t understand how he and everyone else can trust me like that.”
“I trust you because you’re my mate. I’d like to think Fate wouldn’t have given me a mate who would hurt m
e and betray me first chance he got.”
Iggy started walking again, and to Zane’s surprise, he pressed their palms together and loosely linked their fingers, pulling Zane along. “It happens,” he said in a soft voice.
“What happens?”
“Mates who hurt each other, especially when they’re not mated yet.”
“I know that, but I also know you’re not that kind of guy. Look, why do you trust me, or Kameron? How do you know Kameron isn’t going to decide to kick you to the curb, or to stick you in a cell? Maybe he’s trying to get more info from you. Maybe he wants to take advantage.”
“He’s not. He’s a good guy.”
“And you trust your opinion of him even if you don’t know him that well.”
“I guess you’re right.”
Zane grinned. “I know I am. You’ll see, that feeling will disappear if you stay here long enough.”
They walked into the clearing where Kameron’s house stood and Zane looked at their twined hands. “Ready to face the music?”
“You say that like Kameron isn’t going to approve.”
“He will.”
“I sure hope so.”
* * * *
Iggy couldn’t deny he was a little nervous when they entered Kameron’s house. Okay, he was very nervous, even though he was pretty sure Kameron wouldn’t say anything except maybe congratulations.
He couldn’t help it. It had been beaten into him that the only good mate was a mate who was the same kind of shifter as him, and of course, the opposite sex. He knew Kameron wasn’t like that, obviously, but he still was the alpha, and what he said was law.
“Everything will be fine,” Zane said.
Iggy shrugged, and Zane stopped in the middle of the entrance. He turned to face Iggy and cupped one of his cheeks. “It will,” he insisted, waiting until Iggy nodded to kiss him.
It was easy to forget about the rest and focus on the kiss. Iggy loved kissing Zane, and he was glad he’d get to do it again and again, at least after their bodyguard duty got easier.
“Well, well. Do you boys have something to tell us?” someone asked.
Iggy [Gillham Pack: 15] Page 3