AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Ash shook his head. “Fucking nerve. Since when can you just put your hands on whoever the fuck you want without their permission? Why doesn’t Cael ever tell them to fuck off?”
“Cael and Dex are affectionate, touchy-feely guys, so they don’t realize that when someone does the same to them they might have less than wholesome intentions at heart.”
“Because they’re fucking oblivious,” Ash huffed. “Jesus, what’s taking the bartender so long? He brewing that shit himself or something?”
“I’m sure they’ll be back in a minute.”
“So if some dude puts his hands all over Dex, you’re cool with that?”
Sloane arched an eyebrow at him. “If some guy shakes Dex’s hand or puts a hand on his shoulder, I’m not going to kick the guy’s ass. Dex and Cael can look after themselves.”
“Bullshit.” Ash let out a snort. “If some guy lays a hand on Dex in a way you don’t like, you’d be over there so quick it’d give the guy whiplash.”
“That’s different.” Sloane shook his head, his feral half stirring inside him.
Ash’s expression softened. “Sloane? What’s going on?”
“He’s an easy target now,” Sloane said with a sigh. He soothed the Felid inside him, assuring him everything was all right. Dex was safe. There were no threats. “Guys want to fuck him just to show off. To say they fucked an Alpha’s mate.”
Ash looked surprised by Sloane’s words. “I’ve never heard you call yourself that.”
No one really used the term outside of the THIRDS, and generally it was used only to reference their unit. It was called Unit Alpha for a reason, but Therians didn’t like using terminology that reminded them of their less than Human halves.
“Doesn’t stop it from being what it is. Me, you, Hobbs, Seb, we’re Alphas, apex predators. If you’ve marked your lover and made them your mate, other Therians are going to want to take what you have. The majority don’t really give a fuck about who they’re hurting. It’s about fulfilling a need. A baser instinct. I didn’t understand a lot of it until now, and it’s fucked-up that as a society we excuse the behavior. Hell, I still don’t understand a lot of it.” Sloane looked over at the bar where Dex and Cael were laughing with the barman, a bear Therian who was obviously flirting.
“I never realized how fucking terrifying it would be. Cael’s a Therian, so the rules are different. If he were marked, Therians would be more cautious about approaching him, because he could go feral. Dex is Human, and that puts him at a disadvantage from the start. The more aggressive the Therian, the less he’s going to put up a fight against his Therian half. Just thinking of Dex out there without me, with a bunch of wild animals, makes me sick to my stomach.”
“Hey, whoa, buddy.” Ash reached across the table and put his hand on Sloane’s arm. “You gotta have faith in your boy. He might be a Human, but he is one tough son of a bitch, and with the training Sparks is putting us through, any asshole who tries to mess with him, you can bet Dex will teach him some manners. I had no idea you were worrying about this. Are you having second thoughts?”
“What?” Sloane frowned deep and shook his head. “No. I might be unsure about a lot of things, but what we did….” A smile came onto Sloane’s face, his heart filled with love as he watched Dex. “I’ve never felt more sure about anything in my life.” He turned his attention back to Ash. “I think… I think this is it, Ash.”
Ash sat back. “It, as in the one? You really believe in that?”
“When I was with Gabe, I thought that was it for me. I thought I’d found the guy I’d be spending the rest of my life with. But whenever I pictured the future, I couldn’t. I couldn’t see us growing old together. Couldn’t see us doing the whole domestic thing. I figured it was just me getting used to the idea of us, worrying we’d get discovered at work.”
“And you can see all that with Dex?”
Sloane’s face felt hot. “I can see a lot with Dex. Some of it scares the shit out of me.”
Ash went pale. “Don’t you fucking say it. Don’t even think it.”
“What?” Sloane rolled his eyes. “I’m not saying it’ll happen. I’m just saying I don’t see it as being out of the question. I can see that. I can see him being a father.”
Ash leaned in, whispering, as if the mere mention of a kid might conjure one up. “Dude, you realize what’ll happen once you have kids, right? No more THIRDS. I know you. What are you going to do, take a desk job?”
“First of all, I’m not saying it’ll happen. I mean, Jesus, Ash. We just moved in together. I’m saying that it’s not outside the realm of possibility, because with Dex, I can see us having a family. Besides, you plan on being a THIRDS agent all your life?”
“Fuck, man. You’re talking like we’re ready to retire. We’re not even forty yet.” He sat, narrowed his eyes at Sloane, his arms folded over his chest and a pout on his face. “I don’t like this grown-up talk.”
Sloane chuckled. “Sorry.” They were both quiet for a second when Ash spoke up, his gaze on the table.
“Guess it wouldn’t be so bad.”
“What’s that?”
“Having a family. You really think we can manage it without fucking it up? I mean, we never really got to be kids.”
“Well, we learned about what not to do, so that’s a start.”
