Page 10 of Devon

“I’ll take care of him,” Nic drawled.

That sounded ominous, but Devon was pretty sure that Nicholas was flirting with him.He didn’t know how that made him feel, so he looked down at his feet until he was sure that Nic wasn’t staring at him anymore.He didn’t have experience being flirted with.When people had hit on him when he’d lived on the streets, what they wanted had been clear.Devon had always said no.He hadn’t wanted to survive that way, although he would have if that was what it took to make sure that Hailey was okay.He’d been lucky.

When Devon glanced back up, Alex was visibly exasperated.“Get back to work,” he ordered Nic, who saluted him and winked at Devon.

Devon’s cheeks flushed.He really needed the job, but that meant that he’d have to learn to deal with Nic.

He wasn’t sure how to do that.

* * * *

RYAN COULD FEEL KENDRICKand Jonas watching him.They’d been doing it since they’d walked into the kitchen.Kendrick even kept glancing at Ryan while he was cooking pancakes.Something was going on, and Ryan was a bit afraid to ask what that something was.Instead, he’d focused on the plate in front of him and the pancakes on it.

They were pretty good.He hadn’t known that his brother could cook, but then, there were many things he didn’t know about his brother.He wanted to find them out, but at the same time, he was afraid to ask.

He glanced up, only to see that Kendrick and Jonas were staring at each other.It was clear from the way they moved their heads and from how their expressions changed that they were communicating silently.Yes, something was wrong, and Ryan suspected he was about to find out what.

He waited, expecting one of them to say something.He wasn’t surprised when Jonas was the one who finally brought it up.

“One of us needs to say something,” Jonas said.

“I’ll do it,” Kendrick told him.

Jonas arched a brow.“Then do it.”

Kendrick turned to Ryan and opened his mouth, only to snap it shut.He frowned.He was starting to freak Ryan out, and Ryan needed him to stop.“Just spit it out,” he begged.“I don’t care who tells me whatever you’re so anxious about, but you’re makingmeanxious too.”

Kendrick rubbed his face with a hand as he sighed.“I’m sorry.I never meant to freak you out, but there’s something you should know about Devon.”

Ryan’s stomach dropped.He’d known this would have something to do with his mate.Why else would Kendrick be behaving so strangely right after Ryan had met Devon?“I’m listening.”

As little as Ryan wanted to hear whatever this was, he needed to know.Devon was his mate, and whatever was about to come out of Kendrick’s mouth would change the relationship Ryan would have with him.Hell, Ryan may not have a relationship with Devon at all after this, depending on what Kendrick was trying very hard to skirt around.

“First, I want to tell you how I met Devon,” Kendrick said.“You know I’m a hunter, but you probably don’t know what I did before becoming a clan member.”

“I don’t know anything about you.You left me ten years ago, and I didn’t hear from you again until now.”Ryan wasn’t saying it to hurt Kendrick.It was just an observation.

Kendrick grimaced.“Right.Well, I became a hunter and started working with other hunters.There was a group of them guided by a guy named Cornelius.We were all human, and we’d all been affected by the Kudlaks and what they do.We knew that we’d be stronger if we banded together so that was what we did.”

So far, Kendrick hadn’t told Ryan anything he didn’t expect.Ryan was curious, though.He wanted to know more about his brother and the life he’d lived.He probably wouldn’t have gone through any of that if their father hadn’t pushed him away.

“Cornelius wasn’t a good person,” Kendrick continued.“I’m sure he had his reasons, like all of us, but over the years, he became hard and uncompromising.One day, we found a group of three people hiding in an abandoned house.Two of them were Kudlaks.The last one was human.One of the Kudlaks was a child.”

Ryan swallowed.He didn’t like where this was going, but he couldn’t leave.He needed to know.

He noticed Jonas reaching for Kendrick’s hand.Kendrick allowed his mate to link their fingers together and gave Jonas a grateful smile that made Ryan feel like he shouldn’t be watching them.He glanced down at his plate, relieved to see that Kendrick’s attention was once again on him by the time he looked up.

“Cornelius ordered us to kill both Kudlaks and take the human with us,” Kendrick explained.There was pain in his voice, and Ryan prayed that his brother hadn’t gone through with that.He didn’t think so, but how would he know?He hadn’t known Kendrick in ten years.

“The human—Devon—protected his family.He put himself in front of Melissa and Haley.He refused to let us touch them, let alone hurt them.He was only seventeen, and the three of them had been living on the streets for a while.Melissa and Haley weren’t related to him.They still defended each other as if they were family.”

Ryan could only imagine.He was glad that Devon hadn’t been alone.He hated that his mate had lived on the streets, especially since he’d been so close to having to do the same.

“Anyway, to make a long story short, Clay and Rowan stepped in.Melissa, Haley, and Devon ended up at the village with a bunch of us hunters who didn’t want to stay with Cornelius after what he did.We don’t care that Haley and Melissa are Kudlaks.They never hurt anyone.”

“Of course they didn’t.Haley’s a child,” Ryan said, even though he’d never met her.

Kendrick nodded.“She is, and she’s very sweet.Both she and Melissa are protective of Devon, just like he’s protective of them.They live together even now.”

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