“Probably because most people don’t say things like that to our face,” Nic added.
“Exactly, but we don’t want you or your work negatively impacted by us claiming you.”
“Does that mean you’ve changed your mind?” Sage stopped rubbing his eyes and quickly put his glasses on. “Are you thinking it’s not a good idea to claim me anymore?”
“Gods no,” Luc said quickly while Nic was shaking his head hard. “You’re our third. We will have no other. We just don’t want it to be a negative thing for you professionally.”
Sage sat for a moment, clearly thinking. “I don’t think it’ll be much worse than it already has been,” Sage said. “I’m not tooting my own horn when I say I’m an expert in my field. I’ve worked really hard to get to that position. Like with the giant squid – that will likely be the only time I ever see a creature of that size alive and up close…”
“Don’t count on that,” Nic said with a grin. “We can take you swimming, and if giant squids are your thing… I’m just saying never say never.”
“Having a chance to see one in their natural habitat would be amazing. But for me, in normal cases, he would be a specimen for me to observe and try and learn from. The moment I could see he was sick, my only focus was to put him back where he belongs. Caring for these creatures and advocating for them will always be more important than research or my own natural curiosity.”
“That’s one of the things we like about you,” Nic said. “You care for the creatures you study – you don’t see them as specimens or slices of flesh on a petri dish in a lab. You see the creatures as whole beings. That means a lot to me, for reasons you’ll learn as we get to know each other better.”
“I wouldn’t study so hard if I didn’t care about them,” Sage said. “And no, I don’t have any concerns about being claimed by you two because of the tentacle angle. If you think about it, it could be handy to have someone like me around.” Luc noticed Sage glancing at Nic.
“Don’t think I didn’t notice that rather large growth that you have on one of your tentacles,” Sage said sternly. “While what you and Luc got up to last night was particularly beautiful, and I truly appreciate you sharing that experience with me, I noticed that one of your tentacles is not moving as freely as it should be. It’s not likely to be dangerous - paranormals aren’t prone to issues like cancer. But you’ve clearly had a wound at some point that didn’t heal correctly, and this growth is just your body’s way of overcompensating for it. However, it’s serious because it’s hampering the natural movement of that particular tentacle. I think you’d feel a lot more comfortable if it were removed, don’t you? And yes, that’s something I could do.”
“Oh, no!” Nic covered his face with his free hand and then quickly moved it away, chuckling at Luc. “I told you our Sage would notice that. Didn’t I tell you? I told you he would notice that I had that wart thing. That’s why he wears the glasses. He can see things.”
“Yep, you did say it.” Luc started laughing too, and after a moment, Sage joined in. But Luc could still sense there was some reluctance in their third, and he really wanted to know what was behind it.
“What’s bothering you?” he asked gently. “You have to know that Nic and I want to claim you so badly. But we would never put pressure on you. We would never force you to do something you didn’t want to do.”
Sage’s face seemed to go a delightful shade of pink, and Luc wondered if he was thinking about sex. “After what I saw last night…”He was thinking about sex.Luc forced himself to pay attention.
“I don’t have any issues with being claimed. It’s not the tentacles that are the issue. You two are very sociable men, for starters. You got a celebrity welcome at the facility today.”
Luc scratched his head and looked at Nic, who shrugged. “It doesn’t happen very often, and once people realize how important you are to us, then they’ll want to get to know you, too.”
“I’m not sure how comfortable I’ll be about that.” Sage tilted his head to one side. “I guess it’s something you get used to.”
“Definitely,” Nic said, nodding frantically. “And aside from New Year’s, our penthouse at the Regis is our private space. That’s where we are most of the time.”
“That’s nice…assuming you want me there with you.”
“Absolutely.” Luc grinned. “We want you to live with us. I might have a moving company on standby to help you empty your current address.”
“Of course you do. Okay. All right.” Sage pressed the spot between his eyes with his forefinger and let out a long breath. “I don’t have much, but that’s handy to know. I’m not a fan of packing. But that brings me to another point. You’re rich – both of you – a lot richer than I’ll ever be.” He pointed at Luc. “Don’t let me forget to get the receipt for the helicopter hire from you. I will get that reimbursed for you.”
Luc’s instinct was to say “no need,” but he saw the fire in Sage’s eyes –so arousing– and simply nodded. They could buy something nice for Sage with it.
“We might be rich, but you can’t use our age against us,” Nic said. “You wouldn’t do that, would you?”
“Your age? I don’t know how old you are.”
“Exactly,” Nic said firmly. “We’re decades older than you, and if you think about it logically, then if you lived as long as we have…”
“Which you will, too, once you’re claimed,” Luc interjected quickly in case Sage got the idea he was going to die anytime soon. “Your life threads will be joined to ours once we’re all claimed.”
“Yes, yes, that happens,” Nic agreed. “But if our Sage were as old as us, he would be as rich as us, too. That’s what happens when you’ve lived for so long. That’s why so many paranormals have more money than non-paranormals. They have so much more time to create new businesses and see them grow successfully.”
“All right.” Sage nodded. “However…”
“You’re as rich as we are now anyway,” Luc added, because he could see Sage was trying to partition things out, and that’s not how it worked in a mating. “You’re our third. What’s ours is yours, and all that.”
But instead of being happy, Sage’s shoulders slumped, and he rubbed his hands over his face. Luc quickly grabbed his glasses as they fell off.
