Carefully, Rex moved away from Dorian as Colby pulled him closer so as not to wake the beautiful man. He would check the area and then return to bed, and in the meantime, Colby would keep Dorian safe and protected. He pulled on his pants and shoes and quietly left the room.
Dorian’s rented home was indeed small but well laid out. It was good for one person but would not accommodate any more than that. He kept a clean and orderly home with no clutter or unnecessary furniture. It was easy to move through even in the dark. He listened and heard nothing, but he sensed that someone had been nearby. The presence was unmistakable although he could not get a clear read on who it was.
He went out onto the back deck through the patio doors off the kitchen and stood there listening and feeling the air and the darkness surrounding him. Someone had been there, someone not human, but they were gone now. Rex walked the entirety of the property and then returned to the house and locked the patio doors. He stood there for a few more minutes looking out at the backyard, but all was quiet and still.
Satisfied that no one was there, he returned to the bedroom and slid back in beside Dorian, cuddling him close. Colby eyed him questioningly, and Rex shook his head, indicating that he had found no one. Colby nodded, sensing that the issue was not over, and they went back to sleep with Dorian, who was safe and secure in their arms.
Come morning, Rex had not let go of the fact that something had been near last night, and it was something paranormal. Dorian woke and stretched, seeming comfortable and satisfied there between them, at least for the moment. Unfortunately, the mood would change once Dorian started to overthink and stress about the beliefs from his past. Last night, he seemed to be letting go of the archaic beliefs and attitudes taught to him in his childhood, but the cold light of day had apparently brought them back. The easy, open mind of last night was now filled with doubt and unease.
CHAPTER SIX
Colby got up and slipped on his clothes, as did Rex. The closeness they'd enjoyed was fast coming to an end. "We'd like to spend the day with you, Dorian. We'd like to get to know you better and for you to know us." Colby proposed, but Dorian was only half listening as he rushed around the room, grabbing his robe and tossing his clothing from last night into a hamper.
“I have a busy day today. There is a lot scheduled I really can’t take the day off.” He was not making eye contact and it was tearing Colby apart and one glance at Rex told him the man was feeling the same.
“What the fuck are you afraid of?” Rex barked and then took a step back.
"This is too much and too fast. I don't know you, and I don't trust you." Dorian was brutal but honest. Both of them stood there still, feeling the euphoria of last night but now drowning in the fearful panic of their adored one.
"Okay." Colby stepped forward and motioned for Rex to follow him. "We'll leave now and give you space to think and process what you feel for us, if anything at all," Colby added the last as a wake-up call, and it had the desired effect. Dorian jerked his head up and stared at them, confusion clouding his expression and concern. Rex stepped up next to Colby, and they headed for the door. Colby stopped briefly and added. "We want a relationship with you, Dorian, not a one-night stand." Dorian took a few steps toward them and then stopped.
“Give me time.” He pleaded. “I don’t know what it is I’m feeling.” He looked pained so Colby left it there and with a nod he and Rex left. They’d called for a car to be dropped off last night, so a black BMW was sitting waiting for them in the driveway. Colby got into the driver’s side and Rex slid into the passenger seat.
“Well, that was fucking horrible.” Rex snapped. “What do we do now?”
"Give him space like he asked," Colby said with a calmness he was not feeling.
“We started the bond he should be gaining the awareness why does he fight it?” Rex was irritated and with good cause but there was nothing they could do at present but wait.
"He feels it, and I believe that's the reason he panics. He has old ideas that are ingrained, and this new awareness is going to take time. He knows what we are and stated quite clearly that we don't fit the mold of what he is accustomed to." Colby took a deep, cleansing breath and started the car. "Right now, he's having an internal fight between what he believes and what he knows."
"This is going to be pure hell being away from him," Rex commented and Colby agreed. He pulled out of the driveway and slowly drove away.
"Pure hell for sure." Colby left the neighborhood and got onto the highway, heading back home. He could feel every mile that he put between himself and his adored. He noticed Rex take his phone and put in a request for a surveillance team to watch Dorian.
“Why does he need surveillance?” Colby was concerned.
“I heard something this morning and scented something.”
“What was it?”
"I found nothing in the house except a feeling and the yard scented like a paranormal. Someone was there watching him, and I'm almost certain." Rex was not one to overreact, so he took him very seriously.
“What sort of paranormal? Did you manage to get a read on the species?”
"It was light, barely there. They must have used a diffuser of some sort, but it smelled like wolf to me." Rex glanced poignantly over at Colby.
"Those fucking wolves, what could they possibly want with Dorian?" Colby had dealt with the wolves on several occasions over the past few months and found them to be getting more violent and angry by the day. They were pushing the boundaries on the agreements put in place years ago, and it was becoming obvious to everyone but them that Master Kilconnor was nearing the end of his patience.
“Maybe they caught wind of the fact he’s our adored one.” Rex offered.
"No one knows but you and Sloan and me."
“And Paul.”
"He hasn't been away from Sloan's side since they bonded, so I doubt he had the opportunity to share the information with anyone." Colby was starting to worry.
“Maybe Dorian is working on something that concerns the wolves.”