Sunshine (Unlocked mates #11)

Chapter One

Bastian

Stepping out of the guest cabin that he’d been given for his stay, Bastian paused at the porch railing as he peered around the property. He’d only been there for about two weeks and was still trying to get used to the dynamics of this unique family.

Family.

Bastian had learned the first day that the shifters, humans, and other paranormals that lived in the main house, in one of the cabins, or even other realms considered themselves family.

Family.

The word was thrown around often. Bastian had heard it his entire life.

He’d just never experienced what family meant.

At age five, human hunters had come and wiped out Bastian’s entire clowder, leaving him alone and in the hands of the council.

Bastian was one of the children that the paranormal council had scooped up and trained to become agents.

Bas had been a good field agent. He’d more than paid back the council for housing and training him.

It was the council who’d researched his clowder and ancestry, filling in the holes of Bastian’s memory.

It had been a hard decision to leave but Bastian had grown tired of following orders.

Orders that seemed extreme the longer Bastian was around.

And the edge of anger had begun after too many years of saving other family units when he’d never been given the chance to form his own bonds with those outside his team.

Margays were solitary creatures by nature.

Bastian had been in the same dormitory as Leo and Aaron when they’d all been rescued by the council.

They’d learned how to cope with loss, trained to protect, and set out to make a difference in the lives of other paranormal creatures.

They had become the only people that Bas could ever lean on and trust. Even their instructors had only cared about training them to be the soldiers they needed.

Leaving the team had been hard, even though his solitary nature had pushed him to go.

Leo, Aaron, and the rest of the team said they understood, but Bastian had doubts.

How could they when Bastian didn’t understand himself?

Bas had loaded up the saddle bags of his motorcycle and hit the road, promising his team he’d be there if they ever needed him. A vow that he meant to keep.

He’d been riding the country, staying in motels, at campsites, and just seeing what each state had to offer.

That promise came back with just one phone call.

Of course, he’d headed directly to Leo after receiving the call about Leo finding his brother.

At first Bastian hadn’t believed it. How could Leo’s little brother be alive after all the years?

Bastian had been prepared to question everything, making sure that no one was pulling something on Leo.

Not that Leo couldn’t take care of himself.

Leo was possibly more trusting than Bas was when it came to his brother.

It hadn’t taken but a look and scent at Gavin to see that he truly was Leo’s long-lost brother.

Gavin’s family, the unique mix of paranormal, human, demon, and other were what really had Bas’s attention.

It shouldn’t work. Axel was the alpha of the family.

The dragon was a strong leader but there were other alphas, strong, and powerful members that all called each other family. And it worked. Bastian was intrigued.

They’d also welcomed him with open arms.

Bryce, the alpha mate, was one of the most adorable humans that Bastian had ever met.

The other boys in the family also pulled on Bas’s strong protective strings.

It was so easy to find someone who had time to talk, hang out, and connect with.

Bas really liked the family, which was the only explanation of why he was still there.

The door to the cabin beside him opened and Leo stepped out.

Leo lifted a hand toward Bas and Bas nodded back in greeting.

“I keep wondering if I’ll wake up and you’ll be gone,” Leo said as he crossed the yard and made his way up Bas’s porch.

Bastian hummed. The itch that usually started when he was ready to move on hadn’t happened yet. No one was more surprised than him. Bas shrugged.

“Don’t get me wrong. I want you here,” Leo said. He leaned against the rail and crossed his arms over his chest. “We want you here. I hope it’s been made clear there will always be a place her for you.”

“Appreciate that,” Bas replied. He understood the need for family and pack even if Bas didn’t feel it himself.

“Aaron and I are going to look at offices in town,” Leo told him.

Bas blew out a breath. Leo and Aaron had talked to him at length about their plans. Bastian still wasn’t sure that it was the best decision. “So, you guys are really going to do it?”

“We have a strong paranormal group in this town,” Leo said. “And I don’t want to leave Gavin now that I found him.”

“I get that,” Bas responded. “That doesn’t mean that you need to open a paranormal council office here. I thought you were going to retire?”

“To look for my brother.” Leo grinned. “His little troublemaker saved me that headache.”

“Yeah.” Bastian ran his hands roughly over his face. Stryker stealing Leo’s RV had really changed things for them. “Aaron is on board? He’ll sign back on with the council?”

Leo nodded. “You know we want you back too.”

Was he ready to settle down? It had been a couple of years. Bas had traveled everywhere he wanted to see. It wouldn’t hurt to think about Leo’s offer. Even if he never wanted to work under the council’s thumb again. “I’ll think about it.”

“That’s all I can ask.” Leo smacked his shoulder. “I’m going to grab some breakfast. Coming?”

“Nah.” Bas waved Leo off. “I’m headed into town to check things out.”

“You just want one of Dean’s cinnamon rolls,” Leo teased.

His friend wasn’t wrong. “His coffee’s not bad either.” Bas was totally going for a delicious cinnamon roll. Then maybe a nice long nap in the sunny park with the tall trees. There were perks to being in this town.

“I’ll let you know when we have a time set to check out the office, just in case you want to join us,” Leo said as he turned.

Bastian wanted to see whether he was staying or not. The council would send a top-notch security team to set up the office, but Bastian didn’t trust anyone’s work but his own. “I’ll make the time.”

Leo wandered toward the big house.

Bas stomped down the stairs heading toward his bike in the small clearing that had been paved for all the vehicles of the family.

He threw his leg over the seat before running his palm across the shining chrome.

Bastian and Gavin had bonded over bikes, and he felt good connecting with Leo’s brother.

There had been many long nights that the team had been out on a mission where the only thing they’d had to do was share their stories. Bastian felt like he knew Gavin because that was the person that Leo spoke about constantly.

Maybe Bas would take Gavin up on his offer and stop by the shop to look at having some custom work done. If he was going to stay for a little longer, he might as well take advantage of the connections he was making.

He turned the key and his bike rumbled to life.

With the vibration under him, Bastian waited for the urge to throttle up and take off. Still nothing. He wasn’t getting the urge to run quite yet.

One thing he had to admit was it was a beautiful view from the property along the state park to the small town where the businesses of the family were. Tall, healthy trees lined both sides of the road.

Of course, the tree called to his shifter side.

When Logan had learned that Bastian was a feline, he had been so excited he’d started to rip his clothes off to show off his lion.

Apparently, the sweet boy loved shifting, especially with other felines, and there were many cat species in the family.

If Bas shared his ancestry, he was pretty sure that Logan would lose his mind.

Bastian would share that tidbit when the time was right.

Being a margay shifter, Bastian loved to climb trees.

His species hailed from Mexico and Central and South America.

His appearance in shifted form was closest to an ocelot because of the numerous rows of dark brown or black rosettes and longitudinal streaks.

They were often called the tree ocelot, because climbing was that big of a deal for them.

It was a matter of survivor for his species.

Margays remained in trees most of their lives, even being able to turn their ankles up to a hundred and eighty degrees to grasp branches equally well with their fore and hind paws, and were able to jump up to twelve feet horizontally. Although Bas would swear he’d leapt farther than that.

His long tail helped to maintain balance while climbing. Bas spent hours in trees when he was wandering around the country. It was also the perfect spot to people-watch, which was what Bastian planned after he got his morning treats.

His engine rumbled as Bastian let the throttle out.

He sped down the road leading him into town where there was no traffic.

Bas wore no helmet, letting the wind blow his chestnut-brown hair as he began to recognize the scents around him. He knew he was coming up on Main Street and lowered his speed.

Slowing to a stop, Bas sat at the intersection. Behind him and to the right was the state park. If he continued straight, he’d head to the next town where the university was located. The right would take him into town.

Bastian turned right.

There were obvious signs that the town had started to grow rapidly in recent years.

New construction of businesses was on every block.

Shawn’s company was responsible for turning the old, abandoned spaces into new businesses.

The new mayor was working on permits and business licenses along with Shawn’s team. From what Bastian had learned, the family was a big part of how prosperous the town had become.