“Does anyone want seconds?” Rory asked, breaking into their mental conversation.
“I would like some,” Liam said. “I’m still starving.”
Theo ducked his head again, chuckling. “He had to carry me most of the way down the mountain.”
“Hey, Keegan carried the baby,” Loyal teased.
“No big deal.” Liam scoffed at that, but he could tell that his mate was joking. Rory and Liam truly were like family here, which he supposed stood to reason since Rory was pack now too, but he liked how open and willing these wolves were to accept those who were different than they were.
That had become a problem in their own pack toward the end. Anyone who wasn’t born light gray or white had been treated differently. Theo honestly thought the policy had made them a little inbred and hidebound. Maybe more than a little.
Rory made Liam another plate, and everyone murmured in soft conversation to each other, mostly in couples. Rory and Niall rocked the babies, and Theo felt odd not having Gael in his arms, but at the same time, he wanted to sit and hold Liam’s hand just as he was doing now.
He surprised himself with a jaw-cracking yawn maybe half an hour later. All he had done was sleep since he’d gotten here, and eat he supposed, but mostly sleep. How could he still be so tired?
Niall turned to him, those wild-colored eyes staring right into him. “Don’t be so harsh on yourself, Theo. You were running on empty. If you want to go back to sleep, I’m sure that we could be convinced to watch the baby. He’s so dear.”
Theo glanced at Gael who was snoozing away in Loyal’s arms now, perfectly content. “I think maybe I will.”
“Come on, love. I’ll come with you.” Liam stood, reaching out to give his brother a one-armed hug. “You’ll still be here when I get up?”
“We’re going to spend the night, so we’ll be here for a while.”
“Great. Thank you for coming up.”
Theo nodded, smiling at Rory and then inclining his head at Fen. “Yes, thank you so much. It’s good to know you’re here, Fen.”
Fen nodded in return. “I feel the same way. The pack here has accepted me; they’re good people, so try not to worry.”
“I won’t fear them, then.” He took Liam’s hand again after they stood, and led him to the bedroom where they could lie down together. He wanted to feel Liam’s arms around him and to know he was safe, but he also wanted to cement their bond even more. Theo could feel it every time they touched. Every time Liam spoke to him in his head, the threads that pulled them together tightened and twined around them, but it wasn’t suffocating. It was comforting.
I feel the same way, love.Liam undressed him and tucked him under the covers before pulling off his own clothes and crawling in next to him. “Sleep now. I’ll be right here, I promise.”
“I believe you.” He had so many other things he wanted to say to Liam, but they all involved explaining to him that he had to be a wolf. How could they be mates like this otherwise? He decided it was better to wait on that for now. He was so tired, and his belly was full. He was warm, and he was holding his mate, and all he needed to do in all the world was go back to sleep.
He had a feeling he was going to need his energy.
Chapter
Seven
“So, there’s no one up there?” Niall asked, eyebrows rising.
“No.” Liam exchanged a glance with Loyal. They had run up to the dragon compound on the four-wheeler, well as far as they could go, and then on foot. “But the house is totally still right where it always was. So it’s back. We explored, and it’s empty of all the furniture and the hoards and all, but the generator is still functional, and the solar panels are there.”
Liam took the drink Theo handed him, wanting to give his mate a kiss, but a little worried Theo might not want that in front of everyone. “Yeah. The outbuildings are all pristine, too, and you know they’ve still been there all winter…”
Liam thought that someone needed to be up there, to stay there and assure no one… unsavory came to stay.
“All is well, mate?” Theo asked. He’d been worried ever since Rory and Fen had gone back down to their part of the pack, wanting him and Loyal to run up to the dragon home.
“Yeah. It looks okay. But I think Kee and Jameson need to put guards up there, at least.”
Where is your home?
Near the human town. My brothers and I share a huge place with different family members.
Oh.
