Logan offered a hand to Jackson, steering him out of the den and into the study. Once inside, he shut the door asJackson sat down at his desk. Logan leaned against the door, staring at Jackson but said nothing and waited. Jackson returned Logan’s stare and admired his twin’s good looks. Unlike the triplets, Jackson and Logan did not resemble each other except for dark brown hair. Logan was taller and more heavily muscled; his face sported a scruff and his deep-set, gold-green eyes gave him a sexy, brooding look. Just like all the brothers, Logan was an Alpha, but never used the power to challenge Jackson’s decisions or actions.
His brother possessed fierce loyalty to him and would fight to the death if it meant saving Jackson. He knew how much he relied on Logan and that’s what made him regret he’d kept this information from his twin. Jackson lowered his eyes, wondering how to start. He knew why Logan pulled him in here and it had nothing to do with accounting.
Jackson let out a deep sigh, looking up at his brother before saying, “Look, I know you’re hurt Logan, I get that, but I didn’t tell you about my mate because I made a decision I thought was best for the pack. I’m the Alpha and that’s what I have to do, even if it’s at the expense of my own happiness.” He paused for a few seconds to let it sink in. Logan remained quiet as Jackson continued.
“You know how much I worry about keeping all my brothers safe from Silver Point. They’re a daily threat to us and if something happened to one of you on my watch—especially if I had put myself first—it would kill me. You know all this, Logan, so why are you upset by the decision I made to keep it secret? I know you well enough to know you’d have fought me on this, so it just seemed better to keep it under wraps and avoid all that shit.”
Logan walked over and lowered himself into the padded wooden chair in front of Jackson’s desk, trying to sort out why he felt so hurt. He knew his brother was right and would gladly give up his own life to save the pack. Logan had always teased Jackson about his “Good Samaritan” tendencies, but behind all the joking, Logan was damned proud of Jackson’s kind and caring personality.
It was the one thing their father hated about Jackson and tried so hard to eradicate. “An Alpha can’t behave that way as leader of a pack” still echoed in Logan’s head, etched there by his father’s relentless shouting at Jackson. He’d lost count of the times he'd consoled his brother during childhood as Jackson cried his heart out over his inability to please their father.
When Jackson entered his teen years, he spent most of his time hiding from their father to avoid the daily dressing-downs. But their mother saw what was happening and defied her
husband, sending Jackson to spend a summer with her parents. Logan wasn’t allowed to go with his twin and it was a wretched time for him, so much so, he always feared it would happen again.
He took steps to avoid it by going to the same college, sharing a dorm room and as many classes as he could with his twin. When Mystia told them about Jackson’s mate, Logan’s heart sank thinking they’d be parted. Yeah, he was hurt but more because he feared losing his brother again, rather than Jackson’s decision not to tell him about Steel.
Logan cleared his throat and said, “I do understand why you decided not to tell me about meeting your mate; that you were putting the good of the pack first, but maybe I would have agreed with your decision not to claim your mate.”
Jackson, shocked, blinked several times at the statement and then asked, “Why?”
Logan’s cheeks turned pink as he sheepishly looked at Jackson, muttering, “I don’t want you to go. That was my first thought when I heard you had a mate. I’m really sorry. I know it’s selfish and something you don’t deserve because you’ve always put me and the rest of the pack first.”
Jackson took a deep breath before saying, “Logan, no matter what happens we’ll always be brothers and I’ll always have your back. I am the Alpha of this pack and I’m not giving that up regardless of who my mate is. I made that decision today when Mystia and I talked. How Steel will fit into the pack—or even if he’ll fit at all—is yet to be determined. I’m not going anywhere.”
Jackson’s face grew serious. “My pack is in danger and it’s my duty to protect and defend it. Maybe when Steel finds out there’s a kill order out for all of us, he won’t want to be claimed. That’s one of the reasons I wasn’t going to mate with him—because it would put him in danger.” Jackson paused and then added, “Jeez, what a fucking mess!”
“But you have to claim him because until you do, Mystia said it would get more and more painful for you until it was done. Don’t tell me you’re not in pain! I can see it. Your shoulders are tense, your face grimaces every couple of minutes, and you keep rubbing your chest. She said you’d be in pain until you mate so what happens if you don’t mate?” Logan asked.
“According to Mystia, I have a choice, so I presume if either of us decides not to claim the other, my pain will disappear. Look, that doesn’t matter right now but what does matter is your help. Logan, I need your support going forward and our brothers will look at how you reactto whatever happens. I promise you I will not leave you and the pack,” Jackson said emphatically.
“Thanks bro, I appreciate it, and I’ll be there for you,” Logan said, rising from the chair.
Jackson came around the desk and hugged his brother. “I know you will be. Now, let’s go meet my mate.”
~/~/~/~/~
Steel pulled into Jimmy’s, parked, and turning to his parents, said, “I’m going to see if someone knows where Jackson lives.”
His parents nodded and Steel got out. Striding over to a scrawny young man in a cowboy hat pumping gas, he asked where he could find the owner. The man gave him a searching look before saying, “He ain’t here right now.”
“When will he be back?” asked Steel.
“He said he might be gone until tomorrow. I’m in charge. What can I help you with?” the man asked.
Steel could feel his own frustration showing so he paused, and took a deep breath in an effort to get it under control. He was wondering how to ask the man if he knew Jackson but didn’t want it to appear as if he was stalking him. “Do you know a man called Jackson? I dropped him off here the other day but he forgot to give me back some sweatpants I loaned him. I thought I’d stop by at his house and pick them up.”
Suddenly, the man broke into a smile. “Oh, so you’re the one they told me about. Hi, I’m Bobby. Jimmy said if a man fitting your description came in asking for Jackson, I was to give you an envelope his wife left here for you.” Then he wiped his hands off on his already dirty jeans and headed into the building.
Steel followed, hoping he was close to finding out where Jackson lived. But then, a dark thought crossed his mind. What if Jackson had left a “Dear John” letter for him—crap, that was a real possibility since Jackson knew Steel was his mate and had already rejected him once. Hell, Steel thought, there’s no way he was letting Jackson go. He didn’t care what he had to do, he would claim his mate because the alternative wasn’t something he wanted to consider.
As he opened the letter, Steel took a deep breath, trying to ignore his frantically beating heart. When he got to the end, he exhaled, closed his eyes, and thanked the Fates who’d arranged this, for there, in the letter, were directions to Jackson’s home. Letting out a loud whoop, he ran back to the Range Rover, jumped in, gunned it, and tore out of Jimmy’s ignoring his mother’s pleas to slow down.
Chapter 9
Jackson corralled his brothers and led the way to the front porch where they joined Mystia and Jimmy.Why do Steel’s mother want to talk to me about my mating with her son? Huh, if that even happens.He wasn’t going to agree to any mating unless Steel knew the whole story about the Fox River Pack and Silver Point Pack—and the danger Steel faced as his mate.
He picked up the sound of a vehicle driving towards them and his wolf started pacing, eager to see his mate; the thought caused a shiver to run down his spine. He was nervous about how Steel would react once he could scent him. He turned to Mystia, reminding her she hadn’t removed his protection spell.
