Page 9 of His Protective Bear

“I think I would say my sense of taste,” Cooper chimed in. “Although I guess that has more to do with my job than anything else,” he chuckled but nodded at Kian. “I had a friend in school that had been deaf since birth, and he used ASL and could also read lips, but to us, it was just normal. He got frustrated sometimes and reminded us to not be dickheads if we spoke too fast for those that didn’t sign, but it was a part of who he was.” His head tilted to the side thoughtfully, “But I think maybe you can’t really know unless you live with it if that makes sense.”

I nodded because it did. I could imagine, but really could I?

The only thing I knew with any certainty was that Sage’s condition didn’t make him less than in my eyes. Maybe that was what I had to prove to him.

“Why do you ask, son?” my omega papa Jonathan asked, his intuitive eyes on me.

I knew my family would feel the way I did about Sage. I also knew I could trust them. Still, there was a part of me that hesitated. It felt like betraying his trust if I shared it with them. But I also needed help.

“You don’t have to share anything you don’t want to,” my alpha dad Stefan said like he could read my mind.

I sighed and nodded. “I know.”

“Is it about today?” Rhys asked.

“What happened today?” my papa Jon asked, looking to Rhys and then back to me.

I sighed, “I went over to Sage’s house today.”

A collection of oh’s sounded around the table.

“And how did it go?” Papa was the one to ask.

“Well, he hasn’t been rejecting me all this time,” I said, and even I could hear the relief in my voice.

“That’s wonderful, son,” Papa grinned at me, “Of course, he wouldn’t reject you. Who wouldn’t want one of my boys?”

Kian, Cooper, and Nash snorted, and I smiled as my brothers pouted at their mates.

“My mate is the best in the whole wide world,” Kian said, leaning in to kiss Gabe on the cheek. My brother puffed up with pride even as he turned to a pile of goo for his mate.

“My mate is too perfect for words. He makes me feel like I’m more than enough,” Nash’s voice was teasing, but I saw the sincerity in his eyes as he smiled up at Austin.

Austin pulled Nash to his side with his free hand that didn’t have my nephew and kissed his head, “Because you are, baby.”

“My mate is the best thing to ever happen to me,” Cooper said simply, “He makes me better.”

Graham gently lifted his mate out of his chair, carefully since he held their son in his arms. Even though he whispered it, we all heard my brother say, “I didn’t have a life before you, and I wouldn’t have one without you.”

“Well, if the mush fest is over,” Rhys said teasingly, but the roughness in his voice told me his emotions were close to the surface. “How about we let Hunter finish what he was saying.”

“I went over to see Sage, but he wasn’t home, but his dad was. After I told him Sage was mine, he shared something with me—” Why was it hard to say this? I wasn’t ashamed of my mate, but after his reaction to his father telling me, I knew it was something he preferred to keep to himself. Was this betraying his trust?”

“You don’t have to tell us anything you don’t want to, son,” my dad said, “but you know everyone in this room will protect your mate. He’s family.”

I nodded. I knew that. “He’s not been rejecting me. He just doesn’t know we’re mates.”

“How—” Gabe started, but I put my hand up, stopping him.

“Well, the problem is Sage doesn’t have a sense of smell, so he can’t scent me,” I said. “That’s why it’s impossible for him to know we are mates.” I also gave them a rundown of what happened when Sage came home and realized his dad had told me.

No one spoke for a moment, then everyone started speaking at once until my papa whistled, getting everyone’s attention.

“Finish what you were saying, son,” Papa said.

My lips curved slightly, “I guess I don’t know how to approach him. He’s already pissed at me… I don’t know where to start.”

This time the silence lasted a little longer, and I could tell they were thinking about it. Rhys was the first to speak, “I remember him from school. He was a couple of years ahead of me, but he’s always been shy,” my younger brother said. “I think maybe you should try to get him somewhere private and break it to him.”

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