Page 33 of Bear the Burden

“If I h-had to pick, I would g-guess it’s Seth,” Wesley stuttered out. “He gives me the willies.”

Hyett walked back to Wesley and embraced him. “I’m sorry you had to find out they exist.” He glared at Killian, who just shrugged.

Dickhead.

Hyett could not wait until the guy found his mate. Payback was a bitch.

“Demons, really?” Wesley glanced up at him. Damn if Hyett’s heart didn’t pound out a symphony of love. His bear growled softly at just how breathtaking their mate was.

“Our world is filled with many different species, hon.”

Taking a deep breath, Wesley took a step back and closed his eyes. Then leaned slightly forward as if bracing himself for impact while wiggling his fingers inward. “Give it all to me right now. I’d rather get it out of the way than keep getting shocked off my feet. What else exists? Just lay it on me.”

Hyett glanced at his family, one brow hiked. He wasn’t sure this was a good idea. They were supposed to be lowering Wesley’s stress level, not shooting it into space.

Quinton splayed his hands. “You heard the man.”

“Vampires,” Hyett reluctantly said, and then before his mate could react, he rushed on. “Fairies, though some prefer to be called fae.”

“Winged beasts,” Ryker added. “They’re the good guys, though.”

“Life and Death are actual people,” Quinton interjected. “They’re also mated—but not to each other.”

Hyett glanced at Killian. “Go ahead.”

His brother gave him a grateful smile. The guy might be an ass sometimes—a lot of times—but Hyett loved the hell out of him.

“I heard ghouls existed, though I’ve never personally seen one. Shadow elves and wood elves, which are very different. Shadow elves have blue skin with pointy ears, and wood elves just have…”

Killian frowned. “They just have pointy ears. There’re also different realms. Human, demon, and two different fairy realms. If you want to meet some fairies, we could introduce you to three of them. Our best friends are mated to them.”

Hyett gaped at him. “Glad to see you restrained yourself.”

Killian grinned.

When he turned to look at his mate, to his surprise, Wesley hadn’t passed out on the floor—yet. “You okay?”

“Life and Death are actual people?” Wesley seemed more astonished than scared.

“You just handled this like a true Everhart.” Quinton winked. “Welcome to our family, Wesley. Get ready for one hell of a ride.”

“Our family might seem dysfunctional, but we throw down for each other,” Ryker said with conviction. “Which now includes throwing down for you.”

“I’ve never had…” Wesley glanced away with shimmering tears in his eyes.

Hyett curled his arms around his mate. “Now you have a family of bears at your back.” He kissed the top of Wesley’s head. “We’re not going to let anything happen to you, love.”

His mate drew in a deep breath and nodded. “Thanks, all of you.”

“Hyett’s right.” Quinton leaned his shoulder against the doorjamb. “You shouldn’t go to your house. Not only because of the demon but you were attacked there, son. It’ll all come flooding back as soon as you step through the door. Are you ready to face what happened there?”

“Honestly, I’m still stuck on Life and Death being real.” Wesley worried his bottom lip. He took a deep breath and nodded. “I can’t keep running from left hooks. I’ll grab my own stuff. If Seth comes near me, or being there becomes too much for me, my mate has my back.”

Hyett kissed his temple. “Without a doubt.”

Chapter Nine

The closer Hyett drove them to Wesley’s house, the more Wesley began to realize this was not such a brilliant idea.

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