Keenan

by Catherine Lievens

  “I don’t know. It was dark and the forest is all the same to me, but I think you guys could find them just with the smell. They stink so much, it’s disgusting.” Keenan wrinkled his nose.

  “Chogan didn’t stink,” Oliver pointed out.

  Keenan shrugged. “I don’t know. I didn’t notice it, it’s not like I’m a shifter.”

  “He smelled of earth and rain, but he didn’t stink.”

  Jonah idly listened to the two friends talking, but his mind was already on their brand new problem. If there was a group of wendigos in the forest, they had to be the ones kidnapping humans. He shuddered at the thought of what had happened to those poor people. It was revolting to think about them being eaten.

  They had to do something about the wendigos to protect the population in Whitedell, but they had to be careful. They didn’t know how many of them there were in the group, and if they all were as big as Chogan when they shifted, defeating them was going to be hard.

  * * * *

  Keenan was jolted awake when the car stopped. He jerked, frantically looking out the window, only to let out a relieved sigh and lean back into the seat when he saw they were home. Home.

  He had thought he would never see the mansion again, and he had only Chogan to thank for being there now. He couldn’t help being worried about him, even if he was a wendigo too. He was only one against all the ones Keenan had seen in the camp, and if they found out he had helped Keenan escape, god only knew what would happen to him. Keenan hoped wendigos didn’t eat each other.

  The door swung open and Keenan flinched when he heard Jayden screech.

  “Oh, god, you’re naked!”

  Keenan looked around and noticed that while the others had gotten dressed at some point during the short trip back home, Jonah hadn’t. Keenan had fallen asleep still sitting in his lap, Jonah’s arms still hugging him tight, and he probably hadn’t wanted to wake him up. That meant that all his bits and pieces were exposed to the world, and while shifters didn’t really care about nudity, Keenan felt a pang of jealousy when he noticed the way Jayden was looking at his mate.

  He turned around as best as he could and showed Jayden his teeth, in his best shifter wannabe fashion. “Don’t look, weasel!”

  Jayden squeaked, but he averted his eyes. “Sorry, sorry! It’s not my fault, I swear my eyes just have a mind of their own! And probably my hands, too. I mean, there are times I just find myself eating something I don’t even remember grabbing then of course there are those times where they just wander down—”

  “TMI, Jayden,” Keenan grumbled as he looked around the car for something—anything!—he could use to cover his naked mate. Jonah didn’t even move to cover himself. What he was doing was making Keenan even more irritated since he was laughing, quietly, but so hard he was holding his ribs.

  Keenan scowled at him, giving Oliver a big smile when his friend handed him a shirt, probably Jonah’s. In the meantime Jayden was still talking his heart out right next to them, making Keenan wonder if he had even noticed they weren’t listening to him.

  “—hoped for tonight, well, yesterday night really since it’s already morning, but then you had to go and have yourself kidnapped. I couldn’t even think about finding someone and getting laid after that, but damn, I really need it. It’s been months, and if I don’t get laid I’m going to start looking around, and you guys are all mated, well, nearly all, but those who aren’t are either like brothers to me, or they’re not my type. Maybe I should try and look somewhere else—”

  Keenan tuned him out again. He slapped the T-shirt on Jonah’s chest, his scowl still on his face, and waited for Oliver to hand him Jonah’s pants. Jonah was still laughing his ass off, and while Keenan should have been irritated, he was actually happy to see it. Not that he would ever confess that to his mate, but still. He knew the last hours hadn’t been easy on Jonah, especially after what he had been through for the past year, and he was glad to see him laugh, since it didn’t happen often.

  Once a laughing Oliver gave Jonah his pants, Keenan climbed down from his mate’s lap and got out of the car. Someone had managed to shut Jayden up, or maybe he had just ran out of things to say—not that Keenan thought that was actually possible—but thank god, he was silent, at least until he saw Keenan get out of the car.

  Jayden jumped on Keenan as soon as he set foot on the ground, hugging him surprisingly hard for such a small guy. Then he started talking again.

  “I thought I would never see you again! That man said they were going to eat you, and as soon as I got home I started researching what type of creature eats humans, but there are so many of those and I don’t know which ones are real, so—”

  Keenan groaned and pushed Jayden just a tiny bit away. He needed a shower, his mate and sleep, possibly in that order. But once Jayden got started, it was hard to make him stop. There was only one way Keenan could actually think about, really. “Wendigos.”

  Jayden stopped talking and looked at him, his eyes huge and his mouth slightly open. Keenan knew he was already thinking about what he knew of wendigos, and he hoped his friend would need the library, like, right now.

  “They were wendigos. I don’t know much about them, but one of them helped me escape, and I’m scared the other ones will hurt him. Do you think you can find a way to defeat them?”

  Jayden nodded with enthusiasm. “I’m going to need the library, but I think I can find something.” He walked away, leaving everyone else either laughing or a bit stunned.

  Keenan felt two arms slipping around his waist from behind and he relaxed, leaning against Jonah’s chest. The man was still chuckling when he said, “I’m going to have to remember that. Is that the only way to stop him? Sending him to do research in the library?”

  “No, but it’s the most efficient way, especially since I didn’t have chocolate chip cookies on hand. Besides, he manages to talk even with those, between two bites.”

  He felt Jonah’s chest rumble as the man laughed. “I can’t wait to see him meet his mate. I just hope he’s not as talkative as Jayden, because I’m not sure I could survive with two of them.”

  Keenan smiled. “I can only imagine how loud they would be while having sex if they both talk like that.”

  Jonah shivered behind Keenan. “I don’t even want to talk about that. Gosh, that’s an image I could have done without.”

  Keenan laughed before turning around and looping his arms around his mate’s neck. “Take me home?”

  Jonah immediately understood what Keenan meant, bless him, and he leaned down, grabbing Keenan under the knees and around his shoulders, carrying him bridal style. Keenan leaned his head against Jonah’s chest, closing his eyes as Jonah walked into the house and went for the stairs.

  “Keenan? Are you okay?” Jared asked, and Keenan opened his eyes. Jared’s eyes were worried as he asked, “Do you need to come by the infirmary?”

  “No, I’m fine. I think I just need some sleep and to keep off my feet. I walked most of the night, and I’m not used to it.”

  Jared nodded. “Sure, but if you need anything or you’re not feeling well, you know where to find me.” Keenan saw Jared sniff him a bit and frown, but he was too tired to worry about it. He probably thought Keenan stank anyway, so he just smiled at the bobcat shifter and leaned back against Jonah as the man started walking again.

  It didn’t take his mate long to walk up to their room. Keenan opened his eyes again when he felt Jonah put him down on his feet and tug on his button-down. Jonah had brought him into the bathroom and was undressing him.

  He let his mate take care of him, and Jonah finished undressing him before shedding his own clothes and turn on the water. Once it was hot, Jonah gently pulled Keenan along in the stall and pushed him against the wall while he grabbed a washcloth and the soap.

  Keenan leaned back against the cold tiles as his mate gently cleaned him up, too tired to move. His cock, however, wasn’t apparently tired at all,
because as soon as Jonah got close to it, it started to plump. Keenan looked down and scowled at it before wondering when he had started resenting the fact that he wanted to have sex.

  Jonah carefully cleaned his legs before sliding a hand between Keenan’s legs and stroking the cloth against his balls. Okay, so Keenan’s cock really wanted to see some action. Maybe he could do it. He didn’t actually have to move for it, right?

  When Jonah’s hand grabbed Keenan’s shaft, moving up and down as he soaped it, Keenan knew he wasn’t getting out of it without at least one orgasm. He moaned, closing his eyes and leaning his head back against the wall, just enjoying the feeling of his mate’s hands on his skin.

  Jonah turned him around and proceeded to wash his back too, and when Keenan felt him hesitate at his butt, he widened his stance, hopefully making the fact that he wanted Jonah to make love to him obvious.

  Jonah chuckled, placing a kiss on Keenan’s shoulder as his fingers slipped between Keenan’s cheeks, finding the tight opening there and massaging it. Keenan shuddered as the tip of one finger slid inside him, helped by the slickness of the soap. He briefly wondered if soap was really made for getting in there, but when the finger became two fingers, he didn’t really care anymore.

  Jonah kept his pace unhurried as he stretched Keenan, his fingers sliding in and out slowly, sometimes stopping when he scissored them before returning to their initial rhythm. His lips roamed on Keenan’s back and neck, leaving open-mouth kisses anywhere he could reach. Keenan wasn’t sure he was going to be able to do this in the shower, not unless Jonah actually held him up. He could already feel his knees wobbling as the exhaustion pressed on him, threatening to take him down.

  Jonah probably noticed it too, because he took his fingers out from Keenan’s channel and quickly rinsed him before turning the water off and opening the shower door. Keenan didn’t move—he wasn’t able to. He knew he would just collapse if he tried it, and he liked being taken care of by Jonah. It made him feel cherished.

  Jonah wrapped a huge white towel around Keenan before moving away again, and Keenan watched as he dried himself. He made quick work of it and soon was picking Keenan up again and walking him to their bed, putting him down again. He pulled back the covers one-handed as he held Keenan to his chest, then helped him remove the towel and lie down.

  Keenan shivered when his mate slid into the bed with him, their bare skins touching, still damp and hot from the shower. He smiled at Jonah, who was watching him with concern in his eyes, and opened his legs, hopefully making what he wanted clear.

  “You sure? I don’t want to push you or anything,” Jonah whispered even as he moved above Keenan and settled between his legs.

  “I’m sure. I know you’re going to want to claim me again, and I want it, too. Just don’t expect me to actually do something, because I don’t think I have the strength to move.”

  Jonah chuckled and sealed their lips together as he slowly entered Keenan. Keenan sighed in his mouth, feeling oddly complete and at peace. He hadn’t had the time to think about what had happened to him, not really, and he realized only then how much being far away from his mate had hurt.

  Jonah made sweet, slow love to him, moving his hips leisurely as he placed wet kisses on Keenan’s shoulders and neck. Keenan hugged him as close as he could, even when Jonah moved a hand between them and took his cock, stroking it with the same rhythm his hips were moving.

  Jonah’s mouth was still on Keenan’s neck and Keenan felt his teeth slowly sinking into his flesh, claiming him again. The first pull Jonah took triggered Keenan’s orgasm and he gasped, the space between them suddenly wet and sticky.

  Everything went dark after that, and he only had the time to hope that his mate had come too before he fell asleep.

  * * * *

  Jonah looked down at Keenan. He couldn’t believe his mate had fallen asleep right after coming!

  Oh, well. He could understand it, really, and it was kind of funny if he thought about it. Luckily, he had come too, right before Keenan had passed out, because it would have been creepy to continue when Keenan was passed out.

  Jonah gave one last lick at the renewed bite on Keenan’s neck before gently slipping his sated cock out of his mate. He chuckled when not even that made Keenan move. He really was out for the count.

  He rose from the bed and headed to the bathroom, grabbing the washcloth he had used before. Returning to the bedroom, he cleaned Keenan up as well as he could before tucking his mate in and taking another shower. He dressed, looking at the bed with longing, but he knew he had to go talk with Dominic before he could finally go to sleep. So he walked out of the suite and headed to Dominic’s office. He wasn’t surprised to see that the room was already full of talking shifters.

  “—but what if—”

  “—they could—”

  “—eat people!”

  At least five different conversations were going on, all about the wendigos and the danger they represented, both for shifters and humans. They might not like the taste of shifter flesh, but Jonah didn’t think it meant that they wouldn’t attack shifters it they needed to. Or wanted to.

  He didn’t think Chogan was like the other wendigos, so they couldn’t count on them being as decent as he was. They ate humans, for god’s sake!

  Ignoring the rest of the conversations, Jonah walked to the desk and plopped down on one of the free chairs in front of it. Everyone seemed to stop talking at once and all heads turned toward Jonah, making him uncomfortable.

  “How is he?” Dominic asked.

  “He’s fine. He’s sleeping. He has no wounds, so he should feel better once he wakes up. His feet will hurt for a few days, but it shouldn’t be a problem.” Keenan had been so damn lucky to get out of there, and everyone knew it. If Chogan hadn’t been there...

  “So, can someone explain what the heck a wendigo is?” Bryce asked from the couch.

  Everyone looked at Isaiah and Jayden. They were huddled together, both looking at the computer on Isaiah’s lap. They were softly talking and Jayden kept pointing at the screen. It took them a minute to notice everyone was waiting for them to talk, and when they did, Jayden blushed fiercely.

  “Oh, sure, sure. So, uh, wendigos. I did a little research, although I already knew a few things about them. I just didn’t know they were real, but then I didn’t know about Nix before meeting Finn, so it doesn’t mean anything. For all I know mermaids and mummies could be real too, and that would be damn interesting. I wonder if—”

  “Jayden,” Dominic interrupted. Everyone looked relieved, because they all knew that once Jayden was launched, it was hard to make him stop talking.

  “Oh, sorry. It’s just that this whole thing is so interesting. Don’t you ever wonder what else is out there?”

  “Jayden,” Dominic scolded again, making Jayden blush. The weasel shifter looked down at his notes.

  “Wendigos. It’s a legend from Native Americans tribes, and as a legend, there’s not a lot of info we can be sure about on them. Although the fact that Oliver could describe one to me helped.” He stopped talking, obviously trying to concentrate on what he had to say and trying not to let his mind wander too much. “As you know, they eat humans. Some legends say that they were humans who resorted to cannibalism and were transformed, but I don’t think it’s correct. I think they’re just a separate species, just like shifters. If you think about it, they are shifters, really, only they don’t shift into animals.”

  Dominic cleared his throat and Jayden narrowed his eyes at the Alpha, although Jonah was thankful to the lion shifter. He had an uncanny way of understanding when Jayden was preparing himself to go on one of his rants.

  “They’re associated with winter and cold, which might explain why they live in Wyoming. I actually expected them to be more north, possibly Canada, but, well. Maybe they like Wyoming. Anyway. They’re very good hunters. They’re not only very tall and have wicked claws and fangs, but they’re also
silent when they want to be, and very strong, with a sense of hearing and sight better than the human ones. I don’t how different it is from our senses, though.”

  “Can we kill them?” Bryce asked.

  “Of course. Everything can be killed. Well, maybe not phoenixes, but I’m not sure about it, and I don’t even know if they exist, and of course angels should be, too, but—”

  “Jayden,” Dominic said patiently, and the small man smiled at him.

  “Sorry. You know how I am with my research.”

  A few chuckles resonated in the room and Dominic smiled indulgently.

  “I don’t think killing them would be a problem, but beating them is not going to be easy. You know, claws, fangs, height, all that stuff.”

  “We still have to stop them. We can’t let them hunt humans,” Sebastian said, and more than one person in the room nodded.

  “Keenan said Chogan doesn’t eat meat,” Jonah pointed out.

  Jayden’s eyes widened. “Who is Chogan?”

  “He’s the wendigo who helped Keenan escape.”

  “Well, I read that wendigos eat moss and lichen when they can’t find, uh, human meat. Obviously, it’s possible for them to live as vegetarians. Maybe you could try to talk to them and see if they decide to stop eating people.”

  Jonah wished it were as easy as Jayden made it sound, but he knew people too well. Chogan was an exception.

  “I’m going to have to call a council meeting,” Dominic said. “We have to discuss this topic, and if we find out we can somehow talk with the wendigos and convince them to change their feeding habits, we could give them a seat on the council.” Dominic looked at the ceiling and sighed. “We won’t be able to do anything now, though, so I suggest you all go to work or to bed.”

  Jonah knew the Alpha had to be as drained as he was, and he was grateful for the suggestion. He wanted nothing more than to slide into bed next to Keenan and hug his mate tightly, and he was going to do just that.