27. Lohtus
CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN
LOHTUS
T hick batter was the key. Not so thick that it wouldn’t cook all the way through before the outside burned but thick enough that minimal encouragement was needed to keep its shape once poured. I also poured a smaller outline before filling it because it would spread out a bit as I filled it.
I set the ladle down and picked up the rubber spatula, spraying it with a bit of non-stick butter-flavored stuff, then pressed it to the narrower tip before reshaping the two round ends, holding them for just a second before letting it go. Yep, that’s nearly perfect. Best one yet.
Kasen’s footsteps announced his proximity before he came around the corner. He was usually barefoot, so when he was wearing shoes, you could hear him for miles. It was like an extra ten pounds was added to his slight frame and his feet slapped the floor because of it.
He turned into the kitchen with a smile on his gorgeous face. He’d already eaten, so I knew he was just here to say goodbye. After another glance into the pan, I set the spatula down and pulled my beta into my arms.
Betas were, on average, three or more inches shorter than alphas. Kasen was a good six inches shorter than me, being somewhat smaller than the average beta, and I loved how soft and compact he was. The way he fit in my arms. If my body were able to stretch just a little more, I was sure I could wrap around him entirely.
“You ready to go?” I asked.
Kasen nodded.
Ronan was taking him into town to one of the craft classes that he attended almost every week. Having not known Kasen before the island, it was difficult to say if his personality was as it had always been or if he’d been changed based on what he’d gone through. He was fairly comfortable talking about it with us, and he didn’t seem overly bothered so I was inclined to believe that this was just Kasen.
And Kasen was social, so we always encouraged him to go into town and make friends.
We knew that what he’d witnessed bothered him to some extent, even if it was on a more subconscious level than he realized because he didn’t like to go into town alone. I’d gotten the impression that might not have bothered him before he’d witnessed the sale of a human being.
Cupping the back of his head, I tipped his face up so I could kiss him. He hummed into my mouth, his body melting into mine. My sweet, sweet beta.
With another quick kiss, I released him when Ronan appeared in the doorway. “Have fun, love.”
He flashed me a grin. “I will. Come on, sexy bear.”
Ronan scowled at him as he approached, a quiet growl filling the room. I flipped the pancake and glanced their way again as Kasen sauntered by Ronan. “You know growling only turns me on.” He batted his eyelashes on his way out the door.
Ronan leveled me with a deadpan look. “You do know that,” I pointed out. “Protect our baby, Grumpy Bear.”
He huffed. Giving me a curt nod, he stepped outside and quietly shut the door behind him.
I took the pancake out of the pan and set it on the stack of the rest, replacing the metal cover to keep the heat in as I turned the stove off. The only one left in the house was Colby. Ainsley had taken Talya into town earlier this morning to meet Emerald at a café for breakfast, then they were going to walk along the beach. Blakely was down with the horses, making sure that no one was cutting corners on the morning routine.
I didn’t hear Colby come down, but I looked up just as he came around the corner and stopped in the doorway. His hair was ruffled, but that didn’t bother me. He looked fucking hot.
Giving him a grin, I gestured to the breakfast nook. “Morning.”
Colby inhaled, his blue-eyed gaze steady on me. “Good morning,” he answered. A beat passed before he headed for the table.
My eyes were trained on his long, hard body as he crossed the room. Did I catch a hint of his scent? I thought I did.
Turning back to the food as he sat, I removed the metal cover that kept the pancakes warm and dressed them with powdered sugar, a few dollops of whipped cream, and some fresh fruit slices. With plate in hand, I moved around the island to set the stack of heart-shaped pancakes in front of him, moving the pure maple syrup within reach.
Colby looked at them for a minute before turning a small smile toward me. “Thank you.”
Well, now seemed like as good a time as any. Gently pinching his chin with my fingers, I angled his face up and leaned in to press a kiss to his mouth. His lips parted slightly, just enough to let me know I’d surprised him.
I kept it brief and light. “Enjoy your pancakes, alpha,” I murmured as I straightened.
I could feel his eyes tracking me as I returned to the kitchen to clean up the breakfast mess. He watched me for a couple minutes before turning to his meal. The room was quiet enough that the only sounds were those that we made—his utensils against the ceramic plate and me as I rinsed dishes and loaded them into the dishwasher.
By the time I was finished, Colby had cleared his plate. I crossed the room to take his dishes before he could get up and loaded them too.
“Let me help,” Colby said, getting to his feet. He raised a brow when he eyed my spotless counters.
Grinning, I shrugged. “You can put the syrup in the fridge if you like.”
He snorted. “Thanks.”
My gaze followed him as he did. As soon as he had, I took his hand in mine, and together we headed toward the front door. The house had originally been built with a porch that lined just the front of the building. When it was eighty years old or so, that porch had been expanded to wrap around the building and widen out to the deck in the back where our outdoor kitchen was.
There were many seating areas, each facing a different and equally beautiful view, but my favorite was at the front eastern corner. There was an area shaped like a gazebo, and inside was a hanging bed that faced the front of the property.
This was where I led Colby. He looked at me, amused, as I encouraged him to climb on. I followed once he got settled, though I adjusted him so I could bring him against my body as the little spoon. The cozy position was somewhat amusing since he was the same size as me, but to my pleasure, he sank right in with a sigh.
“Weird being on the opposite end of this,” he said.
“Everyone likes to be cuddled from time to time.”
I could hear his smile, though he didn’t answer. Several quiet minutes passed as we lapsed into silence again.
The bed we were lying on rocked gently in the light breeze. It was at an angle so we were facing the long driveway that led away from the house with the five-tier fountain in the middle of the driveway. We were surrounded by trees.
Everything was soothing. The rustle of the leaves in the soft breeze, the trickle of the water in the fountain, birds, the distant sound of horses.
“You don’t have any cars,” Colby stated.
“We don’t need cars.”
“It was a forty-minute drive from the airport.”
I grinned. “Yes, but we don’t generally go on vacations. I might have complained about that, but since we’re already kind of living in paradise, I don’t. We do have modes of transportation, though. Aside from the horses, which we do take into town from time to time, we have the UTVs you’ve seen and others in different sizes.”
“Huh.”
I chuckled. “Generally speaking, only the tradesmen have vehicles. Law enforcement. Rideshare companies.” I shrugged. “There’s a public transit electric train that connects us to distant towns. I guess we don’t have a lot of need for vehicles.”
“Weird. It’s remarkable how much quieter the world is without vehicles.”
I nodded. “It took me a long time to get used to it. I’d always lived in cities, so there was never silence. When I first got here, the silence freaked me out.”
“You questioned every little sound, didn’t you?”
I laughed. “Yep. Sometimes I still do. It’s weird being this far from so much noise.”
Colby nodded. I tried to press him closer, but it wasn’t exactly possible since I already had him pressed flush to me. So I hiked my leg over his hip, making him chuckle. His hand came over my arm where I had him wrapped tightly.
“So… Can we talk about work?” Colby asked.
I grinned because I had an idea where this was going. “Sure.”
“What can we do for work? I really can’t get a job in town?”
“No. Nothing that leads to a paper trail or your fingerprints and face being tracked within systems.”
Colby sighed. “I hate this.”
Chuckling, I said, “I know it feels like we’re freeloading off taxpayers’ dollars, and while I might have agreed initially, that’s not actually the case. This farm makes a lot of money, and all of it goes to the government. We oversee the farm and pick up the odd jobs when there’s a lack of staff or someone is sick or whatever. We don’t earn a paycheck for anything we do, but in return for our work, we live here with all our needs and necessities provided. So I know it feels like we’re freeloading, but we’re actually pulling our weight.”
“I appreciate that explanation. I suppose I feel a little better about it, but it still feels ick.”
I laughed. “I know. You can have self-employment jobs. They encourage things that we can sell in person or somewhat anonymously online.”
“Doesn’t that require bank accounts for deposits?”
“It does. We have accounts, though they’re mostly obscure and hidden by the government. But when you sell bracelets and shit online, no one looks at you twice, so we’re encouraged to make any money we want anonymously. They’ll take care of the identification verification if needed.”
“It’s like all the years I spent in college are now a waste of time and money.”
“Mm. Ainsley and Blakely feel that way too. Blake was bitter about it for a while.”
“It’s not like I loved my job, but I was getting somewhere. I was finally getting to the point where we could live more comfortably. Even with just my income.”
I kissed the back of his head. “You can live comfortably now. We’ll take care of you.”
“Hopefully it doesn’t always feel like we’re piggybacking off the rest of the world.”
“It gets easier, especially when you work with the horses or in the gardens and you know you’re putting in time to earn your place here.”
“Well… I suppose I should do that.”
“There’s no hurry, Colby. You’ve only been here a short time. You’re allowed to recuperate without feeling the pressure of needing to go back to work. We’ll take care of you until you’re truly ready—not ready because you feel you should be.”
He sighed. “Thanks, Lohtus.”
I nodded.
“I’m not sad about leaving the job. It was just something that I knew I could make money at, and since I already had my omega, I knew I needed something to support us both.”
“What did you do?”
“Finances,” he said, amused. “But I was finally getting somewhere. Irritating that I worked so hard and it’s all moot now.”
“Yep, that sucks.”
“What was your trade?”
I grinned, hiding my face in his hair. “I was a content creator.”
Colby stilled for a minute before he twisted in my arms, his eyes wide. “What?”
Laughing, I nipped at his jaw. “Yep. I spent my days partying, fucking, and posting thirst traps online to gain subscribers. The most irritating thing is that I was just beginning to make some real money.”
Colby stared at me. “Seriously?”
“Yes, seriously.”
He stared at me for a long time before shaking his head. A smile climbed his lips. “I can’t even imagine you as a creator.”
“Should I be offended?”
Colby laughed. He leaned in and gave me a quick kiss, though I wasn’t sure he realized he’d done so. I grinned. “No. I’m just saying you seem so… mild mannered. Kind of reserved.”
“Mmm,” I hummed. “I had a knack for the camera, and I enjoyed the freedom it offered. I didn’t have to report to anyone. Success was all on my shoulders, and I didn’t need someone to tell me I was doing a good job. I didn’t have to wait for someone to recognize something I was doing for a raise. I was in complete control.”
“Do you miss it?”
“When I got here, I’d have told you yes. I was furious that I was tied to this one spot, having done nothing wrong. I was livid that, because the police couldn’t get these stupid criminals under control, I was the one being punished for it. But… Blakely was here. Ronan was here. Ronan’s anger calmed me because I felt justified in my own, and Blakely was a connection I’d never found before. Instantaneous. I won’t say I was happy to give up my life, but I sure as fuck wouldn’t trade this one for anything.”
Colby was quiet for a while, and I was surprised again when he rolled in my arms and pressed his face into my neck. I wrapped around him, hugging him tightly to me. He didn’t speak. I wasn’t sure what he was thinking or if he needed something else from me, so I began purring, gently moving my fingers through his hair, massaging his scalp.
There we remained for a long time. Hours might have passed. While I wasn’t sure what Colby needed, I was happy that he’d felt comfortable enough to take it from me. Even when the rest of our pack started trickling in, including Talya, he remained right here, assuring everyone he was fine.
I hugged him a little tighter, enjoying the way his arms held me just as firmly. He was always meant to be ours. These two were the last remaining pieces to complete our pack.