Uninvited Guests
Inpastdays,afterall of their dates, Mathias never stayed with his mate. It had been his way of respecting Ward’s space and giving the man time to get used to him.
When morning came and he stirred from his sleep, the first thing that occurred to him was that he never wanted to sleep anywhere except at Ward’s side. His lover’s presence was warm and comfortable. Deep in slumber, Ward looked angelic, at peace, with no trace of any doubts and fears plaguing him and following him into his dreams.
Mathias smiled and allowed himself to prod the mate bond slightly. He felt Ward’s quiet contentment, and it made him impossibly happy, especially since the day before, at this hour, he had thought Ward was nowhere near ready to bond with him.
He would have liked nothing more than to lie there in bed and revel in Ward’s proximity, but it wasn’t meant to be. Apprehension stirred at the back of his mind, an awareness that something wasn’t quite right.
Scowling, Mathias slid out of the bed and covered Ward with a blanket. Ward mumbled under his breath, but didn’t wake, instead burying his nose in Mathias’s pillow. He was probably exhausted after their little sex marathon. Perhaps it was for the best. Mathias could deal with whatever issue was bothering them and keep Ward safe without his mate being unnecessarily concerned about it.
Giving Ward a fond smile, Mathias pulled on his abandoned jeans and stealthily left the room. It physically hurt to leave Ward behind, and with every step he took, he became more and more possessive and protective of his mate.
By the time he heard the knock, he was pretty angry, especially since he suspected he wouldn’t like Ward’s unexpected visitor. As if to confirm his guess, a male voice echoed from outside, “Ward? Come on out. I know you’re in there.”
Mathias half-considered ignoring the unwanted guest—or rather, guests, since he could feel more than one presence. If his mate’s ex had indeed made the poor decision of tracking Ward down, Mathias knew he wouldn’t have a very good reaction. His wolf snarled inside him as he recalled Ward’s tears, the way he’d trembled in Mathias’s arms, the hurt in his eyes and the knowledge of the betrayal that had scarred Ward’s soul. Oh, yes, he could too easily imagine tearing the culprit apart.
He found himself walking toward the door before he could control that angry impulse. Half-way there, he heard a woman call out, “Ward? Please, we want to talk to—“
Mathias cut her off by opening the door. Instantly, he took in the three humans and identified the energy of one of the two females as somewhat resembling Ward’s. A jolt of relief and pleasure seemed to swell through all of them at finally receiving a reaction—until they realized Ward was not the one now standing in the doorway.
“Who the hell are you?” the only man in the group asked, fists clenched tight.
Mathias crossed his arms over his chest and leaned against the doorjamb, effectively blocking the entrance with his bulk. He suppressed the urge to snarl and instead offered the man a fake, unpleasant grin. “I’m Ward’s lover. He’s sleeping, so if you could please keep it down, I’d much appreciate it.”
The three humans stared at him in shock, although Mathias couldn’t imagine why they reacted this way. After all, Ward’s ex had repeatedly expressed his suspicion of Ward having some sort of love interest. In any case, Mathias didn’t particularly care. “If you want to see him, you can drop by later, or I can tell him you would like him to call you. Who should I say is visiting?”
One of the women recovered her voice at his question. “I’m Ward’s sister, Teresa. This is my friend Vera, and my husband, Peter.”
Peter. So Mathias had been right. The ex who couldn’t let go had decided to pay a visit. What most surprised Ward was that he’d brought the women along. Humans really were strange sometimes. “I’ll let him know,” he said, deciding it was best to end this conversation before he succumbed to the urge to shift and attack the asswipe in front of him.
“Wait,” Peter intervened. “You can’t keep us from visiting him. You have no right.”
Mathias rolled his eyes. “If there’s anyone who has no right to say anything when it comes to Ward, it’s you.”
He’d have probably added something even more unpleasant, but before he could do so, he felt the stirring at the back of his consciousness. He grimaced when he realized Ward had gotten up. Unfortunately, he only had himself to blame for it. The argument hadn’t been noisy enough to stir Ward from his slumber, but Mathias’s turmoil and the anger of his wolf definitely were.
“Mathias?” Ward called out from upstairs. “Is everything okay?”
He was far enough from the group of humans that they didn’t hear him. Mathias, however, did and he couldn’t ignore his mate’s question.
A part of him wanted to shroud the house in invulnerable wards and keep his lover safe behind them forever, but he couldn’t do that to his other half. “You have guests,” he replied instead.
Perhaps their unwanted visitors realized the reason of his words, because they didn’t try to address him again. Instead, they just waited. The awkward silence lasted for a few minutes, but finally, Ward came down the stairs and slid past Mathias to face his visitors.
He looked a little disheveled and on the whole, still well-fucked. Several purplish marks were visible on his skin, and Mathias couldn’t help a surge of possessive satisfaction at the sight. He wrapped an arm around Ward’s waist and felt warm inside when his mate leaned against him.
“What are you doing here?” Ward asked the other humans, his voice thick with anger and exasperation. “I told you I’m fine. I just want to be left alone.”
“You’re not fine,” the woman who’d identified herself as Teresa replied. “I know you’re angry about what happened, but after what Peter and I discussed, there’s no reason for you to throw this tantrum.”
“Tantrum?” Ward repeated in disbelief. “You wanted me to be your husband’s toy because you’re not in the mood to suck his dick. Thanks, but no thanks.”
Mathias couldn’t help but tighten his hold on his mate’s waist. Despite the fact that they’d bonded the night before, he hadn’t seen that memory, which was actually quite comforting since it meant he’d been able to banish that pain from Ward’s mind. Finding out about it now bothered him beyond belief.
He couldn’t imagine why anyone would agree to such a compromise. He had an uncomfortable moment when he compared it to his own experience with Will, but he pushed back the thought as soon as it came. What he’d shared with his friend was entirely different, and his confusion was nothing like the empty arrangement these people had suggested. His magic pulsed inside him, furious, just as restless as his beast.
Ward laughed lightly, and the sound cleared Mathias’s mind of the haze of fury. “I owe you, Peter. If we hadn’t broken up, I’d have never realized what a broken thing you and I shared. I might have never found Mathias. Sometimes, I can’t even bring myself to be angry about what you did. Just do us all a favor and stop pushing.”