Curtis's Dads 23 (2 page)

“Would you like to go on a picnic?” Fuck if that wasn’t cliché as hell.

Chauncey mentally kicked his ass. What a cheesy thing to say. Why didn’t he just break out into poetry and dance around the shelter like a damn troubadour?

Curtis giggled and nodded, his cheeks flaming red. “I would love to.”

Okay, maybe cheesy worked with this guy. Chauncey was willing to be as cheesy as Curtis needed him to be. Well, not that cheesy. He was a bear, after all.

“Am I interrupting?”

Chauncey growled as he looked over his shoulder, seeing his twin, Chance, standing in the doorway, grinning from ear to ear.

“Hell yeah. Go away. I’ll be home in about two days.” He smiled down at Curtis, who was blushing again. Could he get any cuter?

Chauncey squeezed his mate’s ass, feeling desperation wash over him to sink his cock between those two glorious mounds. The gentle flare of Curtis’s ass was driving him nuts.

He was surprised when Curtis slapped his chest, his eyes narrowed as he stared up at Chauncey. “There’s someone watching,” he whispered.

“It’s just Chance,” Chauncey whispered back and then yelled over his shoulder. “Get the hell out. My mate doesn’t want you to witness me molesting him.”

Chance roared with laughter as Curtis turned redder than a fire engine, wiggling to get free. Chauncey pouted as he lowered his mate.

“I was just kidding.” Not really, but he would back off. The last thing he wanted to do was make his mate uncomfortable.

Curtis narrowed his eyes at Chauncey as he pushed past him and headed for the door. What the hell had he done? Was it something he said? Chauncey was confused as hell. He didn’t think he would ever figure men out.

“Curtis, wait!” he shouted as he ran from the resource center. His mate was already across the street and heading toward his dads’ garage.

Just great.

That was all he needed. Angry papas. He faltered in his steps. Did he really want to go in there and face Mark and Caden? Maybe he should let his mate cool down a bit. Yeah, that sounded reasonable.

He spun on his heel as he headed back toward his truck.

He wanted to punch something. He hadn’t meant to scare his mate away. That was the last thing he wanted to do. He berated himself for letting his shining personality come out around his timid mate. There was no doubt Curtis was shy…and aggressive. The man seriously confused him.

“Pussy,” Chance teased as he laughed. “Go fetch your mate.

What’s wrong, afraid of his daddies, Chauncey?” Chance’s eyes widened as he took off, Chauncey hot on his heels. He needed an outlet, and his twin would work just fine. What the hell. If he killed his sorry ass, it wasn’t like he’d be missed. There were five more of them that looked just alike. His pa wouldn’t miss Chance.

“I was only joking!” Chance shouted and then laughed as he jumped into the truck and locked the door. Chauncey glared at him before slamming the palm of his hand into the driver’s side.

“You better run if you know what’s good for you.”

“Come on, lighten up. You know he’ll be back.” That wasn’t the point. He had scared his mate. That didn’t sit well with Chauncey. He wanted to kick his own ass.

“Hey!”

Chauncey turned to see Caden glaring at him from across the street.
Ah fuck.
Really? He really didn’t want to kick Caden’s ass. Just because one of Curtis’s dads was a wolf didn’t mean Caden couldn’t get his ass handed to him. The problem was it wouldn’t look good on his résumé when he was courting the guy’s son.

Chance snickered as he rolled the window down. “Go get spanked. I’ll wait. We can go pick up your bike after you pick yourself up off the ground.”

Fat-ass chance that was happening. “Not likely.” Chance shook his head as he opened the truck door, sliding out.

“Look, pea-brain. If you kick his ass, I don’t think your mate will be thanking you. Think about it. Is Curtis really going to be all happy and thank-yous if you hurt one of his fathers?”

“You want me to lose on purpose?” Chauncey had never lost a fight in his life, and Chance wanted him to throw one? “No way. Uh-uh, ain’t happening.”

“Your choice, bro. But get used to sleeping alone and jacking off.

Curtis ain’t giving a damn thing up to a man that hurt one of his dads.

No booty for you, buddy.”

Fuck!
So if Chauncey wanted the booty, he was going to have to get his ass kicked? What kind of logic was that? It made absolutely no sense to him at all. There was no damn logic behind Chance’s words.

“Go on. Take a nosedive for Curtis,” Chance said as he shooed Chauncey away with his hands. “I’ll get the first aid from out of my truck,” he shouted as Chauncey crossed the street. He swallowed, wondering if he could really let someone kick his ass. His bear was already growling at the idea.

“Yes, sir?” Chauncey asked as he stepped up onto the sidewalk.

He didn’t like the deep scowl on Caden’s face. That look didn’t bode well for him or his ass.

“Why in the hell does my son look on the verge of crying? What did you do to him?”

Ah hell.
Chauncey deserved to get his ass kicked. Maybe he should just turn around and stick his ass out, getting it over with. “Can I talk with him please?”

“If you weren’t his mate, I’d tear you into pieces. Stay away from him. He’ll call you if he wants to see you again.” Well, he was put into place, now wasn’t he? Chauncey fought the growl as he nodded and headed back across the street to his twin. He didn’t like walking away. That wasn’t him. Walking away had never occurred to him before. He didn’t seem to have any other option now.

“What’d ya do, beg?” Chance asked as Chauncey glared at him.

“No. I made my mate cry. Fuck off, Chance.” He was not in the mood for his brother right now. He felt like shit, and if Chance kept it up, he was going to knock him flat on his ass.

“Really? Are you serious?” Chance asked as he trailed behind Chauncey. “Dude, it wasn’t that bad. You didn’t really molest him, did you?”

Chauncey roared as he spun around, shoving Chance into the side of his truck. “Don’t talk about my mate that way. I would
never
force him.” It disgusted Chauncey that Chance would even think that.

“Hey,” Chance said as he held up his hands. “I was just asking. I needed to know where to bury your body if you had.” Chauncey released his twin. “I can’t believe I’m even having this conversation with you. Let’s go get my bike.” He glanced across the street, down toward the mechanic shop, hoping to catch a glimpse of Curtis. His heart stopped when he spotted his mate walking back toward him. Chauncey didn’t move a muscle as his mate crossed the street. He licked his lips, wondering if he was going to screw this up again.

He probably was. Chauncey had a knack for saying the wrong thing at the wrong time.

“I’m sorry I walked away,” Curtis said as he twisted his hands in front of him, his head hanging down.

Chauncey jerked his head sideways, indicating that he wanted his brother gone.

“Got a tic?” Chance asked as he leaned against the truck, looking quite comfortable where he was.

Chauncey growled and pointed to the bike shop. “Go wait, Boy Wonder.”

Chance stood up straight and glared at Chauncey. “I liked you better when you were single,” Chance grumbled as he stalked away.

“Did I say something wrong?” Chauncey asked Curtis as he turned back to face him.

“No,” Curtis said as he shoved his hands into his pockets, his head still lowered, scuffing his foot across the sidewalk.

Chauncey waited for his mate to finish, but Curtis just stood there with his head downcast. “Talk to me. I don’t know what I did wrong if you don’t tell me.”

“I—” He smashed his lips together and looked around the street, his face flushing. “I’m not used to talking like that to someone,” he said quietly. “I act like a horndog, but I’m really shy, and I can’t believe I’m saying this to you.”

Chauncey grinned from ear to ear as Curtis kept right on blushing.

If anything, the crimson color turned deeper as he stood there. “Okay.

I know now. I’m sorry if I embarrassed you.”

“Don’t be.” Curtis bit his lip as he shrugged. He glanced up at Chauncey from under his lashes, setting Chauncey’s heart to racing at the shy way his mate was peeking at him. “I liked it.” Chauncey’s grin grew wider as he puffed his chest out, feeling like a million bucks…until he saw Curtis’s dads glaring at him from the bay of the garage.
Talk about a buzzkill.
“Can we talk somewhere else?”

Curtis looked over his shoulder, narrowing his eyes as he pointed at his dads. They scowled but went back inside. “God, they are so embarrassing.”

“No, they’re not. They’re protecting their cub. Be glad they are like that,” Chauncey said as he reached out and took Curtis’s hand in his. “I bought a new bike. Do you want to go for a ride?”

“Really? I’ve never ridden one before.” Chauncey gaped at his mate, not believing what he was hearing.

“No way. Your dad owns one, and so does Maverick. Hell, the Santiago brothers own a bike shop.” He pointed to the bike shop a few feet away. Chauncey glared at Chance when he spotted his brother staring at them from the open door. Chance grinned and then ducked into the shop.

“My dad is afraid I’ll fall off. Maverick only gives Cecil rides.

And the Santiago brothers don’t have time for me.

That was a shame. Chauncey had ridden many times, but this was going to be the first on a brand-new bike. “Then we ride together.” He knew he said the right thing when Curtis’s face lit up. Score one for the bears! Chauncey did a mental happy dance as he pulled his mate along with him to the bike shop. He was going to show his mate the best time ever.

And hopefully get some booty as a thank-you.

Curtis was nervous as hell. He had become aggressive earlier, but that was only because he had lost his ever-loving mind. He’d come a long way since he was that fifteen-year-old gangly kid who showed up on his fathers’ doorstep, yet he hadn’t come far enough.

He was still tongue-tied and shy around big, mountainous men.

For a full year after coming to Brac Village, Curtis had had a crush on Blair, one of the mates. He soon realized that his taste ran more toward big, burly men. So he had a crush on the entire wolf pack.

Those were his most confusing days.

Thank god none of the mates had strung him up by his balls for drooling over their men. He was a grown man now. Able to make his own decisions…and he had run like a girl the first time a big, strong man flirted with him.

Geez, why didn’t he just put on a skirt and carry around a box of tissue? Thank goodness Chauncey had a good sense of humor. The bear was good-natured, and Curtis loved that about him. He walked beside his mate as they entered the bike shop. He still couldn’t believe he had a mate.

Being human, and one of the pack’s sons, he thought he was out of luck in that department. Just because he lived with wolves didn’t mean he was going to get a mate.

But that was far from the truth. He had scored the mother lode of mates. Chauncey was everything he wanted in a man, and then some.

He perused the big guy’s thick, corded muscles and wanted to pant and whimper. His tongue was dying to snake out and lick Chauncey from head to toe. He could just imagine having all those delectable muscles wrapped around him as he was pounded through the mattress and into the floor.

Shit, he was getting hard.

“Hey, little Curtis. What brings you here?” Dagon Santiago asked as Curtis walked in front of Chauncey. Curtis chucked a thumb over his shoulder, trying his best to be calm and cool while sporting a woody.

“I’m with my mate,” he squeaked. Damn it! He was trying to be casual about it, but he ended up sounding like a mouse. Dagon grinned as Chauncey walked in behind him.

“I see now.” Dagon winked at him and then turned toward Chauncey. “Come to pick up your bike?”

“Fuck yeah.” Chauncey whooped. “I need some riding gear for my mate. It’s his first time.” He laughed and then looked back at Curtis, holding his hands up in front of him. “I didn’t mean it that way. I swear.”

Great.
Now he had Chauncey censoring his words. That wasn’t what he wanted. Curtis grinned and winked at his mate. Not feeling brave at all. “I got it. Nice one.” He mentally rolled his eyes. Fuck if he wasn’t a cornball. Chauncey was going to rid himself of Curtis if he didn’t learn how to relax and fit in. Curtis tucked his hair behind his ear as he looked around the shop, desperate to change the subject.

“So which one is yours?”

Chauncey’s smile burst forth as he strutted over to a black and red bike. Curtis’s heart skipped a beat as his mate presented his new bike.

No fucking way!
He rubbed his sweaty palms onto his thighs as he smiled up at his mate. He’d never ridden before, and he was scared as hell. But there was no way he was running. “Cool.” Chauncey and Dagon chuckled as Chauncey grabbed Curtis’s hand and led him over to the rack of leathers. “What size are you?”

“Small,” Curtis whispered, embarrassed that he was the smallest one in the shop. He was trying hard to impress Chauncey, but he wasn’t too sure he was doing a bang-up job of it.

Curtis started focusing on Chauncey’s lips. He wanted another kiss. It had been a spectacular kiss, and Curtis was dying for another one. He felt his face heat as Chauncey caught him gawking at his beautiful mouth.

Thank goodness his mate said nothing in front of Dagon.

Chauncey moved a little closer, squeezing Curtis’s hand and then releasing it, grabbing a jacket from the rack. “How about this one?” Curtis nodded numbly. He didn’t care if Chauncey picked out a gunnysack. He’d wear it. Just as long as he was with the man, he really didn’t care.

He lifted his arms, allowing Chauncey to slide the jacket into place. His mate’s fingers brushed against his bare arms, and Curtis groaned. His eyes snapped up as his entire body flushed when Dagon laughed. He cut his eyes to Chauncey and saw the bear’s mouth hanging open. Where was a hole when he needed to be swallowed up?

Chauncey cleared his throat as he licked his lips. “I take it you approve?”