Paws for Change (9 page)

“Hey, handsome,” Dillan greeted. He reached out and touched Derek’s jaw with his fingertips, pleased when he didn’t flinch. Instead, just his cheeks turned pink in that endearing response Dillan loved so much. “Will you set the table for me?” he asked. “There should be—”

“Seven of us,” Diana cut in. She stopped next to Dillan and held out her hand. “I’m Diana Ziegler. You’re looking better after a good night’s rest.” She smiled and added, “Death warmed over, flipped and heated in the oven.”

Derek’s eyes widened. His jaw slackened.

Dillan grabbed Diana and pulled her backward breaking their handshake. “That’s enough, funny girl,” he grumbled. “Go start the bacon,” he added. He released her, pleased at least that she giggled, and pointed toward the bacon on the counter. “Start cooking, wench.”

Diana blew a raspberry, the turned and flounced the couple of steps it took her to reach the food. Smiling and shaking his head, Dillan turned back to Derek. “I could use someone to toast the bread, too,” he told him. “You don’t mind, do you?”

A relieved look appeared on Derek’s face and he nodded. “I’d be happy to set the table and make the toast.”

“Good.”

Dillan resisted the urge to round the counter and kiss his sexy mate. The human had somehow managed to locate his one and only tank top. Fucking hell, the black fabric showcased Derek’s arm muscles and pectorals to perfection. Dillan couldn’t help licking his lips at the beautiful sight.

“You’re so fucking sexy, handsome,” Dillan rumbled. “Now,” he continued, winking. “Let’s get breakfast started. We have a few others who will be joining us.” Pointing at the cupboard, Dillan told him, “Just make yourself at home. The dishes are in there. Pull out enough for seven.”

Derek nodded, then his brows furrowed and he cocked his head. “Wait. Seven?”

Dillan grimace. “Yeah, I, uh, have something to confess.”

The door banged and Edwin shouted, “Dillan, what the hell? How come you didn’t holler at us?”

Shaking his head, Dillan sighed. He kept his gaze on his lover and whispered, “I’m sorry for any surprises,” gave him a grimace, then turned and looked at his godson. “Edwin, Byron, join us.”

“We’re not alone, Dillan,” Edwin stated, his gaze serious

Returning his focus to the front door, Dillan spotted a pair of strangers standing just inside the doorway. While one looked shocked beyond belief, the other had his arm wrapped around his shoulders and appeared to be comforting him. Dillan saw that man whisper something into the first man’s ear, but he was too busy turning around so he could focus on Derek...his mate’s scent drawing his attention.

“Deke!” Derek whispered his brother’s name, clearly shocked.

Pulling his gaze away from Deke, Derek shifted his focus to Dillan. “H-How?” He frowned, trying to process not only everything that had happened in the last twenty-four hours, but the fact that his brother was standing just inside the foyer, watching him uncertainly. “How do you know my brother? I thought you weren’t from around here.”

“I’m not,” Dillan confirmed. “But Byron has lived around here for decades. He knows Luther and he recognized your last name.”

Derek nodded slowly. That made sense, small towns and all. Slowly, he made his way to where Deke and Luther waited until he stood a few feet in front of his brother. For all the times he’d imagined this, coming up with just the right apology, his words failed him.

Then, Deke closed the last few steps. He grabbed him and wrapped him in a tight hug.

Choking back a sob of relief, Derek held his brother, returning his hug. “I’m so sorry,” Derek whispered before his throat closed.

“Me, too,” Deke muttered.

Finally, Derek eased his hold on his brother. He took a step back and rested his hands on Deke’s shoulders. Smiling down at his shorter sibling, Derek took in his tanned features, artfully messy do, and the eyeliner and lip gloss. The radiant grin on Deke’s face as he peered up at him settled something that Derek hadn’t even known he’d been missing.

“Married life looks good on you,” Derek told him. He glanced toward Deke’s partner, then returned his focus to his brother. “Has Luther been treating you well?”

If possible, Deke’s grin widened even more. His face flushed a bit under his tan and he replied, “Oh, yeah. Luther treats me very,
very
well.” He added a little eyebrow waggle to accentuate his words, so there’d be no mistake to what Deke referred.

Derek chuckled. “Good. Michael was an ass, little brother.” He cupped Deke’s cheek and sobered as he added, “I’m glad you ditched him and found someone worthy.”

“Me, too,” Deke replied wryly. Then he cocked his head. “How’d you know about Michael?”

Grimacing, Derek admitted, “I tracked down where you lived and worked months ago.” He felt his face flush, but he had to be honest. “I wasn’t...I wasn’t ready to go against dad, yet, but I wanted to know where you were...how you were doing.” He swallowed hard, then muttered, “I’m sorry it took me so long to get my head out of my ass.”

Deke nodded slowly. He grimaced and pulled away, heading to a sofa in the family room.

Following his brother, Derek sat on the other side of the sofa, angling his body to face him. He noted that everyone else appeared to be busy in the kitchen and dining room. He appreciated at least getting the appearance of privacy from them.

“It hurt, ya know?” Deke admitted. “But I lived.” He sighed as he turned to look at him, tucking one foot under his butt. “I stayed with Dirk for a while before getting my own place. At least, I wasn’t stupid enough to move in with Michael when he asked,” he finished dryly.

“Yes, but you moved in with Luther awfully quickly, didn’t you?” Derek watched Deke’s brows shoot up and he realized how that had sounded. “Sorry,” he muttered. “I slipped right back into the overprotective big brother role damn fast, didn’t I?”

Deke chuckled, not looking at all upset. “It’s actually kinda refreshing to hear.” He smiled. “Been a long time.”

Smiling, Derek nodded. “Yeah,” he softly agreed. Guilt flooded him, but he knew you couldn’t change the past and he could only apologize so many times. Clearing his throat, he searched for something to say. “In that case, how did you know so quickly?”

“Know?” Deke scowled. “Know what?”

“That Luther was the one?” Derek asked, nodding toward the big blond who chatted with Byron while helping to set the table.

“That’s a pretty loaded question,” Deke responded slowly. His brows furrowed as he glanced furtively toward the men—and Diana—who were cooking and cleaning. “Um, you’re staying with Dillan, so...do you mind me asking how you feel about him?”

Derek felt his chest and neck heat as discomfort filled him. He opened his mouth, then snapped it closed, realizing he’d been about to lie and say there was nothing between them. Derek couldn’t do that to Dillan though. Besides, if he couldn’t tell Deke the truth, who could he tell? He wanted to be in his brother’s life again, and lying was no way to start repairing his relationship.

Instead, Derek licked his lips and worked his jaw. He gathered his courage and admitted something out loud that he’d never said to another. “I...I think I’m gay, too, Deke. Uh, bisexual, at least. I like Dillan a lot.” He watched Deke’s jaw sag open in shock as his eyes widened. Derek shrugged as he plowed ahead. “Dad’s been blackmailing me, but I finally reached the point where I don’t care if I lose my license. I know...” He sighed. “There’s no pleasing that man, and I guess it finally hit me that I can’t live for his approval. He’d control me forever.”

“Yeah,” Deke whispered. “He would.” Reaching over, Deke settled one hand on Derek’s knee. “I’m really happy you figured that out, big brother.” He pulled his hand back and folded them in his lap. “What blackmail?”

Derek quickly explained his stupidity in college and the consequent police report. He explained how he’d lose his bar license if he had a record. While paying for a fine wouldn’t bother him, Derek really didn’t want to go to jail for stealing a car. He also explained that Dillan said he could help him recover the file, so his father couldn’t use it against him any longer.

Deke grinned. “Yeah. These guys do seem to have a way of working a little underhanded from time to time.” He winked. “If Dillan can’t snag that file, there’s a guy in our pack I’ll introduce you to. He’ll take care of it.”

“A guy in your pack?” Derek asked slowly. “What does that mean? Pack?”

Deke’s face turned a slight shade of pink. “Uh, well...” He paused and licked his lips. Grimacing, he turned toward the guys and called, “Hey, Dillan?”

Instantly, both Dillan and Luther separated themselves from the group and joined them in the living room. “I’m Dillan,” Derek’s lover stated, holding out his hand to Deke. “It’s nice to meet you.”

The pair shook briefly.

Deke glanced toward Luther, who smirked and nodded.

Derek had no idea what the looks passing between the men meant, and he didn’t understand Deke’s question either.

“Is Derek your mate?” Deke asked, his gaze fixed on Dillan.

Dillan grinned. “He is indeed.”

“Then you should tell him the truth up front,” Deke stated. “The brother I remember doesn’t like surprises.” He turned and looked at Derek, lifting his brow. “Is that still the same?”

“Yes,” Derek responded slowly, drawing out the word. Just what was going on here? “What, uh...” He paused and focused warily on Dillan. “What do I need to know?”

Dillan blew out a breath, then settled on the coffee table. Facing Derek, he settled his hands on his sweatpants clad thighs and rubbed along them once, twice. Dillan stilled his hands and glanced around the group again.

Derek suddenly realized that everyone was staring at them. Nerves surged through him, and he felt exactly as he had once in college. He’d walked into class and realized he’d forgotten there was a quiz that day. His gut churned and sweat beaded on his brow as he glanced around at everyone’s serious expressions.

Deke huffed a sigh, drawing Derek’s attention. He rolled his eyes and snapped, “It’s not that hard. Geez.” Leaning toward Derek, he rested his hand on his knee and said, “You know all those stories about things that go bump in the night? Well, some of them are sort of true.”

“Huh?” Derek couldn’t help the ridiculous response. He shook his head. What the hell was his brother talking about?

Deke nodded, countering him. “These guys, and Diana, are shifters. They turn into wolves,” he stated, sounding so matter of fact. “They say it’s like...sharing their spirit with an animal, which gives them heightened instincts, better sight, smell, hearing, healing, etcetera, etcetera,” he continued, waving his hand. “They also live longer, like hundreds of years longer, so Fate grants them a mate, so they won’t be lonely. That mate is like the other half of their soul. They do everything they can to make that person happy.”

Grinning widely, Deke looked toward his partner. “Luther is my mate. He claimed me, and now I’m going to live as long as him.” Deke returned his focus to Derek, still smiling. “I’m glad you’re Dillan’s mate. It would have sucked being on speaking terms again and having to hide all this from you,” he said, waving his hand at the group.

Diana cocked her head and snickered. “Well, that was about as concise as I’ve heard us explained before. Way to go, Deke.”

“Thanks,” Deke replied, chuckling.

“Actually,” Dillan cut in softly. “I’m a puma. A large cat. I don’t turn into a wolf.”

Deke’s eyes rounded. “Oh, right. I should have asked you about that.” He grimaced. “Sorry about that.”

Derek glanced around the group. He took in their expressions, seeing that most appeared hopeful, but of what he wasn’t certain. Deke just grinned at him, while Dillan’s expression remained serious, watchful even.

“You all actually believe this,” Derek mused, shocked and concerned. Just what the fuck was going on with these people? “H-How can you believe this?”

Deke smirked. “Seeing is believing.” He glanced around the group. “Who’s gonna show him?”

Dillan stood and gripped the waistband of his sweats. “He’s my mate. I’ll do it,” he said, shoving his pants down and kicking them off. “Besides,” he grumbled. “I was almost naked anyway.”

Diana wolf whistled. “Look at that fine backside,” she called.

“What the hell are you doing?” Derek growled, jealousy surging through him. Even if he did think his lover was crazy, he didn’t want the man showing his sexy ass to everyone.

Dillan looked over his shoulder at Diana, scowling. “Don’t make this harder than it already is,” he snapped. Turning back around, he gave Derek a warm smile and told him, “You’ll get used to the nudity, handsome. Shifters aren’t very modest since we don’t want to get hung up in our clothes when we change.” He winked. “We’re all super great at stripping down with speed.”

Before Derek could even fathom how to respond to that, something happened. He gaped upon seeing Dillan’s skin ripple and twitch. When Dillan dropped to his knees, Derek started to rise and go to him, but Deke grabbed his arm. Glancing toward his brother, Derek saw Deke shake his head.

Derek obeyed, settling back on the sofa as he returned his focus to Dillan. Hearing the pop and crack, seeing the way his lover’s body rippled and reformed, Derek gasped and stiffened. He saw tawny fur sprout all over Dillan, covering his skin as a tail grew out of his ass. After what couldn’t have been longer than twenty seconds, Derek stared in shock at a large, golden-furred cat.

Gasping, Derek pressed backward into the sofa cushion. He realized he was holding his breath, but who could blame him. A few feet in front of him, a massive puma—or what looked like a mountain lion to Derek—arched and stretched, showing off a long, lean, powerful body and very sharp claws.

“Holy shit,” Derek squeaked. He glanced toward Deke, but his brother didn’t seem at all alarmed. “Wha-what’s going on?” Was this some kind of a trick?

Deke smiled encouragingly at him. “Don’t worry, Derek,” he assured. “That’s still your Dillan. Even when he’s in that form, he can still think and reason and he knows you. He recognizes you.” Deke released his arm and patted his knee. “He’s completely cognizant.”