THEIR DRAGON

North American Dragon 3

JOYEE FLYNN

Chapter 1

Austin Lung was helping the poor, abused, and very dirty sex slaves out of their cages for what seemed like hours. It hurt his heart to see this much pain and suffering. And what happens to them now? Did they just let them all back on the streets for someone else to snap up and abuse?

“How much cash you got on you?” Gabriel Panlong, a longtime friend of Austin’s, asked.

“Several grand,” he answered as he ran his hands over his face. “I figured they’d need some help getting home, if they have homes.”

“Good thinking. It seems everyone else was on the same wavelength on that one. Start seeing who has a place to go if they’re physically able. Otherwise, we’re going to need to take some of them home and help them get on their feet.”

“You got it, man.” Gabriel clapped him on the back, and Austin went to start talking to the masses. “Who has a family to go home to and can without needing medical attention?”

Several hands went in the air, and he gestured them to move off to the side. Then he called a human contact of his who ran a hotel in Portland and explained the situation. The guy assured Austin that he’d take care of them and give them all rooms, food, and a chance to clean up before helping them with their travel arrangements. After rattling off his credit card number for all of it, he returned to the group.

“I have a guy you can trust who’s sending a few taxis for you guys, okay? He runs a hotel in Portland, and you can rest, recoup a couple of nights before heading home. Does anyone have any questions?”

“What about clothes?” a smaller man asked, and Austin saw the poor kid was wearing nothing but a pair of tattered boxers.

“He’ll see to that when you guys get there,” he replied gently as he reached out to cup the man’s cheek. “I’m going to give you some money for traveling expenses to get home, but the hotel, clothes, food, and everything else he’s going to put on my credit card. Don’t worry about the money, just take care of yourselves. He has my cell number if you guys need anything.”

“Thank you,” the kid said as his eyes filled with tears. Austin nodded, his throat clogging up with emotion. He quickly divided up the money he had while his friends did the same.

“That’s all we can do, Austin,” Skylar said gently before going to talk with the others who needed a doctor or had nowhere to go.

“Can I come home with you?” someone asked softly in a musical voice that filled Austin with a strange peace. He turned and gasped at the beauty who’d spoken to him.

“Do you not have a family to go back to?”

“No, no one wants me,” the small twink answered. “Do you want me?”

“More than you know,” Austin thought to himself before answering aloud. “You are more than welcome at my home, sweetheart. What’s your name?”

“Garreck Hawes,” he answered and threw himself into Austin’s arms. “I’ll do anything you want, just don’t leave me alone or make me leave.”

“It’s okay, Garreck, you’re safe now.”

“I go where he goes,” a small, but larger guy than Garreck, said firmly.

“Does Dante have to come with us?” Garreck asked, glancing over his shoulder. “He doesn’t like me.”

“That’s not true,” Dante answered, his eyes filling with a deep grief that Austin didn’t understand.

“Let’s get you guys cleaned up, fed, and then we can figure the rest out, okay?” Austin asked, not wanting issues but knowing this wasn’t the time or place to discuss this. Both men nodded, and Garreck held his hand tightly as he led them over to his luxury sedan. Austin was a car whore, and he totally knew it and embraced it. His 2010 BMW M sedan was his newest acquisition.

“You rich?” Dante asked bluntly as he stood by the back door as Austin helped Garreck into the front seat. “I don’t want to mess up your nice leather. We’re both pretty dirty.”

“Don’t worry about it,” he replied gently, giving the twink a wide smile. “Worst case, I can get it cleaned next oil change. You guys are more important than a dirty car.”

“Thank you,” Garreck said and kissed him on the cheek before climbing into the car. Austin stood there for a moment, holding his cheek like a lovesick teenager while they buckled up. Shaking himself out of it, he jogged around front, waved to his other friends, and got in. “Do you live close?”

“Yeah, I’m about twenty minutes away in Portland West Hills.”

Dante let out a low whistle as Garreck turned to look at him with raised eyebrows. “It means our savior is loaded, baby. You pretty much have to make six figures just to drive through there.”

“Don’t call me that,” Garreck mumbled as he turned around. Austin was pretty sure Dante hadn’t heard him, but he had since dragons had amazing hearing.

“When we get there, my housekeeper, Kelley, will get your guys whatever you need, okay? Just tell her your sizes, what you like, and she’ll go shopping after she gets you some food and sets you up in one of the guest rooms.”

“Who are you?” Dante asked, his voice low and full of awe. Austin wanted to smack himself in the forehead. Little things like his name might be a good idea since he was bringing them to his house.

“Sorry, I’m Austin Lung. I got Garreck’s name, but I didn't catch your full name.”

“Dante Hammerstone. Nice to meet you and thanks for the rescue,” he answered. Austin just nodded as they drove along. “Never met a dragon before. It was wicked cool the way you took those guys out like that.”

“A dragon?” Garreck asked, biting his lower lip in an adorable way that made Austin want to lick it. “Is that like a gang or something?”

“No, I’m a dragon shape-shifter,” Austin said slowly as he glanced at Dante in the review mirror. The other man raised an eyebrow but then shrugged. “You know the war that was going on and why there are so few female humans?”

“No,” he replied, shaking his head. “I don’t really know much about anything. They’ve had me for so long I pretty much grew up there. It’s not like they let us watch TV or anything.”

“Good point. Well, I want you to not be afraid of me, okay?”

“You are not going to hurt us, you’re the good guy,” Garreck said firmly and took his hand. He couldn’t get over the way this gorgeous man was immediately trusting him. Maybe it was Nightingale syndrome or something? He’d have to think about that one later, but for now, he filled Garreck in on dragons and their history, including the war with humans.

After thousands of years of living in secret, humans had discovered proof that dragons existed. In the early 1970s, one of the dragons had gone on a killing spree, immortality getting the better of him. When he was sentenced to death by electric chair, the prison had a shock when the man wouldn’t die.

The crazy dragon made a show of shifting and breaking out of jail in front of hundreds of witnesses and news crews. There wasn’t any hiding that situation. While humans had legends of dragons, they never guessed they were shifters. Dragons looked exactly like other humans, except they were able to shift into dragons, or shift partially, depending on the need.

Humans, being human, hated what was different or scary and decided dragons were evil. Once that decision was made, mandates across the world went out for dragons to be eradicated. Imagine their surprise when they found out there were thousands upon thousands of dragons across the world, only coming out from hiding to defend their race.

Some of the world’s leaders had the idea that the way to take out the dragons was to kill off their women. The world went to hell in a chaotic mob mentality, making the Salem witch trials look like a day at the park. Humans came up with the most outlandish tests to determine if someone was a dragon. The shifters almost wanted to laugh at how ridiculous it all was, but the humans were killing innocent people.

Dragons watched from a distance, waiting for the right time to strike at the mob leaders so the war could stop. The craziest part of the whole thing was there weren’t any female dragons. There never had been. It had something to do with genetics that Austin never bothered to even try and understand.

Finally, after about twenty-five years of war and killings, the main leaders of the human side had been taken out and enough people had died that the war drifted to an end. The end result being almost the same number of dragons, but billions of humans gone, most killed by their own race. Humans had virtually wiped out the females of their species, leaving the handful left to be fought over by larger alpha males.

The human alpha males spent so much time fighting each other for everything that they now mostly ignored the existence of dragons. That left a good portion of the human population like the two men in his car. Smaller, more docile men, who didn’t feel the need to battle for everything. They lived as they did before the dragon wars—they grew up, learned, worked, loved, played, and lived their lives.

“So does that mean you are really old?” Garreck asked after a few moments’ hesitation.

“I’m a little over two hundred, but that’s young for dragons,” he answered, hoping that didn’t freak out the fragile man.

“Is it okay with you that I’m only twenty-one?”

“Sure, Garreck, I’m just helping you get back on your feet,” Austin answered as he pulled up to the gate of his house and punched in the code. “Age in general doesn’t mean much to me.”

“Get back on my feet? You’re not going to keep me?” Garreck whimpered, sounding completely panicked. “I thought you said you wanted me!”

“Sweetheart, calm down,” Austin said gently as he took the smaller man’s hand and drove up to the house. “We’ll figure everything out, okay? Let’s just get you healthy before we talk about keeping each other. You don’t even know me.”

“Okay,” he whispered, and Austin saw his mouth drop at his house.

“All I ask is for you guys to stay on the grounds,” Austin said as they got out of the car. “If you want to leave, that’s fine, just tell me or Kelley, and we’ll figure something out. I’m not trying to make it seem like a prison. I just want to keep you both safe. We don’t know if we got everyone who was holding you.”

“There are more,” Dante replied as the front door opened. Austin didn’t get a chance to ask what he meant as Kelley started throwing questions at him.

“Oh my god, Austin! Were these some of the men that were being held?” the fireball that ran his house asked.

She was an amazing woman who kept all of the household employees in line and always took good care of Austin. He’d met her at the grocery store one day as she was crying outside and looking very thin. It ended up she’d run away from some abusive men who were holding her against her will. Since there were so few women left in the world, it happened more times than Austin could bear to think about.

He’d hired her on the spot and given her a place in his home. He also assigned her body guards from one of his companies for when she went out. A female human was too rare to not be protected from the animals in the world.

“I’m Kelley, Austin’s right-hand woman,” she said gently as she led them up the stairs and toward the spare bedrooms. Austin followed along, holding back the smile at how she was acting. If anyone understood what these men were going through, it was her. He knew they were in good hands. “Austin didn’t know if he’d be bringing anyone back with him, so I made up several of the guest rooms. Let’s get you guys cleaned up and settled.”

“Can we get them some lunch, too, love?” Austin asked as they entered the first room. “And I think you are going to need to go on a shopping spree for them, too.”

“I’ll call Tiny and Wolf to let them know I need escorts,” she said with a nod as she got them towels. The rooms were adjoining, so that would work best for them. Austin was glad that his room was across the hall so he’d be close if they needed anything.

“You’re the best,” he cooed, giving her a kiss on the cheek. One of the things he loved best about his housekeeper and friend was that she never made waves. She wasn’t dramatic and just did what needed to be done without bitching about security or dragging bodyguards with her. “I’ll wait here with them while you get lunch started.”

“Good deal,” she said with a smile for both of them and left.

“We really each get a room?” Garreck asked as he glanced around before going over and poking his head in the open door to Dante’s room. “Where do you sleep?”

“Across the hall,” Austin answered as he pointed in the direction. “And yes, you each can have a room. You get your own bathroom, too. Use whatever you like.”

“Thank you, Austin,” Dante said softly and hurried off to his own room to shower.

“I think you should scrub my back,” Garreck purred as he swayed his hips, walking to the bathroom. “I might get lonely.”

“Garreck, that’s not why I brought you here,” he replied gently, guessing that the twink was used to having to seduce people. “It’s not like that, okay? I’m just trying to help you. You don’t have to seduce me or sleep with me. I’m not like that.”

“What if I just want to because you are hot?”

Austin stood there with his mouth hanging open as the little imp hurried into the bathroom before he could respond. Holy shit was he going to have his hands full with that one. And the man was hot! How was he going to keep his hands off the sexy twink and let him heal emotionally after all he’d been through?

He flopped back onto the bed and thought about how drastically his world had changed while he waited for them. Austin wasn’t ready to get into another relationship, was he? Or was one hundred and seventy five years of keeping people at a distance enough time for his heart to have healed? He wasn’t sure, but his thoughts were interrupted when Garreck leapt onto the bed next to him.

“You’re naked.” Austin gasped as his eyes ran over the lithe body moving towards him. Now that Garreck was clean, Austin could see that he was more than hot or gorgeous, he was breathtaking. Curly red hair surrounded his cherub face, with bright blue eyes. He was rather on the thin side, no more than one hundred ten pounds, but Austin would make sure that was fixed. And damn was he tiny! He couldn’t have been more than five-six to Austin’s six-five.

“It makes it much easier for you to play with me that way.” Garreck giggled and slid over to straddle Austin’s lap. “Do you want a blow job or to fuck me? I stretched myself in the shower.”

“Sweet mother of mercy.” Austin groaned, instantly getting hard. He sat up and gently cupped Garreck’s face. Austin had caught where the man had said for Austin to play with him as if he was a toy. “Garreck, you are not here for me to play with, sweetheart. You’re not my toy.”

“Of course I am.” He snickered and tried to kiss Austin. “That’s what I am, a hired boy toy.”

“Not anymore,” Austin said firmly.

“Okay, then I’m just your boy toy.”

“No, Garreck, not even mine. You are no one’s anymore, sweetheart. You are your own man now and can do whatever you want, okay?”

“Fine, then I want to do you.” He purred and wiggled his hips over Austin’s cargo pants-covered erection. “Or I want you to do me actually. I’m horny, and you’re hot.”

“So you are saying you want to sleep with me?” Austin asked hesitantly. “You’re not doing it because you have to or are trying to repay me for giving you a place to stay? There’s no ulterior motive here?”

“Nope,” Garreck answered with a seductive smile. “I enjoy sex, Austin. Lots of it. There’s a reason I was sent to certain clients. It didn’t really bother me as long as they weren’t mean to me. Being kept in those cages was horrible, and the men who held us were assholes who liked to beat us. But getting lots of sex? I was okay with that as long as they weren’t into anything too out there or bad in bed.”

“I don’t want you to think I’m using you or trying to take advantage of the situation, sweetheart.”

“I’m hard, begging for you while throwing myself at you, Austin.” He giggled and gestured to his cock. “I couldn’t fake this if I felt you were forcing me.”

“That’s a good point.” Austin groaned, his resolve to keep his hands off this gorgeous creature starting to leave. “Let’s start slow though, okay? Maybe a few kisses and lunch before we take some time to get to know each other.”

“So you’re not saying you don’t want me or aren’t attracted to me?” Garreck asked, uncertainty written all over his face. “I know you said you wouldn’t make me leave, so I get that, but are you saying you don’t want me in your bed?”

“Does this feel like I don’t find you attractive or want you?” Austin ground his hard-on against the hot twink’s ass to prove his point. “I just don’t want to jump into things. You are not some faceless person I picked up to fuck in an alley outside the bar to scratch an itch, sweetheart.”

“Good to know,” Dante said from the doorway, his eyes cold. “If Garreck wants you, that’s one thing, but if you hurt him, dragon or not, I will end you.”

“Why do you do that?” Garreck shouted as he leapt off the bed and stormed over to the other man. “You are not my keeper, Dante. Why do you get involved in everything I do? You didn’t want me. You lied to everyone about me being yours, but wouldn’t touch me!”

“It doesn’t matter,” Dante answered, looking anywhere but at Garreck’s naked body. “You found someone who will want you for you and take care of you.”

“What does that even mean?” he yelled, his voice going an octave higher.

“Let’s shelve this for now, guys,” Austin said before Dante could reply. “You’ve been through a terrible ordeal, and your emotions are probably all over the place. I’ll grab you guys some shirts and shorts, and we’ll go eat.”

He left the room and went into his own, both of them following. After he grabbed clothes out of his dresser that they would swim in, but at least could tie the shorts, he tossed it to them. Austin drank in Dante as he got dressed. He was just as attractive as Garreck, but in a harder way, not having the other man’s innocent look.

He was probably five-nine, and a hundred thirty-five pounds. Again way thin and under fed. Dante had shoulder-length, wavy black hair and deep, dark brown eyes that looked almost black. Austin didn’t know what was going on between the two of them, but he lusted for Dante as much as Garreck.

"I don’t know if I’m ready for a relationship with one man. I’m certainly not ready for two." Austin thought to himself as he shook his head before leading them to the kitchen. Food was the priority, and getting them healthy. The rest he’d just have to wait and see.

Chapter 2

Garreck eyed Austin over as they sat down at the kitchen table as Kelley put gobs of food in front of them. His savior might have had everyone else fooled with that take-charge, nothing-affects-him attitude, but Garreck wasn’t buying it. He saw a longing and loneliness in Austin’s eyes that called to him. It became his new mission to make Austin happy no matter what.

“I’ve got a few business calls to make after lunch, so feel free to check out the house. Just make sure to give Kelley your sizes and let her know of anything you might need.”

“Thank you,” Dante said with a sharp nod before they started stuffing their faces. Garreck didn’t get that guy. Why was he here? Dante had made it clear the day he’d met Garreck that he belonged to Dante. He went as far as pretending to rape Garreck to keep the others away. But when he’d tried to really touch Dante, the man shied away.

Why keep everyone else away when he didn’t want Garreck? And why demand to go where he was going after they were rescued? Dante had never returned any of his affection or advances. What did he care?

They ate as Kelley joined them and started taking notes. Garreck told the sweet woman his size, what he preferred to wear, and answered questions about what he liked to do.

“What about underwear?” she asked as she read her list.

“I don’t like them.” He shrugged, catching the low groan Austin gave. He couldn’t help smiling to himself that he affected the big dragon like that.

“Okay, have fun, and I’ll see you guys later,” Austin said as he took the last bite of his sandwich. Garreck watched as the object of his desires gave Kelley a quick kiss on the cheek before darting from the room.

“He is gay, right?” he asked Kelley before she went off as well.

“Yeah, though most dragons don’t really label themselves as gay or straight,” she answered with a knowing smile. “But Austin is all about men, not women.”

“Good to know.” He finished his meal, ignoring Dante’s glances, and then thanked Kelley for lunch.

Wandering around and thinking about everything that had happened, he ended up at Austin’s room. He snuck inside for what he needed for his master plan and found it in the man’s night stand. Garreck shucked his shorts, squirted the lube on his fingers, and quickly re-stretched himself. Then he got dressed and grabbed the lube for Austin before heading out to find his office.

After searching most of the first floor, he finally heard the dragon’s voice. He quietly slipped into Austin’s office, closed the door then locked it behind him.

“Yes, that’s fine, just get it done,” Austin said in his foreign accent that made Garreck shiver.

He had no clue where the man was from, and he really didn’t care. He just wanted Austin. Dante looked at him with a raised eyebrow as he tugged off his shirt. Then he moved Austin’s chair back, inserting himself between the dragon and his desk.

“Okay, just send me an e-mail about it. I’ll be working from home for at least the next week,” Austin told the person on the phone as his eyes roamed over Garreck’s hairless chest.

He shimmied out of his shorts and gave his cock a few strokes before turning around and laying over Austin’s desk. For the cherry on top, he reached back and pulled the cheeks of his ass apart so the big dragon could see he was slicked up and ready to go.

“Uh-huh,” Austin said, his voice going lower as he gave several other grunts of agreement. Garreck felt a thrill go through him when he felt the man’s hand running up his thigh and then cupping his ass cheek. “Look, just get it done however you need to. I have to go.”

“I didn’t mean to interrupt,” he purred as Austin hung up the phone. “I just wanted to give you an afternoon snack.”

“You did too mean to interrupt.” Austin chuckled as both of his hands touched Garreck. “You are killing my control here, sweetheart. I wanted to go slow with you, seduce you like you deserve.”

“Seduce me later, fuck me now,” Garreck whimpered, his ass clenching at the idea of the god of a man taking him. Austin had to be at least six-five and three hundred pounds of solid muscle. He had these curious lavender eyes and shiny, dark blond hair that he kept about ear length. And Garreck wanted him like he’d never wanted another man before.

“How can I deny such an offering?” Austin groaned as Garreck winked at him over his shoulder. He wanted to do a triumphant happy dance when Austin lost the shirt and unzipped his cargo pants. He just about swallowed his tongue when he saw the pole Austin had for a cock that would be in his ass shortly. “Is this how you want our first time together, sweetheart? Wouldn’t you prefer a nice soft bed?”

“No, you’re busy working. Now is just a treat, tonight we can explore and taste each other.”

“Fuck, you’re lubed and stretched,” Austin hissed as he slid two fingers in Garreck’s ass. He moaned and pushed back on the fingers, begging for more.

“I told you. I’m here for an afternoon delight to give you a taste before you become addicted to me,” he said seductively.

“I have a feeling I will become just that,” he mumbled as he pulled his fingers out. Then Garreck took a deep breath as he felt the dragon’s cock pushing against him. “I’ll go slow until you get used to my size.”

“Oh, that just earned you a blow job later for being so sweet.”

“Good to know you reward kindness.” Austin snickered and pushed in.

Garreck moaned and whimpered, making sure to let Austin know that he liked it as the man worked his massive cock into his hole. It took a bit, but then finally Austin was all the way inside of him, and Garreck sighed with contentment that his plan had worked.

“I’m going to start needing to wear a plug to keep myself ready for you,” he said firmly as he pushed back against Austin, letting him know he was ready.

“Would you do that for me, sweetheart?” Austin purred as he leaned over Garreck’s back and kissed his shoulder. “Do you really want me to be yours that much? Or do you just want anyone who will take care of you?”

“I’ve had others offer to buy me from the men who held us,” he answered honestly. “I didn’t want them the way I want you, Austin. I was waiting for someone who wanted me for more than my hole to let keep me. You are a good person. It’s not about the money you have, or that you could take care of me. You want to take care of me, and not as your toy.”

“No, not my toy,” Austin whispered as he picked up the pace. Garreck turned his head as he braced his hands on the desk so he could get a kiss. Austin gave him a quick one, nibbling on his bottom lip as he started slamming into his ass. “You like this, sweetheart? Is this good enough sex to keep me? Am I passing your audition?”

“With flying colors,” he groaned and reached down to stroke his cock. Garreck had never been with someone who’d filled him so completely. And it wasn’t just that Austin’s cock was big… he knew how to use it. That, and he took caution and was careful with Garreck to not hurt him. “How am I doing?”

“You feel like heaven. I’m already getting close, and it’s been so long for me.”

Garreck smiled at the knowledge, shivering when Austin licked his neck where it met his shoulder. He’d never been into biting, but damn, did he want this man to leave a mark on him. As if he’d heard Garreck’s thoughts, Austin ran his teeth over his skin.

“Do it, mark me as yours,” Garreck panted, and that must have set Austin off. He started pounding into Garreck so hard that they were moving the desk an inch at a time across the floor. Austin snarled loudly behind him, fucking him like an animal before sinking his teeth into Garreck’s shoulder. “Holy fuck!”

He came so hard stars flashed before his eyes and his head swam from lack of blood. Garreck cried out Austin’s name with what little air he had in his lungs as his cock shot his seed so hard it almost hurt his sac. Austin lifted his head and roared as he shot his load into Garreck. He moaned as they kept coming together, until something latched on to his prostate.

“What the fuck?” he screamed, fear racing through him for a second before a second orgasm swarmed him. Garreck heard Austin cussing behind him somewhere in the distance, but he couldn’t seem to focus. Instead, his vision wavered and then he passed out like a wet noodle with Austin still inside of him.

* * * *

“He’ll be well loved and taken care of,” Dante said to himself as he paced outside the office, eavesdropping on the passion going on inside. “Austin can give Garreck a life I never could.”

“What the fuck?” Garreck screamed, sending a chill down Dante’s spine. Without caring about the consequences, he tried to open the locked door. When it wouldn’t give, he lifted his leg and kicked with everything it had.

“Oh shit, fuck!” Austin swore loudly. “Dear god, what have I done. Fuck me. Goddamnit.”

“I will fucking kill you if you hurt him,” Dante shouted and kicked again. By the fourth kick and a few slams of his shoulder, the door finally broke. He froze at the sight before him. “What did you do to him?”

“I-I didn’t mean to,” Austin whispered, his eyes overflowing with tears. “I didn’t realize I was doing it until it was too late.”

“Did you fuck him to death?” Dante asked as he rushed over and checked Garreck’s pulse. When he found it strong, just beating fast, he sighed in relief. “Get off of him! What did you do?”

“I can’t. I’m still attached,” Austin answered, shaking his head.

“What do you mean attached? Pull your fucking cock out of him!”

“I can’t,” he said firmly, finally looked up from Garreck to Dante. “I claimed him. When that happens a mating knot comes out and attaches onto our mate to ensure our seed gets a chance to impregnate them. I can’t move without tearing his prostate.”

“Did Garreck ask you to mate him?” Dante asked, knowing what that meant for the man he loved. Not only would Garreck be immortal and tied to Austin forever, but he would have Austin's child as well.

“No,” Austin whispered, and the one word said it all.

“You just tied yourselves together, probably knocked him up, and didn’t fucking ask him!” Dante shouted, seeing red. “How could you? We trusted you!”

“I-I didn’t mean to. He came in here for an afternoon delight, he said. We were just going to have sex, and it was so good I wasn’t thinking. When he tilted his head and I saw his neck, I just pounced on him. I didn’t even know I was doing it until it was done.” Austin looked at him then, his eyes and face showing blatant grief. “I’ve never had the desire to bite before. I-I wasn’t ready for that. I swear I didn’t mean to.”

“It’s a little late for that now isn’t it?” He snarled and ran his fingers through Garreck’s hair. “You don’t deserve him.”

“I know that.” Austin pulled his limp cock out of Garreck’s ass, and Dante immediately got the man he loved away from the dragon. Garreck was still passed out, so it was like carrying dead weight, but Dante managed. “He’ll never forgive me for this.”

“Do you blame him?”

“No, not in the slightest.,” Austin answered and flopped down in his chair, holding his head in his hands. Dante didn’t care about him or his grief. He cared about Garreck.

He turned and left the room with his precious cargo, careful not to drop the man he loved with his entire being as he got them up the stairs. When he was in the room Garreck was using, he laid him on the bed while Dante went to draw him a warm bath. After that was done, he went back for the smaller man he adored more than anything or anyone in the world and got him cleaned up.

“Is he okay?” Austin asked quietly from behind him as he held Garreck up. He made sure to keep the bathwater shallow so he didn’t risk Garreck’s head going under water.

“He’s still out,” he answered in a clipped voice. “You said you wouldn’t hurt him.”

“I’m sorry.”

“Don’t apologize to me,” Dante snarled.

“How long have you been in love with him?”

“Since the moment I saw him over three years ago,” he answered before realizing what he’d said. “It doesn’t matter, he doesn’t like me. I’ve kept him at arm’s length for too long for him to ever forgive me for the things I’ve done.”

“If he doesn’t want me, I’ll let him go,” Austin said softly after a moment. “I can give him a life far from me, take care of him. If he wants you, then I’ll get you guys a house far away from me.”

“I thought dragons were possessive and crazy for their mates?”

“We are.”

“Then why are you okay with me touching him right now?”

“Because I think I knew you guys were a package deal,” Austin admitted, shocking Dante down to his core. Before he could reply, Garreck stirred.

“Why are you touching me?” Garreck moaned as his eyes fluttered open. Dante gasped when he say the confusion and anger in Garreck’s expression, focused on him. “You never touch me. Where’s Austin?”

“I’m right here, sweetheart,” the dragon said softly and moved to kneel next to Dante. Garreck glanced between the two of them before looking down at his groin, which Dante had been cleaning. Dante bit his lip as Garreck’s cock filled up right before their eyes as Garreck stared at Dante’s hand between his legs.

“Then why am I in the tub with your hand cleaning my ass?”

“Because I was an asshole and Dante came in to witness part of it. He carried you out of my office and came up here to take care of you when I should have. I-I was in shock.”

“You fucked me until I blacked out.” Garreck chuckled as he sat up and pulled away from Dante. “How is that being an asshole? I’m sorry I passed out on you. Hopefully you take it as a compliment of how hard I came… twice.”

“That’s not why I’m an asshole,” Austin replied softly as Garreck got out of the tub. Austin dried off the smaller man before lifting him into his massive arms and carrying him into the bedroom.

“Um, thanks for taking care of me then, I guess,” Garreck said to Dante, his eyebrows scrunched together.

“You are welcome, Garreck.”

“Sweetheart, we need to talk about some things,” Austin said as he sat on the bed, cradling Garreck on his lap. He glanced up at Dante, and he felt his blood boil.

“I’m not fucking leaving you alone with him. You know what you did last time,” he snarled. “You are not to be trusted.”

“What is going on?” Garreck asked, glancing at him before looking back at the dragon. “Why is Dante so pissed and acting like my keeper?”

“Tell him,” he answered when Austin looked at him for help. Dante flopped back on the couch across from the bed, ready to intercede if he needed to.

“I shouldn’t have bitten you.”

“It’s okay. I wanted you to,” Garreck replied slowly. “But what was that thing that latched on inside of me? That was kinda scary before I came again and passed out.”

“It was my mating knot,” Austin explained, burying his face in the smaller man’s curls. Dante had to give it to the guy. He did seem to feel remorse for what happened. “When I bit you, I claimed you as my mate. That knot extends when dragons have sex with their mates to give our seed a chance to get you pregnant. Our DNA does something to our mates that can change a man’s internal structure so he can give birth to our child.”

“You said you weren’t sure you wanted to keep me,” Garreck said softly after a moment as he pushed off of Austin. Dante was shocked when he walked over to him and sat down on the couch. Instinctively, he wrapped his arms around Garreck to comfort him. “Why mate with me and try to knock me up if you are not sure you want me?”

“I’ve never had the inkling to bite anyone before. I wasn’t ready for it. I didn’t realize I’d done it until after I had my orgasm and the mating knot came out.”

“So you don’t want to keep me? It was an accident?”

“Yes, it was an accident,” Austin said as he stood up. Garreck started to shake against him, and Dante held up a hand to tell the dragon to keep his distance. The large man listened, immediately sitting back down. “It doesn’t mean I don’t want you as my mate, sweetheart. I’ve never wanted to bite someone before, so that tells me a lot. I’m just devastated I did it without your permission. I’m so fucking sorry.”

“Yeah, asking me first would have been nice,” Garreck mumbled as he snuggled up against Dante. “Why are you here comforting me? You don’t want me either.”

“We can talk about that later, baby,” he said gently. “Let’s deal with one issue at a time, okay?”

“So what happens now?” Garreck asked after a few minutes of silence. “I’m your mate, and you might have knocked me up. Which I didn’t know was possible, by the way.”

“It’s only with mated dragon shifters, not normal humans.” Austin nodded and then rubbed his hands over his face. “What do you want to happen, sweetheart? I’ll do anything you want. Do you want to leave?”

“You’d just get me pregnant and kick me out?” Garreck sniffled, burying his face in Dante’s shirt as he started to shake harder. “I thought you said you wouldn’t make me leave?”

“No, I’m not kicking you out or making you leave,” Austin said quickly. He got off the bed, ignoring Dante’s dirty looks and knelt in front of Garreck. “I’m saying I understand if you want to get away from me because of what I’ve done. Dante can take you to one of my other houses, or I can buy you your own house far away from me. Just tell me what you want, sweetheart. I’ll do whatever you want to make this right.”

“Don’t you want me to stay?” Garreck asked, tears rolling down his cheeks. “Why are you immediately talking about me leaving?”

“Yes, I want you to stay,” Austin whispered, reaching out to brush away his tears. “I just figured after what I’ve done you’d want to get as far away from me as possible.”

“You said it was an accident, right? You weren’t trying to trap me or knock me up without asking what I wanted first.”

“Yeah, it was an accident, but that doesn’t make it okay.”

“No it doesn’t,” Garreck said with a nod. “But it helps me try to understand what’s going on. If you didn’t mean to do it, I’m not just going to run away from this. I mean, you said you still want me here. But do you want me as your mate or just as an obligation since you fucked up?”

“I want you,” Austin whispered and leaned forward to kiss Garreck. Dante found himself getting hard at the sight, not feeling jealous at all. “It’s faster than I would ever have planned, and it wasn’t the way I would have done it if it had been on purpose. But I’ve mated us, sweetheart. I want my mate to stay with me always and to fall in love with you like mates should.”

“Do I have to answer right now?” Garreck asked, glancing at Dante for the answer.

“No, baby. You can take all the time you need,” Dante replied as he ran his hand down Garreck’s back. He glanced over at Austin, letting him know that it wasn’t up for debate. When Austin nodded in agreement, he felt a little better about the situation. While the dragon fucked up majorly, he was doing everything in his power to fix it. “Would you like to take a nap? Or do you want to just watch a movie and relax?”

“I’d like a nap,” he answered, nodding as he pulled away from Austin, moving closer to Dante. “Will you stay with me? I don’t get why you are always around, but you make me feel safe.”

“Whatever you need, baby,” Dante whispered as he helped Garreck stand.

“Do you want me to have dinner sent up here? Or do you think you can stand the sight of me later?” Austin asked as they crawled into bed without him.

“We’ll come down for dinner,” Garreck answered as he lay on his side, resting his head on Dante’s shoulder. He looked over Dante to the dragon as he spoke. “I’m going to have questions about all of this and what it means for me. But for now, I just need to process. I’m not going to run or leave with Dante, Austin. I just need to think.”

“That’s much more than I deserve,” Austin said, giving a weak smile before leaving the room and closing the door behind him.

“What should I do?” Garreck whispered a few minutes after the dragon left. “Will you leave if say I’ll be his mate?”

“No, baby, I’ll never leave you when you need me.”

“Why?”

“That’s another conversation for another time, Garreck.” He sighed, wrapping his arms tighter around the smaller man. “You’ve got enough on your plate right now. Just know that I’ll be here for you no matter what you need or want.”

“It’s like you love me, but you really don’t,” Garreck mumbled with a yawn.

“If only you understand how much I love you,” Dante thought as sleep pulled them both under. It wasn’t that he didn’t love Garreck. He loved the smaller man so much that he’d pretended to use him for years as his pet to keep the other slaves away. He loved Garreck enough to not be intimate with the confused younger man in that crap hole they were held at. Hell, he’d offered to take the horrid jobs that upset Garreck, no matter what it did to Dante.

He just loved Garreck. And now he was mated to the dragon and might be having his child. But yet, he turned to Dante for comfort. That was a good sign, right?

Chapter 3

“I need you to pick up some pregnancy tests, love,” Austin said in the phone a little while after he left the men in bed. He’d called Kelley while she was out running errands. “And whatever someone who’s pregnant might need. I’m sure there are vitamins and stuff for morning sickness if he gets it.”

“Austin, what happened?” she asked, her voice laced with concern. “Did you mate with Garreck?”

“Yes,” he choked out, as his eyes started to burn. “I didn’t mean to, Kelley. I did it without his permission. I claimed my mate without realizing it. He’s never going to forgive me.”

“Oh, Austin,” she whispered, sounding just as emotional as he felt. “He’ll forgive you. I see a lot of love in that little guy. And he wants you. He was asking me if you were gay, and I could see a wicked gleam in his eye. Just give him time to adjust, okay?”

“How do I make this right?”

“Presents normally work when you fuck up with a loved one.” She chuckled and then clucked her tongue. “What would any normal twenty-one year old want?”

“I have no idea,” he admitted, rubbing his hands over his face. “I want to give him everything. And not just because I mated him, Kelley. From the moment I saw him, I knew I would give him everything he ever wanted, Dante, too.”

“You have feelings for both of them.” She didn’t bother to ask, merely making the statement.

“Yeah and there’s something between them, too. Dante admitted to being in love with Garreck for years, but he’s not acted on it. I don’t know what that all means. And I know we’re all going to have to talk about it later, but what I’ve done comes first.”

“He’s not running away from you though, right? I mean, he’s still there after you talked to him?”

“No, he’s not running. He said he wouldn’t.” Austin sighed. “He’s taking a nap with Dante since he feels safe with him.”

“Well, he’s known Dante for a long time,” she hedged. “It makes sense he would seek comfort with someone he knows. But he’s not running, Austin. That’s a good sign that you can make this right.”

“You can get a man flowers, right? Maybe I should get him some roses, too.”

“I think that’s a great idea. I’ll stop at the florist on the way home.”

“Thanks, love. What would I ever do without you?”

“You’ll never have to find out.” She snickered and then hung up.

He felt better after talking to his friend. Kelley was right. It was a good sign that Garreck wasn’t running from him. And he’d do whatever it took to make this right and give his mate a great life. To take his mind off of his immediate worries while he thought of a game plan, Austin spent the next few hours working.

The next time he looked up at the clock, he realized it was after six and Kelley probably had dinner ready. He stood and stretched before making his way into the kitchen to check on her.

“Finally coming out into the world?” she teased as she put a baking sheet with bread sticks in the oven. “I got them a bunch of clothes, a Wii, and a bunch of games. I figured that would be something every guy would want. I also got three dozen roses and set up for another arrangement to be delivered tomorrow.”

“Yeah, one time of flowers isn’t enough.” He chuckled nervously. Gathering up his courage, he looked his housekeeper in the eye. “Do you think less of me for what I’ve done?”

“God no, Austin.” She gasped and threw her arms around him. “You made a mistake, okay? And you’re doing everything you can to make him happy and apologize. You didn’t intentionally hurt him or beat him. There’s a big difference, and I’m proud of you for trying to make this right.”

“Thank you,” he whispered, hugging her back tightly. “Should I go get them for dinner?”

“Yes, it will be ready in about five minutes,” Kelley said as he pushed him to the door. “Now go get your mates so we can feed them. They’re way too skinny, and if Garreck’s pregnant, he needs to eat right.”

He nodded and left, not commenting on the fact she said mates as in plural. It seemed Kelley had already decided he’d be with Dante, too. The idea made him smile, but he didn’t know if it would be a reality. For now, he had to fix things with Garreck and talk to Dante before daydreaming about being mated to them both.

Austin was just about to knock on the door when he got to Garreck’s room, but froze when he heard the most gorgeous voice singing. He quietly opened the door, peeking his head in. Dante was sitting up in the bed with Garreck’s head in his lap, singing to the smaller man as he ran his fingers through Garreck’s hair. It took him a minute to recognize the song and was shocked when he placed it.

“Are you singing the theme from Beauty and the Beast?” Austin asked softly as he walked towards the bed.

Dante’s head snapped up, the color draining from his face before it turned bright red with embarrassment. “Garreck likes Disney movies. He saw a few as a kid, and that’s about the only thing he remembers of his childhood before he was kidnapped. I sing the ones I know to him when he’s upset or no one’s around.”

“You have an amazing voice,” Austin said with a sense of awe. “Have you ever had lessons? Or are you naturally talented.”

“No, no lessons.” Dante chuckled and then shrugged. “I don’t do it much. I mean, I didn’t want to give the guys who had us or the other slaves any reason to think I wasn’t a tough son of a bitch.”

“It was one of the only things about that place that made me happy,” Garreck said sleepily. Austin looked down at his beautiful mate as Garreck gave a soft smile as those big blue eyes shined up at him. “Whenever I came back from a job or someone was mean to me, Dante always sang to me. Though normally he doesn’t hold me like this.”

“Never wanted to show how much I cared in front of them,” Dante admitted quietly. “If they knew how much you meant to me, they’d use that against both of us.”

“Is that why you pretended to rape me? So they’d think I was just your property?”

“Yes,” Dante whispered, and a lot of the puzzle pieces fell into place for Austin on the dynamic of their relationship.

“Are you guys hungry?” he asked, breaking the awkward silence as they both got out of bed. “Kelley’s a fantastic cook, and I saw her popping breadsticks in the oven. That normally means lasagna.”

“Food would be good,” Dante answered as he handed Garreck one of the T-shirts Austin had given them earlier. It was big enough that it almost came down to the smaller man’s knees. “I think you guys need to do some talking, too, when Garreck’s ready.”

“Yeah, I have questions,” he said as they headed to the kitchen. “For both of you.”

“I’ll answer whatever you want to know,” Austin replied as Dante and he exchanged a glance. The other man looked confused, but Austin had a good idea about what Garreck was going to ask the Dante. He just hoped the answers wouldn’t push Garreck over the edge after everything that had happened.

* * * *

They sat down at the kitchen table after they got there. Garreck had so many questions he wanted to ask, although he was still trying to wrap his brain around everything. But the silent tension between the three of them was almost strangling him.

Kelley had made lasagna, which she served with salad and breadsticks. She sat down to join them after Austin got everyone drinks. The silence continued, and it was enough to make Garreck almost lose his appetite. Except, all those years being held prisoner taught him to eat when food was available since he didn’t know the next time he’d be fed. After about fifteen uncomfortable minutes dragged on, Kelley broke.

“Enough of this,” she said loudly, throwing her hands up in the air. “I know you are all men, but you can talk to each other about what you’re feeling.” She pointed at Austin first. “Say you are sorry again and give them their presents.” Then she turned to Dante. “And you need to admit that you love Garreck.” And lastly, she turned to him. “And you need to tell them that you want them both and ask the questions I know are swirling in that pretty little head of yours.”

“Kelley,” Austin groaned as Dante blushed.

“You don’t love me, do you?” Garreck asked Dante, his eyes going wide in shock.

“With all my heart,” the man admitted quietly.

“What about presents?” Garreck squeaked out, his mind going a hundred miles an hour at Dante’s statement.

“Kelley got you guys a bunch of stuff, clothes and a few presents to try and show that I’m sorry,” Austin said, looking like a kid that got caught with his hand in the cookie jar. Garreck followed his gaze to the back corner of the kitchen as his jaw dropped. How had he missed that one? There had to be at least thirty large shopping bags overflowing with things.

“That’s all for us?” he asked, glancing between Kelley and Austin. She smiled widely and nodded, while he looked nervous. Then she elbowed him and gestured to the counter. Austin bounded out of his chair and picked up the largest bouquet of flowers Garreck had ever seen.

“I know this doesn’t make up for what I did, sweetheart. I just wanted to show you how sorry I am for mating you without your permission and that I will treat you like you deserve if you let me,” Austin said as he placed the flowers on the table after moving Garreck’s empty plate away. “I’ll do whatever I can to make you happy, my mate.”

“I-I, y-you—” Garreck sputtered as he looked between the two men who were melting his brain. “You just told me you loved me after all these years.” Then he turned towards Austin as he stood and back away from the table. “And you just pretty much bought me a store after maybe getting me pregnant.”

“Breathe, baby,” Dante said softly as he started to hyperventilate.

“I can’t,” he panted and kept backing towards the door. “This is too much. You are both too much.”

Garreck spun on his heel and ran before they could say anything, and he didn’t stop until he got upstairs and in his room. Once there, he sat down next to the bed and put his head between his knees as he tried to calm down. He heard both men enter the room but ignored them until he controlled his breathing.

“Why tell me you love me now? Is it because you don’t want me mated to Austin?”

“No, baby, that’s not why,” Dante answered, shaking his head as Garreck got to his feet. “I admitted it to Austin earlier, and he made me realize that you had the right to know. I was willing to just keep my mouth shut and hope you were happy with being with him.”

“How long, Dante?” he asked, getting angry at the man for admitting it now after the years he wanted Dante. “How long have you felt this way?”

“From the first night we met,” Dante whispered, his eyes filling with tears. “I knew if I told you or acted on it that it would kill me when they sent you out to fuck other men. And I had to keep it to myself so the others didn’t use you against me or hurt you just to get me to do what they wanted.”

“All those times I tried to touch you or be with you,” he replied, his heart hurting. Garreck rubbed the heel of his hand over his heart to try to alleviate the tightness in his chest. “All the times I threw myself at you or begged you to want me, and you pushed me away. You lied to me and said it wasn’t like that. How can I believe you now?”

“Remember that guy you hated going to, the animal guy?”

“Yeah, he made me dress up like a pig,” Garreck answered, his body shivering in disgust at the memories. “He’d fuck me while I made noises like a pig and then rolled me in mud.”

“Ewww, that’s just gross,” Austin growled.

“You never went back to him after you told me how much you hated him, did you?”

“No,” he said slowly as the light bulb went off. “You made them stop sending me to him.”

“Yeah, I told them I’d go in your place and do what he wanted without complaining or fighting him,” Dante whispered. “I couldn’t stand to see you upset.”

“So you took my place?” Garreck asked, his eyes going wide with shock. He watched as Dante nodded and blushed. His mind raced as he thought back to the years he’d known Dante and all the things the man had done for him. The man he lusted after and secretly fell for made sense with his explanation, but Garreck needed more. “Prove it.”

“Prove what?” Dante asked, tilting his head to the side in confusion. “Prove I love you? How?”

“Yes,” he answered, crossing his arms over his chest. “Give me a blow job.”

“What?” both men exclaimed.

“I’m not sure I’m buying this explanation, and I’m not ready to let you kiss me. But if you really love me and want me like you say you do, you’ll jump at any chance to touch me. I’m stressed, and you’re one of the causes of it, so you should be the one to relieve that stress. You know I’m like a relaxed wet noodle after I come. I’m saying I’m okay with you being the one to do it if you want to.”

He expected Dante to balk at his suggestion, to tell him where to shove his idea. What Garreck wasn’t ready for was the soft growl Dante gave before yanking his shirt off. Garreck didn’t get a chance to say anything before the man dropped to his knees and swallowed Garreck down.

“Holy fuck, I didn’t think you’d do it.” He gasped and put his hands on Dante’s shoulders before he fell over. Glancing down, he saw the love and trust in Dante’s eyes that left him speechless. His cock instantly filled at the attention, and the reality of Dante touching him intimately was so much better than he could ever have dreamed.

“Fuck this is hot,” Austin moaned, and Garreck wanted to glance over at his mate. But he couldn’t. He couldn’t look away from the intense longing in Dante’s eyes as he stared up at him.

“Is this what you’ve wanted all these years?” Garreck asked as he ran his fingers through Dante’s soft black hair. The man hummed and nodded as he sucked on Garreck harder. Garreck hissed when Dante reached up and started massaging his sac. “Are you willing to share me with Austin? I’ve already mated with him and may be carrying his child. Can you live with that?”

Again, Dante made confirming noises as he nodded. Garreck was getting close to coming, and the rest of his questions were melted along with his brain. Dante deep-throated him, using his tongue on the underside of his cock as he bobbed his head up and down.

“Coming, I’m coming,” Garreck grunted, giving Dante the option to back off. He didn’t, doubling his efforts instead. Garreck came hard, crying out as he tumbled over the edge into his climax. He held on to Dante’s head hard as he pumped the last of his cum down the man’s throat. Dante licked him clean when it was over, seconds before his knees gave out.

“I’ve always loved you, baby. I’m so sorry you spent any time thinking otherwise. I did it to protect you.”

“You guys gotta stop fucking with my head,” he mumbled as he snuggled up on Dante’s lap. “I won’t be of any use to either of you if I end up in a padded room.”

“Just tell us what to do, sweetheart, and we will,” Austin whispered as he moved to sit in front of Dante. “What do you need, Garreck?”

“I don’t know,” he answered honestly. “I’ve always just wanted to be loved and desired. Now Dante admits he feels that way and you want me. It’s a lot to take in, and my head just keeps kinda spinning. I don’t know what comes next or what I need.”

“How about we start small, baby? Let’s go see what Austin got us, okay? We can leave the rest of the heavy stuff until tomorrow.”

“Are you really okay with sharing me? Because I don’t think I could survive without you taking care of me and always knowing what I need. You are a butthead for hiding how you felt from me, but I’m going to forgive you as long as you never do it again, Dante. I need you.”

“I swear it, Garreck. And Austin and I will work it out, okay? If you want me, I’m not going anywhere, and I have a feeling he’s of the same mind on that.”

“I am,” Austin said as he cupped Garreck’s cheek. He saw the look that passed between the two men, and he felt a thrill go through him. What if the three of them could all just be together? There was so much heat in the look Austin gave Dante, and vice versa, that there was something there. Maybe them all being a couple or threesome was the answer.

“Okay, presents now and nothing major until tomorrow.” He smiled as he stood up. He reached out for each of their hands.

“Shirt first.” Dante chuckled as he handed it back to Garreck. “Let’s not give Kelley a heart attack our first day here.”

“Good plan.” He giggled, slipping it back on. Then he took a leap of faith that both of the men were telling him the truth. He went to Dante first, sliding his hands over his chest before leaning up to kiss him. Dante went stiff, and Garreck started to pull away in defeat. But then Dante wrapped his arms around Garreck and kissed him within an inch of his life.

“Thank you,” Dante whispered against his lips.

“Can I get one of those?” Austin asked softly, intense need in his voice. Garreck glanced at him and saw he was staring at both of them.

“From which one of us?” Garreck replied, startling both of them.

“Would both of you want to kiss me?” the dragon whispered after a moment, glancing nervously between them.

“Yes,” Dante said, clearing his throat as he released Garreck. “I love Garreck, but I won’t deny that I’m attracted to you. I just don’t know if a threesome could work with us.”

“Would you be willing to try?” Austin asked as he took a step toward him. Garreck gave them space as he mentally did a happy dance at the turn of events.

“Would you be?”

“Yeah, I would,” Austin said as he reached out to cup Dante’s cheek. “I was instantly attracted to both of you. Garreck was just the first one to break down my walls enough to get in. And sometime soon, I need to tell you both why I’m scared to get in a relationship.”

“But nothing heavy tonight,” Garreck hedged, not wanting them to spoil this moment.

“You hurt him again and we’re both gone. You need to understand that I will do anything for Garreck before taking this step, Austin.” Dante stood up on his toes, putting his hands on Austin’s massive chest for balance. Garreck crossed his fingers behind his back, praying this really happened.

“I think I’ll need you around most to keep me in line. I don’t know how to be involved with someone. I’ll never intentionally hurt either of you. I just might fuck up. I hope you won’t leave me if I mess up without giving me the chance to make it right.” Austin wrapped one hand in Dante’s hair while letting the other one travel down to the man’s hip.

“We can live with that,” Dante replied, and then finally it happened… they kissed. It was soft at first, some light brushing of lips. But then it went much deeper and intensely passionate. Garreck groaned as his cock filled back up. He knew he was an exhibitionist, but he never thought himself a voyeur before. It would seem he was learning new things every day.

“My turn,” he whimpered as they pulled apart. They both chuckled as Austin moved away and pulled Garreck into his arms.

“Gladly, my mate,” the dragon purred and claimed his lips. Garreck melted against the large man’s body as he was dipped into a movie-style kiss. “How was that?”

“I can work with that,” he panted, smiling widely up at Austin. Today had been crazy, and there was so much to take in, but somehow it was also one of the best days of Garreck’s life. He had not one but two hotties wanting him. “Let’s go see about these presents.”

“Whatever my mate wants.” Austin chuckled as he set Garreck on his feet. They each took one of his hands as he dragged both the bigger men along. He’d never had a real Christmas or birthday before, and he had a feeling he was about to get way more presents than most did on those special days.

“Did you set them straight?” Kelley asked him with a wink as they went back into the kitchen. He let go of their hands and went to her, giving the taller woman a quick kiss on the cheek. “What was that for?”

“For kicking all of us in the ass.” He giggled and smiled at her before heading over to the bags. Glancing at all of them, he didn’t know where to start. So instead, he plopped down on his butt and held out his hands to the bags. “Present me. I don’t know how this works or what I’m supposed to do.”

“What do you want to do, sweetheart?”

“Austin, there is a lady present,” he gasped dramatically as he batted his eyelashes.

“You are going to be such a handful.” Austin snickered and knelt down next to him. Kelley and Dante joined them, helping divide up all the clothes, shoes, and whatnot. After about twenty minutes, he was covered in presents that overflowed his lap and the floor around him.

“I know, baby,” Dante whispered as he wrapped his arms around Garreck, who was in shock. He just sat there like a fish as he opened and closed his mouth, trying to think of what to say.

“What’s wrong? I thought you guys would be happy.”

“We are,” Dante answered Austin. “No one’s ever been this nice to us before. I think it’s overwhelming Garreck.”

He nodded rapidly in agreement before launching himself onto Austin’s lap. “Thank you so much. I believe you that you want me and don’t regret being mated to me.”

“Oh no, sweetheart,” Austin gasped as he hugged Garreck close. “I don’t regret it in the slightest. I just wish I’d talked to you about it first. It was wrong to do it without asking you, but I’m thrilled you’re my mate.”

“Me, too,” he replied as he snuggled on Austin’s lap with Dante right there. This is where he belonged, between the two men who wanted him, one who even loved him. And Garreck realized right then that he would do anything to keep them.

Chapter 4

Austin was having the most delicious dream the next morning. Tight, wet heat surrounded his cock as lips sucked on his right nipple. He moaned and thrust up, thinking this was his favorite dirty dream ever.

“Oh god, Garreck,” he gasped, his dream giving him the face to go with it. He grabbed his mate’s hips and ground up against his sweet ass. Then his mind added the other man he desired, Dante. “You want some of this, too, Dante?”

“Are you imagining him here with us?” Garreck giggled as he moved to the other nipple. “Do you want Dante here?”

“Yes,” he hissed out, coming out of his sleepy fog. Just then the mouth and tight ass moved off of him, waking him up. “Jesus, you are really here! I thought it was a dream.”

“Nice to know you thought of me in your dream,” Garreck said with a wink as he sauntered over to the door.

“W-Where are you going? We weren’t finished,” he whimpered as he scrambled out of bed after his mate.

“To get the other one you desire.” Garreck opened the door and walked across the hall, Austin hot on his heels. Then he held a finger up to his lips, and Austin saw the little imp had lube in his hand. “I want to wake him up the same way.”

“Will I always be woken up in such a delightful way in the morning?” Austin whispered in his ear as they went into Dante’s room and walked to the bed.

“If you play your cards right,” Garreck answered just as quietly. Austin groaned inside. Yeah, he’d do anything to wake up to his hot mate riding his cock every day. He bit his lip to keep his moan quiet as Garreck pulled back the sheets to expose Dante’s naked body. Then the little imp crawled on the bed, slicked up Dante’s morning wood, and slowly lowered himself onto it.

“Sweet hell, Garreck,” he hissed. His cock was hard as a rock as he watched his mate ride the other man’s dick. Garreck gave him a wink before leaning over and kissing Dante.

“I love you, Garreck,” Dante moaned, still half asleep as he wrapped his arms around the smaller man.

“I just wanted to say good morning.” Garreck giggled and started riding him faster. “Is this how you wanted to wake up?”

“Jesus, this isn’t a dream.” Dante gasped as his eyes flew open. “You are really here, aren’t you?”

“Yes, and I’m horny for my men.”

“You are always horny, baby.” Dante chuckled and then seemed to notice Austin. “Did you get a wake-up call, too?”

“Yes, and I said the same thing you did. But I also mentioned you when I thought I was dreaming, and he hopped off of me and we came to get you, too.”

“You were dreaming of me?” Dante asked, swallowing loudly as his eyes went wide.

“Hey, you guys can talk later.” Garreck growled and smacked Dante’s chest. “Focus on the man riding your cock as a wake-up gift.”

“Sorry, baby,” Dante said sheepishly and thrust up hard, much to Garreck’s delight. “This is the best wake-up ever.”

“Yeah, and now I’m standing here with a hard on,” Austin mumbled. While he was loving that they were letting him watch, he’d woken up to sex that he didn’t get to finish.

“Then join in and take Dante while I ride him.” Garreck smirked, tossing Austin the lube.

“Are you okay with that?” he asked Dante. The man seemed to think about it for a moment before smiling widely and nodding at Dante. He didn’t need to be told twice. They were offering him a hot ménage, and Austin might be dense at times, but he wasn’t stupid.

“Hurry up, I’m not known to last long,” Garreck groaned.

“But you do recover fast,” Dante purred and slapped Garreck’s ass. “Come up here and feed me that cock I’m addicted to while Austin gets me stretched out. I’ll suck you off for round one before we all fuck each other for round two.”

“Okay,” Garreck squeaked out, moving off Dante’s cock as Austin moved between his legs.

“We’re all sleeping in the same bed from now on,” Austin groaned as Dante swallowed down Garreck’s cock. He wasn’t going to risk ever missing out on this. In a flash, he had his cock and fingers slicked up, and pushed one into Dante’s tight ass. He glanced between the hole he was fingering and his mate’s sweet body as he thrust into Dante’s mouth.

“Gonna come,” Garreck grunted before going stiff. Austin slid another finger into Dante as his mate cried out and shot his load. Oh, god, did Austin want some of that. He’d not even gotten the chance to go down on his mate or explore his perfect body yet. That was going to change today.

When he was spent, Garreck slid off Dante, falling to the side of the man. Austin chuckled as his mate still had one leg over Dante’s chest as he gasped for breath.

“I think I’m addicted to blow jobs now.” Garreck giggled. Austin gave him a wink and focused back on stretching Dante out.

“You’re really good at that,” Dante moaned and spread his legs wider. “And I’m going to need a lot of stretching for that third leg you call a cock.”

“I know, it’s huge, right?” Garreck snickered.

“Um, thanks,” Austin said with a blush. He’d had nameless men comment on his size before as he fucked them mercilessly in the back of seedy clubs, but never anyone he cared about. He wasn’t really sure what to do with the comments.

Dante cut off his thoughts by sitting up and pulled him down into a kiss. He groaned and licked inside the man’s mouth, exploring every inch of it. Then he slid in a third finger and wiggled them around to hurry up the process. Austin was ready to blow and have permanent blue balls if he didn’t get some relief soon.

“I’m ready for round two, please,” Garreck begged as he sat up and touched them. “I want cock in my ass.”

“Did our baby warn you that he’s the horniest man alive?” Dante chuckled as he leaned back and pulled his legs to his chest. “I swear I can’t count the number of times he jacked off in front of me in that cage.”

“I was trying to entice you,” Garreck replied with a pout. Austin smiled at their antics as he pulled his fingers out and replaced them with his cock. He started thrusting gently, working more of his cock into Dante as the man’s body accepted him. “Fuck, that’s hot.”

“Ride me, you horny little imp,” Dante groaned as Austin bottomed out. He moved Dante’s legs over his hips so Garreck could do just that. His mate scrambled into position, and Austin braced his hips and lowered him down. “This feels so right, the three of us together.”

“Yeah, it does,” Austin admitted.

“Okay, someone move,” Garreck growled. Austin didn’t need to be told twice. He pulled back out as he moved Garreck with him and then pushed them both back into place.

“Oh shit! I’m not going to last long,” Dante exclaimed as he reached up to stroke Garreck’s cock. “This feels so fucking good.”

“Glad we could please you,” Austin panted as he picked up the pace. Then he started thrusting harder. And if the sounds his men were making were anything to go by, they both appreciated it. “I-want-to-wake-up-to-this-every-morning.” He grunted out as he pounded into Dante’s ass.

“Fine by me,” his mate moaned, leaning his full weight back on Austin’s chest. “I love morning sex.”

“What else do you like, sweetheart?”

“I like afternoon sex, and dinnertime sex, and night sex,” Garreck answered him. “I like toys, and giving blow jobs, and being fucked while people watch.”

“It’s a shorter list of what he doesn’t like.” Dante snickered and then groaned as Austin nailed his prostate. “Gonna blow.”

“Do it. Come inside our hot man,” Austin ordered as he fucked him harder.

Garreck was the first to finish, crying out as he shot his spunk all over Dante. Austin’s nostrils flared at the scent of his mate’s cum. It threw him into a frenzy, pounding his cock into the man under them. Dante followed right over, still milking Garreck’s cock with his hand.

“Oh god,” Austin cried out as Dante’s ass clamped down on his cock, demanding his orgasm. He let go, let his climax overwhelm him as he held on to Dante’s hips tightly and pumped his sweet hole full of his seed. Just as he was about done, shock filled him as his mating knot extended.

“You haven’t claimed me,” Dante said, his eyes going wide before he threw back his head and yelled out.

“Shit, he’s coming again,” Garreck moaned, squirming on Dante’s lap. “How are you doing this to him?”

“I have no idea,” Austin whispered, completely confused as he stared at Dante in shock. The man’s eyes rolled up as he passed out from the intense pleasure with a smile on his face. Garreck collapsed, completely spent, and Austin gently lowered him to the bed, watching as Dante’s cock gave one last spurt of cum before falling to his stomach.

“I thought you didn’t bite him?” Garreck asked as he gasped for breath.

“I haven’t, sweetheart. You’ve been here for everything we’ve done together.”

“You think your body knows that he’s your mate?”

“I guess so, but I thought I had to claim my mate for that to happen,” Austin answered as his knot receded and his cock slipped out of Dante. “How pissed is he going to be if I just knocked him up?”

“I’m sure it will be fine, Austin,” Garreck said softly as he went to touch him. Austin pulled away, not able to handle this new development. He stalked over to the bathroom and wet a few washclothes with warm water before returning to clean them up. Wiping Dante gently, Austin’s mind reeled at what would happen next. “Don’t be mad.”

“I’m not mad at you guys. I’m mad at myself,” Austin grumbled. “Dante said if I hurt you guys again, you’d leave. I’d say knocking him up without his permission is hurting him. Obviously, I’m not able to be mated. I can’t even handle the claiming or fucking part without screwing it up!”

“Austin,” Garreck gasped and moved towards him. He held up his hand to stop Garreck. He couldn’t touch him right now and be comforted, his mind was spinning too fast. Without another word, he stormed out of the room, went back to his own, and yanked on some clothes. His heart broke as he heard Garreck crying softly when he went back out in the hall, but he couldn’t help his mate right then.

With a heavy heart and even heavier guilt, he made his way down to the kitchen. Kelley eyed him over as he grabbed a muffin and some coffee, but didn’t say a word.

“I fucked up again and, no, I don’t want to talk about it,” he said before fleeing the kitchen. He ignored her when she called after him, too wrapped up in his own anger and drama. Heading to his office, he flopped down in his chair and called the only person he could think of for help.

“What’s up, Austin?” Gabriel asked with a yawn as way of greeting. “Do you need help with the guys you took home?”

“You could say that,” Austin answered, letting out a bark of laughter that didn’t sound like anything he’d ever heard out of his mouth before. “I claimed one without asking him or realizing what I was doing, and I might have just knocked up the other one without even claiming him. I’ve fucked up so bad that they’re going to leave me, and I deserve nothing less.”

“Calm down, man. I’m sure it’s not as bad as you are thinking.”

“No, it’s much worse,” he whispered, grief filling his heart for what he was going to lose.

“Start at the beginning,” Gabriel sighed. And Austin did, telling his friend everything that happened. When he was done, his eyes burned with unshed tears and he just wanted to bang his head on the desk.

“They’re going to leave me, Gabriel.”

“No, they won’t,” his friend said gently, conviction in his voice. “I’ve heard of the mating knot coming out before a mate is claimed. That’s why I didn’t have sex with Ryan or Neil until they said I could claim them.”

“I didn’t know that,” he sighed, rubbing his hands over his face. “I’ve never heard of that happening. So I claimed and maybe got one pregnant while maybe getting the other one pregnant. Both without their permission. I’d kick my ass and leave me if I was them.”

“No you wouldn’t. I asked Neil and Ryan, and they said that Garreck and Dante are both really great guys. They won’t just leave and take away your children like that if they are, in fact, pregnant, Austin. Give them some time and let them come to terms with this. How did you leave things with them?”

Austin cringed and admitted how badly he handled it. Letting his head drop to the desk when Gabriel started cussing up a storm. “You idiot.”

“Yeah, I know,” he agreed. “How do I fix this?”

“If they’re pregnant, they’ll want chocolate,” Austin heard one of Gabriel’s mates shout in the background.

“It’s true. I could get Neil and Ryan to forgive me anything with chocolate when they were pregnant.”

“And blow jobs,” the other one called out. Austin couldn’t hold it in that time, and he chuckled at their suggestions.

“You have your hands full with them.”

“You will, too, my friend.” Gabriel snickered. “How about I talk with my men and see if we can’t come on over next weekend to visit. It might help them deal with everything if they can talk with friends who’ve been through giving birth and what not.”

“Will Neil be okay with that after he lost the baby?” Austin asked hesitantly.

“Yes, we’ve all dealt with it, and while it still hurts and it’s hard, we’re moving on. Neil’s pregnant again and is an amazing father to Daniel. Hell, your mates seeing a baby will probably melt them, especially if they’re having raging hormones.”

“Can you come tomorrow?” Austin asked after a moment, agreeing with Gabriel’s logic.

“Let me check with them and get back to you. Just go grovel with chocolate for now.” Gabriel laughed at him as they said their good-byes and hung up. Austin immediately booted up his computer and started ordering chocolate. First, he went to Edible Arrangements and purchased a large arrangement to be delivered later that day. Then he ordered almost everything Godiva had on their website.

After that, he started getting some work done. He hoped the flowers Kelley ordered yesterday and the chocolate-covered fruit would soften his mates before he went to beg their forgiveness. If not, he’d have to come up with another plan and keep coming up with them until they forgave him. Now that he had his mates, he refused to lose them.

* * * *

“What happened?” Dante groaned as he came back to the real world. His balls felt tender after his mind-blowing and never-ending orgasms. And his ass felt like a fist had fucked him. Then he remembered how big Austin was, and that was a pretty accurate description. Not quite, but close.

“Austin didn’t know the mating knot could happen during sex without biting you first,” Garreck answered quietly. He rolled over to see the smaller man wiping away tears from puffy red eyes. “He left. He wouldn’t even talk to me and just stormed out of here.”

“Why would he do that?”

“He said he’s pissed at himself and doesn’t deserve mates. He thinks we’re going to leave him because he hurt us again.” Garreck moved over to snuggle with him, and Dante sighed heavily.

“Do you want to leave because of what happened?”

“No, I saw how upset he was, Dante. He didn’t do it on purpose.”

“I agree,” Dante sighed again. “I know how shocked he was before I passed out.”

“What do we do now?”

“Now we go get some coffee so I can think and maybe some breakfast.” He leaned over and kissed Garreck gently. They lay there a moment before getting up and dressing. Dante took Garreck’s hand in his as they headed to the kitchen. “We’ll figure this out, okay?”

“Okay,” Garreck replied, giving his hand a firm squeeze.

“Good morning, Kelley,” Dante said as they entered the kitchen, catching the concern in the housekeeper’s eyes.

“What did he do this time?" she asked gently. "He stormed in here and got some coffee, announcing he fucked up and wouldn’t talk about it before leaving.,” They sat at the counter while she handed them coffee and then some muffins.

Dante moaned in delight as the strong coffee ran over his taste buds before putting it down and telling her everything. Then Garreck picked up the story after he passed out.

“And he just walked away?” Kelley gasped, her eyes going wide for a moment, and then her face changed to a scowl. “I’m going to kick his ass—” she started, but the doorbell rang and interrupted her. “I’ll be right back.”

“He definitely doesn’t get any more morning sex,” Garreck grumbled as he snagged a second muffin and started eating. “I’m sorry, Dante.”

“What are you sorry for, baby?” he asked gently, not sure what was going on in Garreck’s mind.

“I was the one who suggested you guys have sex,” he answered with a whimper. “I was the one pushing for the three of us to be together, and this is what happens?”

“This is not your fault,” Dante replied firmly, cupping Garreck’s cheek with his hand. “I’m not mad that this happened. Shocked, yes, mad, no. I’m mad because he walked away like that afterwards. It makes me think again that he won’t ever put us first. Oh sure, he might buy us pretty things and take care of us, but you needed comfort and he left. That pisses me off.”

“It hurt,” Garreck agreed with a nod.

Kelley came back in with a huge basket in her hands. Dante’s jaw just about hit the counter as he looked over all the chocolate-covered fruit on sticks arranged in some green foam in the basket. She put it down in front of them with a huge smile before handing Dante the card.

“I’m so, so very sorry,” Dante read aloud for Garreck. “I didn’t know what to say or do, so I left before I made it worse. But that was stupid, too, and I’m sorry for that as well… Austin.”

“At least he cares then, right?” Garreck asked before eating a strawberry. Dante nodded and picked out a chocolate-covered apple slice.

“He’s never dated before, guys,” Kelley hedged as she picked out a pineapple flower. “At least not in the years I’ve known Austin. He’s bound to fuck up, but he is a good guy.”

Dante let that go for now, mulling it over as they snacked on their gift. Kelley asked them about their favorite foods and they chit chatted while Dante processed everything. Garreck answered for them, helping Kelley make a grocery list with lots of the food they would need to eat if they were pregnant. She also put getting some books about pregnancy on the list.

“I-I can’t read,” Garreck said quietly as he glanced over at Dante.

“Well, then that’s something we need to work on, too,” she replied with a soft smile as she patted his hand. Dante really liked her. She was incredibly welcoming and thoughtful when they needed a friend most.

After about another half an hour of them all talking, Dante excused himself. It was time to go talk to Austin and get this all straightened out. The buildup and questions in his mind were becoming more than he could bear. He’d just walked through the kitchen door when the doorbell rang again.

“I got it,” Austin called out loudly as he entered the foyer and then pulled open the door. Dante didn’t even have time to announce he was there, standing back by the kitchen doors and staircase. He had a front row seat for what happened next, much to his heart’s dismay.

“Hello, lover,” a handsome man purred as he stepped into the house.

“Peter?” Austin gasped. He didn’t have a chance to say anything else as the man pulled Austin against him and kissed him. Dante wanted to gouge out his eyes so he didn’t have to see this, but like a car accident, he couldn’t seem to look away. Austin just stood there, not pushing Peter away as the man obviously had kissed their dragon before.

"Our dragon my ass", Dante snarled in his head and spun on his heel. He hid his anger as he went back to Garreck. “We’re going to go check out the grounds, Kelley.”

“Okay, you guys have fun and just stay within the fences,” she said, waving them away. His heart hurt even worse for lying to the sweet woman, but if he told her the truth, she’d go tell Austin. Not that Dante thought the man would care, of course.

“Good thing we put shoes on when we got dressed so we could take your impromptu walk.” Garreck snickered as they reached the back door.

“We’re leaving,” he whispered as they got outside. He took Garreck’s hand, but the man had frozen in his steps.

“Why?” Garreck asked with a whine, his eyes tearing up. “What happened? You were only gone a few minutes.”

“A man came to the door. Austin called him Peter,” he answered as he dragged Garreck along behind him. They needed to get out of there before Kelley or Austin figured out what was going on. “They kissed, Garreck. And Austin knows him, Peter called Austin lover. Something’s very wrong here, and I don’t know what’s going on, but we need to go.”

“Go where, though?” It broke Dante’s heart to hear Garreck sniffle, but he couldn’t focus on that right then. Everything in him was screaming that they needed to run, and after the shit life he’d had, he learned to trust his instincts.

“We’ll go find Ryan and Neil in Mitchell. I heard Austin say that’s the town they live in. We should be able to find Gabriel’s ranch,” he answered more on instinct than anything, but it was still the best plan.

“How will we get there?”

“Baby, have I ever let you down?” he asked, spinning to look at Garreck as he touched his shoulder. The smaller man shook his head as tears spilled down his cheeks. “I’ll get us there however I have to. I’ll always protect you, and right now we have to get out of here.”

Garreck gave him a sharp nod, wiping his tears away. They figured out how to get off the property, which was their first hurdle. The next was catching a ride to Mitchell, and Dante didn’t have a clue how he’d get them there. But he knew he would. He just might not like what he had to do to accomplish it.

Chapter 5

“How, I mean, what? You are here, but that can’t be. Am I hallucinating?” Austin sputtered as he shoved Peter away. He hadn’t seen the man in almost two centuries. How the fuck was he still alive, since he was human, and how did he find Austin? And why now?

“How am I not dead?” Peter chuckled as he caressed Austin’s cheek. Austin smacked the man’s hand away, noticing the sudden flare of anger in Peter’s eyes before it was quickly hidden. “Your eldest brother made me his mate after you denied me.”

“Houston’s not gay, and you’d never be stuck with a fag for eternity, if I remember your words correctly,” Austin replied with a growl. He snapped out of his shock at seeing his old lover alive after all these years and went to push him out the door. “I have nothing to say to you, Peter. You need to leave. I have a life that I won’t let you interrupt.”

“Oh? I’d love to see this new life.” Peter chuckled, sidestepping Austin. “So you did take a mate, just not me?”

“What do you even care?” Austin shouted, throwing up his hands. “You are mated to my brother.”

“Please, he’s got dozens of mates.” Peter snickered and gave a careless wave. “I’m just one of his harem he’d fuck every decade or so to give him another heir to add to his army.”

“But you’re not gay,” he muttered, stomping off towards his office.

It was obvious Peter wasn’t leaving without a fight, and Austin didn’t want to draw attention to the man or have his mates find out before he was able to explain. He was in enough trouble with them, and he didn’t need another reason for them to leave.

Peter followed, and Austin closed the door to his office behind him. He eyed over his first love, noticing the years had not been kind. And that gleam in Peter’s eyes that Austin had mistaken for mischief in his younger years now screamed of deceit.

“How long did it take you to convince Houston to claim you?” he asked after he realized that Peter had aged as a human since he’d left.

“A couple of decades,” Peter answered, his upper lip curling in disgust. “He said if I gave him twenty years of great sex, he’d make me immortal. Of course then there was more to the deal when the time came.”

“Yeah, you guys are equally matched in your self-serving ways.” Austin rolled his eyes. It sounded just like Houston to go back on his word or change the rules when it suited him. “I feel so bad for you, Peter. It must have been horrible to be some fag’s toy for a few decades.”

“I like sex, doesn’t matter if they’re male or female,” Peter said with a shrug, picking a piece of lint off his expensive suit. Austin wasn’t buying the lie. The reason he’d left in the first place was because he overheard Peter’s drunken ramble to his friends that he was fucking a fag to get what he wanted. Peter had always wanted to be immortal, not Austin. It had broken his young heart at the time, but he’d had almost two centuries to get over it.

And looking at Peter now… he felt nothing. Not love or anger or hate, just annoyance that he walked back into Austin’s life.

“Fine, you are immortal and mated to my brother.” Austin sighed as he scrubbed his hands over his face. “Great, good to know. Why are you here at my home, Peter?”

“I missed my little dragon,” Peter purred, using the old nickname that Austin had once loved. Now it was like a knife in his back. “I’m finally done with my obligation to your brother and came to find you. It wasn’t easy though. Took me five years to track you down.”

“What obligation?” Austin knew something was missing from his story. Peter wanted immortality from Austin. It had never been about love or mating. What was the man hiding now?

“I had to give him ten sons.” Peter sighed and looked bored. “That was the deal for immortality. I had to stay in his pathetic harem until I gave him ten children. And he didn’t want them every three years. The bastard made me raise the whelps with his other mates. Once one was grown then he’d come back until he knocked me up again. That’s why it’s taken me over a century to get back to you.”

“You never wanted me. You wanted to be immortal,” he replied, skeptically eyeing Peter over. “So try again, lover.” He put all of his disdain for the man in that last word, mocking him.

“Look, I know what you think you heard, Austin,” Peter started to say, but Austin held up his hand to stop him right there.

“We both know what you said. Don’t try and lie about it all these years later. I was young, Peter, not stupid.”

“What I mean,” Peter ground out, narrowing his eyes at Austin. And that was the Peter Austin knew so well. He had no patience, he never did. But Austin wasn’t a lovesick kid anymore, willing to do whatever Peter wanted without question. “You heard what you heard, but it wasn’t what I meant. You ran before I had a chance to explain. If my parents found out I was gay or even sleeping with a man, I would have lost everything. And then what if you left me?”

“So you did it to keep up appearances?” Austin asked smoothly, waiting until Peter nodded to continue. “And deny me, what we had, and lied to people… Yeah, that makes me feel so much better about it. Great, you came, now leave.”

“What?” Peter gasped, shooting to his feet. “I take all this time to track you down after you abandoned me without letting me explain. I put up with your brother all those years so I could live long enough for us to be together again. I come here telling you I still love you, have always loved you, and you’re telling me to go?”

“Yes, because there’s something you are not telling me. I know you well enough to know when you’re hiding something from me, Peter,” Austin ground out. “What, are you out of money? Did the ending of your obligation to my brother mean you are cut off from his funds, too?”

Oh, Peter was good, but not good enough. Austin saw the flare of anger at his accusations before Peter turned it into a pout. That was it. Peter was broke.

“Get the fuck out of my house before I decide to find out just how to kill an immortal human.” Austin sneered and then growled fiercely. He wasn’t fucking around. He knew why Peter had come here and that was all he needed to know. Peter was trouble, and Austin wouldn’t risk this man hurting his mates.

“It’s not about the money, Austin,” Peter purred, coming over to him and dropping to his knees. “I missed you all this time. If you don’t believe me, I’ll get a job and pay my own way. I love you, and I want to be your mate, not his.”

“You should have thought about that before you broke my heart,” Austin spat out. Peter rubbed his face against his groin. Austin snapped. He lifted Peter up by his hair and snarled in his face. “You sicken me. You think I could just forget everything and let you back into my life? I have two mates I adore, and you’re nothing to me anymore. I’m spoken for. It’s too late, Peter. Leave with what little dignity you have left.”

“This isn’t over my little dragon,” Peter growled as Austin released him. Peter spun on his heel and left before Austin could reply. Let the douche think what he wanted, but Austin was done. He followed along to make sure Peter really left, locking the door behind the man with a sigh. All he wanted was to find comfort from his mates after all of this. But that wasn’t going to happen. Austin had some apologies and explaining to do first.

Pushing off of the door, he made his way to the kitchen. He sighed in relief when he said the chocolate-covered fruit had already been delivered and partially eaten. But where were his mates?

“Have you seen Dante and Garreck?” he asked after he found Kelley in the laundry room.

“They went for a walk,” she answered, checking her watch. “But that was about half an hour ago after Dante was done talking to you.”

“I’ve not talked to him since I left his room this morning,” Austin said, his blood going cold. “When did he come to talk to me?”

“Right before the doorbell rang the second time,” she replied, confusion all over her face. “He wasn’t gone long and then came back into the kitchen, grabbed Garreck, and said they were going to check out the grounds.”

“No, no, no, no!” Austin shouted, his voice rising as he raced back to the kitchen, Kelley hot on his heels. “Call Tiny and Wolf. Tell them my mates ran away and we need to track them down.”

“What happened, Austin?” she asked, the panic he felt written all over her face.

“Someone from my past showed up,” he answered as he ran his fingers through his hair. “I think Dante walked up on him kissing me.”

“You kissed another man when you have mates!” Kelley yelled, slapping him across the face. “You’ve hurt them enough already.”

“I didn’t kiss him, he kissed me,” he growled, grabbing her wrist so she didn’t hit him again. “I pushed Peter away and then kicked him out after he said his piece. I just don’t know what Dante saw. Kelley, I’d never cheat on my mates.”

“You’re right. I’m sorry,” she said with a nod, her chest heaving as she tried to calm down. “I’ll call them and meet you outside to look for them.”

Austin gave her a quick kiss on the cheek before letting her go. He ran out the back door, frantic to find his mates. It took about twenty minutes for him to realize they weren’t on the grounds. Austin sank to his knees on the patio, despair racing over him as he realized they were really gone. And they had at least a good hour head start on them. But where would they go?

“They don’t even have any money,” he whispered as he felt Kelley wrap her arms around him. “Where would they run to?”

“I don’t know, Austin.”

“We’ll find them,” Tiny said as he slapped Austin on the back. “Wolf and I will check the bus depot, airport, and anywhere else they can use to travel. You guys stay here in case they come back.”

“Okay,” he replied with a nod, feeling numb. Austin let Kelley drag him back into the house and then sat him down at the kitchen counter. His eyes started to burn as he stared at the Edible Arrangement sitting there. What had he done? And now he’d lost his mates… actually having run from Austin. His heart shattered into a million pieces, hurting way worse than Peter’s betrayal ever had. But how did he find them to explain?

* * * *

“The ride will cost a hand job from each of you,” the slimy truck driver said as he leered at them. Garreck’s mouth just about hit the ground at the demand.

“Come on, Dante,” he whispered as he pulled on the man’s arm. “We’ll find another way.”

“You get one hand job from me,” Dante said to the man instead. “You don’t touch him and I’ll give you the hand job of your life. Once we reach Mitchell, I’ll make sure you come like you never have before.”

“Fine, but you better give me what I want and no crying during it,” the man sneered.

“Deal,” Dante replied, and Garreck was frozen with shock. How could he agree to that? “Come on, baby, let’s get out of here.”

“Don’t do this, Dante,” he whispered, tears flooding his eyes. “We can find another way.”

“I don’t have all day!” the truck driver barked out, and Dante pushed him up the steps to the cab of the truck. He didn’t fight him as his world spun out of control.

“I did what I had to,” Dante said gently in his ear moments later. Garreck pulled Dante’s arms around him as he sat on Dante’s lap in the passenger’s seat. “I’ll do anything to keep you safe. It’s not like I’ve never given a hand job before that I didn’t want to.”

“I know. It’s just not fair that you are the one who has to do it.” He sighed, turning so he was sitting sideways. He kissed Dante’s neck as they held onto each other for the ride.

The truck switched gears, picking up speed to get on the highway, and jerked them about. It really wasn’t safe for them to sit in the same seat like that, but he wasn’t about to sit any closer to the driver. That, and he figured Dante needed comfort after everything, especially with the deal he’d made.

Garreck must have slept through most of the drive because when he woke up, the truck wasn’t moving, and he was alone in the seat. He cringed when he heard the creepy guy moaning and the skin-slapping sounds of a hand job. Glancing over, he saw Dante doing as he promised, with the man’s hand down Dante’s pants.

He didn’t have to watch long, guessing the guy didn’t see much action, so he came real quickly. When it was over, Dante sat up and held him. But the then the truck started moving again as the driver laughed.

“That wasn’t the deal,” Dante growled as the doors locked. “We’re already here!”

“Too bad,” the man sneered at them as he shifted gears, and the truck sped up. “I want to try your friend later, and you were right. That was the best hand job ever. I think I’ll keep you both. You are obviously running from something, so no one will notice that you’re gone.”

“Hold on to me tight,” Dante whispered in his ear. Garreck nodded, wrapping around the man he loved like an octopus. He wasn’t sure what the plan was, but figured it out fast when Dante flipped the lock on the door and opened it.

“You’ll be killed at this speed,” the driver yelled.

“Better than being with you,” Dante shouted and jumped. Garreck tucked his head into Dante’s neck, praying that they made it. There was a sickening crack as Dante landed back first onto the asphalt before they rolled. When they were done, he lifted his head to see Dante’s horribly pained expression. “I love you, baby.”

“I love you, too,” he whispered as Dante’s eyes rolled up into his head and he passed out. Garreck got off of him, wishing they weren’t in the middle of the street. He cried out when he say the unnatural way Dante’s right arm was bent. Just then he heard the screeching of tires and spun around. Shit! As if this couldn’t get any worse, it was the cops.

“Son, are you all right?” the man asked, racing over to him.

“The man was trying to kidnap up,” Garreck said, starting to blab. “He said he’d give us a ride to Mitchell so we could find Gabriel Panlong. We know Todd, too. I want to talk to one of them. They said we could find them if we needed help, and we didn’t really need help before, just a place to stay, but now we need help. I think his arm is broken, and he saved us. The man was a bad man, and he wanted to keep us forever.”

“Slow down, kid,” the man replied gently. Then he pushed a button on the radio and started talking into it. “Dispatch, I’ve got an attempted kidnapping of two men, one needing medical attention. Call Gabriel Panlong, they’re friends of his.”

“You got names, Mike?” a woman’s voice came back.

“I’m Garreck Hawes, this is Dante Hammerstone,” he answered, grabbing Dante’s uninjured hand. “Please, can I talk to Gabriel? We didn’t know where else to go.”

“Dispatch, you get that?”

“Loud and clear. Dave’s calling Gabriel now, and we’ve got EMT’s on the way to your location.”

“Thanks,” the officer said before letting go of the radio. “We’re going to take your friend to the hospital, and Gabriel can meet you there.”

“No!” he screeched, gripping Dante’s hand tighter. “We need to see Gabriel. Someone might try to take us again. We don’t do anything without his okay. He said he’d protect us.”

“Okay, kid,” the guy said gently, his eyes going wide. “We’ll get everyone here and then to the hospital. His arm doesn’t look life-threatening, but I want to make sure that he doesn’t have any back injuries.”

“Fair enough,” Garreck replied, his mind racing a mile a minute. Was he doing the right thing? If they went to the hospital, would Austin be able to find them? But Austin had to find out at some point and time where they were if they were going to stay with Gabriel. Had the jump hurt the babies they might be carrying?

“Kid, just take some slow, deep breaths,” the officer ordered as he shoved Garreck’s head between his knees. He hadn’t even realized he was hyperventilating. It took a while for him to calm down. How long? He didn’t have a friggin’ clue.

“Garreck, where’s Austin?” a man asked gently as he kneeled next to him. He looked up and realized it was Gabriel. Without a thought in his head, he launched himself into the man’s arms.

“Dante saw him kissing his lover, and we ran,” he whispered so no one else could hear. “He traded a hand job for our ride, but then the guy tried to kidnap us so he could use us, and we jumped from the truck. Dante fell on his back, and he’s hurt bad, Gabriel.”

“Okay, Garreck,” Gabriel said gently, rubbing his hands over his back. “Let’s get him to the hospital, and we’ll figure it out from there.”

“I didn’t want to go anywhere with anymore strangers,” he replied as they stood up.

“It’s okay, kid. I’m a cop,” the officer said.

“So were some of the men who paid for a night with us,” Garreck snapped and then took a deep breath. “I’m sorry. You’ve been really nice to us. We’re just not inclined to trust anyone.”

“It’s okay, Garreck. Mike’s a good guy. He didn’t know you were one of the survivors from the slave ring Todd broke up.” Gabriel gave the EMTs a nod, and they loaded up Dante into the ambulance. Garreck glanced around, realizing he’d not even noticed their arrival while he was having his panic attack.

The next half hour was a blur to Garreck. Dante was taken away by the paramedics, and then Gabriel got him into his truck as they followed them. The next time he blinked they were pulling up to the hospital and rushing into the reception area. The nice lady knew Gabriel, so she shared information with them even though Garreck wasn’t technically family.

Then they were moving to a waiting room. Then there was nothing to do but wait as Garreck tried to collect his thoughts. Another hour passed before a tall, good-looking man stepped up to them.

“Are you here for Dante Hammerstone?” the doctor asked, glancing down at a chart.

“Yes. Is he okay?” Garreck replied, his voice quivering.

“He’s in a lot of pain,” the man said with a sympathetic smile. “He dislocated his right shoulder and broke that arm. It seems that’s what he landed on when you guys jumped. He’s got several lacerations on his back that we had to stitch up. I’ve given him a prescription for a muscle relaxer and pain meds since his back with be bruising. He’ll be stiff and sore, but no permanent damage.”

Garreck let out a small whimper as he half collapsed against Gabriel at the news.

“You can take him home in a little while,” the doctor said, reaching out to squeeze his shoulder. “Just make sure he gets lots of rest and comes back when it says to on the discharge papers to get those stitches and cast off.”

“We’ll take care of it, doc,” Gabriel replied as he shook the man’s hand. Garreck didn’t know what to do, so he hugged the doctor. The man did save Dante in his eyes after all. The doc chuckled and gave him a quick hug before disappearing.

“We can stay with you for a while, right?” Garreck asked, not having yet addressed the original reason for their trip. “We didn’t have anywhere else to go.”

“Of course you can,” the large man answered as he led them back to their seats. “Neil and Ryan are ecstatic to see you both. You are welcome to stay as long as you want, Garreck.”

“Thank you, Gabriel,” he sighed, leaning against him for strength after the sat down. Gabriel was being so nice to them, and considering what they’d been through and the false hope they’d had with Austin, they needed to catch a break. Now all Garreck had to worry about was helping Dante get better.

The doctor was good to his word about taking Dante home, and an hour later Gabriel was helping a very drugged Dante into his truck. Garreck followed with the meds, instructions, and what was left of Dante’s clothes after jumping from a moving truck. Needless to say, they were rags. Thankfully, someone had given Dante a pair of scrubs to wear, otherwise his ass would have been hanging out of one of those hospital gowns.

They drove as Dante rattled on about all kinds of whacky stuff. He tried to grope Garreck a few times, saying he was horny. But Garreck put a stop to that since Dante was in no condition to play. Dante sat there and pouted, but still kept his arms around Garreck.

“I’m just glad you are safe and we found Gabriel,” Dante whispered in his ear, nuzzling Garreck’s neck. “I hope you know I’d do anything for you, baby.”

“I know, Dante,” he replied, his eyes burning with unshed tears. Considering what Dante had had to do to get them here, Garreck didn’t doubt the man’s statement in the slightest. They were silent as Gabriel pulled off a rural road and into a long dirt driveway. Glancing around, he could see why Ryan and Neil were happy here. It was breathtaking.

There were horses trotting around in a gated paddock, some tilled fields, a huge barn, and a gorgeous house. It wasn’t like Austin’s mansion, but it was just a nice. Even better since it had that homey look to it. Garreck could imagine them all sitting on the porch swing having a beer before bed, discussing their day like a loving family.

“Garreck!” Ryan called out as he came over towards the truck after it stopped with the cutest baby ever in his hands. He got out of the truck, careful to help Dante. It didn’t work very well since he seemed to have gone back from happy, horny drunk to about to pass out. Gabriel got there in time before both of them fell and swooped Dante up into his arms.

“Thanks,” Garreck sighed as he closed the doors of the truck before trailing after them. He smiled widely at Ryan, giving him a half hug so he didn’t smash the baby. “Is he yours?”

“Yes, this is our son, Daniel,” Ryan answered, his face full of such love and pride as he smiled at the tyke that Garreck’s heart swelled. “And Neil’s pregnant.”

“We might be, too,” he whispered, his heart instantly sinking as everything rushed back to him.

“Come inside,” Ryan said as he took Garreck’s hand. “We’ll get Dante settled, and you can tell us everything, okay? You look like you could use an early supper and a stiff drink.”

“Several.” He giggled as they walked into the large ranch house. Maybe things wouldn’t be as bad as they seemed after all. If nothing else, they were safe with Ryan, Neil, and their mate. They could come up with what came next in their lives after Dante was better.

Chapter 6

Austin was officially losing his mind. It had been hours since his mates had run away with no money and no place to go. God only knew what horrible things were happening to them as he paced around the kitchen.

“That’s it, no more coffee for you,” Kelley said as she took the mug out of his hand. “Tiny and Wolf just called. They’re on their way back.”

“Anything?” he asked, having a glimmer of hope until she shook her head. “Fuck!”

“What about your friends that helped rescue them? Would Garreck and Dante go to one of them?”

“Gabriel,” he gasped as he dove for his phone on the counter. It took him a few tries of fumbling to get it open and eventually dial the man’s number.

“You have some nerve calling here,” Gabriel growled as a greeting. Austin was taken aback by the venom in Gabriel’s voice.

“Wait—what? What did I do?” Austin asked, completely shocked, as he plopped down on the floor. “Garreck and Dante ran away because they saw something, but it wasn’t what they thought it was.”

“Oh, so you weren’t kissing your lover? You’ve always been a player, Austin, but I never thought you would cheat on your mates. I thought I knew you better than that, but I guess not. Don’t call here again. You don’t deserve them.”

Austin cringed as he heard the click of Gabriel hanging up on him. Guess that meant his mates were with Gabriel, and Dante had seen Peter kissing him.

“Are they okay?” Kelley asked softly, kneeling down next to Austin.

“I don’t know, but I’d say they’re with Gabriel,” he sighed, leaning into her. “Guess I’m heading to Mitchell.”

“I’ll call for the chopper.”

“I can drive,” he replied, looking up at her with a raised eyebrow.

“Yeah, because I trust you to drive four hours in the condition you are in.” She snickered and picked up the phone. “You’re upset and will be going a hundred and twenty to get to them. Plus, you are confused and scared, which means you’ll be too distracted to drive.”

“Fair enough,” Austin sighed, thumping his head against the kitchen island as Kelley made the call. Next thing he knew she was dragging him upstairs to pack a bag since it was after dinner time and it would probably take him a while to talk his mates into coming back with him. Once that was done and the helicopter had landed, she led him out there as he stumbled along in a daze.

“Bring your men home,” she yelled over the noise, giving him a quick kiss on the cheek. He nodded as his eyes started to burn before closing the door and putting on his headphones. Austin gave her a slight wave as they took off and held on for the ride.

“You guys know where we’re going?” he asked after trying to shake himself out of his shock and focus on what needed to be done.

“Like Kelley wouldn’t have sent us that along with a drawn map.” The pilot chuckled. Austin had to do the same. It was true after all. Kelley was known and somewhat feared by most everyone who was higher up or came into contact with Austin in his companies. Another reason he adored her—Kelley didn’t fuck around. There was a job to be done, and she did what was necessary, even if it meant stepping on a few toes.

On the short ride, Austin tried to think of how to explain everything. That was assuming Gabriel even let him through the door. If he could get the man to just listen to him for two minutes, everything would make a lot more sense.

As they landed, the pilot reminded Austin to just give them a call when he was ready to be picked up. He nodded and hopped out, hoping they didn’t disturb Gabriel’s animals too much with the chopper.

Once they lifted back off, Austin slung his bag over his shoulder and headed for the front door. He cringed as it flew open and a very pissed off Gabriel stood there. Austin wasn’t scared of the man, since they’d be equally matched in a fight. He just didn’t want it to get to that point.

“I say don’t call again and you fucking show up at my home!”

“Would you just listen to me for two seconds?” Austin shouted back, throwing his hands up in the air. “I don’t have a lover. Hell, I’ve not had sex in almost three years before my mates. Peter showed up at my doorstep and kissed me. I was in shock, okay? I didn’t kiss him back, and when I snapped out of it I shoved him away and tried to push him out the door!”

“Peter,” he replied, looking confused and still pissed off. Then suddenly, Austin saw the recognition in Gabriel’s eyes as they went wide. “As in Peter Peter? Like Peter the human who screwed you up for any other man ever?”

“Yeah, I guess that’s accurate,” Austin replied, flinching at the way Gabriel worded it. He hated to admit, but yeah, Peter had done a real number on Austin. “He’s alive.”

“How?”

“That’s another long story that I will more than willingly tell you if you will please just let me know if my mates are here and safe.” Austin just about begged, willing to do anything to see his mates again.

“Yes, they’re here. And while they’re safe, they’re definitely not fine,” Gabriel replied, stepping back so Austin could come in.

“How did they get here? They ran off while I was trying not to kill Peter and getting pieces of his story filled in. I’m pretty sure they didn’t have any money or anything.”

“Dante traded a hand job from a slimy truck driver to get us a ride,” Garreck said as they entered the living room. His voice was so cold, Austin shivered from it and the stare full of hate directed at him. “And then the guy didn’t want to give us up, thought no one would notice if he just kidnapped us. So we jumped from a moving semi and Dante was hurt since he took the brunt of the fall. Does that answer your questions enough so you’ll leave?”

“My mate did what?” Austin snarled, unable to control his reaction. Dragons were known for being incredibly possessive and territorial, especially about their mates. “That man will die for touching you.”

Suddenly, he wasn’t seeing like a human anymore. Fuck! In all of his years, he’d never gotten so upset he lost control of his shift. He vaguely heard Gabriel shouting as he shoved Austin back out the door. He did the best he could to get it under wraps, but it was too late. He was too far gone. But at least he didn’t shift in Gabriel’s living room. Though Austin was pretty sure there were some damages to the man’s porch he’d be paying for.

Once he was completely in dragon form, Austin took to the sky. He let out a roar of grief and pain as he flew. His mates had suffered again because of him. He’d promised that they’d be safe with him and looked what happened. And he knew it wasn’t like Dante had cheated on him and Garreck. It was so much worse than that. Before, Dante had been forced to service men… but this time he made the choice to do it.

Was that something his little mate could even come back from? Austin didn’t know but he’d do whatever he could to help him. And he needed to swallow back his jealousy at Dante’s touching another man, because that wasn’t what all of this was about. Plus, given the deep hole he was in with his mates, he had no room to bitch about anything.

It was dark by the time he landed, shifting back to human after his feet touched the ground. He stumbled back into the house, completely exhausted from not only the stress and an anger-driven, quick shift, but also from flying around for what had to be a good hour.

“Are you okay?” Garreck asked as everyone stood, eyeing him over suspiciously. It brought tears to his eyes that his little mate was concerned for him after everything Austin had done to them.

“Just tired,” he answered, slowly approaching his mate. Austin dropped to his knees in front of the gorgeous man, wrapping his arms around Garreck’s slip waist. “I didn’t cheat on you guys. Peter kissed me, and I thought he was dead. I was in shock. I swear it to you. I’d never cheat on my mates or dishonor them like that. I’m so sorry, sweetheart. I’m so fucking sorry for everything.”

“Gabriel explained who Peter was and why you’d be so disoriented by his sudden appearance,” Garreck whispered. He ran his fingers through Austin’s hair tentatively. “But you can’t be mad at Dante. He did what he did out of love for me and what he thought he had to do to save us.”

“I know. I’m just so upset that he did it so you guys could get away from me. I was going to tell you about Peter. I told you there were things we needed to discuss later. But I kept fucking up and bringing up new issues. I never got the chance to tell you what he did to me and why I’ve never taken a mate because I was too scared of getting hurt again.”

“Tell us now,” Dante said from the doorway, his face pinched in pain.

“You’re supposed to be resting,” Garreck exclaimed as he broke away from Austin and went to him. “Are you horny and loopy again? Because I’m not sure how I can deal with that right now, and you are going to end up pulling out your stitches.”

“Stitches?” Austin gasped, eyeing over Dante as Garreck got him over to the couch to sit down. His beautiful mate had a cast on and a shoulder sling. Where were these stitches? Gabriel filled him in on Dante’s injuries after tossing Austin his bag and ordering he get dressed.

“So tell us about Peter,” Dante said after Austin was dressed and got caught up. Garreck had gone to the kitchen to get Dante a pill and a bottle of water while Austin said hi to Gabriel’s mates, whom he had met once before. He stared at his own mates, sitting there snuggled together as everything about them screamed for him to stay away from them. There was no way he was getting out of the request or putting this one off.

“It was over two hundred years ago when I first met him,” Austin said, sitting down in one of the chairs across from them. “I was fifteen, just finished puberty, and learned how to shift. My family was well-to-do in our smaller town, and you have to remember it was a different time. I remember seeing him at the market one morning and was just stunned by his beauty. And then he actually spoke to me, and I thought it was love at first sight.”

“But it wasn’t?” Garreck asked, looking hurt at Austin’s words.

“No, not even close.” Austin chuckled, rubbing his hands over his face. “It was puppy love, my first crush. I feel much more strongly about the two of you than I ever did Peter, and we barely know each other. But Peter was the man in our village. Everyone wanted him. His father was the mayor, very wealthy family and all of that. If my parents had had any daughters, our families would have pushed for a marriage to make a perfect union and all of that.

“Peter started flirting with me, and I came in my pants when he touched me. I was so embarrassed, but he said it was hot and dragged me off into the woods and took my virginity. Keep in mind, being fifteen then with someone older wasn’t a big deal. At fifteen I was basically an adult.” Austin was swept up in the memories for a few moments before he spoke again. “I thought he’d love me forever.

“We used to meet in secret, and he make would love to me,” he said, and then laughed at his own stupidity as a youth. “It wasn’t making love. He fucked me or had me suck him off. He never kissed me, never touched me like you guys do. It was drop my pants or get on my knees while he got off, and if I did, that was okay, but he never made an effort to get me there.”

“What happened?” Garreck asked gently as he got off the couch and came over to Austin. He held his breath as his mate reached out and wiped wetness off of his cheek. Austin hadn’t even realized he’d shed any tears.

“He didn’t love me. I didn’t know it then, but he knew I was a dragon or at least that I could make him immortal. That’s what he wanted. I’d had a fight with my father over Peter and went to find him so we could talk. I wanted us to run away so we could be together,” he whispered, delving into the pain he’d tried to ignore for centuries. “We’d been seeing each other or whatever you want to call it for over a year, and I thought I was desperately in love with him.

“But I realized I just wanted the pathetic attention he gave me since it was more than my own family ever did. I found him at the pub, drunk as could be, bragging to his friends about how he was playing some queer boy who was fantastic at sucking cock to get what he wanted. I stood there and listened to him and his friends go on and on about me, because not only had Peter played me, he told them exactly who he was using. So they all knew it was me.”

“What did you do?” Garreck asked, laying his hands over Austin’s fists that he didn’t even realize he was clenching. He was so lost in his memories, it was almost like nobody else was there with him.

“I ran,” he answered, staring into his mate’s eyes. “I packed a few things I knew I could sell and left. I never went back. My family was cruel to others and to each other. And I knew when they caught wind of what Peter was saying, they would have shunned me anyways. So I ran before they could find out and possibly whip me before kicking me out anyways. I snuck on a ship to America and got the fuck out of there.”

“Where were you born?”

“Italy,” he answered Dante. “I come from long line of Italian dragons. And while dragons are all named for the type of dragon they are and clans, there are Lung dragons all over the world.” Then he glanced over to Gabriel while Garreck slid into his lap. “Who Peter says are building an army.”

“Okay, wait, start from Peter showing up at your door,” Gabriel said, his eyes going wide. Austin told them everything from the moment Peter showed up until then. While his mates looked like they were thinking of forgiving him, Gabriel had a whole other emotion on his face. Anger. “We need to contact the King about this.”

“I agree. I don’t know what my eldest brother is doing, but it can’t be good. Why have all those mates just to produce heirs? Who needs that many sons without some type of sinister goal?”

“Yeah, let me call his office now.” Gabriel nodded and left the room. His mates Neil and Ryan just sat there taking it all in.

“We’ll give you some privacy,” Neil said after a few minutes of everyone just staring at each other. “But just know this. They can stay if they want to. So don’t assume one apology will make this all better.”

“I won’t,” Austin answered, glad the very pregnant man cared enough about his mates to be concerned. Ryan gave him a sharp nod, and they left while Austin glanced at Dante while hugging Garreck. “Can you ever forgive me? I’ll do whatever it takes to make this right.”

“I understand how what I saw with Peter wasn’t what it seemed,” Dante answered after a few moments. “But can you understand why, after I woke up alone and maybe pregnant after what happened with Garreck, my instincts were to run? Can you get past what I did to get us here?”

“Yes and yes,” Austin whispered as he stood with Garreck and went to their mate. “Are you okay with what you did? I know it was different than when you were forced, and I’m concerned about your emotional state.”

“No, no I’m not okay with it,” Dante whimpered when he tried to pull his knees to his chest. “Can we just go home and figure it all out tomorrow? No more issues popping up, dead lovers, possible pregnancies, or running away? I just want to feel safe for once in my life, not be in charge of everything, and feel like I have a home with people who care about me.”

“I’ll call the chopper,” Austin said as he exchanged a look with Garreck. His littlest mate looked scared, and he had a sinking feeling Dante might have finally cracked under all the pressure. A person can only handle so much before it happens, and Austin was pretty sure they’d reached Dante’s limit.

“It’s okay, Dante,” Garreck whispered as he gently pulled the larger man to him. “We’ll fix everything and get you home. Kelley will baby you, I’m sure.”

Austin called the pilot before sending a few texts to Kelley so his mates didn’t overhear. Then he went to find Gabriel while Garreck took care of Dante.

“You are not going to like what I have to say,” Gabriel said as he entered the kitchen.

“It’s okay. I deserve it.”

“No, about what the King said.” He sighed and scrubbed his hands over his face as he turned to Austin. “He’s sending out scouts to your family’s estate in Italy to find out what’s going on.”

“I figured as much,” Austin replied with a shrug.

“Yeah, but he wants you to detain Peter if he shows back up.”

“Fuck me sideways,” he groaned and plopped down on one of the chairs at the kitchen table. “Right, like I want him showing back up or locked in my house.”

“Dude, you own one of the largest bodyguard and security companies in the world.” Gabriel chuckled and slapped him on the back. “Just get a bunch of your guys who aren’t on assignment on it.”

“Well, I keep two employed just for Kelley,” he replied as he realized Gabriel was right. This wouldn’t be a big deal. His crew would be able to intercept Peter before he ever had a chance to talk to his mates. “After what she’s been through with those men kidnapping her for years and how rare human women are, she needs security wherever she goes.”

“That’s a lot of coin for a housekeeper, man,” Gabriel said with a whistle.

“She’s also my friend and needed help.” Austin shook his head and stood back up. Money was no object when it came to Kelley. “I’d do anything to keep her safe and make her feel safe. You didn’t meet her until a few years after I rescued her. It was bad in the beginning. It took months just to get her to leave her room and not hit me when I went near her. And I’d lose my mind if I ever lost her. She’s the boss of my house and my life.”

“We’re ready to go home with you, our mate,” Garreck said softly. Austin spun around in shock, not having realized his mates had joined them in the kitchen.

“How much did you hear?” he asked, cringing.

“Enough to know that you are a good man, and we want to try again,” Dante answered as he leaned against the door frame. Austin rushed over to him before Dante fell over and gently lifted the beat-up man into his arms. “If you take care of an employee like that, you’ll take good care of us and our children.”

“She’s my friend,” he replied, his face heating up under the praise. “And please don’t tell her you heard what happened to her. I’m sure she’ll tell you in her own time in her own way, but I don’t want to think I betrayed her confidence. Gabriel and I were friends when I found her, so he knows the story.”

“Hear what?” Garreck asked innocently with a wink. “We didn’t hear anything.”

“Good to know.” Austin chuckled. His ears perked up when he heard the chopper approaching. The pilot must not have gone far to get back there so fast. “Gabriel, thank you for everything and I’ll take care of Dante’s medical bills.”

“Actually, I’d rather take it out in trade,” Gabriel replied as they walked to the front door. “I’ve got a couple of horse shows coming up, and I’d like some security here with my mates while I’m gone. After what happened before, I won’t ever risk them or be naive that they’re safe.”

“Call Kelley and you can have guys whenever you want. You never have to pay for it, Gabriel. You know that. And I owe you for the damage to your porch.”

“It’s not a problem.” He chuckled. “I’ll call her in a few days.”

“Thanks, Ryan, Neil,” Austin said, giving each of them a nod before making his way out of the house. Garreck followed, staying close as they approached the helicopter after it landed. Once he got his mates safely in the chopper and they were on their way home did Austin finally sigh in relief. He felt years younger now that he knew that they were found and staying.

With Dante snuggled on his lap and Garreck at his side, he felt his heart start to heal from the drama of seeing Peter. He had a lot to be grateful for, Austin thought as he started to drift off. And he wasn’t going to focus on the crap in his past when he had so much to look forward to in his future.

Chapter 7

The next few days Austin barely worked, and Garreck couldn’t have been more thrilled. They spent most of their time in bed, and while not doing everything dirty and naked he wanted to, it was still fun just the same. Their dragon and Kelley waited on them like he and Dante were kings. It was a little disconcerting at first, but Garreck figured after everything they’d been through, they wouldn’t become too spoiled.

After his first helicopter ride, Garreck was too stoked to sleep. While Austin and Dante had been sleeping, he’d been staring out the window to make sure he didn’t miss a thing. It had been one of the coolest, most thrilling moments of his life. And when they’d gotten home, Austin had carried Dante right to his bed and crashed. Garreck, on the other hand, had gone in search of Kelley.

They talked for a while, and she actually cried. Garreck had never had someone, besides Dante, that had cared for him enough to cry because she’d been worried about them. He swore that they wouldn’t run again and if there was ever a problem, they would come to her.

Kelley had told him about her past and exactly how Austin had saved her. It made Garreck’s heart swell with pride and love for their dragon. And after he told her all about his past, she made up a list of steps they were going to take to get him an education. He’d been so embarrassed to admit he didn’t know how to read or do simple math. Hell, he could barely count to a hundred.

She told him not to worry, that this was something they could fix in a snap. Which had made him giggle, of course. When he finally crawled into bed with his men, it had been well after three in the morning. The talk had been well worth the extra-tired feeling in the morning since Garreck started to feel not only wanted, but at home.

When he woke the next morning he was surrounded by hot naked flesh and soft lips torturing him. Just as he was up enough to participate, Garreck realized he was going to be sick. But with Austin’s larger body on top of him, he couldn’t get out. Finally, at the last second, his dragon had moved enough to allow him to dive for the small garbage can by the night stand.

After that, there was a whirl wind of emotions and craziness. And then Austin was helping him pee on a stick. It took him a few seconds, just before the test showed two lines, that he realized what was going on. Next thing Garreck knew, Austin was shouting and dancing and hugging him and then handing him off to Kelley to hug as he went to kiss Dante.

Garreck took it all as good signs that Austin was thrilled to be a dad. He might not have been the sharpest knife in the drawer, but the signs their dragon was happy were there. And about thirty seconds after the celebration, Austin had him in bed next to Dante, ordering he stay off his feet. And that’s where he and Dante had stayed except to used the bathroom for the past three days.

“Okay, no more pouting,” Kelley announced as she entered the room, holding a large box. “I have presents!”

“I’m still pouting,” Garreck said firmly as he crossed his arms over his chest. “I want sex. I have two hot men and no one will touch me.”

“Well,” she drawled out with a wicked gleam in her eyes. “Let’s have fun with what I ordered you and then we can work on a plan to get you laid.”

“Really?” he gasped, shocked that she was willing to conspire with him.

“Yes, really.” Kelley chuckled and then plopped on the end of the bed. He scrambled to her, now excited about the gift. Dante just chuckled as they tore into the box like two kids at Christmas.

“I don’t get it,” Garreck said has he stared down at the videos in the box. He gently reached in and picked one up, his eyebrows drawn in confusion. “You got us kid shows?”

“They’re learning videos,” she replied gently. “Yes, they’re geared more for kids, but these will help you learn the basics of reading and math.”

“But I’m twenty-one,” he whispered, his eyes filling with tears of shame. “I shouldn’t be watching children’s videos.”

“Why not?” Kelley asked firmly, raising an eyebrow. “I watch SpongeBob all the time while I’m making dinner. There’s no law that says cartoons and kid shows are just for kids. Come on, Garreck, look how many adults love the Shrek movies.”

“She’s right, baby,” Dante said as he moved besides Garreck. “These videos will help you learn to do a lot of it on your own at your own pace instead of one of us hanging all over you. And that way if there’s something that you get hung up on, you can call us for help or just rewatch that one video. It’s actually a good way for you to keep your independence.”

“Right, right,” he muttered, nodding his head like a bobble-head doll. Garreck took a few deep breathes, swallowing his pride so he could overcome his illiteracy. They stared at him staring at the videos for a few minutes. Then he lifted his head and gave Kelley a smile. “Thank you for doing this. It means a lot to me that you thought of it.”

“Good,” she replied with a soft sigh. After a moment of thought, she gave Garreck a wink and an evil smile. “I suggest you go take a shower and then go get your sex.”

“Like I’ve not tried that.” He snickered, rolling his eyes.

“Austin’s used to being in charge,” Kelley whispered in his ear in a conspirator volume. “But you are mates, equals, Garreck.” She grabbed his hand and just about dragged him off the bed. “Stop asking for permission and demand what you want! You’ve seduced him before. The proof of that is growing in your tummy. Besides, I think you guys let him off too easily after the shit he pulled. Make the man pay some penance, damn it.”

“Oh, you are good.” He giggled and gave her a quick kiss on the cheek. Kelley smiled widely as she started to close the door to the bathroom.

“I don’t know what you are talking about,” she replied in a sing-song voice. “We never had this conversation!”

Before he could reply, she closed the door. Garreck burst out laughing at her antics for about three seconds before racing around the bathroom to get clean. He took the time to stretch himself out, scrub in all the nooks and crannies, and even dry and style his hair. Twenty minutes later he walked out of the bathroom with a towel around his waist looking as good as he could.

“Go get him, tiger.” Dante chuckled. He sauntered over and placed a few chaste kisses on Dante’s lips.

“As soon as you are healed, you’re next,” he whispered seductively in Dante’s ear. “I’ve not forgotten how much fun it was to ride you. And I’d like to show just how much I appreciate you taking care of me and protecting me.”

“We don’t ever have to talk about that again—ever,” Dante replied and rolled to his side. Garreck felt his heart sink at Dante’s dejected look and attitude. He swore he’d figure out a way to help him get over what had happened in that semi. But for now, he’d give Dante some space and go seduce their dragon.

Garreck threw on a pair of pajama pants, making sure they were so low on his hips that the top of his ass was showing and his dick was almost peeking out. Then he slowly made his way down to Austin’s office, trying to act like he wasn’t filled with butterflies. Plus, after getting all pretty for his mate, he didn’t want to get there all sweaty.

He knocked on the door to Austin’s office and walked right in. Garreck wanted to purr with delight when he saw Tiny and Wolf sitting in his office. Perfect! Now he could get Austin to see just how much of an exhibitionist he really was.

“What are you doing out of bed, sweetheart?” Austin asked, a bright smile on his face. “I thought I told you that you were on bed rest.”

“Yes, yes you did,” he answered calmly as he closed the door and walked to his mate. “But since you are not my parent or the boss of me, I’m not doing it until it’s really time for me to be on bed rest. I remember us having a conversation about us being equals as mates, and you’d do anything to keep me happy. You do remember promising me that, don’t you, Austin?”

“Y-You are not happy?” Austin replied as his eyes filled with sorrow. “But I’ve been doting on you and taking care of you. I-I don’t understand, Garreck.”

“We’re going to head out,” Tiny said and stood up.

“No, you both stay,” he said over his shoulder, knowing they’d listen to the boss’s mate. “You’ve been pampering me and treating me like glass, Austin. That’s not the same as taking care of me and my needs. I told you before you claimed me that I was an intensely sexual man who was horny twenty-three of the twenty-four hours in a day. And yet you’ve been ignoring me and what I want, ordering me around. Does that sound like equals?”

“No,” Austin answered, shaking his head. “I just didn’t want to push you after everything I’ve done wrong. Plus, you are carrying our child, sweetheart. You should be pampered and handled carefully.”

“Fine, then start pampering me with blow jobs.” He snorted and threw his hands in the air. “I’m so fucking hard all the time and ready to go that I’m ready to whack off all day long. And that’s not fair when you promised to give me everything I needed or wanted.”

“What do you want, Garreck?” Austin asked quietly as he glanced between his mate and his employees. “This is also about you liking when people watch, isn’t it?”

“I didn’t know they were here when I decided to come and demand sex,” he answered honestly. Just to get his point across, Garreck stripped off his pants in a flash. Then he moved Austin’s chair back and placed himself between it and the desk while his dragon’s eyes roamed his body. “But since they are here, it’s perfect.”

“What is, sweetheart?”

“You can prove to me just how much I mean to you,” Garreck replied as he ran his hands over his stomach and cupped his groin. “You said dragons are incredibly possessive, right?” He waited until Austin nodded before continuing. “So you’re not liking that they’re here for this, I’m sure.”

“No, I’m not,” Austin growled. “It makes me want to claw out their eyes that they’ve seen you naked.”

“But it’s something I want,” he said firmly and started running his fingers over his hard cock. “Nothing gets me harder than knowing someone’s watching, desiring what we’re doing, Austin. You have a decision to make.”

“What’s that?”

“You can either swallow those feelings and put what I want, what I need first, like you promised,” Garreck answered with a shrug. “Or you can deny me and show that you’re always going to be in charge, bossing me around like a child instead of a partner.”

“That’s not fair, Garreck,” Austin whispered as he searched Garreck’s face for answers. “I’m trying to do what’s best for you and the baby. You think I’ve not wanted you? I’ve been dying to make love to my mates since I brought you back home. But I’ve been scared you’ll reject me or that I’ll do more damage to you both.”

“You need to trust us, big guy,” he said softly as he took Austin’s face in his hands. He had no idea that his dragon had been feeling this way, and he said as much. “How was I supposed to know you felt this way if you won’t talk to us? You’ve been treating us like pampered pets or responsibilities, not like mates who you respect and desire. I’m not a mind reader, Austin.”

“I want you, Garreck,” Austin whispered as he leaned in to kiss him. “I want you so much it hurts and tears my soul apart at what I’ve done.”

“Show me that you put us first. Give me what I need as your man, Austin,” Garreck replied firmly but quietly as he hopped up on the desk. He wanted this to happen, but not break this willing spell Austin seemed to be in. “I’m not asking you to film us always and send out porn tapes to your friends. I’m asking you understand that I’m an exhibitionist at heart and swallow your jealousy. It’s not that you are shy or care if someone is watching, is it?”

“No, I’ve had public sex before,” Austin answered slowly as he opened the desk drawer and pulled out the lube. Garreck wanted to pump his fist in the air at his victory. “I’ve liked it when it’s a nameless person. But you are my mate, sweetheart. I don’t want to share you with anyone but Dante.”

“You are not sharing me.” He giggled as he took the lube and squirted some on Austin’s fingers. Then he glanced over his shoulder at a very uncomfortable Wolf and Tiny, who were looking anywhere but at them. “You just aren’t going to touch me, are you? You are not thinking that you’re going to fuck me next, right?”

“No,” they both said together, Tiny swallowing loudly.

“See? They’re going to sit there and watch, wishing they could be a part of this as we drive them insane with lust.” He winked at Austin as he moved his hand to Garreck’s hole and lay back on the desk. “They’re going to get off on how amazing you are when you take me. How hot our sex life is. Not because they want to take me away from you. There’s nothing to be jealous of.”

“So it’s like a once and a while kink, right?” Austin asked after a few moments, rubbing his fingers over Garreck’s hole. “It won’t be that you just always want Tiny and Wolf to watch because you’re thinking of them or wishing it was them taking you.”

“God, no,” he gasped, his eyes going wide with shock as he stared at Austin. “It’s not about them in the slightest. It could be strangers at a sex club for all I care. Just sometimes I like to be on display for people to see us. It’s simply one of my kinks.”

“Oh shit,” Austin moaned as he pushed two fingers into Garreck. “You’d really let me fuck you in the middle of a club and then take you home to do it again?”

“Fuck yeah,” he whimpered, the idea getting him hot. “I demand it once a month. Dante will do the rest of the time.”

“I can handle that then,” Austin growled and fucked him with his fingers. “Did you stretch yourself out for me, sweetheart?”

“Yes,” he hissed as Austin slid in a third finger easily. “I thought it would be harder for you to say no if I was all ready to go. Fuck me, Austin. Please, your mate needs you.”

“Gladly.” his big dragon growled. Austin pulled his fingers out before yanking Garreck off the desk. He let out a shocked yelp as Austin sat back in his chair with Garreck on his lap.

“Am I going to ride you?” He purred, licking Austin’s neck as the bigger man undid his pants.

“Sort of.” Garreck was shocked when he was spun around so his back was against Austin’s chest. His jaw just about hit the ground when Austin moved the desk chair so it was out from behind the desk, giving Tiny and Wolf a front row seat to the action from the couch they were sitting on off to the side of the office. “Is this what you wanted, sweetheart?”

“Fuck yeah,” he gasped, shaking with anticipation and desire.

“Put your hands on my knees,” Austin ordered, and Garreck was quick to comply. He moaned as Austin moved his massive cock against this hole and moved his hips back down.

“Shit,” he hissed as the burn started. No matter how much he had stretched himself, Austin was huge, and there would always be that slight delicious burn Garreck craved.

“So fucking good,” Austin moaned as he moved Garreck the rest of the way so his cock was all the way inside of his mate. Then he pulled Garreck back against his chest and ran his fingers over his mate’s leaking dick. “Look at the lust in their eyes for you, sweetheart.”

Garreck’s eyes snapped open at the erotic words. An evil smile spread across his face when he saw Tiny’s chest heaving and Wolf looking at him like he was lunch.

“Whip them out, boys,” he purred as he plucked his nipples. “Might as well let you find your release if we’re going to torture you.”

“Thank fuck,” Wolf groaned and unzipped his fly.

“They’re hard for you, Garreck,” Austin growled, sending shivers down Garreck’s spine. His big mate lifted him off with ease before slamming him right back down. He cried out and wrapped his arms back around Austin’s neck. “You like being on display for their watchful eyes, don’t you?”

“Oh yeah,” he whimpered. It’s what got him off about being watched. “That or they wish they were the ones riding your cock, my mate. And it gets me off that they can want you all they want, but you are mine.”

“I am yours,” Austin whispered in his ear before nipping his neck. “Just as you and Dante are forever mine.” He punctuated his statement by thrusting up into Garreck hard with each word. “Who do you belong to, Garreck?”

“You and Dante,” he groaned, his eyes focusing on Tiny and Wolf as they stroked themselves. He spoke directly to them then. “I belong to Austin. My ass and cock are his.”

“That’s right, you tell them,” Austin growled as he started thrusting faster. “It gets me hot when you declare it, Garreck.”

“I know,” he replied as he moved his hips in time with his mate’s thrusts. “It’s your baby inside of me, Austin.”

“Oh fuck,” his mate whimpered, and Garreck realized how carrying Austin’s child was the absolute aphrodisiac to the dragon.

“We’re tied together forever. Our child is proof of that bond.”

“Yes, yes he is,” Austin hissed in his ear and then bit his other shoulder gently.

“Fuck, he’s gorgeous,” Tiny groaned, his eyes devouring Garreck as he stroked himself faster.

“He’s mine,” Austin snarled as he moved one had off Garreck’s hips and stroked his cock. “You haven’t even seen him come yet. There’s nothing more beautiful in this world than when my men climax.”

“I believe it,” Wolf whimpered, and Garreck felt a thrill go through him. It wasn’t Austin they wanted to be with. It was him. Part of his exhibitionist streak was him showing ownership on the person he was with. Reminding everyone what he was willing to do for his man and who belonged to him. But this time it was thrilling to know it was him they wanted.

“Come for me, love,” Austin said firmly as he stroked Garreck hard and fast. He gasped at the endearment his dragon had used. Did Austin realize what he’d just said? The idea of Austin being in love with him was enough to push him over the edge already.

Garreck threw his head back on Austin’s shoulder and screamed as his orgasm hit him out of nowhere like a freight train. He gasped as wave after wave hit him as his eyes shot open when he heard an unfamiliar grunt. Wolf came hard, shooting cum all over his shirt as his eyes never left Garreck.

“Your ass is like heaven,” Austin groaned before sinking his teeth deep into Garreck’s neck. He cried out at the pleasure the bite gave him, coming even harder. Seconds later, Austin yelled around his flesh as he filled Garreck’s ass with his seed.

“Holy shit,” he whimpered as his body started to go limp. “You are going to keep me knocked up always the way it gets you hot.”

Tiny moaned loudly as he shot his load. It was then that Garreck saw something flash over his eyes for the briefest of moments. While Tiny might have been watching Garreck and thought he was hot, it was Wolf who Tiny was wanting to be with in the room. Tiny’s gaze came back to him, and Garreck gave him a small smile of understanding. He’d have to file away that information for later, he thought, and then wondered if Tiny had ever told Wolf how he felt.

Garreck’s thoughts were interrupted when Austin’s knot came out and latched onto his prostate. His eyes started to roll up into his head as another whirlwind orgasm slammed into him.

“I fucking love that knot,” he groaned before everything went dark.

Chapter 8

“You’re a very lucky man, boss,” Tiny said after they all calmed back down.

“Surprised you enjoyed it and all since you are straight,” Wolf snarled as Austin just stared at him. He yanked his pants up, stood, and stormed out of the room before they could reply. Austin really hoped he at least zipped up before Kelley saw him. That would be an awkward mess for him to clean up later.

“You care to explain that one?”

“I guess he thought I was straight,” Tiny answered as he worried his bottom lip with his teeth. “Don’t know why that would be since dragons are all pretty much bisexual.”

“Yeah, but I’ve never touched a woman,” Austin said gently. “We may not care as humans do about what the plumbing is and focus on the person themselves. But most of us have a preference. Maybe Wolf got his signals crossed.”

“Shouldn’t matter since we just work together,” Tiny replied after a few moments, shaking his head as he stood up. Austin eyed his long time friend and employee over as the dragon muttered to himself and grabbed a few tissues off of his desk.

“Tell him, Tiny,” Austin whispered, shocking himself as much as Tiny by the set of the man’s shoulders. “Don’t risk screwing up like I did because I pushed them away instead of just talking to them. My mate would never have suffered the humiliation he did if I’d just talked to them that day instead of letting Kelley clean up my mess.”

“We’ve got some surveillance to get done,” Tiny said as a way of reply after a few moments. Austin let him go. He really didn’t have any room to be giving relationship advice, and he of all people knew that. But they were his friends, and Austin would give his left nut to see them happy.

He grimaced at the image of getting that part of his anatomy cut off. Okay, so maybe not his ball, but he’d give a lot to see them happy. Even if he never knew it would be with each other. He’d have to talk to Gabriel, though, to see if he’d ever heard of two dragons mating. But if that’s what made them happy, then so be it.

Focusing on his own mate, Austin chuckled at the gorgeous, passed-out man in his arms. He was already half in love with both his mates, and he didn’t really even know them that well yet. Half in love? Keep telling yourself that. Austin snickered at his own inner monologue as he stood and quickly cleaned his mate up.

When they were both presentable and re-dressed, he carried Garreck up to bed. As he tucked his smallest mate into bed, Austin realized Dante was awake.

“You know Garreck pointed something out to me,” he drawled as he whipped off his shirt and crawled over to his injured mate.

“What was that?” Dante asked, eyeing him over hesitantly. Ever since he’d brought his mates back home, Dante had been withdrawn and down. Austin had hoped time would snap him out of it, but maybe it was attention the man needed.

“That there are other ways to take care of my mates besides just sex.”

“Is that what I am, Austin?” Dante whispered, his eyes filling with tears as he looked away. “Am I your mate?”

“Yes, of course,” he gasped, not realizing Dante questioned that. He pulled down the sheet covering the man’s body but then froze. “If you want to be, that is.”

“I do.” And that’s all Austin needed to hear. With a huge smile on his face, he pulled the sheet down and leaned over so his face was in Dante’s groin. Austin gave the soft cock in front of him a few swipes of his tongue, troubled when it didn’t get hard. “Please don’t.”

“W-Why not?” he blurted out as he stared up at Dante with wide eyes. “I thought you wanted to be my mate?”

“I do, but I don’t think I can ever be a part of that anymore,” Dante answered, gesturing to his groin as he turned away. “I haven’t gotten hard since—well you know since what.”

“Is that why you screamed out last night?” Austin asked gently as he pulled the sheet back up. Dante nodded as he moved to lay alongside his mate.

“It was different than what happened when we were held captive. We were forced to do that stuff. It was my choice this time, and I hate myself for doing it.”

“No, baby,” he whispered as he wrapped his arms around Dante, careful of his injuries. “Don’t say that or feel that way. It was my fault, not yours. Never yours. If I’d just talked to you guys, you wouldn’t have been upset and ran when you then saw what happened with Peter. All the blame rests on my shoulders, and I will never forgive myself as long as I live for putting you in that position. I’m so sorry.”

“I’m scared I’m impotent now.” Dante sniffled and turned to bury his face in Austin’s neck. “I sleep in the same bed as the two hottest men who I care about deeply, and I can’t get hard. What’s wrong with me?”

“Nothing’s wrong with you, Dante.” Austin’s heart broke. He had no idea that Dante was suffering like this, and didn’t that just once again make him a shit mate. “After what happened with Peter, his betrayal, I couldn’t get hard for a long time. And then I’d start to panic about not being able to get hard, so then there was all this pressure and then I really couldn’t seem to get excited. It’s like a circle of distress.”

“What did you do?” Dante asked so quietly Austin barely heard him. “How did you get better?”

“By forgiving myself,” he answered honestly, knowing now wasn’t the time to hide anything from the man. “I realized what had happened wasn’t my fault. I wasn’t the fucked up one. Peter was. And once I understood that and calmed down, my dick started working again just fine. When you’re ready to move on, you’ll wake up with morning wood and realized everything’s fine.”

“What if it’s not? What if I did damage to myself mentally and physically and my cock will never work again? You guys won’t want some impotent loser.”

“I’m going to let those disparaging comments slide after everything you’ve been through,” Austin ground out. “But if it ends up not working once I’ve convinced you that you’ve done nothing wrong, then we’ll do whatever it takes to fix it. In my heart I know I’m right. Once you let go of the grief and guilt that you feel, you’ll be getting boners all over the place.”

“I’m sorry I betrayed you and Garreck,” Dante whimpered, and not in that sexy, having-great-sex kind of way. It was more a don’t-hit-me whimper that crushed Austin’s soul to hear from his mate.

“You did no such thing, baby,” Austin said firmly, taking Dante’s face in his hands. “I was never upset with you. I was furious with me for giving you reason to run. You did what you had to when you thought you and Garreck needed somewhere safe to go. None of this was your fault.”

“It’s neither of your faults, you big dummies,” Garreck mumbled from the other pillow. “It happened, and it’s horrible. The whole thing was horrible. But it’s not anyone’s fault but that slimy truck driver’s. You guys both rock, I love you both, and I will spend as long as it takes to get you hard, Dante. Just hush up and take a nice nappy nap with me and we’ll play when we get back up.”

Austin’s jaw dropped open in shock at the wisdom and fierceness of the man’s words. And he did catch the fact that Garreck said he loved him for the first time. But right now wasn’t the time to think about that given Dante’s stress.

“Bossy little thing.” Dante snickered as he wiped his eyes with the back of his hand and laid on his back. Then he glanced over at Austin. “You really still want me? You’re not disgusted by what I did?”

“Yes, I want you, and no, I could never be disgusted with you, baby.”

“Glad that’s settled.” Garreck yawned and rolled over so he was sprawled at Dante’s side, giving his chest a few pats. “Now go to sleep or neither of you is getting a piece of my ass for at least a week.”

“I love you, too, Garreck.” Dante chuckled and kissed the top of his head. Austin moved so he was pressed against Dante’s other side, so he felt surrounded by the ones who cared about him the most. He prayed that this was the first step in healing his mate, because if anyone had already suffered enough in their lives and deserved nothing but happiness… it was his men.

* * * *

Dante woke to the sounds of soft laughter… and kids? "What the hell?" he thought as he opened his eyes. Glancing around, he realized that Garreck and Austin were watching the first DVD in the learning series Kelley had gotten him. And more importantly, they were sitting on either side of him holding his hands. He’d never felt more safe and loved in his life.

“I can go through these faster than the guidelines, right?” Garreck asked as he looked over at Austin. “I know how to talk just fine, unlike little kids. I mean, I doubt I’ll ever forget what dog looks like now when I read it.”

“Yeah, the goal is just to start with these as basics,” Austin answered with a nod. “Next we get you one of those LeapFrog readers for older kids. You can run the wand over the words you need help with. Plus, they’re all easy stories we can read to the baby after he’s born.”

“Babies you mean,” Dante corrected, his eyes going wide at the bombshell he let slip out.

“W-What?” Austin gasped and turned to him. “Babies? When did you find out?”

“Couple of days ago,” he whispered as he sat up and pulled away from them. He leaned against the headboard and pulled his knees to his chest. “The day we got back I was a little loopy from the pain pills and decided to go find the tests Kelley got in the middle of the night. I’m not really sure why. It sounded like a fun idea when I couldn’t sleep and you guys were out like a light. But then the test was positive, and I was scared to tell you.”

“I really want to kiss you and wrap you in my arms, baby,” Austin said gently as he moved towards Dante. “But everything about your posture and how you’re sitting says you don’t want me to.”

“Are you mad? I was going to tell you both. I mean, it’s not like you wouldn’t find out eventually and all. But I needed to know you weren’t disgusted with what I did before announcing I was carrying your child and all of that. I wasn’t sure—”

Austin cut him off by mashing his lips to Dante’s. At first he didn’t move, scared at what this all meant. But then Austin dragged him onto his lap, and Dante submitted. He moaned as their mate’s tongue explored every inch of his mouth. As soon as they broke apart for air, Dante had seconds to take a deep breath before Garreck took over.

“Baby, you’re hard,” Austin whispered in his ear.

“Of course I’m hard.” Dante snickered as he went to grope Garreck. “I’ve got two hot men touching and kissing me.”

“Dante, you are hard. You have an erection,” Austin said firmly but slowly as he took Dante’s face in his hands. And suddenly the light bulb went off over his head. He glanced down just to make sure, even though his body knew that he was hard.

“I’m hard!” he shrieked and then winced. Dante had never heard that sound come from him before. “Okay, someone do something about it before it goes away!”

“Gladly,” Garreck purred and sucked him down. He moaned and squirmed in delight as his men took care of him. Garreck gave him a world class blow job as Austin fingered his hole. When it was all over, he gasped for breath as they ran their hands over him in a calming manner.

“I’m not defective,” he sighed and snuggled up to Austin’s chest.

“Never thought you were.” Austin chuckled and kissed his temple. “But I am going to claim you officially soon. I know you got knocked up when we had sex, but to me it’s not real until I bite you and make you immortal and mine.”

“Give me a minute, and we can do that next.” Dante chuckled, thrilled he was over this hurdle.

“Umm, Austin you need to see this,” Garreck said, gesturing to Dante’s back. “Didn’t you say after you mated us we would heal faster and all of that?”

“What’s wrong?” Dante asked as he started to panic. “Did I pull a stitch?”

“No,” Austin whispered after he turned Dante over so he could see. “Go get Kelley. Tell her to get the doctor.”

“I’m on it,” Garreck said immediately and leapt off the bed. Before Dante could even ask what was going on, he started to whimper as Austin brushed his hair off of his face.

“I don’t know how this all happened, baby,” Austin whispered. “The mating knot isn’t supposed to come out unless I bite you. You are not supposed to heal this fast unless I bite you. But somehow you did. Nothing’s wrong other than your wound is healed and the skin is starting to grow over the stitches. It shouldn’t be happening this fast.”

“So why do you look so upset?” Dante asked as he stared up at his man, feeling confused.

“Because once again, I’ve screwed up.”

“By healing me faster?” Dante replied, his eyes going wide before bursting out laughing. “Oh yeah, you bastard! I wanted these bruises, stitches, and cast forever.”

“Well, no, I mean that’s not what I was talking about, exactly,” Austin sputtered, shaking his head. “I’m glad you’re healing faster, but it means we’re bound already and you are immortal without me ever having asked you.”

“You didn’t do it on purpose, Austin,” he said gently as he reached up and ran his thumb over the dragon’s bottom lip. “And I would have said yes anyways. You need to forgive yourself as much as I do for some of this crap. We need to live for the now and the future, not focus on the past.”

“Amen to that.” Kelley chuckled from the doorway. “No more issues, no more drama, just happy, happy healthy people who give me lots of hugs.”

“Whatever you say, love.” Austin snickered and rolled his eyes. Then he got serious after everyone had a good laugh. “Where’s the doc?”

“He’s out of state with an issue,” she said as she came over to the bed. It was then he noticed that she had a medical bag with her. “But it seems you forgot I was a nursing student in a previous life.”

“Yeah, but you didn’t finish,” Austin hissed as she moved Dante onto his stomach. “You don’t know what he could need.”

“Austin Lung, do you really think I’d ever do anything to hurt him?”

“No, of course not, but—”

“But my ass,” she said and cuffed him upside the head. “I can tell just by looking at him that all Dante needs is the stitches to come out. They’re starting to scab over and need that taken off. We’re going to soak him in a hot bath and give him his pain pills to make sure he doesn’t feel a thing. Then I’m going to take them out and treat the scabs. This is easy peasy. In a few days we’ll ask the doc about the cast.”

“You’re right. I shouldn’t have doubted you.”

“I never did, if anyone cares about my opinion,” Dante said as he glanced up from Austin’s lap.

“Thank you, sweets,” Kelley said with a wide smile and kissed his forehead.

“Yeah, you feed us and are the boss of this house,” Garreck said with a giggle. “You are the last person I want to piss off!”

“Pretty much.” Dante snickered and got cuffed upside the head as well.

“Garreck, put something besides your mouth to use and go draw him a bath, no bubbles.”

“If you only knew what I did with my mouth before you got here,” Garreck muttered as he left the room.

“Oh my god, he did not just say that!” she exclaimed then glanced down to see the sheet Austin had pulled over Dante’s naked ass. “I so didn’t even pay attention to the fact you were naked.”

“You were too focused on the problem,” Dante said, giving her an out. “How about I get cleaned up, take my pills, and we’ll get you back up here to perform surgery when we’re done?”

“Sounds like a plan.” Kelley snickered and slid off the bed. “And after saying something so sweet in my defense, I think someone should get whatever he wants for dinner tonight. So what’s it going to be, Dante?”

“Does it have to be something you made?”

“You don’t like my cooking?” she asked, a pained expression crossing her face.

“No! No, Kelley that’s not what I meant,” he answered quickly as he pulled the sheet around him and scrambled off the bed. “I love your cooking. Your lasagna might be the most heavenly thing I’ve ever eaten. I just think if you’re performing surgery, you shouldn’t have to turn around and cook, too!”

“Oh,” Kelley replied, the sadness leaving her features and being replaced with a smile. “That’s much better than what I thought you meant.”

“I vote for Vietnamese food. What do you think?” he asked, giving her a half hug. “I had this grilled duck lo mien thing once that was to die for. I have no idea where it was from, but there’s gotta be a place around here, right?”

“I actually know the place you’re talking about,” she said with a wink. He laughed and kissed her cheek as she got everyone’s orders. Actually, she and Austin knew what they wanted, but Dante and Garreck didn’t know the menu, so they basically told her what they wouldn’t eat.

After she left, his mates helped him into a hot bath and made sure to clean his back. Garreck also gave him his pain meds and some water. When that was all done, Austin carried him back to bed and laid him face down on some towels. He placed a sheet over Dante and called for Kelley.

“I never thought I’d be in bed naked with a woman.” Dante giggled, the drugs long since having taken effect. “You’re the prettiest woman I’ve ever met, so no offense, Kelley. But I have no interest in girly bits.”

“None taken, you little twink.” She chuckled and moved to the side of him. “You’re hot, but you’re not my type either. I like my men to be able to grow some facial hair at least.”

“Ouch,” he gasped playfully, feigning hurt. “My poor pride.”

“I prefer hot twinks without facial hair,” Austin said from the other side of him.

They all chitchatted for a while as Kelley got to work. Good to her word, Dante never felt any pain. Every so often, he’d feel some weird pulling on his back and maybe some pressure, but it never hurt.

When it was all over, the food was just arriving. Dante threw on some clothes, glad that the stitches were gone and everything was healing nicely. Now if only he could get rid of this stupid cast and sling, his life could be complete.

As they headed down to the kitchen, Dante realized something. His life was complete, stupid cast or not. He had Garreck, who loved him, and that had been all Dante had ever wanted. But as fate would have it, he got another wonderful man in his life and a woman he was starting to love like a sister. Dante had a family for the first time in his life. It didn’t get much better than that in his opinion.

Chapter 9

The next few weeks were the happiest of Garreck’s life. Dante was better, mentally and physically. He’d been so glad when he saw how widely Dante had smiled when the cast had come off. It was like as soon as that constant reminder was gone, Dante had transformed into a happy carefree man.

And Garreck could read now. Sure, it wasn’t A Tale of Two Cities he was reading or something, but it was reading nonetheless. Last night he’d read Beauty and the Beast to the babies and his mates. The entire time Austin kissed their now-growing stomachs as Garreck had read. It was amazing how loving and gentle their big, badass mate was when it came to them or the children growing inside of them.

Their sex life had become off-the-charts hot. Garreck swore he’d been taken in every position possible in every room of the house, and he couldn’t be more thrilled. And while they started off as two men wanting him, they were now a family who all loved each other equally. Sure, Dante would always be his first love and the man who’d protected him all those years. But he loved Austin just as much.

It amazed him how he had no problem telling Austin when he realized that he was in love with the man. But when Dante and Austin had finally admitted it to each other, Garreck had bawled like a baby. To him, it was the last step in making them a true three-way, loving relationship. Now the circle was complete.

And they had decided to call one of the babies Todd after the man who had brought them together. If not for the sheriff’s determination to break the sex-slave ring, they would never have found each other. They were still working on names for their other baby, though. There was a running list that they liked from one of the baby books. Of course there was a list of the worst names they’d ever heard for shits and giggles.

They’d also started converting the room next to Austin’s master suite into a nursery. Austin had called in some contractors to put in a connecting door between the rooms. Their worrisome mate had decided there had to be one because if there was a problem, they’d lose time racing out into the hall and then into the next room instead of just walking through the connecting door.

Garreck and Dante had cracked up at the idea that a connecting door was necessity. But if it eased their mate’s mind, they were more than willing to concede. Since Austin had left so many other decisions about the nursery up to them, a door was a small thing they could give him.

The nursery itself was awesome. Austin had ordered the most gorgeous, expensive baby furniture sets. And while Garreck had been thrilled they didn’t have to worry about putting it together, he cringed when he saw the price tag. Though his mate had money, they didn’t always have to spend so much of it.

“Yeah, good luck telling Austin he’s spending too much money on his children and his mates.” Dante had snickered when Garreck had brought it up. The man was right. Austin doted on them constantly. But now that Garreck understood it wasn’t about being a pampered pet, he was cool with it.

To Austin, it was his way of making up for the fact that he’d never courted them before they mated. Their dragon sent flowers, chocolates, and all sorts of goodies for them. And the days there weren’t deliveries, Austin normally brought some small gift home with him when he was out at the office. It was always something to spoil them or for the babies. The man was nuts about buying baby clothes.

It had taken them a while, but at least now he was starting to buy clothes for when the babies got bigger. At first he was constantly getting everything in newborn size. But after they had sat him down with Kelley’s help and had an intervention, Austin had been better.

They just had to explain to him that he now had gotten so many clothes for the babies that they would never be able to wear them all before it was time for the next size. Plus, the babies really could wear the outfits more than once. Now Austin had moved on to larger sizes. And just when Garreck thought their mate would chill out, they got more in the mail.

He actually special-ordered shirts in several sizes that had I love my daddies written on them. It had been one of the cutest things their sweet mate had done, and none of them had the heart to lecture Austin.

Garreck had just finished his morning assignment that Kelley had structured for him when his stomach started growling. God, could the baby inside of him eat. He swore he was going to be the size of a whale at the end of the four-and-a-half to five-month pregnancy.

Dante was fiddling around with the computer in Austin’s office while their dragon was at work. They had learned after Dante had gotten better that the man was a whiz when it came to almost anything electronic. Garreck had played on Austin’s laptop a bit and would keep doing it to learn more about what’s out there in the real world. But Dante was addicted.

He shook his head and chuckled as he thought about the conversation Austin and Dante had had last night. Kelley and Garreck had just stared at each other as the two men went on about macros and buried equations in some type of coding. As they rambled on, he’d gotten a chance to talk to Kelley some more about what she had learned from the dragon doctor about giving birth. While Garreck couldn’t fully read the pregnancy books they’d gotten, he wanted to be prepared.

As he reached the kitchen and went to push open the swinging door he froze at the sound of a strange man’s voice.

“You’re not Austin’s mate,” the man growled. “He’s gay, you stupid bitch. Where is he?”

“I am his mate, Peter,” Kelley replied with a shaky voice. Damn that woman! She was lying to a crazed man to help protect them. “Austin’s at the office. You know how he is, work, work, work, work. It gets old really.”

“Bullshit,” Peter hissed as Garreck pulled the cell phone out his pocket and wrote up a quick text for help. At that moment he was forever grateful that Austin had insisted he learn how to text and use the cell. “Austin said he had two mates. If you’re one of them, where is the other?”

“Wolf’s out running errands for Austin,” Kelley answered smoothly. “I can call them to come home if you want.”

“Do you think I’m that stupid?” Peter shrieked, and Garreck cringed when he heard a loud smack. That bastard hit Kelley! “You’ll alert them somehow that I’m here, and they’ll bring in the Calvary.”

“I’m his mate,” Garreck said loudly after he entered the room. He tried not to pay attention to the fact Kelley was holding her cheek and how pale she was. No, he needed to focus on the man holding the long knife and that had the gun tucked in the back of his pants. Peter whipped them around and held the knife to Kelley’s throat.

“Yeah, right,” he scoffed and loosened his hold on Kelley. “A hot guy like my little dragon would never give some twerp like you a second look.”

“Oh really?” Garreck snickered and lifted his shirt. He knew it was stupid to egg the man on, but right then his only goal was to buy time and get that very sharp knife away from Kelley. Garreck turned to the side so Peter could see the pronounced baby bump he had. “I’m carrying Austin’s child. I am his mate.”

“He said no to me for some used bitch like you?” Peter snarled as he let go of Kelley. The second the man took a step towards him and away from her, Garreck took off. He raced out of the kitchen and towards the front door. Turning the knob, he yanked open the door and ran. Yes, it might not have been the smartest move to be out in the open with a crazy man chasing him.

But all he cared about was getting Peter away from Kelley and Dante. He needed to buy time until help arrived. And then he remembered that Tiny or Wolf would be at the guard station by the main gate. Since Peter had showed up the first time, Austin always had one of them on guard.

“Get the fuck over here you piece of shit,” Peter screamed behind him. Garreck didn’t even glance over his shoulder. He was too focused on getting to help. Unfortunately, when he got to the gate, he realized how bad things really were. Tiny was lying on the ground with so much blood it made Garreck’s knees go weak. The wound was in his head, and while Garreck knew that dragons were immortal, even a gunshot to the head had to kill them, right?

He didn’t have time to decide as he heard Peter getting closer. Garreck made a split-second decision and decided to circle back to the patio behind the house. Maybe he could get back into the kitchen that way and lock Peter out.

“Fuck,” he swore when he saw his plan backfiring. Peter had stopped running halfway between the house and the gate, watching him intently for Garreck’s next move.

“You’re not getting out of this alive, cunt,” Peter sneered as he stepped closer.

“Really? It’s obvious I’m male, and yet all your insults are for a woman,” Garreck said, rolling his eyes as he moved towards Peter. He needed to stay out of arm’s length distance, but if he could get close enough to then get around Peter, he’d have a chance. He might not be tall or useful in a fight, but Garreck could run, baby weight and all. “No wonder Austin doesn’t want you. You’re fucking dense, man.”

“He’ll want me when you’re dead.”

“Yeah, I can totally see Austin ignoring the fact that you killed his mates and friend and take you back. Totally sounds like him.”

“Who says he’ll think it was me? From what I hear, there’s a price on your head from your old employers. I just didn’t know if you were men or women or what you looked like. All I knew was my little dragon mated two pathetic ex-whores.”

“He’s not your anything, besides ex-boyfriend,” Garreck growled, tired of this man acting as if his mate belonged to Peter. Just as he got close enough to make a break around him, Peter lunged for him.

“No,” he heard someone roar as Garreck dove out of the way. He cringed when he felt someone cover him with his body and figured Peter was going to stab him. But then he heard Austin grunt. What the fuck?

“I didn’t mean to hurt you, my little dragon!” Peter cried out. Garreck started to panic then. Austin moved off of him, and he was finally able to roll over. His mate had a pinched face that told Garreck he was in pain.

“I love you,” he said as he stood up and hugged Austin fiercely. “I knew if I distracted him long enough, you’d come save us.”

“I’ll always come for you, sweetheart,” Austin replied before sinking to his knees. Garreck helped ease him down, and it was then he saw the knife sticking out of Austin’s back.

“Where’s Tiny?” Wolf asked as he cuffed Peter with some type of extra-strong metal bands.

“Peter shot him,” Garreck answered, his eyes filling up with tears. He saw the pained expression over Wolf’s features and shook his head to answer the unasked question. Wolf threw back his head and roared, his voice sounding more dragon than human at the moment.

“Austin? Garreck?” Kelley yelled from the doorway.

“We need help,” he shouted back. “Tiny’s been shot in the head, and Austin’s been stabbed.”

“Call the King. He wants Peter,” Austin whispered, taking shallow, quick breaths. “Make sure they look at Tiny. You’d be surprised what we can heal from, sweetheart.”

“I hope so,” Garreck whispered as Kelley came racing towards them. “There was just so much blood.”

“Everything will work out, Garreck. I’ll never leave you and Dante, okay?”

“I know you won’t, big guy,” he replied gently as he leaned Austin against him.

“I’m going to pass out now. Kelley knows what to do. I love you.”

“I love you, too,” Garreck cried as Austin went limp against him. Seconds later Kelley was there, and Garreck relayed what Austin had said.

“You stay with him. I know what to do,” she said firmly. He nodded as she pulled out her phone and started making calls. She raced over to the guard station as sirens sounded in the distance. Of course she called for help after he’d gone outside. The gates slid open for the ambulance came barreling through towards them.

Garreck was in a fog as people started surrounding him. Dante was suddenly at his side yelling to let the paramedics help Austin. He backed away and let them work as helicopter landed on the edge of the property on the helipad.

“Tiny’s alive,” Kelley shouted at the top of her lungs. Garreck let out a soft cry at the news and clutched Dante to him. The medivac people raced to her as the EMTs loaded Austin in the back of the ambulance. “It’s a flesh wound to the head, but he’s breathing.”

Wolf passed Peter off to some guys who were dressed in the same security uniforms of Austin’s company. He barked out a few orders and ran to where they were loading Tiny on a gurney. Dante and Garreck sat there on the grass in shock the whole time.

“You fucking idiot,” Kelley cried out, suddenly at their side as she knelt and threw her arms around Garreck. “You stupid, stupid man. You don’t taunt a crazy man with a knife who wanted Austin’s mates dead.”

“Oh yeah, you’re much better,” he shouted as the helicopter took off with Wolf joining them to be with Tiny. The ambulance pulled out at the same time, and Garreck sighed in relief that Austin was getting help. “You lie and tell Peter that you’re Austin’s mate so he’ll go after you.”

“I couldn’t risk him hurting you and the babies,” she sobbed and held on to both of them tightly. “You guys are my family, and I couldn’t let him get to you no matter what happened to me.”

“What the fuck is going on?” Dante shouted in a panic, finally saying something. “I was building a new site for Austin, and suddenly I hear sirens and shouting and all sorts of chaos.”

“We’ll explain on the way to the hospital,” Kelley answered as they all got to their feet. She called out some orders to the remaining men, and one of them raced to the garage. Garreck could barely get his feet to move now that the adrenaline rush was over. They shuffled over to the driveway as the man pulled up in Austin’s SUV, and they got in.

Next thing he was able to focus on was when they pulled up to the hospital and got out. Kelley led them inside and smoothly told the nurse that she was Austin’s wife. They were led to a small waiting area while the doctors were looking at their dragon. Garreck listened as Kelley filled Dante in on what happened, adding bits to the story when he could.

Sometime during the never-ending wait, a nice lady came and gave them some clean scrubs to change into. It was then that he realized Kelley was covered in blood, and he wasn’t faring much better. They went to wash up as best as they could in the bathroom and change.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Dante said firmly to a man in a lab coat. Garreck wanted to roll his eyes how the drama never seemed to stop. He was gone maybe ten minutes, and now something else was wrong!

“Look you’re either his mate or someone’s mate,” the man hissed as he glanced around. “You’re pregnant, and I know Austin’s a dragon.”

While humans knew about dragons, there was still a lot of animosity towards them, and they normally hid what they were the best that they could. But there wasn’t much they could do about hiding what Austin was when they had to bring him to the hospital.

“Dante, it’s okay. The doc’s a dragon, too,” Kelley said softly as he raced from the other bathroom to the men. “He’s a friend of Austin’s.”

“Oh, sorry, doc,” Dante replied sheepishly as his cheeks heated up. Garreck went over and wrapped his arms around the man. This was hard on all of them after all. “Yes, we’re his mates. I didn’t want to risk admitting that to the wrong person.”

“No, you were right to keep quiet,” the doctor said and rubbed his hands over his face. “Austin’s fine. The knife punctured his lung, but it’s already healing up, and he can breathe just fine. There was no other major damage done, and I suggest you guys get him out of there before the staff notices that he is healing that fast.”

“So now he just needs rest and to recoup?” Kelley asked as she was already pulling out her phone.

“Yup, he’s going to be good as new in a couple of days, Kelley,” the doc answered and gave her a soft smile. He patted Garreck and Dante on the shoulder in a sign of comfort before turning and heading back through the doors he came out of.

The next hour was another flurry of events. Wolf sent guys to help them get Austin home since he refused to leave while Tiny was still in surgery. It seems the bullet was more of a graze shot. It took a chunk out of poor Tiny’s head, but not enough to fracture or damage the skull. But head wounds bleed a lot, and that’s why it seemed as if he was dead.

Austin’s crew got them home and helped get Austin to bed. After they left, they crawled in and joined their sedated mate. It wasn’t until Garreck plastered himself to the side of Austin’s body that he finally felt himself start breathing normally. The whole thing had been so taxing on him that he couldn’t help the tears that over flowed his eyes.

But Peter was being transported to the King and wouldn’t bother them again. Tiny was alive, and that was a good sign, considering dragons could heal from pretty much anything. And Austin was going to be just fine. While it had been scary as hell, nothing major happened, and he’d stopped Peter from hurting Dante and Kelley.

As soon as his dragon woke back up, Garreck would spend as much time as needed to thank Austin for jumping in the line of fire for him. He still couldn’t get over that Austin appeared so quickly and dove in front of Garreck to protect him. But then again, he shouldn’t expect any less from their dragon. It was just who Austin was.

Chapter 10

“All right, just let me know when Peter spills what’s going on with my brother,” Austin said as way of good-bye a few days later. He hung up with one of the King’s assistants. While he had healed just fine, he felt weary and needed his mates. Austin went to search them out, finding them several minutes later in the nursery.

“How are you feeling?” Garreck asked immediately, looking up from where he and Dante were opening the latest shipment of baby supplies. Austin smiled widely. His mates had been constantly mothering him after the stabbing. It warmed his heart to know that his mates loved him enough to worry so much about him.

“I’m feeling weary,” he answered honestly. “Peter’s not talking, no matter what the King’s men are doing to get him to spill his guts. But at least Tiny’s going to be fine as soon as he wakes up.”

“Still nothing?” Dante said softly and shook his head. Tiny had been touch and go there for a while, finally stabilizing yesterday, though he was still in a coma. “Poor Wolf.”

“He’ll be okay. He just needs time for his body and brain to heal,” Austin replied confidently. “But I’m feeling very needy, my mates.”

“Needy?” Garreck asked, his eyebrows drawn together in confusion. Austin gave him a wink and a nod as he started pulling off his shirt. “Oh no! No sex in the nursery, mister. This is a place of innocence, and I will not have you corrupting the sweet vibes in here with your dirty mind.”

“Then I suggest you both get naked and in bed in the next twenty seconds because I’m done with this no sex. I’m healed and need my mates’ special brand of comfort.”

“What do we get out of it?” Dante asked calmly, but Austin saw the lust forming in his man’s eyes.

“Multiple orgasms that will leave you unable to walk for the rest of the day.” He growled and stalked towards them. Garreck let out a squeak as he leapt to his feet, racing through the connection door. Dante was more stubborn than that.

“Prove it,” he replied with a raised eyebrow as he stood up slowly.

“I plan on it,” Austin said firmly as he took the three steps to his mate, lifted him up, and tossed him over Austin’s shoulder. “If I didn’t know you better and realized you were teasing, I’d be worried about my skills in bed, baby.”

“Never doubt those.” Dante chuckled as he leaned down and smacked Austin’s ass hard. “And I demand you let me take this fine ass today.”

“You want to top me?” Austin asked, almost stumbling when they got to the bed. He slowly brought Dante down from off of his shoulder. “Why didn’t you tell me that you wanted to top?”

“I can go either way,” he answered with a shrug before yanking his shirt off. “Most times I like to bottom, but today I feel like topping.”

“I’d love to feel you inside of me,” Austin drawled and got to work on getting naked in record time.

“Where do you guys want me?” Garreck purred. Austin just about swallowed his tongue when he glanced up and saw his small mate completely naked, stretching his own hole as he watched them.

“You know how much I love it when you ride me, sweetheart.” Austin panted as he finished getting the last of his clothes off. He reached over, grabbed the bottle of slick by Garreck’s hip, and handed it back to Dante. Then he got on his hands and knees, presenting his ass.

“Need to kiss you,” Garreck whimpered as he stared at Austin. He was more than willing to oblige his mate, moving so his lips would reach. Austin kissed Garreck with everything he had as he thought to himself, "you can do this, you can do this, you can bottom again."

“Austin, are you okay?” Dante asked softly as he ran his hand over Austin’s back. “We don’t have to do this if you don’t want to.”

“Fuck, I was talking aloud, wasn’t I?” He hung his head in shame, embarrassed that the idea of someone entering him again was so scary. “Peter was the only one I ever let take me. I want you to, I do, baby. I’m just a little nervous.”

“Let me distract you.” Garreck giggled and gestured to his cock. “Can’t talk with a mouthful.”

“Dirty, dirty, pregnant mate.” Austin chuckled, feeling his distress vanish. “You won’t let us have sex in the nursery, but you can say such devious things where are babies can hear you?”

“They’re sleeping.” Garreck snickered and rolled his eyes. “Now suck my cock.”

“Bossy bottom,” he grumbled as he licked the head of his mate’s dick. It took everything he had not to burst out laughing with joy. He loved his mates so fucking much.

“I’ll go slow, big guy,” Dante said gently as he rubbed his slicked fingers over Austin’s hole.

He grunted in reply as he swallowed down Garreck. The position he was in also gave him a front row seat as Garreck stretched himself. Austin moaned at the sight and sucked faster as Dante pushed in one of his long fingers.

“Okay, stop, I’m going to blow,” Garreck panted after a few minutes. Austin pulled off with a chuckle, but then moaned as Dante pushed in third finger. He’d already pushed in a second one shortly after the first one.

“Fuck it, I’m ready,” Austin moaned as he pulled away from Dante, his earlier case of nerves long since gone as he was now too horny to think of anything else. He rolled onto his back and moved Garreck to straddle his chest as he lifted his legs for Dante. “Take me, baby.”

“We can stop at any time if you’re not comfortable with this,” Dante whispered and kissed Austin’s shin.

“I want this with my mates,” he gasped as Dante’s cock pushed against his hole. Garreck rubbed his hands over Austin’s shoulders as Dante worked his dick further into Austin. “I forgot how much I loved this full feeling.”

“Good, then I get to take you next time.” Garreck giggled and gave him a wink.

“Shit, you feel like heaven, Austin.” Dante thrust gently as Austin relaxed enough for him to push all the way in. “Okay, climb aboard, Garreck.”

Austin let out whimper as Dante stopped moving, wanting to be fucked more than words. It turned into a loud groan as Garreck lowered himself onto Austin’s cock. Once all the way seated, they took a few moments to simply savor the feeling of all being connected in such an intimate way.

“We love you, Austin,” Dante said as he moved Austin’s legs over his hips.

“I love you both, too,” he whispered, the sight of both of his mates together, focused on him, overwhelmed him. Dante had an arm wrapped an arm around Garreck’s chest, his head on the smaller man’s shoulder as his other hand held Austin’s hip. Both of them stared down at him with such love in their eyes it almost made Austin’s heart burst from the intensity. “Thank you for staying and being my family after everything I did wrong.”

“None of that matters anymore,” Garreck replied as he moved his hips slowly in time to Dante’s thrust. “You’ve more than apologized, made it up to us, and shown us that you’ll love us forever. That’s all we ever wanted, Austin. You gave us a family and a home.”

“No, no you guys gave me the family and soon children.” Austin shook his head. He wasn’t the giving one here. They were, and he knew he’d never deserve them.

“We all gave it to each other, along with Kelley,” Dante said firmly and kissed Garreck’s neck. “All of us had a part in becoming a family. We wouldn’t ever have been one without all of us. Now stop worrying about who did what and just love on each other.”

“Bossy top.” Austin chuckled and squeezed the muscles of his ass around his mate’s cock. Dante’s eyes went wide, and he groaned before moving his hips faster. “So fucking good.”

“I was thinking the same thing.” Garreck panted and leaned forward to rest his hands on Austin’s chest. “I love the feeling of you inside of me, and not just because then I get the knot.”

“I know, sweetheart,” Austin purred and raised his head enough to get a kiss. Garreck smiled and gave him a loud smacking one before winking at him. They started moving harder and faster, and there was no more time or breath for words.

Austin’s eyes started to flutter closed with the intense orgasm racing at him, but he snapped them open since he didn’t want to miss a single moment. The duel sensations of tight, moist heat on his cock and being filled to the brim in his ass had Austin teetering on the edge of release. Not wanting to find it alone, he reached up and started stroking Garreck’s cock.

“Come now,” he cried out as his balls drew up and demanded he let go and ride his climax.

Garreck threw back his head and shouted to the heavens as he shot pearly white streams of cum all over Austin. The wondrous feeling of his mate’s tight ass massaging his cock was all it took to push him over the edge.

“Garreck, Dante,” Austin roared as he filled his mate up as waves of his orgasm slammed into him. Seconds after he came, Dante grunted loudly and buried his face in Garreck’s neck as Austin felt his cock explode inside of him. He moaned, squirming wildly as he felt someone’s seed inside of him for the first time in centuries. And it was his mate this time, which made it all the more special.

“Here it comes,” Garreck gasped as the knot extended from Austin’s cock and latched onto his prostate. “Fucking love this knot almost as much as I love you both.”

“It loves you as much as I do, too,” Austin panted as he reached out to support his mate’s weight.

“That was so good I can’t feel my legs,” Dante groaned as his orgasm ebbed.

“Me either,” Austin and Garreck said together.

“Thank god we have Kelley here,” Garreck whimpered as he moved his hips. “We have a live-in babysitter after the boys come because I’m not giving up our sex life.”

Austin waited for him to say more, but his little mate’s eyes rolled up into his head as a second orgasm hit him. He chuckled and ran his fingers through his mate’s spunk on his stomach and chest as Garreck shot more onto him.

“See you both when I wake up,” Garreck mumbled and then collapsed forward, his cock still shooting cum. Dante helped Austin lower Garreck to the side of him before dropping behind their passed out man.

“Thank you, Austin,” Dante said after a moment and leaned over Garreck to kiss him. “Thank you for trusting me enough to take you.”

“Thank you for wanting to, baby,” he replied with a smile. They snuggled down together, and Austin pulled the covers over them for a cat nap. “You both made my life worth living and chased away all my demons.”

“You did the same for us, Austin. You did the same for us, never doubt that.”

Austin smiled at the statement as he reached out and interlaced their fingers on Garreck’s stomach. He found mates that meant more to him that he ever thought possible. His best friend lived in the house with them, and she took care of all of them. They had two babies on the way in a few months. Life couldn’t get any closer to perfect for Austin, and he realized how he’d lucked out when he accidentally claimed his mates.

THE END

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