Vaughn
“He is wonderful,” Joanne whispered. His parents had decided to stay up with him, as if they were also expecting a long and difficult night.
“Although his neck is going to be very angry with him in the morning if we let him continue to sleep in that position.”
“Don’t,” he warned.
“We’re not blind, son,” Stuart said.
“Although he is human, which could cause complications,” Joanne added.
“I spoke to Meshaq before he left. He has given his formal permission to share our secret with Sam and assured me that Ollie is in no danger because of his actions.”
Some of the tension eased from both of his parents’ faces.
Keeping their secret was the most important duty of all shifters, and there were severe consequences for revealing themselves to humans, no matter how old they were.
Shifter children were taught from the earliest age the importance of the secret and most of the very first lessons involved how to keep from revealing themselves.
The only exceptions were granted by the hellhounds, and Vaughn had never dared to question Meshaq on his methods.
Throughout his years of being a doctor to the supernatural world, Vaughn had seen and treated so many different variations of illnesses.
The sign on the door of his clinic might indicate that they were veterinarians, but Vaughn and his father were actually healers to all variety of shifters.
Many of them drove for hours to be treated by the Jerricks, and Vaughn had learned his skills at his father’s side.
Sometimes, in the course of his duties, he’d been forced to involve the hellhounds, which was how he even had the contact number for their alpha in the first place.
The hellhound’s purpose was to serve as guardians of the secret and to remove anyone who threatened to reveal their world.
He’d first met Meshaq after a horrific car accident in which a shifter’s wife and child were killed.
The poor man had been mad with grief and had shifted in reaction to first responders attempting to help him out of the crushed vehicle where his family was still trapped.
The hellhounds had already been on the scene when Vaughn arrived, and he remembered how terrified he’d been when he’d seen the giant man scowling at him with literal fire in his eyes.
A member of Vaughn’s pack had been one of the first responders on the scene, and he’d immediately called Vaughn when he realized the injured man was one of them. Under the watchful eye of the hellhounds, Vaughn had been able to get him calm and ready to be transported.
It was the first time, but not the last, that he’d seen Meshaq offer mercy to one of their kind. He’d also seen the power Meshaq could wield when the first responders suddenly didn’t remember seeing anything out of the ordinary.
Vaughn had also witnessed the opposite and had seen shifters taken back to the underworld for their sins.
There had been a really bad few years when several shifters unexpectedly lost control.
The rules of their world were strict, and the hellhounds were the enforcers that made sure their world remained safe.
Vaughn had known exactly what he was risking earlier when he’d told Sam what they were.
He’d wanted to protect Ollie, the alpha side of him desperate to protect the young cub who’d broken the rule and exposed them to a human.
He’d known Meshaq would understand the circumstances, but the alpha part of him had demanded he take action.
But the truth was, he’d wanted to tell Sam for years, ever since the night at the bar when the alpha in him first noticed Sam.
He continued the gentle strokes on Sam’s foot, hoping he’d be able to earn Sam’s trust once more.
He’d seen the hurtful looks Sam had given him and realized he’d really screwed up when he’d panicked and walked away that night long ago.
He’d regretted his actions many times, but then again, Sam was human.
The rules were clear. Or were they? Meshaq hadn’t seemed surprised at all with Vaughn’s connection to Sam.
He’d expected a little chastisement at the very least from him.
But he’d gotten nothing but a smile, a neck squeeze, and a promise for information when Meshaq had it.
“You should get some sleep,” Joanne said. “It’s going to be a long day tomorrow and you’ll want to be rested.”
“I’ll be fine,” Vaughn said. He glanced back to the kids as Ollie rolled over and curled against Ben.
“We’ll stay up, son,” Stuart said softly. “You and your grandmother can take the breakfast shift in the morning. You do realize that she’s been asking the goddess for great-grandchildren, and her request may very well have been granted today.”
Vaughn glanced from the children back to Sam’s sleeping form. A lot of her requests may have been granted, and maybe one or two of Vaughn’s own had as well. Over the past few years, he’d struggled through the few relationships he’d managed to have.
Nothing had felt right and he’d ended up putting aside the desire to find a mate, especially when the one person he’d been wholly attracted to ended up being human and out of his reach.
Instead, he’d poured his energy into expanding the practice and investing in new equipment to offer more mainstream services to their patients.
He’d been more successful than he imagined, so much so that his father hadn’t been able to completely retire as they kept up with a constant stream of patients.
And the thought of having children… well, it was such a rarity in their world these days.
Vaughn knew of several other healers who had researched the low birth rates of their kind, but no one had discovered any reason why the number of cubs had dropped over the past several generations.
It wasn’t only shifters facing the dilemma.
Others of their world had reached out as well, desperate for help. No one had found any answers.
Yet all that had changed with one random phone call from a guy he hadn’t seen since the night he had the most fantastic sex he hadn’t been able to forget. Now there were six children he needed to guide and protect. And Sam.
Well, Vaughn couldn’t even begin to explain how complicated his feelings for Sam had become. He’d longed for someone strong to stand beside him, someone who didn’t bow to him simply because he carried the title of alpha.
He longed for another alpha at his side, someone who was his equal. It wasn’t the typical longing of an alpha, but it was the desire of Vaughn’s heart.
Seeing Sam in action, standing up to the woman who’d dared hurt the cubs, leading them all without hesitation even though they were hurt and afraid?
How he’d stood up to Vaughn even though he’d seen things he’d not even known were possible?
Sam should have been terrified, but instead he’d put himself between the cubs and Meshaq without hesitation, even though most shifters trembled in fear over the other alpha’s ferocious appearance.
And that… that was what had Vaughn’s heart longing for more.
Hope filled him for the first time in years. Maybe… maybe the impossible had happened. Maybe he’d found his true mate and through these cubs…children of his own.
He turned back to his parents and found his mom looking at him with another knowing smile. “You’re probably right. I should get some sleep.”
“Your mother is always right. I thought I’d taught you that lesson years ago.”
Joanne shoved at Stuart’s arm but kept smiling at her son. “Those kids are going to need their alpha tomorrow. You’re in for an interesting time as they transition, but remember that you have an entire pack here to support you.”
“And I’ll cover the clinic tomorrow,” Stuart added. “We’ll think further ahead on scheduling once we’ve all had some rest.”
“Sounds good. Thanks, Dad.”
“You’re welcome. Sleep, son.”
When Vaughn woke up, he couldn’t figure out what it was that had pulled him from his sleep.
His body certainly wasn’t happy with him and he realized he was on the couch.
The memories of the night before came hurtling back, and he opened his eyes quickly to see all of the kids still safely asleep on the floor in front of the couch.
He heard whispered voices from the kitchen and sat up to see what was going on.
His grandmother was standing on one side of the island, clearly working on breakfast. Sam sat on a barstool on the opposite side, busy writing something on a notepad. Nana glanced his way and smiled, which caused Sam to look over to him as well.
“Morning,” Vaughn muttered as he climbed off the couch and stretched out his stiff muscles. After a yawn large enough to hurt, he stumbled over to the island and sat down beside Sam. “What are you two doing up so early?”
“It’s after seven, lovebug.”
“Nana…” Vaughn started to protest the use of his nickname, especially when Sam began to snicker beside him, but a whimper from the living room drew his attention.
He was on his feet and across the room before Ollie could fully come awake.
He knelt at the head of the mattresses and rested his hand carefully on top of Ollie’s head.
When the boy opened his eyes, he immediately looked to Vaughn.
Once Ollie recognized him and began to wake up more fully, Vaughn asked, “You ready to get up?”
Ollie nodded and began to untangle himself from the pile of blankets around him. Ben opened his eyes as well. Vaughn rested his hand on Ben’s hair and rubbed it softly. “I’ve got him. Go back to sleep.”
Ben waited for Ollie to lean heavily against Vaughn before he closed his eyes and pulled the blankets up over his head. Vaughn lifted Ollie into his arms and carried him over to the island where Nana and Sam were waiting.
“How’s my little muffin doing this morning?” Nana asked.