by AM Halford
“Turn around,” Nexus growled and released Roy.
On trembling legs Roy turned and placed both of his hands on the tiled wall. He bent slightly, presenting his ass to Nexus. His mate growled approvingly, spread his cheeks, and thrust his cock inside him in one smooth motion. The force of his entry had Roy crying out, his hands forming fists as he fought down the sudden bolt of pain.
“Sorry.” Nexus kissed his back. “I’m sorry.”
“I’m fine.” Roy shook his head. “Please, just move.”
Nexus kissed his neck, wrapped his arms around Roy, and started to piston inside of him, fucking him like never before. Maddening, bestial, desperate actions that drove Roy close to insanity. Soon the sting started to fade and Roy began to experience the pleasure he knew always came with being joined with Nexus, even in this mind-whirling melding of their bodies.
When his husband wrapped his strong arms around him and pulled him back against his chest, seating his cock deeper inside of Roy’s ass, he lost it and moaned loudly. The feel of being fully embraced in Nexus’s arms again had him damn near in tears. The pleasure coursing through him pushed him over the edge and he cried out for more. All the while Nexus continued to thrust into him. It was obvious Nexus wasn’t in any hurry. He was dragging out both of their pleasure. Happy to keep driving his cock into Roy over and over.
The feel of Nexus’s lips kissing down his neck to the mating mark had Roy clenching around Nexus’s cock. He hadn’t bitten him since their first time, and to be honest Roy wanted him to do it again. To encourage him, Roy tilted his head, giving Nexus full access to that spot. Nexus growled, licked at the scar, and then sank his teeth in.
Roy screamed as his release ripped from him, his seed splashing the wall and washing away with the cooling water. Nexus’s thrusts were becoming erratic, and soon he buried his dick deep in Roy, released Roy’s neck, and roared into the shower stall as he came.
Suddenly everything felt right, as if nothing could go wrong anymore. Smiling, Roy slumped against Nexus, peace finally taking over his mind. Hopefully the same could be said for Nexus.
* * * *
Roy was sleeping in their bed, where he belonged. When he’d blacked out in the shower Nexus had a minor heart attack, until he saw the cute little grin on his face. Nexus quickly turned the shower off, dried both of them, and then tucked Roy into bed. Now, he lay beside him, watching the steady rise and fall of Roy’s chest, his hand resting over his stomach. The twins were squirming around, but not enough to wake Roy.
“Thank you,” Nexus whispered, kissing Roy’s brow. “I love you so much.”
“You should say that when I’m awake,” Roy mumbled.
“Apparently you are.” Nexus chuckled and kissed him again. “I thought you’d fallen asleep.”
“I woke up when you laid down next to me,” Roy admitted. “I just didn’t want to open my eyes. I like lying next to you.”
“So do I,” Nexus agreed.
Roy cuddled closer, his face burying in Nexus’s chest. “Is it finally over?” he whispered.
Nexus wrapped his arms around his mate, holding him tight as he wondered how to tell him. “Tyrese got away.”
The shiver that ran down Roy’s body was telling enough. He didn’t want to hear that. “He was planning to do something to our babies.”
“José told me.” Nexus kissed Roy’s temple.
“I brought a laptop with documents on it with me,” Roy confessed. “Maybe something on there will tell us what he’s planning.”
“I’ll have someone look at it,” Nexus promised.
“Nexus.” Roy sat up and looked directly into his eyes. “That lab was equipped for a lot more than just our babies. Whatever Tyrese has planned, he doesn’t plan to just stop. We need to warn the other expecting fathers.”
“We will.” Nexus hugged Roy to him. “I promise, we will, minha alma.”
They sat like that for several minutes more before Roy’s stomach grumbled, protesting his lack of food. A gentle laugh left both of them as they got up, dressed, and headed downstairs. Iago, Bram, Abigail, and Nora swarmed Roy instantly, all of them fussing over him. Nora directed Roy to sit down while Abigail rushed to get him something to eat. Iago and Bram stood directly behind him, looking ready to tear anything that came close to Roy apart.
“Regulus,” José called to him, coming out of his office with Stylianos and Danyal. “Here is everything I could grab from the facility Roy was held in.” He held out the laptop Roy had mentioned along with a phone.
Nexus looked back to Roy who just smiled and waved him away. With a nod, he entered his office and closed the doors behind him. Taking the two items, he opened the laptop and turned on the phone. The phone held pictures of the lab, blueprints for the facility, and pictures of some of the people that were working there. Nexus didn’t recognize any of them.
The laptop was filled with documents regarding studies they were conducting. The fact they had access to Roy’s medical records set Nexus on edge. José and Danyal both assured him Dr. O’Hare had nothing to do with it. They’d already confronted him, and it seemed his computers had been tapped without him knowing.
“So, they can target any of the pregnant mates,” Nexus growled.
“I’m afraid so.” José nodded.
“I want a large-scale warning issued. Let everyone know not to let their mates out without protection,” Nexus instructed. “Stylianos, I assume you can spread the word to the other clans.”
“Of course, I will,” Stylianos agreed.
“Roy!” Calisto’s voice filled the house as the Imperatrix arrived. Nothing else was heard, and Nexus assumed that was because Calisto quickly located Roy in the kitchen with the others.
“Any leads on Tyrese?” Nexus asked, looking to Danyal.
“My apologies, Regulus.” Danyal hung his head. “The bastard has managed to slip away without a trace.”
Yeah, Nexus didn’t except to find anything. After all these years he hadn’t suspected once that Tyrese was involved with Maria. Now he found out that not only was Tyrese pulling his sister’s strings and manipulating her pain from losing Lane, but he had another motive buried underneath everything. It didn’t matter though. Tyrese would come out of hiding again. Men like him could never stay hidden for long. He’d either make a move for another pregnant mate, or he’d trip up in some other way. No matter the case, Nexus was going to be ready to catch the snake and end him.
A knock at the door pulled Nexus and the others from their conversation. “Enter,” Nexus called out.
Roy opened the door and smiled at them. “I understand dealing with all of this is important, but maybe it can be put on hold? There are some kids out here wanting to see their dad, and—” Roy didn’t get to finish. Calisto and Stylianos’s boys came crashing in and tackled their father.
Nexus watched the scene with a fondness. His eyes met Roy’s who was also beaming happily. Rising from his chair Nexus made his way over to his mate, and pulled him into his arms. Leaning down he kissed him, breathing in his love and finding peace with Roy beside him.
It would be easy to get lost in his guilt of killing his sister and childhood friend, and he could feel himself wanting to. With Roy next to him it made facing what he’d done and what he needed to do so much simpler. His mate gave him the strength to take the steps forward he’d been resisting for years.
“I love you, minha alma,” Nexus whispered as he broke the kiss and rested his forehead against Roy’s.
“I love you, too.” Roy smiled at him, and everything was right with the world if only for that moment.
Epilogue
Roy was making a batch of cookies when he felt something wet and warm trickle down the back of his legs. At first, he wondered if he’d knocked something off the counter, until the pain started. It was like someone had taken all of his lower back muscles and squeezed them together. Dropping the pan, the cookies scattering as the sheet clattered to the floor, Roy gripped his sto
mach and screamed for Nexus.
Iago and Abigail, who was cleaning the living room, got to him first. “He’s going into labor!” Abigail shouted.
“Roy,” Nexus yelled as he came down the stairs. “Are you okay?”
“No, I’m not!” Roy cursed. “This fucking hurts!”
“I’ve got the bag!” Iago said from the door, grabbing the hospital bag Roy had packed for two weeks now.
“Get the car!” Nexus shouted after him.
“Everyone, stop shouting!” Roy demanded.
Instantly they all toned it down. Nexus swooped Roy up in his arms and carried him out of the house and into the waiting car. Iago and Danyal were in the front seat. Abigail and Nora waved them off as four motorcycles pulled up around them as they headed out for the clinic.
Ever since Tyrese and the kidnapping, Nexus had been huge on added security. He’d even placed security on Dr. O’Hare’s clinic whenever it was open. He used his own enforcers to escort the pregnant mates and their shifter husbands to and from their appointments. He wasn’t taking any chances on a second abduction.
Right now, Roy didn’t care about the security detail. He cared that it felt like someone was trying to rip their way through his intestines. He was one week past his due date, which was odd enough considering he was having twins, and right now he was regretting not scheduling his C-section. This shit fucking hurt!
They arrived at the clinic in record time. Roy wasn’t sure how they weren’t pulled over, but had no time to think about that because another contraction hit, this one worse than the last. Dr. O’Hare was waiting for them, the operation room already prepped and ready to go. He prepped Roy quickly, and made him count to ten before he gave him the epidural along with a spinal anesthesia.
The rest of the surgery was kind of a haze. He recalled having what looked like his intestines taken out of him and placed on a tray, but that couldn’t be right. Next the doctor removed his kids one by one, and sure enough they were fuzzy jaguar cubs. Roy felt a sense of detachment as he watched a nurse start to clean the twins up.
Nexus helped with that part, grinning like a loon the entire time.
Roy was stitched up, and then he and his babies were taken to a maternity room to rest and recuperate. The nurse asked if Roy would like to hold his children, and he said yes instantly. He didn’t care what kind of condition he was in. He wanted to hold his twins.
The nurse tucked the two similar tawny cubs in the same blanket and placed them beside Roy. With great effort, he rolled onto his side and wrapped his arms around the two. He placed a kiss to each of their small heads, and couldn’t help but smile. These two innocent souls had been created by him and his love. He looked up and directed his smile to Nexus. Whatever sense of detachment he had previously was gone the second he held his newborns.
“We’re parents.” He laughed happily, maybe a little worried.
Nexus took up a perch on the bed beside him and bent down. He engulfed all of them in his arms, and Roy had never felt safer. Yes, having the twins outside of him meant it would be easier for him to be separated from them, but that wasn’t going to happen. Not now or any time in the future. Roy knew Nexus would keep them safe.
“Yes, we are,” Nexus whispered, placing a kiss to Roy’s cheek before kissing each of the babies.
Roy closed his eyes, his arms wrapped securely around his twins, and drifted off to sleep. He didn’t care what the future held for them. He was not letting go of his family.
* * * *
Nexus watched Roy sleep with their cubs. Seeing them born had been the most exciting, terrifying, and slightly grossest thing he’d ever witnessed. The gross part came from watching Roy being cut open and his insides taken out to get to the two cubs. Once the twins were out though, Nexus helped clean the two up and couldn’t help but fill with love and protectiveness for the small souls before him.
He wasn’t sure if Roy had seen it, but one cub held a gentle mint glow while the other one’s was a beautiful violet. A nurse had wrapped a small ribbon around their paws, indicating their color and to help them tell the two apart.
Now, with Roy and their cubs sleeping peacefully, Nexus felt nothing but love for his small family. He knew there were far more struggles to come, but in this moment it was perfect. There was nothing for him to worry about. Just looking upon his twins he knew he’d do anything it would take to keep them safe. He’d destroy anyone that tried to take them from him. Nothing could mean as much as the three lying in the bed before him.
A soft knock on the door made Nexus hiss in warning. Danyal opened the door and held his hands out in a show of peace. “I’m just coming in to check on you all.” Nexus motioned for his friend to come in. Danyal nodded and stepped further in, coming to stand at Nexus’s side. He turned his gaze to the twins and Roy and smirked. “They’re adorable. Congratulations.”
“Thank you.” Nexus beamed with pride.
The peace didn’t last. A few hours later Roy woke to two crying cubs demanding to be fed for the first time. The nurse arrived with two bottles, and Nexus and Roy both got a crash course on how to feed their children. Roy took to it faster, but Nexus figured it out eventually. He had the cub with the lavender ribbon.
“She’s a girl,” Nexus said.
Roy looked up from feeding the cub with the mint ribbon. “How can you tell? I thought we wouldn’t know for sure until they shifted for the first time.”
Nexus shrugged. “I just know.”
“Okay, and this one?” Roy asked, indicating the cub in his arms.
“A boy,” Nexus answered firmly.
Roy laughed. “If you’re so sure.”
“I am.” Nexus nodded.
Visitors started arriving after they got the twins fed, bringing with them presents and gushing over Roy and the cubs. Congratulations were given, and a few smacked Nexus on the back, telling him good job. Everyone was careful of Roy and the cubs, being sure not to startle or jostle them. Roy refused to let the cubs be placed in the bassinet brought in for them. Thankfully the bed was big enough so there was plenty of room for the three of them. Plus, the cubs were happier with Roy. They liked it even more when Nexus sat close and could touch them, as well.
“That’s their instincts,” Dr. O’Hare said when he came by to check on all of them. “They know your scents and voices, and they associate those things with comfort and safety. Just like they associate closeness with each other with the same things. Remember to keep them close for the next few months. Don’t make them sleep separately. Shifter twins are much more reliant on each other in the first year, so keep that in mind.”
“Will do,” Nexus and Roy assured him.
“Well, everything is looking good,” the doctor continued. “You should all be ready to go home tomorrow.”
“So soon?” Roy gaped.
“Nice bonus.” Dr. O’Hare winked, “Cupid grants you accelerated healing after giving birth. Your recovery will be much faster than that of human women.”
“That’s right. Nice, I guess,” Roy said, remembering Calisto bringing that up a while ago.
Dr. O’Hare typed a few things into Roy’s charts and then left them alone. Roy lay back against the pillows, and Nexus grinned as he fell back to sleep. Looking about the room, Nexus stripped out of his clothes and shifted. Gently jumping up onto the bed, he curled up around Roy’s feet. These large beds were awesome for allowing him to sleep with his family.
* * * *
Forty-five days later
“Stop that.” Roy smacked at Nexus’s hands as he fiddled with the clasp on the car seat. “Just go get the twins.”
Nexus grumbled, but did as he was told and went to get Esperanza and Hernando from Abigail and Nora on the porch. Just as he’d said, the cub with the lavender aura was in fact a girl, who they’d agreed to name Esperanza Maria. Their boy was Hernando Carlos after both Nexus’s father, Carlos, and Roy’s grandfather, Hernando.
The twins had been in human form for twenty da
ys now, having shifted for the first time a few days earlier than scheduled. When Roy had called and asked Dr. O’Hare about it, he’d assured them it was okay. Like human children didn’t always do everything on schedule, shifters could be a bit early or late in some things. It was normal.
Today they were visiting Roy’s family for the first time since, well, since Nexus got to meet them. Roy had called his mother after the twins were born and confessed to getting married to Nexus spur of the moment in Europe, where they were supposed to be on a yearlong business trip. He also gave her the news that they were coming home early, and he had the biggest surprise ever for her and his grandparents.
Nexus just hoped that this surprise was well met. Especially from Roy’s grandfather who he doubted was going to believe the adopted part of the tale.
Handing the twins over one by one, Nexus watched as Roy strapped them into their car seats, and then closed the door. Their regular security was going to be following them. They’d just be a bit more spread out so as not to alarm Roy’s family.
With everyone in the car, Nexus started the engine and drove off to his in-laws’ house.
* * * *
Of everything that had happened, seeing his mother and grandparents and introducing them to their grandkids was probably the most terrifying thing Roy had ever faced. So much so that when Nexus pulled up to the driveway and parked, he couldn’t seem to bring himself to get out of the car. His mother came out onto the front porch as Nexus got out, but Roy just sat there having a small panic attack.
What if they didn’t believe him when he said they were adopted? What if his mother pressed for more information than what they had prepared? Oh god, could he even lie to his mother about this? What of his grandfather? He already knew what Nexus was. Did that also mean he’d know about the twins?
Panic started bleeding into dread, and Roy could feel his lungs closing up. Everything was going to be exposed.