Watching Out For Fangs (The Cloverleah Pack Book 7) (20 page)

“Except,” Vadim’s voice sounded loudly over the sound of the woman crying, “If you ever get in touch with, or come near my mate again, I will hunt you down and kill you myself. Your son has all the family he needs, people who love him and respect him for who he is and what he does, here in Cloverleah and in San Antonio. If you’d just once got your head out of your ass, you would have realized having a good man like your son was a blessing, not a pawn for you to use. Don’t ever let me hear of you again.”

Damien looked over at Josh. Taking a deep breath, which was a really hard thing to do when he could feel the tears trickling down his face, Josh simply said, “Goodbye mother. I wish you well in your new life.” Then he nodded at Damien who ended the call.

For a long moment there was silence on the porch and Josh concentrated on the sound of his mate’s heart beat – a little fast, but then Josh could feel the anger running through his mate’s body. Anger for him, a need to protect him, even from his own mother.

“Your sisters will be protected. You have my word.” Damien broke the silence first. Josh could see the worry on the big man’s face. He had always been a bit afraid of Damien – after all the man was larger than life and just as old, at least in wolf terms. But since coming to Cloverleah, and Damien meeting Scott, the Alpha had become a lot more approachable and Josh counted him as a friend.

“I trust you,” Josh said. “I…er…what was that about Rebecca having a mate? She’s only eighteen and mother never mentioned it. Is he a good man? Will he keep them safe, or do I have to go back?”

“Your mother wasn’t aware that we knew,” Scott scoffed. “Your mother was a stuck up…yeah, sorry, no need to rehash bad crap.  But Devon, who’s one of the builders at the pack, yeah? He’s a lot older, but he’s known Rebecca was his mate for like the past two years man and spoken to us many times about it. He wouldn’t have touched Rebecca while she was under age, but your mom kept putting them off, even after your sister reached maturity. She claimed that her daughter was just too young, while at the same time trying to get your sister to date some gay enforcer, because of his position. Your mother was severely twisted man, sorry, but you know it’s true.”

“Do you know…?” Josh trailed off. He couldn’t remember the last time he’d spoken to his sisters.  Months probably. Any call home always involved issues with his mother, and Josh felt a stab of guilt that maybe he should have been a better brother at least.

“The girls are fine and they will be safe,” Damien said. “We’ve been keeping an eye on them, or at least Scott has, since you came to Cloverleah. Rebecca and Devon seem to get along really well and Devon was simply waiting to get one of the bigger houses finished before he claimed her. She seemed to understand the need to wait, despite the pressure her mother put on her, because she knew they couldn’t all live in the same house with the woman. Now Devon can move into your house, and he will care for them both.”

“I never even knew about it,” Josh said shaking his head. How many other things had his mother kept from him. All he ever heard about his sisters was their constant need for new things and he wasn’t sure how much of that was actually true.

“We can go visit,” Vadim said gently. “You can do your big brother thing, check out Rebecca’s mate, see if there is anything we can do to help them all. They’ll still be your family.”

Josh nodded and then he looked up, to see Kane and Shawn, Damien and Scott all smiling at him. “The family of my heart is here with you, with this pack,” he said, smiling back at Kane and Shawn. “But yeah, once this pack is safe, then we’ll go visit. That’s if the Alpha there lets us on his land. I hear he’s can be a real hard-ass sometimes and totally territorial.”

For a second Damien glared at him, but his intimidating expression was immediately wiped away by the sound of Scott’s laughter. The smaller man was doubled over with it. “Oh, don’t you worry about a thing,” Scott panted out as he kept laughing. “The Alpha may be a hard-ass, but he’s my ass, so if he gives you any trouble, just come and see me instead. Everyone knows I’m the approachable one.”

“Are you seriously disrespecting my authority in front of other people, mate?” Damien might have been scary if it wasn’t for the teasing note in his deep voice.

“Please,” Kane said with a laugh of his own. “Didn’t you hear Josh? We’re family and that includes you, hard-ass. If we can’t tease you, nobody can.”

The four men laughed some more, joking with each other while Josh stayed secure in Vadim’s arms. Kane was right. All of the men in Cloverleah, even the visitors from San Antonio, they were all family – some more distant than others, but family nonetheless. As a child Josh knew he was under the control of the people he was related to by blood – his parents. Kin are important to wolves, and Josh had felt those bonds instinctively and believed they would always be strong, especially after his father died.

But since moving away from San Antonio, Josh realized that there comes a time in everyone’s life, when an individual breaks away and forms a family of their own. As a gay man, Josh understood it was unlikely he would have children, and that didn’t bother him. He would have nieces and nephews in the years to come. Josh wasn’t related to anyone in Cloverleah by blood, but he knew everyone there loved him, cared for him and respected him – as he did all of them. He had made a new family, one with far stronger ties than any he might have had with his mother. While he would never forget his sisters, Josh knew his life was in Cloverleah, and it was thanks to being in Cloverleah, that he had found a safe place to keep his heart…with his mate.

Chapter Twenty Eight

Vadim’s skin was crawling - he was a bit edgy and insecure, and that wasn’t a common way for him to feel, although he’d already decided he didn’t like it. He had noticed Josh moving around the porch, his phone pressed to his ear, as soon as it had happened and had quickly disengaged from Matthew by simply pointing at his disappearing mate. By the time Josh’s yells had alerted Damien and Kane, and their mates, Vadim had already heard enough to order a hit squad out on his mate’s mother. He wasn’t sure that sort of thing was acceptable between mates, but as he saw Josh run the gamut of emotions from resignation, then anger through to gut wrenching hurt, Vadim had figured he’d order the hit anyway, and suffer the consequences later. The two men might be having issues with their mind link, but thanks to the intensity of what Josh was feeling, Vadim’s body had mirrored every emotional shift. He just wasn’t sure what he could do to make things better.

All of the men had moved into the house and Josh had slipped upstairs to wash his face and tidy himself up a bit. Vadim had been tempted to go with him, but he knew emotional upsets could be tiring, and his mate needed to eat. The two men together in the bathroom – yeah, Josh would miss out on dinner entirely. He’d be lucky if he made it down for breakfast.

“What’s slunk up your ass and died?” Tobias said, plopping himself down on the couch where Vadim was waiting for his mate to reappear.

“Josh’s mother. He was really angry and upset,” Vadim said.

Tobias snorted. “That woman could try the patience of a saint,” he said. “San Antonio will be a lot better place without her, and so will Josh. He’s got you now, and good friends – he’ll be fine.”

“I’m just not sure how to make him feel better now,” Vadim admitted quietly. He didn’t know Tobias that well, although he was aware the man was more than good friends with his mate. If it helped him put a smile on Josh’s face, Vadim could accept looking weak and asking for a spot of help from his mate’s former fuck-buddy.

Tobias looked thoughtful for a moment, and then he said, “Usually, with Josh, I’d suggest a bike ride – that man loves to feel the wind in his hair. But given that Kane has nixed that until after Friday, and a run wouldn’t do you any good because you’d have to go with others…hmmm…” Tobias’ face lit up.

“I’ve got just the thing,” he said. “Leave it to me – I’ll have to go into your room, but take him there after he’s had his meal.”

“We can usually find plenty to keep us busy in our room,” Vadim said drily hoping like hell Josh’s friend wasn’t going to suggest sex toys. It wasn’t that he was averse to using them, but he was hoping to find something to bring Josh out of his funk with his clothes on for a change.

“Ten bucks says you’ve never done this in your bedroom before.”

“Have you any idea how old I am?”

“Older than sin, and twice as good looking,” Tobias quipped with a grin, “but the bet’s still on.” He held out his hand, and after a moment, Vadim shook it.

“Josh will love it, and it might knock a bit of starch out of your pants too, oh-ancient-one.”

“So long as it makes Josh happy.”

“You really care about him, don’t you?” Tobias said, and Vadim could have sworn the man looked almost wistful for a moment.

“More than life itself.”

Tobias nodded, and then grinned as Vadim saw Josh running down the stairs coming straight towards him. Clapping Josh on the shoulder as he went past, Tobias headed up the stairs, not that Vadim noticed. Josh’s eyes were still a bit red, but his mate had a smile on his face, and the way those blue eyes sparkled brought Vadim some element of peace. He vowed to find some way of making sure Josh knew every day that he was loved and that he did have a family that loved him. He wasn’t sure how he was going to do it because it wasn’t something he’d ever done before, but his new mission was his number one priority.

/~/~/~/~/

Josh was feeling more than a little embarrassed and he was determined not to show it. It was bad enough that both his current and his ex-Alpha had seen him in tears, but Shawn, Scott and more importantly Vadim as well? It was beyond embarrassing. Big, strong Beta wolves did not break down in tears just because their mother had confirmed what Josh had suspected all along – that his mother didn’t love him. Now he knew for sure he would deal with it, much like any other shit he’d come across before, by plowing on and focusing on the important things in his life.

His mate loved him – hell, even having a mate was amazing enough and that Vadim had broken his vow for him, and had no problem telling anyone how important Josh was to him? Yeah, that made him feel all kinds of special.

He had a pack that loved him and accepted him for who he was. Josh didn’t feel bad that Damien had intercepted his phone call. Lord knows if he had to listen to any more of his mother’s vitriolic rant he would have thrown up, or had a panic attack. Josh hadn’t known how long the others had been standing by, hearing every word, but as Josh thought things over while he was eating his meal, he realized Damien didn’t step in until his mother had insulted the Alpha personally. Kane and Shawn were standing by, but trusted him to handle the situation by himself, and didn’t that make him feel ten foot tall.

Of course, the fly in the ointment was that yes, he had a mate. A mate who admittedly had done nothing but hold him, sat next to him while they were eating, but who would probably want to talk about things when they were alone in their room. Josh didn’t want to talk about his mother, or his breakdown. He knew he was a damn sight luckier than a lot of people who were rejected by their family. He had a pack, a job, somewhere comfortable to live and he knew he was loved. A mother/son relationship was supposed to be unique and special, and Josh expected to grieve for the things that he had lost. Time would take care of that – he didn’t need to talk about anything.

So it was with some trepidation that he followed Vadim up the stairs to their room, quite some time after dinner. It was still fairly early in the evening, but as per normal, most of the mated pairs had disappeared as soon as the dishes were cleared. Tobias had headed over to the enforcer’s house as he often did after dinner, and really there was no reason for Josh and Vadim to linger either.

As soon as he stepped into their bedroom, Josh knew someone else had been in their space. Then his eyes widened as he saw a television, a PlayStation 4 and game covers sitting on what had been an uncluttered dresser.

“Vadim, how did you know?” Josh said, hurrying over to see what games had been included in the surprise gift. Yes! Assassin's Creed, Borderlands, Diablo 3 and his ultimate favorite, Planet vs. Zombies. All of the games he used to play with his friends when he was back at San Antonio. Plus popcorn, marshmallows, Oreos, and a twelve pack of Josh’s favorite brew. Perfect.

“I didn’t,” Vadim said, a small smile teasing his lips. “But I know who to ask for help when it’s needed.”

“Tobias.” Josh turned and looked at his mate in astonishment. He knew Vadim and Tobias were never going to be best pals, given he and Tobias’ history. The fact that his kick-ass vampire asked for help…wow…that was really amazing. Dropping the cover he’d been looking at, Josh hurried to his mate, pushing him up against the nearest wall.

“You are amazing,” he said, getting lost in Vadim’s black eyes.

“I’m useless when it comes to talking about feelings and stuff,” Vadim admitted. “I figured we should probably talk, and I’d hold you and try and make you feel better about your mother, but…”

“This is way cooler,” Josh said quickly, dropping a quick kiss on Vadim’s lips. “Thank you.”

“You know I care about you, right? And if you need to talk…”

“No.” Josh shook his head. “This business with my mother was a long time coming, and I’ll get over it. So long as my sisters are safe and happy I’ll be fine. I’ll keep sending the money, probably to Scott, until we get a chance to meet this Devon, but honestly, I just need to move forward with my life. You talking to Tobias, means more than you’ll ever know.”

“I owe the young pup ten bucks,” Vadim said with a snarl. “Little shit.”

Josh raised an eyebrow – was that just a hint of color on his mate’s white skin?

Vadim huffed. “He promised me that whatever he had planned, I would never have done it in a bedroom before.”

Josh starred for a long minute, and then he felt it – pure joy bubbling up inside of him. He couldn’t help himself, pulling away from Vadim and rolling over with laughter. Vadim stayed slouched on the wall and he didn’t look happy. That wasn’t enough to stop Josh’s amusement.

“Oh, I’m sorry, love,” Josh said at last, wiping a few errant tears from his eyes. “It’s just I bet your mind was in the gutter…and yeah.” Josh laughed again.

Getting himself under control, Josh took Vadim in his arms again. “So you’re telling me you’ve never had the pleasure of slurping back a few brews, pigging out on popcorn and Oreos and playing some good old fashioned shoot ‘em up games?”

“Never played video games in my life.”

Josh shook his head. His mate was a multi-billionaire, he was the Regent of his coven, and he’d lived for over seven hundred and fifty years. But he’d never shared the simple pleasure of playing video games with his friends.

Well, that was about to change.

“Come on my lover, let’s get you set up. You’re already a gun on the computer, so you shouldn’t have any problems working this out. Fancy zapping some zombies?”