Chapter Nine
Kia pulled the covers closer, scooting back to curl into Suero—but his mate wasn’t in bed. Before he could wonder where he’d gone, the scent of sizzling bacon drifted in.
Well, damn. That was an amazing smell to wake up to.
He stretched, smiling as last night replayed in his mind. His body still hummed with the imprint of Suero’s hands and mouth, and the ache low in his back made it clear—he’d been claimed.
With a deeper stretch, Kia sat up and looked around. First time in Suero’s bedroom. It looked lived in—pile of clothes in the corner, dresser cluttered with random things, a couple fake plants doing their best not to look fake.
But it was the scent clinging to everything that got him. Suero’s dark, warm musk wrapped around the room like a blanket. Made him want to crawl right back under the covers and live in it a little longer.
Instead, he pulled on his underwear and slipped into his shirt, leaving it unbuttoned as he padded toward the kitchen.
Halfway there, he paused—smiling when he heard his mate softly humming an unfamiliar tune. It was upbeat, broken by random explosion sounds. Kia grinned. Of course Suero was making those on purpose.
He’d guessed right.
Kia stepped into the doorway and watched as Suero flipped a pancake with a flick of his wrist, adding sound effects as it landed perfectly back in the pan. Then he tossed salt into boiling water like he was brewing some kind of potion, cackling under his breath.
Hair a mess. No shirt. Muscles flexing with every move. Kia could’ve stood there all day.
“Are you always this theatrical when you cook?”
he asked, stepping farther into the room. The floor chilled his bare feet, the scent of bacon teasing his senses.
Suero turned to smile at him—a grin that lit up his eyes, straight white teeth flashing behind sensual lips.
The man had no idea how beautiful he really was.
“Only when I’ve experienced a transcendent moment.”
“Do tell.”
Kia snagged a piece of bacon off the napkin beside the stove, suddenly starving.
“There’s a rule in this kitchen.”
Suero turned, arms crossing over his bare chest. His body was a masterpiece of ink and muscle, and Kia felt heat creep up his neck just remembering how he’d mapped most of it with his hands the night before.
“And what’s the rule?”
He had to drag his eyes away from Suero’s body. His thirst? Very real.
Suero tapped his lips. “A kiss for every stolen piece of food.”
He shrugged, dead serious. “I’m just enforcing the rules, gatito .”
Kia grinned, sliding into his mate’s arms with a bit of swagger. He held the bacon between his teeth.
Suero arched a brow. “Does that mean I have to help you eat the evidence before I can reach your lips?”
“Yep,”
Kia said, nearly dropping the bacon as he spoke.
With a teasing growl, his mate nipped at it—biting off most of Kia’s stolen bacon. He chewed, swallowed, and licked his lips to chase the flavor. “Doesn’t count. Your greedy ass ate most of it.”
Chuckling, he curled an arm around Kia and gave a gentle squeeze. “Good morning, hermoso . How’d you sleep?”
“With my eyes closed.”
Kia couldn’t stop grinning, his cat purring in quiet contentment.
Last night, there’d been a moment—brief but real—when his cheetah had tried to challenge Suero’s wolf. Fear of the dominant animal, of losing himself.
Suero had shut that down in the sexiest way possible.
Now? His cheetah wanted to roll belly-up every time Suero so much as looked at him.
And if he was being honest?
So did Kia.
“ Puedo encontrar algo mejor que hacer con esa boca inteligente .”
Suero nibbled along Kia’s jaw, his goatee scraping just enough to make it dangerous.
“All I got was ‘something’ and ‘mouth’—and I’m down for whatever you said.”
Suero chuckled low, then repeated himself more slowly, syllable by syllable, giving Kia time to echo the words back.
“Now tell me what that means,”
Kia said, grabbing another piece of bacon behind his mate’s back and popping it into his mouth mid-chew.
Suero leaned in, lips brushing Kia’s ear. “I can find something better to do with that smart mouth.”
Kia froze, eyes flicking down to Suero’s lips.
“Yours, not mine,”
Suero added, biting gently at his earlobe. “Dying to feel my cock between those bacon-stealing lips, carino .”
Kia chewed fast and swallowed hard—mostly so he didn’t choke.
His mate had already pulled away, smirking as he turned back to finish breakfast. The man was lethal. Every move, every word. Dangerous.
“You still didn’t tell me what that transcendent moment was,”
Kia said, recovering.
“A gorgeous kitty cat snuck into my bed and made me his,”
Suero replied casually, like last night hadn’t been the best night of Kia’s entire damn life. “Brat showed his claws.”
Kia gasped dramatically. “What did you do?”
A wolfish grin curved Suero’s mouth, his eyes glowing faintly. “Fucked him into submission, elegido .”
He pointed at the table. “Now sit, so I can feed my kitty cat.”
Kia moved automatically.
If his mate kept bossing him around in that voice? He was going to fall in love with his wolf. Hard.
* * * *
Suero needed to borrow a ride. He wasn’t used to walking the streets of Blackthorn, but honestly didn’t mind.
The morning was clear, the kind of early summer air that still held a trace of nighttime cool. Sunlight filtered through the trees lining the street, dappling the pavement in shifting patches of gold. A light breeze stirred the scent of cut grass and something sweet—honeysuckle, maybe—drifting in from a nearby yard. Somewhere, a lawnmower buzzed lazily, blending into birdsong and the soft shuffle of their footsteps.
For the first time in his life, Suero felt completely content. Like he could finally breathe as his elegido walked beside him, looking just as relaxed.
“I thought you said you were raised by your dad?”
Kia reached up, plucking a leaf from a low-hanging branch as they passed.
“I was.”
Suero’s gaze flicked to the fence ahead just as a dog rushed it, barking wildly, teeth bared. It raced back and forth like it was desperate to find a way out.
Kia’s eyes widened, moving to Suero’s other side like he was about to fuse with the tree next to him.
“Have you forgotten what I am?”
Suero had to stop himself from rolling his eyes. The day a domesticated canine scared—
“Shit!”
He yanked his hand back just in time, narrowly avoiding losing fingers to an overexcited jaw.
“See!”
Kia spun around like he was searching for backup. He grabbed a stick, one that would snap under a stern look, and held it like a twigsaber. “Can we just go? She’s got killer written all over her crazy eyes.”
“You did not just try to bite me,”
Suero snarled, letting his wolf rise dangerously to the surface. “Heel.”
Either the Lab didn’t understand the command or— He tilted his head. “Can you hear me, girl?”
She barked a few more times, nerves twitching through her limbs, then dropped to all four paws.
Suero crouched to meet her gaze, letting her get a full whiff of his wolf.
Slowly, she began to settle, inching closer with cautious steps. Suero reached through the fence, and as he did, his claws slid free.
“Suero!”
Kia hissed. “She just tried to eat that hand. Now you’re offering it to her like a late-morning snack while in wolf-whisperer mode.”
Suero let her sniff him, then gently scratched under her muzzle, his claws sliding through soft fur. “She’s just scared, elegido . She’s deaf. Just trying to protect her family.”
Kia inched closer, still wielding his twig like it had magical properties. “How do you know she can’t hear?”
“Chase the cat!”
Suero called out, loud and clear. “Get the kitty cat, pretty girl!”
“Really?”
Kia squeaked, the twig cracking in his grip, knuckles white. “You did not just order an attack dog to eat me!”
Suero chuckled, his claws receding as he scratched behind the Lab’s ear. Her tongue lolled out, eyes rolling back in bliss.
“You think I’d let anyone hurt you, elegido ?”
he said, voice smooth. “I was just proving my point.”
The porch door opened and a middle-aged woman stepped out, pulling the front of her robe tighter around her robust frame.
“Mable’s skittish, young man. She can’t hear and tends to bite when she feels threatened.”
“ Eso es porque te malinterpretan, preciosa,”
Suero said softly . “Todos quieren acariciarte, sin importar tus límites .”
That’s because they misunderstand you, darling. Everyone wants to pet you, no matter your boundaries.
“ Eres la primera persona que se ha dado cuenta de eso .”
You are the first person who has noticed that. She walked down the steps, still speaking Spanish. “I’m Sofia. It’s so nice to meet someone who understands special needs in canines.”
“Suero.”
He rubbed the back of his neck, feeling the heat rise to his cheeks. “And this is my partner, Kia.”
“Pleasure.”
She smiled at Kia.
“He, uh, doesn’t speak fluent Spanish, ma’am,”
he replied in English, fighting the urge to offer pet services.
“It’s very nice to meet you, Kia.”
Her smile was warm and kind. Slowly, Kia lowered his twig… then grinned.
“Nice to meet you. Nice dog.”
She glanced at the stick but said nothing.
Suero gave Mable one last pat on the head. “We should get going. It was, um, a pleasure.”
“ Adiós, Suero. Puedes venir a verla cuando quieras .”
Goodbye, Suero. You can come see her whenever you want. Then, switching back to English: “A pleasure, Kia. Maybe next time leave the stick behind.”
“No promises,”
Kia said with a smile, earning a sideways glance from Sofia.
She took Mable into the house as Suero and Kia continued their walk.
“So, um… about what just happened.”
Kia popped his lips, swishing his twig to make a soft whooshing sound.
“I wouldn’t have let anything happen to you.”
Suero slid his hand into Kia’s, needing that physical link. “Sorry if I went a step too far.”
“That’s nice.”
Kia glanced at him, then looked away. “Thanks for apologizing. But I was kind of talking about how you… I don’t know.”
He twirled his stick again, more distracted than defensive. “You froze in front of Sophia. Does that happen often? Or did her robe embarrass you?”
Another pop of his lips. “Just curious.”
Suero kept walking, chewing the side of his lip, still stewing over how Kia had apparently forgotten the conversation they’d had about his humiliating maternal-figure complex.
“Oh!”
Kia stopped mid-stride, twig dropping to his side. “That’s what you meant when you said you turn into a puppy around moms?”
“Could you just drop it?”
Suero muttered, already loathing that Kia had witnessed the full display earlier. The last thing he needed was his elegido turning it into a therapy session.
Kia stepped in front of him, palm pressed against Suero’s chest, eyes narrowing. “First of all, I already told you, it’s not pathetic.”
“Says the guy who doesn’t humiliate himself in front of middle-aged women,”
he grumbled, still wishing his mate would just let it go.
“Humiliation?”
Kia’s head jerked back, eyes narrowing. “Did you have to sneak out of your house when we left? Does your pack snicker behind your back because your uncle controls every aspect of your life?”
Pain flashed in his eyes, tears threatening to spill. “So please, don’t talk to me about humiliation. I’d gladly trade places with you.”
He threw his stick down and stormed off, leaving Suero standing there feeling like a complete heel for snapping at the one person who actually understood.
Shit.
He broke into a trot, heart thudding with every step as Kia stormed down the street ahead of him. His mate’s shoulders were rigid, fists clenched. Suero barely registered the people on porches or the sound of a lawn mower in the distance. All he could see was his mate walking away, and it gutted him.
“You don’t even know where you’re going,”
he called, trying to keep his voice steady.
“Away from you,”
Kia snapped over his shoulder. “The world doesn’t revolve around you, Suero!”
The words hit harder than they should have.
“But my world revolves around you , Kia.”
Suero’s voice cracked on the truth. His feet slowed as he said it, like his body knew this part needed to land, not chase.
“ Soy un maldito idiota, ?vale? Me importa demasiado cómo me veas, y nunca quiero parecer imperfecto ante tus ojos, hermosa. ”
Kia stopped like he’d hit an invisible wall. He spun around so fast his heel scraped on the pavement, and Suero’s breath caught the moment he saw them. Tears . Sliding quietly down his mate’s cheeks, no dramatics. No anger.
Just pain.
And that shattered him more than anything Kia could’ve yelled.
“I’m not going to tell you to speak English, because that’s insensitive,”
Kia said, voice shaky. “But I am going to ask you to help me understand what you’re saying.”
“I said I was a fucking idiot, okay?”
Suero exhaled hard. “I care too much about how you see me, and I never want to seem imperfect in your eyes, beautiful.”
“That’s…”
Kia swiped at his eyes with the heels of his hands. “Poetic and ridiculous. We’re all flawed, Suero. If you were perfect, I wouldn’t want you.”
“Why not?”
The question came out before he could stop it. Seeing Kia cry twisted something deep in Suero’s gut.
He wanted to close the distance. Wanted to pull Kia into his arms and promise to do better, to be better.
But that look on Kia’s face? Yeah, that was a vibe. And it said loud and clear: Back off.
Kia stared at him, incredulous. “Because your standard would be too high,”
he said. “Who wants to live with that kind of stress? I want messy. Imperfect. Playful. Dominant.”
Then his voice softened. “All those texts and late-night calls we shared. Those dates. That’s the man I fell in love with, Suero. Not someone afraid to show me how incredible he is around a mom.”
Suero stepped forward and hauled him in, arms wrapping around Kia in a crushing hug. “I really am an idiot.”
“But you’re my idiot,”
Kia sniffed. “And if you ever try to feed me to another dog, you’ll be my neutered idiot.”
Suero’s very soul clenched at the threat just as his phone began to ring in his back pocket. He didn’t want to answer it, to interrupt this moment, but it was Matias’s ringtone. Reluctantly, he released Kia, pulling his phone out to answer. “Yeah?”
“Where’s the cat?”
Matias demanded.
“ Mi elegido is with me. Why?”
The words came out tight, clipped. Not just because Matias had interrupted a moment Suero didn’t want to end—but because of the way he’d said it.
The cat.
Like Kia wasn’t his. Like he was some stray, some afterthought, not the center of Suero’s goddamn world.
Irritation flared in his chest, but it was chased quickly by something colder. Dread. Matias didn’t use that tone unless things were bad.
Suero straightened, one arm still resting protectively around Kia’s back as he held the phone to his ear. “What’s going on?”
“Xavier is demanding his and Jared’s return,”
Matias said slowly, his voice a deep rumble. “He wants them at the borderline in one hour or he’s threatening to invade our territory to get them back.”
“How does he even know Kia and Jared are here?”
“I have no idea, but he knows.”
Suero glanced around, scanning the streets. “I’m not handing over my elegido, ”
he ground out.
Over my dead body, he added silently.
His wolf was already rising, claws flexing beneath his skin, scent sharpened by the sudden spike of adrenaline. The idea of anyone, especially Xavier, ripping Kia out of his arms sent a violent jolt through him. It wasn’t just instinct. It was rage. Fear. A possessiveness so deep, it left him barely breathing.
“I didn’t think you would. Tuck him away. Meeting in fifteen.”
Matias hung up.
Suero cursed under his breath.
“What is it?”
Kia twisted his hands, eyes wide with worry.
He wasn’t going to lie. He wasn’t going to sugarcoat it. “Your uncle just declared war.”
Kia gasped, hand flying to his mouth. “I have to call him! He needs to know my cheetah has chosen. You and I are bonded!”
Suero wasn’t sure that would make a difference, but if it bought them even a second of peace, it was worth trying. Meanwhile...
“I need to get you somewhere safe.”
Macey’s house was out—he refused to put her in the crossfire. But Santiago’s? It was right next door. Close enough to reach if things went sideways, quiet enough to disappear into if Kia needed to vanish.
It was the best option.
He hated leaving his elegido behind, hated the idea of turning his back for even a second, but there was no time to argue. Not with Xavier mobilizing and a storm rolling in fast.
Suero hurried him along, jaw tight, silently cursing every mile between them and his damn motorcycle.