20. Chapter Twenty
Chapter Twenty
Darius
Milo was so vulnerable and open as we sat there with Jeremy and Cass. It seemed like time stood still around us as the brothers finally opened up and began talking. Even Cass started crying, so I’d handed him a napkin as well.
Loren chose that moment to come over with our drinks, the smoothies having two swirly straws and umbrellas in them.
“Here you go, lads. I’ll be out in a jiffy with your meals, yeah?”
“Thank you,” I said, knowing the others were trying to get themselves back together.
As soon as Loren had left, Jeremy hugged Cass to his side. “You were right,” he whispered into his mate’s ear. “I truly did need this.”
“I told you so!” Cass replied, slapping his chest playfully. “And with my muffins everything will be okay.”
I had no idea if he meant literal muffins or if this was some sort of dirty talk, but considering I saw no muffins anywhere near us, I pretended I didn’t hear anything as I hugged my mate closer to my side.
“You were perfect,” I whispered into his ear, then pecked a kiss on his cheek. “My wonderful Milo.”
He blushed, hiding his face between my neck and shoulder. “You’re too good for me.”
“Nah, I’m perfect for you, baby. Like you’re perfect for me.” I’d never meant anything more.
“Holy fuck that’s good!” Cass exclaimed, sucking away on the pink smoothie he’d had to have after we’d ordered ours.
“Yeah?” Milo grinned, pulling the blue one closer to us.
“Hmm,” Cass hummed. “This one is sweet yet fresh. I’m gonna need this every time we come here, Jeremy, like every time.”
That was enough of a selling point for us, so we each grabbed a straw and tried the blue one together. Sour freshness exploded on my senses before a creamy sweetness took over.
“Damn,” I muttered, eyeing the menu for the ingredients. “There’s a scoop of vanilla ice cream in it,” I laughed.
“For real?” Milo laughed too, his face moving closer to mine to sneak a peek at the menu as well. “Each smoothie is basically a slightly healthier milkshake, but not truly a smoothie.”
“I don’t give a shit,” Cass declared, slurping loudly. “I’m getting my weekly fruit intake and besides, life is too short to not enjoy this perfect concoction of creamy goodness.”
“Creamy goodness, huh?” Jeremy teased, making Cass blush again.
Loren came over to our table with his hands full, so many different plates with yummy stuff on them.
“More to come, don’t worry, Jeremy,” Loren deadpanned, causing Cass to snort out some smoothie next to him.
“Hey!” Jeremy argued. “I’m not that bad!”
“Of course you aren’t,” I cooed, making the table and Loren laugh.
“You four can start with this,” Loren said, wiping his hands on his apron. “I’ll bring more your way in ten minutes.”
“Perfect, thank you,” Milo said, smiling at Loren.
“What should we start with?” I asked, eyeing the soups and small plates with appetizers.
And so, we dug in, letting our bellies be filled to the brim. It only took us an hour to finish all the food, Jeremy being a big help with getting everything eaten.
“That was amazing,” Cass breathed, his posture tired and it was obvious he was ready for a nap.
“It really was,” Milo agreed, his head resting on my shoulder.
“How about we call it a day and find another day for you to talk things out some more?” I suggested. Jeremy and Milo would need a lot more time to talk everything through, but today had already helped immensely.
“I would love that,” Jeremy said, smiling at us both.
“Deal,” Milo said, hugging my side, his head still on my shoulder. “Maybe a brotherly run?”
Jeremy’s grin was blinding as he answered, “Sounds perfect.”
“So,” I began, following Milo inside his house. “What do you want to do with it?”
“Well, your house is much better so I was thinking of finishing it and then offering it to the pack again. With many new packmates it makes no sense for it to stand empty.”
“I agree. I’ll let Jeremy know that we’re focusing on making the last changes to it and that you so generously want to give it back.”
“Can it still be considered generous when all I want is to live with you in your home? It hardly seems like I’m giving much up.”
Smiling, I took his hand in mine. “It’s no longer just my house, Milo. It’s ours. And I think offering this to others in our pack will help those out who want to be closer to the pack alpha. We just need to finish your projects so it’s move-in ready.”
“I actually liked doing the work myself, with Silas’ help, of course.
I hope you don’t mind getting dirty with me?
” He winked, the move enough to cause the heat inside of me to rise once again.
I swore only one look from my sexy mate and I was itching to claim him all over again. Or let him claim me.
“Never,” I promised, my voice husky with want for him.
“Hey!” Silas’ voice broke the lust between us as he stepped closer into the house. “I was wondering when the two of you would be done fucking every second.” He was teasing, but I still felt possessive over my mate, so I grabbed Milo closer to my side.
“Nah, now it’s just once an hour. Much easier than before,” Milo joked, pulling me with him to greet Silas.
“Poor Darius,” Silas teased. “I’m sure a bit of reno work will help him regain his strength.”
I knew he was teasing, but now I felt like I had to show him just how strong I was. My wolf would not ever bow down from a challenge.
“Exactly,” I agreed easily. “We should tackle the bathroom you and I, then Milo can finish up in the kitchen.”
“Bathroom? I thought you were keeping it as is?”
“I was, but now that someone else is moving in, it needs to be done. I was fine with it, but for a family it really needs updating,” Milo explained. “Besides, the tiles are so hard to get clean, not to mention the floor tiles are really slippery when wet. Not at all optimal for a family.”
“Well then, I’m happy to help. Cass and Jeremy are finished with Cass’ old house so I’ll be moving in tomorrow,” Silas informed us, following me up the stairs.
“I thought you already lived there?”
“Well, I did, sort of, I slept on an air mattress in the living room, but now I can get my belongings moved in and everything.”
“What will happen to your old home?” I asked.
“I gave it to my sister.”
“I didn’t know you have siblings.”
“I only have her. My father was big on sleeping around the pack and one day her mother demanded he help take care of her. He paid the bills but she stayed with her mother.” I could tell Silas tried to be factual about this information, but his tone still showed his emotions on it.
“How old is she?” I dared ask.
“She just turned eighteen. Her mother is a piece of work, so knowing she has her own home helps me sleep better at night.”
“I bet,” I agreed, not able to even imagine how Silas was managing everything.
“So, um, I don’t know everything that went down when you got the alpha title, but do you fear your father will show his face around here again?”
“It’s the one thing I fear the most, I’m afraid, but there isn’t much I can do about it.” Silas opened the bathroom door and surveyed the room. “Want to get rid of the tiles first?”
I decided to drop the topic of his father since he seemed to need a break from it and moved into the bathroom as well and pointed to the sink. “We should remove the sink, bath, and toilet first.”
“He wants everything out?”
“Oh yes, everything goes. Better get your strength ready.”
He laughed. “Bring it.”
An hour later, Silas was a dirty and sweaty mess, and I was…basically the same. To be honest, we stank.
“Want me to order us dinner?” Milo asked from the stairs.
“Yes, please!” I called back, grinning at Silas.
“Do you think he’ll allow us to eat with him?” Silas asked, sniffing himself with a grimace.
Frowning, I did the same. It was worse than I’d thought. “We definitely need a shower before sitting on any furniture,” I agreed.
Milo came into the chaos that was the bathroom, showing us his phone.
“I’m thinking of diner food, but I don’t know if they deliver today or not.
” He eyed the room, then us, his nose wrinkling.
“Okay, you two seriously stink. Was it the toilet?” he questioned, eyeing the exposed tube where the toilet had been not even an hour ago.
“Actually, it was mostly the sink,” I explained, pointing to the exposed pipes. There was a lot of nasty stuff in there.”
Milo shuddered. “I can only imagine. So, new plan.” He pocketed his phone and clapped his hands. “You two need to shower and then the three of us will eat at the diner. Chop chop! I’m starving.”