Page 66 of Cam's Treasure

Micah nodded as he took two plates from me, then passed one to Cam. I settled on the armchair with my plate, and decided that Cam was right. We needed a bigger couch.

"We should probably tell the dads," Cam said with a full mouth, and Micah scowled at him.

This is what the mind link is for, you know. So you don't talk with your mouth full like a heathen.

Cam grinned, unrepentant.I don't want Kai to think we're keeping things from him.Also, I thought it was so I could talk when my mouth is stuffed with your cock.

Rolling my eyes at Cam's ridiculousness as well as his thoughtfulness, I added my own opinion out loud. "We should tell them, but I'm afraid they'll want to visit, and I don't think Kai is ready right now." Especially Cassian, since he was a mage too, and much more intimidating than Raphael, at least until you spent some time with him and his mate and realized Gus was actually the one to look out for.

"We can text them, and explain the situation," Micah said, and Cam hummed.

"Good idea. I'll do it now before Raph decides he's done waiting and blurts it out in the group chat.”

Cam pulled his phone out, and I imagined he was sending the text in the 'family' group he had with his dads, Micah's dads, both their siblings, themselves, and recently me.

Cam: Good news! We found our final mate. His name is Kai, and he's a selkie. Please don't come to visit just yet. His coat was stolen, and he isn't in a good space right now. We'll tell you when he's ready for visitors. In the meantime, I'd appreciate anyadvice you might have about going to and navigating around Ravenshire. We have to get Kai's coat back.

Well, that was one way to do it.

"I don't think Cassian will be happy about you going to Ravenshire," I said to Micah, and he sighed, knowing I was right.

"He'll probably insist on coming too. But I don't want him to have to deal with those assholes any more than I want to deal with them myself. Dad suffered at their hands a lot longer than I did."

I didn't know the story of why Cassian had left Ravenshire, and while I was curious, I'd never ask unless Cassian himself wanted to tell me. It was enough to know that Ravenshire's residents hadn't treated any of the mages I knew well.

Our phones buzzed simultaneously, then again, and again. Shaking his head, Cam unlocked his phone as Micah peered at his screen, and I did the same.

Cassian: Are you saying a mage stole his coat?

Gus: Congratulations, kids! And Ember!

I smiled. Gus was not a big fan of the age gap between me and those two, but he couldn't say anything because Cam was quick to bring up the age gap betweenhisdads, so Gus had to satisfy himself with little quips like these. I didn't really mind. I knew I was much older than Cam and Micah—as well as Micah's dads and William—but I also knew I'd never use that against them in any way.

Raiden: We won't visit, but we should have this conversation in person. I've tried to keep an eye on that island, but I was focused on trouble headed our way. I should've been more careful.

William: How do you manage to find a way to blame yourself for everything? This is not your fault.

Cam: Dad's right, DD. The Ravenshire mages have been assholes since long before you got here.

Cassian: Agreed.

The conversation went on for a while after that, but by the end of it, Raiden had extracted a promise from Cam that we'd visit as soon as Kai was ready, and that we wouldn't take a step toward—or fly toward, he'd added emphatically—Ravenshire before that.

When I took the empty plates back to the kitchen, I found Kai's in the sink but no Kai. Straining my ears, I heard his steady breathing upstairs, and allowed myself to relax. Some sleep would do him good, and while he rested, I'd make sure my other mates were doing well too. Especially Cam. Finding out not one but two of his mates had been hurt by the same people must've sent his dragon into a frenzy, and I was honestly surprised at how well he was dealing with it. Maybe being half human gave him more control over his dragon side?

Twenty-Seven

Kai

I woke up with a start, my heart thundering in my chest as I gasped for breath, my lungs burning as they tried to draw in a full breath. I couldn't breathe. Was I still drowning? Without my coat, I couldn't swim as well, and I couldn't breathe underwater either. It felt like I was still underwater, even though I could feel the smooth, dry sheets under my feet.

"Hey, hey." Warmth and the scent of fire and ash surrounded me as a pair of big arms wrapped around me, pulling me into a wall of warm, cloth-covered skin. "Breathe, sweet Kai. Please breathe for me."

I sucked in a sharp breath and tried to match Ember's breathing as I wrapped my arms around him and clung to him, suddenly remembering everything that had happened after I'd been thrown into the water. Ember was barely more than astranger, yet I felt safe in his arms, and I kept clinging to him as I caught my breath.

"Shh, you're safe, baby. You're safe." Ember's murmured words finally calmed me down, and my heart stopped trying to beat its way out of my chest. Had he just called mebaby?

With a trembling exhale, I loosened my arms and tried to pull back even though my heart insisted I should stay right where I was because it felt warm and safe.

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