Blushing at the praise, Theo leaned over and whispered to Norm, “Did you hear that pooh bear? He likes my sandwich.”
Snaking his arm around his fiancé’s waist, Norm tugged Theo tight to him. “See? Dakota’s right. You’re a natural.”
When it became apparent his brothers were too busy eating to notice him, Mason cleared his throat, wanting to give the bears some warning he was behind them. In a flash, one bear pushed the other behind him, turning to face him front on. Holding up his hands, he said, “Whoa, I’m Mason, one of Jackson’s cousins.”
“Mase, what the fuck are you doing? Tryin’ to piss off our guests?” asked Sawyer. “Norman, Theodore, meet Mason. He’s overly protective. Best to just ignore him. Do you have any more sandwiches for us?”
Relaxing somewhat, Norm held out his hand, “Hey, Mason, I’m Norman and this is my fiancé, Theodore.”
Shaking the proffered hand, Mason replied, “Nice to meet you. Are you members of the Blackwood Pack?”
“Yeah, they are,” Mac said. “Theodore was just explaining how it happened.” Then, using his finger to scrape up some leftover crumbs from his food, he continued, “You should try one of these sandwiches, Mase. They have some secret sauce or something on them—they’re dee-licious.”
“I have more,” Theo said, turning back to the picnic basket.
“Would love one,” Mason replied. “Roast beef is my favorite.” Sliding in next to Mac at the table, he eagerlydug in, moaning out loud as the flavors exploded on his tongue. “Oh, my gods! This is absolutely fantastic!”
Grinning at Norm, Theo puffed out his chest at Mason’s praise. “Pooh bear, theyreallylike my sandwiches!”
“Of course they do, honeybunch.” Norm leaned forward, giving his fiancé a quick kiss.
“You guys are so cute,” Robin said.
“Is Quin coming out to eat?” Mac asked Mason.
“Who’s Quin? Is he another cousin?” asked Norm, trying to figure out who else was in the motorhome.
“Yeah,” Sawyer replied, reaching for another sandwich. “He’s in his bedroom, probably reading one of his romance novels.”
“Really?” asked Theo, looking down the short hallway and spotting a closed door. Lifting the basket, he hurried there with Norm in tow. Giving a quick rap before entering the room, Theo inhaled deeply, finally finding the source of the scent that had tantalized him since he first entered the motorhome. “Hi, I’m Theo. I love romance novels, which one are you reading? Gosh you look fabulous. I brought you a couple of my special roast beef sandwiches before your brothers wolf them all down,” he said, giggling at his pun.
Startled, Quin stared first at Theo…and then at Norm, who remained in the doorway. Then, smiling, he said, “Hi, I’m Quin. That’s so nice of you.” Swinging his feet over the edge of the bed, he slipped on his high heels, rose, and pulled over a small table and chair. “Please, Theo, join me.” Then, Quin sat back down on the bed, watching his visitor claim the chair.
It took a minute for Mason to realize the bear shifter had entered Quin’s room. Jumping up from the table, he cameup behind Norman who was obviously standing guard in the doorway. Glancing over the bear shifter’s shoulder, he saw his brother smiling as he took a sandwich from Theodore. Perplexed by Quin’s unexpected behavior, he asked, “Quin, honey? Are you all right?”
Waving his brother away, Quin replied, “I’m fine, Mase. Go eat your food. Theo’s going to keep me company.”
Then Theo glanced at Norm. “Oh, good, you’re still here, pooh bear. Quin, I’d like you to meet my fiancé, Norm,” Whispering to Quin, he said, “I call him pooh bear.”
In the doorway, Quin saw a very handsome man, staring at Theo, vigilance etched on his face. “Hi Norm,” he said, “would you like to join us?”
Nodding, Norm pulled another chair next to Theo’s and said, “Hi,” as he sat down.
“I was about to tell Theo about the romance I’m reading. Do you like romance novels too?” asked Quin.
“He does,” grinned Theo, “Pooh bear reads them to me at night before we fall asleep.”
“Oh, my,” Quin said, fanning himself, “how romantic…”
Mason stood quietly in the doorway, observing the bonding between his shy brother and the two bear shifters. Then, shaking his head in disbelief, he pulled the door partly closed and returned to his brothers.
~/~/~/~/~
After his brothers and their mates had left his study and only he and Hunter remained, Jackson turned to his cousin. “Thank you for not going into all the details of what our mother saw,” he said.
Getting up and moving over to a chair in front of his cousin’s desk, Hunter asked, “How did you know?”
“Because I know you, Hunt, and you would do anything you could to spare hurting someone.” Jackson paused, thinking about his mother before continuing. “My brothers don’t need to know the details. It would only cause them pain, exactly what they don’t need any more of.”
