Chapter Forty-Five
Jamie
I’m so glad Em brought Cate over. Or that she made him bring her over, which I think is more likely after a few minutes speaking with her.
She really doesn’t ask Patch and me too many questions. I know she has them; that’s fairly obvious. But I think some of her curiosity is tempered by the new knowledge she has, which I know from experience can be overwhelming.
“Can we bring Cate with us?” Em asks. He’s sitting in the armchair because Cate is still sitting on the sofa with us.
Nick’s got a cushion on the floor. I offered to move for him, and he and Em had a quick argument over who would take the chair, but he already told me earlier he’s planning to stay here while we go see Kieran, so he’ll have the living room all to himself.
Patch shrugs in my direction.
“I don’t see why not,” I say. I don’t think Kieran will mind. Cate is Em’s closest friend—there’s no way he could be mated to me and Patch and never have her find out the truth. Besides, Nick knows, and his whole attitude towards it has been far more negative than I think Cate’s will be.
“Awesome,” Cate whispers. She drinks the rest of her tea and then sits back, studying the three of us again. “Where do they live? Some place fancy?”
“Not really,” Nick says. He’s half-watching the TV, where the football is on but muted. “Block of flats, but they’ve bought up a lot of it.”
“And what are they like?”
“Kieran’s great,” I say and ignore Nick’s fleeting frown. I’m not going to argue the point. Truth is, whatever Kieran does at this point is going to go down well with me—Sam backed me up when I needed it, and Kieran accepted Patch and Em into his pack.
If they want it. Em still hasn’t made that choice clear.
“He’s not a wolf like I am,” Patch says, and Em frowns. I guess we haven’t really talked about that, either. “And his pack is more than just wolves. His mate is a vampire.”
“A vampire?” Cate leans forward eagerly. “Holy shit.”
“Yeah, they have a lot going on over there,” I say with a weak laugh. Is Kieran going to give us a deadline? Vince told me what mating entails. I take a breath, absorbing Patch’s warmth. I’m not ready for that yet. I’m sure Em isn’t. They won’t force it, will they?
“We’ll head off in a few,” Patch says. If he can feel what I’m feeling—I doubt it, not yet—then it doesn’t come through in his voice.
“Yeah, let me… Em, where’s your bathroom here?”
“There’s one upstairs. I’ll show you.”
“I can find it.”
“I’ll show you,” Nick says. We watch in silence as they both leave the room.
The moment we hear them on the stairs, Em moves to sit in Cate’s spot on the sofa. He only hesitates for a moment before he leans in, wrapping his arms as far as he can around both of us. I hum against his throat and Patch drags him even closer.
“You were gone for so long,” Patch murmurs. “Was it useful?”
“Useful? Wasn’t for that,” Em replies. He shivers. “I’m nervous about later.”
It’s an admission I’m not expecting. Not because I think he won’t be nervous; I’m just not expecting him to say it.
I take his face in my hands so I can look at him properly. “What are you nervous about?”
“I brought Cate here to give me perspective.”
“And?” Patch asks.
“You heard her perspective,” Em replies. There’s a laugh in his voice. “She’s right. I know what I want.”
“So what’s there to be nervous about?” I ask.
“What if your friends don’t like me? After they’ve got to know me properly, I mean.”
I shake my head. “Cate doesn’t know us properly. Not yet.”
He pulls a face, so I kiss him softly. Just once. Em sighs against my mouth and behind me, Patch makes a hungry sound. I fancy I feel the sharp edge of that hunger in my chest, but that could just be me, honestly.
“They have a reason to hate me,” Em admits quietly. “They love you. Patch is a wolf. They’re not… I’m not…”
“I’m not going anywhere without you. Either of you,” I say. “But they don’t hate you, Em. I’ve seen Kieran angry. Sam too, for that matter. You made a mistake. They’re honestly very forgiving.”
Patch perks up. “You think so?”
“Yeah, I do.” Kieran and Drew are brothers. Kieran and Sam have been friends for years. Adam is Lucien’s turn. And that’s just five of them. I’m sure they’ve all hurt each other at least a few times, but the bonds between them—their new family—seem strong whenever I see them.
“Okay,” Em says. He blows out a breath. “I trust you. If you say it’ll be okay, it’ll be okay.”
“And what…” Patch hesitates. “Have we made a decision? Have you two made a decision?”
“Have you?” Em asks.
I lean back, watching as they stare at each other for a moment. Upstairs, Nick and Cate murmur to each other. They’ll be down here soon.
“Yeah,” Patch says finally, eyes sliding away from Em’s face. He’s smiling, cheeks a little pinched. “I want to stay and try this with the two of you. I’m sorry I panicked before. I should’ve… I know I’m not always going to get it right, but I’m going to try.”
I relax back into his embrace. Em holds on to Patch’s hands.
“I’m going to stay,” he says. “And we’re going to make this work, by the way.”
I laugh. I can’t help myself; I feel giddy. “Oh, are we?”
Em kisses me hard on the mouth, then leans over and kisses Patch, too.
“Yes, we absolutely are.”
My good mood hasn’t wavered in the slightest by the time we reach Kieran’s pack house late that afternoon. Cate walks through the wards just as easily as me and Em, being as we’re all regular humans, and I wonder if that will change after we mate with Patch.
None of us are ready for that yet. At least I’m not, and I don’t even know all the details, just what Vince dropped in passing, so I’m not sure Em knows anything about it at all.
I glance sideways at Patch as we walk up the stairs.
Probably should have mentioned that, though if Em is totally against the idea, that’s fine too.
I think. Ugh.
Patch has one hand on my lower back as I knock on the door. Cate is looking up and down the corridor, just like Em; I know they aren’t actually blood related, but they both wear the same focused expression when they’re trying to solve a puzzle.
I just don’t know what puzzle they’re trying to solve right now.
Drew opens the door, and I return his sunny smile. “Come in! I’m just heading back…”
“I told you that you could stay,” Kieran says. He’s sitting on the sofa, but he stands as the four of us enter the flat, gaze lingering on Cate, who is eyeing Drew with no little curiosity. I can’t tell if she’s trying to work out if he’s human or if she just thinks he’s cute. “Who’s this?”
“My friend, Cate,” Em says. Cate waves. “She came to pick me up, and I thought—That is, if it’s okay…”
I’ve already kicked my shoes off, so I reach over and take Em’s hand. I don’t think he needs to be nervous, but I understand where that anxiety is coming from. Patch is entirely silent, eyes downcast, so once Em has squeezed my hand back and smiled at me, I reach for him, too.
Sam is still sitting in one of the armchairs and Lucien, Kieran’s vampire mate, is on the sofa. He’s well-dressed, perfectly groomed, but somehow, I get the impression he hasn’t been awake all that long.
“It’s fine,” Kieran says. “Come. Sit down.”
Lucien moves from the sofa to let us sit, and when I glance over, Kieran and Drew are having some kind of silent conversation that has Sam grinning. After a minute or so, Drew throws his hands up in irritation. He looks at us. “Can I get you something to drink?”
“Told you, you weren’t going anywhere, little wolf,” Sam says.
Drew sighs, goes into the kitchen, and grabs glasses out of the cupboard even though none of us have had a chance to reply.
“So…” Kieran says. He sits on the arm of the chair Lucien is in and I feel a pang in my chest when Lucien casually rests his hand on Kieran’s lower back.
Cate is sitting on the arm of the sofa, next to Em, and Patch is in the middle, leaving me on the end.
I press my thigh against Patch’s. We’ve got this.
“I guess I’m being optimistic in hoping you’ve come to a decision already? ”
I lean forward to look at Em and Patch. I know what I want. I’m pretty sure Patch knows what he wants. And Em said—
“I think we have,” Em says, and I can’t help my laugh or the way I lean into Patch’s side. “But first, I wanted to formally apologise for the trouble I put you all through. That never should have happened. Nothing like that will ever happen again, I swear.”
Kieran’s voice is steely. “I should hope it won’t.”
“Could’ve been worse,” Sam says and only shrugs when Kieran glares at him. “Could’ve had a murderous mage after him.”
“Or the alpha of another pack,” Drew mutters as he brings over two glasses of water. He sets them down on the coffee table and Sam shoots him a concerned look.
“Or even one of the most powerful vampires to have walked this continent, my love,” Lucien says.
Kieran shakes his head. “I still maintain that last one was Vasile’s fault, not mine. Thanks. I get the point. You sure you’re all ready to join this craziness?”
“Yes,” I say. I’ve been on the periphery of it for a while. I want all that Vince and Dax have, with my two perfect guys.
“Yes,” Em says, “though I have questions.”
“A lot of questions,” Cate adds.
“What about you?” Kieran looks at Patch.
“I expect every member of my pack to be part of our community. It’s the only way we stay strong.
You didn’t want to join us before, and if you’re only joining because your mates want to be here now, I can’t pretend I don’t have my concerns about your commitment to the rest of us. ”
Patch frowns. Em has loosely tangled their fingers together, and Patch leans against my side.
“I didn’t want to join you all before because I didn’t feel ready to. I didn’t want to leave Alpha Axel’s pack, and I didn’t…” He gives me a helpless look. “I didn’t want to be confronted with realities I couldn’t reach. Thought I couldn’t reach.”
“And now?” Sam asks. Drew has brought us all drinks over, and he leans against Sam’s chair, idly playing with his hair. Sam doesn’t act like this is unusual behaviour at all.
“I’m like all wolves. I go where my mates go. But there is hardly a pack I can think of that I would be proud to call myself a member of. I’d be honoured if you accepted me here.”
He looks at Kieran again and bares his throat the way I’ve seen other wolves do on occasion. Kieran doesn’t react at first, but after a few seconds, he nods.
Sam claps his hands together. “Perfect! We can let Deacon know then, right?”
“I’ll ring him later,” Kieran says. “As for housing, we—”
“Actually,” I interrupt and only grin when Kieran raises an eyebrow, “I think I speak for all of us when I say we want to take it slow? The house we’re in is nice. It’s in your territory, right? And I don’t want to just abandon Nick there when there’s enough room for all of us.”
“Our territory,” Kieran says, just as Cate laughs and shakes her head. When he narrows his eyes, she shakes her head harder.
“No, sorry, I—Fuck. You all move fast, huh?”
“When we know, we know,” Drew says. “Even if it takes a while to get there, sometimes.”
I drop my head onto Patch’s shoulder. Em lets out a quiet, contented sigh. Patch’s posture changes, relaxing, loosening, and we might have a road ahead of us, but I know we’re all on the same page here.
When we know, we know. I’m just glad we all got here in the end.