Giggling at his mate’s antics, Ollie resumed walking to their bedroom. “I guess that means no claiming tonight, huh?”
Sighing, Mac muttered, “Unfortunately, it’ll have to wait…even though my wolf is going crazy because I haven’t bitten you yet.”
“Crazy, huh?” Ollie asked, grinning at his mate. “Maybe it would help if we took a shower together and jerked each other off.”
Raising an eyebrow, Mac said, “I love the sound of that…but are you sure you’re not too tired? Because I could give you a blow job instead.”
The image of his mate on his knees with Ollie’s cock in his mouth made his blood rush south. “Yesssss…best idea ever,” Ollie hissed, his tiredness gone. Grabbing Mac’s hand, he pulled him quickly down the hall to their bedroom, his need growing greater with each step they took.
~/~/~/~/~
Deep asleep, it took several moments for the cries to penetrate Indrik’s mind, and several more for him to realize where they were coming from. “Oh, hell!” he muttered, jumping out of bed and rushing over to the polar bear cub’s crib. Grabbing hold of the side rail, he lowered it before picking up the distressed cub. “Hey there, little one,” he crooned softly. “What’s the matter? Bad dream?”
The cub stared up at his savior, tears silently rolling down his fur, before his claws dug through Indrik’s t-shirt and into his skin. Then, pulling himself upright, the cub buried his face against Indrik’s neck, sobbing softly.
Wrapping his arms around the cub, Indrik held him tightly, murmuring words of comfort to him as he walked over to the rocking chair and slowly sat down. This wasn’t the first time his sleep had been interrupted by one of his rescues’ nightmares, and he knew it wouldn’t be the last for this cub until he could shift out of his animal form. Leaning his head against the back of the chair, Indrik rocked slowly while stroking the frightened cub’s back.
It took half an hour for the cub’s crying to slow down and another before it stopped with only an occasional sniffle, but Indrik continued rocking and humming. He’d learned from the other rescued children that the nightmares would return, andthe only way to avoid that was to hold the cub for the rest of the night—along with controlling his own anger.
That was one of the hardest things for him to do, but after the first rescue, it was something Indrik realized the children could sense; it reminded them of their captors. So he’d learned to bury that anger deep in his soul, ignoring the pain it caused him. Indrik knew he would eventually have to deal with it, but that wouldn’t happen until all the children had recovered from their traumatic experiences. And while some of them had made significant progress, there were still a few, including the cub in his arms, that had a long way to go.
Closing his eyes, Indrik inhaled the scent that all new shifters had, savoring it as he felt the tension leave the cub’s body. The darkness of his dream was gone and had given way to tiny snores. Relieved that the cub was sleeping peacefully once again, his mind shifted to thoughts about their new home at the Blackwood Pack. He was sure others thought he was crazy for moving to a wolf pack, but from the very first time he learned about Cody’s Home for Gay Boys, his gut told him it was where he belonged. Besides, with his menagerie of shifters, there weren’t any other options.
~/~/~/~/~
Wesley waited until his wife was asleep before he slipped out of bed and left their hospital room. Closing the door quietly behind him, he looked both ways to make sure the hall was empty before sniffing the air. When they’d arrived at the hospital in the Blackwood Pack house, Wesley had picked up the scent of his son, but before he could follow it, Mac and Ollie had led them to the room his wife was in. Regardless of what Jackson said, he knew Theo was close and was determined to find him. Only then would he be able to sleep. He turned toward Theo’sscent and headed down the hallway. The scent grew stronger as Wes padded softly along, passing several doors, until it suddenly faded and he realized he’d gone too far. Turning around, he retraced his steps, stopping in front of the last door he had passed.
Wesley inhaled a deep breath and held it for a moment before exhaling. Excitement coursed through him as the anticipation of seeing his son after all his years of confinement was almost too much for him, but his need to know if Theo was okay drove him to proceed. He turned the doorknob quietly and slowly pushed the door open. It took a moment for his eyes to adjust to the darkness of the room, but when they did, he discovered it was empty.
A soft cry of disappointment escaped his mouth before Wesley could stop it. He’d been so sure Theo was inside. Refusing to accept what his eyes told him, he stepped inside, closing the door behind him. Then, after flipping the light switch, he walked over to the bed and leaned down, inhaling the scent on the pillow. It took him a moment to understand what he had just smelled, but before he could react, the door swung open and Colton walked in.
Jerking upright, a guilty look crossed Wesley’s face before he quickly hid it and asked, “Is it true? Is my son pregnant?”
Colton looked at Wesley for a second before responding. “You know I can’t answer that.”
“You just did,” Wesley murmured. Shifting his gaze to the pillow, continued, “He’s too young…the cub will kill him…and when that happens, my wife will die as well.” He ran his hand over the pillow softly, whispering to himself before he turned back toColton. “I must see him to give him a chance of saving himself and his cub.”
Perplexed, Colton asked, “Are you a doctor?”
Shaking his head, Wesley said, “No…but I can give him the strength of my bear, which will help him and his cub survive.”
“I’m not sure I understand what you’re offering…if you do that, what happens to your bear?”
Wesley looked back at the pillow that had so recently supported his son’s head. It wouldn’t be the happy ending he’d prayed for every day he and his wife had been prisoners, but saving his wife, his son, and Theo’s cub would have to do. Shifting his gaze to Colton, he said, “I think you already know.”
Chapter 33
Colton studied Wesley for a moment before asking quietly, “Do you think so little of your son that he’d want you to die so he could live?”
Shaking his head, Wesley muttered, “It’s the only way to save him.”
“Bullshit!” Colton exclaimed. “You would be condemning him to live with your guilt for the rest of his life.”
“My guilt?”
“Yes, your fucking guilt. The guilt that’s written all over you about your failure to protect him. Now you probably think sacrificing your life will erase your guilt for that. But did you ever stop to think of what it’s going to do to your son…or your wife?” asked Colton, pausing for a few seconds to let Wesley answer. When only silence ensued, he continued. “No, you didn’t, so let me tell you that if you go through with your plan, Theo will spend the rest of his life riddled with guilt, blaming himself for everything. And his cub? What kind of life will he have with a father who is so…so…”
“Stop!” Wesley said, holding up his hand. “You’ve made yourself very clear…but I feel helpless! I can’t remember what happened to Theo the night our Alpha locked me and Heather up, but if my son went through anything close to what we did, I owe him for not saving him from it. And if that means giving up my life so Theo can have one, then so be it.”