Hagen Lynn Sweet Delight130410 0117

Brac Village 1

Sweet Delight

Kenway knows who his mate is. He is just waiting for Ross to
come home. In the meantime, he has to make sure Ross has a

place to come home to. Accepting a loan from Alpha Maverick of
Brac Village enables him to live a life he has always dreamed of.

Ross has met his mate and is desperate to get back to him, but

there are forces at work that not only try to keep them apart, but
are determined to take Ross away from the man he barely knows.

Ross flees to Brac Village and into the waiting arms of his mate,
only to discover the nightmare he left behind has followed him.

Can they get their bakery up and running, or will everyone they
care about be in danger, including each other?

Genre: Alternative (M/M or F/F), Shape-shifter,
Vampires/Werewolves
Length: 35,627 words

SWEET DELIGHT

Brac Village 1

Lynn Hagen

EVERLASTING CLASSIC

MANLOVE

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A SIREN PUBLISHING BOOK
IMPRINT: Everlasting Classic ManLove

SWEET DELIGHT
Copyright © 2013 by Lynn Hagen
E-book ISBN: 978-1-62242-689-8

First E-book Publication: April 2013

Cover design by Siren Publishing
All art and logo copyright © 2013 by Siren Publishing, Inc.

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SWEET DELIGHT

Brac Village 1

LYNN HAGEN

Chapter One

Kenway strode into the living room of the home he and his friends

had settled into just as Recker—a rhino shifter—was putting curtains
up in one of the windows. The large man looked like he was in his
element as he slid the bright colorful lace back and forth across the
rod until he finally took a step back and gave an approving nod.

To Kenway, the curtain looked like it was just hanging there, but

what did he know? He sucked at interior decorating. He guessed it
looked perfect and wonderful to Recker.

Paine was lounging on the couch, a mischievous glint in his green

eyes as he watched the rhino work. Kenway inwardly groaned. He
sure as shit didn’t want to hear the two arguing this morning, but by
the look on Paine’s face, the cheetah was feeling playful.

“Dude, that looks like what I coughed up this morning…in a hair

ball,” Paine teased with wickedness from the couch, his hands tucked
behind his head, his legs propped up on the red chest they had as a
coffee table. The man looked like he was languidly enjoying his
morning, but Kenway knew that Paine could transform from
unenergetic to lethal in seconds. He was a cheetah, after all. Lazy as
the day is long, but cunning and deadly.

Lynn Hagen

He made one hell of a predator, but asking him to help with

something? Forget it.

Recker’s mouth was set in annoyance as he pushed the curtains

back and forth again, as if trying to space the fabric out evenly. “My
curtains do not look like puke. They have a nice daisy-yellow pattern
that complements the yellow and white wall. These curtains are sure
to brighten up the drab room.”

Kenway kept his smile deceptively composed. Recker was a big

man. Huge. But he liked making things look nice. Although Kenway
wasn’t going to point out that Recker shouldn’t take up interior
designing as a living. The man had a very short temper. Recker was
easygoing, until someone pissed him off, and then watch out.

“Recker, you’re color blind. How in the hell do you know it

doesn’t look like puke?” Paine pointed out and touched on the rhino’s
sore spot at the same time. He smiled at Recker with the mischievous
grin the cheetah shifter was known for.

Recker glanced at the set of curtains and then at the wall. Doubt

was creeping into his pale-blue eyes, and the man looked like he was
becoming agitated. “They really don’t match? How can they not go
together?”

Kenway knew that Recker liked sprucing a place up. Maybe the

man had assumed the daisies were yellow because they were daisies.
Although they were in fact, yellow.

The rhino shifter was born with monochromacy. He saw the world

in black, white, and grey. Or more to the point, he saw the world
through depths of light and dark. Recker had learned over the years
what colors were supposed to complement each other, but as far as
seeing them, that didn’t happen.

The only reason Paine wasn’t through a wall for teasing Recker

was because they were a tightly knit group. Had anyone outside their
group made fun of him, Recker would be trying to kill them right
now. He was teased growing up, mercilessly.

His colorblindness was the one subject he went ballistic about.

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“It looks great!” Spencer said as he walked into the room. The

short little impala shifter smiled as he walked over to the window,
patting Recker on his back. “I love how the yellow daisies match the
color of the wall.”

Recker growled as he shot a glaring expression at Paine, ripping

the curtains from the rod. Yeah, the man was pissed, and Kenway
wouldn’t be surprised if Recker went after Paine. He wasn’t sure why
Recker tore the curtains down though.

“It’s a matter of opinion.” The cheetah shifter smiled, seeming

unfazed by Recker’s growing agitation.

“If you’re done screwing with Recker, we need to head out. Don’t

forget that we all need to find jobs.” Kenway headed out of the living
room. “Go find your brother,” he called over his shoulder to Paine.

Paine swung his arm out, his hand gesturing toward the stairs.

“Steele is still sleeping.”

“Then wake him,” Kenway said with a growl. “Our savings won’t

last long, and I like living here.” Although he had almost had it out
with the Lakeland bears over a pig. Kenway hadn’t meant to insult the
human, but who in the hell carried a baby pig in a carrier? The bears
sure as hell had some weird mates.

Thinking about mates only made Kenway think of Ross.
His mate.
He had met the guy at the Lakelands’ when his mate had come to

warn everyone about an attack on the fey village. Kenway had
thought he was going to go nuts when he spotted Ross standing there
looking sexy as hell, tempting Kenway in ways that almost made him
take Ross right there in the barn.

Thank goodness he had a little more self-control than that. Not

much though. Not when every sense in him had gone haywire and all
Kenway could think about was claiming the slim man.

He was usually pretty laid back, observed more than he spoke, and

wasn’t one to do things on impulse. But Ross was the exception to the

Lynn Hagen

rule. The man was an exception to every damn rule Kenway
possessed.

His mate had also been starving. The vampire had acted as if he

hadn’t eaten in weeks. Kenway had given the vampire his wrist, but
wanted the man to drink from his neck as he fucked the hell out of the
slim vampire and claimed him.

Yeah, the man wreaked havoc on every sense of self-control

Kenway owned.

Unfortunately, Ross had to get back to his coven before his leader

knew he was gone. Kenway didn’t like that. Ross was his mate. That
should have been the end of it. But Ross insisted on returning.

He didn’t understand it, but Kenway hadn’t forced his mate to

stay.

Now he was five seconds away from driving to the city to go get

his mate, but Ross had promised to return. He didn’t want to seem
pushy, but fuck if he didn’t miss the man. Kenway ran his hand over
his head in frustration, only to remember that he had gone to
Heaven’s shop and had all his hair cut off. Now it was just a short
crop lying on his head. He still wasn’t sure why he had done it. It felt
weird as hell not having his long hair any longer.

“Mind if I catch a ride with you?” Styles asked as he exited the

kitchen. “My truck is broken down again.”

“Sure,” Kenway said as he waited for the two cheetahs to get their

lazy asses downstairs. He had a feeling he was going to have to go
upstairs and get them. With his luck, Paine had gone back to bed.
Paine and Steele were excellent hunters, great fighters—the best. The
two were good friends to have, but fuck if they weren’t lazy as hell. “I
spotted a garage in town. Maybe you could have them tow your truck
and take a look at it.”

The coyote shifter shook his head, his lips set in a grim line.

“Even if I could afford it, I don’t like being around wolf shifters.
Wolves and coyotes haven’t been known to get along from my
experience.”

Sweet Delight

Then why in the hell was Styles asking for a ride into town?

Kenway’s morning wasn’t getting off to a great start, so he didn’t
even bother to ask. He knew that Styles had a few run-ins with wolf
shifters in the past, and they hadn’t been pleasant. But the coyote was
living in a town full of them now. He was either going to have to get
used to them or…Kenway didn’t know. He didn’t want Styles to
leave. The group of them had grown close, and Styles was more like a
brother to him.

They originally started out with more shifters in their group. But

Spencer’s brother and Recker’s twin brother had been killed when
their small community had been attacked by the same wolf shifters
that had attacked the Lakeland ranch when they first showed up in
Brac Village. This only cemented Styles’s belief that all wolf shifters
were the scum of the earth. He was surprised Spencer wasn’t insane
by now…or Recker.

But Spencer seemed to have bounced back, somewhat. The little

impala shifter had mourned his loss and then had come back to the
land of the living. Recker’s mood had only gotten worse. The rhino
was paranoid now. He hated strangers and protected the household
with a vengeance.

Recker swore Spencer was too small to defend himself and it was

his job to keep any more harm from befalling their small group.
Kenway wasn’t sure where Recker had gotten that idea, but he didn’t
argue with the rhino.

“I’ll go get those two,” Styles said as he jogged up the stairs.

Kenway was looking forward to this. Styles would have them out of
bed and downstairs in no time flat. The coyote didn’t fuck around.

“I’m going!” Steele shouted from upstairs as Paine raced down

the steps.

“I said I was coming. You didn’t have to send Styles upstairs,”

Paine complained as he walked out of the side door.

Kenway just chuckled, amused beyond belief by the disgruntled

look on the cheetah’s face.

Lynn Hagen

“He’s fucking nuts!” Steele shouted as he raced after his brother.
“Mission accomplished,” Styles said with a very wicked grin on

his face as he walked down the steps. “Can we go now?”

“Lead the way,” Kenway said as he walked out behind the man.
The brothers were sitting in the back of Kenway’s blue Chevy

truck, their faces tilted back, basking in the rays of the sun. It was
pretty damn bright out this morning. Kenway didn’t see a cloud in the
sky.

“Why are you going into town?” Styles asked once they climbed

into the cab.

“I have to go see Maverick. I want to let him know that we don’t

want our own separate places.”

A grim look settled over Styles’s face. None of them wanted to be

separated. They had gone through hell and back since forming their
little group, and most of the men had a hard time even before that.
Paine and Steele had lost their two brothers to a senseless killing
before joining their group.

They liked staying together in their hodgepodge little family. He

didn’t think the alpha would have a problem with them staying at the
Manchester place. It wasn’t a huge house like the Lakelands lived in,
and it was a shoebox compared to the mansion the alpha lived in with
his extremely large family. But it was home to them now.

And Kenway liked the place.
“Just drop me off at Santiago Cycles.”
Kenway cut his eyes over to Styles. “You know that three wolves

own the place, right?”

Styles shrugged as he glanced out of the window. “They’re

looking for a bike mechanic. I don’t have to like them to work for
them.”

“True, but it helps.” Kenway didn’t get the man. The coyote

wasn’t willing to go to the garage in town because it was pack owned,
but he would work for three wolves? The guy made no sense to him
whatsoever. Kenway knew the hardship Styles had suffered with wolf

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shifters. He understood why the man felt the way he did. But what he
didn’t understand was Styles’s way of thinking sometimes.

Styles turned, grinning at Kenway. Why didn’t he trust that grin?

“It just means I won’t have to attend any company functions.”

The dude was strange.
“By the way, Pa Lakeland has invited us over for dinner tonight.”
“Really?” Styles asked, his voice deceptively casual even though

Kenway knew the man loved going over there. “I could use a good
home-cooked meal.”

“Styles, you get a home-cooked meal every night,” Kenway

pointed out. Spencer was a magnificent cook, and made sure they ate
well, even if sometimes it was just grilled cheese and soup. The man
had a flair when it came to inventing different ways to prepare the
same damn thing.

Kenway looked back when Steele tapped on the glass window.

“Slow down. There’s a man standing by a truck off to your right.”

Glancing at the direction Steele was pointing to, Kenway saw the

man. He was standing in front of his truck, his hood opened. Steering
the truck to the side of the road, Kenway parked and then got out.

“Need some help?” Kenway asked as the cheetah shifters jumped

from the back of the truck. Kenway wasn’t sure what the brothers
were going to do, considering they didn’t know a damn thing about
trucks. He didn’t either, but if the man needed a lift, Kenway could at
least help in that manner.

“It just stopped on me,” the man said as he looked from the engine

to Kenway. “To be honest, I have no idea what I’m looking at.”

Kenway stuck his hand out. “Name’s Kenway. And this is Paine

and Steele.”

“Hawk.” The man shook Kenway’s hand. “We’ve fought by each

other’s side when that fire-spitting demon showed up, but I’ve never
been formally introduced.”

“He’s a wolf,” Styles shouted from the cab of Kenway’s truck.

Kenway gave Hawk an uneasy grin, but wanted to walk over to the

Lynn Hagen

truck and duct-tape Styles’s mouth shut. He understood the coyote’s
dislike of wolves, he really did, but things were different now. These
wolves weren’t out to harm them. And they lived in the wolves’ town.
They had to play nice.

“That I am.” Hawk nodded. “Can you give me a lift into town?”
“Hell, no,” Styles shouted once again.
“Sure,” Kenway said, shooting a glare at Styles.
The coyote shrugged.
“I think I’ll sit in the back.” Hawk eyed Styles and then climbed

in back with Paine and Steele. Kenway wasn’t too sure that was a
better option. The brothers were known for playing just a little too
much.

Kenway climbed back behind the driver’s seat.
“He’s a wolf,” Styles mumbled.
“Yeah, I heard you shout it loud and clear the first time,” he said

as he pulled from the shoulder and headed into town.

Kenway’s head snapped around when he heard a loud thunk.

Paine was holding his head, and Steele was laughing hysterically.

“What happened?” Kenway shouted to the back.
“P–Paine tried to touch Hawk’s hair.” Steele burst out laughing

again. “But I guess Hawk wasn’t having it, because…because he
smacked Paine’s head into the w–window.”

Paine was smiling, although he was rubbing the right side of his

head. “He has nice hair.”

“Back off, pussycat,” Hawk said with a low, menacing growl.
Kenway chuckled.
Styles growled.
Once they pulled in front of Santiago Cycles, Hawk hopped out.

“Thanks, I can get home from here.”

“You’re welcome,” Kenway said as he shook Hawk’s hand and

watched Styles slam the truck door, grumbling as he walked into the
bike shop. Kenway winced. His truck was manufactured in the sixties.

Sweet Delight

Although it wasn’t in bad shape, abusing the damn thing wasn’t a
good idea.

“I take it your friend doesn’t like wolves?” Hawk asked as his

eyes grazed over Styles’s retreating form.

Kenway sighed. This was not going to be smooth sailing. “He’s

had a bad run-in with them a time or two.” It wasn’t his place to tell
Styles’s story. That was for the coyote alone to tell.

“Understandable.” Hawk nodded then looked quizzically at

Kenway. “But he does know he lives in a village full of us, right?”

Kenway gave a slight nod of his head, but wished he could just

walk away. He hoped Hawk didn’t ask too many more questions. “He
does.”

“Well, thanks again,” Hawk said before crossing the street and

heading for the diner.

Kenway turned to the two cheetahs. “Start at one end of town and

don’t stop until you’re both hired somewhere.”

“Aye, aye, captain,” Steele grumbled as he and his brother walked

across the street and headed into the diner. Kenway sighed. This was
going to be a long morning.

* * * *

Kenway was frustrated as hell by midafternoon. No one was

hiring. How in the hell was he supposed to live here if he couldn’t
find work? Exhaling his irritation, Kenway hopped into his truck and
headed toward Maverick’s. He would pick his friends up once he was
finished talking with the alpha.

There was no way he was bringing Styles along with him. The

coyote would have them kicked out of town quicker than Kenway
could say boo.

Kenway decided that once he pulled into the drive and was shown

in to Maverick’s office, he was going to ask the alpha if he knew

Lynn Hagen

where Kenway could find some work. There had to be something
around this town he could do.

It didn’t matter how many times he saw the Den, Kenway was

always impressed. The red brick home was freaking huge. Parking his
truck, Kenway pocketed his keys and headed toward the front door.
He could see a shadow behind the glass even before he knocked. He
really didn’t want to come here asking for a job, but the town wasn’t
big. If Kenway wanted to say, he needed a job. Kenway also needed
to let the alpha know that none of the men in his group wanted to
move out of the Manchester place. They had sunk a lot of their money
into fixing it up.

The door swung open to show Maverick standing there.
“Nice to see you again,” Maverick said as he waved Kenway in

and then walked to his office. He took a seat behind his desk, kicking
his booted feet up and lacing his fingers together, resting his hands on
his stomach. “Now, what can I do for you?”

Kenway took a seat in the leather chair in front of Maverick’s

mahogany desk, trying to stretch out and seem just as relaxed as the
alpha—even if he was a bundle of nerves.

“My small pack wants to stay in the Manchester house, if that’s all

right by you.”

Maverick pulled at the patch of hair under his lip, his expression

thoughtful. “But isn’t that place a bit on the small side for such large
shifters?”

“It isn’t as large as your home, but for us, it’s a perfect size.”

Okay, maybe it was a bit small, but they didn’t need much. They had
lost so much in their last town that Kenway knew no one in his group
would object.

“If that’s what you want. I was looking into building additional

houses out that way to accommodate your group, but if you want to
stay where you are at, that’s fine by me.”

Kenway was glad. Some of the shifters—hell, all of them—

couldn’t afford a mortgage on a new home. Living together, they

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could split the rent, which was a hell of a lot better on everyone’s
wallet. He liked the fact that the alpha was so easygoing. Kenway
knew better than to piss the man off, but as far as the small stuff,
Maverick was pretty cool about it.

“Anything else?” Maverick asked.
Kenway hated to ask, he really did. But he had to set aside his

pride if he was going to have any hopes of finding a job. He sat up
and leaned a bit toward the alpha. “Do you know of anywhere I can
find work? I’ve been all over town, but no one seems to be hiring.”

Maverick pulled his feet down from his desk and sat forward,

cocking his head to the side as he studied Kenway for a moment.
Kenway was a buffalo shifter and not much scared him, so why did he
feel like squirming under Maverick’s intense gaze?

“How would you like to have your own business?” he asked as he

twined his fingers together and rested them on his desk.

“I would love to, but I don’t have the startup money,” Kenway

confessed.

“I had a dream about you last night.”
Okay, that wasn’t in the least bit weird. Kenway inched back,

wondering if that was a come-on. He was flattered, but not interested
in the big biker-looking alpha. “About?” he ventured carefully.

Maverick chuckled. “Definitely not about your hairy ass.”
Kenway relaxed.
“I dreamt you ran your own bakery. But there was…never mind.”
Okay, there was no way Kenway was going to let the alpha stop

now. His curiosity was piqued and he wanted to know. “There was
what?” he asked as he sat forward once more.

“Are you sure you want to know?” Maverick asked. The playful

gleam in his light-grey eyes was gone, replaced by grimness. That
was not reassuring, but he really wanted to know.

“You’ve got my interest,” he admitted honestly.
“There was someone there with you. A vampire. But he wasn’t

working there, he was hiding there.”

Lynn Hagen

Kenway shot to his feet. “Ross.”
“Who?” Maverick asked as he furrowed his dark brows.
“Ross is my mate. He lives at the Northern coven. He said he

would come back to me, but he hasn’t returned yet. Do you think
something is wrong?”

Maverick grabbed the phone on the desk and began to dial.

Kenway had no idea who Maverick was calling, but he hoped the
alpha found out where Ross was. Kenway missed the man terribly.

“Dante, this is Alpha Maverick over in Brac Village. I’m calling

about someone in your coven name Ross.”

Kenway felt the urge to pace Maverick’s office as the wolf shifter

talked on the phone. He wasn’t sure why, but his gut instinct was
screaming that something was wrong. He should have heard from
Ross by now. The vampire could have popped in, literally, and let
Kenway know that he was all right. Since Ross hadn’t done that thus
far, Kenway was worried.

Maverick looked grim as he hung up the phone, his fingers

lingering as he glanced over at Kenway.

“Kenway, Ross hasn’t been seen at the coven in a while.”
Kenway mentally stumbled back as he wondered where in the hell

his mate was. “What did Dante say?”

“He said that the last time he saw Ross, the vampire had said he

had found his mate and was leaving the coven. Dante gave him his
best wishes. He hasn’t seen him since. He thought Ross was with
you.”

Kenway could feel his buffalo trying to burst free. Worry and

anger filled him to overflowing. Something had happened to Ross,
and he planned on finding out what that something was.

“Where do I start looking?” He didn’t know this area very well.

Kenway hadn’t a clue where to start his search.

“I’ll send Hawk with you. He’s a damn good tracker. Cody is our

best, but he runs the diner. Hawk has more free time.”

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Kenway nodded. “I just gave him a ride into town. His truck was

broken down on the side of the road. He’s at the diner.”

If Kenway had let Styles stop him from helping Hawk, then he

knew for damn sure that Maverick wouldn’t be helping him. Things
were different in this town. These wolves actually cared about their
residents.

If Styles didn’t let go of his hate for the wolves, he was going to

miss out on making good friends and damn good allies.

Maverick reached for the phone. “I’ll call him. Meet him at the

diner and he’ll help you out from there.”

Kenway started for the door.
“Kenway,” Maverick called out.
He turned.
“About the bakery. I’ll loan you the startup money. We’ll work

out a loan repayment later, when you find your mate.”

Kenway nodded his appreciation as he walked out of Maverick’s

office. He would be happy as hell right now about starting his own
business, if he wasn’t so damn worried about his mate.

Lynn Hagen

Chapter Two

Ross had no idea where he was. He had tried numerous times to

disperse his molecules, but with the bracelet around his wrist, it
wasn’t happening. He had no idea that there were handcuffs made
specifically for vampires. That was news to him. He wondered if
Dante knew about them. And if the coven leader had, why in the fuck
hadn’t Ross been informed?

He had tried over and over again to get the damn thing off, but it

wasn’t budging. It was as if there was some sort of spell or something
on it. Every time Ross tried to work it free, it slipped right back onto
his wrist.

If he didn’t get out of here soon, Ross was seriously

contemplating cutting his own damn wrists off. Okay, not really, but
he was frustrated as hell.

Ross stopped outside a building, hearing a lot of cheering and

loud music. He glanced up to see the name of the place.

Diablo’s.
Just where in the hell was he? There was a large, beefy man

standing at the doorway, eyeing Ross suspiciously. He could smell
shifter on the man, but wasn’t sure what kind of shifter. He was
starting to wonder if he should go in there for help. The place didn’t
look too respectable.

“You here to audition?” the man asked, leaning back against the

brick wall in the small alcove of the doorway, looking as if he hadn’t
a care in the world.

“Audition?” For what? From the looks of the place, it wasn’t

going to be anything he wanted to do.

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“Go on inside and talk to Diablo. He’s behind the bar,” the man

said as he waved Ross in.

Having nothing to lose at this point, Ross ventured inside. There

was a throng of patrons sitting by the stage as a drag queen strutted
across large platform. And that was definitely a drag queen. The
guy…er…girl sashayed back and forth, giving the men a show as
he…er…she began to undress.

Holy shit! He was in a strip club!
Just where in the hell was he?
Ross quickly turned around, making a beeline for the door. He

wasn’t a stripper and had no desire to become one either. He had no
idea why the bouncer had sent him in, but Ross was getting the hell
out of here. Audition my ass! There was no way in fuck he was
dressing up like a woman and…no way!

“Where you going, hon?”
Ross yelped when he was grabbed by the wrist and hauled back

into the club by some drunken man. The guy’s breath stunk to high
heaven, and he wasn’t easy on the eyes. Ross fought to get free, but
the man was too strong, his grip made of steel.

“Let me go!” He smacked at the man’s hands as he twisted back

and forth. He was going to kill his brother for slapping the bracelet on
his wrist and leaving him here…wherever here was. That little shit
was meaner than hell, but strong as crap, too. They had never gotten
along, but he hadn’t ever thought the vampire would stoop this low.
There was mean, and then there was downright evil. And Virgil
belonged to the latter. Ross wasn’t even sure why Dante didn’t do the
world a favor and kill the vampire. Brother or not, the man was going
to kill someone one of these days.

It wasn’t that he didn’t love Virgil. Ross honestly did. Virgil was

his brother, after all. But the vampire had been nothing but torturous
to Ross since he could remember.

As Ross fought to get free, he thought about Kenway. All Ross

wanted was his mate. He missed the buffalo shifter desperately. They

Lynn Hagen

had only met once, but Ross felt a deep connection to the man and
wanted to be back in his presence. Hell, who was he kidding? He
wanted to be back in the man’s arms, getting fucked like nobody’s
business and being claimed.

“There are tables in the back that we can sit at and play, or we

could go to a back room.”

“Not on your life!” Ross shouted, feeling the tears well up in his

eyes. Damn it. He didn’t want to cry in a place like this, but he was
feeling trapped with no way out. He saw half-naked men strutting
around the place, as if they were on the prowl for sex, and Ross felt
his stomach roll.

“Let the man go.”
Ross snapped his head around when he heard the deep rumbling

growl behind him. His eyes widened, wondering if he had just gone
from the frying pan to the fire. The man was huge!

“Sorry, Wayland. I didn’t know he was yours.”
Wait, what? “I’m not—”
“He’s with me. So let everyone know that he’s off-limits.”

Wayland took a step toward the drunken man, his lip pulled back into
a snarl. The guy swallowed hard as he backed up, releasing Ross.

“I’ll do that.” The man spun on his heel and took off deeper into

the club.

Ross glanced up at the large man. “Thank you.”
Wayland raked his eyes over Ross with a sharp and assessing

look. “You’re new here.”

“I–I’m not technically here,” Ross stammered. He could see the

faint eager look in Wayland’s eyes, and he had to make it clear that
this was all a big mistake.

“You look like you’re standing here to me.”
Oh, hell.
“I’m lost,” Ross said as he began to back toward the door. “I

stumbled in here on accident.”

Sweet Delight

“Wait,” Wayland said, but Ross was heading for the door as if his

life depended on getting out of there. He wasn’t waiting around for
anyone. Not in this place. He didn’t want to play at a table or be taken
into a back room. He just wanted to get the hell out of the strip club
and go home.

Where are you, Kenway?
When the bouncer held his hand up, stopping Ross from leaving,

Ross nearly screamed in frustration. He wanted out of this fucking
place!

“Wayland wants to talk to you,” the bouncer said lazily, jerking

his chin back toward the bar.

“So?” he said exasperatedly.
“So,” the bouncer said. “When a Demon Warrior wants to talk,

you listen.”

Demon Warrior? Ross had never heard of a Demon Warrior.

Were they the good guys? He wasn’t sure who to trust, but he knew
he had to trust someone if he was going to get out of this place. He
had been wandering around for too damn long. He had already run
from so many different creatures that his head was spinning. He was
tired of running. All he wanted to do was go home.

No, he wanted Kenway.
Ross waited by the door, praying he wasn’t going to make a

mistake by trusting this guy. If Wayland proved to be a lecherous
character, Ross was going to lose it. He had been propositioned so
many times since he’d been here that he never wanted to hear about
sex again.

“This way,” Wayland said as he nodded outside.
Ross walked past the bouncer, giving him the evil eye. The man

gave a low chuckle and shrugged.

“Leave Diesel alone,” Wayland said from behind Ross. “He was

only doing his job.”

Lynn Hagen

“Does his job include holding someone against their will when

they want to leave?” Ross snapped. He was tired, hungry, and sick of
this place.

Wayland gave a low growl as the two stepped out into the night.

That was another thing about this strange place. It was always
nighttime. The sun never came up…ever. Being a vampire, that was a
relief, but it was still weird.

“He does what he has to do.”
Ross tossed his hands into the air. “What kind of an answer is

that?” The man made no damn sense to him, but neither did this place.

“Just follow me.” Wayland began to walk down the street, leaving

Ross behind. Ross stood there for a moment, wondering if he should
follow when he heard a loud scream coming from Diablo’s. He
wasn’t stupid. He took off after Wayland just as fast as his legs would
carry him.

“Where are you from?” Wayland asked when Ross caught up to

him.

“Earth,” Ross replied. It seemed like the logical thing to say since

Ross knew for a fact this place wasn’t on any map.

Wayland chuckled. “No shit. I mean, where about?”
“Have you heard of Dante’s coven?”
Wayland shook his head.
“Christian’s coven?”
Wayland chuckled and nodded. The smile lightened the man’s

face and made him seem almost docile. No, not really. But the man
looked a hell of a lot friendlier when he smiled. “I know Christian.”

“Good, can you take me to him?” Ross asked as he panted, trying

his best to keep up with Wayland’s long strides. The man sure as hell
walked fast. Ross was a vampire, born with preternatural speed, but
Wayland was putting him to shame.

“I can do that,” Wayland said. “Follow me.” The man walked

down an alley between some restaurant called Malcor’s Melting Pot
and a coffeehouse called Jake’s Java. Ross raised a brow.

Sweet Delight

“You want me to follow you down an alley?” he asked

suspiciously. “And why am I supposed to trust you?”

“Because, babe, I’m your only way out of the demon realm,”

Wayland answered as he continued to walk down the dark alleyway.
Oh, this was not good. Ross had a choice to make. Either he could
keep wandering around this demon realm—which, now that he knew
where he was, it didn’t make him feel one ounce better—or he could
pray Wayland was on the up-and-up and follow him.

Ross worried his lower lip as he glanced around. There was no

way he was staying stuck in this place. He was starving and so
freaking tired that he could lie on the damn ground and sleep for a
week.

“Are you coming?” Wayland called.
Was he? Fuck. “Yes,” Ross shouted as he hurried down the

alleyway. He saw Wayland standing off to the side, leaning against a
wall. Ross eased closer, wondering what was going to happen now.

“Come here.”
“Uh-uh.” Ross shook his head. “This is close enough.” He wasn’t

stupid.

“How am I going to transport you to the human realm if I don’t

touch you?” Wayland asked, a shitty-ass grin on his face.

Ross began to back up. “Touch me how?”
Wayland straightened, his face losing its teasing look to be

replaced by pure anger. His eyes began to glow red as he stared at
Ross. “Don’t. Move.”

Ross froze. He wasn’t sure what in the hell was going on, but

Wayland looked scary as the devil. He swallowed hard, his throat
drying out as a large lump formed. “What—”

Wayland pressed a finger to his lips, silencing Ross. This wasn’t

good. Not good at all. Ross slowly turned his head and gasped.

“Move closer to me, slowly,” Wayland said so low that Ross

almost didn’t hear him. He took a step back, and then another,
watching the scene in front of him. There was a man slumped on the

Lynn Hagen

ground and another sucking at the slumped man’s mouth. Not kissing
him. No, because the man leaning over the other had his lips inches
away.

“He’s a soul-sucker.”
Ross so didn’t like the sound of that.
“Stay right here,” Wayland growled as he began to move forward.

Ross had no problem staying right where he was. He didn’t want that
thing coming anywhere near him. He liked his soul exactly where it
was, inside of him.

“Having fun?” Wayland called out.
The man…er…thing jumped back and then took off, Wayland

giving chase.

“Wait!” Ross called out, but Wayland was gone. He was left in

the alley with the slumped-over man. Ross stepped closer, unsure if
he should check to see if the guy was dead. He knew he had to. He
couldn’t just leave the man there for another soul-sucker to come
along.

“Hey, buddy,” Ross said as he used one finger to push at the

man’s shoulder. “You okay?”

The man moaned, grabbing his head as he began to blink his eyes

open. Ross jumped back. In this place, he wasn’t taking any chances.

“What happened?” the man asked as he glanced around.
“I think you were about to get your brains sucked out,” Ross said

as he continued to step backward. Now that he looked at the man, he
could see the guy wasn’t a shrimp.

“That bastard!” the man growled as he pushed to his feet, swaying

slightly. “I’m going to kill Fisher.”

“Fisher?”
“The fucking dipshit demon that tricked me,” the man replied as

he walked away, turning right when he reached the street.

Okay.
Ross glanced around the alley, seeing that he was truly alone. He

blew out a long breath and walked back toward the street, wondering

Sweet Delight

what in the hell he was going to do now. It seemed like he was never
going to get out of this place. What did he have to do to get some
help, commit murder?

He just might do that when he got his hands on that stinking

brother of his. He knew the vampire didn’t like him, but this was low.
Ross stilled when he saw a man walking down the street with a dog
on a leash. The man walking his dog wasn’t what made him pause. It
was the two-headed dog that made him think that maybe he should
hurry in the other direction.

“You look a little lost,” the man said as he approached Ross. “Do

you need some help?”

“I–I’m looking for Wayland. Do you know him?”
The man grinned and Ross breathed a sigh of relief when he saw

the fangs. Thank fuck he had finally run into another vampire. “I
know Wayland. I know Rainerio as well.”

“Who?” Ross asked, keeping his eye on both dogs, or was it one?
“The Demon Warriors.”
Ross nodded quickly. “That’s what Wayland was called. Can you

help me find him?”

“Sure,” the man said and pointed down the street. “I’ll do one

better and take you to their apartment building.”

“Thanks,” Ross said. “I’m Ross.”
“Peter.” The man stuck out his hand and Ross shook it. “Now,

follow me.”

“Uh, nice dogs?”
Peter chuckled. “Have you never seen a two-headed dog before?”
Ross shook his head, watching the dog, er, dogs yap at him.
“They are Mitzy and Mickey, and they have two separate

personalities,” Peter boasted proudly.

Yeah, Ross needed to haul ass out of this strange place. Never in

his life had he seen anything with two heads, and he wasn’t sure if he
ever wanted to see one again. It was just too bizarre.

Lynn Hagen

“Here we are,” Peter said as he pointed toward the large apartment

building in front of them.

Ross glanced at the building and then back at Peter. “Where’s the

door?”

“There isn’t one.”
Okay, he was getting a massive headache here. All Ross wanted to

do was get home! How was that complicated in any way? “Then how
do I get in?”

“Oh,” Peter said as if he just remembered he had left out that vital

piece of information. “You just yell for one of the Demon Warriors.”

“Really?” Ross asked. “Why not just hit a buzzer?”
“Because,” Peter said, lowering his voice. “They don’t want

anyone, including the demons and creatures from hell, just waltzing in
the place.”

Yeah, he so needed to get out of here. He didn’t even want to

think about creatures from hell. “Who should I call?” He knew
Wayland was chasing a soul-sucker down, so he wasn’t an option, and
Ross didn’t know any other Demon Warriors.

“Well, you have a dozen men to choose from. You could call

Hondo, Kane, Rainerio, Phoenyx, Cadeym, Kobe—”

“Just pick one,” Ross said as he reached up and began to massage

his temples. This was unreal. If he didn’t need Peter’s help, he would
tell the squirrelly man to go walk his dogs.

“Hondo!”
Ross winced at Peter’s loud voice. He already had a damn

headache. The man didn’t need to shout.

Ross blinked a few times when an extremely large man walked

from the side of the building. He wasn’t sure if he should wait or run
like hell. The only thing that kept him rooted to the spot was the easy
smile on the man’s face.

“You rang?” Hondo asked. Ross sure as shit hoped this was

Hondo.

Sweet Delight

“Yeah, Ross needs your help,” Peter said as he waved a hand at

Ross. Both men turned and stared at him.

“You work at Diablo’s?” Hondo asked.
Why on earth did everyone think Ross was a stripper? What was

with these people? “No,” he said, keeping the biting tone from
coming through. “I was tricked into coming into this bizarre place and
need to get back to the human realm.”

That was the word Wayland used, right?
“Really?” Peter said as he looked Ross up and down. “I apologize,

but I kinda thought you worked at Diablo’s as well.”

Ross growled.
“Where do you want to go?” Hondo asked.
“Home.” No, wait. If he went home, then his brother just might

try to trick him again. With this bracelet on his wrist, Ross would be
helpless to stop the little bastard. “Do you know where Brac Village
is?”

Hondo’s grin lit up his face, softening his features. “I sure do. You

want to go to Maverick’s?”

“No, there is a farmhouse a few miles from there. Do you know

the Lakelands?” That was the last place Ross had seen Kenway.

Gods, just thinking about his mate made Ross’s chest hurt. He

wanted to be enveloped in the big man’s arms once again. It had felt
perfect and right being held by the large buffalo shifter. And once he
got back, Ross was going to tell Dante about Virgil’s conniving ass.

“I don’t know the Lakelands, but once we get to Brac Village, just

point the way,” Hondo said as he jerked his head to the side. “Follow
me.”

Gee, didn’t that sound familiar? “An alleyway?”
Hondo grinned. “How’d you know?”
“Because,” Ross said as he hurried along, “Wayland brought me

into an alleyway when he was supposed to take me home, but he ran
after a soul-sucker.”

Hondo stopped walking and turned. “Where?”

Lynn Hagen

“Oh, no,” Ross protested, waving his hand back and forth. “I’ll

tell you where just as soon as you get me home. I don’t need another
ride taking off on me.”

Hondo’s lips pressed into a thin line but he nodded. “Then let’s

make this quick.”

Ross walked down the alleyway and then yelped when Hondo

grabbed him and walked into a shadow. Gods, he was going to be
sick.

Sweet Delight

Chapter Three

Kenway had been over every inch of Brac Village, and Dante,

Ross’s coven leader, had been put on alert. There really wasn’t much
Kenway could do, and he hated that feeling. His stomach was in
twisted knots from worry. If something happened to his mate,
Kenway was going to hunt the bastard down who had harmed Ross
and make him slowly and painfully die.

“Hey, Kenway,” Spencer said as he walked into the kitchen.

“Chauncey Lakeland is on the phone.” Spencer wiggled the house
phone in front of Kenway as he bit into an apple.

Kenway snatched the phone from Spencer’s hand, ignoring the

small man when he rolled his eyes. “Hello?”

“I think I have someone here who belongs to you. His name is

Ross,” Chauncey said from the other end. “He’s the vampire who
warned us about the attack on the fey village.”

Kenway felt his heart beating again as relief washed through him.

“Keep him there. I’m on my way.”

“You got it. If he tries to leave, do you want me to hogtie him?”
“No!” Kenway growled out. “Just make sure he doesn’t disappear

again.”

“I’ll sit here and stare at him until you come collect him.”
Kenway shook his head. He had met Chauncey a few times, and

had assumed the bear shifter had a few screws loose. Now he knew
for certain the man was nutty. “I’m on my way.”

“I’ll be waiting in anticipation,” Chauncey said and then hung up.
Just what in the hell was wrong with the bear?

Lynn Hagen

“I’ll be back, Spencer. I have to go get my mate at the Lakelands’

place,” Kenway said as he set the phone down.

“Oh, I want to go!” Spencer said as he bounced around. “We were

supposed to go there for dinner anyway.”

“I had other things on my mind,” Kenway said as he headed for

the side door. “Come on.” Kenway stopped and looked over his
shoulder. “Shouldn’t you let Recker know where you are going? You
know he has a fit when he can’t find you.”

“Recker, I’m going with Kenway!”
Kenway’s eyes bugged as he wiggled a finger in his ear. For a

little shifter, Spencer was loud as fuck.

“Where?” Recker asked as he stormed into the kitchen. “What’s

wrong?”

“Kenway’s mate showed up at the Lakelands’, so I’m going with

him to get the man.”

“Then I’m going,” Recker said as he pushed past them and headed

for the truck.

Kenway didn’t care if the whole damn house came with him, but

he needed to get going. Being without Ross had driven Kenway to the
point of madness. All he wanted was to feel the vampire in his arms.

He drove to the Lakelands’, Recker on the passenger side,

Spencer smashed in the middle. The closer he got to the ranch, the
harder Kenway’s heart beat. Where had his mate been? What had
happened to make the man disappear, and who the hell was
responsible so Kenway could kill the bastard?

“If you breathe any harder, you’ll have to defog the windows,”

Spencer said as they pulled into the Lakelands’ driveway.

“No need. We’re here.” Kenway was out of the truck and heading

toward the porch before Recker and Spencer had a chance to get out.
He wasn’t waiting around. He’d waited long enough. He wasn’t sure
if he should knock or walk right in. Kenway chose to walk right in.
His mate was in there after all.

Sweet Delight

“Where is he?” he asked Malcolm Lakeland when he spotted the

father walking toward him.

“In the kitchen, son.”
Kenway didn’t wait for an invitation. He made his way straight to

the room where his mate was. His heart stuttered in his chest when he
spotted Ross sitting at the table, looking tired, but no worse for the
wear. He was frozen to the spot. Kenway had forgotten just how
beautiful Ross truly was. His flowing dark hair was rumpled, dark
rings under his eyes, which told Kenway that Ross was starving.

“Come here.” It wasn’t a request, and Kenway made sure the

demand was apparent in his voice. Ross stood, coming toward him
slowly.

“You know I didn’t intentionally leave you, right?” Ross asked,

his voice quivering just a bit.

Kenway waited as patiently as he could—which by now, he had

no patience. When Ross was in arm’s reach, Kenway grabbed his
mate and pulled the tall, slender man into an embrace, damn near
crushing him.

“Where in the hell were you?” He inhaled Ross’s scent, his

buffalo going crazy to claim Ross and ensure the man never left his
side again.

“The demon realm. I need to talk to Dante and let him know what

happened.” Ross laid his head on Kenway’s shoulder, his hands,
palms flat, on Kenway’s chest.

“Then we will go talk to him. You aren’t leaving my sight again.”
“What exactly happened?” Chauncey asked.
Kenway wanted to know as well, but with his mate back in his

arms, he knew he needed to not only feed Ross, but fuck him this side
of the Mississippi. There was no way he was going to be able to think
clearly until he nourished and claimed the vampire.

Chance snickered. “There is an empty room upstairs. Third door

on your left.”

Lynn Hagen

Kenway was pulling Ross up the stairs before Chance could

finish. He wasn’t wasting any time. He’d waited long enough. Two
seconds was too damn long for him, let alone the amount of time Ross
had been gone.

“We’ll hold the fort,” Spencer called up to him on a light,

laughter-filled tone.

“Hold whatever the hell you want,” Kenway shouted back down

to the impala shifter, uncaring what anyone did at this point. All he
wanted was Ross. Kenway found the door Chance had told him to use
and slammed it closed behind him.

“In a hurry?” Ross asked.
“Feed.” Kenway pushed his sleeve up, exposing his wrist. He

wanted Ross to feed in other places, more intimate places, but he
could see the starvation in Ross’s dark eyes. When his mate hesitated,
Kenway shoved his wrist at Ross’s lips. “Eat, damn it.”

Ross didn’t hesitate this time. He bit down quickly, his fangs

piercing Kenway’s skin as Ross wrapped his long and lithe fingers
around Kenway’s arm, pulling it closer as he took what he needed.

Kenway slumped against the bedroom door, his eyes fluttering as

his cock became hard as steel. He found himself moaning, pulling
Ross closer to him, wrapping an arm around his mate’s shoulders, and
playing in his mate’s long, silky hair.

Small, pleasurable sounds vibrated in Ross’s throat.
“You like your hair played with?” Kenway asked as he grabbed a

fistful, tugged, and then released the strands, running his fingers over
Ross’s scalp.

Ross nodded, but didn’t release Kenway’s wrist. He knew it was

the fact that they were mates that made him want to protect Ross from
any further harm, but the raw emotions inside Kenway threatened to
bring him to his knees. He brushed Ross’s hair aside, running his
thumb over his mate’s silky skin. “Feeling better?”

Ross licked the twin pinpricks closed as he nodded. “Much.”

Sweet Delight

His eyes followed as Ross licked his bottom lip, catching the last

of Kenway’s blood from escaping. It should have bothered him to see
his blood on someone else, but it didn’t. “Now, do you want to tell me
what happened?” It was the last thing he wanted at this very second,
but as much as Kenway wanted to claim Ross, he wanted to make
sure his mate was ready as well.

He may have rushed up here, but for Kenway, feeding his mate

was just as private an act as having sex with the man. It was personal
in his eyes.

“That shithead Virgil tricked me and sent me to the demon realm.

He even gave me a small trinket for my trip.” Ross held up his arm,
Kenway seeing the bracelet for the first time.

“What is that?”
“Apparently this is a bracelet to stop me from dispersing my

molecules. I thought only fey had them to inhibit them from
shimmering, but I was wrong.”

Kenway pulled Ross’s arm closer, examining the bracelet. “Do

you know how to get it off?”

Ross shook his head and then met Kenway’s gaze. “I’ll have to

ask Dante.”

“Does it hurt you to wear it?” Because if it did, they were about to

make a quick trip into the city. There was no way Kenway was going
to allow his mate to suffer.

Ross wiggled the thing around on his wrist, pulling and yanking,

but it still remained in place. The man finally gave up with a
frustrated sigh. “No, it doesn’t hurt. It’s just a nuisance.”

Kenway grinned. He liked Ross’s testy little attitude. But he

didn’t like to see his mate so frustrated. “Then we’ll go see Dante and
get the damn thing off of you.”

“Do we have to go right this second?” Ross asked. Kenway could

see the heat in the other man’s eyes. It was the same heat coursing
through his body after allowing Ross to feed from him. He cupped
Ross’s face, pulling his mate closer.

Lynn Hagen

“No, not now.”
“Good, because I’ve been dying to kiss you.” Ross leaned up,

placing a soft kiss on Kenway’s lips. He was mesmerized for a
moment, taking in his mate’s scent and tender lips, and then Kenway
pulled Ross closer, turning the tender kiss brutal. He explored the
warm, wet cavern of Ross’s mouth, luxuriating in Ross’s sweet little
moans.

Kenway bent lower, trying to pull Ross into the space between

them until Ross jumped up, surprising Kenway. He caught Ross
quickly as his mate wrapped his long and slender legs around
Kenway’s waist.

This was better.
So much better.
As he kissed Ross, Kenway eyed the bed and wondered if his

mate would protest to taking this further. It was true that they really
didn’t know each other. But they had to start somewhere. Getting
naked and having sex was a pretty damn good way of getting to know
someone.

Kenway wanted to get Ross naked and inspect every inch of him

to make sure he was unhurt after being gone for so long. He chuckled
to himself. He had less pure motives for getting Ross naked, but
inspecting him was good enough to start with. But he still wanted to
make sure Ross was unscathed.

Instead, Kenway broke the kiss and inhaled his vampire’s scent

into his lungs.

Ross chuckled. “You’re a sniffer.”
Kenway grinned into Ross’s neck. “I am.”
Leaning back, Ross gazed into Kenway’s eyes. A wide smile

formed on his kissable lips. “What else do you want to sniff?”

That was one hell of a loaded question. He groaned inwardly at

the images barraging his mind. There were plenty of places Kenway
wouldn’t mind sticking his nose, between Ross’s legs for starters, but
at this point, Kenway wasn’t going to be too picky.

Sweet Delight

“Where would you like for me to bury my nose?”
A salacious smile tilted up the corners of Ross’s mouth, making

him even sexier as Kenway’s cock thickened in his jeans. “Anywhere
you want, mate.”

“It’s that easy?” Kenway asked, noticing his voice had dropped to

a husky tone. He had it bad and didn’t care at the moment. The only
thing that mattered to him was that Ross was safe and having sex with
the guy. Everything else could fall apart and Kenway wouldn’t give a
shit.

Ross gave him a peck on the lips, his grin widening. “For anyone

else but you, hell no it’s not that easy. Do you know how many
people thought I was a damn stripper in the demon realm?”

Normally, that might have pissed Kenway off. But he had to

agree, his mate was enthralling and exotic. He wouldn’t mind Ross
putting on a private show for him, but not now. Right now all Kenway
wanted was to claim his mate.

Kenway wasn’t sure why he was all of a sudden nervous, but he

wasn’t going to let that stop him. He picked Ross up and carried him
to the bed, praying the man didn’t protest. Ross laughed and it
sounded like liquid sunshine.

“I’m guessing you are very happy to see me.”
Kenway grunted as he pushed Ross’s shirt up to his armpits and

ran his hand down the man’s chest. He let the warm pleasure of just
being able to touch Ross roll over him in waves as Ross lay there
biting his bottom lip. He began to trace patterns across Ross’s
stomach, occasionally brushing the man’s belt and very effectively
sending all interests lower. Kenway’s cock was about to explode in
his jeans.

The spark in Ross’s eyes grew as Kenway unbuttoned the man’s

pants, taking his time, teasing his mate, and driving himself insane
with want. But the slow reveal was just so damn sexy.

* * * *

Lynn Hagen

Ross was taking in shallow breaths of air as he watched Kenway’s

thick fingers play at his jeans. The guy seemed to enjoy the slow
torture, but Ross was ready to melt into the mattress. His mate’s
fingers were just inches away from what Ross really wanted Kenway
to play with. The man must have read his mind because Kenway
stopped teasing the zipper on Ross’s pants and separated the folds, his
eyes locking onto Ross in question.

“Kenway, do something, please.”
With a quick nod, deft fingers had him unzipped before his head

could even follow. It was unbelievably hot the way Kenway applied
pressure to Ross’s underwear, making pre-cum leak out just from a
touch of his mate’s hand.

Kenway leaned forward, sucking at Ross’s neck as his large

fingers wrapped around Ross’s erection. The dual sensations shot his
brain into orbit. Ross was losing his mind and Kenway had barely
touched him.

“God, you are fucking sexy.”
Ross squeezed his eyes shut as Kenway’s deep voice rumbled

right down through his body and wrapped around his cock, bringing it
to full attention. Oh god, he just might be able to come from that
sound alone.

Ross opened his eyes when he felt a finger tug on a loose tendril

of hair on his cheek. He didn’t know what to say to Kenway, not with
the intense way the shifter was looking at him. He suddenly felt like
he was Kenway’s entire world.

When Kenway’s fingers slid sensually over his bare arm, Ross

knew he was lost. He would give the big buffalo anything he wanted.
He felt Kenway’s large, wonderful hands stroke down the middle of
his back. Ross pushed into the muscular man, a low, rumbling purr
falling from his lips. Kenway’s hands felt so damn good against his
skin. Ross could feel a fire start burning inside of him everywhere that
Kenway touched.

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When Kenway’s fingers trailed between his ass cheeks and

stroked across his tight hole, Ross groaned and wiggled back, trying
to impale himself on the thick digits. He could feel his nerve endings
come to life and start to throb.

He felt like his entire body was primed just for this man, coming

awake at the lightest touch. When Kenway rolled Ross over onto his
back and covered him with his larger body, all Ross could do was
spread his legs and wrap them around Kenway’s waist.

A small whimper escaped Ross’s lips as Kenway drove into him,

filling him to the brim in one powerful thrust. Ross had expected pain,
and there was a light twinge, but he knew his body was out of control
when it accepted the shifter as if it had been stretched and prepared
just for him.

All Ross could do was lie there and stare up at Kenway’s intense

gaze as he pounded into him at a ferocious pace. He couldn’t even
move when Kenway slid his arms under Ross’s legs and tilted his ass
up into the air. Ross felt paralyzed by the pleasure rocking through his
body.

He could barely breathe.
“Come.”
The simple command tore through Ross like a bullet. His body

convulsed as the pleasure his mate was giving him exploded by that
one simple word. A breathless cry fell from Ross’s lips and his head
dug back into the pillow behind him. He felt cum shoot up through his
oversensitized cock and splatter between them.

Ross could feel his chest rise and fall as he panted through his

fading orgasm. He felt languid, lazy. He felt fucking fantastic. He felt
even better when he heard the shifter above him suddenly roar as his
body stilled over the top of him.

Intense pressure built inside his ass, and for a moment, Ross

feared that he was literally going to be split in two by Kenway’s
massive cock. The pressure built and built. Ross clutched at
Kenway’s shoulders, digging his nails in as fear swamped him.

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And then Kenway looked down at Ross with those same pale-blue

eyes he had looked at him with that night so long ago.

Ross cried out when Kenway suddenly leaned forward and sank

razor-sharp teeth right into his shoulder. Instead of feeling
overwhelming pain, pleasure unlike anything Ross had ever felt
soared through his body.

Ross felt pulse after pulse of cum fill his ass. It only added to his

pleasure. The heat inside of him was burning him up from the inside
out. And the pleasure didn’t just come from his mate’s cock throbbing
in his ass.

Each time Kenway’s mouth pulled at Ross’s shoulder, a spurt of

cum shot out of his cock. It was like Kenway was sucking directly on
Ross’s cock instead of his shoulder. It was glorious. Ross released his
grip on Kenway’s shoulder and wrapped his arm around his neck,
pulling Kenway closer to him.

As the throbbing in Ross’s body slowly ebbed, Kenway withdrew

his teeth and licked at Ross’s sensitized skin. That in itself sent a
shiver of delight racing through Ross’s body. Ross didn’t understand
his reluctance to have Kenway leave his body, either his cock or his
canines. It wasn’t something he had experienced before. He just knew
he didn’t want Kenway to go.

Ross wrapped his legs around Kenway’s body when the man

started to move away from him. He felt sheepish as Kenway gazed
down at him. “Stay?” he whispered.

Kenway stared for a second then slowly smiled as he settled in

between Ross’s thighs. “For a moment.”

Sweet Delight

Chapter Four

It still felt like a dream that Kenway was taking his mate home.

He had imagined this moment for a very long time. Now that it was
happening, he wasn’t sure how to act.

“Oh, you are so going to love living with us,” Spencer said in a

perky tone. “Just stay away from Paine and Steele. Those cheetahs are
nothing but troublemakers.” Spencer paused. “And stay away from
Styles. He’s moody as hell.” Another pause. “Winter is a bit grumpy
as well. And Reese is the biggest voyeuristic freak you will ever meet.
Keep your bedroom door locked when you have sex.”

Kenway wondered if Spencer was going to name everyone in the

house. They all had issues, but he was pretty sure Ross wouldn’t have
any problems settling in. Then again, if anyone gave his mate
problems, Kenway would take them out back and teach the offender
some manners.

“So, you basically want me to stay in my room?” Ross asked. He

tilted his head, gazing at Spencer with curiosity.

“Oh, no,” Spencer quickly said. “Just—” He bit his bottom lip.

“Help me out here, Kenway.”

Kenway gave a light chuckle. “He’ll be fine, Spencer. Don’t scare

him off before we even get there.”

“I wouldn’t be too sure about that,” Spencer mumbled under his

breath as he crossed his arms over his chest, staring out of the
window.

Kenway was going to strangle the impala if he didn’t stop with his

sour mood. He wanted his mate to have a good feeling about moving
in with them, not head for the hills. But Spencer’s words rang in his

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mind. Every last shifter in the house had problems. They were all
different breeds, having come together out of loneliness and need
more than wanting to form a pack.

The group of them looked out for one another, although half the

time one of the residents was chasing down another, threatening
bodily harm.

Kenway sure as hell hoped Ross didn’t demand to live someplace

else. He liked where he was and living with his friends.

He pulled his blue Chevy truck into the driveway and parked it

toward the back. Just as he pulled the key from the ignition, Ross
hissed.

“If you are about to feed, let me get out first,” Spencer said as he

reached for the door. Ross grabbed the impala, holding him in place.

“Someone is on the back deck,” Ross said as Kenway watched his

mate’s face transform from serene to menacing.

Turning his head, Kenway spotted Maverick sitting at the small

round table. The alpha was kicked back, looking as if he owned the
place. Well, technically he did. “That’s the alpha of the timber
wolves.”

“Maverick Brac?” Ross asked.
“The very one,” Spencer said as he pulled his arm free and got out

of the truck. “I’m going inside. Holler for me if anything interesting
happens. That man scares the bejesus out of me.”

Recker climbed out of the back of the truck, he and Spencer going

inside the house.

Kenway was almost afraid to sit down. Something interesting

always happened when the alpha was around. Grabbing Ross’s hand,
Kenway decided the only way to find out what the man wanted was to
have a seat and ask.

“Are you sure you want me to sit with you?” Ross asked. “I know

we’re mates, but you don’t have to give me full rights.”

“Ain’t nothing he has to say that can’t be said in front of you.”

Kenway tugged his mate when Ross became hesitant. He didn’t even

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let the man go when he pulled the metal green chair out and sat down.
As a matter of fact, he pulled Ross down onto his lap.

“What can I do for you, Maverick?”
“First,” Maverick said as he dug a small key from his front

pocket. “Take care of your mate’s bracelet.”

With quickness, Kenway snatched the key and reached for Ross’s

wrist, removing the damn bracelet.

“Thank god,” Ross said on a whooshed breath. “I thought I’d

never get that damn thing off.”

Kenway handed the key back to the werewolf alpha and listened

to the leather on Maverick’s jacket groan as he crossed his arms over
his chest. “I came to talk to you about that bakery you’re going to
open up.”

“I am?” Kenway asked. Maverick had stated his sentence. He

hadn’t suggested a damn thing. He had a feeling he was about to
become a baker. Kenway wondered if Maverick knew he couldn’t
bake biscuits from a can without burning them.

Maverick sat forward and it seemed even the crickets grew quiet.

His expression was inscrutable as he entwined his fingers and rested
his hands on the table. Kenway’s hand tightened on his mate’s waist.

“I’m not sure if you are aware of a Vampire Hunter having his

sights set on Brac Village or not.”

Kenway was clueless.
“But after talking with the Ultionem, it’s been decided that this

village needs to look as normal as possible. I want to get as many
businesses up and running as I can. I’ve made a few proposals to
some of the residents who are out of work. I’m offering them the
startup money—same as you—and all I ask in return is to be a silent
partner.”

Kenway suppressed the groan when Ross shifted in his lap. His

cock was getting hard all over again. Kenway couldn’t seem to get
enough of Ross. They had just had sex at the Lakelands’ and he
wanted to throw the man down on the table and fuck his brains out.

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He could still taste his mate on his lips and scent Ross on his skin. If
the vampire didn’t sit still, Kenway was going to kick the alpha out
and take his mate right here on the back deck.

Reining in his lust, Kenway cleared his throat. “You know, if you

are trying to pull off a normal town, there has to be a mayor. You go
by that title, but there isn’t even a town hall.”

Maverick’s light-grey eyes narrowed. “We’re talking about you,

not me.”

“No,” Kenway corrected. “We’re talking about keeping the town

safe. If everyone else has to step up in their roles, so do you.”

A low growl vibrated Maverick’s chest, making Ross sink back

into Kenway’s arms. As lethal as the man was, Kenway wasn’t
impressed. He knew the menacing sound for what it was—irritation.

“You know I’m right.”
“Now you sound like my damn beta and mate,” Maverick

complained as he sat back, tossing an arm over the back of the chair.
“I don’t wanna do it.”

Kenway leaned closer, his hands holding his mate steady as a

slow grin formed on his face. “Are you pouting?”

The look Maverick gave him should have killed Kenway on the

spot it was so deadly. “No, but if I have to go to a town hall every
day, who’s going to play with the babies? Plus Melonee is close to
giving birth. How can I be away from the Den? Elves have their
babies in six months, not nine like humans.”

Kenway was starting to get the picture. As badass as this man

acted, he was one big-ass kid himself. He also had a scared-shitless
look in his eye. Waiting on his first grandchild to be born was
freaking the man out.

“Take the kids with you,” he suggested. He had no clue what to

tell Maverick about his nervous jitters. “Melonee has two mates and a
house full of people if she goes into labor.”

“How can I do that?” Maverick argued, his expression sliding into

a pensive look. “You can’t take kids to work.”

Sweet Delight

Chuckling, Kenway shook his head. “You own this town,

Maverick. You can take the kids to work if you want. Hell, you can
build a daycare right there next to your office if you feel so inclined.”

Kenway was trying his best to stay focused on the conversation,

but his mate’s heat—and his mate’s soft hand that was running up and
down his thigh—were enough to make Kenway lose all kinds of
focus. Kenway could feel his body responding to his mate’s touch. It
was like nothing he had ever experienced before. It was as if he could
feel Ross in his very blood.

Without thought, Kenway leaned forward and nuzzled his mate’s

neck, licking his salty skin and breathing in his scent.

“Can we finish this conversation before you eat him?” Maverick

asked.

Cheeks heating to nuclear levels, Kenway leaned back. “Take the

kids to work.”

“Fine, but I want to meet you in town in the morning so you can

look at one of the buildings I had in mind for your bakery. It hasn’t
been used in years and will need some work done before you can even
start moving your equipment in.”

“Are you aware I can’t bake to save my life?” Kenway asked as

he remembered the conversation he had with the alpha about his
dream. The thought of anyone coming after his mate made Kenway
grind his back molars.

“No problem. I hired someone who has all the skills you need,”

Maverick replied. “His name is Baker.”

Kenway chuckled. “No shit. How apropos.”
A playful gleam entered Maverick’s eyes. “He’s a nice guy. He

lives in town in the apartment building. I’ll leave you his number.
When things are ready, give him a call. I also had Nero hunt down
someone who would know what a bakery needs. All the equipment
has been ordered.”

The man had thought of everything. “Why don’t you just give this

Baker guy the bakery? Why am I even involved?”

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“Because Baker is an irresponsible little shit according to his

father.”

Now didn’t that statement just contradict Maverick calling him a

nice guy?

“His father asked me to do something with him before the man

strangled his son. I told him I would see what I could do. That’s when
the subject of Baker’s skills came up. If he turns out to be someone
who hurts your business, then let me know. I’ll handle him.”
Maverick pushed from the table, standing. “I have to make things
look on the up-and-up. Do we have a deal?”

Kenway didn’t like to do things on impulse, but was he stupid

enough to tell the alpha no? Not really. He reached out and shook
Maverick’s hand, sealing the deal.

“I’ll see you at the diner around eight.” Maverick walked toward

where Kenway had parked. How had he not seen the motorcycle
parked there? God, Ross was killing his brain cells.

“Ready to go inside?” he asked as he ran his hands down Ross’s

long, lean legs. The man was slim as hell, but Kenway loved how his
mate could wrap his legs around his waist and hold on tight.

“So that’s it?” Ross asked. “You’re a business owner?”
“Nope.” Kenway stood, placing Ross on his feet, and then he

brushed the man’s hair from his shoulder. He really liked touching the
soft strands. It made him miss his long hair, but what was done was
done. “We are business owners.”

Ross looked at Kenway skeptically with his big, obsidian orbs.

“Have you forgotten the fact that I’ll melt like the Wicked Witch if I
go near any sunlight?”

“I’m pretty sure Maverick has thought about that.” God, he hoped

so. “But I’ll bring it up in the morning.” Kenway ran his hands up his
mate’s arms and then pulled Ross close, giving him a simple, but
sweet kiss. “And I’m not going to make any decisions until you get to
see the place as well.”

“Are you always this accommodating?”

Sweet Delight

Hell no. Kenway was as stubborn as the day was long. “I am when

it comes to you. No one else. Now come on. I want to show you your
new home.”

Swatting his mate on the ass, Kenway gave him a flirtatious wink

before heading toward the side door. He was acting like such a goober
right now and Kenway couldn’t find the energy to care. He was
mated. That entitled him to act like a crazy, mindless dork twenty-
four seven.

Ross walked into the kitchen, running his hands over the granite

countertop, and then glanced at the cupboards and stove. “This is
nice, Kenway. It feels very homey.”

Kenway leaned against the counter closest to the stove. He placed

his hands on either side of him, watching as his mate explored. Ross
looked good here. “Between Spencer and Recker, I’m not sure how
homey you’ll think the rest of the house is. The two are in a war of
matching patterns and clashing furniture.”

“Recker? Is he the guy who rode with us?” Ross asked as one of

his eyebrows rose high on his forehead. “Why does that name make
me think of a wrecking ball?”

“Because I’m a rhino shifter,” Recker answered as he stopped by

the doorway and gazed at Ross. Kenway waited. Recker didn’t like
strangers in the house—mate or not. If he gave Ross any problems…

“That’s rare,” Ross replied. “I’ll bet you’re one scary-looking

creature in your shifted form.”

Smooth. Very smooth.
A light blush stole over Recker’s cheeks. “I like to think so.”
Kenway rolled his eyes. Since when did the damn rhino blush?

Never. He had an urge to kick the damn man. One simple compliment
and Recker was putty in Ross’s hands. God, the man was too damn
easy.

It also meant Recker would now look at Ross as his responsibility.

This was going to be a pain in the ass. The rhino already went spastic

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when Spencer couldn’t be found. He could just imagine what Recker
would do with Ross.

“Feel free to poke around,” Recker said before leaving the

kitchen.

Kenway’s jaw dropped. Okay, who was this guy and where was

the real Recker? Normally, Recker was a grouch and hated for any
stranger to poke anywhere in their home. It was good he was so
accepting of Ross, but what in the hell was up with the blush?

“Something wrong?” Ross asked as he tapped at Kenway’s jaw.
“Yeah, I think the man hit his head.” Pushing away from the

counter, he waved for his mate to precede him. Ross obeyed and then
stopped midstep.

“Those windows are awfully big and curtainless.”
Ross glanced at the three windows on one wall, and the windows

on either side of the fireplace. During the day it was very bright and
sunny in the living room. But he groaned when he spotted Paine
lounging on the couch, snoring his lazy ass off. He was wrapped in
the colorful quilt like the blanket was a straitjacket. How could he
sleep with the dang thing wrapped so tightly around him?

“Come on, I’ll show you our bedroom.” Kenway ushered Ross up

the stairs, and toward his bedroom. He wasn’t sure why he was so
nervous, but having his mate here had Kenway’s stomach in tight
knots. It wasn’t like they were about to have sex for the first time. He
already knew what it felt like to be inside his mate. He had already
claimed the vampire. It was the most exciting and erotic thing he had
ever done. Ross was a dream when it came to fucking.

So what was with the damn butterflies?
Whatever had him feeling like a teenager about to have sex for the

first time had Kenway in its grips. Maybe after a good night’s sleep
he would feel better.

He had his mate home and was about to become a business owner.

He should be smiling from ear to ear. But the image of Ross cowering
in the bakery wouldn’t go away.

Sweet Delight

Chapter Five

Ross walked down the street with Kenway, heading to the

building Maverick had shown his mate early this morning. Ross still
wasn’t sure about owning a business with Kenway. It was a huge
responsibility. He tried to work the dynamics out in his head on how a
vampire could run a business that was open during the day, but
nothing came to mind.

“I talked it over with the alpha,” Kenway said as they passed a

barbershop pole. “He says there is glass made that will let passersby
see inside, but on the inside of the shop, the UV rays can’t get in.”

“Really?” Ross had never heard of that. He wasn’t so sure he

wanted to test it out either. He would be quite content sitting in the
back office doing…office stuff. Ross had no clue what it took to run a
bakery, but he was willing to bet he would get a crash course.

As they continued to walk, Ross kept scanning the streets for his

brother. He wouldn’t put it past that jerkoff to show up and try to
shove Ross in another distant place. Virgil was rotten to the core.
Ross wasn’t sure how they ended up related. He and his brother were
like night and day.

“Here we are.” Kenway waved a hand at a building Ross thought

needed to be torn down. He wanted to ask his mate if he had lost his
damn mind, but when Ross looked over at Kenway, the man was
beaming with pride. There was no way he could rip his mate’s heart
out.

“It looks great!” He was going to hell for lying to his mate. Ross

just knew it.

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“Now I know it needs a lot of work, Ross. You don’t have to

pacify me. But I want you to see past the peeling paint and
condemned look. This place has great potential.”

Yeah, for a vagrant hangout spot. Ross returned Kenway’s

enthusiastic smile. “Then show me inside.”

Kenway dug a key out of his pocket. Ross was surprised that his

mate didn’t just touch the front door with his finger and watch as it
collapsed to the floor. But the door seemed pretty sturdy as his mate
unlocked it and waved Ross inside.

Did he really want Ross to go first?
Taking in a deep breath, Ross walked through the door. Good god

almighty. Ross wanted to make a one-eighty turn and walk right back
out. It looked like someone had left behind their belongings—which
would be considered trash.

Kenway pulled Ross further inside. “Once the place is cleaned

out, painted, new floors, and we get the equipment in here, things will
look great.”

Ross’s vision of the place couldn’t get past the pile of junk in one

corner. It had to be as high as seven feet. And what in the hell was
that smell? Okay, he was going to think positive.

Something moved in the corner and his resolution of positive

thinking scurried away with the furry rodent. “There are rats here.”

“We’ll take care of that, babe.”
We? There was no way in hell Ross was going anywhere near a

rat. He was more likely to jump onto Kenway’s back and scream as
loud as he could if one came near him. Thankfully the little pest was
on the other side of the room. Ross still shuddered.

Kenway began to point out where things would go, but all Ross

could do was look for the furry invader’s buddies.

“What do you think?” Kenway asked, his hands on his hips and a

hopeful expression in his pale-blue eyes. Ross opened his mouth to
answer when someone walked through the front door. He

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immediately stood in front of Kenway, ready to show his fangs and
defend his mate when Kenway grabbed his arm. “Ross, this is Baker.”

Ross raked his eyes over the scrawny guy. So this was the

troublemaker Maverick had told them about.

“Nice to meet you.” Baker extended his hand.
Ross shook it.
“Same here.” Ross walked through the small building as Kenway

spoke with Baker. He wasn’t being rude. Ross wanted to check the
place out. If this was going to be their business, then he needed to
embrace it and—“A rat!” Ross shot across the room and out the front
door, ready to climb up the telephone pole if need be.

Kenway was on the sidewalk in seconds, staring at Ross with

amusement. “Come on, babe. We’ll take the tour once the trash is
cleaned out and the vermin problem taken care of.”

Ross shivered as Kenway wrapped his large arm around him. So a

vampire was afraid of rats, big deal. Kenway leaned closer, pressing
his kissable lips near Ross’s ear. “Don’t worry, love. I’ll protect you
from anything that makes my baby scared.”

Cheeks heating to a burn, Ross leaned into Kenway. They were

still newly mated, and Ross still didn’t know anything about the man.
Okay, he knew Kenway could fuck like a dream. But he wanted to
know more than his mate’s skillful bedroom moves.

“Will you now?” Ross nuzzled Kenway’s neck, giving him light

kisses when he heard a throat clearing. Exhaling, Ross leaned back to
see Baker standing in the doorway.

“Everything okay?”
Yeah, he just left his manhood in the building. That was all.

“Everything is fine.”

“Then I’ll see you two tomorrow morning so the cleanup can get

under way.” Baker waved as he headed toward a grey car that looked
like it had seen better days. Ross turned back around, gazing up at his
mate.

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“Do you think this will really work?” Ross chewed at his bottom

lip. “I mean, it’s a huge responsibility to take a loan that large to start
your own business.”

Ross inwardly sighed when Kenway wrapped his arms around his

waist. “We can do it, babe. I’ve never owned my own business
before. And I won’t have to repay the loan. Maverick is going to be a
silent partner, remember?” Kenway ran his hand over Ross’s hair.
“To be honest, the more I look at this place and think about what
potential it has, the more I get excited.”

Oh, an excited Kenway seemed to be a good thing considering his

mate’s cock was hard and pressing into Ross’s stomach. They both
turned when they heard Baker’s car sputter and die over and over
again and then Ross jumped when the dang thing backfired.

But it had started.
Ross liked his mode of transportation a lot better. Being able to

disperse his molecules was easier than trying to start a car—at least in
Baker’s case. The thing sounded like it was protesting the entire time
he drove away.

“Why don’t we take a walk around town?” Kenway asked. “It’ll

be good for you to get to know the place.” And then Kenway leaned
closer. “Think of it as a romantic stroll.”

Oh, the man was saying all the right things. Ross clutched

Kenway’s hand with his as they started down the street. It was a
beautiful night out. The air still held a slight chill because of the
spring weather, but Ross wasn’t in the least bit cold. Not when he had
the hand of the man he was fated to be with for the rest of his life.

Now all he had to do was fall in love with Kenway. From the way

his mate treated him, Ross knew he wouldn’t have a problem with
that.

“You mind if we stop in the coffeehouse?” Kenway asked. “I

could use something to drink.”

Ross shrugged. “Too bad they don’t sell crimson,” he teased.
“Are you hungry?” Kenway asked, concern in his baby blues.

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Ross was touched. “No, I’m fine.”
They entered The Café, and Ross was immediately assailed by the

smell of coffee and sugary sweetness. If he were human and ate food,
the items in the display case would have done him in. It all looked
very well decorated and attractive. But since he had never eaten any
of that stuff before, it didn’t appeal to him.

“May I help you?” a gentleman behind the counter asked.
“Yeah, can I get a coffee and a slice of that chocolate cake?”

Kenway asked.

“Sure can,” the man said as he moved away to make Kenway’s

coffee.

“It’s nice in here,” Ross said as he turned to glance around the

place. There was a large red sofa in one corner, small café-style tables
littered all around. Ross spotted display racks with assorted coffees
for sale and the dark wood made it feel homey. “I like it.”

Kenway slid his arm around Ross’s shoulder, pulling him close as

he kissed the side of his face. “I want you to love this town as much
as I do, Ross. I think settling down here is the best move we could
make.”

Ross hoped so. Dante’s coven was nice to live in, but it didn’t

have this homey feeling Ross was getting the more he discovered
what Brac Village had to offer. Of course, he couldn’t eat or drink
anything, but he could see there were things to do. He just hoped the
nightlife wasn’t dead.

Kenway grabbed his order and Ross followed him outside. Just as

they stepped out onto the sidewalk, Kenway stopped and said hello to
an extremely intimidating-looking man. The guy looked as if he ate
kittens for breakfast.

“Ross, this is Hawk.”
Ross said hello as he eyed the small blond man with Hawk. He

was introduced as Johnny, Hawk’s mate.

“I’m going to apply for a job at the coffeehouse,” Johnny stated

proudly, his blue-grey eyes filled with barely contained excitement.

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The man was a handsome guy. Not even the scar on his right cheek
detracted from his soft beauty.

“I told you we’d talk about that, pretty baby.” Hawk pulled

Johnny close, enveloping the smaller man in his arms.

“We did,” Johnny said as sweet as syrup. “And we decided that I

wanted to get out of the Den and get a job.”

Ross smothered the chuckle with his hand. He didn’t know these

two, but he had a feeling Johnny was going to win. He could see it in
Hawk’s eyes. The man looked at his mate like Johnny was his entire
world.

“Good luck,” Kenway said as they began to walk. He could hear

Johnny telling Hawk to get inside the coffee shop. Hawk had lost the
debate whether he knew it or not.

“How do you know them?” Ross asked as he watched Kenway

take a large bite from his slice of cake. Ross’s eyes widened. His mate
had bitten off half the cake.

As soon as Kenway swallowed, he answered. “Met Hawk on the

side of the road when his truck broke down.”

As they walked, Ross started to feel like someone was watching

them. He glanced up at his mate, but Kenway didn’t seem to notice.
He was polishing off his cake and drinking his coffee. Ross glanced
around, but there were too many shadows to hide in. The days were
getting longer, but it still became dark around seven thirty.

“I have to meet with Roman Lakeland and his crew tomorrow. If

you want, we can meet him once the sun sets.” Kenway tossed the
cake container in the trash that was sitting curbside. “I want you to be
a part of this as much as possible.”

Ross glanced over by the bookstore, swearing he saw someone.

“No, go ahead and meet him in the morning. I can come by later and
see how things are going.” Was that—no, it was just some crates on
the side of the building. Gosh, he was losing his mind.

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“I’ll talk to them about getting rid of the rats.” Kenway slid his

hand in Ross’s, making Ross forget about things creeping around in
the shadows.

“I’m normally not a wuss, but I really hate rats.”
Kenway chuckled. “It’s a common reaction. I’m not too fond of

them myself.”

If someone were following them, wouldn’t Kenway sense it? Ross

didn’t know too much about shifters. He had grown up in the coven,
being around nothing but vampires most of the time. He ran into an
occasional shifter here and there, but hadn’t spent enough time around
them.

Ross didn’t want to say anything if it turned out to be nothing. He

didn’t want to come off as some overreacting person.

“When do you think the bakery will be ready?” Ross asked.
“I’m hoping within the next two weeks. We don’t have to build it

from the ground up.” Kenway gave Ross’s hand a light squeeze. “We
have to think of a name for our place.”

“Furry Edibles,” Ross teased with a soft chuckle.
“Although I like it”—Kenway winked at him—“I’m thinking

something with the word sweet in it.”

“How about Sweet Baked Goods?”
Kenway shook his head. “No, it doesn’t roll off the tongue. Sweet

Delicious?”

“Neither does that.” He tossed the word sweet around in his head.

“Sweet Delight?”

Kenway’s hand cupped Ross’s chin, tilting his head so that their

eyes met. Ross’s breath left his lungs in a shallow whoosh as he
stared into his mate’s pretty pale-blue eyes. “I like it,” Kenway said
before giving Ross a soft kiss on the lips. He stood on the street, not
caring who saw them as Ross’s breath came out in light pants.

“Maybe I should come up with a few more names.” Ross licked

his lips, tasting nothing but Kenway, and he wanted more.

Lynn Hagen

“You like my kisses?” Kenway asked. His voice had dropped to a

low, husky tone that told Ross exactly what the man was thinking.

“I like everything about you.” It was the honest truth. “Especially

your kisses.” They walked some more in a slow fashion and ended
back at Kenway’s truck. But instead of getting inside, Kenway
pressed Ross against the side, straddling his long, thick legs on either
side of Ross’s body, cocooning him in. Ross was feeling giddy inside,
like he did when he was a teenager three hundred years ago.

He had butterflies in his stomach. Since when did anyone make

him feel this way? Never. No one had made Ross feel as if…oh, god,
he was falling in love. Kenway was saying and doing all the right
things. Ross became terrified that the other shoe was going to fall.
This was just too good to be true.

“What’s wrong, Ross?” Kenway asked. “I can scent your unease.”
Pushing his hair over his shoulder, Ross glanced up at Kenway. “I

think I’m falling in love with you. I’ve never been in love. All of a
sudden my tongue feels too big for my mouth, my palms are sweaty,
and my heart is racing out of control. Is that normal?” Should he have
told Kenway any of that?

Kenway’s pale-blue eyes were sparkling in the streetlight, his lips

curved up into such a seductive smile. That was not helping Ross
calm down. The man was too damn good-looking for his own good.

“I wouldn’t know,” he admitted as an irresistibly devastating grin

brightened his features. Kenway was unaware of the captivating
picture he made when he smiled like that. It set Ross’s pulse to racing.
“I’ve never been in love. But I know what you mean.”

“You do?” Ross asked.
Kenway slid his arms around Ross’s waist. He could feel his

mate’s body heat searing him through his shirt. It was as if the sun
itself was touching Ross. “Yeah, because I’m feeling the same way.”

Ross groaned when Kenway dipped his head, skimming his lips

back and forth across Ross’s. It wasn’t a kiss per se, but erotic
nonetheless. Slipping his arms up Kenway’s body, Ross wrapped

Sweet Delight

them around the man’s neck, suppressing the urge to wrap his legs
around his mate’s waist. They were in public, after all.

“Don’t you want to go home?” Ross asked as Kenway nibbled at

his lips.

An easy smile played at the corner of Kenway’s lips. “Not yet,

love. I like showing you off.”

There he went again, saying all the right things. To hell with it.

Ross was going to jump into not only the business feet first, but his
relationship with Kenway as well. If neither worked out, then so be it.

* * * *

Maverick looked over the proposals on his desk. He had more

people than he thought asking to start a business. Someone wanted to
open a barbeque restaurant, another wanted to start up a bowling
alley. These were things he never would have thought to have, but
now that he read through the papers, he wondered why he never
thought of them before.

But the truth was—even though he was trying for his town to

appear normal—Kenway was right. Maverick had been doing a piss-
poor job of helping his town. Sure, he helped out at the rec center, had
a few buildings built here and there, but what had he really
contributed? Most of the residents’ complaints or needs were taken
care of by the police department—which was not their job.

He needed to erect a town hall and step into the role, not just sport

the label as mayor. Maverick had grown used to sitting in his office,
playing a handheld video game that he kept hidden in his drawer. It
was about time he went out there and got to know his residents.

And he knew the perfect assistant. Giving Cecil the job would not

only enable Maverick to keep an eye on his havoc-causing mate while
he was out of the Den, but it would give Cecil something to do as
well.

Lynn Hagen

He also wanted to put a few of his pack members inside these

businesses so they could keep an eye on the town and make sure their
paranormal status stayed secret. It would also give the people in the
Den an opportunity to get to know the townsfolk as well.

Maverick had already planted the seed in Johnny’s head. He had

told the mate that Johnny would be the perfect person to work at The
Café.

They were a small village and needed to start acting like one.
“What are you doing?” Cecil asked as he strode into Maverick’s

office, sitting on the chair in front his desk. He tossed an arm over the
back, looking relaxed.

“Getting you a job.”
Cecil shot forward. “Seriously?”
Maverick wasn’t sure if that was an eager look, or an oh hell no

expression. Either way, if Maverick had to step into his role, then
Cecil had to as well. He was Maverick’s mate. It had just been too
many years since Maverick had made Cecil act the role.

“You know I’m trying to build this town up.”
“And?” Cecil asked cautiously.
“Kenway brought up a valid point. If I want everyone to either

own a business or work at one of them, then I need to become an
active mayor.” Maverick set the papers down. “Don’t give me any
shit on this either.”

“What am I going to do?” Cecil asked as he relaxed back into his

seat. “I know nothing of politics.”

Neither did Maverick. “You’ll be my assistant.”
Laughter burst from Cecil. “And you expect us to get work

done?” His eyebrows shot up. “You want me under your desk all day,
don’t you?”

As appealing as that sounded, Maverick knew he had to keep their

relationship on a business level when at work. “Nope. I want you to
actually work.”

“Can I have an assistant?”

Sweet Delight

“What the hell do you need an assistant for?” Maverick asked.
“To go fetch coffee.”
“But that’s why I’m hiring you.”
Cecil made a pfft sound. “Yeah, right. I need someone who can

fetch coffee and do my job while I’m pretending to do my job.”

It made absolutely no sense to Maverick, but then again, if they

had someone else around, then it just might stop them from fooling
around at work. Because no matter how businesslike he wanted their
relationship to be at the town hall, Maverick knew one shake of
Cecil’s good-looking ass and he would be a goner.

“Done.”

Lynn Hagen

Chapter Six

The deal was set and the paperwork was signed. Kenway was now

the proud owner of a piece-of-shit building. Now that he owned it, he
wasn’t so confident anymore. Doubt was starting to creep into his
mind as he walked around, watching Roman and his men take notes
and gather measurements.

What if Sweet Delight failed? He didn’t know shit about baking.

Having Baker here was fine, but if Kenway was going to do this—and
Maverick had the signed loan papers—then he needed to find
someone who could show Kenway the ropes, someone other than an
immature guy—according to Baker’s father. Kenway didn’t know the
man yet, so he couldn’t pass judgment. But he wanted two people
here who knew what the hell they were doing.

A few more men showed up and the cleaning got under way.

Kenway wasn’t sure what half the garbage was. It was just a pile of
miscellaneous crap that would be useless to him.

“Do you know who I can call to get rid of the rat problem?”

Kenway asked Roman.

Roman nodded as he tossed something toward the small, steel

trash container they had brought with them. “Yeah, I can get someone
over here. That’s not a problem.”

“Big rats?” the man with Roman asked.
Roman chuckled. “Don’t get your panties in a ruffle, Lorenzo. I

don’t think they come out trying to fight you.”

Lorenzo narrowed his taupe-colored eyes at Roman. “Very funny.

Those things are germ-infested.”

Sweet Delight

“Dude, you’re a leopard shifter. Shouldn’t you want to eat the

thing instead?”

From the expression on Lorenzo’s face, he didn’t like Roman’s

comment. As a matter of fact, he looked downright pissed. Kenway
hid his smile as he turned, glancing at another part of the room. It
shouldn’t be funny, but hell if it wasn’t.

“Can we just get phase one done?” Lorenzo asked, his voice

frosted in ice. “We do have a time schedule.”

Touchy.
Kenway noticed the sun setting and knew his mate would be here

soon. The place was pretty cleared out, and now all that needed to be
done was the interior restoration. With the trash gone, the shop looked
a little more promising.

“Maverick gave us an idea of what you wanted,” Roman said as

he strode toward Kenway. He had moved closer to the door, looking
for his mate. “But he said to look the plans over with you. It’s your
shop and you should have things the way you want them.”

Kenway turned from the door, glancing into Roman’s grey eyes.

“Just as soon as my mate gets here. I want him to be a part of the
planning.” Kenway wanted Ross to be in every aspect of his life. He
had never met anyone like the vampire and Kenway knew his mate
was nothing short of amazing. There was an ache in his chest just
from being away from his mate.

“Understandable,” Roman replied. “Just let me know when—”
Ross walked through the door, glancing around at everyone as the

entire crew stopped and stared at him.

Kenway grinned.
“Why is everyone looking at me?” Ross tried to whisper, but that

was a futile attempt. Everyone in the room was a shifter. They had
excellent hearing. Shifters could hear the rats pissing on cotton.

“We were just waiting for you to get here so we could look over

the plans,” Roman said as he set a rolled-up set of blueprints on their

Lynn Hagen

makeshift table. “Tell me where you want everything, how you want
the place to look, and we can get started first thing in the morning.”

Ross glanced at Kenway and then walked over to where the bear

shifter was standing. Kenway had a feeling that Ross wasn’t an
integral part of anything before, not from the way he was acting.

Seeing a shy vampire was kind of endearing.
He joined his mate, and the two went over the plans with Roman

while the other workers finished the cleanup. He stood just to the side
and behind Ross, but Kenway wasn’t paying attention to what his
mate or Roman were saying. He was too busy imagining all the
naughty things he wanted to do to Ross when he got him home.

Ross shifted from one leg to the other, tucking his hair behind his

ear as he listened. Kenway moved in a little closer until they were
touching. He reached up and let a few strands of Ross’s hair glide
through his fingers, nearly drooling at the thought of his mate’s long
mane brushing over his body as Ross rode his cock.

“What do you think, Kenway?” Roman asked.
Kenway’s eyes snapped over to the bear shifter, but hell if he had

heard a single word they had said. His mind was still trapped in his
fantasy about Ross being naked, his cock bobbing freely as Kenway
fucked the shit out of him. “Yeah, sounds good.”

Ross turned his head, his eyes locking with Kenway’s. “You think

so?”

Oh hell. He wasn’t sure what to say. “Whatever you want, Ross.”

That was a good answer. The best one to give while his mind was
filled with thoughts Kenway couldn’t wait to make into reality.

“Okay.” Roman rolled up the plans. “I’ll have these revised and

we can get started as soon as I have the new set of prints.”

What in the hell had he just agreed to? Kenway sure as hell hoped

Ross knew what he was doing, because he had no clue what his new
bakery was going to look like. He started to tell them to repeat the
plans, but Kenway had just a little too much pride to admit he wasn’t
paying any attention.

Sweet Delight

Ross shocked the hell out of Kenway when he made a strange

squealing noise and clapped his hands together. “Okay, now that I
know what this place is going to look like, I’m more amped about the
whole idea.”

Kenway wished he knew what the place was going to look like.

He was just going to have to trust that Ross wasn’t turning their
bakery into something resembling The Manacle. He could imagine
laser lights…what had he just done?

“Come on, big guy,” Ross said as he grabbed Kenway’s hand and

led him from the shop. “Let’s celebrate.”

His mate’s exuberance was contagious. Kenway gave a hearty

chuckle as they stepped outside. “What do you want to do?”

“Well, I definitely want to ride your big-ass cock.”
Kenway swallowed…hard. His mind filled with images of Ross,

with erotic, taunting scenes more. His erection was starting to become
painful, biting into his zipper as he thought of grabbing Ross’s ass
while his mate slid up and down—he had to stop thinking about that.
“That sounds pretty fucking perfect to me.”

The smile in Ross’s obsidian eyes contained a sensual heat that

Kenway wanted to explore at further length. A current of electricity
buzzed through his skin as Ross ran his hand down Kenway’s arm. “I
thought it might.”

Kenway hurried his mate to the truck, praying they made it home

before he lost his damn mind with lust. All he could think about was
fucking Ross.

Gripping the wheel so tight his knuckles turned white, Kenway

watched as Ross moved closer, his hand skimming over his hard
erection. His cock pulsed at his mate’s touch and Kenway wanted
nothing more than to…fuck this. Kenway pulled the truck over to the
side of the road, slammed the gear into park, and moved until he was
out from behind the steering wheel.

Ross laughed. “Can’t wait?”

Lynn Hagen

“I am so close to coming in my pants that it isn’t even funny.”

Ross released his swollen cock, afraid to touch his own erection for
fear he would erupt. “God, please suck my dick, Ross.” His voice was
husky now, raw with need.

Kenway was thankful as hell Ross didn’t tease him. His mate slid

into position and wrapped his luscious lips around the head, sucking
his length to the back of his mouth. Kenway threw his head back and
groaned as he grabbed a fistful of Ross’s long hair.

Skin like satin, hair like silk. The man was nothing if not erotic

and sensual.

He curled his hips, thrusting in small measures into his mate’s

mouth. It was hard as hell to hold back. Kenway wanted to openly
fuck the man’s mouth, but was afraid his mate wouldn’t be able to
take all—Kenway’s eyes crossed when Ross took every last inch of
his cock down his throat.

“Holy hell!” Kenway actually began to sweat as Ross withdrew

and then took him all the way down again. He repeated this move
over and over again until Kenway’s balls were tight against his body,
and he could feel his orgasm pooling at his spine.

And then Ross constricted his throat and that was all she wrote.

Kenway let out a guttural scream as his cum spurted from his cock.
Never before had he come that damn fast or hard. He feared his balls
were going to shrivel up into two tiny grapes.

Ross leaned back, licking a spot of cum that had escaped his

mouth, and Kenway damn near had a heart attack. His mate slid his
finger over the white mess, pulled his hand back, and then sucked his
finger into his mouth.

Oh.
My.
God.
“Now you are going to let me ride your fat cock,” Ross said as he

leaned in for a kiss. Kenway was willing to give the man whatever the

Sweet Delight

hell he wanted at this point, just as long as he never stopped giving
him blow jobs. His damn ears were still ringing.

All Kenway could do was watch—and drool—as Ross slid his

jeans down and kicked them off. His cock jutted out from a nest of
curls, making Kenway’s heart hammer at the sight. His buffalo
wanted to devour this man.

Ross grabbed a small packet of lube from the front pocket of his

pants and Kenway sat there, his cock still hard as a rock as his mate
lathered his cock. He loved Ross’s take-charge attitude. The man’s
hands moved sensually, slipping up and down his cock in an erotic
dance.

Shit, he was about to come again.
“Let me show you how excited I am about our new business.”

Ross straddled Kenway’s lap and slowly lowered himself. Kenway
quickly grabbed his cock and held it as Ross sank ass deep.

Oh, glory, glory, glory. The feel of his mate’s tight ass sitting on

his cock was so fucking fantastic that Kenway growled out his
approval. Moving his hand away, he gripped his mate’s slim hips and
held on as Ross began to ride him.

Kenway grabbed Ross’s hair. He couldn’t help it. He loved all the

beautiful long strands and wanted to feel them brushing against his
heated flesh. Kenway used one hand to grip Ross’s face, pulling his
mate closer as he took those talented lips in a fierce kiss.

Ross slipped his tongue inside Kenway’s mouth, hungrily

exploring as his ass moved up and down Kenway’s hard erection. If
there was anything better in life, Kenway sure as shit had never seen
or felt it, because Ross was sending him straight to the paradise of
pleasure.

Christ, the man was driving him to madness with his undulating

hips and possessive mouth. It was Kenway who felt like he was the
one being consumed. It was there, in Ross’s dark eyes. The man
wanted to eat him alive.

Hell yeah!

Lynn Hagen

Kenway grunted as Ross’s ass slid back down his cock. It was

such a tight fit that he felt like he was going to split the man in half.
But Ross didn’t seem to mind. He kept right on fucking Kenway’s
cock.

“I’m losing my damn mind,” Ross said as he broke the kiss. “My

body is burning up for you.”

“Mine, too, baby…mine, too.” Kenway yanked Ross’s hair,

thrusting his hips upward as he shoved his cock to the hilt. He wanted
to come inside his mate’s ass so badly, and make this last all fucking
night long. He really was losing his mind.

“Then make me come,” Ross begged. “So deep…inside. God,

Kenway…I can feel you.”

Releasing Ross’s hair, Kenway used both hands to grab his mate

and then he pistoned with everything he had, Ross gripping his
shoulders as he cried out. His cum shot out in ribbons onto Kenway’s
shirt and he didn’t give a fuck about the mess. The scent of his mate’s
release and the building pressure inside his balls made Kenway’s
canines emerge. His body tightened in a savage, demanding ache.

But before he could bite into his mate’s shoulder, Ross bit into his

neck, sucking hard. Kenway’s vision dimmed as his body just fucking
fell apart. There was no other way to describe it. His seed shot into his
mate’s ass and his balls damn near climbed inside of his body. His
head was throbbing so badly that he thought he just might have
broken a blood vessel.

Ross licked at the wound, his skin slick with sweat as he smiled.

“Now that was a celebration.”

Kenway let out a breathy chuckle. His mate was something else.

The man was shy, demanding, sexy, bold. He was the total package
and Kenway loved it.

“As much as I hate to say this, we need to get our clothes back in

order before a cop comes by.”

Ross nipped Kenway’s lip before easing the cock out of his ass.

Kenway shuddered at the feel of his softening erection slipping free.

Sweet Delight

“Is there anything else we need to celebrate?” Ross teased as he

dressed and then took a seat on his side of the truck. “Because I’d
celebrate the wind blowing by if I could feel your dick buried deep
inside of me again.”

We just might do that.

* * * *

Ross looked over what had been done so far to the bakery—which

wasn’t much. The walls were semirepaired, but not painted. The floor
looked like the tiles had been torn up and tossed aside. There was
someone working on an electrical outlet and another with a bucket of
white stuff, smearing it over holes in the wall. He would have thought
the crew got more than this done since this morning.

“The pipes were busted in the basement, and it took the entire day

to get most of the damaged ones replaced,” Kenway explained, as if
he could read Ross’s mind. Maybe it was the expression on his face
that gave away what he was thinking.

His mate pulled Ross into his arms, giving him a hello kiss. “Can

you do me a favor and grab me a coffee from The Café?”

Yeah, he could be the errand boy. It wasn’t like he had anything to

do around here. Ross didn’t know what the men were even doing.
“Sure.”

Kenway fished some money out of his pocket and handed it to

Ross. The Café wasn’t too far and he remembered where it was
located. Besides, Kenway had gotten Ross addicted to walking this
quaint little town at night. It was very peaceful.

“Thanks, babe.”
Ross really didn’t mind going. He knew Kenway was super

excited about this project and wanted to be hands-on with it. The man
spent the day here and didn’t leave until Ross showed up, and then he
still stayed a little while after that. Ross was trying to be enthusiastic
as well, but it was hard when the place looked like a gutted building.

Lynn Hagen

Maybe when the equipment started to be moved in, he would feel
differently.

He had become interested when Roman was going over the

blueprints with him. It helped him envision what the final result
would look like. Kenway seemed just as excited with the empty place
as he was with the idea of it being finished.

Ross smiled. He liked seeing his mate so exuberant. It meant that

he wouldn’t have buyer’s remorse soon after the bakery was
completed. Ross had waited his entire life for someone like Kenway.
He was sweet, sexy, muscular, and had an excitement to him that
Ross had never seen in anyone else, not even himself.

It was refreshing to be around the man.
Strolling toward The Café, Ross started having that feeling once

more that someone was watching him. This time he didn’t have
Kenway to distract him. He stopped in midstep and glanced around,
but just like the last time, he didn’t see anyone.

But Ross knew someone was there.
Being out in the open, he couldn’t exactly use his vampire powers

and dissipate to the coffee shop. He was pretty sure that was frowned
upon in the town limits where a human could see him. And although
he was a vampire, Ross wasn’t a very skilled fighter. That had been
proven when his brother easily overtook him and shoved him into the
demon realm.

The Café came into sight, and Ross made it there without whoever

was following him showing himself. He walked up to the counter and
ordered Kenway’s coffee, and then asked for a slice of the cake he
knew his mate liked.

“You were here last night with the big fella over at the Dairy

Twist,” the man said and then grinned. “Or what used to be the Dairy
Twist.”

Ross extended his hand. “Ross Green. I’m his mat—partner.”
The man shook Ross’s hand. “Ray Freewether. Nice to meet you,

Ross.”

Sweet Delight

Well wasn’t he friendly? The guy looked to be in his early

twenties, and he was definitely human. He had almond-colored eyes,
short black hair, and a nice little chiseled body. He wasn’t anywhere
near as good-looking as Kenway, but it was nice to know someone
else in this town—besides Baker and the construction crew. Ross
hadn’t even come out of his room at the Manchester place to get to
know the people who lived there.

“Do you like it here?” Ross asked as Ray made Kenway’s coffee.
Ray gave a shrug. “Lived here my whole life, but until the mayor

started helping the town open all these businesses, it wasn’t much of a
place to live. It looks like things are changing.”

That they were. If Ray only knew why. He very seriously doubted

the man knew about Vampire Hunters. He was sure the human knew
nothing about vampires, shifters, and all the other paranormal
creatures that inhabited Brac Village. “That’s a good thing, right?”

Ray smiled and it reached his almond-colored eyes. He really was

a nice-looking man. “It sure is. I even have help starting tomorrow.”

Ross wondered if it was Johnny. The small human seemed

adamant about getting a job. He knew the little guy would win out
over his mate’s insistence that he not find work here…or anywhere.

“Is his name Johnny?”
Ray nodded. “How’d you know?”
“I saw him last night and he told me.” He had just met Johnny last

night as well.

“He seems like a nice guy.”
Ross wouldn’t know. “He does.”
“Good,” Ray said. “I hate working with people who act like

douchebags.”

Ross laughed. “Have that problem much?”
“The last guy who worked here tried to flirt with every man who

came through that door. It was embarrassing as hell. We started losing
customers. Thank god he was fired.”

Lynn Hagen

Ross could see where that would be a problem. He knew he

should get Kenway’s coffee and treat to him, but Ross wasn’t looking
forward to spending an evening watching the men work in the bakery
while he stood there with nothing to do.

“I’ll be over at the bakery once it’s open. Feel free to stop by.”

Ross had a thought. “But I only work at night. I have one of those
nasty allergies to the sun.”

Ray’s eyes widened. “I never met anyone who had that before. I’ll

keep that in mind. Thanks for the offer.”

Ross smiled as he said good-bye, feeling a little better about being

in this town. He had somewhat of a friend now. Well, he knew
someone that wasn’t a paranormal. It was a start.

Walking back to the bakery, Ross crossed over to the other side of

the street. Just as he was walking by Murphy’s Bookstore, he got that
feeling again, only this time it was amplified by a hundred.

“What a cozy little town this is.”
Ross stilled. He had really thought the person watching him was

his brother. But he didn’t know this man, or at least the voice he had
just heard. Whoever was standing just out of his line of sight was a
stranger.

He couldn’t even scent if the man was human or other, and that

scared the hell out of him.

“This place seems very…special.”
Ross hurried his steps, damn near running to the bakery. He was

never so glad in his life to reach his mate. He shoved the coffee cup
and small bag into Kenway’s hand, feeling himself shaking with fear.
The guy had said the word special like he knew not all the residents
were human. That was a threat if he ever heard one.

Kenway set the items down and grabbed Ross, pulling him close.

“What’s wrong? You’re shaking like a leaf.”

Everyone stopped working, all eyes on him. At this point, Ross

didn’t care. That disembodied voice had been ominous, making him
feel like there was doom and gloom heading this way. He stood there

Sweet Delight

and told Kenway about the feeling he had last night and about what
just happened tonight.

“I bet it’s that Kenyon guy. He probably sent someone here to spy

on the village, to see if he could spot anything out of the ordinary.”

So why was he fucking with Ross? Okay, he was on the pale side,

but Kenway looked more paranormal than he did. The guy was built
like a freaking freight train. But then again, Kenyon was a Vampire
Hunter. No, he was the head Vampire Hunter. He knew nothing about
shifters and demons—that they knew of.

“The next time you feel someone watching you, let me know.”

Kenway didn’t sound too happy that Ross had kept that bit of
information to himself last night.

“I will,” he promised. Because there was no way in hell Ross

wanted to meet that man face-to-face.

* * * *

As Kenway talked quietly with his mate, Roman walked toward

the back of the room and called Maverick. He and his sentries needed
to be put on alert that a spy was in town. After he hung up, he called
his pa, telling him about a possible threat.

“Just keep your eyes open and your ears peeled, son. There’s not

much we can do if he doesn’t break any laws or hurt anyone.”

It gutted Roman that he couldn’t just put the bastard out of his

misery. But his pa was right. If anyone touched the spy in town, that
would only bring Kenyon here. He thought about his mate, Steven,
working at the diner. Roman was going to keep a better eye on the
place, just in case. Now that the diner was open twenty-four hours,
trouble could come at any time—if the man was here to cause trouble.

Whatever he was here for, the entire populace of paranormal

beings in Brac Village would be warned.

Lynn Hagen

Chapter Seven

Kenway headed over to Baker’s father’s house to pick his

employee up. The man’s car wouldn’t start and he needed Baker for
some miscellaneous work at the shop. There was nothing wrong with
getting his future employee in on the groundwork. Besides, Roman
said they could use a cleanup man.

So far Baker was a gem helping out, but Kenway was starting to

see that he needed the guy full-time before the bakery even opened.

“Maybe we should have Mark’s Garage take a look at his car,”

Ross suggested. “I’m sure it wouldn’t cost much to get—”

Kenway swerved, his hand shooting out instinctively to slam into

his mate’s chest, stopping him from jerking forward. His heart was in
his throat as he smashed his foot into the brake, damn near making it
go all the way through the floorboard. “What was that?”

Ross spun his head around, looking over his shoulder. “I don’t see

anyone.”

He wasn’t losing his mind. Kenway had seen someone standing in

the middle of the damn road. There was no way that was an illusion.
He turned his head, but just as Ross said, no one was there.

What in the hell was going on? “Did you see him?”
Ross glanced over at Kenway and slowly shook his head. “I didn’t

see anyone, Kenway.”

No, he wasn’t going crazy. He had seen someone. The guy had

dark dress pants on and a dark-brown leather jacket. His imagination
wasn’t that creative to dress his illusion. There had been a man
standing there. Kenway would have bet his life on it.

Sweet Delight

“There was someone there, Ross. I’m not sure what’s going on,

but I’m not seeing things.” Kenway put the truck in park and slid
from his seat. He could see the hesitation in Ross’s eyes, like the man
would much prefer the two of them hauling ass out of there.

Kenway needed to know.
He walked to the back of his truck, his eyes scanning the area, but

other than the moon and the landscape around them, he saw nothing.

“Can we go now?” Ross called from the truck cab.
He didn’t like this one bit. Someone was fucking with him. They

had disappeared on purpose. They had stood in the middle of the road
on purpose as well. He just wasn’t sure why. Kenway couldn’t scent
anything other than the trees around him.

Things were starting to get really strange around town. First Ross

ran into a man who spoke to him from a dark alley. Now this.
Grunting in frustration, Kenway walked back to the driver’s side of
the truck, climbing in and slamming the door shut.

“Anything?” Ross asked, his expression nervous.
Kenway reached over and cupped his mate’s face, letting his

thumb run over his smooth cheek. “Nothing.”

“I believe you.”
“Thanks.” Kenway put the truck in drive and continued his course

to Baker’s father’s home, but he couldn’t let what just happened go.
There had to be a reason the person had appeared in front of him.
Even if Kenway wasn’t a shifter, the man standing on the road, in the
middle of nowhere, would have freaked him out.

Kenway fought the urge to park his truck and go investigate

further. He wanted to know why the person had appeared in front of
him. The only thing stopping him was Ross. His mate was definitely
edgy—which was weird for a vampire. Weren’t they supposed to be
the ones feared at night?

It didn’t matter. Ross wanted them to go, so he would go. It

wasn’t like he would find anything anyway.

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Kenway pulled into the driveway and honked his horn. Baker was

going to have to do something about his car or stick in town. The
drive out here took longer than Kenway thought it would. Even
though Baker was at his dad’s house, if he had to drive out here to get
the guy, this wasn’t going to work out. Most of the Brac Village
residents lived on the outskirts of town, but Baker’s father had to be
the one to live on the outskirts of the outskirts.

The front door opened and he watched Baker hurry out. He looked

flustered. But then a tall, broad man filled the doorway, scowling at
Baker.

Must be his dad.
It wasn’t any of Kenway’s business. Just as long as he didn’t see

any bruises, everything that went on between his employee and his
father was their business.

Ross scooted over.
“Thanks for coming to get me,” Baker said breathlessly as he

climbed into the cab. “My car is acting up again. The…dang thing is
getting on my nerves.”

Kenway wondered what the human planned on saying before he

picked dang, or was he just one of those people who didn’t cuss much
and needed practice? Kenway would be happy to help him practice.

“No problem,” Ross replied. Kenway wanted to correct his mate.

He wanted to tell Baker to get his car looked at, but from the shape of
the house and the tattered jeans Baker was wearing, Kenway was
starting to get the picture of how Baker lived.

Poorly.
Maybe he would listen to Ross and see what Mark’s Garage could

do for the guy. There was no way the human could walk to work
every day. And now that there was a mysterious man appearing in the
middle of the road, close to Baker’s father’s home, Kenway wouldn’t
want to chance the guy’s safety—of course, all that depended on how
often Baker came out here…still.

Sweet Delight

“Just cleanup today?” Baker asked Kenway. “That’s cool. If you

need me to do more, I can. It isn’t like I have a life anyway.”

Kenway wasn’t sure how to take that.
“We’ll see what Roman needs done when we get there,” Ross

answered for Kenway. Good, because he wasn’t sure what to say. So
far, the guy wasn’t acting like the little shit he had been referred to.

Maybe Maverick and the father had Baker pegged all wrong.
The drive into town almost made Kenway fall asleep. It was that

long. They finally pulled up in front of the bakery. The crew was still
there. Kenway got out and waited for his mate to climb out as well.

Baker hopped out of the other side, smiling. “Time to go to work.”
Who smiled when they were about to go clean up behind other

men? The guy was definitely strange. But Kenway wasn’t someone
who passed judgment, so he strolled into the building, seeing the
construction crew had made damn good progress. But there was a
mess everywhere.

“Good,” Roman said as they walked inside. “Baker, can you get

started on this mess?”

Baker hopped to it, diving right in.
Kenway waved Roman over. Ross leaned against one wall,

watching the human work, but Kenway knew his mate was listening.
That was fine with him. “Someone appeared on the road when I was
on my way to get Baker. When I hit my brakes, he just disappeared.”

“Can’t be the man Kenyon sent.”
“I didn’t think so either. But Ross didn’t see anyone.”
Roman glanced at him strangely, but didn’t ask if maybe he had

been seeing things. Points for the bear shifter. He looked like he was
mulling things over instead.

“Vampires shimmer, or pop, or whatever the hell you call it.

Demons use shadows. He just appeared and then disappeared?”

Kenway shook his head. “I didn’t see him appear, but he was

standing in the middle of the road. I was so busy making sure Ross

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didn’t fly through the front windshield that I didn’t see when he
disappeared. But it was too fast for a human.”

“Very strange.” Roman rubbed his chin. “Either we have two

separate incidents happening at the same time around here—which
wouldn’t surprise me—or someone is playing us all.”

Kenway didn’t like either option. He didn’t like anyone playing

him. All he wanted to do was settle down in Brac Village, be with his
mate, and run a bakery. It was that simple. Nothing complicated. But
it seemed someone didn’t want him or Ross content.

He knew about Ross’s brother. He also knew about Kenyon. But

other than those two possibilities, who could be messing with them?

“Just keep your eyes open,” Roman finally said. “Whoever it is, if

it is the same person, hasn’t done anything wrong, yet.”

That was not comforting. So what was he supposed to do, wait

until either he or his mate was attacked? Fuck that. Kenway was
going to have a talk with the men he lived with. Something had to be
done. Maybe he could get them to hang out in the shadows to try and
catch this person, or persons.

“Let me get back to work. I’ll let Maverick know what’s going

on.”

Kenway removed his Stetson and rubbed his hand over his head.

He didn’t like feeling clueless or helpless. He smiled when Ross
walked over to him and slid his arms around Kenway’s waist. Even if
the world started going crazy, he still had Ross. His mate was the
bright spot in his life.

“Anything we should start worrying about?” Ross asked, tilting

his head back as he gazed up at Kenway. “Other than the things I’m
already worried about?”

Wrapping his hand around Ross’s long hair, Kenway gave it a

gentle tug. “You don’t need to worry, babe. No one is hurting my
mate.”

A wobbly smile appeared on Ross’s face, his dark eyes softening

a bit. “Just a stranger who seems to like scaring people.”

Sweet Delight

He wanted to ask how a vampire could fear someone who should

be human—although the quick disappearance from sight thing was
starting to make him wonder if the guy was really human—but
Kenway didn’t ask. Just because Ross was a vampire didn’t
automatically make him a badass scary man.

Kenway kind of liked feeling as though he had to protect his mate.

He was big and strong, and defending the weaker came naturally to
him, but protecting his mate was hardwired into him.

“I don’t want you going anywhere by yourself. Until we know

what’s going on, I don’t want you alone.” Kenway smoothed his hand
down his mate’s back, feeling as if he could kill anyone who dared
bring harm to Ross.

“You are just so sweet and he-manish. Did I ever tell you the big

and brave turn me on?”

No, but he knew now. Kenway let his chest expand just a little

further, rising to his full height. He was peacocking, so damn what.

A slow grin formed when Ross ran his hands up Kenway’s chest.

“Mmm, so big and muscular. Can I bite you?” His voice was dripping
with seduction and temptation.

Kenway heard a snicker behind him. For a moment in time, he

had forgotten that they weren’t alone. “Maybe later,” he said in a
subvocal voice, backing it up with a wink.

When he turned to walk away, Kenway knew he was hard as a

rock and sporting a bulge in the front of his pants.

Did he care?
Hell no.

* * * *

Maverick grabbed Skyler from the office floor where she was

playing with her small dollhouse. “Come on, little lady.”

He needed to go find Jason and Gunnar. If someone was messing

around in his town, Maverick was going to make sure the fucker had a

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welcoming committee. Roman Lakeland had said that he suspected it
to be a spy from the Kenyon Corporation, but then Kenway’s story
about the man on the road tanked that idea.

If Kenyon had sent someone, the spy was more than likely human.

Whatever was going on, he was going to get to the bottom of things.
He tossed Skyler high up on his shoulders as he walked into the den,
but saw that no one was in there.

Maybe he should have just called the two wolves instead of trying

to hunt them down. They weren’t on the roster to patrol, so maybe
they weren’t even here.

“Higher,” Skyler squealed as she pulled at his hair.
Maverick chuckled at the small toddler. “Any higher and you’ll

get a nosebleed.”

Her little lips twisted, as if peeved that Uncle Maverick wouldn’t

do as she commanded. He found Murdock in the kitchen making
lunch for the kids. Depositing Skyler in her highchair, Maverick
grabbed his cell phone.

“Gunnar.”
“You home?” Maverick asked.
“Nope. I’m at Heaven’s shop.” Gunnar sounded like he really

didn’t want to be there. Maverick didn’t blame the man. Heaven had
been getting on Nero about needing a haircut, so it looked like his
constant nagging finally paid off.

“Come see me when you’re done. Find Jason as well. It seems we

have an unwanted visitor in town.”

Gunnar chuckled. “I’m at Heaven’s. Don’t you think I know

everything by now?”

The damn gossip. Just because Heaven owned a

barbershop…salon…whatever it was, didn’t mean he had to fall into
the stereotypical gossiping hairdresser. But Heaven was who he was.
“Then you know we have a person, or persons to hunt down.”

“Gotcha. As soon as Nero is done and I bring him home, I’ll hunt

Jason down,” Gunnar said. “And then we’ll go hunting.”

Sweet Delight

“Thanks.”
Gunnar cleared his throat and for some reason, Maverick’s balls

clenched. “What?”

“Are you really going to step into your role as mayor?”
Maverick growled. “Tell Heaven to mind his own da—dang

business.” Skyler was in the room, after all. Hanging up his phone, he
could see a smirk on Murdock’s face as he set the bowls on the table.

“My mate at it again?” Murdock asked just as Nevada and the

twins walked into the kitchen.

“Don’t play coy with me, Murdock. You know everything

already.”

Murdock’s smirk turned into a full-blown grin. “He is my mate.”
“Is there nothing he won’t gossip about?” Maverick’s tone said

plainly that he doubted it. Murdock just gave him an amused smile as
he began to fill the bowls with lunch.

Heading out of the kitchen, Maverick ruffled all three boys’ heads

and gave Skyler a kiss on hers. He knew that no matter what he said
or did, Heaven was going to be Heaven. At least he hadn’t needed to
explain things to Gunnar. There just might be a benefit to the grey
wolf’s loose lips.

* * * *

Ross entered The Café the next night to get Kenway’s usual when

he spotted Johnny behind the counter. That was fast. The way Hawk
had been acting, Ross would have thought the man had chained
Johnny to their bed.

Johnny gave a big wave and a goofy smile when he spotted Ross.

Well, make it two friends he now had in Brac Village. He knew he
should have gone to the bakery first, but Ross was determined to not
let some stranger in town scare him. He wasn’t sure how Kenway was
going to react when he found out Ross was walking the streets by

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himself, but Ross was well over three hundred years old. He was
pretty good at running and saving his ass from harm.

“Hi, Ross!” Johnny said excitedly and then leaned over the

counter, his voice dropping to a whisper. “This is my first night here.
I’m the new employee at The Café. I’m also a godfather, but don’t let
the title fool you. I don’t whack people.”

What a strange little man. “I’ll keep that in mind.”
Johnny straightened. “What can I get for you?”
Ross could see Ray off to the side, one corner of his mouth

twisted upward. The man looked like he was happy Johnny was
working here and that the man seemed excitable. “I’ll have a coffee
and a slice of chocolate cake.”

With a serious nod, Johnny went to making Kenway’s coffee. Ray

came over, a light chuckle on his lips.

“How’s he working out?” Ross asked.
“Pretty damn good. Show him something once and he gets it.”
“Dang it,” Johnny said from behind them.
“I don’t think you’ll have to worry about this one flirting with

anyone. I met his boyfriend. You’d have to be an idiot to go against
Hawk,” Ross said.

“Dang it,” Johnny said again.
Ray gave him a wide-eyed nod. “I met the guy. He even had a

little talk with me about letting people near his boyfriend. He’s one
scary-ass dude.”

“Dang it.”
Ross glanced over Ray’s shoulder to see what was giving Johnny

so much trouble. He was just standing there, lightly whistling, waiting
for the coffee to drip into the cup. Ross didn’t see anything that would
make the man say dang it.

“Have you seen anyone strange hanging out around here?” Ross

asked. Maybe Ray had seen something but wasn’t sure what to make
of it. It was possible.

“Dang it.”

Sweet Delight

Ray turned, his head tilted to a curious angle as he eyed the new

employee. “Do you need help with something, Johnny?”

Two dimples appeared as Johnny smiled, his eyes sparkling, and

gave them a thumbs-up. “Nope, got it covered.”

Ray turned back around. “Dude, every person in this town is

strange, but that’s what makes living here so nice. It’s never boring.”

Ross wondered if Ray knew about the paranormal world, but

wasn’t going to ask. If he didn’t, then Ross was not clueing the man
in on anything. He just wondered how the humans had lived here so
long and were still in the dark about what lived around them.

“Dang it.”
“Okay, why do you keep saying dang it?” Ross finally asked.

Maybe Johnny was having a hard time but was afraid to tell Ray. It
was the guy’s first day.

“Because I forgot to set record on my favorite shows before I left

the house.” He brought the cup over and the bag containing the cake.
Johnny glanced at the items and then at Ross, a curious gleam in his
blue-grey eyes.

“It’s for Kenway.”
Johnny’s expression changed to an ah look. “Well then, tell him to

enjoy.”

Ross chuckled, keeping his fangs hidden. “I’ll do that.”
“See you tomorrow night,” Ray called out as Ross left the shop.

He was starting to feel like a regular, like this town was his town and
this was where he belonged. There were two people who knew him
and smiled when they saw him. It was a nice feeling.

No one at Dante’s coven was ever this nice to Ross, not even his

brother Virgil. Tossing him into the demon realm had proven how not
nice Virgil truly was. It just might be his brother pulling these stunts.

Ross just didn’t know.
Walking down the dark street, Ross continually scanned for signs

of the person belonging to the disembodied voice. Not that he would
know the guy by his face, but he scanned the area anyway.

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It was a creepy feeling knowing someone was out there, probably

watching him right now. Ross quickened his steps until he made it to
the bakery. Once inside, he finally released a long-held breath.

And then he spotted the peeved look in Kenway’s eyes.

Sweet Delight

Chapter Eight

“We haven’t found anything yet,” Reese, the polar bear shifter,

said as he leaned against the counter that was finally installed. The
place was coming together. The floors were finished, walls done, and
the equipment was being moved in. The gas man was supposed to be
there in the morning to check everything out and turn the gas on.

Kenway hadn’t seen any more strange things since that night on

the road, but he wasn’t dismissing it as coincidence either. Something
was up. He just hadn’t figured out what yet.

“I haven’t seen anyone, and Ross hasn’t run into any more

mysterious voices. But I’m not letting this go.” Kenway watched as
the carpenters Roman hired worked on what was going to be the
display case. He liked the choice of wood Ross had picked out. It was
light and made the place seem a bit homier.

Reese glanced at the men working, his light-brown eyes looking at

each one in turn. Kenway knew what the man was thinking, but he
highly doubted the spy was one of the workers. He wasn’t that easily
fooled.

“We’ll still keep an eye out for anyone suspicious. I hear the

wolves haven’t had any luck either.” Thank goodness Reese didn’t
care that he was in a town of wolf shifters like Styles did. Reese was
pretty laid back, slow moving, freaky when it came to sex—according
to the stories Kenway heard—but had a mean side to him that most
tried their best not to bring out.

“Appreciate it,” Kenway said as the kitchen area became very

busy when everything from a dough mixer to a rack oven was brought
in. The proofing cabinet was brought in next. He only knew what this

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stuff was because the man who Maverick purchased the equipment
from told Kenway.

He really needed expert help.
All he knew was that the proofer allowed bread to rise in a place

that required a temperature- and humidity-controlled environment.
Kenway could only shake his head. How in the hell had he allowed
himself to get talked into this madness?

“Don’t look so worried,” Reese said with a lazy drawl. “Ain’t

nothin’ to it but to do it.”

“And possibly burn the place down in the process.”
Reese gave a slow chuckle. “You’ll do all right.”
He wished he was as positive thinking as the polar bear. The only

thing he was positive about was that this was one harebrained-ass
scheme. Maverick must have lost his mind thinking Kenway could
run a bakery. He was staring at the bread slicer like it was an alien
object. What the hell did he know about this stuff?

“Hey.”
Kenway slid his eyes over to Reese.
“Stop worrying.”
Exhaling on a long breath, Kenway nodded. “Ain’t nothin’ to it

but to do it.”

Reese gave an easy smile. It made the man look less intimidating

and more approachable. He wasn’t a bad-looking guy when he
smiled. His cocoa-brown skin crinkled around his light-brown eyes.
“You got that right.”

Kenway bumped his arm into Reese’s before heading into the

kitchen. Everything was so shiny and new. Maverick hadn’t spared
any expense. He would have settled for secondhand stuff. It was just
as good, and less costly. Seeing everything falling into place made
him doubt it all, and become excited at the same time. It was an
emotional roller coaster he could have done without.

“It’s looking good,” Roman commented as he stood next to

Kenway. “I’d say you’ll be open for business in five days max.”

Sweet Delight

The door to the kitchen swung open to show Ross standing there.

He looked like shit and he was bleeding.

It was also broad daylight out.
Kenway grabbed his mate and ran to the closest room, shoving

him inside as he watched his mate’s body smoke. “What in the hell
are you doing out in the sun?” Kenway shouted. He was frantic as hell
to keep his mate from combusting, and scared shitless. He hadn’t
meant to yell, but it had just come out as a bellow.

Ross collapsed on the floor, his eyes unfocused. Kenway saw

several slices across the man’s arms. They were defensive wounds.
He had used his arms as shields from a knife attack.

“Who attacked you?”
The door flew open, Roman throwing in a first aid blanket. “It’s

all I could find. I’ll send for Dr. Sheehan or Dr. Carmichael.”

Kenway nodded his thanks as the pantry door was closed.
Ross’s head lolled to the side, but he hadn’t said a word. Kenway

dropped to his knees and pulled Ross into his arms, careful of his
knife wounds and burnt skin. What in the hell happened to him?

Pulling his shirt over his head, Kenway began shredding it, using

the fabric to wrap around his mate’s bleeding arm. “You’re going to
be all right.” Kenway repeated himself over and over again, as if
turning the statement into his own personal mantra. He had to keep
repeating it because he had to convince himself that it was true.
Ross’s skin had lost its pale luster. It was more bluish now, making
the red cuts and burns stand out in stark contrast.

None of this made any sense, and Kenway’s mind was fighting to

put the pieces together. The man he had gotten a glimpse of on the
road the night he picked Baker up couldn’t have done this. His frame
was too small. It didn’t mean the person wasn’t a threat, but Kenway
couldn’t imagine his mate not kicking the smaller person’s ass.

But then again, dangerous things came in small packages. He

knew that more than most. It was a small wolf who had killed
Recker’s twin and Spencer’s brother. The man couldn’t have weighed

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more than a hundred and twenty-five pounds, but he had taken two
lives.

Kenway was determined more than ever to find the mystery man

and—the door opened, Dr. Sheehan standing with the lighting of the
kitchen outlining his body.

“Carter is here. He’s going to shimmer the two of you to my

office in the Den.”

Kenway didn’t speak a word. His throat was too tight. He just

knelt there and watched as Carter moved in past the doctor and gave
him a sympathetic smile. With one hand, he grabbed Kenway. The
other barely touched Ross. The elf must have been afraid he would
hurt the vampire with all the wounds on his body.

They blinked out of the bakery and into the Den. Kenway moved

to lay Ross down gently on the gurney. Dr. Sheehan moved in closer
as soon as Carter brought him in.

“He’s in shock.”
So was Kenway. Who could have gotten into a house full of

predatory shifters and attacked his mate? Kenway was livid. He was
so angry that he felt tears in the corner of his eyes. He felt as helpless
as a newborn babe as he stepped aside and let Dr. Sheehan work.
What more could he do? Kenway knew how to fight, to protect, and
to love, but he knew shit about healing. The only healing he knew was
to shift when he was wounded. A vampire didn’t stand a chance with
him.

“I need you to feed him.”
Kenway stood there staring blankly at the doc. “You need me to

do what?”

Dr. Sheehan’s stern face pulled Kenway from any lingering

thoughts he had. He stepped up to the table.

“Vampires heal faster when they have a fresh infusion of blood.

I’m trying to heal his cut marks, but I think the knife was dipped in
something to prevent the process from taking place. The wounds
aren’t fusing back together like they should. They’re scarring.”

Sweet Delight

Without thought or hesitation, Kenway bit into his wrist and then

held the bleeding flesh to Ross’s mouth. His mate had closed his eyes,
unmoving, but when the blood touched his lips, he began to drink.

Kenway felt guilty as hell for the way his body reacted to Ross

drinking from him, but there was nothing he could do about that. It
was like his cock had been trained to harden with the slightest touch
of Ross’s lips.

“It’s a normal reaction,” Dr. Sheehan commented as he looked

over Ross’s wounds. Kenway didn’t say a word. Saying sorry for his
boner wasn’t something he was about to do. Feeding and fucking
were very private acts to Kenway, and he really wished the doc would
step outside while Ross took his fill. But Dr. Sheehan didn’t leave the
room. He continued to examine Ross.

“Is he healing?”
Honestly, Kenway wouldn’t care if Ross held scars on his body. It

wouldn’t make him any less desirable. But it wasn’t his opinion that
would matter to Ross. Not when he got his first look in the mirror.

“The scars are getting lighter, but they aren’t going away.”
“And his burns?”
“Healed,” Dr. Sheehan stated as if his answer was an afterthought.

The doctor might know vampire physiology, but Kenway was
clueless. He was glad someone knew what they were doing.

Ross finally retracted his fangs, his eyes slowly opening. They

were a bit more focused than before, but they still held an edge of
gloss to them. “Hey, babe,” Kenway said gently. “How do you feel?”

“Tired, sore, and stiff.” His mate’s voice was scratchy and low.
“Can you tell us what happened?” the doctor asked. He gave

Ross’s arm a gentle squeeze as Kenway’s mate glanced from him to
Dr. Sheehan. There was pure fear in Ross’s dark eyes and his head
began to slowly shake back and forth.

“Can you give us a minute?”
Dr. Sheehan looked as if he wanted to argue, but left the room,

closing the door behind him. Kenway ran his fingers over Ross’s hair,

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leaning in and inhaling the man’s scent. His buffalo was close. It
wanted revenge against whoever had done this.

“Give me a name, love.”
The unfocused look was sliding back into his eyes. Ross’s lips

moved, but there was no sound coming out. As carefully as he could,
Kenway cupped the side of the man’s face, resting his cheek against
Ross’s. “No one is going to hurt you again. I promise. Tell me who
did this to you.”

Maverick’s dream came back to Kenway. Was Ross showing up

burnt and bloody, lying on the pantry floor the vision he had seen? Or
was more to come? Kenway would find a way to get Ross to talk, and
by fucking god, he was going after whoever was responsible for this.
He kept leaning into his mate, giving him comfort and hopefully the
safety needed to help bring him out of his shock.

Ross began to tremble. It was slight at first, but then he was

shaking as if he were standing in the middle of a blizzard…naked.
Kenway leaned in closer, shushing his mate, trying to get him to calm
down, but nothing was working.

Finally, admitting he didn’t have a clue what to do to calm his

mate, Kenway called for Dr. Sheehan to come back in. “He won’t
stop shaking.”

Apparently the doctor knew what to do because he went right to it.

He gave Ross some sort of injection, wrapped blankets around the
vampire, and began to examine his eyes.

Kenway moved a few steps back, watching and trying to keep his

beast under control. There was nothing he could do about his heart. It
was beating in his chest so quickly that he feared it would thump its
way out.

“He’s resting now.” Dr. Sheehan pulled the blanket up to Ross’s

chin and then pulled the sides of the bed up, the railings stopping
Ross from falling out if he moved in his drugged sleep. “He has
physical wounds that are healing a little better, but it’s the mental

Sweet Delight

ones that bother me the most. Would you mind if I sent Taylor in here
to talk with him?”

Kenway bristled at the idea of anyone talking to his mate about

what happened. It should be he who was getting to the bottom of
things, he who found out the culprit and made them pay.

Dr. Sheehan held up a hand. “I know you predators like to handle

things your own way, but Ross needs help in ways you may not be
able to supply.”

“The hell I can’t,” Kenway said before censoring his words. “I

thank you for what you’ve done for him, but he’s a part of my pack.
We take care of our own.”

“Stupid fucking me,” Dr. Sheehan grumbled as he snapped the

gloves off of his hands in a jerky motion. “I forgot how pigheaded
and stubborn you dominant males can be.”

Kenway grunted, but didn’t correct the man. He was telling the

truth. Regardless, Kenway would take Ross home and let his own
pack help him. He appreciated everything Maverick and the other
shifters in this town were doing for him, but when it came to his mate,
no one was going to stand in his way. “I’m taking him home.”

“Then I’ll be by to check on him later.”
“There’s no need for that.”
The doctor surprised Kenway when he slammed his fist down on

the counter next to the gurney. “Now listen, you stubborn-ass buffalo.
I won’t have you risking his life because your pride is getting in the
way. He needs my help. Deal with it.”

Whoa, the human had some brassy balls. He had also shouted loud

enough to draw the attention of some of the resident shifters. The
doorway filled with sentries, the men eyeing them both.

“Everything in here okay, Doc?” one of them asked. He was

giving Kenway an unfriendly glare. Kenway didn’t give a rat’s ass.

“Yes, Kota. I just lost my temper dealing with a stubborn,

dominant predator.”

Lynn Hagen

The doctor’s statement didn’t relax Kota. It made him stare at

Kenway with a hard-edged gleam in his eyes. “You need me to stay in
here?”

“I’m not a damn threat to him,” Kenway said with rage. “I don’t

pick on or threaten men smaller than me.”

“You need to calm down,” Kota said with deadly sincerity.

“You’re becoming a threat to this household.”

A threat? Seriously? Kenway was pissed that his mate had been

attacked in his own home. He was upset that his mate was in shock
and couldn’t tell him who had done it. Feeling helpless was not
helping his mood, but wasn’t he allowed to be upset? He was only
acting this way because Ross was hurt. He wasn’t even being
aggressive, just pissy.

“Why, because of my size?” Kenway knew he had guessed

correctly when Kota straightened to his full height. “You know what?
Fuck you. Fuck the loan Maverick gave me. Fuck the bakery, and this
town. I’m taking my mate home and then my pack and I will find
another place to live.”

Kenway reached down and gently gathered Ross into his arms. He

turned back to Kota, letting the disgust ring loud and clear in his
voice. “I’ve done nothing wrong except worry about my mate. You’re
acting just like those grey wolves did because I’m bigger than you
and your alpha. It was their fear that killed some of our pack. It was
their fear that drove us from our home. We are nothing but shifters
who want to settle down and feel as though our size isn’t what people
judge us by, but who we are and our own characters.”

He shoved past Kota, walking down the upstairs hallway. Halfway

to the steps, Kenway remembered it was still daylight out.

Shit.
“You know you can’t leave,” Kota called out to him. His tone had

lost the edge of anger to it, replaced by resignation of some kind.
“Why don’t you take one of the rooms on this end of the hallway until
it’s dark out?”

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“No,” Kenway answered firmly. “Carter can shimmer us home.”

His damn pride was smarting. Kota had judged him like all the rest of
the people Kenway had come across in his past. He wasn’t a bad man.
Not once since coming to this town had he given the impression that
he was a hotheaded shifter. He hadn’t even raised his voice when the
Lakelands pulled up on him outside the feedstore, thinking Kenway
had threatened Sterling.

He didn’t need this shit.
“Problem?”
Kenway closed his eyes. He didn’t want to deal with Maverick

right now. The alpha was the last person he needed to see.

“Yeah,” Kota replied. “I fucked up and judged Kenway without

really knowing him. He wants to take his mate and leave.”

Kenway was shocked to his core that Kota would admit the truth.

Most men like Kota would lie just to protect their image. The timber
wolf had stood there and told the alpha what he had done.

“I see,” Maverick said as he leaned against the upstairs railing, his

eyes focused on Ross, who was lying limp in Kenway’s arms. “What
happened to him, Kenway?”

“We don’t know.” It was Dr. Sheehan who answered. “Someone

attacked him, cut him up pretty badly, and he is in shock. Kenway is
taking his mate out of here against medical advice.”

The human’s statement made Kenway look like an asshole.
“I’ll have Carter take you home.” That was all Maverick said. He

didn’t try and talk Kenway out of what he wanted to do. The alpha
walked back down the steps, leaving Kenway standing there.

“Why didn’t you lie?” he asked Kota. “Maverick would have

believed you over me.”

“He would have,” Kota admitted. “But it wouldn’t have been the

truth. Don’t get me wrong. Admitting my faults isn’t one of my strong
points. But I know when I’ve royally fucked up, and my ego isn’t so
big that I can’t admit when I’ve misjudged someone.”

Lynn Hagen

Kenway still wanted to leave. He didn’t want to be here anymore.

When Carter walked up the steps, Kenway pulled his mate closer to
his chest, trying his best to be careful of his mate’s wounds. But he
wasn’t stupid enough to let his mate go without medical help. He
turned toward Dr. Sheehan. “I’ll see you at the house.”

The man looked relieved. “I’ll be there in a few hours to check on

him.”

With a nod, Kenway let Carter shimmer him and his mate home.

He tucked his mate into bed as soon as he was in his bedroom. Ross
looked comfortable. He also looked out of it. Kenway hoped whatever
Dr. Sheehan had given the vampire lasted for a while.

“Thanks,” Kenway said before the elf shimmered away.
Kenway wanted answers. Someone in this house had to have

heard something. And if they had, he wanted to know why they didn’t
help. He knew for a fact that someone had to know something.

Walking down the hallway, Kenway’s steps slowed. He tilted his

head back, inhaling deeply.

Blood.

Sweet Delight

Chapter Nine

Ross opened his eyes, gazing around the dark room, looking for…

He closed his eyes, feeling the pain from what had happened to him.
How could Virgil come after him like that? They were brothers. He
knew the guy had a mean streak in him, but Ross never thought his
brother would want him dead.

But stupidly, he had known Virgil would eventually try and kill

someone sooner or later. It was just truly messed up that it was Ross,
his own brother. Feeling thirsty and out of sorts, Ross pushed the
blanket off of him and crawled from the bed. He was over his shock
of what Virgil had done.

Now he was pissed.
After his brother attacked, Ross knew it was Virgil who spoke to

him in the dark shadow. He was even willing to bet it was his brother
that Kenway had seen on the road to Baker’s. How he hadn’t
recognized his brother’s voice, Ross wasn’t sure. But the man was
going to pay for what he had done.

Virgil was always a little screwed in the—okay, he was a lot

screwed in the head, but for him to go this far infuriated Ross.

Swinging the bedroom door wide open, Ross noticed a slight

stiffness in his arm, but he ignored it. He needed to find Kenway and
tell him what happened and who was behind all of this.

As soon as Ross stepped into the hallway, the scent of blood

slammed into his lungs. It was strong, rich, and made his mouth
water. He followed the scent to see Kenway standing in a bedroom,
watching over an impala as he lay there in his shifter form.

“What happened?”

Lynn Hagen

Kenway swung around so fast he knocked over the black lamp

next to the man’s bed. “Ross,” he said as if he were looking at a
ghost. His tone was low, quiet, a whisper.

“What happened to him?” he asked again, hoping Kenway

snapped out of it.

“He was attacked…just like you.”
“I know who did this.” He moved closer, his chest tightening

when he saw the little impala. He looked as if he were just fast asleep.
It didn’t look like he was wounded, but the smell of blood was still a
strong lingering odor in the room.

“Who?” Kenway gave Ross his full attention, his pale-blue eyes

narrowed.

“Virgil.”
“Your brother?”
Yeah, it should shock Kenway, but it didn’t have the same effect

on Ross. Virgil had been the bane of his existence since he was a
young vampire. He just wasn’t sure what spurred his brother into this
need to get rid of Ross. They had hated each other just fine. What had
changed?

“Take me to him.” The growl in Kenway’s voice was so deep that

Ross felt it vibrate in his chest.

“I can’t just waltz into Dante’s coven with a revenge-seeking

shifter. As badly as I want my brother to pay, we have to let Maverick
know. Virgil is here, in this town. It wouldn’t do us any good to go to
the coven.” Ross glanced at the bedroom window. “But since it’s dark
out, I guess we should grab our pitchforks and go.”

“Our what?” Kenway asked as he followed Ross from the room.
“If we are going to do this whole angry mob thing, we’ll need

torches as well.”

“This isn’t funny, Ross.” His mate wore an expression that said he

wasn’t the least bit happy with the way Ross was acting.

“I have to laugh, Kenway, because if I don’t, the only other

alternative is to cry. My brother has taken too much from me already.

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I won’t let him get my tears.” Ross walked over to the bed where the
impala was lying. He crossed his arms over his chest, feeling the rage
and pain deep down where only a family member could hurt a person.
“He’s starting to hurt other people now, Kenway. He has to be
stopped.”

Strong arms wrapped around him, pulling Ross’s back to

Kenway’s broad chest. He could feel the warmth of his mate soaking
into him and found that was what he needed—to know Kenway
would always be there for him, protecting him, and letting Ross know
he cared. “We’ll stop him, love. Now that we know who we are
looking for.”

Ross let out a long exhale. He knew one day it would come down

to this. He wasn’t sure why, but as far back as he could remember,
Virgil lived on the aggressive side of life. It was almost like he had
taken an oath in their youth to torture and harass Ross. But this was
different. His brother was becoming violent. He had to be stopped.

Finally, he patted his mate’s arm. “Go ahead and let Maverick

know, and then we need to get to the bakery. No matter what, I’m not
going to allow my brother to come in here and take away what you
and I have been working so hard to build.” Not only was Ross
referring to their business, but their relationship as well. He loved
what they had together, and he wasn’t going to let Virgil ruin that for
him.

“I’ll be right back. I forgot my phone in our bedroom.” Kenway

touched Ross’s arm. “Don’t pop out of here without me.”

Ross let his hand skim down Kenway’s arm before turning back to

the impala. “Who is the impala?”

“Spencer.”
Oh, god. Ross had met Spencer when Kenway came to pick him

up from the Lakelands’. He was an excitable little man who seemed to
be bursting with energy. To see him lying here healing tore at Ross’s
heart. Why would Virgil come after Spencer? It didn’t make any

Lynn Hagen

sense to him. There was no way he could leave the guy alone. Ross
wanted to kill Virgil for this.

Heavy footfall could be heard upstairs, and the sound was getting

louder. The noise reminded Ross of a freight train bearing down.
What the—

“Where is he?” A loud, thunderous roar filled the air, and Ross

knew that voice. It belonged to Recker. Ross had an urge to run and
hide. The tone was deep, filled with a growl that promised pain if his
question wasn’t answered.

“In his bedroom,” Kenway answered.
Ross moved away from the door. He didn’t want to get bowled

over. Recker wasn’t a small man. He jumped when the man walked
into the room and let out a strange, almost subvocal noise that was a
cross between a snort and a rumbling snarl.

Ross headed toward the door. He already felt guilty enough about

what had happened to Spencer. He didn’t want Recker laying in on
him. He found Kenway in the hallway. He had just finished up his
phone call and hung up his phone. Ross grabbed his mate and got the
hell out of there.

They appeared in the back of the bakery. But there was one tiny

problem.

“What the fuck!” Baker shouted as he slammed his back into the

wall, glancing between the two as if he had seen a ghost.
“You…how…not here a…” He began to pale, his cobalt-blue eyes so
wide Ross feared they would end up falling out of the poor guy’s
head.

“Calm down, Baker.”
“You calm down!” Baker shouted as his eyes snapped quickly

back and forth between Kenway and Ross. “People just don’t appear
out of thin air.” His voice was strained, and Ross could see the pulse
in his neck beating frantically. The man was about to either pass out
or have a stroke.

Sweet Delight

Roman appeared in the doorway, glancing from Kenway and Ross

to Baker. “Someone find out something?”

Ross nodded.
A slow grin formed on Roman’s face. “My mate, Steven, acted

the same way when he found out, only he passed out…like twenty
times.”

Ross would have laughed, but he didn’t think Baker would

appreciate it. He tried to keep his smile from forming, but it was like
trying to pull raw meat from a lion’s mouth—impossible.

“This isn’t funny,” Baker said as he watched the men who started

gathering in the kitchen part of the bakery.

“Maybe he doesn’t need an audience.” Ross wasn’t sure what the

guy needed. He had never dealt with anyone who found out the truth
before. Should he give him a glass of water?

Roman ushered his workers out, looking over his shoulder before

leaving. He had that same amused grin on his face. “Good luck.”

Somehow he had a feeling they were going to need it. Ross moved

closer to Kenway, slipping his hand into his mate’s larger one. “Are
you okay now, Baker?” He eyed the human, but Baker’s complexion
didn’t look like it had improved. He was almost as pale as Ross now.

“Just…just give me a minute.” Baker slid to the floor, his hands

on his head, his knees pulled tight to his body. “I need to sit here and
freak out in my head for a while.”

Ross wasn’t sure if he should do as the man asked or probe at him

until Baker said he was fine. The man was sitting there looking so
damn lost.

“I’m sorry, Baker. I didn’t mean to open your eyes to this world.”
The man’s head came up, his eyes searching Ross’s. “You two

aren’t the only ones?”

Shaking his head, Ross gave him an apologetic look. “What do

you think we are?”

Lynn Hagen

His tongue snaked out to lick at his lips. Baker gazed at Kenway

and then Ross from across the room that held the equipment they
would need—yet nothing was set up. “I don’t know. Tell me.”

Ross gave his mate a questioning stare. Maybe it was best Baker

didn’t know the full truth, but if he was going to work here, stranger
things were bound to happen. “I was born a vampire, Baker. Kenway
can shift into an animal.”

Baker’s pupils seemed to grow bigger and then shrink back. Ross

hadn’t a clue what that meant. But one thing was for certain. If Baker
couldn’t accept what they were, then he would have to be dealt with.
There would be no other way around the issue.

His big cobalt-blue eyes were still huge, but Ross could see flecks

of curiosity beginning to shimmer in them. His reaction wouldn’t
have been real if he hadn’t freaked out. Ross knew this. Baker was
going to have to slowly absorb what he now knew.

Just as long as he didn’t betray them.
“We cool?” Kenway asked. His mate shifted from one foot to the

other, waiting on Baker’s reply.

Resting his arms on his bent knees, Baker nodded. “I need time,

but I won’t tell anyone what you just told me.”

“How do we know you won’t leave here and tell the world?” Ross

asked.

“Because I need the job.” Baker stated a hard truth. “When you

came to pick me up, I had just gotten into another argument with my
dad. I hate borrowing money from him, but sometimes it can’t be
helped. The bitch part about going over there to get it is the fact he
wants to lecture me for an hour about getting my life together.” Baker
slowly pushed to his feet, but still used the wall to rest his back
against. “I reminded him that I work here now, but…I don’t know. It
just isn’t good enough for him. Nothing I do wins his approval.”
Baker’s face held resignation and resentment.

Ross hadn’t expected all that. He wasn’t sure why Baker was

telling him about his strained relationship with his dad, but it did seem

Sweet Delight

pretty messed up. It only reminded him of the relationship he had with
Virgil. But his problem wasn’t trying to win his brother’s approval. It
was trying to not get tortured.

The tightness was back in his arms. Ross pulled his sleeves up to

see small scars running along his arms. He knew it was from the knife
Virgil had used. Why his brother came after him with a weapon, Ross
may never know.

“We’ll talk about that later.” Kenway gestured to Ross’s scars.

“Right now we need to get things done around here.” His mate turned
toward the human, his lips set in a firm line. “We’re peaceful
creatures, Baker. Not saying there aren’t bad shifters and vampires”—
Kenway gave him a quick glance before continuing—“but for the
most part, we live our lives the same as humans, with pretty much the
same goals. We want families, a place to settle down, and people we
care about around us.”

“And to eke out a living,” Baker tossed in, although Ross wasn’t

sure the man was back to himself just yet.

“That too,” Kenway agreed. “Now let’s get this bakery together.”
Baker shuffled a little forward and then stopped. “How can a

vampire run a bakery?”

Ross gave the human a peeved glare. “I’m still trying to figure

that one out myself. But apparently my mate thinks it can be done.”

“It can.” Kenway tossed his beefy arm around Ross’s shoulder,

damn near making his knees buckle. “You just got to have a little
faith in me.”

“You I have faith in. Mr. Bright and Shiny I don’t trust so much.”
“Are you talking about the sun?” Baker asked.
Ross couldn’t resist. “No, I was talking about the sunny

personalities of the construction workers.”

A smile slid onto Baker’s face as he took a few more steps closer.

“I don’t know about that. But they are hot. Especially Lorenzo, but
don’t tell him I said that.”

“Why?” Ross asked.

100

Lynn Hagen

“Because he always has a pissed-off look on his face.”
“I’m pretty sure it has nothing to do with you,” Kenway answered

as he led Ross from the kitchen into the shop area. Ross stilled, gazing
at the display case. The carpenters had completed it and the glass had
been installed.

It was nothing short of a work of art. It was beautiful.
Pulling from under Kenway’s arm, Ross walked over to the case,

running his hands along the smooth grain of the wood. He never
thought a piece of furniture would make him feel this way, but it did.
He was almost giddy.

“I take it you like what they have done.” Kenway walked up

behind Ross, pulling him into a tight embrace as he kissed Ross’s
neck.

Leaning back into his mate, Ross smiled. “Remind me to celebrate

with you later.”

“I have a feeling you two are talking about sex,” Baker said with a

blush as he walked to the other side of the looming counter.

“Oh, yeah.” Ross chuckled. “And lots of it.”
“Really?” Kenway asked with a low and husky growl. Ross could

feel his mate’s happiness pressing into his lower back. As much as he
hated to, Ross pulled away.

“Focus on work.” He patted Kenway’s chest. “Play later.” The big

buffalo shifter was sporting a pout as Ross walked over to Baker. He
kept at least eight feet between them though. Baker wasn’t ready to
deal with a vampire up close. It was in his cobalt-blue eyes.

“No offense,” Baker said as if he knew Ross was clued in on what

he was feeling.

“None taken.” They worked the rest of the night, getting the

shelves up, making sure the equipment was installed and working,
and checking the invoice for the food that was supposed to arrive in
the morning.

“Does this look right?” Ross asked. He didn’t eat food. What did

he know about dessert ingredients? If it wasn’t RH categorized then

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101

Ross didn’t spare a second thought. But now they were running a
bakery. He needed to pay attention.

His mate shrugged. “I haven’t a clue.”
“Give me that.” Baker took the invoice from them. “With both

your combined knowledge, you just might be able to bake a dinner
roll.” It seemed the human was adapting to them faster than Ross had
thought. The guy sounded irritated. “Who ordered this stuff?”

“Maverick,” Kenway answered. “Why, is it wrong?”
“Why would the mayor—” Baker blinked at them both,

realization dawning in his eyes. “Him too?”

Kenway cleared his throat as Ross glanced around the shop. This

was awkward.

“You’re going to need a few more things,” Baker said,

steamrolling past the unanswered questioned. Good, because Ross
didn’t want to be held responsible for letting the cat out of the bag
about the people in the Den.

Or was that wolf out of the bag?
“It looks like he threw together a grocery list more than an

itemized list of what a bakery needs.” Baker’s finger skimmed down
the page, his eyes focused.

“How do you know so much about this business?” Kenway asked.
Baker glanced up. “Don’t you watch the Food Network? I live and

breathe that channel. I’m just shocked my dad said that about me.”

There went those sad eyes again.
“Why don’t you make a list of what we don’t have while Kenway

and I go get some coffee?” They had worked hard, and Ross knew the
diner was open twenty-four hours.

“You can drink coffee?” Baker asked in surprise.
“The stuff keeps my fangs from drying out,” Ross tossed over his

shoulder as they walked out. Kenway was chuckling as he grabbed
Ross’s hand. He never met anyone who liked to hold hands as much
as his mate.

“That was funny.”

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Lynn Hagen

“I thought so,” Ross replied. They walked hand in hand until they

reached the diner. Kenway held the door open for him, allowing Ross
to pass under his arm. The place looked pretty deserted.

“Oh, hello. You can have a seat anywhere and I’ll take your order

right away,” a short vampire babbled quickly. Ross was pretty
surprised a vampire worked here. It was three in the morning, which
might explain his appearance, but that didn’t tell Ross why the guy
was so jittery.

“Don’t mind him,” a tall man with muscles and every color in his

hair said. “D’s gotten into the coffee. It’ll wear off by the time he
goes to bed.”

Ross watched in fascination as D ran from one table to the next,

wiping down the already spotless surface. He then ran to each table
and grabbed the sugar containers, carrying them behind the counter.

“D, they were filled earlier,” the man reminded the vampire.
“Not all the way,” D replied as he began to unscrew the lids.
The shifter shook his head and turned back toward them. “Name’s

Cody. Have a seat and I’ll take your order.”

The sugar lid went flying, clanging against the wall as D ran

around the counter. “I got it!”

Ross slid into a booth, wondering if maybe they should just pop

home to get something to drink.

D cleared his throat, pad and pencil in hand, although his hand

was shaking badly. “We have a small stash of crimson in the back if
you’d care for some.” His voice was steady. That was a good thing.

“Okay,” Ross replied. “I’ll take a glass.”
“I’ll take a coffee and an omelet,” Kenway said. He sat there and

told the waiter how he wanted it prepared, D writing everything
down. Ross wasn’t sure why. Cheese and onions wasn’t that hard to
remember.

The waiter took off and Ross settled back.

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103

“It’s his first night and you two are his first customers,” Cody said

as a way of explaining D’s bizarre behavior. “Most of it is the coffee,
but I think a small part of it is nerves.”

He had never heard of a vampire drinking coffee. Ross opened his

mouth to say this when the door opened and in walked Virgil.

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Lynn Hagen

Chapter Ten

Kenway noticed his mate going statue still. He didn’t even blink.

He was still getting to know his mate, and found a lot of his ways
endearing, but Kenway was pretty sure this was not normal. The man
didn’t even look like he was breathing.

His mate’s eyes were glued to the front door. Turning his head,

Kenway saw a short man standing there. He wasn’t very tall, but the
look in his eyes was what drew Kenway’s attention. They were void
of any emotion. It was as if a switch had been turned off and a person
was left there standing, just a shell.

“You know him?” Kenway asked, never taking his eyes off of the

stranger. The guy stood just inside the doorway, his eyes locked onto
Ross. Kenway didn’t like the feeling he was getting.

“I know—It’s…”
Ross’s hesitation made Kenway turn around and look directly at

his mate. Ross’s eyes darted from Kenway to the man standing at the
door, and then he lowered his thick, dark-brown lashes. Kenway
cocked his head, wondering how Ross knew the stranger. “Ross?”

When his mate spoke, his voice sounded lost and tortured. “It’s

Virgil.”

Kenway’s head turned ever so slowly, his gaze raking over Ross’s

brother. “You’re Virgil?”

Virgil didn’t answer. His eyes never left Ross. Pushing from the

booth at the same time Cody came around the counter, Kenway
moved closer to the guy. “You have balls showing up here. I should
gut you where you stand.”

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105

Virgil’s eyes slowly lifted up to Kenway. There was finally

emotion in his eyes, but hell if Kenway could interpret what the guy
was thinking or feeling. “He’s mine,” Virgil whispered before his
eyes went back to Ross. “You can’t have him.”

“What are you talking about?” Kenway asked. The man was too

calm, too composed. He reminded Kenway of a ticking time bomb
ready to explode at any moment.

“I’m the mistake you can’t live with,” Virgil said to Ross in a

calm, even tone. “I’m not letting you go.”

“Virgil,” Ross said as he got up, “you have to stop this. We never

got along. Why are you hurting me like this? I don’t understand you.”

“You never understood me.” Virgil’s voice tightened slightly.

“You never wanted to.”

Ross moved forward, but Kenway refused to let his mate get too

close. This was the same man who had cut up his mate’s arms. He
was shocked that he was standing here and not trying to kill the
vampire.

“What’s there to understand?” Ross asked as he ran his hand

through his long hair in a frustrated manner. “You’ve messed with me
since childhood. Why do you think I’ve tried to keep space between
us? I wasn’t trying to break your heart on purpose, but what did you
expect me to do?”

A wry smile pulled at the corner of Virgil’s mouth. “You can’t

break a heart I don’t own. I was born without a conscience, Ross. I
thought by now you would have figured that out. I never meant to
hurt you”—Virgil’s hands fisted at his side as he glanced at Ross’s
stomach and then back up at his brother—“but I can’t help who I am.
You’re all I have, Ross. I won’t let you go.”

A frigid chill ran up Kenway’s spine. The man meant every word

he said. Virgil was a genuine psychopath with no conscience. But he
had regret, something most psychopaths didn’t possess. Maybe
because Ross was his brother. Kenway had read about the sickness,
but had never met anyone carrying the disease.

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Lynn Hagen

And Virgil was a vampire. That was a dangerous combination.
Cody slowly moved toward them, his eyes locked on Virgil.
“Don’t try it, wolf,” Virgil warned. “I’m not here to hurt anyone.”
“But you hurt Spencer,” Ross said. “You hurt an innocent

impala.”

“He attacked me,” Virgil stated in a deadpan tone. “I merely

defended myself.”

Kenway gave off a low growl. This whole situation was rubbing

him the wrong way. “Spencer wouldn’t hurt a fly. Don’t stand there
telling me he hurt you. You also attacked Ross.”

“Spencer walked in right after Ross left. He attacked me,” the man

repeated. “As for Ross,”—Virgil turned, pinning Ross with his dead
eyes—“don’t leave me again and I won’t be forced to come looking
for you.”

“Virgil,” Ross said in a strained voice. “I’m mated now. I’m not

coming back.”

A tic started in Virgil’s left eye. Kenway moved back. Not

because he was afraid of the small vampire, but because he wanted to
shield his mate. He could really see why Ross feared the guy. Virgil
had a look that said he was functioning off of one brain cell and lived
inside his own little world…happily.

“Is this your mate?” Virgil nodded his head toward Kenway. “Is

he the one stopping you from coming home?”

Kenway could feel his buffalo moving closer to the surface, ready

to defend its mate. His horns began to grow from his head as his teeth
elongated. No one was taking Ross from him, not even his sick and
twisted brother. The man needed professional help, or to be killed.
Either option suited Kenway. But he wasn’t getting his hands on
Ross.

Cody’s eyes became wolf and his teeth grew as well. They both

saw Virgil as a threat. He heard D come out of the kitchen.

“Food’s ready.” He stopped midstride, glancing at everyone.

“What’s going on?”

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Kenway ignored the man, keeping his sight trained on the guy

standing at the door, his hand on the handle. “I’m Ross’s mate.” He
didn’t finish the sentence. Kenway didn’t need to explain to Virgil
that he wasn’t stopping Ross from going anywhere. Ross was free to
go wherever he chose. But he could see why his mate kept his
distance. His brother was a deadly nut job.

“Just go home, Virgil,” Ross said, his voice pleading. “I’ll make

sure no one comes after you if you leave now and don’t come back.”

“Just like that?” Virgil asked evenly. “You would abandon me so

easily?”

Agitation, pure and simple.
“What do you want me to do?” Ross asked. “Come back to the

coven so you can torture me?”

“I didn’t mean to.” Virgil’s tone held slight emotion, as if he were

struggling to let Ross know he was sorry. But he was failing. Instead
of sounding sincere, his tone was low and deliberate, and full of rage.

It was the strangest thing Kenway had ever witnessed.
“What can I do?” Virgil asked, the emotion fleeing that quickly,

replaced by that empty look. “How can I get you to come home?”

“You can’t,” Ross said, true emotion filling his voice to

overflowing. Kenway could feel his mate’s fingers digging into his
back. Ross was afraid. “Just leave.”

“But I don’t want to go, Ross. I don’t want to go home if you

aren’t there.” From anyone else, Kenway would expect a pout,
whimper, protest, anything but those eyes full of nothing.

Virgil glanced up when the door was jerked out of his hand. They

all looked to see who was coming in. If it was a human resident, they
were screwed. Both Cody and Kenway were in midshift. Their secret
would be out. There was no way Kenway could explain his horns and
neither could explain their teeth. Cody just might get away with the
whole eye thing.

But it wasn’t a human who walked in.

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It was Maverick, Hawk at his side. Neither man looked happy.

Kenway could tell the alpha was in his lethal mode. His grey eyes
were no longer the light color, but a steaming mass of dark clouds.

“Is he the one?” Maverick asked, tilting his head toward Virgil.
Kenway had met Hawk on a few occasions. But none of the times

had he seen the man look as if hell itself was about to open up and
swallow them whole. Kenway was half expecting lightning bolts to
light up the sky and thunder to rumble with the way Maverick and
Hawk were looking. Some might think that was a bit dramatic, but
they didn’t see what Kenway was looking at.

And they feared him?
“This doesn’t concern you, wolf,” Virgil stated. “This is between

my brother and me.”

Maverick leaned against the wall next to the door, his face

inscrutable now. “You are in my town. Anything you do concerns me.
I’ll ask you one last time. Are you the one attacking people?”

“He didn’t mean to,” Ross answered quickly, surprising the hell

out of Kenway. Why was Ross sticking up for Virgil? His brother had
attacked him with a knife. And not just any knife. It was a weapon
meant to stop Ross from healing. Was his mate nuts, too?

“How do you not mean to attack two people?” Hawk asked, his

eyes raking over Virgil. “It seemed very intentional to me.”

The blank look was gone from Virgil, replaced by pure agitation.

The ticking time bomb was about to go off. Kenway could read it in
the man’s stance, his eyes, and the set of his mouth. He pushed Ross
fully behind him, using his body mass to put a wall between the two
brothers.

“Did. I. Ask. You?” Virgil gritted out.
Hawk moved forward, death written all over his face, but

Maverick held a hand up, stopping the sentry from doing bodily harm.

“What do you want me to do with him?” Maverick’s question was

directed at Ross. “And just so you know, letting him go isn’t one of
the options.”

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“Why are you handing my mate the decision?” Kenway asked. He

didn’t want Ross feeling any guilt over whatever happened to this nut
job. He had been with Ross just a short time, but already he knew his
mate was the total opposite of Virgil. Ross was kind, compassionate,
and had a big heart. The guilt would eat him alive.

“Because it’s his brother,” Maverick replied in a no-argument

tone of voice. “I’m being generous by letting him have a say.”

“I don’t want him hurt,” Ross said.
“Then I think Christian just got a new coven member.” Maverick

reached out and grabbed Virgil so quick that Kenway almost missed
what happened. “I don’t think so. The only place you’re going is to
the Manor.”

Virgil had tried to pop out.
“Get us where we need to go.” Maverick pulled Virgil closer, his

face mere inches away. “And no funny stuff.”

Kenway watched as Maverick and Virgil disappeared from the

diner. He couldn’t say he was sad to see the vampire go, but he could
feel the confusion and hurt coming from his mate. Grabbing Ross’s
hand, Kenway pulled him closer, enveloping his mate into his arms.
“It’s for the best.”

He really hoped he was telling the truth.

* * * *

Maverick blinked, realizing that they weren’t in Christian’s club

or his home. “Where did you take us?” He yanked on Virgil’s shirt,
ready to show the vampire why fucking with an alpha was a very bad
choice.

“My head,” Virgil answered softly. “This is where I am most of

the time.”

Glancing around, Maverick saw that they were standing in some

sort of palace. Only it looked like it had seen better days. The walls
were in disrepair and some of the pillars looked as if they would

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crumble at any moment. There were weeds growing up from the
marble floor, and the place looked deserted.

“What do you mean I’m in your head?” Although not a pretty

sight, it looked real enough to him. His feet were planted firmly on
the ground.

Virgil glanced up at Maverick, and he was reminded of someone

who was so lost that emotionally shutting down was the only option.
In all his years of living, Maverick had never seen anyone with eyes
that seemed void of life, happiness, and any kind of real emotion.

“This place calls to me, even in my sleep. I don’t know what it is,

but I find myself coming here often.” Virgil wrapped his arms around
his waist, showing Maverick a glimpse of the real Virgil. “I don’t
remember ever coming here, so I don’t know why my mind keeps
conjuring this place up.”

“I don’t think this is in your head, Virgil.” Maverick could feel

another presence. His wolf was telling him it was a vampire. He
wasn’t sure if the man standing next to him was fucking with
Maverick, or if Virgil really didn’t know he wasn’t alone here.

“If it’s not in my head, then why do I hear it calling me? Why do I

feel like an invisible hand is pulling me here time and time again?”

Maverick wasn’t sure, but he wasn’t getting a good feeling about

this. Something deep down inside of him—maybe his self-
preservation—was telling him to get gone, and quickly. “We need to
go, Virgil. Take us to Christian’s.”

Virgil took a step away from Maverick, his head shaking back and

forth. “I don’t want to go to the prince. I want Ross.”

Maverick was getting really tired of Virgil’s shit. He pulled his

cell phone out and called Christian. If Virgil wasn’t going to get them
out of here, the prince would. Fuck if he was staying in this creepy-
ass place another minute. “Hey, Christian. I need a ride.”

“Call a cab.”
Maverick suppressed the growl threatening to rip from his chest.

“Not that kind of ride. I was bringing Ross’s brother to you, but he

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took us on a little field trip instead.” Maverick watched as Virgil
strode over to a wall, running his hand down the surface. The guy
better watch it. This place looked unstable as hell. “I’m in some sort
of old palace and it looks like it’s falling apart—”

“Do you see a large entryway with green marble flooring?”

Christian asked, cutting Maverick off. He didn’t like the worry in the
prince’s tone. That wasn’t a good thing. Maverick glanced behind him
and saw the faded green floor.

“Yeah.”
There was silence on the other end. Maverick tossed a hand on his

hip, watching the small vampire explore the room they were in. “Any
minute you can start talking,” he said to Christian.

“You are in the home of Ceri.”
“Your nutty-ass brother?” Maverick asked.
“Do not say that. He may hear you.”
Maverick was about to tell Christian he didn’t give a fuck when a

shadow caught his attention. A large, looming male stepped from the
shadows, his eyes zeroing in on Virgil and then they snapped to him,
the blue orbs filled with ice. “Why have you come here?”

Virgil turned ever so slowly, his expression somber. “Because this

place pulls me here. Why are you here?”

Ceri cocked his head, his eyes penetrating. “You can stay. The

wolf has to go.”

“Uh, Christian, I think your brother wants to eat Virgil.” No

sooner were the words out of his mouth than Christian appeared
beside him. Maverick slid the phone into his jacket. “Now what?”

Ceri moved quickly, grabbing Virgil and pushing the small

vampire behind him. “I do not wish to eat him. Now go!”

“Sorry, no can do. I promised his brother I would take him to

Christian.” Maverick turned and looked at the prince. “And here he is.
Can anyone give me a lift home now or do I have to stick around for
the dramatics?”

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He really wanted to get home. Maverick knew Ceri liked the taste

of flesh, and that just plain grossed him out. Maybe in his wolf form
he could understand eating prey, but in human form, yuck.

“What interest do you have with him?” Christian asked his

brother. “The only value he has to you is flesh, and I thought you said
you would try…other means of sating your appetite.”

“My interest is none of your concern. I will return him to your

coven alive and whole.” Ceri’s jaw tightened, his sapphire-blue eyes
blazing with heat. “Now, I will say this only one more time. Leave
this place at once.”

“Okay, I just don’t have a way out,” Maverick reminded everyone

around him. He was getting a damn headache.

Christian took a step forward only to stop when Ceri showed

fangs. “Come any closer to my mate and I will kill you.”

The prince inhaled sharply as Maverick groaned. Great, the

psycho vampire had a psycho mate. He wondered what the hell fate
was smoking the day it paired these two together.

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Chapter Eleven

Ross glanced at the office door as he chewed on his bottom lip.

Kenway swore the glass out in the bakery was UV-proof, but he was
still scared shitless to find out. Just the small exposure he had when
wounded had been painful as hell.

The bakery was finally up and ready for business. Baker was in

the kitchen baking up a storm, but admitted he needed help. Someone
was coming by today for an interview. All Ross had to do was see if
the window worked, or if he was going to become a crispy-fried
vampire.

“Stick your finger out there and see what happens,” Kenway

suggested behind him. “But I was guaranteed no UV rays would get
past that window.”

“And if it doesn’t work, you can get your money back. I’ll just be

dead. I’m pretty sure I can’t file a lawsuit if I’m a puff of barbequed
vampire smoke.”

Kenway made testing the window out sound so damn easy. It

wasn’t his life if the dang thing failed.

“One finger.”
Ross flipped Kenway off. “There’s your finger, buddy.”
Kenway shook his head as he grabbed Ross’s hand and pulled him

toward the door. “Try.”

Ross’s heart was hammering in his chest.. He was a creature of

the night. Why couldn’t Kenway see this? Vampires and sunlight did
not mix. When they did, a pile of ashes was what they got. A vampire
could withstand the sunlight for a short amount of time if it was early
dawn or late dusk—although he would have to be old or halfblooded.

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Ross was neither.
“Wait, wait,” Ross said as he pulled back, feeling as if he were

going to pass out. “Let me do this on my terms.”

Kenway let him go. “Are you that afraid?”
“What if I put you in a suit that was supposed to be silver-resistant

and then told you to jump into a vat of the stuff? How would you
feel?” Ross moved away from the door.

“I hadn’t thought about it that way,” his mate admitted. “You

don’t have to go out there if you don’t want to. I just thought it would
be nice to have you working beside me. You can stay in the office and
work.”

Ross knew he would give Kenway anything he wanted. There was

nothing he wouldn’t do for the buffalo. But going out into a shop in
broad daylight was on the bottom of the I’ll-do-anything-for-you list.

“I’m going to head out into the bakery. I need to meet with the

guy applying for the job to help Baker.” Kenway leaned in, giving
Ross a kiss. “I’ll be back.”

Kenway smiled at him, but Ross could see the disappointment in

his pretty pale-blue eyes as his mate left the office. He really wanted
Ross out there.

Gah. Was he really going to do this?
Stupid fucking him was going to do this.
Ross edged toward the door, telling himself that experimenting

with one finger wasn’t so bad. The digit would be easy to heal, unlike
his entire body. Cracking the door open just a sliver, Ross lifted his
arm and slid his finger through the opening. He tensed, waiting to feel
the pain of the sun, but nothing happened.

Feeling bravely stupid, Ross let his hand creep outside the door.

When he didn’t feel any pain, he wiggled his fingers.

Still nothing.
He felt like he was doing the hokey pokey as he stuck his left foot

out. No smoke, no sizzling flesh. It was a start. Ross swallowed every
bit of fear in his nervous body and poked his head out of the door.

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Bright, beautiful sunshine hit him full on in the face. Ross tensed,

ready to jump back behind the door just as fast as he could but
wanting to feel the warmth on his face for just another second before
he had to give it up.

He had never felt anything like it in his life.
Oh sure, he had felt the sun hot on his skin before, but he was

usually screaming in pain within seconds and smoking soon after.
This was nothing like that. It was warm and soft, like the silken caress
of a lover.

Ross didn’t know how it had happened considering how terrified

he was of becoming a very unsexy pile of ash, but he suddenly found
himself out in the main room, standing directly in front of the
windows.

His eyes slid closed as he tilted his face back, the sun’s rays

shining right down onto his skin. Ross pressed the palms of his hands
against the window and leaned closer. This was what Kenway felt
went he went outside during the daytime? This was what others felt?

It was unbelievable.
For once in his life, Ross bemoaned the fact that he was a vampire

and subject to the night. Except for the rare occasions when he
couldn’t escape into a sealed room fast enough, darkness had been all
he had ever experienced. Knowing now what he had been missing
tore a little piece of his soul off.

“I know what you’re thinking, Ross, and don’t.” The soft words

were whispered in Ross’s ears as Kenway’s arms wrapped around
him from behind. “The sun is nice, and it definitely has its uses, but
there is more to life than sunshine.”

“What?” Ross whispered, tears clogging his throat.
“You.”
Ross frowned at that less than descriptive answer. He opened his

eyes, tilting his head back to one side to look up at his mate. “That’s
easy for you to say. I’m relegated to here or our bedroom. You can go
out into this any damn time you want to.”

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“And now, so can you.” There was a mischievous twinkle in

Kenway’s eyes that told Ross the man was up to something. “I asked
Maverick to add just a little more money to the loan we got from him.
I contracted Roman to put these UV windows in at the house. You’ll
be able to go anywhere you want inside during the day. You’re not
bound to our bedroom anymore.”

Ross didn’t have a clue how he inhaled, considering his throat was

too clogged up to allow air into his lungs. “You…” He licked his lips
as the words he was trying to speak escaped him. “You…”

“So…” Kenway grinned. “I was thinking.”
Ross cocked an eyebrow. This was going to be good.
“Since Roman worked his ass off to get them installed as a

surprise for you, I’d like to celebrate with you on every flat surface in
the house that we can find. I figured we could do it during the day and
the night and decide which we like more.” Kenway’s lips spread in an
even bigger grin. “We’ll call it an experiment of sorts.”

Ross had the best mate ever.
Ross’s expression grew serious, and it was very hard to fight the

smile threatening to give him away. “We’ll need lots of field testing
to get an accurate account of both.”

“I like the way you think, mate,” Kenway said. Ross gazed into

his mate’s eyes, wondering how he had gotten so damn lucky. The
buffalo shifter was sweet, kind, and Ross wasn’t sure he could love
the man any more than he did right now.

“Maybe we could find some of those UV windows in that smoky

material and have it installed in the office. That way, we could spend
our lunch hour together.”

Kenway’s eyebrows shot up. “Lunch hour? I thought we agreed to

only take a half-hour lunch.”

“We did,” Ross said as he turned in Kenway’s arms and leaned up

to brush his lips over his mate’s. “But that was before you gave me a
glimpse into your world.”

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The mischievous glint in Kenway’s eyes fell away from one blink

to the next and he became all serious. His hand gently cupped Ross’s
chin, tilting his head back even further and bringing their gazes
together. “You are my world. Don’t you know that by now, Ross?”

Ross’s heart flipped over in his chest. “I do now.”
When the bell over the door buzzed, Ross glanced at the small

alcove Kenway had built that blocked the actual sun from getting
inside. In strode a man who glanced around as if he wasn’t sure he
was in the right place. “Kenway Longfeather?”

Ross tightened his grip on Kenway’s shoulder. “You are?” he

asked before his mate had a chance to. He could smell shifter on the
guy. That only made him even more hesitant.

“I’m Robby Nobles. I called you about the baker job.”
Ross relaxed. Ever since Virgil started messing with him in a

hands-on sort of way, he was very leery of people he didn’t know.
Maverick had taken Virgil to Christian, so Ross knew he wouldn’t
hear from his brother for a while, but he was still a bit shaken at the
strangeness of Virgil and his empty look.

It would always bother him, but he had a mate now and a new life.

Ross was going to put all that behind him. He just prayed Christian
gave Virgil the help he needed.

He extended his hand, giving Robby’s a good shake. The guy was

scrawny, kind of short too, but Ross knew not to judge a book by its
cover.

“So, you graduated culinary arts?” Kenway asked as he waved

Robby toward the office. Ross didn’t want to leave the beautiful
sunlight, but he was a partner in this business. He was just as much a
part of interviewing as Kenway was.

“Where are you from?” he heard Kenway ask as they entered the

office.

“Ohio,” Robby answered. “It’s a beautiful place, but I wanted to

get out and explore. Everyone knows about Maverick Brac and it
seemed like a good place to settle down.”

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Ross closed the door, agreeing with Robby. Brac Village was the

perfect place to call home.

* * * *

Ross raced through the house, squealing with delight as he ran

from his mate. Kenway was on the prowl and horny as hell. Ross was
as well, but he enjoyed the chase. It also helped that he could run
anywhere he wanted to in the house without worry.

“Where’s the fire?” Spencer asked as he began to run alongside

Ross.

Skidding to a halt, Ross wasn’t sure how to explain to the impala

shifter that he was playing a sexual game with his mate. Spencer
looked like he was excited and ready to join in.

Not in this lifetime.
“Spencer,” Kenway said as he stopped so fast that Ross thought

the big guy was going to smash into the wall. “I’m glad to see you are
feeling better.” His mate cut a glance at Ross. The only thing Ross
could do was shrug. He didn’t have the heart to tell Spencer to get
lost.

“They want to have sex,” Paine shouted from the living room.

“Can’t you smell their stinking arousal all through the house?”

Spencer’s face turned ten shades of red as he hurried away. Ross

glared at the cheetah shifter. “You didn’t have to be so blunt about it.”

Paine shrugged, his expression unrepentant. “It’s the truth.”
It was, but now Ross felt like crap for embarrassing the little

impala. He didn’t think about Spencer long, not when Kenway
grabbed Ross around his waist and hauled him off his feet. “Come on.
We can finish this in our bedroom.”

“Just keep it down!” Paine shouted. “The last time I heard you

two, I was expecting some sort of miracle to take place from Ross
screaming for god so damn loudly.”

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Now it was Ross’s turn to feel embarrassed as hell. That cheetah

shifter was just too damn crass.

“Ignore him,” Kenway said. “Everyone else does.”
Ross soon forgot about the whole situation downstairs when

Kenway yanked his shirt over his head, revealing a treasure trove of
muscles and golden skin. His mouth began to water as he took a step
forward and then leaned in, taking a small nibble of Kenway’s nipple.
He smiled when his mate hissed.

“Get your damn clothes off,” Kenway said gruffly, tearing his

nipple away from Ross and jerking his pants off like they had caught
fire. Ross chuckled. He loved how impatient his mate was for him.

It rubbed his ego in all the right places.
Ross dropped the last of his clothing and swallowed when he saw

the raw hunger in Kenway’s pretty pale-blue eyes. The man wasn’t
kidding around. He meant to fuck Ross to within an inch of his life.

That was fine with him.
Kenway shackled Ross’s wrist and pulled him close until bare

skin met bare skin. The sensation sent shivers all over Ross’s body.
Kenway was such a big man. Ross loved it. The buffalo shifter was
like a gentle giant—well, mostly. He had seen the man get pissed off
and it was one scary sight.

“I love you, Ross,” Kenway confessed as he picked Ross up and

carried him to the bed. “You have made my life so damn happy.”

Ah, the guy knew all the right words to say. “You don’t have to

sweet-talk me. You’re already getting some ass.”

Kenway grinned. “And what a nice ass it is.”
Ross didn’t know about that. He was a bit on the skinny side and

knew he lacked definition, but Kenway didn’t seem to mind.

“And I still love this body.” A large hand skimmed over Ross’s

abdomen, a look of pure wonder in Kenway’s eyes. “I love everything
about you.”

Ross wrapped his arms around Kenway’s shoulders, pulling him

close. “And I love everything about my big ole buffalo.” He captured

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his mate’s lips, feeling the warmth spread inside of him at his mate’s
scent.

He inhaled through his nose, parting his lips as Kenway’s tongue

pushed inside his mouth. Ross wrapped his legs around Kenway’s
thick waist, groaning when their cocks brushed against the other.

An anxious whine fell from his lips. Ross wanted to feel Kenway

inside of him. His cock was already hard and painful, needing release
so damn badly. But the feeling was much more than sexual desire.
Ross could feel his bond deepening with Kenway. It was a strong
connection that he knew would only get stronger with time.

Kenway broke the kiss, nibbling his way down Ross’s neck. His

lips traced a sensuous path of ecstasy. He took Ross’s mouth again
and again—drugging kisses, enflaming kisses. Ross felt like he was
going to come and Kenway hadn’t even fucked him yet.

“P–Please,” he stuttered, fighting for air.
“Yes?” Kenway prompted, his voice gentle, coaxing.
“Fuck me, Kenway. I want you.”
Ross lay back and pulled his knees up to his chest, offering

himself to his buffalo shifter. Kenway’s eyes were like summer
lightning. They were compelling, magnetic, pulling Ross in as his
mate grabbed the lube and began to stretch him. He writhed under his
mate, losing his mind as he felt Kenway’s thick fingers inside of him.

Kenway briefly pulled Ross onto all fours as he lined his shaft up

with Ross’s aching hole and pushed inside, both gently and
insistently. Looking over his shoulder, Ross saw that Kenway’s eyes
suddenly burned with an intense hunger that took Ross’s breath away.
His mate had full pale-blue eyes with sweeping lashes that entranced
Ross more than anything. The sunlight in his blue eyes shone like bits
of gleaming porcelain.

Ross closed his eyes, braced his hands against the headboard, and

pushed back. One hard thrust buried the thick, steel-hard erection into
Ross’s body to the hilt. Ross could feel his heart struggling to keep up

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with the demands his arousal was placing on it as Kenway began to
move inside of him.

“I’m going to come in your hot, tight ass,” Kenway whispered

into Ross’s ear.

“God, yes!” His throbbing cock bobbed gracefully, the cool air

sweeping around its heat, teasing Ross further. He arched his back
higher as a breathless moan escaped his lips “So deep…inside. God,
Kenway…I can feel you.”

“I sure as shit hope so,” Kenway teased as he pounded Ross’s ass

harder. Ross moaned as the long, thick cock that seemed to fill him so
perfectly brushed across his prostate with every thrust of Kenway’s
hips—each thrust, each roll was amazingly pleasurable and erotic.

Ross tightened his inner muscles and massaged the length of his

cock at the same time. “Kenway…oh my god…oh
god…fuck…Kenway…”

Kenway was driving him insane with pleasure as it washed over

Ross’s body. His balls drew up tight against his body and he knew it
wouldn’t be long. Not when Kenway was fucking him so thoroughly.

When Kenway bit into Ross’s shoulder, that was all she wrote.

Ross arched his back and screamed as the pleasure burst inside of
him. With a rush of liquid that would have terrified him at any other
time, Ross came, and came hard.

Kenway plunged deep and hard, elongating Ross’s climax. Never

had he come so deep and so exhaustingly. It felt like his seed was
being jerked from his soul rather than the tight sac beneath his cock.

With a lick of his tongue, Kenway sealed the wound and gave a

few more thrusts, burying his cock deep as a hot rush of liquid filled
Ross’s ass. As he went boneless, Kenway’s rocking motion slowed
before the bigger man finally rolled them to let Ross drape lazily over
him.

“Next time, we try out the kitchen,” Kenway said as he panted.
Ross smiled. He wouldn’t mind trying out every damn room in the

house just as long as it involved hot sex and the man he loved.