“Oh, good,” Alex said in a half whisper. “Where’s Glenn?”
Turning back to his mates, Glenn saw Sawyer looking up at him waiting to see what he’d do. Making up his mind, he slid into the bed behind Sawyer, placing his arm overhis two mates. “Right behind Sawyer, babe. Go back to sleep.”
Mumbling something in return, Alex sighed, snuggling closer to Sawyer, and fell back asleep.
Glenn knew he’d caused the tension in Sawyer’s body; he needed to apologize now, rather than waiting till morning. Lowering his head until his mouth was next to Sawyer’s ear, Glenn tightened his hold on Sawyer, before beginning to whisper.
“Ever since I can remember, it was only me and my mother. She never mated again so I never got my wish to have siblings, which in the end, probably turned out to be good. Mainly, because as I grew up, I discovered how much I loved being alone. Maybe it was because I’m a tiger…or maybe because it’s just who I am. But throughout my childhood, my only friend…at least in my mind…was my mother, though she always viewed herself as my parent. So, as I grew up, our conversations became less frequent…especially when it came to discussing certain subjects. I can’t imagine a lot of teenage boys that want to talk to their mother about giving head. And without a father in my life, I learned to keep things to myself…which led me to becoming self-sufficient, never relying on others for anything.
“After graduating from high school, I was approached by a recruiter for the High Council Intelligence Agency, asking me to join the team. You can imagine how I felt…it was my fantasy come true. My father had also been an agent and my childhood was spent imagining following in his footsteps, finding the bad guys who killed him and getting justice for him. I didn’t hesitate to join. When I told my mother what I’d done…well, it was the only real fight we ever had.”
Falling silent, the harsh words flung at each other in the heat of that ugly argument filled Glenn’s mind before he firmly pushed them to the past where they belonged. “Pissed at my mother’s lack of support, I packed my shit and left. For a long time, I viewed her reaction as betraying my father. He gave his life in the line of duty…a hero in my mind…so why wouldn’t she want to see the men who killed him brought to justice?”
“Did you do it…get justice for your father?” asked Sawyer.
“Not for a long time. After I left home, the first five years were spent at the academy. It was harder than I thought it’d be…both mentally and physically…and I almost quit a few times, but my determination to be as good an agent as my father kept me there. After I finished, my superior assigned me to a senior agent. For the next few years, I acted as his gofer…meaning I did every menial task from picking up his lunch to cleaning his apartment. Never once did he let me do anything even remotely related to the case he was working on.”
“What a douchebag,” Sawyer whispered.
“Yeah, he was.”
“What did you do?”
“I went around him. He was a sloppy asshole, always leaving confidential files out so I used his lack of following protocol to find out his assignment. Then it was only a matter of time before I located and arrested the target. He was furious, threatened to sink my career…you name it, he was going to do it…after he took credit for the successful completion of the mission.”
“Fucking asshole.”
Quietly chuckling, Glenn whispered, “He was. In the end, the truth came out when I had to deliver an urgent message to him in court. The defendant started screaming at me, threatening to “get” me for arresting him. Luckily it happened before the trial began or, the judge might have dismissed the case. Long story short, I received a commendation and better yet, I was given a promotion to field agent. As you can guess, I was in pig shit heaven…it was a perfect job for me. Long hours alone and no ties to any place or person. Everything other agents hated about the job, I loved.”
“But you said Ghost used to work with you,” whispered Sawyer.
“I met Smokey on the first mission I was sent on. That’s when I learned the value of trusting someone to have your back. After that, I always requested him. Those times we spent together turned into a close friendship that’s survived through some very tough times. When Smokey wasn’t available one time, my handler sent Ghost. That went over like a lead balloon. I pulled every string I could to get Smokey, but without success. Being an asshole, I ignored Ghost during the entire mission until he literally saved my ass.”
Giving Sawyer a gentle kiss behind his ear, Glenn felt a shiver go through his mate’s body. “I’m sorry I made you feel like you didn’t matter to me because you do, Sawyer. You and Alex are first in my life. Inside of me, fireworks go off every time I think of you and Alex…and since the both of you are always in my thoughts…well, you get the picture. I’m forty years old, and until I scented you on Ghost, I was sure I’d never find my mate, especially since there were ample opportunities during my world travels…but nothing turned up.
“When I found out Alex was my mate, also, all I could think of was The Collector getting his hands on him. I couldn’t wait to grab you and Alex and rush both of you back here to Ghost’s safe house. Once you’d arrived, I went into…what Riley calls…my mission mode. My sole focus was figuring out who spilled the beans about Alex to The Collector. But believe me, I hated to leave both of you and, looking back, I shouldn’t have.”
As Glenn paused to catch his breath before going on, Sawyer tried to take in everything he’d heard so far. There was more depth to his mate than he’d first imagined; a sensitive soul reposed under his hard-boiled exterior. He listened raptly as Glenn continued.
“I told you about my background, not to excuse my actions, but to help you understand why I acted the way I did…that I wasn’t pushing you and Alex aside, far from it. I was trying to protect Alex and you the only way I know how…by catching the asshole who wants to hurt my mates. Please give me another chance to prove to you how important you…and Alex…are to me. I promise, from now on, you and Alex will be involved in everything I do.”
Listening to his mate, Sawyer was struck by how different his life growing up had been compared to Alex and Glenn’s. All through his childhood, he was surrounded by love and laughter from his parents and brothers. Even when times were stressful, the foundation he stood on remained solid. And though his parents were gone, love from his brothers was still there. Sawyer saw it time and time again from the meals Quin had stocked in the freezer, to the help Hunter and Mac gave him when he was concerned about protecting Alex. Love he tookfor granted until he found his mates and heard their stories.
Letting his insecurities get the better of him, Sawyer had jumped to conclusions about Glenn’s actions without taking time to analyze the situation the same way he did in any of the sports he tried. Mentally kicking himself, Sawyer knew his anger wasn’t justified which meant he owed his mate an apology too.
“Sawyer?” whispered Alex.
“Yeah, sweetheart?” answered Sawyer.
“Can you and Glenn make up so I can get some sleep, please? He’s sorry and I know you’re sorry…”
Snorting, Sawyer asked, “Were you awake the whole time?”
“Maybe…you talked rather loudly.”
“We were whispering cuz we didn’t want to wake you,” Glenn muttered.
“Hello…remember…I’m a fox. I have excellent hearing,” Alex murmured. “Now both of you, repeat after me…I’m sorry, Sawyer or I’m sorry, Glenn…pick one.”
