Page 12 of Tossed into the Mob
I longed to hold him close so his heart beat in tandem with mine and to kiss away his fear and tell him how I’d exchange my life for his. But all I said was that I would support him no matter what.
I produced a smile, a wan one, as I was sick to my stomach, wondering who Brock’s shifter father was.
I raced up the porch stairs without looking back and strode into the light, laughter, and loudness of my family. Kids were building forts and arguing over toys while one was reading, and Rudy was wearing a frothy shirt in his trademark purple. Everyone yelled my name until I held up my hand.
Rip the bandaid off.
“I met my mate.”
“What?”
“Huh?”
“Did you say what I think you said?”
Grandpa tore out of the kitchen and hugged me. He sniffed, and his eyes grew wide.
Gradually the noise faded and all eyes were on me, even the kids.
“Yeah, and he’s human.”
“It must be in the family’s DNA to mate with humans,” Flint observed.
“Madd will be next.” Ranger guffawed, and I was glad my brother wasn’t here.
“But there’s something else.”
Now the silence felt ominous. Hunter leaned forward, and Grandpa wiped his hands on the towel slung over his shoulder.
“He says he’s one of us and part of the pack.”
The room erupted. My three cousins leaped to their feet, Rudy flapped his arms, and Grandpa stood still, not even blinking.
Tony, Flint’s mate, asked Matt and Odell, Ranger and Hunter’s respective mates, to take the children into the garden.
“You’ve been conned and blinded by the mating bond,” Ranger roared. “It’s that caring part of you that’s necessary for your job but is a weakness for La Luna Noir.”
My wolf fumed at Ranger’s putdown, but in a fight, my cousin’s beast was vicious and he would bloody mine if we took our fur.
Flint put a hand on his brother’s chest and told him to calm down. “Explain, Treyton, before I find this guy and rip his head off.”
As Alpha, my cousin protected the family and the pack and he was a ferocious fighter, but the only time I’d heard him react like that was when he’d been deceived.
Grandpa bustled between me and our Alpha, telling Flint to hear me out.
“Wait.” I hoped Brock didn’t hear me yelling. “I should have said he’d been told he was one of us.”
Ranger looked at Hunter before swiveling to face Flint.
“And he’s here.” As I headed to the door, I explained he was terrified and he’d been shot two days ago.
Brock was trembling when I reached the car. But he got out by himself and held his head high. I was so proud of him. If it’d been me, I’d have been blubbering and might have peed my pants.
I steered him into the house, figuring it was best to make one introduction to the whole family. I wasn’t sure what their reaction would be, but I wasn’t prepared for the five adult Durand shifters to be standing, their mouths hanging open and their eyes not as big as saucers but dinner-plate big.
A bout of nervousness gripped me. Was it Brock or me with Brock? Had his face been plastered over the TV? He hadn’t lied, I was sure of it. So why was my family aghast?
My biggest fear was realized. He was one of not only the pack but the family. One of my cousins was his alpha father and that explained their shocked expressions, though it didn’t explain Tony’s surprised look.
