Page 19 of Love in Unexpected Places

Matty expected Sullivan to tease back or to say that he’d never leave the coven, but instead, he looked thoughtful.“You really think so?”he asked.

Matty swallowed at the thought of Sullivan being a pack member.He’d told himself to keep his distance from Sullivan because things couldn’t work between them since he wouldn’t leave the pack and Sullivan wouldn’t leave the coven, but it sounded like Sullivan might.“I do,” he croaked.

Shit.What was he going to do if Sullivan actually wanted to become a pack member?The thought terrified him as much as it excited him.Having Sullivan in the pack meant that Matty could have a real possibility with him.

He just wasn’t sure what to do with it.

Chapter Four

Sullivan quite enjoyedthe conversation he and Matty shared during the drive.He’d expected to like Matty—or rather, he’d hoped he would like him—and he’d been right.Matty was a little bashful but very sweet.He talked about his family with obvious love, and it sounded like they loved him right back.His story wasn’t an easy one, and it was definitely harder than Sullivan’s, which Sullivan disliked.He wished Matty hadn’t had to live through all of that.

Sullivan might have grown up in the coven, where most people didn’t care about him and couldn’t wait to use him, but he had loving parents and siblings.They’d always been a tight unit, even now.They tried not to show it too much because if any of them did something wrong, the leaders would use it against all of them, but they were still family.Sullivan couldn’t imagine his parents kicking him out when he’d turned eighteen.He wouldn’t have been able to survive the way Matty had.

Matty was impressive.He might be quiet and a little shy, but once he’d started talking, he’d relaxed.

Unfortunately, he was tense again.It had been almost four hours since they’d started the drive, which meant they were probably close to where Matty’s family lived.They were about to meet Sabrina and possibly Matty’s parents.

Sullivan got angry every time he thought about what those two were doing.He didn’t have children, but if he did, he would never treat them like this.Having kids didn’t stop when they turned eighteen, especially when they weren’t self-sufficient.Luckily for Sabrina, her brother would protect her.There had been no one to protect Matty, though.

Some people should never have children, and Matty and Sabrina’s parents were clearly part of that group.Maybe it was a good thing that they didn’t want anything to do with their children now that they were eighteen.They couldn’t be good people to have in someone’s life.

“We’re almost there?”he asked softly.

Matty swallowed and nodded.“Just a few more minutes.”

“How are you feeling?”

“I have no idea.I told myself several times during the drive that they don’t matter, but they’re still my parents.I never thought I’d have the opportunity to tell them what I think of them and their behavior, but I’m here now, and I don’t know if I’ll be able to stop myself.”

“Maybe you should tell them.They don’t seem to think they’re bad people, but their behavior points to the opposite.I doubt that anything you can say will stop them from kicking out your sister, but that’s not a problem because she has a home with you.It might be time for you to get closure if you don’t have it already.”

Sullivan couldn’t imagine that Matty did.He’d been forced to live on the streets for years because of his parents.It was a miracle he’d survived, and Sullivan knew that a lot of that was thanks to Theo and the family he’d put together.Without them, Matty probably wouldn’t be sitting next to Sullivan, driving to pick up his sister.Sabrina might not have had anyone to contact and might have ended up on the streets like Matty had.

It was none of Sullivan’s business, but he was here, and even though he barely knew Matty, he didn’t want anything to happen to him.If Matty’s parents tried anything, Sullivan wouldn’t hesitate to protect him.

Which reminded him of a question he hadn’t asked yet.This probably wasn’t the right moment to do so since they were almost there, but he might as well distract Matty until he parked the car.“You’re a shifter, right?”he asked.

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