Chapter 18
Pawing through his hoard, Fionn searched for a gift to give his mate, one that would show Hunter how valuable he was to him.
Rummaging through pile after pile, he had yet to find the right one.
Quickly discarding gold coins as too common, he thought briefly about some gold bars or jewelry, but they weren’t much better.
Tossing aside solid gold crowns, boxes and swords—all bedecked with precious gems—Fionn paused, frustrated that his dragon had rejected all as not worthy.
Glancing around, he spied a pile of ancient statues.
Scrambling over to them, he chose the one his dragon picked.
Fionn held it in the palm of his hand, marveling at its beauty, knowing his dragon was right—it was the perfect gift.
Flopping onto his makeshift bed, Fionn picked up the sketches he’d drawn of his mate, admiring at the strength contained in his face, the eyes that seemed to follow Fionn, and the beautiful mouth, reflecting the sadness his mate was trying to hide from the world.
That spoke to Fionn more than anything; he knew what it felt like.
Lightly tracing his finger over his mate’s sensuous lips, Fionn wondered how it would feel when they met his.
A thrill went through him, settling in his cock, forcing his hand down to it.
Hot, hard and leaking, it wanted his mate’s lips around it, sucking and licking until it erupted.
Rubbing it, he closed his eyes, hearing his dragon roar, calling to his mate’s wolf and Fionn felt the bond between them being forged in dragon fire binding them together.
His dragon arched his back, spreading his wings in the centuries-old mating dance, calling to his mate.
Fionn’s need built, filling his body, demanding his mate’s touch.
Writhing as fire raced through his veins, Fionn gasped for air; his dragon was preparing him for the claiming.
Minutes or hours—he wasn’t sure how long the fire lasted—his dragon teased him, played with him, igniting Fionn’s desire, forcing a succession of orgasms, each one lifting him higher toward the heavens.
When his dragon finally retreated, Fionn found himself floating and basking in a golden glow before falling into a deep sleep.
It was time to go home.
~/~/~/~/~
Colton felt it, but before he could call Cody, his brother called him. Answering his phone, he asked, “Did you feel it? He needs us.”
“I know. I’m on my way.”
“He wants to leave,” Colton said. “Why? What happened?”
“I don’t know,” Cody replied, “I’m at his office.”
“Call me if you need me!”
“Will do.” Slipping his phone into his pocket, Cody placed his hand on Carson’s office door, pausing a moment before pushing it open.
The room was empty. Frowning, he wondered where his brother was.
Seeing an open file on Carson’s desk, he flipped through it, hoping for a clue.
Finding none, he spun around and was just about to leave when he saw his brother hunched up on the floor in a dark corner of the room.
Cody moved quickly and sat down beside him, drawing Carson into his arms, holding him tight.
~/~/~/~/~
Opening the door to the motorhome, Mac stuck his head in, calling, “Hunt?”
Hunter glanced at his brother over Mason’s shoulder. “Yeah, what’s up?”
“Good,” said Mac, clambering up the steps. After Maximus informed him Ian and Jackson agreed to him serving as the pack’s temporary doctor, it was time to tell Hunter. Sliding in next to Mason, he asked, “Where are Sawyer and Quin?”
“Last I knew, Sawyer was beating Zane in Rogue Wolf and Quin is doing something with Theo and Norm,” replied Hunter.
“In his bedroom?” Mac asked, jerking his head to the back of the motorhome.
“No, he’s in the pack house,” replied Mason.
“Quin? Really? Wow, that’s good to hear,” Mac said. “But I have to admit, I never would have guessed it would be bear shifters who’d bring our brother out of his shell.”
“Indeed,” Hunt chuckled. “So, why were you looking for me?”
“Uhmm…remember the job I accepted in New York?” asked Mac. After seeing Hunter’s nod, he continued, “Well, I found out yesterday that it’s not actually in New York City.”
“Okay, where is it?” asked Hunter.
“Here.”
“Here, where?” asked Mason.
“Here, with the Blackwood Pack…as their doctor…at least temporarily. Ian is pregnant and I’ll be filling in for him,” Mac said.
Hunter frowned. “You found this out yesterday and you didn’t think to tell me?”
“How come you didn’t know before yesterday?” asked Mason.
“Because all they said when I joined Frontline Doctors was one of their doctors was pregnant, so I’d be filling in for him during his paternity leave. All they told me was who I would be taking over for…a male omega by the name of Dr. Ian Wallace…but I never knew he was a member of Jackson’s pack.”
“He doesn’t like you,” growled Hunter.
Mac smiled. “According to Maximus, he’s changed his mind.”
“Who the fuck is Maximus?” asked Mason.
“He owns Dire Enterprises. Their medical division founded Frontline Doctors to help bring medical services to underserved shifter communities,” Mac explained.
“Why is it I always feel like I’m missing something?” Mason asked, shaking his head. “Let’s try this again. How does the Chairman of Dire Enterprises know Ian who, according to you, is just one of a bunch of Frontline Doctors?”
“Wait…you spoke to Maximus?” asked Hunter.
“Well, to be accurate, I met with him.”
“See there you go again…not making any sense,” Mason said. “When and where did this meeting take place?”
“In the pack house…just now. That’s why I was looking for you.”
“What is Dire Enterprises’ Chairman doing at the Blackwood Pack house?” asked Mason.
“He lives here along with his wife and two sons.”
“Mac, what the fuck is it with you? Why are you making me drag this out of you, piece by piece?” growled Hunter. “Who are his sons and why are they living here?”
Grinning at his brother’s frustration, Mac said, “I’m just relishing the one time I know something more about your world than you do.”
“Mac…”
“Okay, okay. Chill out. Jackson’s mate Steel is the CEO of Dire Enterprises and his brother Slate, is the COO,” Mac smirked. “Our cousin, Dakota, is Slate’s mate.”
“Oh, shit!” Hunter stared at Mason. Then he buried his face in his hands, mentally kicking himself for not having done further research.
He and Mason had spent a year putting together a business plan which they’d submitted a couple of months ago, proposing their company, Beowulf Trust handle all Dire Enterprises’ investments worldwide.
Admittedly, it was an audacious move, but one he and Mason agreed they could handle.
Groaning, he thought back to breakfast and his conversation with Steel.
How fucking stupid can I be? Of course he was familiar with the Valentin family…
maybe ‘familiar’ wasn’t quite the right word…
anyone in his field knew the name and yet at breakfast he never made the connection.
Fuckingbedamned! I would have if I’d bothered to ask him what he did.
All that work, wasted because his mind was focused on his mate…
a mate who obviously didn’t want him. Can’t blame him…
who wants someone who blows an opportunity because I didn’t do my homework.
“Hunter? Hey, you okay?” asked Mac, worried after listening to his brother’s groans.
“Hunt, it’s okay,” Mason said.
Slapping the table hard with his hands, Hunter’s eyes narrowed as he looked at his brother.
“No, you’re wrong Mase. It is not okay. I fucked up big time.
A fucking year of work…wasted…all because I couldn’t keep my head on straight.
Now, how am I supposed to support my mate?
He has a hoard…a fucking hoard! Fionn can probably buy anything he wants and what the fuck do I have to offer?
If Dire Enterprises even gave us a tenth of their investments to manage, I’d have felt like we were in pig-shit heaven.
But now…did you know Steel asked me at breakfast what I did, and I never made the connection?
He fucking knew! But me…no I sat there like a fucking clueless asshole, pining for my mate…
someone who fled from me. And can you blame him?
” Taking a deep breath, Hunter lowered his voice.
“No, Mase, no matter how you look at this, it is not okay.”
Mac stared at his brother, then shifted his gaze to Mason. “Hunt has a mate?”
“Had! I had a mate!” snapped Hunter.
“Yes,” Mason said. “Hunt’s mate is a member of Jackson’s pack.”
“Who is he?” asked Mac.
“Fionn! A fucking dragon!” Hunter snarled. “A mate who has a humongous cave filled with gold!”
“When did this happen?” Mac asked Mason, ignoring Hunter. “Did he know his mate was here?”
“No, Hunt found out yesterday when we arrived,” replied Mason.
“Then why is he claiming he had a mate?” asked Mac.
“Because he’s upset right now. Fionn is his mate,” Mason said.
“And Fionn has a hoard?”
Nodding, Mason said, “Hunt’s wolf is going a little crazy because Fionn took off for his hoard, but he’ll be back.”
“Will you two assholes stop talking as if I’m not here?” Hunter shouted.
“Yup, as soon as you stop being a snarlpuss,” Mac said.
Laughing, Mason asked, “Where did you get that word from?”
“Snarlpuss?” Mac asked, grinning. “When I was doing my pediatric rotation, I heard a nurse use it with a pup who was throwing a temper tantrum.”
“Hunt, listen to me,” Mason said. “Whether we make a deal with Dire Enterprises or not, won’t matter diddly to Fionn.
From everything you told me, he needs love more than anything else and that, my brother, you have an abundant supply of.
Luckily for you, it’s the one thing no amount of money can buy. ”
~/~/~/~/~
Cody held his brother until Carson’s tears abated, not exactly sure what had triggered their triplet mind link, but his brother’s absolute feeling of desolation had raised an alarm.
Quickly handing the twins over to Dylon, he’d called Colton, while rushing to Carson’s office.
Now, with his brother in his arms, he asked, “Hey, are you okay now?”
Wiping the lingering wetness from his face, Carson nodded, embarrassed his brother had witnessed him ‘losing it’. “Yeah, thanks.”
“What’s the problem, Carsy?” asked Cody, using the nickname Dakota gave Carson when he was a toddler. “Is it about Mom?”
“Maybe, in a way…” Carson said, finding it easier to talk about that instead of his failure as an Alpha.
“I mean, I’m all confused about it. How fucked up is that?
I should be jumping for joy and yet I’m scared shitless.
What if she never wakes up? Or what happens if she wakes up but isn’t the mom I remember?
Or what am I supposed to do if she wakes up and doesn’t know who I am?
” Shaking his head, he felt more tears well up in his eyes.
Roughly dashing them away with his hand, he continued, “My mind keeps going over all the possibilities…like what if she wakes up and doesn’t want to live anymore because some of her pups didn’t survive.
Or what if she blames me for surviving when my younger brothers and sisters didn’t. Or what if she…”
“Stop!” Cody said. “Look, the possibilities are endless, but there isn’t any way of knowing which one it will be.
All we can do is hope everything will turn out all right.
I know it isn’t what you want to hear, but it’s the only choice we have at this time.
Maybe tomorrow, after Ian reviews her test results, he’ll have some news that’ll give us more information. ”
Hanging his head, Carson stared at the floor, thinking about what his brother said.
He knew Cody was right, but that didn’t help him stop the carousel of possibilities going around in his mind every time he thought about her.
All last night, he alternated between wanting revenge against Josiah and crying over the loss of the rest of his siblings—again.
For a split second, when Jackson announced their mother had survived, his heart leapt for joy, thinking if she had, then his younger siblings must have also.
Then, his joy was cut with a dagger straight to the heart, leaving it bleeding as he struggled with guilt—survivor’s guilt, Colton had explained to him.
“Have you seen Mom yet?” Cody asked.
Shaking his head, Carson said, “I know I should, but I keep thinking it doesn’t matter because she won’t even know I’m there.”
“Maybe…but I’m hanging on to the belief our mother will know. When I asked Colton what would be a good time to visit today, he told me I should talk to mom, as if she was awake because it’s a good possibility she could hear me.”
Glancing up at his brother, Carson asked, “What are you going to talk about?”
“Everything that’s happened to me since the massacre…I figure if she was awake, that’s what she’d want to know,” Cody replied. Then bumping his brother’s shoulder, he said, “You can tell her about your job and your promotion. I bet she’ll be very proud of you.”
“But I don’t have a mate…or pups,” Carson groaned.
“Yet. You don’t have a mate yet, bro, but you will,” replied Cody. “Is that the reason you want to leave?”
Tilting his head back against the wall, Carson closed his eyes, wondering how his brother figured out the real reason he’d been crying.
Of course, that’s how Cody knew…damn our triplet link!
Snorting, he remembered how cool he thought it was when they were pups, but now it had bitten him in the ass. “Is Colton going to show up too?”
“Not unless you want him to,” replied Cody. “Have you seen Jackson lately?”
Knowing his brother wouldn’t stop until he knew everything, Carson answered, “Yeah, he came to tell me the great news about our cousin Hunter finding his mate. Whoop-de-doo.” Gods, I sound like a prick. Looking down at his dress pants, he brushed off the lint they’d picked up from the floor.
“Finding a mate is always a good thing,” murmured Cody. Then, noticing the slump of defeat in Carson’s shoulders, he said, “So you decided to leave because of that?”
Pissed, he growled, “Back off. Why I want to leave is my business.”
“Wrong. It’s also my and Colton’s business. What happens to you affects us and you know it,” Cody said. “Carsy, you know if you leave, Colton and I will be missing a note in our triad. Don’t you think we deserve to know the reason why?”
Anger surged through Carson, pissed at Cody for using their special bond against him. “Fine. You want to know why I’m going to leave? Because it’s obvious to me I’m not good enough to have a mate! There! Satisfied?”