The KinKaid Wolf Pack Trilogy (6 page)

"Not safe?" Mason opened his eyes. "What are trying to say?" The guitar solo from "Panama" suddenly filled the room. Evin blinked, and he loosened his grip on Mason's wrist.

"Well, unless someone just flipped on an episode of
VH1
's '80s classics, I think that's your cell phone." Evin rolled off Mason and onto his back.

Mason swung his legs over the side of the bed and stood, then headed for the chair that held his pants and the phone inside one of the pockets.

"Seriously, man, Van Halen?" Evin added.

Mason glanced back over his shoulder. "Seriously." He nodded. "Eddie Van Halen. The guy was a guitar legend." He zeroed in on the pocket containing his phone and pulled it out.

"It's five a.m. Who would be calling you this early?"

The large screen of the iPhone displayed
Dad
across the top. His gut tightened with unpleasant anticipation. Mason slid his index finger across the bottom of the cell and answered.

"Hello, Dad." Mason turned with the phone at his ear and rolled his eyes at Evin. The other man nodded and left the bed, headed toward the bathroom.

"You were supposed to call us last night once you got home." Mason Sr.'s voice boomed at the other end of the line. "Your mother has been worried. And you know how she gets when she's worried. You
are
home, correct?"

As usual, his father's normal string of
what have you done to disappoint me today?
statements and questions. Mason pulled in a deep breath. A
hello, are you safe, son?
would have been way too personal for the head of the Thorne family. He bit back a chuckle. Even the word "family" sounded absurd when used in the same sentence with the surname Thorne.

"No. I'm not home." Mason moved back to the side of the bed and dropped onto the mattress's edge.

"And why not? We have a meeting scheduled for tomorrow. There are several things I need to go over with you before you return to work. Were you even planning to call me to let me know you wouldn't be here?"

It was all Mason could do not to grind his molars into a toothache. Damn. It was nothing short of a miracle he had enough of his teeth left to eat with at all.

"Yes, I was going to call you after I got up this morning."

"So, what happened to you?"

Mason relayed the story about his detour and then about his near miss with a wolf that landed him in a ditch.

"Why haven't you called someone from TGI to pick you up?"

"Because it's not necessary. It's only going to be a few more days."

"A few days spent wasted in some small town when you could be home taking care of this company. Your future—"

"It's only four days, Dad. I'm sure Thorne Global will survive without me just a little longer."

"Dear God," his father groaned. "Please don't tell me you're with a...you've picked up some strange man."

"Fine. I won't." Mason didn't bother to hide the hard edge to his voice. His free hand fisted the pillow at his side right before he launched it across the room.

"Goddammit, Mason. What am I supposed to tell your mother? Her son will be home as soon as he decides to crawl out of the sack with his new boyfriend? What if the press gets wind of this little detour of yours?"

"That's unfair..." Mason swallowed hard past the knot in the back of his throat. Whether it had grown out of pain or anger, he had no fucking clue. Probably a combination of both emotions trying to choke the shit out of him. "My sex life has never compromised the family or the business. In fact, I've done everything in my power to keep out of the public eye and to be exactly the son you would prefer. I'm getting my MBA, just like you'd planned, and I've worked my ass off as assistant vice president at TGI. So don't play the ungrateful slut-of-a-son card with me."

"How dare you speak to me in that tone—"

"I have to go. I'll call when I'm on my way."

"Mason—"

He jerked the phone from his ear and tapped End Call. From behind, a large hand brushed his arm. Mason jumped and glanced over his shoulder.

"Shit. Evin..." Mason shook his head. "I didn't hear you come back into the room." Evin's chest pressed into Mason's back, and then both arms circled his waist. Mason leaned into Evin's hard yet warm presence. Damn, it felt good. Too good. He closed his eyes, drinking in the serenity of the moment.

"You were deep in conversation with your father," Evin said. "I didn't want to interrupt."

Mason scoffed. "
That
, you didn't have to worry about interrupting." He tilted his head up, allowing it to fall back against Evin's shoulder.

"I gather from the sound of things, dear old Dad isn't too pleased with your being gay."

"And you would be right. As long as he doesn't have to see it or hear about it, he's fine. Meaning, as long as I'm playing the good son, becoming the executive he wants me to be, and he can pretend that my being gay doesn't exist...oh, he's fine."

Evin's arms tightened around him. "Sounds very familiar," he began, his deep voice crawling inside and infusing Mason with additional heat. "Different situation, but still very much the same."

"Not a pleasant family experience when you decided to come out?" Mason glanced up. For a split second, he could have sworn what looked like a wave of pain washed over Evin's face, but then it disappeared.

"Something like that," he murmured.

"How long ago—"

"I heard you tell your father it had been a wolf that caused you to run off the road?"

Well, that was subtle...
Mason clamped his mouth shut on the rest of his question. Apparently Evin's coming out wasn't a story they would be reminiscing about over coffee this morning. That was okay and something Mason could definitely understand. He wasn't all that eager to reveal his skeletons either. It felt too nice, at least for a little while, to forget who he was, where he came from, and what was waiting for him back home.

"I knew you'd hit a ditch, but I didn't get a chance to ask you about the details." Evin released his hold, left the bed, and made his way over to the dresser.

Mason followed his movements with his gaze as he crossed the room. Evin had pulled on a faded pair of blue jeans since he'd last seen him. A pair of denims that looked as if their creation had been inspired by the man's ass. Evin leaned over, rummaging through a drawer, sticking that perfect behind up for his inspection. Blood rushed to Mason's cock, sending him straight back to rock hard.
Shit.
He had to get Evin out of his system, because hanging around much longer wasn't an option.

"Yeah... It was one of those freakish, one-in-a-million type of things. This big white wolf appeared out of nowhere in the middle of the road as I came around a curve. Largest damn wolf I'd ever seen, with these big blue eyes." Mason propped his back against the headboard. Keeping one leg on the bed, he allowed the other to slide off. Since he was still nude, there was no hiding the fact he appreciated the view across bedroom.

When Evin didn't respond, Mason realized the other man hadn't budged. He stood with his back to Mason, staring at the shirt in his hands.

"Hey... Evin... You okay, man?"

Evin swung his head around. "Huh?"

"You were standing so still. I wasn't sure you'd heard what I'd said. Where'd you go?"

"A large white wolf. Yeah, I heard you." His gaze trailed from Mason's eyes and roamed lower until it rested on the hard length of his cock. "And in answer to your other question"—blue eyes darted back to Mason's—"I didn't go anywhere." Evin flashed him a smile that could only be described as sinful, right before he tossed his shirt over the footboard and crawled back onto the bed. Muscles bunched along his arms and across his shoulders as he slinked over the mattress. A primal beast moving in to take what was his. The knowledge that he was the primary focus of Evin's hungry gaze sent a bolt of lust sizzling along his nerve endings. Mason shivered.

Evin reached out and circled his fist around Mason's length. Mason sucked in a harsh breath through his teeth. With his other hand, Evin grasped the hair at the back of Mason's skull, yanking his chin up and putting them face-to-face. The tug at his roots and the pressure of the other man's fist around his cock had his heart hammering against his chest. God, how did Evin know exactly what drove him out of his fucking mind?

"Why would I want to go anywhere," Evin began, "when I have you?" His rough palm slid up and down his shaft. Mason groaned. "Right here." Evin leaned in and feathered his lips over Mason's. "Where I want you," he breathed against his mouth.

Chapter Five

––––––––

E
vin slid his spatula beneath the hamburger patty on the grill and flipped it onto its other side. Flames leaped from the coals and licked at the edges of the meat. The tantalizing smell of char-grilled beef invaded his nostrils, stimulating another rumble in his stomach. He glanced from the grill to the trees that lined the back of his property as Mason's words tumbled over and over in his head.

"A large white wolf with blue eyes..."

"Bigger than I'd ever seen."

It had been over forty-eight hours since he'd learned the details about what had sent Mason into that ditch, but Evin still couldn't shake the feeling that what Mason had seen that day hadn't been any ordinary wolf. And based on the description, there could only be one logical conclusion. But who the hell from the KinKaid pack would be sniffing around Dover? Many of their females, and a few select males, were blue-eyed with a white coat.

Pack law clearly stated that it was forbidden to contact one who had been banished. They risked expulsion themselves. Besides, there was only one person he knew of from his former life who even gave a crap whether he was dead or alive: Rosa.

Damn.
Evin shook his head.
For God's sake, Rosa, if it is you, what are you up to?

"Wow, that smells great."

The sound of Mason's voice yanked Evin back into the present. He turned and watched as Mason stepped from the screen door onto the deck. It felt so natural having him here. It was as if they'd been living together for months, not days. Mason had this uncanny ability to read his moods, knowing when he needed a few moments of alone time—and especially when he didn't. There was no denying the chemistry between them. He couldn't remember ever staying so fucking hard around a man. So asking him to find another place while his car was being repaired were words Evin couldn't find the will to utter.

They'd picked up some of Mason's belongings from his BMW on Saturday, giving him a few changes of clothes. Tonight he looked like he'd just stepped out of a Tommy Hilfiger catalog, in his sandals, white cotton shorts, and dark blue polo. The colors suited his fair complexion and blond hair. And those chocolate brown eyes... Evin melted every time he looked into them.

Mason pulled out a patio chair, sat, and then kicked back, stretching out his long legs. He wasn't quite as tall as Evin, probably only reaching about six feet. But when they came together, he fit Evin just right.

A flash of memory from last night flooded his mind: Mason's legs wrapped around his hips, Evin buried balls-deep as his cock spewed over and over... An odd flutter inside his gut had Evin reaching for his abdomen and rubbing his palm over the sensation. But this time, he knew it wasn't the need for food gnawing away at him. This particular hunger was for a whole different kind of sustenance.

And he needed to get his damn head examined.

If everything went as planned, and he managed to get his car back together, Mason was out of here tomorrow. Evin had known this from the moment he'd brought Mason back to his place.

And for Christ's sake, Mason was human.

A human and a shifter did not make a healthy choice for a long relationship. There was way too much at risk—for both partners involved: the continued secrecy of his kind's existence and the safety of the human.

"I'm starved."

Swinging his attention back to the grill, Evin said, "Yeah. Me too."

"Burgers almost ready?" The sound of aluminum scraping against wood came from Mason's direction. Evin glanced up as Mason left his chair and approached.

"Yup. I think so." Evin turned back to the coals. The warm feel of Mason's hand slid up the center of his back, followed by the hard nudge of his chest against Evin's arm. Evin closed his eyes and forced back the shudder of pleasure that wanted to grip him, the growl that wanted to roll from his throat. He gave his head a slight shake.

Dinner. Think about food. They needed to eat. "Do you like potato salad?" The words came out more croaked than spoken.

"What did you say?" Mason stepped back.

"Potato salad. Do you like it?" Evin grabbed the plate next to the barbecue and began moving the burgers off the grill.

"Oh. Sure. Yeah, I like it."

Cocking his head at Mason, Evin pointed the spatula toward the cabin. "On the bottom shelf in the fridge. Would you grab the container for us?"

"Coming up." Mason pivoted and made his way back into the cabin.

Evin moved to the patio table with the burgers and set the plate in its center. He dropped both palms to the surface, bracing himself on the acrylic, and breathed deep. What had he got himself into? This connection he felt with Mason had him reeling. His head spun, and his stomach roiled as if he were on some kind of roller coaster. Four days with Mason wasn't going to be nearly enough time to get the human out of his system. Then again, it was way too long. Because Evin had a bad feeling it wasn't going to take many more nights at all for him to lose his mind—and his soul to the guy.

By the time dinner was over, the sun's warm glow had turned the lower edges of the skyline to a brilliant orange, red, and yellow. Evin lifted his beer bottle while studying Mason's profile and took a swig. Mason had kicked his feet up in an opposing chair, looking quite relaxed. A much different pose than the one he'd been in a couple of days ago when he’d come out of the bathroom and found Mason on the phone with his father. The tension that had lined the other man's face had long vanished, but Evin hadn't forgotten the words he'd overheard from the other end of the line, thanks to the excellent hearing provided by his shifter DNA. The fact that Mason had settled for a life that wasn't his dream didn't sit well with Evin. He understood all too well the pain of living one's life to fulfill another's expectations. But unlike himself, Mason had remained at home, trying his best to make his father proud. Evin couldn't help but respect the other man for the love he held for his family.