Page 2 of Forged

It was sweet, really. Bax told himself he didn’t begrudge his brother the happiness he’d found, even though Blaine had started a relationship right as he’d ended one. He told himself he was just giving the two of them space as he quietly headed into the house while the snogfest continued behind him.

He could tell himself whatever he wanted, but it didn’t soothe the ache in his gut. If he was honest with himself, Bax loved being in a relationship. He loved being part of something greater than himself. And yes, he loved sex, too. It had been a major part of his and Damien’s relationship, and suddenly he found himself facing a long dry spell.

It wouldn’t be difficult for him to find a quick fix. He was a member of The Brotherhood, after all, and a trip to one of the clubs in London owned by members of The Brotherhood would undoubtedly end with his ankles up around the shoulders of some buff stranger who liked to play Hide the Sausage as vigorously as possible. Meaningless sex had never really been his thing, though. Frequent sex, yes, but even when he and Damien had been open for the sake of spiritual energy, it had always been with trusted coven members.

As he reached the top of the stairs and headed down the hall with his last load, Bax considered that he should probably find himself a new coven as fast as possible. But finding a like-minded spiritual community was not as easy as doing an internet search and filling out an application. Especially not for the kind of interactions he was looking for.

He’d just reached the door to his temporary home when the door across from his flew open and a toddler in dungarees burst into the hall.

“Jordan, Jordan, no. Come back to Daddy.”

Bax’s heart sped up as Nick Turner stepped out into the hall to chase after his three-year-old son.

“Jordan,” Nick called again, shuffling his fussy, one-year-old daughter, Macy, in his arms. “You need your coat, young man.”

“No, Daddy!” Jordan called out gleefully as he charged toward the stairs.

Bax did not do children. They had no place in a life that had been as adult as his, even before he was technically an adult. He didn’t know the first thing about kids, let alone toddlers.

But that didn’t stop him from putting down his box and backpack and chasing after Jordan, saying, “I’ve got him.”

Jordan knew Bax. He was family, even if he hadn’t spent a lot of time at Hawthorne House until recently. As Bax came after him, he must have seen it as playing. He giggled and continued to run for the stairs. Bax might not have known anything about kids, but he knew tiny people and staircases didn’t go together.

“Come here, you,” he said, hoping he sounded playful and not terrifying, as he caught up to Jordan.

He growled playfully as he scooped Jordan up and shifted him so he could hold the boy tightly. Jordan still thought they were playing and laughed uproariously. He also flailed, nearly kicking Bax in the kidney as he strode back down the hall towhere Nick was trying to manage an equally wiggly Macy. The last thing he wanted was to drop a child.

“Thanks,” Nick said on a heavy breath as Bax reached him. “They’re in rare form today.”

“Looks like it,” Bax replied, his heart still racing.

He couldn’t help it. Not when he was so close to Nick. Not when he could breathe in Nick’s alluring, smokey scent and feel the strength that radiated from him.

Nick was his cousin Raina’s widower and Hawthorne House’s resident blacksmith and metalwork teacher. As far as Bax knew, he and Raina had met at art school, they’d dated, married, and started a family, and then Raina had been cruelly taken from them in a drink-driving accident close to two years ago. Nick had been devastated, they all had, but instead of going off and starting a new life on his own with the kids, he’d stayed at Hawthorne House and remained part of the extended, eccentric family.

Nick was a quintessential blacksmith with a build to match. He was well over six feet and had arms that were as thick as Bax’s legs. He was broad-chested and meaty while still being incredibly fit. How could he not be when he spent his days hammering iron and stoking an old-fashioned forge?

Bax wouldn’t have minded if Nick wanted to stoke him. Except as far as he could tell, Nick was straight. He’d been married to Raina and had two kids with her, after all. Not once had Bax heard anything about Nick’s previous dating life, and although that didn’t necessarily mean he wasn’t bi, no one had witnessed Nick flirting with men. Or other women.

Of course, part of the reason for that was squirming in Bax’s arms as he stood there, gawping at Nick like a loon.

“Sorry that that one is causing so much trouble,” Nick said, stepping back into his flat and leaving the door wide for Bax tobring Jordan in. “Granny is on the way to fetch them, and we’re having a devil of a time getting ready.”

“Do you need me to help?” Bax asked.

What was he thinking? He wasn’t a kid person.

Then again, he knew exactly what he was thinking when Nick turned and bent over to pick up what must have been Jordan’s winter coat from the floor. He could spend hours burying his face in an arse like that.

Nick straightened and looked at Bax like he wanted to say it was no trouble, he didn’t need help, and Bax was free to go about his business. The pinch of Nick’s face and the stress lines around his gorgeous, brown eyes told another story.

“Mum will be here any minute,” he said. “I need to get that one in his coat and figure out why this one has been in tears all morning.”

Bax’s heart went out to him. “Just let me know what I can do,” he said.

“Daddy, I want a lolly,” Jordan whined as he made an extra push to get out of Bax’s arms. “Granny has lollies.”

Nick rolled his eyes and shared a look with Bax. “Granny likes to bribe people,” he said.

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