by R. E. Butler
“Of course,” Rafe said.
“Wait, don’t you want to take time off?” Ree asked.
“For what?” Rhaider asked.
“You just met each other. You don’t want time to…” Ree looked at Duke helplessly, like she couldn’t think of the right words.
Demi thought it was sweet. “They’re staying with me. We’ll have the weekend afternoons to ourselves, plus weeknights when I’m not grading papers. When we’re ready to take time off, we’ll let you guys know, but I’d love to hear them play again tonight.”
Rafe nodded, and so did Rhaider. “We’re fine with starting tonight,” Rhaider said.
Everyone stood and shook hands. Demi and Ree hugged, then Duke and Ree left. Titus had paperwork for the band to sign, so Demi sat and waited for them to go over everything. By the time they were finished, she was starving and ready for lunch.
“Sure you don’t want to call your folks first and make plans for a visit?” Rafe asked as he opened the car door for her.
Her heart jumped into her throat and she froze, feeling like a proverbial deer in headlights.
“Hey, it’s okay,” he said, leaning in for a kiss. “I’m not trying to push you to do anything you don’t want to do.”
“Well, what about your mom?”
Rhaider tapped the hood of the car. “We were going to ask if you’d like to video call with her after lunch.”
“I’d love that,” Demi said.
Rafe looked at Maverick and Rebel. “Do you guys want to join us for lunch?”
“Sure,” Maverick said.
“The B&B’s breakfast buffet was awesome. They also serve lunch too. We could eat there.”
“Sounds good,” Rhaider said.
Rhaider sat in the backseat with her, squishing up against her so she got in plenty of snuggling time while Rafe drove to the B&B, which was owned by a mated lion couple. The B&B was open to shifters of any sort, humans, and other supernatural creatures.
“I never thought about you guys not making a ton of money with the band gigs,” she said as Rafe parked next to their big van.
“It can be pretty lean,” Rhaider said as he got out of the back seat and groaned as he stretched to his full height. “We all had savings to carry us, but when we were in places where the weather was nice, we’d camp out instead of spending money on a hotel. Sometimes we slept in the van if we couldn’t find a place to stay that was cheap enough and the weather sucked. The B&B is nice, though. If the gig hadn’t worked out at Tails, there are a few other bars around looking for bands so we were planning to stick around for a little while.”
“You don’t mind being here?” she asked.
“As opposed to?” Rafe asked as he took her hand. “Since we’re exiled from our clan, we can’t go back there.”
“I know, but we could go somewhere on our own and start our own group.”
“We’re happy to be here, sweets,” Rhaider said. “We’ve traveled the country looking for our heart-match. We always hoped we’d be able to settle in with our heart-match’s people, whoever or whatever they were. If we weren’t welcome in the pride because we’re bears, then we would have taken you with us and made a group of our own. A clan-pride.”
“Cride,” Rafe said. “Plan. Ha!”
Demi giggled and went onto her toes and kissed first Rafe and then Rhaider. “I’m so glad you came to Kedrick. And I’m doubly glad you’re staying.”
“Us too,” Rhaider said.
They walked into the B&B and hooked a right to the dining room, finding a table that would seat all of them. “After lunch we’ll call our mom,” Rafe said.
Her heart still thudded a bit at the thought of talking to her parents. While they had said they supported her in her desire to find her heart-match, she wasn’t just bringing one male home to meet them. She was bringing two.
She hadn’t even fully wrapped her head around that yet.
And they hadn’t done more than kiss.
Granted, the kisses had been spectacular. And she’d never felt safer and more cared for her in life than she did falling asleep with their arms around her.
Waking up with them had been heaven.
She straightened her shoulders. “After we call your mom, we’ll call my parents.”
“Are you sure?” Rhaider asked.
“I am. I want them to know I’ve found you both, and how happy I am. I’m excited that you’re in my life now, and I want to share that with them.”
“We’ll be right there with you,” Rafe said.
She blew out a breath. “Good! I might need some emotional support.”
“You got it,” Rhaider said, giving her a wink.
Chapter Nine
While they ate, they discussed living arrangements. Rebel and Maverick were happy to stay in the B&B until they found a more permanent place. Titus had given Rafe a list of homes for rent in town.
“I think we should consider moving to a larger home,” Rhaider said.
“Because you need space to practice?” Demi asked.
“Yes, but also because there’s three of us, and eventually we’ll be mated and start a family. Rafe and I shared a bedroom growing up. It’s fine when you’re young, but after a certain point everyone wants their own space.”
“Do you mind?” Rafe asked, setting the last plate in the dishwasher.
“Mind what?” she asked.
“Not living next to Hemi and Annie.”
Her brows went up. “I hadn’t really thought of that. I’ll miss him, of course, but I kind of doubt he and Annie will stay in their place once they start a family, too. If we move out, maybe Rebel and Maverick could stay there.”
“That’s a good idea,” Maverick said and Rebel agreed.
“Cool,” Rhaider said. “Well, that’s you guys figured out. We can look at the houses after we talk to our parents.”
“I was thinking, actually,” she said, toying with her empty glass, “that we could go home after we see my parents. Assuming they want to meet up with us, that is.”
“Oh?” Rafe asked.
“Sure.” Her eyes got a little darker and the faint scent of her arousal caught Rafe’s attention. “You’re going to be working tonight, and if we spend the day looking at houses, we might not have any time to spend together. We could go see houses tomorrow.”
“Anything in particular you want to do this afternoon?” Rhaider drawled.
Rafe grinned. “I don’t know about our sweetheart, but I have some ideas.”
“That’s our cue to leave,” Rebel said as he pushed back in his chair. “I’m going back to bed.”
“Me too,” Maverick said.
“See you at the bar later,” Rafe said.
Demi’s eyes were dancing. “I have some ideas of my own. Let’s see where the day takes us.”
“Then let’s get out of here and call Mom,” Rafe said. “And then your parents.”
Rhaider texted their mom and asked if she could video chat, and a few minutes later, they were outside of the B&B on a bench using Rhaider’s phone to video chat with her.
“Hi boys,” their mom said.
They both greeted her. She looked good. Happy. Rafe was thankful for that. He didn’t know what he’d do if they thought she was miserable.
“Mom,” Rhaider said, “this is our heart-match, Demi. Sweets, this is our mom, Raquella.”
There was a beat of silence while the two females stared at each other through the electronics, and then both grinned and said, “Hi!” at the same time.
“It’s so nice to meet you,” Raquella said.
“You too,” Demi said.
“Where did you meet? What happened with the bar audition? Tell me everything!”
Rhaider and Rafe shared the details of meeting Demi and getting the house band gig.
“So, you’re not nomads anymore. That’s good,” Raquella said. “I never liked you just traveling around without stopping much.”
“We’re glad too,” Rafe said. And that
was the damn truth. He hadn’t minded being on the road at first, but as they lost out on job after job—or only found temporary gigs and nothing permanent—it had started to wear on him. He was not built for constant travel; he much preferred having a permanent address. Particularly when it meant that he and Rhaider had finally found their heart-match.
“So, you’re a lion?” Raquella asked.
“Yep,” Demi said. “I teach first and second graders at the pride school.”
“Have you told your family yet?”
She shook her head. “We will after we’re finished talking to you.”
“You look a little nervous.”
Rafe glanced at his mate and noticed the tension on her face.
“I am. They were very traditionally-minded when it came to mates up until my brother mated a human. They’ve come a long way, but it’s one thing for me to find my heart-match in a different type of shifter, but to have two mates?” She shrugged. “I have no idea how they’ll react.”
“It is unusual,” Raquella said, “but they’ve known for years they were going to share a mate. It took me some time to get used to the idea, but like I’ve always said, it’s not my mating bed, so I don’t care how many people are in it, only that my boys are happy.”
“We are,” Rhaider said.
“Definitely,” Rafe echoed.
“Well, I’d be a fool not to be able to see that,” Raquella said with a chuckle. “It’s very clear to me that you’re smitten with your kitten, and that’s how it’s supposed to be.”
Demi chuckled and Rafe grinned. He liked that phrase, ‘smitten with your kitten.’ It was one hundred percent true.
“Maybe you can come for a visit over the summer,” Raquella said. “I’d love to meet in person.”
“I’d enjoy that,” Demi said.
“Sounds good,” Rafe said.
They talked for a little while longer, finding out that their mom had been out on a date recently with a male from another clan, and while she wasn’t sure it would lead anywhere permanent, she enjoyed her time with him. She promised she was happy for them and missed them terribly. They sure as hell missed her.
They said their goodbyes, and when the screen was dark, Demi rested her head on Rafe’s shoulder and sighed. “That went really great. Your mom is so sweet.”
“We knew she’d like you,” Rafe said.
“She just wants us to be happy,” Rhaider said. “Although that’s the first time she’s ever said she didn’t like us being on the road. I guess she didn’t want to stress us out with her worry that we were constantly on the move.”
“That’s sweet.”
“It is,” Rafe said. “Do you want to take a break or just call your parents?”
“I’ll call them now, and if they want to video chat or get-together, we can plan that.”
“Sounds good.”
She found a number in her contact list and put the phone on speaker. A woman answered.
“Hi Mom. Is Dad around? I’d like to talk to you both.”
“Sure, he’s in the backyard.”
There was a muffled sound and her mom’s voice was heard calling for her mate.
“Everything’s okay, right?” her mom asked.
“Very,” Demi said.
“Ah, interesting. Oh, here he is.”
“Hi honey,” a male said.
“Hi Dad. I’ve got some great news and I wanted to tell you both together.” She paused and inhaled, then continued, “I found my heart-matches last night.”
“Oh! You did? How wonderful,” her mom said.
“Wait, did you say matches?” her dad asked.
“I did. They’re brothers—Rafe and Rhaider—and they’re part of the new house band at Tails. They’re grizzly bear shifters.”
There was a long pause, and Demi glanced nervously at Rafe and his brother.
“Well, how about that!” her mom said. “Congratulations.”
“Yes, yes,” her dad said, “Congratulations. Are your males on speaker?”
“We are. Hello, I’m Rafe.”
“I’m Rhaider. It’s nice to meet you, by phone,” Rhaider said with a chuckle.
“Demi, honey,” her father said, “could you take us off speaker for a moment?”
“Sure.” She glanced at them and switched the phone off the speaker. “Okay, what’s up?”
Even though she wasn’t on speaker, they could still hear the conversation very clearly.
“Two males, honey?” her mom asked. “It’s…just not done.”
“Mom,” Demi said, “they’re my heart-matches.”
“Are you certain?” her dad asked. “It’s not normal.”
“Is this because they’re not lions?” Demi asked.
“No, of course not,” her mom said. “It’s just a surprise. How do you know they’re both for you?”
“Because I feel it all the way to my bones, Mom. And my lioness is crazy about both of them. If I didn’t feel a connection to them both as heart-matches, then I wouldn’t have introduced them to you as my mates.”
There was a pause, and then her dad said, “You always did have to do things differently.”
Demi snorted. “I guess having two mates is about as different as a person can get.”
“Two bear mates, even,” her mom said. “I’m sorry, honey, we just wanted to make sure that you knew what you were doing. It won’t be easy to have two mates. You’ll be facing scrutiny from pride members because it’s so unusual.”
“I don’t care about that.”
“You might, once you have kids and they have to go to school,” her dad said.
“I’m not going to give up my mates because it might make some people uncomfortable. I want you to accept Rafe and Rhaider, but if you won’t, then tell me now.”
“We don’t want you to give them up,” her dad said. “We just wanted to make sure you’d thought it through. This is a tough road you’re going on.”
“Maybe, but now that I have them in my life, I can’t imagine being without either of them. It might be strange, but I’ve got two heart-matches and I’m going to keep them.”
There was another pause, and then her mom said, “Okay. We support you, Demi. You know we love you and we want you to be happy. If you’re happy with Rafe and Rhaider, then we’re happy for you all.”
“How about we video call?” her dad said.
“I’d like that. I’ll call you right back.”
She ended the call and blew out a breath. “Holy crap.”
“Are you okay?” Rafe asked.
“Yeah. You heard all that, right?”
“Yep. At least they said they accept us,” Rhaider said.
“Yeah. At first I thought they were going to disown me. They were really caught off guard,” she said.
“It’s clear they love you and want you to be happy,” Rafe said. “Like our mom said, she had a hard time accepting it at first and it was just kind of an abstract thought. Like we might find a female to share in the future at some point. She had time to get used to the idea. Your parents had minutes. It’s understandable they would need some time.”
“I’m good so long as they’re not trying to talk me out of being with you.”
“Agreed,” Rhaider said.
Demi video called her parents. Rafe smiled at the couple on the screen. They introduced themselves as Tabitha and Quentin. Demi introduced him and his brother. They shared how they met and their plans for the future, mainly to live with Demi until they could find a larger home in town.
“If you’re looking for teaching gigs, the school is hiring,” Quentin said.
“It is?” Demi asked. “I didn’t know that. How do you know?”
“Principal Minor and I were talking last night at the diner when I went to pick up dinner. He asked if Mom or I were interested in teaching, they’re trying to expand the classes for the junior high and high school to include what I’d call the old-school types of classes like home-ec, shop, art, a
nd music. If you two play instruments, maybe you could teach.”
“Wow, that’s pretty neat,” Demi said.
“But,” Quentin said, “keep in mind that there are people in the pride who might balk at a mated trio teaching in the school.”
“Do you think they wouldn’t let them teach because we’re together?”
“I don’t know,” Quentin said. “It’s a new thing. People might need time to get used to it. And parents might be uncomfortable too.”
“Well, you can ask Principal Minor,” Tabitha said. “He might not have a problem with it, but you won’t know until you ask.”
“We’ll talk about it later,” Demi said. “Maybe set up an appointment to chat with Principal Minor.”
“When you’re ready to move, I’ve got a pickup truck to help,” Quentin said.
Demi smiled, her eyes crinkling at the corners. “Thanks, Dad.”
“You bet.”
“Could you come for dinner?” Tabitha asked.
Demi glanced at them and they both nodded.
“Sure. Would five be okay? They have to be at the bar at seven to get ready for their set at eight.”
“Oh, we’ll do a cookout,” her dad said. “How do you all feel about burgers?”
“Really great,” Rhaider said.
“Thanks for the invitation,” Rafe said.
“You’re very welcome,” Quentin said. “We’ll see you in a few hours.”
They all said goodbye and then Demi put her phone on the coffee table.
“Let’s go home,” she said.
They left the B&B and returned to the split double. When they were inside, she shut and locked the door and then turned to face them.
“I have an idea.”
It was hard to miss the subtle sweetness of her arousal and the glow of her lioness in her eyes. Rafe’s whole body responded, his bear growling curiously.
“Do tell, sweets,” Rhaider said.
“I’m feeling bold,” she said. “I don’t want to wait.”
“You want to mate with us?” Rafe asked.
“I do. If you want to, that is. If you want to wait—”
“Hell no,” both he and Rhaider said.
She grinned. “I know you’re mine. I’m yours. I don’t want to wait.”
“We don’t either,” Rhaider said.