Andy turned to face his Alpha. Kameron’s face wore a horrified expression that mirrored the one Andy knew was on his face. “Can we take them out of the cages?”
“I think so. They weren’t given orders to hurt us, or at least I don’t think they were, so we should be safe.”
“This is... ” Kameron gestured at the computer.
“Yeah, I know.”
“That’s why we found pregnant women.”
“What?” Andy hadn’t know about that.
“Five of them. They were in separated cages not far from here.” Kameron’s face was grim as they walked back to the cages’ room. Several people were already there, waiting to open the cages. Dominic was present, as well as Denver, Jared, Nick and Thomas, a pack member.
Andy moved to Nathan’s cage and slowly opened it with the key he had found in the lab. The kid tried to keep his stoic expression on, but this time he didn’t succeed. He looked just like what he was—a scared five-year-old kid who didn’t know what was happening around him.
“Hi, I’m Andy. I know your name is Nathan, right? We won’t hurt you, I promise.”
Andy wasn’t sure what else he could say to reassure Nathan. Someone tapped on his shoulder and he turned slightly. Finn was handing him... a cookie?
“Take a bite to show him it’s not poisoned, then give it to him.”
Andy nodded. He bit in the sweet—chocolate chip—then held it out to Nathan.
Nathan’s eyes were wide, but his hand slowly rose. He snatched the cookie with shifter speed, then huddled in the farthest corner of his cage. He smelled the cookie before taking a small bite out of it. The look of wonder on his face as he savored the treat made Andy smile, especially when Nathan quickly ate the whole thing.
“It’s good, huh? We can buy you other cookies once we get you out of the cage, what do you think? Maybe try other flavors. You want that?”
Nathan looked at Andy, probably still trying to decide whether or not he could trust him. Maybe a cookie wouldn’t be enough.
Then Nathan slowly nodded and reached for Andy’s hand. “Yes, Sir.”
Andy’s heart skipped a beat. “Want to come with me?”
Nathan nodded again, and oh-so-slowly Andy reached out to him and wrapped his hand around Nathan’s smaller one, sighing in relief when Nathan didn’t balk. Maybe they could save those kids.
* * * *
“Is it always like this?”
Duncan looked away from the TV and turned to Xavier. “What do you mean?”
“The fear that they won’t come back, or that they’ll be hurt.”
“Well, I don’t have a mate, so I couldn’t tell you about that, but I don’t like the fact that Derick went. I’m scared for him, even knowing he can fight and that Nate is with him. With a mate it would be different, because you can feel what they are feeling through the mate bond. That way you know everything is okay.”
Xavier nodded. He was scared for Andy. He could be hurt, or worse, and he wouldn’t know it. Maybe he should have accepted the bond with Andy right away. He still thought it was way too early to feel anything for the man, but the fact was that he did feel something. He wouldn’t be this scared if he didn’t.
Xavier knew Andy was the one. The one he wanted to spend the rest of his life with, even if it was ridiculously early to know it. He wasn’t sure he cared about that anymore, though. What he was sure of was that if this happened again, if Andy had to raid another lab, he wanted the bond between them to be complete. He wouldn’t be able to stand the waiting again.
They had been gone only two hours, but all the possible scenarios had been running through Xavier’s mind since then. A hurt Andy. A dead Andy. That was the worst one. Then it started all over again.
Xavier groaned. He wouldn’t be able to survive it if Andy had to do other raids or whatever. He would die from stress alone.
Just then Duncan’s phone beeped. Xavier’s eyes went to him, relieved when the man smiled. “It’s them? They’re coming back?”
“Yeah. Go on, run outside. They’ll shimmer into the clearing.”
Xavier didn’t have to be asked twice. He jumped from the couch and ran for the door as fast as he could, which admittedly wasn’t very fast, but still. He heard Duncan laugh, but he was already swinging the door open. The first groups of people started appearing just as he stepped outside and he squinted his eyes to see if he could find Andy.
Xavier’s heart slipped a beat when he recognized the tall man walking toward him. He tilted his head to the side, unsure of what he was seeing. Andy was grinning at him, but he was also talking to... a kid?
Yup, that was a kid. They were holding hands, and while the boy was trying to keep a cool expression, Xavier could tell it was a pretense even from that distance. Even from the porch, Xavier could tell the boy was scared and wary.
Xavier wanted nothing more than to run to his mate, but now that he had seen that Andy wasn’t alone... he still wanted to do it anyway—so he did.
Xavier ran down the stairs to where Andy was walking toward him, and mindful of the kid next to his mate, he threw himself into Andy’s arms. He pushed all thoughts of being too heavy away from his mind, because he knew Andy could take it, take him, without problems.
Andy hugged him one-handed and chuckled. “Missed me?”
“I was scared to death you wouldn’t come back,” Xavier said, his face pressed against Andy’s neck.
“I’m fine, sweetheart.”
Xavier took a step back and gasped, his hand flying to Andy’s face. “Fine? What happened to your eye?”
Andy waved his concern away. “It’s nothing, just a shiner, and it’ll be gone in a few hours. Don’t worry about it.”
Xavier wasn’t convinced, but he let it go and turned his attention to the kid, who was now huddled against Andy’s leg, his small arms wrapped around the man’s leg. Xavier crouched next to him and smiled. “Hey there. I’m Xavier.”
The kid’s eyes went from Xavier to Andy, then back. Xavier wasn’t sure what he could say to the boy. Was it okay to say he was Andy’s mate? The boy seemed to trust Andy, so maybe it would be good, but Xavier didn’t know if Andy wanted the kid to know.
Andy crouched next to the two of them, and Xavier shut out the noise of other people shimmering in and talking. “Nathan, remember I told you about my mate?”
Nathan nodded, his eyes still jumping from Andy to Xavier. He was holding on Andy’s T-shirt now, as if he was afraid someone would take him away. Xavier smiled to him, hoping it made him look harmless.
“Well, this is Xavier, my mate. You can trust him just like you trust me, okay?”
Nathan nodded, but he didn’t move. Xavier didn’t know what had happened to the kid, but it was obvious his life hadn’t been easy, and he didn’t want to push. Nathan would come to trust him in his own time.
“So, what happened?”
Andy straightened and looked around the clearing. “Well, we freed Simon and Merle and a whole lot of other shifters.” He looked at Xavier, and Xavier could see the sadness and anger in his eyes. “There were children and pregnant women this time, Xavier. They... you have no idea what they did.” Andy’s face twisted, and Xavier wanted to sooth him. They had a kid to take care of before, though.
“So, what about Nathan?”
Andy smiled. “He kind of attached himself to me. He didn’t want to go with anyone else.”
Xavier looked at the two, and in that moment he understood that he had just gained a child. He could see Andy wanted to keep Nathan, and the way Nathan was clinging to Andy made it clear that was where the kid wanted to be.
Xavier took a moment to analyze his feelings. He had never thought he would have children, even if he had wanted them for a while. Not only was he gay, but he had always thought he would end up alone. The fact that they could have Nathan... he wanted it. He wanted to build a family with Andy.
So he smiled to his mate and to N
athan and said, “Let’s go inside. I’m sure Kameron wouldn’t mind it if I went through his kitchen to see if I can find what I need to make hot chocolate.” The weather was a little bit too hot for hot chocolate, but Xavier was ready to bet it wasn’t something Nathan had had in a while, and he wanted the kid to relax a bit. What would be better than hot chocolate to do that?
Xavier found the chocolate and heated the milk, his eyes never leaving Andy for more than a few seconds. It was as if he was afraid the man would disappear if he stopped looking at him, and he realized he’d been a lot more scared than he thought that his mate would be hurt.
It made him realize Andy had become the most important thing in his life in a few days. How the heck had that happened? It wasn’t love, not yet, but he knew he would be distraught if Andy was to leave him or disappear.
Xavier realized he didn’t care about what others might think. His mother was going to have a fit if he ever told her he’d decided to spend his life with Andy after three days, but it wasn’t important, not really. It had taken Xavier a long time to understand it, but what others thought didn’t matter.
He wanted to mate with Andy.
Xavier knew he would never be able to leave his mate, and it was time to trust his feelings, his heart. It was time to build their future and their family.
He ended up preparing a lot more hot chocolate when Denver ushered a group of six kids into the house. He couldn’t help but notice that Nathan and two of the other kids were in pretty good shape, but the other four were not. He briefly wondered why that was, but it didn’t really matter. They were all kids, and that was the only thing that mattered.
Xavier couldn’t help but notice that the kids in better shape, like Nathan, were ignored by the others. There wasn’t much he could do, though, so he just took care of them, offering drinks and snacks, then warm covers.
“How are they doing?”
Xavier turned to Kameron. “As well as they can expect to, I guess. I think some of them should see a doctor, though.”
“Jared already looked them over, and he’s going to take four of them back to the pride.”
Xavier didn’t need to be told which ones. It was obvious. “What about the other three?”
“I’ll keep them here, although I think Nathan will want to go home with Andy.”
Kameron’s eyes searched Xavier’s face and Xavier knew what the man was looking for. “That’s fine. I’ll be happy to have him there.”
Kameron nodded. “Perfect.”
“What... what happened?”
The Alpha knew what Xavier was talking about, but he just looked at the kids. “Andy will tell you once the two of you get home, I think.”
Xavier noticed that except for them, the house was silent, and he hoped it meant everyone was slowly heading home. He was more tired than he would have thought possible. The stress had gotten to him, and he needed Andy.
He was relieved when Jared stepped in the living room where the kids were watching cartoons. “You’re here to take them home?”
“Yes.”
“What about Nathan and the other two?”
“Nathan, Amy and Luke are fine, so I can wait to look at them for a couple of days.”
It didn’t take long for other people to arrive and gather the four kids they were taking with them. Xavier said goodbye to Denver and the other guys he’d met in Whitedell only a few days ago. God, it seemed like months had passed already!
Everyone was ushered outside and people started to shimmer out until only Kameron, Andy, Xavier and the three kids were left. Andy looped his arm around Xavier’s shoulder and kissed the top of his head before saying, “Let’s go home.”
* * * *
Andy already knew he wanted to keep Nathan, and not only because the kid had literally adopted him. It had taken only a look from those haunted gray eyes, a touch from those small hands, and he was done for.
He hadn’t had the time to talk about it with Xavier, though, and as much as he wanted Nathan, he knew that if Xavier didn’t want him, Andy would let him go. It would be terrible, but if he had to choose between the boy and his mate... it would mean heartbreak either way. He hoped it didn’t come to that.
Andy stopped the car and got out, moving to get Nathan. The boy raised his hands to Andy, and even if Andy knew that Nathan was too old to be carried around, there were special circumstances right now. Andy hoped he would soon feel secure enough to start moving around on his own.
Xavier hurriedly opened the door and flipped on the lights, disappearing into the kitchen while Andy put Nathan on the couch. Xavier was right there, handing Nathan a glass of water and sitting next to him.
Andy was glad to see the two together, so he wandered upstairs and got the guest room ready for Nathan. If the boy stayed with them, they would have to make some changes in the room, make it more suitable for a five-year-old boy. Maybe they could buy him one of those car shaped beds. And toys. Lots of toys. God knew Nathan had never had the opportunity to play like a normal kid. He might not be normal, and they weren’t sure of what exactly was different with him yet, but Andy was going to give him as normal a life as he could have.
“Andy? I think Nathan is ready to go to bed.” Andy turned to Xavier and was surprised to see that Nathan was with him, his small hand in Xavier’s bigger one.
“Uh, sure. The bed is ready.”
“I’m going to give him a quick shower, then. Can you grab one of my T-shirts from the suitcase?”
This had been Xavier’s room for exactly one night, since he’d spent the others in Andy’s bed, but his suitcase was still in the corner. They hadn’t talked about it yet, but Andy hoped Xavier would move into his room, so he took the smallest T-shirt he could find in it and put it on the bed before grabbing the suitcase and moving it to his room.
It didn’t take long for Xavier to get Nathan ready for bed, and soon the boy was clean, dressed in a T-shirt too big for him and fighting the sleep that was taking him over. Andy moved to get to him, but Xavier was there, softly reassuring Nathan that they wouldn’t be far. He pointed toward the door of Andy’s room, and Nathan nodded.
The boy was soon asleep, his hand still in Xavier’s, and Andy’s mate gently disentangled them before tiptoeing to the door and closing it.
“I don’t think he’ll wake up tonight. He’s exhausted.”
Andy took Xavier’s hand and led him toward his room—their room. He closed the door, unsure about how to ask what was on his mind, but Xavier already knew.
“You want him to come and live here.”
Andy nodded, time suspended as he waited for Xavier’s reaction. When nothing came, he had to ask. “What about you? What do you want?”
“I want a family. It’s probably stupid and rushed, and I may even regret this someday, but I’d rather regret having given you a chance than walking away from what can be between us. It won’t be easy, especially since Nathan is here too, but... I’m giving it a try, because I know.”
Andy looked at his mate, wonder and affection bursting through him. “You know?”
“I know.”
They didn’t need more words. Andy felt the exact same thing as Xavier. He knew Xavier was the one, would be the one even without the mating bond growing between them. “That means you want me and Nathan?”
Xavier snorted and pointed at his suitcase. “As if you didn’t already know. You even made sure to move my clothes in here!”
Andy launched himself at Xavier and tackled him on the bed, silencing his yelp with his mouth. Their tongues tangled as Andy tried to get as close as he could to his mate, to draw his savor inside himself so that he would forever remember it.
He devoured Xavier, his hands roaming on the man’s body until they had to separate to breathe. Andy trailed down Xavier’s jaw, his neck, hesitating just there. His wolf whimpered, making his desire clear, but while it seemed like Xavier wanted Andy, really wanted him, it didn’t mean he wan
ted Andy to claim him, so Andy just gave the soft skin an open-mouthed kiss before going back to his lips.
Xavier blushed a bit when Andy kissed him again, but before Andy could ask what was going on, his mate had already latched on his shirt and pulled it up. Andy was more than happy to humor him, so he sat back, straddling Xavier’s hips and pulling his shirt off. The flash of lust and something else, something more, that passed in Xavier’s eyes made him hot like nothing else could.
Andy let Xavier look all he wanted, but he wanted to look at his mate too, so he moved down a tiny bit and started unbuttoning Xavier’s shirt. “You know, this would be so much easier if you wore T-shirts.”
Xavier smiled. “I’m used to shirts, but if you want, I can start using T-shirts at home.”
“I want, I want.” Andy undid the last button and leaned down, licking a path in the middle of Xavier’s chest. He stopped at one nipple, sucking and nibbling on it until Xavier was writhing under him. Andy loved this. He loved how Xavier reacted to him, how he could make him moan with just one touch. He had never been with anyone so responsive, and it thrilled him.
Andy covered nearly every inch of Xavier’s chest, kissing and stroking, enjoying the feeling of Xavier’s hands in his hair. When he’d had enough of the soft skin, he reached for Xavier’s pants and opened them, sliding one hand inside and grabbing the hard cock that had been poking at him for quite a while. Xavier shivered and looked at Andy, so wanton and beautiful that Andy had to use all his self-control to avoid just tearing off Xavier’s pants and sliding in him right now.
“How does it wor-work?” Xavier asked, his breath hitching when Andy pressed against the tip of his cock with his thumb.
“What?”
“The mating—do I have to, like, bite you?”
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