Chapter 22
CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO
He should have known Emmett would come. His fake boyfriend was part of a close knit pack, and the minute Jonah showed up alone, the werewolf probably would’ve called him.
He wanted to be annoyed, he’d wanted the night to get his head on straight before facing anyone, but he couldn’t blame the werewolf either.
They were pack. Family. They cared for one another.
The reminder that his family wanted nothing to do with him made him curl in on himself a little more. He didn’t have it in him to explain things right then. He just wanted to go to sleep.
The truck rocked as Emmett crawled inside to join him, wrapping Jonah up in a tight hug.
It was exactly what he needed, and he choked on a sob as he buried his face into Emmett’s chest. Emmett didn’t ask questions.
He didn't push. He just stayed there, holding him, until Jonah’s tears finally dried and exhausted weighed so heavily on him, he couldn’t keep his eyes open.
He tried to force himself to get up when he felt the truck moving, but Emmett just shushed him and held him close, so Jonah let his eyes close again.
The next time he opened them was when cool air touched his face, and Emmett pulled away from him.
His breath caught in his throat, and he reached automatically, not wanting to give up the one source of comfort he had, but Emmett didn’t go far.
He smiled at him, offering his claw tipped hand to Jonah in a bid to join him.
“Come on. You’re safe here.”
“Where are we?” Jonah croaked, too tired to be embarrassed about the way his voice cracked.
“Pack land. We’re going into The Lodge for now, I need to let Ronan know you’ll be staying, then I’ll bring you to my place so you can get some rest. Just a few minutes, alright?”
He didn’t really feel up for being around people at the moment, but he felt like arguing even less. He let Emmett pull him out of the truck, leaning into him when Emmett wrapped an arm around his shoulders and guided him inside.
No one approached them as they came in, though Jonah knew they weren’t alone. Voices dropped to whispers as the room went quiet, and he could practically feel the eyes on him, despite not looking up to check.
“Emmett,” he murmured, fingers tightening in Emmett’s shirt.
“It’s okay. No one is going to bother you right now. Just sit over here for a minute. Miguel’s nearby if you need something. I’ll only be a few minutes.”
He led Jonah to a couch against one wall and physically moved him onto it. Jonah went willingly, too exhausted to fight. He sank into the cushions, staring off into space as he fought to keep his emotions in check. He said just a few minutes. He could handle that. Maybe.
Emmett walked away, and the volume in the room eventually went back to normal levels, the words muffled thanks to his too tired brain being unable to pick up on any conversations.
He’d felt numb in the car after a while.
That feeling eased a little when Emmett was there, but it came back now that he was gone.
He curled in on himself, fighting back another wave of tears.
A whine drew his focus, and when he finally turned his head, a little werewolf pup was staring at him with big brown eyes.
He gripped Jonah’s pants leg and tugged, waiting patiently for Jonah to put his feet down before climbing into his lap.
The little thing didn’t say anything to him, just curled up against him, but Jonah didn’t complain.
The little werewolf was warm, and it helped a little.
One by one, more puppies crawled onto the couch, taking up residence on every available surface they could find. He melted into it, closing his eyes right along with them as the warmth sank into his skin. For just a moment, he felt okay.
Emmett hated leaving Jonah alone, but any visitors on pack land had to be reported to the alpha.
And given the amount of clothes in the back of Jonah’s truck, he got the feeling his favorite human would be staying awhile.
He didn’t ask, Jonah looked too upset to talk about it, but he made plans for him to stay anyway.
Miguel drove the truck back to pack land so they didn’t have to move Jonah before he was ready, and once Jonah was comfortable in The Lodge, he jogged off to Ronan’s home, which thankfully wasn’t more than a dozen feet away.
Knocking on the door, he waited impatiently for someone to answer.
He knew Ronan was home, he’d stopped in The Lodge earlier in the evening in search of Harlem, who had been playing with some of the pups.
He figured they’d still be awake, it wasn’t that late yet, and after knocking a second time, he heard Ronan’s grumble as he came to open the door.
“This better be good,” Ronan said as he opened the door. He hesitated when he took in Emmett’s expression. “What happened?”
Emmett shook his head. “I don’t know yet. I need your permission for a long term guest. A friend of mine needs a place to stay.”
Ronan huffed, waving him inside. “I’m gonna need more than that, Emmett. Who’s this friend, what’s their connection to you, and how long are we talking?”
“It’s Jonah,” Emmett gritted out, which answered most of the questions without him needing to explain. Ronan turned to face him again.
“Jonah? Did something happen to him?”
“I don’t know!”
He hadn’t meant to shout, he was riled up, and he hated that he had no idea what was going on with his…
Jonah. He wasn’t sure how to describe him anymore.
They were more than friends, but Jonah still thought they were faking dating.
And there was no way he could broach making whatever they were into something real right now. Not when Jonah was so broken.
Jonah’s tear stained face flashed through his mind, and he growled, taking a step back toward the door. He’d gone too far. He needed to go back to Jonah. If Ronan didn’t want him here, he’d just–
A hand on his shoulder stopped his retreat, and magic like warm water spread through his chest into his limbs, settling him little by little.
“Take a deep breath, Emmett. You’re too riled up right now to help anyone. Breathe,” Ronan coached.
Emmett did as his alpha asked, drawing in a few ragged breaths. When he spoke again, his voice was shaken and more uncertain, but determined nonetheless. “I don’t know what happened. He was too upset to explain anything to me. But he smells wrong. Like sadness and heartache. He needs help.”
Ronan nodded once. “Then we’ll help. Where is he?”
“Where is who?” Harlem came out of the kitchen, a frilly apron around his waist and his head cocked curiously. “Emmett? Are you okay?”
Thankfully, Ronan stepped in to explain things to his mate, giving Emmett another dose of his alpha magic to settle him a little more. “He’ll be alright. A friend of his is going through something and needs our help. I’m just going to go check on him. I’ll be back in a minute.”
That got a scowl from Harlem. “If you’re going, I’m not just going to sit here and wait. They’re my pack too, Ronan.”
Ronan, being the smitten mate he was, gave in immediately, opening his arms for Harlem to cuddle in close. Watching them together made Emmett ache to get back to Jonah, and thankfully when he took another step toward the door, Ronan didn't stop him.
“Lead the way, Emmett.”
With a sharp nod, Emmett led the way back to The Lodge, pausing with a confused frown as he stepped inside when he noticed the couch he’d left Jonah on was surrounded by pack members who were making cooing noises.
“What the…”
He went straight for Miguel, who stood nearby with an amused smirk on his face. “What’s going on?”
Miguel tipped his head toward the couch. “Take a look for yourself.”
Annoyed at the lack of information, Emmett growled, only to be bombarded by Ronan’s magic again to keep him in check. Those closest to him heard the sound though and moved aside so he could see what was going on. All his agitation disappeared in a flash, and he huffed out a startled laugh.
“What are they doing?”
“Cuddle puddle,” Ronan explained as he stepped around him, his smile soft as he took in the no less than seven werewolf pups curled up on Jonah.
There was a pup blanketing nearly every inch of him, all of them asleep, including Jonah.
He still looked pale and exhausted, but his breathing was steady and the smell of despair no longer saturated the air around him.
“That’s so cute,” Harlem cooed quietly. “Why are they doing that? Did they just decide he looked comfy or something?”
Ronan shook his head. “Pups are sensitive to emotions, more so than adults. We learn to filter it out. If they know someone’s upset, werewolf pups will make a cuddle puddle to soothe their upset packmate. It’s in their DNA. Apparently, they decided Jonah was pack and needed a hand to feel better.”
Emmett’s stomach flipped at the thought of Jonah being pack. What were the chances he could convince Jonah to drop his awful family and join his pack instead?
Ronan shot him a look like he could tell what he was thinking.
“Don’t pressure him. Whatever happened to him is obviously devastating.
I can smell it on him, even with the cuddle puddle.
If he’s important to you, you’ll let him come to terms with whatever happened to him on his own time.
” He took Harlem’s hand, tugging him back toward the door.
“He can stay as long as he needs, but I need to know what sent him here once he’s ready to talk.
I need to know if there’s a threat we need to worry about. Understand?”
Emmett nodded. He understood the need for clarity. Though, he hoped there wasn’t a threat of some kind. He got the feeling he’d go absolutely feral if he knew Jonah was being threatened.
“Understood, alpha. What… do I do about them?” He gestured to the cuddle puddle, which was absolutely adorable, but also made him jealous. He wanted to cuddle Jonah, too.
Ronan smirked at him. “You can join them, or you can hand them off to their parents. Just be prepared for a few growls. They don’t know any better, and they’re trying to help.”
He’d never hold growls against a pup. They were just babies. He eyed the pile thoughtfully. Maybe a few minutes of joining in wouldn’t hurt. He loved cuddles. And he didn't want to move Jonah before he was ready.
With a shrug, he sat on the couch, wiggling his way closer until he was pressed against Jonah’s side.
The pups accepted his presence since it didn’t look like he was taking Jonah away.
A few even stretched out on top of him too, making him smile.
He slid his arm around Jonah from behind so he wouldn’t move any of the pups, resting his chin on top of Jonah’s head.
When Jonah sighed and leaned into him, Emmett felt his tail thump lightly on the cushions.
It got a few snickers from their audience, but he ignored them.
Once he figured out what was going on and how to fix it, he was going to ask Jonah to make things official.
No more playing pretend. This little human made him happy, and he was almost certain Jonah felt the same way.
Maybe, if they had truly been dating, Jonah would’ve felt confident enough to call him when he was in trouble.
The thought still bothered him. Why hadn’t Jonah called him? What had he done or said to make the human think he wouldn’t come running if Jonah needed him?