Chapter Six #3
“Like a spark?” Teagan asked, working his fingers from Hayden’s grip.
“No.” Liam shook his head, the sides of his mouth tugging upward.
He never thought to experience it in his lifetime, and was profoundly relieved he had, that he’d finally found his mates after two hundred and sixty years of searching “It’s a detonation.
It grabs you by the soul and drags you toward your mate, or mates, with no brakes and zero chill. ”
Hayden rubbed his sternum. “I thought…” He shrugged.
“A small part of me was questioning my love for Teagan, because I was moving way too fast when it came to you. I was acting all gung-ho about it, but I was also frightened by my fierce attraction to you. I knew it wasn’t normal, but I didn’t pump the brakes to really question it. Not like I should’ve.”
“Oh, baby,” Liam said softly, sitting up.
“Your love for Teagan isn’t going to diminish.
You two are mates. You just didn’t know it until you found your missing piece and I lit the fuse.
” He gestured between them. “Why do you think, after twenty years, you two are still fiercely devoted to each other?”
“Because I’m hot,” Teagan teased with a smile.
“True, but I’m amazeballs in bed,” Hayden huffed, but his pink flush told Liam his brag was a deflection of his uncertainty. “I’ve had you hooked on this dick since the first time we had sex.”
“You gonna get me hooked too?” Liam winked at Hayden. The guy had the prettiest blush he’d ever seen, and Liam wanted to know how far it spread across his mate’s naked body.
Hayden’s brows shot up before he glanced at his feet. Making the guy uncomfortable hadn’t been Liam’s intention.
“But first, I need one of you to tell me what happened to Teagan,” He quickly changed topics to spare Hayden’s embarrassment. “My gut is screaming that this break-in ties into it.”
Especially since they were new in town. They hadn’t been in Crimson Hollow long enough to make enemies with anyone. Then again, it could’ve been a simple breaking and entering, but so far, Liam’s instincts hadn’t steered him wrong.
Teagan gasped, eyes wide, his trembling hand flying to cover his mouth. “Edwin and Ramos.”
Hayden’s mouth dropped open slightly. “When were they due to be released from prison?”
“This month. With the move, starting new jobs, and then meeting Liam…” Teagan shook his head. “How could I let something so important slip my mind and lose track of the active threat?”
“Prison?” Liam’s hackles once again rose. This was worse than he’d thought. Incarceration usually meant a violent crime. His stomach knotted, forcing himself not to imagine the worst. “Who are Edwin and Ramos, and why were they locked up?”
When Teagan’s eyes prickled with tears, Hayden spoke up.
“Last summer, right when we decided to cross the line from best friends to lovers, two guys I’d befriended in our apartment building jumped Teagan for being gay and put him in the hospital.
” Hayden’s throat bobbed as he strangled the hem of his shirt.
“I convinced Teagan to press charges, to go through the trauma of a trial, to relive the attack, to trust there would be justice, and all they got was six months.”
Six months? White-hot rage raced through Liam’s veins.
What kind of bullshit was that? His smaller mate had been hospitalized, and the perpetrators were basically given a slap on their wrists?
That’s why the preternatural lived by their own code.
Human laws often failed those it was supposed to protect.
Like Teagan.
Pack justice didn’t give a shit about two evil bastards gaming the system and getting off light. If Edwin and Ramos came anywhere near Hayden and Teagan, they wouldn’t live long enough to regret their mistake.
“I think I was supposed to be their target,” Hayden quietly admitted.
Teagan stared wide-eyed at him. “You never told me that.”
Wiping at his eyes, Hayden licked his lips. “I’d mentioned to Edwin over the phone that I was heading out to the store.”
Liam scooted closer, rubbing his hand along Hayden’s legs as Teagan slid his arms around their mate’s waist.
“Take your time,” Liam said.
Hayden closed his eyes, breathing in deeply. “After I hung up with Edwin, my favorite show came on, so I asked Teagan to make the run for me instead.” Tears slowly dripped down his cheeks. “He nearly died over some fucking snacks I was too lazy to get myself.”
“Oh my god.” Teagan hugged him tighter. “You’ve been carrying around that misguided guilt since the night it happened? Why didn’t you tell me that’s how you felt?”
“You wanted me to remind you of the most traumatic moment of your life and how I failed to keep you safe?” Hayden looked horrified. “It was my fault you were attacked, so it was my burden to bear alone. Not yours. Mine, Teag.”
Liam was downright baffled. How could this beautiful man blame himself when it was those bigoted assholes who’d made the choice to commit violence?
The only ones who should carry the blame were Edwin and Ramos.
“There was no way you could’ve known their intentions, Hayden.
You chose to believe there’s good in everyone.
There’s nothing wrong with the way you see the world. ”
He didn’t want either of them to feel as if they had to hide who they truly were.
Hayden was a free spirit, and Liam would nurture that side of him in any way he could.
Teagan was a closeted, adorable goofball.
Liam refused to let him crawl back into the box his smaller mate had been forced to create to keep them safe.
That was Liam’s job now. To protect his mates with extreme prejudice.
“It is when Teagan told me he had a bad feeling about them!” Hayden tried to bolt off the couch, but for such a small guy, Teagan had a fierce grip on him. Liam was impressed.
Now, if only I can get him to hold me down like that. Hell, I’ll even let him manhandle me.
Liam needed to focus and keep his mind on the matter at hand. But in his defense, he’d just found his mates, and until he claimed them, his brain was happily rolling around in the filthiest gutter.
“You’re not allowed to run away from my fabulous hugs!
” Teagan’s tone dared their mate to argue.
“And Liam’s right. Even if you’d heeded my warning, those bastards had it out for us.
They would’ve found a way to hurt us, no matter what precautions we took.
You got that, Hayden Douglas Coleman? I won’t let you sit here and wallow in guilt that rests solely on their shoulders. ”
“Shit,” Liam murmured, staring incredulously at Hayden. “He invoked your full name, Hay.” His whistle came out low and deliberate. “I wouldn’t want to be you right now. No, sir.”
Maybe Liam was hamming it up a little, but it gutted him to see one of his mate’s crying. He would put on a full-blown Broadway performance if that’s what it took to make his dark-haired angel smile.
Swiping at his tears, the sides of Hayden’s mouth twitched. “Why? What’s he going to do to me?”
Leaning in, Liam kept his voice low, like he was sharing state secrets, but took a second to inhale their different, unique mate scents.
You just love torturing yourself, don’t you?
“Bend you over his knee, slide your pants down to reveal your plump, naked ass, and spank you until you let go of the guilt that isn’t yours to bear.
” Liam pressed his lips together and shook his head, so turned on his cock hurt but also fighting a smile.
“Teagan looks like he’d gladly spank your bottom raw. ”
They sucked in a sharp breath like synchronized vacuums, their eyebrows riding the same stunned wave toward their hairlines.
“I’ve never been spanked before,” Teagan said in a hushed tone, his pink tongue darting out to moisten his lips. “Would I enjoy it?”
Hayden glanced at Teagan as if the smaller man just swiped the last cookie. “I’m the one who’s supposed to be punished, dork.” Then a slow, wicked smile bloomed. “But hey, be my guest if you want to take my place. I’m sure Liam wouldn’t mind using those big hands to make you cry uncle.”
Teagan’s gaze shot to Liam, his breath shallow, a silent question burning in his eyes. One that said he trusted Liam to take charge just as long the experience was pleasure instead of pain.
What the fuck had Liam stumbled into? Did…did Teagan really want to get spanked, or was this nothing more than a hallucination brought on by a barbeque food coma? This was too damn vivid. Just to be absolutely certain…
“I’m awake, right?” he asked Hayden without breaking eye contact with Teagan.
“I think you broke him, Teag.” Hayden grinned.
The bratty blond smirked. “He seems to have lost his ability to blink.”
Liam wasn’t sure if he should be pissed or in awe of them. “You guys are just fucking with me?”
Then again, after what Teagan had endured, getting spanked—no matter how pleasurable Liam would make it—was more than likely on his mate’s “not a chance in hell” list.
“I wasn’t messing with you.” Teagan shook his head, strands of silky hair falling over his forehead. “I still want to try it. I’m…curious.”
Where was his sweet, shy mate? Just an hour ago, Teagan was uncertain about Liam staying the night, anxious even. Now, there was a gleam in his eye that had Liam lightweight nervous.
Hayden’s soft lips brushed the shell of Liam’s ear.
“You made him feel safe when you revealed you’re more than capable of protecting him.
” He didn’t sound jealous or resentful. In fact, his dark-haired angel sounded aroused.
“Good luck putting his kink back in the bottle, honey.” He nipped Liam’s earlobe then licked away the sting.
Holy. Shit. Liam’s cock became ramrod hard at the blatant interest in Teagan’s hazel eyes and Hayden seductive tone. As if he was driving home his point, Teagan squirmed slightly, like he was already imagining sitting on his red, stinging ass.
A low, guttural growl rumbled through Liam’s chest.
These two were definitely going to keep him on his toes.
Or flat on his back. Liam didn’t give a shit which, just as long as all three of them were naked.