Snorting, I pressed a kiss to her forehead. “It’s not just breakfast. I’m feeding my mate.”
She laughed. Her shoulders shook. Fuck, it made me so happy to see my mate sated and content. She had our marks on her and I wore my own with pride. “Are you serious? You three have been lying about ordering extra food and oops, someone didn’t get their meal from the driver. All kinds of pathetic excuses.”
Aries gasped. “You knew and didn’t say anything?” He dragged her into his lap and began tickling her. “I can’t believe you.”
“It was terrible. Did you really think you were getting away with it?” She giggled harder and leaned into Aries’ embrace.
“We actually did,” Carver said, chuckling. “Now you two stop it and let’s eat.”
Josie stayed on one of our laps for the rest of the meal. We took turns feeding her. I hated thinking about going to work or being around any females, but thankfully the bite on my neck and scenting like Josie would turn most of them away.
“What do we do now?” our mate asked once breakfast was over. She and Aries stood shoulder to shoulder washing the dishes. We didn’t want her to help, but she insisted.
“What do you mean?” Carver got another cup of coffee. He was a three-cup man at least.
“Do I move in here? Are you ready for me to live with you?” Her shoulders bounced. “I don’t know how to do this.”
Aries shut off the water and turned to her. “You can do whatever you want, Josie. You can work or not work. We have the means to allow you not to work. You can go to school or learn a trade. You can do anything you want.”
“Wrong,” I said. I got two sets of stink eye from my brothers. “She can’t be a bouncer. Some of the men I see are real assholes. Some of the women too, now that I think about it.”
“Oh?” Josie crossed her arms over her breasts, and I had a flashback of how they felt in my hands. “I really wanted to be security, Diesel. You’re squashing my dreams.”
“Sassy little female. Come here.” I threw her over my shoulder and took her to the bedroom. She pretended to throw a fit, but we ended up mating her over and over for the rest of the day. It turned out, she wanted to help people, as we did.
“You never answered me about moving in.” She twirled some of Aries’ hair on her finger.
“Do you want to live on your own?” he asked. My body tensed a bit.
“No. I don’t ever want to feel alone again.”
He kissed her hard. “Then you never will.”
Chapter Twenty-Three
Josie
Although I no longer lived at the motel, I was vested in its success. When I’d first arrived, everyone had their own room, and the population was relatively manageable, but as our reputation grew, we got so many new females showing up at the door, we had to make the rooms semiprivate.
Never ones to let anyone have less than the best, my mates began a remodel with each room being painted and the bathrooms upgraded. New bedding and towels as well, and furniture as needed. The kitchen had new appliances and all sorts of helpful things for Thea and Suzie to use to create healthy, tasty meals for the residents.
As I learned more about how to run a shelter like ours, Thea had handed the reins to me more and more and now primarily stayed in the kitchen doing what she loved best. She was the main cook, and Suzie, of all people, had elected to stay here and be our pastry chef. Somehow, one of our biggest worries had blossomed and let go of a lot of her trauma. Since a therapist visited three days a week, she’d grown a lot in her time here and now was a full-time employee.
As to me, my desk plaque said manager. My mates had insisted that I didn’t need to work, but I begged to differ. “Maybe later. It makes me feel good to help others. After all, I had you three to help me when I arrived, and I want to return the favor. It’s the least I can do. Each one of them has been through something awful. They need us to be there for them.”
“All right, mate.” Aries stroked my hair. “But anytime you want a break, tell us, and we’ll hire someone to fill your shoes.”
“I don’t see that happening.” After all, even if we decided to have a family later, I’d be able to bring my baby to work anytimeI wanted. They wouldn’t be the only child in the building, and Thea would be such a good person to be around them. But, I wasn’t even sure if the guys wanted babies, and that would be far down the line. For now, I was just happy to have a job I loved where I could take care of people and a home filled with even more love. When I ran away from the forced marriage in my pack, I didn’t know if I’d even survive the flight. If they’d drag me back or kill me for daring to leave without permission.
“Josie, can I talk to you?”
I looked up from my desk to see our newest resident, Betsy, her baby in her arms and toddler clinging to her skirt. She’d been widowed from her fated mate and instead of understanding her grief, her pack alpha had “assigned” her to another male. One who was no more interested in her than she was in him and who was twice her age, but since his mate had also died, leaving him with five children to rear, the math added up for the alpha.
“Of course. Come in and sit down.”
“Thank you.” She moved so carefully, as if a wrong step would bring down someone’s wrath on her. “I hate to bother you.”
“You aren’t bothering me. What can I do to help you?”
