“You can head back, Ma, I’ll help Felix,” Sebastian said, smiling. Ma nodded and handed the keys over to Sebastian.
“Make sure you boys lock up,” she reminded them, and walked out.
“Okay, why did you want to get rid of Ma?” Felix asked.
“I need to know if I’m pregnant,” Sebastian said quietly. Felix’s head came up.
“Seriously? I mean I knew it was possible for us, but you’re only like the second guy I’ve known to try it among hybrids,” Felix said. He looked around and then stood up. “Let’s go to the examination room. I bet they have testing kits in there,” Felix said, pointing to the back.
Sebastian hopped up on the paper-covered table. Felix came back with a needle.
“I would have you pee on a stick, but it’s probably too soon to tell from your urine. However, shifter pregnancies are detectable almost immediately after conception with a blood test. When you average in the different type of animal’s gestation period with a human one, the average shifter pregnancy is about six months. Because the gestation is so much shorter, changes pop up that much sooner. Things happen at a rapid rate. Now hold still,” Felix said, wrapping the elastic band around his arm. Sebastian barely felt the tiny pinch and seconds later Felix held a couple vials of blood.
“Okay, let me find his testing equipment. Be right back.” Felix walked away and Sebastian lay back on the paper. Would having a baby change things with his mates? Everything had been so crazy over the past few weeks. He sighed. Maybe this is exactly what they needed. Proof of their love and a tie to hold them all together. He felt himself smile. He could just imagine a crazy blond-haired menace running around or a dark-haired, studious scholar. Suddenly he couldn’t wait to find out. He wanted to be pregnant so he could hurry up and meet their children.
“Congratulations, your men know how to lay down the pipe. You are preggers! Good thing shifter nurses are also trained as lab techs, huh?” Felix said about twenty minutes later. Sebastian smiled and then began to cry.
“Oh honey, don’t cry, this is happy news. I’ll be the best uncle in the whole world,” Felix promised, holding Sebastian tight.
“You always did take care of me. I’ll never be able to repay that. You took the hits for so many of us,” Sebastian said, wiping his eyes. Felix just shrugged.
“Someone had to take care of you guys. I didn’t do anything special,” Felix said, looking away, embarrassed.
“I know what you did, and I won’t ever forget. You not only kept us alive, but your craziness kept us smiling, kept us sane in those damn cages.” Sebastian looked up at Felix, stark terror running through him.
“What if Alpha Devon finds out and takes my baby?” Sebastian whispered. Felix growled.
“That will never happen! I will learn how to shift into the scariest shit on earth and eat that fucker if he comes near us!” Felix promised. Seconds later Sebastian’s phone began to ring.
“Kitten, are you okay? Where did you go?” Liam demanded.
Shit!
Sebastian had forgotten about the mating bond. No wonder Liam sounded frantic.
“I’m fine. I’m with Felix in the clinic, he just scared me with the skeleton model, that’s all,” Sebastian said, lying his ass off. He could hear a relieved sigh from Liam.
“Tell him not to scare us like that. Especially after the other day,” Liam grumbled.
“Okay, baby, have fun breaking stuff,” Sebastian said. Liam laughed and ended the call.
“Come on, honey, let’s head back. You picked the best town to hide in. These people are crazier than we are.” Felix picked up the medical supplies he had gathered and they both walked out, locking the door behind them.
When they got back to the table, Rebecca noticed Sebastian’s red rimmed eyes.
“What’s wrong?” She rushed over and hugged him.
“He was just worried about Alpha Devon getting to us.” Felix said in a half truth. Sebastian shot him a grateful look.
“Don’t worry Sebastian, that asshole wolf can’t get you.” Rebecca hugged his arm to her. He looked down at his best friend, which was saying something because at five foot six he wasn’t used to looking down at many people.
“Thanks for being my friend,” he said and licked her cheek, the same way he did as a cat. She giggled and wiped her face.
“All right, sexy people. I have bandages and burn ointment. If any injury needs more than that we can take them to the clinic,” Felix said as he handed over the clinic keys to Ma. He set down a bag of supplies on a nearby table.
“Is that Rian and Damian?” Kate asked, shielding her eyes, looking down the street.
Sebastian turned and had to bite his lip to keep from laughing. Rian and Damian were shirtless in baggy pants and suspenders. Both had rainbow colored hard hats on. They came sauntering over.
“Hey Rian, do the Village People know you stole their look?” Felix asked, blowing kisses.
“Hey squirt, and ha ha very funny. I figured with all the men in one place I could show off my attributes,” Rian winked.
“Some of the vampires are coming, aren’t they?” Rebecca asked. Rian and Damian nodded, wagging their eyebrows.
“I thought you didn’t fool around with anyone in town, RiRi,” Kate said.
“I don’t, but that doesn’t mean I don’t flirt my ass off.” Rian shook his ass from side to side.
“I see the two of you came prepared for today,” a deep voice resonated through the morning air. Everyone sighed as the vampire prince approached.
“Some days I just hate you, Ashby,” Rian said, pouting.
“Don’t be a hater, Rian. As amazing as you are I wouldn’t be surprised if Fate had three men waiting for you,” Ashby said, kissing Rian’s cheek. Sebastian watched as Rian’s face instantly brightened.
“You really think so?”
“Yup, you deserve three hot men to cater to you, Rian,” Rebecca agreed.
Everyone jumped as a loud noise boomed down the street. Smoke billowed out from the machinery for a few seconds before trailing off. Men’s curses rang out. Gabriel smiled.
“What in the hell are they thinking?” Rebecca asked as she watched Aleks pick up a large orange cone and hit Liam in the back of the head with it, sending him sprawling into a water barrel. Liam stood up, stripped off his shirt, dipped it into the water, then wrapped it around Aleks’s head before jumping on his back.
“Holy shit, is Liam waterboarding Aleks?” Rian asked. A loud roar filled the street and Aleks ripped the cloth away from his face. He was about to throw Liam into their tiny patch of freshly poured tar when Kent grabbed Liam and dragged him away. Aleks pulled his now wet shirt away from his skin before he removed it as well.
“Come on boys, it’s almost summer and hot outside today. Sun is up and there we go,” Gabriel said as a few more men followed Aleks’s example. Rebecca turned and stared at Gabriel, an evil grin forming on her face.
“You didn’t! How?” She asked. Gabriel winked and pointed to the newly installed cameras perched on top of the town’s buildings lining the street. He waved and they watched as the cameras bobbed up and down.
“David and Daniel,” Rebecca whispered before launching herself into Gabriel’s arms, peppering his face with kisses.
“You are amazing!” She exclaimed. Gabriel set her down and Sebastian watched, confused, as she did a little victory dance.
“The calendar you wanted,” Kate whispered, her hand going over her mouth. Rebecca was jumping up and down.
“Yes! Yes! Yes!” Her excitement was contagious. When Sebastian looked around everyone was smiling gently at Rebecca.
Gabriel looked at Rian and Damian.
“Free copies of the calendar if you can egg them on,” Gabriel said. Rian and Damien snapped to attention and gave a salute.
“We are humbled by the genius before us. We will serve our leaders well. Come, my brother,” Rian said, straightening his rainbow hard hat as he and Damian made their way ov
er to where the men were arguing.
“I almost feel sorry for the men. Almost,” Kate said as they watched in fascination as Rian and Damian somehow must have started a T-shirt ripping contest, which of course led to the men competing in muscle-flexing poses.
“You paid for the roads to be redone simply to get the men together and shirtless?” Sebastian asked, putting the pieces together.
“They are going to ruin the road,” Ma said practically, and winced when Emmett crashed into Duncan as he fell off of the large dump truck wheel well, where he had been posing.
“I not only paid for their efforts for today, but for an actual shifter crew to come out tomorrow to fix the damage they cause and repave the roads properly,” Gabriel explained, and looked at Rebecca.
“I owed someone a calendar for hurting her feelings. I had to show how much she meant to not only me but to my mate as well,” Gabriel said, giving them a rare smile. Rebecca wrapped one arm around Ashby and the other one around Gabriel.
“I love you both! Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!” she chanted, then flinched when one of the men let out a loud yell. A group of lions started laughing as one of the wolves flailed around holding his arm, cursing.
“Maybe we should sabotage the hot tar thing,” Ashby said, going pale as some of the shifters went to lay more tar. Ma and Felix shrugged.
“They’ll live,” they both said at the same time.
“I don’t want to go back inside, but I’m getting a bit lightheaded.” Rebecca admitted. Instantly Ma had the small woman and was steering her into the shade of the diner’s awning.
“Let’s bring some tables and chairs outside on the sidewalk so we can sit in the shade,” Kate suggested.
“Excellent idea,” Gabriel said as he helped Ashby, Nic, Felix and Kate bring out the table and chairs. Felix sat Rebecca down in a chair and had her put her feet up. Minutes later Ma brought out another shake. Rebecca grimaced.
“I hate to say it, but I’m kinda tired of the coffee flavor,” she admitted. Ma smiled.
“That’s okay, baby girl, this one is a new one. Bananas Foster.” She handed it over to Rebecca who began to suck it down greedily.
When the men realized they had an audience, they began to strut more. Rebecca whistled and catcalled.
“I don’t care how old he is, that man is just fucking hot!” Rebecca said, eyeing Lachlan. Sebastian grinned.
“Maybe we should introduce him to Ms. Tully,” Ashby suggested, a sly smile on his face. Kate and Rebecca burst out laughing.
“No way! We like Lachlan, remember? We need his support on the council.” Kate giggled.
“Kate, I wish you could have seen those council members. Every single one of them exuded raw power and had this older, sophisticated hotness going on,” Rebecca said, fanning herself. Kate grinned.
“I met Ramsey right after I mated to Bran. If he ages as well. Yum,” Kate said.
“Speaking of which. Damn, Ma, you’re lucky too!” Rebecca laughed, pointing to where Pa had also stripped off his shirt. Ma blushed.
“Well, well. I might just make him his favorite strawberry pie for dessert,” she said before heading back into the diner.
“Aren’t strawberries known for being an aphrodisiac?” Ashby asked, eyes wide. Gabriel nodded.
“As Rian would say, ‘Bow chica wow wow,’” Gabriel said in a deadpan voice. Sebastian spit out the large gulp of iced tea he had just drunk. He never would have dreamed the vampire prince would say such a thing. Leave it to Rian to corrupt the man. Sebastian laughed as Rebecca pounded on his back in an effort to help him breathe. He felt carefree for the first time in years. He would always miss his parents, but Fate had given him a new family, and he would always be grateful.
A couple hours later the men gave up. The unmated ones headed back to their homes to clean up as the mated ones walked over to the tables outside the diner.
“Did you enjoy the show, kitten?” Liam asked, leaning in, kissing Sebastian. When Liam stood, Kent stepped forward and kissed Sebastian as well.
“I did, I have the hottest men in Arkadia,” Sebastian said, letting his eyes roam his men’s naked muscled chests before stopping at their groins. Both men shifted their weight from foot to foot, trying to ease the sudden tightness of their jeans.
“Come here, baby,” Liam said, reaching for his mate. Sebastian scooted back.
“Nuh uh, you both stink. Go home and shower, we’ll have dinner here,” Sebastian said.
Kent and Liam pouted.
“Come on Kate, just one kiss,” Caleb cajoled.
“No way, shifter smelling here. You not only have man BO but some sort of funky canine smell going at the same time. I don’t mind sweaty, naked-time smell, but this is baked-on, dirt-encrusted, sweaty smell. Y’all are nasty,” she complained, holding her nose.
“Please, Aleks, go,” was Rebecca’s weak voice. She had turned a faint green color and looked to be trying to keep from dry heaving. Aleks stepped back immediately.
“Ashby, can we use the bathroom in the apartment over Sweet Nothings?” Aleks asked. Ashby nodded.
“Just clean up after yourselves.” Ashby handed Aleks his key ring. The mated men followed behind Aleks, eager to clean up so they could get close to their mates.
“You know, I kinda like sitting outside for dinner. This could be a new thing,” Damian said as he and Rian walked up.
“How did you guys get clean so fast?” Sebastian asked.
“Oh, we left like three hours ago. It’s not that often we get the pool at the pride house to ourselves. We had a relaxing afternoon,” Rian explained.
Gabriel’s cell phone rang and he answered.
“Gabriel here. What? Are you sure? If he comes back or you have an update call me immediately.” He ended the call. Ashby looked at him, worried.
“What is it? What’s happened?” he asked. Gabriel’s grip tightened on his cell phone to the point where Sebastian thought it would be crushed.
“Rhys is missing. He had a date with Garrett Masters, the one who helped apprehend one of the vampires that went after Ashby at the club. Rhys never showed up for their date. We haven’t found any evidence of foul play. He could just be off for one of his weekend adventures, except he would never stand anyone up and he didn’t make arrangements for the bar to be covered at Purgatory.” Gabriel’s face was unreadable. Ashby stood and climbed into his mate’s lap, holding him tightly.
“Is there anything we can do?” Sebastian asked. Gabriel shook his head.
“What’s wrong?” Aleks asked as he walked up, his hair still dripping.
“Rhys, one of our coven’s vampires, is missing,” Ashby explained.
“I can send my old partner from Raleigh to check it out. He’s part of a shifter unit there, so you wouldn’t have to hide what you are,” Aleks offered. Gabriel looked up, relief on his face.
“If you could do that I would be most appreciative. Rhys means a lot to all of us,” Gabriel said, pulling Ashby close.
“Consider it done.” Aleks kissed Rebecca soundly and walked off to make his phone call.
When Caleb and Bran, then Liam and Kent rejoined the group, Ma started to lay out a huge family-style buffet as the cleaned-up, unmated pack, pride and sloth members showed up for food after a hard day’s work. It turned into an impromptu town picnic.
“What are we going to do about Bobbles and Things?” Rian asked.
“You know, I don’t know,” Ma said, scratching her head.
“He had a grandson. Ora will be contacting him to discuss settling his property,” Lachlan said.
“But what about all that yummy, chocolatey goodness that will go bad if it isn’t sold? We can’t just abandon those precious little darlings in the store,” Damian said. Kate nodded in agreement.
“Not much we can do about that, I suppose.” Lachlan looked at Damian.
“Unless you have something in mind?” Lachlan asked.
“Rian and me, I mean Rian and I, could he
lp at the store. Lucy is still there and we all know she did most of the work anyway between stocking and helping customers. Plus, Rian and I know about chocolate,” Damian said, looking excited.
“If you promise to deposit the profits for the future owner, I will agree to keeping the store open,” Lachlan said.
“Yes! Awesome. I can’t wait to see what he was keeping from us. He never sold us the really good stuff,” Damian said, rubbing his hands together. Kate whimpered. Damian looked over to where she sat, looking hopeful.
“Don’t worry, Katie Bell, we are definitely sharing. No more elitist chocolate regime,” Damian said.
“Oh my God, when I think of all the chocolate we haven’t been able to try,” Kate said, wiping her mouth.
“Woman, you are hopeless.” Caleb laughed and stood with Bran as they headed back over to the buffet table to grab more food.
“Oh no, I don’t have chocolate, the world is ending,” Bran teased. Caleb bumped fists with him. Kate narrowed her eyes at them and waited until they were walking back before she retaliated.
“I’ll probably want chocolate for my entire pregnancy so you better start sucking up to Rian and Damian now.” Sebastian watched as Caleb froze in his tracks. Bran’s mind must have gone on auto pilot because he crashed into the back of Caleb with his plate. Both men tumbled to the ground.
“Oh my God, is that why I’ve been getting sick? I made an appointment with Dr. Claybourne for the second he got back.” Nic groaned.
“Your turn! I got sick with Rebecca when she had morning sickness and now you can with Kate.” Ashby laughed at pointed at his friend.
Sebastian took a deep breath and looked at Felix. The other hybrid nodded his encouragement. Sebastian looked beside him where Kent and Liam were poking fun at Caleb and Bran, who had managed to make their way over to their mate and were nuzzling and rubbing her belly.
“It could be because of me, too,” he said quietly.
Liam’s and Kent’s heads swung around. Liam stood.
“You. You. Are you sure?” Sebastian nodded.
“Felix confirmed it for me today at the clinic,” he said, smiling up at his mate.