Good thing we didn't have to be at work the next day. We slept late after waking early and fooling around again. By the time we got up, breakfast time was long gone and done. We’d missed it.
We all took a long, leisurely shower together in Freid’s gigantic stall, doing a bit more groping, then dressed in our discarded clothes.
“How about I take us all out to lunch?” Freid asked.
Penn and I nodded enthusiastically. My stomach had already growled out loud several times. Fruit was not going to hold me after all our nighttime activities.
We ended up on the patio of a posh restaurant at the harbor. It was a clear day. Warm. Sailboats floated by in the nice breeze. Everything seemed to sparkle. The dark water. The blue sky. And, best of all, the eyes of my mates, glimmery, bright, and filled with love every time they looked at me.
I couldn’t wait for night again, sleeping in bed with my true loves, sharing more of our secrets, touching, loving, dreaming together in our brand-new, three-way bond.
Chapter Fourteen
Penn
I had always heard that mating changed everything, but I’d taken it very literally. You mated, which meant you lived together. You did everything together. You had families together. The togetherness was the change in my mind.
I hadn’t been surrounded by the best examples of positive mating growing up. My omega father never mated my alpha father who up and left him long before I was born. My foster family? It was all filled with abuse, both between mates and toward children. And, on the pack level, abuse ran rampant. So, to me, that literal meaning was all I had to go by.
Until we mated, and I came to understand what that saying actually meant. That act of marking each other had bonded us together and filled me with a peace I hadn’t experienced before. I still wasn’t rushing to the finish line, though. Getting over my past traumas wasn’t as easy as that.
I didn’t feel alone anymore. I was so loved, so cherished. And, despite there being three of us, I never felt like the odd man out. Sometimes, it was just Ty and Freid together, others, it was just Freid and I, and yet other times, it was Ty and I. Many times, it was all three of us. But at no point did I feel like I was being excluded or excluding anyone else.
My life was really good for the first time.
We were together every night, most of the time at Freid’s place, but not always. Sometimes at mine, others at Ty’s. We’d eat together, one of us cooking or ordering takeout, and then we’d enjoy each other’s company, sleeping in each other’s arms and waking to begin a new day.
I couldn’t be any happier than I was with them. And still, something was holding me back, and I hated myself for itbecause I wanted to be able to give 1,000 percent like they were willing to give me. But something was stopping me.
Today was story time, and it was also a theme week, which meant all my books needed to feature characters who were green. When I started looking for what to read, I thought that was going to be a difficult task, finding enough books. How wrong I was. The challenge was in selecting which one of the bazillion we had.
It wasn’t an overly crowded day at the library. Some of our regulars were there, including the two cubs and their foster family, who had become regulars since that first visit. They were happier now, much happier than the day I met them.
They’d come in with smiles. They played with their foster siblings before we settled down to read our story, and they gave their foster parent random hugs. Their life was nothing like the one I had, and I couldn’t be happier about that. I wouldn’t wish my childhood on anyone.
I didn’t know their story, and I never would. It wasn’t my business, but seeing foster care done in such a healthy way made me happy. And no, I couldn’t know what went on behind closed doors, but I sure knew what to look for because I grew up knowing what to hide.
“I left supplies to make big green monsters over on the art table.” The kids clapped and ran over.
The children’s librarian would be organized and give them step-by-step instructions. “Okay, let’s all stand up. Let’s tiptoe.” All the teachery things. When I had story time, it was a little chaotic, but in a wonderful way. At least I tried to tell myself it was a wonderful way.
They all ran over, except for the foster parent of the bear cubs, who headed in my direction instead. “I just want you to know how much this story hour means to these guys.” She was holding the infant, who was sound asleep. “They didn’t reallyspeak much for a long time, and something about that first interaction with you seemed to help a lot.”
I wasn’t sure what I might have said that made a difference, but I was happy I did. “We’re glad you’re all here too.”
One of the kids called her over, and I said I’d see them next week then went back to the circulation desk where I was working the rest of my shift. On the way, my phone buzzed. It was my alphas from our group chat, suggesting we head to Animals for dinner and drinks.
Works for me,I typed back. It was my night to cook, and getting delicious food in a place where I didn’t have to do the dishes afterward worked for me.
I got out a little earlier than I had planned and drove straight to Animals, figuring I might be able to get us a decent booth. And I did.
As I waited for them to come, my dingo got nervous and started pacing. It was rough when he was like that. My control wasn’t as controlled as it should be, and I never knew when he would bust lose.
It wasn’t until I scented the witch hazel undertone that brought back all the bad memories of growing up on the packlands that I knew what had him such a nervous wreck. Someone from the pack my foster family was in was here.
It took me three seconds to scan the room and see who it was, and my blood ran cold. It wasn’t just someone. It was the pack alpha and his betas—the ones who made sure I never had a chance at happiness. They were the ones who should have stopped my foster family, but instead encouraged their abuse time and time again.
I needed to get out of here, but I didn’t see a way without them noticing me. Why couldn’t I shrink and hide behind the salt shaker? That would be so much better than dealing with what was to come.
