Page 60 of Mitchell's Untamed Mate

“I won’t even tell you how much that arouses me,” Mateo said.

Sofia turned the knife on Mateo.“Do I need to trim a few feathers, Mattie?”

Mateo laughed and winked.“I was talking about seeing Miles with his hands up, love.”

Miles shot Mateo at knowing glare.“Coward.”

“Alright, children,” Danielle Moss chided affectionately as she stepped forward and kissed him on both cheeks.“Hello, Talon.”

“Welcome, Danielle,” he said, returning her kisses with ones of his own.“You had a pleasant flight, I hope.”

“As much as I could with Miles,” she mused.

“That was a bit out of the way for you, wasn’t it?”he asked, looking at her with surprise.

She shook her head.“I was visiting for a conference when we received your message.No sense in wasting a good plane, even if it means spending more time with?—”

“Ah, love, you do know I’m still standing here, right?”Miles dryly commented.

Danielle smiled serenely over her shoulder.“Yes, love.I do know.”

Mateo slapped Miles on the shoulder and grinned.“I’m feeling the burn, mate.I think the ladies are on to us.”

“I need a drink,” Miles replied, stepping away.

“Follow me.Olive will have set up refreshments.If anyone needs to refresh themselves, you know where your rooms are.Charles will bring your luggage up after he helps my grandfather downstairs.”

The ping of an elevator opening sounded right on cue.Charles exited the elevator backwards, guiding his grandfather’s wheelchair.Thaddeus was grumbling out instructions that faded when he saw the group standing in the foyer.A large smile smoothed out the wrinkles lining his face.

“Finally.This is what we have been waiting for.Charles, the den, please,” Thaddeus instructed with an impatient wave of his hand.

“I’ll take him, Charles,” Sofia offered.“Thaddeus, you are as handsome as ever.”

Thaddeus chuckled like a little boy.“Sofia, have you put that knife I sent you to good use on Mateo yet?”

Sofia leaned down.“As a matter of fact, I tested it out on Miles just before you arrived.Mateo will be next if he isn’t careful.Thank you for that delightful memory,” she teased.

Thaddeus chuckled and patted her hand.“Anytime.Now, let’s get this meeting underway.”

Talon smiled when the others chuckled at his grandfather’s enthusiasm.The news of humans existing had given his grandfather a new lease on life.His color was better, his eyes clear and sharp, and there was an excitement in Thaddeus he hadn’t seen in years.

“Grandfather, I think it only fitting that you call the meeting to order,” he said.

Thaddeus looked up at him with shining eyes.“Thank you, my boy.Thank you.”

Chapter15

Mitchell held his hand out to Tracy and pulled her up the ice-encrusted slope of the stream.They were close.The last two days had been long and tiring.They had kept up a punishing pace across difficult terrain.

He looked up at the pass.Fresh snow covered the ground.Fog from his breath was thick.Tracy breathed in and out, matching his accelerated breathing from their climb, as she paused to adjust the knit hat she was wearing.They had added layers to their clothing this morning as the temperatures dropped.

Their climbing helped keep them warm, but it didn’t stop him from worrying about his people.The late snowfall would make things harder, especially with their low food supplies and lack of wood for building fires.His stomach clenched at the thought of anyone dying because of his decisions.

“We are almost there,” he said.

“Mitchell… look,” Tracy murmured.

He looked up.Someone had emerged from the boulders.They wore a thick fur covering that blended with the snow and rocks.He breathed a sigh of relief when he recognized the man.

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