Groaning, Zane knew his mate was right but it didn’t mean he was happy about it. It was the first morning no one was hunting David and he was looking forward to alazy day of sex with his mate, spent mostly in bed. “Stay here, babe, I’ll be right back,” Zane said, rolling out of bed and slipping on some pajamas before walking to the door. Yanking it open, he opened his mouth, ready to snarl at the interrupter, but quickly swallowed it when he saw Kieran standing there. “Hi Ki, what’s up?”
“Yeah, hi. You haven’t answered any of Logan’s texts and he was worried. Right now, he’s with Oracle who told him she had to speak with you and David as soon as possible. So, can you guys put the hanky-panky on hold until later so you can have your chat with her?”
Quickly slipping into his sweatpants, David joined Zane at the door. “Hello Kieran, we just woke up. Wasn’t that ride last night on Logan’s dragon fantastic? I just loved it. We were just about to shower before having breakfast, but we could talk to Oracle after that, right love?” David smiled at his mate before giving Zane a quick kiss.
“Sure,” Zane agreed, though reluctantly.
“Perfecto,” Kieran said, adding, “I’ll order breakfast for you, so it’ll be here by the time you’re done showering.”
“Thanks, Kieran,” said David, “that’s very kind of you.”
Inwardly groaning at his mate’s sweet amiable acquiescence, Zane agreed for now, unwilling to argue with Kieran about Logan’s demand for an immediate meeting. Swallowing his frustration, he gave a tight smile and said, “Thanks, Ki. See you in a little while.”
Grinning, Kieran responded, “Righto. Oh, and thanks for doing this for me guys. Logan has been a bear this morning. Huh, a bear. Maybe he should shift into a grizzly bear and I can feed him lots of honey and see if that makes him happy. Or maybe I should order himsalmon this morning. Bears love fish, and Scotland has lots of salmon, so that should be easy to get…and fresh, too. Maybe Brian could help me. I wonder what else bears eat? Oh yes, berries, they love berries. Hmmm, let me see…”
Zane watched as Kieran walked away googling on his phone and murmuring to himself, heading for his and Logan’s suite. Shaking his head and chuckling as he closed the door, he pictured the breakfast his brother was about to get—perfect payback for the cock-block Logan had thrown at him this morning. “C’mon, babe, let’s have some fun in the shower,” Zane said, smirking at David.
~/~/~/~/~
Theo cuddled close to Norman on the sofa, looking at Fionn staring dejectedly out the window. Playing absentmindedly with his mate’s fingers, Theo was trying to figure out what was troubling their friend. Ever since the night Slate had been rescued at the castle, Fionn had acted differently. If he were asked to describe it, the only thing that came to Theo’s mind was sadness—and maybe depression—about what, he didn’t know, but he was determined to help Fionn shake out of it.
“What would you like to do today, Fionn?” he asked.
‘Nothing’ was the answer rising inside him but Fionn held back, knowing Theo wouldn’t accept it. Sighing at the mess his life had become, all he wanted was to stay with his hoard, but he’d promised Ki he wouldn’t; instead he had to be content with short visits. But it wasn’t enough, especially after Penn told him last night about relatives now fighting to gain custody of him.Out of the frying pan into the fire! Where were these relatives whenmy father treated me badly before locking me up in a cave without any food? Where the fuck were they then?
No matter how many times those questions surfaced in his mind, he still had no answers. Penn suggested a meeting with the different relatives in order to help him make a decision but Fionn feared his relatives might try to kidnap him if he did that. Well, his father’s relatives probably would, but he wasn’t sure about his mother’s—but that raised another question in his mind about why they weren’t around when his mother was so sick. Fionn couldn’t help thinking his mother might still be alive if her family had stepped in to help when she fell ill.
So where does this leave me?After tossing and turning all night, Fionn made a quick visit to his hoard, drawing from it the strength he needed to give Penn his answer. But before that happened, he wanted to talk to Ki and see what he thought about it; he was worried about what his relatives might do to his new family. The last thing he wanted was for any harm to come to them.What a fucking mess!
“Fionn? Any ideas?” asked Theo.
Glancing at his friends and wanting to forget his problems for a while, Fionn said, “Ki told me about his friend who gives tours of Loch Ness in search of Nessie.”
“Ohhh, that sounds like fun. Do you think Ki will come with us?” asked Theo, already thinking about the outfit he was going to wear.
“Maybe. I’ll text him and see,” Fionn said. “In the meantime, I’ll go and change.”
~/~/~/~/~
Zane grinned at David as they walked towards Logan and Kieran’s suite. It turned out his brother hadn’t cock-blocked him after all, because he was able to introduce his mate to the pleasures of shower sex. Hoping it would be a short meeting with Oracle, he was already thinking of introducing him to other sexual delights. He pulled David tight against him, loving the tingling of tiny shocks that sparked between them. After giving his mate a light kiss that deepened quickly, he knocked on the door.
“Oh, my gods! I knew you wouldn’t control yourselves,” burbled Kieran. “Come in, breakfast is waiting and if you don’t hurry, Logan will eat yours up and you’ll have to eat what I ordered for him,” he chuckled, stepping aside to let Zane and David enter.
David’s eyes widened. “Did you really order him fish and berries?”
“No, he didn’t,” said Logan, joining them at the door, before looking at Kieran. “Is that what you meant when you told me if I didn’t stop being a grouch this morning, you were going to order something to fit my mood?”
“Well, you were being a bear and I didn’t think on the first morning David was here he’d appreciate you being like that,” Kieran giggled.
Lifting Kieran, who wrapped his legs around his mate’s waist, Logan smacked the ass he loved so well. “Are you trying to get me to punish you?”
Kieran winked at David, before saying, “Maybe,macushla.How bad have I been?”
“Bad enough, I think,” Logan growled before covering his mate’s face with lots of kisses. Then he said, “C’monguys, the food’s just arrived so let’s eat before I take a bite out of my mate.”
Looking at David, Zane was relieved to see him giggling at Logan and Kieran’s make-believe repartee. Reminding himself to thank Ki for talking to David about their kooky behavior, he led his mate into the dining room where the table was laden with a variety of scrumptious breakfast dishes. After sitting down next to each other, Zane leaned over and said, “Babe, if you want something else, let me know and I’ll order it for you.”
David’s eyes sparkled as he looked at the feast before him, mentally comparing it to the meager meals he’d eaten growing up.If I never see another bowl of oatmeal in my life, it would be too soon.Morning after morning, all those years, just tasteless, luke-warm oatmeal. But now, looking at all the possibilities, David’s only answer was, “Thank you, love, this is perfect.”
