Matthew
“Thanks, buddy,” he said, giving him an affectionate rub behind the ear—the way he liked. Then, he gingerly picked up the mail and wiped it down with a paper napkin left over from last night’s pizza.
When they first got together, he thought she might be the answer to the questions he couldn’t help but ask himself.
She reminded him a lot of his first love.
She had dark hair and blue eyes, but that’s where the similarity ended.
Because she wasn’t as charming, or as frustrating, or as endearing as Daniel.
And most of all—she didn’t have a dick. And that was the part he was struggling with.
Well, that and her character morphing more into a shrew with every passing day.
Although his parents felt the need to mention her whenever they could. Thinking about it now, he wasn’t sure it was her per se that they liked—more the concept of her. What she represented: normalcy, simplicity, convention. A Canis shifter. And… straight.
And that was the question. Was he, or wasn’t he? Damned if he knew the answer. Objectively, he could tell when someone was attractive, but if their personality didn’t hit him between the eyes—stop him dead in his tracks—then they were just another good-looking person walking by.
Daniel did that to him from day one.
From the moment he walked into the Chem lab looking for a free seat, Matthew knew he didn’t stand a chance. Daniel’s personality was so bright and bold you could’ve seen it from space. And when he turned those twilight blue eyes on Matthew, he fell completely under his spell.
Now, years later, he was holding a greeting card, his name clearly written in bold print. Not just any hand—Daniel’s.
The Hamilton family was one of the oldest and most influential in the area.
Being well-known was a double-edged sword.
His name and face opened as many doors as it closed.
Privacy was something he prized, and keeping Daniel at arm’s length to appease his parents had been one of the biggest mistakes of his life.
Letting the pack elders pick Claudia over him had been the ‘safe’—and only—choice. It wasn’t just because he was male; it was because he was a bear shifter. It would’ve been social suicide back then to introduce Daniel as his boyfriend. Which is why he did what he did.
The only good that came out of it all was Toby.
Tearing open the envelope, he eased out the card, barely noticing the picture on the front. Silver glitter scattered everywhere in his haste. Then he read—and re-read—the few words until his vision blurred.
Nothing but the standard season’s greeting message, wishing him and his family a prosperous new year.
Each insincere word written in Daniel’s bold script made his gut twist. Daniel had deliberately written that word—family—when he knew Toby’s name. Matthew had made a point of clearly writing it next to his own on the card he’d sent, from just the two of them, sans Claudia.
Not that he expected the alpha to pick up on the subtlety. Once Daniel’s dander was up, no amount of reason could calm the storm brewing inside him.