On his way to the restroom, Alistaire’s mind wandered back to his conversation with Rosemary. He couldn’t dispute her words, because he had no idea how long he planned on staying in Vale Valley or where he was headed after he got his mind settled. After his mate’s death, he’d simply needed a place to chill out for a bit and work through his loss. He still had a mission to complete—avenging his parents’ and Fox’s deaths was never far from his mind.
The times he’d thought back to his loved one’s death, about his helplessness, he felt both times was like picking at his never healing wound. He was too young with his parents’ death, and with Fox, he’d found him too late. He’d caught sight of Euan during the parade the night Fox had died. For close to a century, he and Euan had been playing a game of cat and mouse, hunting but never catching each other.
Alistaire knew that it was time to put a stop to their sick game. He’d held back from claiming his mate for fear of losing him, but it was all for nothing since he ended up losing the man he loved in the end. Alistaire opened the door to the bathroom but stopped as soon as he noticed that something seemed off. His mouth hung open when his eyes locked onto glistening ivory skin, toned legs and thighs, a pert ass leading up to a slim waist, and a slightly muscled back.
“Are you coming in or out?”
Alistaire’s eyes trailed up, meeting one blue and one green eye and the most angelic face he’d ever seen. “Uh…” Alistaire’s brain stuttered when the man smirked, and his eyes were drawn to the mole on the man’s upper lip. Alistaire’s skin prickled. He could hear and feel his blood surging through his veins. Saliva pooled in his mouth, and his teeth ached to sink into the man’s ivory flesh.
Fuck, what the hell is happening to me?
Alistaire felt a sense of deja vu. It was how he felt when he’d met Fox Morgan for the first time, but what he was feeling was more intense. If he weren’t holding onto the door, his knees would have buckled.
“Hey!”
Alistaire snapped his eyes up, realizing he was standing in the entryway with the door open and a naked man standing in front of him.
“Are you okay?”
“Put some damn clothes on,” Alistaire growled, unable to stop the words from rushing out his mouth.
“You’re the one who walked into my bedroom.”
“Whatever,” Alistaire said, trying to cover his embarrassment.
Before the other man could say another word, Alistaire quickly shut the door and hurried through the family room and out of the house, drawing in a lung full of air. Alistaire could feel steam rolling off his body as he tried to pull himself together. He was confused. Alistaire felt as if he’d been slammed by a Mack truck of emotions. Alistaire grabbed the dog tags he wore as images of Fox floated in his mind. The way he used to smile or the cute way he blushed when Alistaire flirted with him.
Alistaire remembered everything about his mate—he preferred coffee over tea, he loved chocolate-covered coconut macaroons, he wasn’t a morning person, and had the kindest heart known to man.
Too bad, he was snatched away from me.
Alistaire closed his eyes, leaning against the door. He didn’t want to dwell on how his body felt in Fox Hannigan’s presence, chalking it up to seeing the man naked. “He’s not my mate. He’s not my Fox. The only thing they have in common is their name.”
* * *
Fox’s shouldersshook as he tried to hold back his laughter. He’d never seen that dumbfounded expression on Vale’s face before.
“Come on, Vale, in my past life, we’ve seen each other naked in the locker room before. Plus, in this life, you helped me give birth. Why are you suddenly a prude?”
Fox continued to chuckle for a few minutes until a thought hit him square in the face.
“Vale’s here! Why the hell is he here?”
Fox rushed to his closet and got dressed as quickly as possible. He checked on Genesis, who was thankfully still sleeping, then turned on the baby monitor app on his phone before leaving his room, quietly searching for answers to why Vale was in the Hannigan’s home.
Fox walked through the family room and stopped for a second, admiring the pictures on the fireplace mantle. Since arriving at the Hannigans’ house, he hadn’t taken the time to explore and absorb things. He hardly left his suite or gave thought to the other family members who’d been nothing but kind to him.
Fuck, I sound like a selfish bastard.
Fox picked up a silver-framed photo looking at the smiling faces; he could feel their happiness coming off the picture. His eyes fell to the original Fox Hannigan, whose eyes seemed to be boring into him, not in a frightening way but with approval. Fox would have thought he’d lost his mind, but the man’s smile suddenly appeared much brighter.
They are your family now. Thank you for loving them, was whispered in his ear, and a slight chill brushed against his cheek and neck then quickly disappeared.
Fox turned around just in time to see Alistaire Vale standing in the foyer with his back turned to him. Fox set the photograph down and walked over to the entryway leaning against the doorway. His eyes slowly traveled up and down Vale’s body taking in the changes in the man.
Vale’s back was still straight and muscular, yet, Fox noticed he was standing a bit slumped. His waist was still slim, leading down to his ass and muscled thighs encased in black jeans that seemed as if they were made for him, along with the matching black crew neck sweater he was wearing. Vale’s reddish-brown hair was shorter than it had been two years ago, giving him a masculine but boyish appearance.
“Are you going to say something or stand there and stare at me all day?” Vale turned to face him.
