Chapter Six #3
Taylor shook it, relieved when Anthony didn’t squeeze too hard to show him who was boss.
He didn’t know what to think of Ben’s parents yet.
He wanted them to like him, but Ben was the most important person here.
In the end, what his parents thought of Taylor didn’t matter.
Taylor was Ben’s mate, and that was what mattered.
It was important to both of them.
“I’m sorry to interrupt again,” Jacob said from the still-open door.
Taylor turned to him and glared. Jacob didn’t seem to notice, though. More people were pushing past him, walking into the room as if they belonged there. Taylor stared, astonished, as the living room filled with enough people to make it feel a little cramped.
That wasn’t all. All of these people tried to get to Ben. They wanted to hug him and talk to him. From Ben’s expression, it was clear that he was overwhelmed, but before Taylor could say anything, he took over.
“What’s this?” Ben asked, turning to his parents. “I told the two of you to come, not to bring the entire family with you.”
“You really thought you were going to keep us away?” a tall woman holding a baby asked.
She reached over to hug Ben while holding the child with her other arm. Ben shook his head, but he went easily. Their gesture spoke of familiarity. Ben leaned closer to the baby, kissing their forehead. Taylor was pretty sure it was a girl because her shirt was pink, but what did he know?
“I knew I wouldn’t be able to, but I thought I’d have more time,” Ben said.
The woman frowned. “What does that mean? Why do you need more time?”
Ben looked up. His gaze caught with Taylor’s, who nodded at him. Whatever Ben wanted, he should do. Taylor could deal with it.
Ben sighed and gestured at the couches. “Why don’t you sit down?”
“Only if you promise you’re going to tell us what happened. You were gone for months. We thought you were dead.”
“Justine,” Sylvia snapped.
The woman holding the baby—Justine, apparently—turned to Sylvia. “What? It’s true. He just vanished, and we couldn’t find him. Even the police couldn’t.”
“I’m actually surprised they tried,” another woman said. A little boy ran past her, but she barely even looked down at him.
Luckily for Taylor, he was used to dealing with big families.
He might not be biologically related to every pride member here, but he didn’t need to be.
They were family anyway, and they all lived together.
The living room might be crowded, but it was nothing next to the pride’s holiday celebrations.
“I promise I’ll tell you everything,” Ben said. “But you have to promise not to freak out.” He paused, then glanced at Taylor again. “Over anything. You sit and listen, and once I’m done talking, you’ll be able to ask questions, but not one second sooner.”
Justine glared at him. “Who made you the boss of me?”
“I’m not, but I can decide not to tell you what happened to me.”
She rolled her eyes. “Fine. We’ll listen and wait to speak.”
Taylor was relieved when everyone began to find a spot to sit down. The children were grabbed and settled with toys, and a relative silence fell over the room.
Ben was still standing, and since Taylor didn’t want him to be alone, he was standing, too. He bumped their shoulders together, wanting to reassure his mate that everything would be okay. Of course, Ben’s sister noticed right away.
“First things first,” Ben declared, looking around the room.
“Taylor, this is my family. I already introduced you to my parents. I’m not going to tell you who everyone is because I know it’s overwhelming, but these are my three sisters, Justine, Bridget, and Eliza.
They’re here with their mates and partners and their children. ”
Taylor looked around the room. “I can see that.”
Since Ben had pointed at his sisters in turn as he named them, Taylor knew that the woman who laughed just now was Eliza.
“You’re funny,” she said. “I like you.”
“Well, I don’t know you enough to know if I like you,” Justine said.
She was still holding her baby. Taylor wanted to tell her that it was okay to put her down, but he didn’t dare.
“I like him,” Ben said. “And that’s all that matters. Well, that, and the fact that he’s my mate.”
There was a moment of stunned silence before all three sisters started talking at once. Justine even got to her feet, but Ben glared at her and pointed at her to sit back down. Justine glared right back, but she obeyed, thankfully.
“No, I’m not lying or pulling a prank,” Ben said. “Taylor’s my mate. I’ve been staying here with him and his pride for a few weeks.”
“But you’ve been gone longer than that,” Bridget pointed out.
“I was. I didn’t spend the entire time here.”
“You didn’t just disappear because you met your mate?”
“No. I only met Taylor recently.” He sucked in a breath.
Taylor inched closer. He didn’t care that Ben’s parents and his sisters were staring. His mate needed comfort, and Taylor would provide it.
“He and his people saved me,” Ben continued. “I know that you remember Jimmy, my ex-boyfriend. I mentioned him a few times.”
Justine frowned. “How could we forget him and the way he treated you? He was a dick. I wish you’d let me kick his ass when he said it had been long enough for me to lose the baby weight.”
Ben shook his head. “Well, it was even worse than what you saw. When I tried to break up with him, he locked me in his basement.”
There were various gasps around the room. Taylor hooked an arm around Ben’s waist, smiling when Ben leaned into him. He knew that his mate wasn’t looking forward to explaining this entire affair again, but he didn’t have a choice.
“He didn’t hurt me. He brought me food and talked about the future we’d have together, but something happened to him one day, and he stopped coming. I managed to escape after a while, but I was afraid to come home in case he tried to find me there. I couldn’t put you and your families in danger.”
“That’s bullshit,” Bridget declared.
“Is it? I told him about you. He knew how much I love my family, and he would’ve expected me to go straight home as soon as I was free. I couldn’t do that to you. Besides, for a while, I wasn’t even sure where I was. I just ran through the woods and hid when I got tired.”
“My poor baby,” Sylvia said as she reached for Ben.
He offered her his hand, and she took it.
She didn’t notice the slight eye roll Ben gave her, but Taylor did, and he grinned.
Ben’s mother was a bit dramatic, but Taylor would give her a pass, considering she’d thought she’d lost her son.
Besides, he suspected that even though Ben appeared a bit annoyed, deep inside, he was probably glad for the attention.
He’d missed his family. He’d thought he wouldn’t see them again.
But he had. They were here, surrounding him and loving him. It was everything Ben deserved.
Taylor was glad he had it.
* * * *
BEN WAS HAPPY THAT his family was here, but they could be overwhelming sometimes. He supposed he should get used to having so many people around, though. There were more people in the pride than there were in his family, and he was planning on living here for the rest of his life.
He hadn’t yet told his parents about that, but he would. He didn’t have a choice because he knew they’d try to drag him home as soon as he was done explaining everything.
“I’m fine, Mom,” he said. “I was on the run for a bit, and it wasn’t easy, but I eventually landed in Green Hill. It took me a little while to realize that I was safe here and that Jimmy wouldn’t find me. Besides, I knew that the pride would protect me.”
Ben’s mother glanced at Taylor, who was still holding Ben close with one arm. With Ben’s arm extended so that his mom could hold his hand, he was slightly uncomfortable, but it didn’t matter. “Because you’re Taylor’s mate,” she said.
It was what Ben had thought for a while, but he knew things weren’t like that. “Because it’s the right thing to do. Their alpha is a good man. I’m sure that me being Taylor’s mate helps, but he would’ve protected me regardless.”
“That’s good. What’s going to happen now, though? Taylor’s part of the pride. He doesn’t live close to us. How are you going to make it work?”
Ben didn’t want to hurt his mother, but it was necessary. “By moving here permanently.”
His mother stayed silent, but of course, Justine couldn’t. She’d always been explosive, even when they were children. “You can’t move,” she argued. “We just got you back. I don’t want to lose you again.”
“You’re not losing me. I’m just moving.”
“It’s not fair.”
“Justine,” Ben’s father said softly.
Justine frowned but let it go. Ben understood how she felt.
He wished he could be close to his family the way he had been before Jimmy had happened, but he had a choice to make.
As much as he loved his parents, his sisters, and their families, there was no competition.
Taylor was Ben’s mate. Of course he’d win.
“I don’t know what happened to my things or my apartment,” he said, turning back to his mother. “But I hope you haven’t thrown everything away.”
His mother scowled. “Do you really think we would do that?”
“No, but I didn’t think Jimmy could chain me in his basement, either.”
“You barely knew the man. We had to let go of your apartment, but we packed all of your things and brought them home. Whatever you need, it’s there. We also went to the police to file a missing person’s report, but they were less than useful.”
“Not all of them,” Eliza pointed out.
“Not all of them,” their mother agreed. “But most of them. They behaved as if they knew you better than I do. They told me that you were an adult and that you probably needed space from the family.”
“Never,” Ben promised. That wasn’t exactly true, and he’d probably get annoyed at his sisters at least twice in the next ten minutes, but they were his family, and he loved them. He wouldn’t vanish without telling them where he was going. He definitely wouldn’t do that to his mother.
“One of the detectives tried to help, but we had no idea where to start,” Ben’s mother explained. “He looked into it, but he didn’t find anything.”
“He couldn’t even find out where your boyfriend lived,” Ben’s father added.
It was time to tell them the second part of this mess.
“That’s because he was a shifter hunter,” Ben said.
“And no, I didn’t know that when I dated him.
I promise he never physically hurt me. I don’t know why he was with me if he held those beliefs, and I don’t care. I don’t think I’ll ever see him again.”
“He’s dead?” Bridget asked.
Ben glanced at Taylor, who shrugged. “We think he is,” Taylor said. “He’s been gone for a few months. He lived off the grid, but we went to his place, and it’s clear no one’s been there in a while. We don’t think he’s going to come back for Ben, but if he does, we’ll be ready.”
“You better be,” Justine told him. “You’re his mate. It’s your job to protect him.”
“And I will.”
Thankfully, once Ben was done explaining what had happened with Jimmy and everything else, the tension in the room lifted.
As disappointed as his family was that he wouldn’t be going home with them, they were happy that he was alive and that he’d met his mate.
They’d wanted to know he was safe, and he was, and that was all that mattered.
As much as Ben loved them, he was relieved to see the back of them when they finally left. He walked them out to their cars, then watched them leave, leaning against Taylor. For a moment, neither of them said anything, and Ben allowed himself to enjoy the silence.
“So that was your family,” Taylor eventually said.
“I know they’re a lot, but you won’t often have to deal with all of them at once like this. Except for the holidays, of course.”
“That’s fine. You know the pride. I’m not afraid of big families and noise. You look like you could use some rest, though.”
“I could. As much as I love them, they’re a lot, even for me.”
“Why don’t we go to bed, then?”
Ben’s heart skipped a beat. He and Taylor had been sharing Taylor’s room and his bed since Ben had arrived at the pride house, but it still felt like a dream coming true. It didn’t matter that they hadn’t had sex yet. Ben knew this was where he belonged, and he was happy that Taylor agreed.
Ben didn’t need any confirmation of that, but when they reached their bedroom, Taylor turned to him, looking slightly hesitant. Ben wasn’t worried. Taylor had never been anything but honest with him, so if there was a problem between them, he would have told him already.
“I know we both just assumed that you’d move in with the pride and me,” Taylor said. “I just want to make sure it’s what you actually want.”
“There’s nowhere I’d rather be, Taylor.”
“Not even with your family?”
“I love them, but I don’t want to have to spend any more time with them than I already do. Besides, between you and them, you’re always going to win.”
“You’re always going to win for me, too.
” Taylor sucked in a breath. “I don’t care that you’re a man.
It might make things awkward initially, but I know we can get over it.
We can work through anything and come out on the other end happy and stronger.
I want you in my life, and that’s never going to change. ”
Ben smiled. “That’s good to hear. Are you officially asking me to move in with you?”
Taylor laughed. “I guess I am. So? Are you going to?”
Ben leaned over to kiss his mate. “Of course I’m going to.”
Taylor’s arms went around Ben, and Ben knew he was home. The four walls around him didn’t matter. No, the only thing that did was Taylor, and this was where he was, so it was the place where Ben wanted to be, too.
When their lips met, Ben sighed and relaxed.
Things wouldn’t be perfect right away, and not only because of the trauma Jimmy had left him with.
He and Taylor had a lot of things to work through, but Taylor was right.
They’d do so together, and they’d come out of it stronger and closer.
They didn’t need a bond for that, although Ben couldn’t wait to share that.
They just needed each other, and they had it.
That, and so much more.