Draco groaned. “She’s going to be so annoyed she missed your clan leader. I’m never going to hear the end of it, even though I had nothing to do with it.”
Andvari couldn’t help but grin. He wrapped his arm around Draco’s shoulder and let his mate pout for a solid minute. He had no clue what to expect having Draco’s parents for dinner, but he had a feeling it was going to be a night to remember.
Draco
Draco wasn’t a worrier by nature. Except, of course, where his mates were concerned. He glanced around the yard once more, looking for anything out of place. Then he turned his attention back to Sawyer. His mate still sat with Augustus and the two chatted like old friends. Never mind that Sawyer’s hand shook when he drank his ever-present concoction. This one smelled worse than normal, and probably had something to do with that weird pouch of herbs Sawyer had carried into the house earlier.
It had been a gift from Gamayun. The name tickled at Draco’s memory, but he couldn’t quite place it. It wasn’t the time to worry about it now, but he’d make sure to figure out later where he’d heard it before. Right now, he needed to check again that everything was in its place before his mother’s arrival. Not that he was worried. He wasn’t. Not at all.
“Eduard, are these pillows fluffy enough? And they’re a little crooked, right? Are they supposed to be?”
His mate had just emerged from the back of the house and had started toward the table where his father and Sawyer sat. He detoured to Draco’s side and wrapped an arm around his waist. “I think they look good. Should I fluff them?”
Draco scowled and leaned his nose into Eduard’s hair. He breathed him in, trying to relax. “I’m not worried,” he said.
“I know you’re not.”
They were both, apparently, liars.
“It’s just… she likes things just so, and she’s always finding something to criticize and I…”
“Then how about we intentionally mess up the pillows so she can focus on them and not something important. Maybe she just wants to seem like she’s helping make your life better.”
Draco glanced at Sawyer before turning back to Eduard. “I can’t handle her saying anything about my mates. Mother or not, that’s the line.”
“And she knows that, love. She does, because she’s the same. So let her fuss over the throw pillows and maybe complain about the landscaping. I’ll repaint the house if she wants me to.”
Draco grinned and pulled Eduard into his arms.
“Draco?” Henry appeared as well, looking delicious in white shorts that showed off his long, tan legs and a blue shirt that brought out his eyes. Draco could give a crap about clothes, but Eduard had been teaching him the aesthetics of it. And there were definite perks, especially in the amount of skin Henry currently had on display.
“You’re beautiful,” Draco said.
Henry flushed and scooted over to them, wiggling his way into the middle of their embrace and looking up at Draco with his beautiful blue eyes. “You okay?”
“Yeah. Just a little nervous about my parents coming.”
“Do you really have three dads?”
“Yep.”
“Man, I thought I had it bad with my dads and the pack. But four parents? How did you ever get away with anything?”
“My sister and I teamed up with my cousins. It was the only way.”
“I hope we get to meet them one day. I like Asher, and I bet I’d like the rest of them, too.”
“I’m sure you will.”
“I’m going to go mess up the pillows,” Eduard said. “You said they’d be here soon?”
“Any min—” Draco paused and looked up at the sky. “They’re here.”
Eduard kissed his cheek before hurrying away. Henry stayed with him, holding tight to his hand. He had such good mates. His mother would love them or she would face his wrath. That was all there was to it.
“Lower the wards?” Henry asked quietly.
“Yes, please. Let her make her entrance. As funny as it would be to see her hit the ward, I’d never hear the end of it.”
