Microsoft Word - Hagen-Lynn-Sully.doc

Zeus’s Pack 6

Sully

Austin Riggers doesn’t have an ounce of self-worth. His parents
made sure to rid him of that. But he still thinks he deserves

someone to call his own.

Sully, a soldier to the alpha Zeus, finds he has two mates. Two
mates who think he’s out to con them. Sully doesn’t understand

the mistrust and nonbelieving ways of his mates, but he’s
determined to break down their walls and show them a life they

deserve to live.

Julien thinks he’s damaged goods with an injured leg. He hides

from the world in his flower shop until his lover, James, cons
Julien into coming down to Theo’s.

Julien's life takes a drastic turn as events pull him from his
comfort zone and throw him into a life he feels he doesn’t deserve.
Can Austin and Sully save him from con artists out to steal his

savings, and can his mates show him that he is more than his
injury?

Genre: Alternative (M/M or F/F), Paranormal,
Vampires/Werewolves
Length: 36,627 words

SULLY

Zeus’s Pack 6

Lynn Hagen

MENAGE EVERLASTING

MANLOVE

Siren Publishing, Inc.

www.SirenPublishing.com

ABOUT THE E-BOOK YOU HAVE PURCHASED:
Your non-refundable purchase of this e-book allows you to
only ONE LEGAL copy for your own personal reading on
your own personal computer or device. You do not have
resell or distribution rights without the prior written
permission of both the publisher and the copyright
owner of this book. This book cannot be copied in any
format, sold, or otherwise transferred from your computer
to another through upload to a file sharing peer to peer
program, for free or for a fee, or as a prize in any contest.
Such action is illegal and in violation of the U.S. Copyright
Law. Distribution of this e-book, in whole or in part, online,
offline, in print or in any way or any other method currently
known or yet to be invented, is forbidden. If you do not
want this book anymore, you must delete it from your
computer.

WARNING: The unauthorized reproduction or distribution
of this copyrighted work is illegal. Criminal copyright
infringement, including infringement without monetary
gain, is investigated by the FBI and is punishable by up to 5
years in federal prison and a fine of $250,000.

If you find a Siren-BookStrand e-book being sold or shared
illegally, please let us know at
legal@sirenbookstrand.com

A SIREN PUBLISHING BOOK
IMPRINT: Ménage Everlasting ManLove

SULLY
Copyright © 2011 by Lynn Hagen
E-book ISBN: 1-61034-922-9

First E-book Publication: October 2011

Cover design by Jinger Heaston
All art and logo copyright © 2011 by Siren Publishing, Inc.

ALL RIGHTS RESERVED: This literary work may not be
reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, including
electronic or photographic reproduction, in whole or in part, without
express written permission.

All characters and events in this book are fictitious. Any resemblance
to actual persons living or dead is strictly coincidental.

PUBLISHER
Siren Publishing, Inc.
www.SirenPublishing.com

Letter to Readers

Dear Readers,

If you have purchased this copy of Sully by Lynn Hagen from
BookStrand.com or its official distributors, thank you. Also, thank
you for not sharing your copy of this book.

Regarding E-book Piracy

This book is copyrighted intellectual property. No other individual or
group has resale rights, auction rights, membership rights, sharing
rights, or any kind of rights to sell or to give away a copy of this
book.

The author and the publisher work very hard to bring our paying
readers high-quality reading entertainment.

This is Lynn Hagen’s livelihood. It’s fair and simple. Please respect
Ms. Hagen’s right to earn a living from her work.

Amanda Hilton, Publisher

www.SirenPublishing.com

www.BookStrand.com

SULLY

Zeus’s Pack 6

LYNN HAGEN

Chapter One

“Look.” Julien sagged in the stool behind the counter, holding the

phone to his ear as he wished he were talking to someone else. “I
can’t just close the shop because you call me on a whim and want to
go out. I have a business to run.”

“It’s a flower shop, Julien. Come on, get serious. Tell me flowers

are that much in demand,” James asked in a condescending tone, his
impatience evident. “No one has died around here that I’ve heard of,
so you’re safe to lock up for lunch.”

Julien had heard this argument time and again. He couldn’t figure

out why James acted the way he did. The man had his arrogant ways,
but Julien had thought him kind when they first started dating. Now?
Julien cringed at the way James talked to him. “Why don’t you take
my business seriously, James?”

“It’s flowers, for crying out loud. Lock up and meet me at

Theo’s.” James’s tone dropped to a playful pitch. “You know you
want to.”

Julien sighed as he cut the batch of roses in front of him. “I

guess.” Stupid him gave in, like he always did. “Give me ten
minutes.”

Lynn Hagen

“See you there.” James’s tone sounded pleased as punch when he

hung up.

Julien set down his pruners, wishing James would stop with his

mockery. It hurt that his lover always had something critical to say
about him. Julien tried, he really did, but nothing ever seemed good
enough in James’s eyes. He slid from the stool, rubbing his hand
down his bad leg. It was acting up today, making it painful for him to
walk.

Julien grimaced as he limped from behind the counter and set the

roses in the cooler. He locked up the shop, walking down the street to
Theo’s Bar and Grill. Julien winced with every step he took. His hand
rubbed his thigh as he passed a deli and continued on. Maybe he
should have been more adamant about staying at the shop, because his
leg was protesting painfully with every step he took.

Julien stepped aside as a few people walked out of the tavern,

holding onto the side of the brick building while he waited for them to
clear the doorway. Sweat trickled down Julien’s temple as the pain
radiated from his leg to his hip and lower back. Julien pulled the door
open, limping inside as he looked around.

James was in the far corner booth, looking as impatient as ever.

Julien was never comfortable coming out in public places. James
knew this but still insisted they go out, and then he always chose a
seat farthest from the door.

Julien looked around as he painfully walked toward the back. His

lips thinned as he bent down to slid into the booth, a sharp pain
shooting down his leg to his ankle. Julien grimaced and then settled
himself.

“I thought you said ten minutes?” James asked impatiently, his

tone clipped. “And why do you insist on wearing those damn boots?
Do you know how ridiculous you look in them? If you’re going to
wear those ugly rubber boots, could they not have pink flowers on
them?” James continued to complain as he picked up his menu.

Sully 9

Julien tried his best to tune James out. He had intended to change

into his Vans, but with his leg being in so much pain it hadn’t been
worth the misery just to keep James from being embarrassed. Now
Julien would be miserable listening to the man gripe about it the
whole time they were together.

He wanted so badly to lift his leg and rest it on the booth in front

of him, but he knew James would pitch a fit if he did. Julien squirmed
around in his seat, trying his best to alleviate the pain that made him
feel like he was going to pass out.

“Will you stop?” James’s eyes lifted from the menu as he stared

disapprovingly at Julien. “You look like a toddler that has to potty. Sit
still.”

“But my leg hurts.” Julien hadn’t meant to whine, but it felt as

though knives were stabbing his leg from ankle to hip. He should
have stayed home today. When he woke up this morning and felt a
sharp pain stab him behind his knee, he knew it was going to be a bad
day. But being the responsible business owner that he was, he had
come in.

There were orders to fill, and he wasn’t one to shuck his

responsibility. He probably would have made it through the day if
James hadn’t called him to come to lunch.

The waitress approached their table, taking their drink orders.

Julien ordered a cranberry juice while James ordered a scotch.

“Isn’t it kinda early to be drinking?” Julien regretted the words as

soon as they left his lips. James stared at him as his tongue rolled
across the inside of his bottom lip. He smiled tightly at Julien.

“When I need my mother’s advice, I’ll call her.”
Julien sighed heavily. It wasn’t like he enjoyed James’s criticism,

but with a bum leg, he wasn’t much of a prospect in most men’s eyes.
He had become so lonely, so desperate, that he had welcomed James’s
advances.

It was amazing what some people put up with just to have

companionship. Loneliness sucked, and Julien had been alone for two

Lynn Hagen

whole years after his injury. All he wanted was for someone to love
him. He craved an intimate relationship. Only that wasn’t what James
was giving him. But something was better than nothing. “Sorry.”

“Just remember I’m doing you a favor. It’s not like I can’t go out

and get any man I want.” James sniffed as he picked his menu back
up.

Julien gritted his teeth as he plucked the menu from its holder and

half-assed read it. He should tell James to go fuck himself. That
would be the smart thing to do, but then where would he be? Back to
my loneliness.

Julien looked around the tavern to see couples holding hands or

talking quietly amongst each other. He felt a tightening in his chest.
He craved that more than anything. The intimacy two people shared
was something he was dying to experience.

Julien tried for polite conversation, hoping James’s feathers would

unruffle. “I was thinking of expanding my shop. The mayor is using a
lot of funds to expand the town, and I thought it may be a good idea to
get a jump on the expansion.”

James sat his menu down and smoothed his hand across it,

puckering his lips before running his tongue along the bottom one. He
studied Julien intently for a moment before he cleared his throat.
“That is the dumbest idea I’ve ever heard. Your business isn’t thriving
enough for you to make such an investment.” He ran his hand down
the front of his shirt and then smiled at Julien, but the smile didn’t
reach his eyes. No, James’s eyes were cold, calculating. “You could
invest that money into that business venture of mine instead.”

Julien inwardly groaned. They’d had this conversation on more

than one occasion. James wanted Julien to invest in some half-baked
pyramid idea that he didn’t even understand. There was no way he
was throwing his hard-earned savings away. Julien might be lonely,
but he was far from foolish—most of the time. “I still don’t
understand what you’re trying to do.”

Sully 11

James rolled his eyes dramatically as he gave a heavily faked sigh.

He reached across the table, giving Julien’s hand a light tap before
pulling away. “Just trust that I know what I’m doing. You’ll get your
investment back tenfold.”

Julien was relieved when the waitress came back to take their

orders and bring their drinks. James looked irritated as hell at the
interruption but would never convey this in public. Instead he gave
his award-winning fake smile and proceeded to order. Julien smiled
politely at the waitress, who smiled back. Julien interpreted her smile
as pity before she tucked her pad into her half apron and walked
away.

“Now where were we?” James asked as he picked his scotch up

and took a sip. “Ah yes, the investment,” he stated as if he wasn’t
asking Julien to turn over his entire savings. The man had balls. Julien
would give him that.

“Excuse me. I have to use the bathroom.” Julien struggled to get

out of the booth, his leg protesting the move. He rubbed his thigh
before limping across the tavern and pushing the men’s room door
open.

Julien leaned his back against the wall, feeling hopelessly lost.

Tears prickled his eyes as he stared at his reflection in the mirror. He
felt trapped and desperate, wanting to break up with James and not
wanting to be alone all at the same time. He bent at the waist, running
both hands down his leg, trying to massage the pain away.

“I can’t keep doing this,” he said out loud. “He’s just using me.”

The sad part was, Julien knew this and still kept seeing James. They
hadn’t even been intimate. James treated him more like a dog on a
leash than a lover. Julien only referred to him as his lover because it
made him feel less lonely. God, that was so pathetic. The man would
barely touch Julien’s hand, yet he put up with James’s bullshit time
and again.

Lynn Hagen

The door swung open as a large, burly man walked in. “Whoa, I

didn’t see you there.” He stopped short and smiled down at Julien.
“You shouldn’t stand so close the door. You’re liable to get run over.”

“Sorry.” Julien scooted down the wall as his fingers left his leg.

He was very self-conscious about it and didn’t want to draw attention
to his injury. He was a fully functional adult and didn’t want to be
treated any other way.

The man stared at Julien’s leg for a moment before his eyes raised

and met his. They were full of pity and that other look he got a lot.
The thank god it isn’t me look. Julien pushed his body from the wall
as he grabbed the door handle. This was exactly why he rarely
ventured from his shop. He hated that look.

Julien paused outside the door when he saw James smiling and

talking with another man. He wasn’t the jealous type and wasn’t in
the habit of jumping to conclusions, but when James laid his hand on
the small of the other man’s back and leaned in, smiling too kindly,
Julien had seen enough.

He wasn’t going to be anyone’s pity date. He may end up alone,

but at least he wouldn’t be made to feel like less of a man. The idea of
being alone again sucked, but he’d rather deal with that than be
James’s fool for one more second.

Julien walked slowly, trying his best not to show his pronounced

limp. It was hard. His leg throbbed as he made his way across the
tavern.

James saw him coming and put some distance between his body

and the other man’s. Too late, I saw your sorry ass already.

“Julien.” James said his name fondly as Julien approached the

men. That was his first clue that something wasn’t quite right. “This is
Ed, a dear friend of mine.”

Julien caught the surprised then angry look Ed gave James. He

turned to Julien and smiled. “It’s a pleasure to make your
acquaintance.”

Sully 13

Julien shook the outstretched hand, seeing Ed assessing him. His

eyes wandered down to Julien’s leg. A quick repulsed look captured
his face before his eyes locked onto Julien’s, and a fake smile pulled
his lips back.

“He’s going to join us for lunch.” James waved his hand to the

booth, Ed scooting in.

“No, I don’t mind.” As if James would care enough to ask if he

did. “As a matter of fact, it’s perfect since I have to get back to the
shop.” Julien gave them the biggest phony smile he could muster.
Two could play at that.

“But…you haven’t eaten yet.” James’s eyes narrowed as he

leaned in closer. “This could prove a profitable lunch. Surely you
wouldn’t leave me hanging like this,” he whispered in agitation.

In other words, who was going to foot the bill if Julien left. That

wasn’t his concern. He was so weary of the feigned interest and the
fake smiles. If James gave him one more, Julien just might smack it
off of his face. “I’ll take mine to go.” He turned around and limped to
the bar.

Julien was nobody’s bankbook. He had worked too hard to just

throw it all away. A pulse of pain shot down his leg, nearly making
Julien stumble, but he managed to keep himself upright as he
continued to the bar.

In the last three months, James had managed to spend four

thousand dollars of Julien’s hard-earned money. He should have seen
it then but he was so busy fooling himself into thinking that James
actually cared. If only he had lost the rose-colored glasses back then.
He played the fool for James before he saw him for what he truly was.
No more.

A heavy hand landed on his shoulder, James spinning him around.

“You will not leave me high and dry like this,” James spat out angrily.
“Now stop acting like a spoiled child and get back over there.”

Lynn Hagen

“Why, so I can watch you and your lover try and siphon every

dime out of me?” Julien knew he spoke the truth when James’s eyes
slightly widened and then quickly composed. I knew it!

“I don’t know where you get those ridiculous ideas. Ed is a friend,

that’s all.” The contemptuous look James gave Julien chilled him.

“I’m not going back over there, James.” Julien’s hands fisted at

his side. “Do you think I’m that big a fool? We haven’t even slept
together, and you’ve managed to get four thousand dollars from me.
Fool me once, shame on you.”

“So this is about sex? You’re willing to throw away what we have

because we haven’t slept together?”

James missed his calling. He would be a box office hit with his

performance if he ever decided to take up a career in acting. “I never
took you to be such a shallow man, Julien.”

Julien actually gaped at James as they stood in the middle of the

tavern. Was he serious? “No, you took me to be a lonely man
desperate for company. I’d rather use my hand.”

Julien could see the pulse on the side of James’s face throbbing as

he turned a deep shade of red. “That’s crude. Now are you going to
get your ass back over there and stop with this childish behavior?”

For the first time, Julien saw the greed in James’s eyes. How

could he have missed something like that? “No.” He turned back
around, ready to get the hell away from James and his scamming
ways when he lost his balance and hit the floor, hard.

“Oh my, are you okay?” James gasped and knelt down beside

him.

He leaned in, reaching out to help Julien up when his whispered

so low that only Julien could hear him. “Do you think you can
embarrass me and then just walk away?”

“You pushed me!” Julien accused as he struggled to his feet. He

saw something in James’s eyes that made ice water trickle down his
spine. This man was not going to give up so easily. He could see it all

Sully 15

over James’s face. Julien winced when fingers dug brutally into his
upper arms as James helped him to his feet.

“You’re hurting me,” Julien whimpered.
“Then get your scrawny ass back over there to that table and play

nice.” James smiled at all the people who had surrounded them “He’s
fine,” he announced as he literally dragged Julien back to the table.

“My leg, you can’t walk me so fast.” The pain shot from his hip,

around his waist and radiated up his back. It was getting worse, and
there was nothing Julien could do about it.

“I told you once before that your pain was all in your head.”

James practically shoved him into the booth and then took a seat next
to Ed.

“Is everything okay?” Ed asked a little too loudly. Julien could see

his eyes were just as calculating. It dawned on him that these two
were a team, out to scam and bully money from helpless victims.

Julien hadn’t the height, weight, or ability to fight these two off.

His heart thundered behind his ribs as he realized that he might still
lose his hard-earned savings to these two scam artists. How had he
fallen prey to them?

Julien knew how. He had been an easy target. James spotted the

vulnerability in him right away and had used that against him.
“You’re not getting my money.” He only had eight thousand left in
the bank, not bad for someone of twenty-four years, but it was his. He
had earned it. Not these fuckers.

Ed chuckled as he laid a hand over his breast bone. “We’ll see.”
Julien looked around, desperately trying to find a way out of this

maddening situation.

“I wouldn’t advise that,” James warned in a malevolent tone.

“You wouldn’t want to make us your enemies. I know where you
work and sleep.”

Julien gulped as he looked from one to the other wondering how

he was going to get away. “Why? Why are you doing this to me?”

Lynn Hagen

They both shared in a laugh as James looked over at him,

contempt dripping from his words. “Why not? People like you make
it easy for people like us.”

“You mean con artists.”
James looked over at Ed, a smug smile pulling at his thin lips.

“Call it what you’d like. You’re going to leave this bar and take us to
your bank. And believe me when I say you’ll be dead by morning if
you open your mouth to anyone.”

Julien quickly nodded, letting the two know that he understood.

The waitress brought their food, and then took Ed’s order. He racked
his brain the whole time trying to figure a way out of this mess. James
and his partner were much larger than him, not muscular, but with his
bum leg, he didn’t stand a chance.

They finished their meal, Julien pulling his wallet out and paying

by credit card. He once again looked around, but no one was paying
any attention to him. When the waitress returned with his card, Julien
signed the receipt as James and Ed basically dragged him through the
tavern.

Julien leaned his back into the building once they cleared the

doorway. His leg was killing him. It throbbed so violently that he
thought he was going to pass out. Julien reached down to massage it
only to have James and Ed grab him by his upper arms and forcefully
walk him down the street.

To anyone looking at them, it seemed that the two were just

helping Julien along. He wasn’t one to think quickly or clearly in a
stressful situation. His mind wouldn’t focus as he tried again and
again to think of a way out of this terrifying situation.

“You’re going to go in there and act normal,” James snarled in his

ear as he pointed to the bank. “Tell them you want to close your
savings account.”

“Won’t that seem suspicious?” Julien kicked himself in the ass.

He had just blown his chance at possibly getting help.

Sully 17

“You better make it believable, and we’ll be watching you. So

don’t try and write a help note or give any signs to the teller.” Ed
tightened his hold on Julien’s arm, his fingers digging deeply into
Julien’s tender flesh. He whimpered. Julien wished he was stronger,
more able to handle himself, and had the ability to kick their sorry
asses. What he wouldn’t give to see these two go down.

They entered the bank, the two releasing him as they took a seat

close to the teller window. Julien wanted to bolt, but knew that was
impossible. Not with his leg and not with the two con artists sitting
close-by. He finished the transaction and thanked the woman as she
handed him a large envelope.

He lost his mind at the last second with thoughts of losing his

hard-earned money. Julien walked away from the two scam artists and
quickly headed for the exit. There was no way those two thugs were
getting their greedy hands on his savings.

The pain threatened to bring him down, but Julien wasn’t going to

lose what he had worked so hard for. He got past the exit as James
and Ed caught up with him right outside the door. Julien was about to
scream for help when someone knocked into him.

Julien crashed to the ground for the second time that day. He

howled as his leg exploded with pain. Julien held the envelope to his
chest as he rolled back and forth in agony.

“Dude, shit, I’m sorry. Let me help you up.”
Julien was about to open his mouth and cry for help when the

stranger leaned in closer. The guy quickly whispered into Julien’s ear,
“Cry for a hospital, damn it.”

“I need an ambulance,” Julien shouted as James and Ed

approached him.

“We can help him. We’re friends,” James said as he took a step

closer.

“That’s funny. I’ve known him my whole life, and I’ve never met

you before,” the stranger retorted.

“Oh yeah, then what’s his name?” James demanded.

Lynn Hagen

Julien howled again, and the stranger leaned in close. “Julien,” he

whispered quickly.

“It’ll be okay, Jewels.” The stranger petted his arm. “I’m going to

call one for you.” The stranger pulled his cell out and called EMS.

James and Ed looked livid. A small crowd had gathered, so there

was nothing they could do right now. When the ambulance arrived
and the pair tried to get into the back, Julien shook his head and
pointed to his savior. “I want Ted to help me.”

The pair of con artists cursed as the doors closed in their faces.

Julien and the stranger looked at one another as the EMT assessed
Julien’s leg and asked questions. Julien could feel his face heat when
the stranger heard his answers.

“By the way, it’s Austin, not Ted.” The stranger leaned in and

winked at him. Julien nodded and laid back, wondering what he was
going to do about the scam artists. They could trash his store while
Julien was at the hospital. He wasn’t stupid enough to give James a
key, but the door in the back of the shop was flimsy as hell.

Austin stayed with him the whole time he was in the emergency

room. Once they were finally alone in one of the rooms, Julien started
in on him. “How did you know what they were doing?”

“Dude, I was sitting in the booth right behind yours at Theo’s.

Those two suck at whispering.” He chuckled.

“And what made you want to get involved?” Julien had heard

there were people in the world that helped idiots like him out, but he
would never in a million years think that he would run across one.

Austin snorted as he crossed his arms over his chest. “I didn’t like

the way those two asswipes were treating you. Just because you’re
short doesn’t make you a target.”

“Yes it does.” Julien learned the hard way. He would never trust a

smile or sweet words again. Why Austin was helping him, he hadn’t a
clue. The man was just as skinny as him and only had an inch or two
on him. Maybe the guy had a Napoleon complex when it came to

Sully 19

rescuing the twink and putting the large man in his place. Whatever it
was, Julien was beyond thankful.

He tried to get Austin out of the room when the doctor came in to

examine his leg, but the guy wouldn’t hear of it. Julien could have
demanded Austin leave, but after saving his ass, Julien didn’t want to
seem ungrateful.

Julien recognized the doctor. He was one of the surgeons that had

assisted in the operation to his leg. “Dr. Samuel.”

“Hey, Julien. What’s going on?” he asked as he pulled a metal

stool up to the bed and looked over Julien’s chart. “Says here you
were having severe pain in your leg.”

“Somewhat.” He couldn’t tell the doctor what actually happened,

and he didn’t want to lie to him either.

“It’s my fault. I accidently ran into him outside the bank and

knocked him down.” Austin jumped in and once again rescued him.
Julien sent a thank you smile to the man as Dr. Samuel nodded.

“That will do it. Let’s take a look.” The doctor pulled Julien’s

gown up, exposing his shame. Julien glanced over at Austin,
expecting to see revulsion on the man’s face, but Austin only smiled
at him. There was no pity in his eyes or that familiar look that said he
was glad it wasn’t him. Austin had a genuine friendly smile as he sat
back and watched the doctor work.

“I’d like to get a few pictures, but I think the pain was from the

impact. It should ease up. I’ll order something for the pain.”

“Thanks.” Julien quickly pushed the gown back down as the

doctor removed his gloves and tossed them in the trash.

“Hang in there.” The doctor patted his good leg and left the room.
“That was easy.” Austin got up from the plastic chair and sat on

the stool. “This is kind of cool. Can we play doctor?” He grinned
from ear to ear.

“Hardly.” Julien grabbed the sheet and pulled it over his lower

half, thinking he just met another crackpot. “I don’t even know you.”

Lynn Hagen

“Okay, that’s fair.” Austin stuck his hand out. “I’m Austin

Riggers. Now can we play doctor?”

Julien’s brows pulled together as he stared opened mouth at the

man. “Did you escape the loony bin?”

“Nope. But I know when a guy is hot and gay. And you’re hot and

gay, so why fight it?”

“What makes you think I’m gay?” Julien knew it was true. He had

that soft look that made people automatically call him gay. It had been
a curse in high school and was still one with his disability. Guys
looked at him with lustful eyes until they saw him limp, and then they
ran as fast as they could in the opposite direction.

“’Cause you sure are pertty.” Austin batted his lashes as he teased

Julien. He couldn’t help but laugh at Austin’s antics. He was funny
and cute.

They both turned when the door to his room opened, James and

Ed walking in.

Sully 21

Chapter Two

Austin couldn’t believe what he was seeing. Were these asswipes

really that serious? He wasn’t a fighter, not by far, but that didn’t
mean he didn’t have a backbone. Austin would have one for him and
Julien. There was something about the skinny guy that made Austin
want to protect him.

“Hello, gentlemen,” the ugly one with the mousey-brown hair

spoke. Austin had an urge to pick up the stool and hit him over the
head with it. They weren’t getting to Julien, not on his watch.

“I thought dogs weren’t allowed in the hospital.” Austin hit the

nurses’ button as he smirked at the two men.

“You got a vicious little mouth on you.” The other one advanced

toward him, but the man with the mousey-brown hair stopped him.

“Get out, James.” Julien tried to sound brave from the bed, but if

Austin could hear the fear in Julien’s voice, so could they.

“I warned—” James started to say but the nurse walked in just

then, looking at the men standing around.

“I’m sorry, but there are too many people back here right now. If

he gets admitted, then you gentlemen can visit, but only one person is
allowed back in the emergency room to be with him.” She nodded
toward Julien.

“Sorry, James, you and Stimpy have to go.” Austin smiled

wickedly as the two morons’ eyes promised retribution. Austin didn’t
give a shit. He liked Julien and wasn’t going to let him get hurt.

James nodded and smiled a big ass faker at the nurse. “My

apologies.” And then he and his sidekick left.

Lynn Hagen

“Is there something you needed?” she asked gently as she stood at

the end of Julien’s bed.

“Nope, you just took care of it, doll.” Austin winked at her.
She blushed as she raked her eyes over Austin’s body. “Let me

know if there is anything else you boys need.”

“Will do.” Austin grabbed the metal stool and took a seat once

again. “Okay, where were we before Beavis and Butthead interrupted
us?”

Julien played with the edge of the sheet as he shrugged. “You

were telling me your name.”

“Oh yeah.” He laughed. “I wanted to play doctor.” Julien was so

easy to make blush. Austin liked the pinked cheeks. It contrasted well
with Julien’s pale skin and black hair. He really was a hottie. “So,
seriously, how do you know those two?”

Julien sank further down the bed, staring up at the ceiling. Oh, this

was going to be good. “I dated James.”

Austin gaped at him, not expecting that answer. “The mousey-

brown haired weasel or the man with dandruff problems?”

“The first one,” Julien admitted with embarrassment.
“Why? You’re hot.” Austin waved a hand at Julien’s face and

body. “You could do so much better.” Austin couldn’t believe Julien
would settle for someone like that. He was trying his best to get Julien
to notice him. What the hell did that creep have to hold Julien’s
attention?

Julien’s head rolled until he was staring angrily at Austin. “If you

haven’t noticed,”—he pointed down to his leg—“I’m not exactly a
prize.”

“I thought the pink boots were hot.” What the hell was Julien

talking about? “They add to your daring persona.” He gave Julien a
wink as he smiled devilishly.

Julien grunted as he struggled to sit up. Austin automatically

reached out to help, but Julien batted his hands away. “You know, I’m
not that stupid. I know you saw my leg, so stop with the act.”

Sully 23

Austin frowned as he tried to figure out what the hell Julien was

ranting about. “Your scar? Big deal. I know that’s not what this is all
about. Tell me you’re not gay and I’ll back off, but don’t find any old
excuse.”

Julien slapped the sheets and then howled in pain. Austin was at

his side in two seconds flat. “What the hell did you do that for?”

“I didn’t do it on purpose!” He panted as a sheen of perspiration

coated his face. “Don’t act like my leg didn’t disgust you,” Julien said
between clenched teeth.

“Just lie back and stop throwing a fit. I told you the scar didn’t

bother me.” Austin sat back on the stool when Julien lay back down.
He was going to figure out what the man’s deal was. Julien was too
hot to let slip through his fingers.

“Stop coddling me. What is your angle? What are you after?”

Julien fired the questions at him as he narrowed his eyes at Austin.

Fuck. The guy was the most mistrustful man he’d ever met.

Austin could see now that Julien was going to be a tough nut to crack.
“I think you’re hot. I told you that already.” And it was the God’s
honest truth. Smoking hot.

Julien looked at Austin like he was full of shit. He’d deal with that

right now. They still had those two asswipes to shake loose. Austin
knew they hadn’t heard the last of them. From what he could gather in
the tavern, those two weren’t going to give up easily.

“We’re in the hospital. Go get your head examined,” Julien said as

he smoothed the sheets out, refusing to look at Austin.

“Dude, are you always this hard on yourself? Seriously, you need

to let up on the backlashing and just go with it. Works for me.”

“The last time I let go and just went for it, I ended up with James.

Sorry, but I think I’ll use a map this time.”

Austin wanted to bang his head on the railing of the bed. The guy

was just too damn sexy to be so bitter and cynical. What was he going
to have to do to convince Julien that he had no ulterior motives?
Tattoo it on his forehead?

Lynn Hagen

Austin moved back when a tech guy came in to take Julien down

to get his pictures for the doc. He wanted to follow, but Julien was
making too much of a fuss, so he stayed put. Austin couldn’t figure
the guy out for the life of him.

He sat back, wondering if Julien was going to give him the brush-

off when this was all done. It would be a shame if he did. Austin
genuinely liked the guy. There was just something about Julien that
pulled at Austin, and he planned on exploring that feeling. It wasn’t
like he had much of anything going on for himself.

He had a shitty ass home life where his parents swore his highest

achievement was going to be Austin getting onto the most wanted list,
and he really didn’t have any friends. It wasn’t that he engaged in
illegal activities. No, they were just so fucking loving with their
praises. What he did to piss them off, Austin would never figure out.

What did they expect? He grew up in a home where his parents

fought night and day and knocked him around like a rag doll. Was he
supposed to turn out sane? His self-worth was in the shit can as it was.
Julien had been a ray of light when he saw him at the tavern. Austin
wanted to get to know the man—bitterness and all.

Saving Julien from those jerk-offs was the least he could do.

Maybe that would be a mark in his favor for that bitch called fate.
Austin needed something to go right in his life.

“You’re still here?” Julien asked when he was brought back to the

room.

“Why not?” Austin asked as he waited for Julien to settle in. Man,

the guy was so pretty. His black hair looked so damn soft that Austin
wanted to run his hands through it. He drew in a deep breath to still
his libido. Julien had Austin’s cock standing up and taking notice, and
the only thing the guy was doing was tucking the sheet in around him.

“They’re gone. You don’t have to stick around.” Julien said the

words, but Austin saw the same loneliness in Julien’s eyes that he
carried around inside himself.

Sully 25

“Why don’t you take a ride on the trust train and give me a

chance? I swear I won’t derail us.” Austin wiggled his brows, gaining
a giggle from Julien. God, that smile was stunning. Austin wanted to
see that smile all the time.

“You’re nuts.” Julien laid his hands on his lap, staring at Austin

with gorgeous blue eyes.

“That may be true, but I’m fun.” Austin kept Julien entertained as

they waited on the doctor. Finally, after a million years, the doc
returned.

“Everything looks fine, Julien. Just take the pain meds and give

your leg a rest.”

“See. It all worked out,” Austin said after the doc left. He scooted

the stool over an inch, seeming to need to be close to the man.

Julien just shrugged. Austin wondered what was going through

the guy’s mind. He’d sure like to know. The nurse came in and gave
Julien his walking papers. Once Julien was dressed, Austin walked
out into the bright afternoon sun with him. “I’m gonna walk you
home. I don’t trust those two.”

“They said they’d make me pay.” Julien walked slowly.
Austin could see pain radiating on Julien’s face and wished there

was some way he could take that pain away. He walked close, giving
Julien his space but close enough to catch the guy if he fell.

“If they’ve done anything to your shop, we’ll fix it,” Austin

reassured Julien. Scam artists need to be collected and thrown in jail.
It angered Austin to think of Julien being used like that.

“I have to stop at the bank first and redeposit my savings.” Julien

and Austin headed that way. Austin watched the beauty, wondering if
he had ever seen a more handsome man. He couldn’t help it. Austin
was so damn taken aback by Julien.

“We can do that.” He opened the door once they reached the bank

and helped Julien through the door. Once he took care of his business,
Austin walked him home.

Lynn Hagen

Julien pulled out his keys and opened the flower shop. Austin

went in first and looked around but didn’t see anything out of place.
He helped Julien take a seat behind the counter, a relieved look on the
man’s face as he sat down. Austin’s hands lingered for a moment and
then fell away.

“So you own this place?” he asked as he moved away and then

gave himself a tour. It was a nice flower shop, for a flower shop.

“I moved in a few years back. It took a while for me to get things

going, but I’m happy with the way it is. Why?” Julien asked with a
hint of suspicion in his voice. Austin rolled his eyes. The guy wasn’t
going to give him a break.

Austin walked over to the cooler of flowers, peering in as he

ignored Julien’s suspicious question. He liked the guy, but Julien
could make a man question his own motives. Austin knew he wasn’t
out to use the flower store owner—if only Julien knew that as well.

They both turned when someone came through the front door.

Two men. Austin immediately moved closer to the counter, hovering
there as the gentlemen looked around.

“I’m looking for a dozen lilies,” the redhead said as the small

blond with him nodded.

Julien winced as he slid off of his stool. It was on the tip of

Austin’s tongue to tell Julien to sit back down, but the guy must have
been reading his mind because he shot Austin an aggravated look.

Julien limped to the cooler, pulling out a dozen beautiful white

lilies. Or at least Austin assumed they were since he was flower
ignorant.

“Those will do.” The man smiled and then turned to his partner.

“What do you think, Toby? Will Zeus like them?”

“Zeus? Mayor Zeus?” Austin asked.
Julien slowly made his way back around the counter, setting the

flowers down in front of him and grabbing a small vase off of a shelf
behind him.

“The one and only.” The redhead chuckled. “It’s our anniversary.”

Sully 27

Austin scratched his head when the redhead grabbed Toby around

the waist, hauling him close to his body. The mayor was in a ménage?
Austin never would have guessed. He’d seen the man on a few
occasions, and Zeus didn’t look the type. Whatever. Austin didn’t
judge people, so it really didn’t matter to him.

What did matter was the pain he saw on Julien’s face. That wasn’t

setting to well with him. It was true that he just met the guy, but
already Austin was developing some kind of feelings for the man.

He never believed in love at first sight before. To him that was

romantic bullshit. But Austin was quickly changing his mind as he
stared at the beauty in front of him.

“These are the freshest in stock,” Julien said as he wound some

kind of lacey looking ribbon string around the vase. Austin was
impressed with the way Julien’s hands seemed to just flow as he
worked.

“They’re beautiful,” Toby said as he leaned forward and inhaled

deeply. Austin had to admit that the fragrance of the shop did smell
good. He never thought he’d get into flowers, but as he stood there
next to Julien and inhaled, Austin was quickly becoming a fan.

“Thanks.” Julien smiled, making Austin’s heart skip a beat. “I’ll

give you a small card on how to care for lilies so they’ll keep longer.”

“Hell, I just need them to keep long enough to give them to Zeus.

I’m looking forward to the thank-you we’ll receive.” The redhead
chuckled as Toby smacked his chest.

“Behave, Jasper,” Toby admonished the guy.
Austin gave a small chuckle at the pair. He wondered what it

would be like to be out and proud to everyone. His parents would
probably kick him out if he announced to them he was gay. Not that
he hid it. Austin just didn’t advertise it.

Julien gave a soft laugh as he slid the vase across the counter.

“Here you go. Good luck.”

Lynn Hagen

“Oh, hell, honey, we don’t need luck, just lube.” Jasper laughed as

he paid for his purchase and grabbed the vase with one hand, his
partner with the other. “Thanks.”

“Come again.” Julien waved at the pair as they exited the store.
“Nice couple,” Austin commented as he turned back to the man

that had him panting in place. As they left, he caught Julien staring at
the couple with a wistful smile on his face. Austin could see the
longing in Julien’s eyes before the man saw him staring and looked
down at the counter, busying his hands by cleaning up the leftover
mess.

“Yeah, they were.”
“So now that the asswipe is off the radar, wanna date?”
Julien’s hands faltered as he gaped at Austin. “I just met you,” he

stated with a small snort.

“Details.” Austin waved his hand absently in the air. “If we date,

we’ll get to know each other.”

Julien shook his head as he finished cleaning the counter up.

Austin’s heart plummeted with the rejection. He really did want to get
to know the guy. He schooled his features, pretending that it was no
big deal.

“Why don’t we get to know each other first and then take it from

there?”

“I underst—” Austin stopped midsentence as Julien’s words

caught him off-guard. He wasn’t expecting that. “Did you just say
yes?”

“No. I just said let’s be friends and see how that goes. Honestly, I

think you have a one-track mind.” Julien tossed the rest of the
leftovers into the trash. He began to get down from the stool when
Austin caught his arm.

“What do you need? I’ll get it.”
Julien’s face pinched as he yanked his arm back. “I can get it on

my own. I’m not an invalid.”

Sully 29

“No, just prickly as hell. I wasn’t indicating that at all. I was just

trying to be useful around here. Geez, stop gripping my balls so
tightly.”

Julien sat back on his stool as he crossed his arms over his chest, a

smirk playing across his lips. “Fine, take the trash out.” The hottie
said it like it was a punishment. Austin just bowed, twirling his hand
in front of him.

“Your wish is my command.”
“Whatever.” Julien rolled his eyes at Austin.
He laughed as he emptied the trash bins, liking the smile on

Julien’s face. It fit him. Austin had no problem helping the guy out. It
would also give him a few minutes to get his body back under control.
He had a raging hard-on and didn’t want Julien to kick him out if he
saw the bulge in the front of his jeans.

It was going to take some control and a lot of trust to get past

Julien’s defenses, but he was worth it. Austin didn’t plan on going
anywhere. He’d come here every day just to show Julien how sincere
he truly was.

Austin tossed the bags of trash in the bin, looking around to make

sure the two asswipes that were after Julien weren’t lurking around. It
wasn’t like he could fight them off, but Austin didn’t like Julien being
so defenseless. The florist seemed like a really nice guy, and Austin
wasn’t going to let anything happen to him if he could help it.

Austin walked through the back door, making sure it was good

and locked. He checked the window next to the door and made sure
the latch was in place. For good measure, Austin stacked some boxes
by the back door.

If those jerks tried to sneak in, they’d knock over the boxes and

alert Julien to their presence. That should give some time for the
florist to get out of there—if Julien wasn’t one of those types to go
investigate the noise.

Austin hoped he wasn’t.

Lynn Hagen

Chapter Three

Sully chuckled as he slammed the truck door and headed into

Theo’s Bar and Grill with Torem. He felt like he was on top of the
world. The construction crew was finally finished with their new
home, and they were razing the old one this weekend. Now there was
something to celebrate.

They entered the tavern in full swing with the lunch crowd. All

three flat screen televisions were going with some sport or another
playing across them, and the conversations all around them were
flowing. They made their way over to the horseshoe-shaped bar that
sat in the center of the tavern. Sully spotted the owner, Theo, and
gave him a friendly nod.

“I’m buying lunch.” Sully clapped Torem on the shoulder as he

tossed a leg over the barstool and sat down. He immediately grabbed
the peanut bowl and started breaking the shells apart as he waited for
Theo to take their orders.

“You can buy, but I’m not putting out.” Torem raised his hand for

one of the servers’ attention. Sully shuddered at the thought of having
sex with Torem. Not that the Beta was ugly, Sully just preferred his
bed partners a little less dominant.

“I should tell Sidney and Dino you made that comment.” Sully

grabbed a few more peanuts, dropping them on the bar as he picked
them up one at a time and cracked them open. One of the servers
came over and placed an empty bowl in front of Sully for the empty
shells.

Torem’s head snapped around as he lowered his arm. “You

wouldn’t.”

Sully 31

Sully loved the pale look on Torem’s face. It made him laugh that

a strong Beta soldier like Torem could quake in his boots over his two
mates. “I have Sidney on speed dial. Wanna bet me?”

“Fucker,” Torem mumbled as he ordered their beers.
Sully chuckled as he swiveled around, giving the Beta his back,

glancing around the tavern. It was pretty full for lunch. Two of the
mates were sitting over in one of the booths chatting away. Sammy
and Tristan waved at him from across the bar. Sully smiled as he
waved back. Tristan stood out like a sore thumb with his big red
fedora hat on.

Hunter and Quinn’s mate sure knew how to dress. He was

wearing a button-down shirt with pineapple designs on it and loosely
fitting pink cargo pants. Sully chuckled at the guy. Tristan was a
really sweet guy, but fashionable he was not.

Sully continued to scan the tavern and noticed some commotion

over in the back corner booth of the tavern. He watched as two men
stood by a table, looking as though they were ready to choke the guy
standing in front of them pointing his finger up in the couple’s face.

Sully nudged Torem and nodded his head toward the scene. Theo

even stopped what he was doing to watch. Sully noticed one man
sitting down with pink rubber boots on, large pink flowers adorning
them. The man sitting down looked scared as fuck as the other short
man growled and yelled at the couple.

Sully shot out of his seat and pushed through the crowd when one

half of the couple grabbed the man pointing at them by the collar,
shaking him around.

“You little fucking punk, who the hell do you think you are?” the

one with his fist buried in the shorter man’s shirt asked. The shorter
man licked his lips nervously as his eyes darted between the couple.

“Is there a problem here?” Sully asked as he approached with

Torem right behind him. Sully’s eyes glanced over at the short blond
man, making sure he wasn’t hurt.

Lynn Hagen

“No, none whatsoever. This is something between us four.” The

man swished his finger between his partner and the two short men at
the booth.

“It looks to me like they no longer desire your company.” Sully

looked over at the two short men. The one in the booth blushed as he
nodded. The short blond man standing glared up at the couple.

“We told them to take a hike, but the dynamic duo of

dysfunctional hearing refuse to bug off,” the one with his shirt being
wrinkled said.

Sully stopped the smile from spreading across his face. This one

was feisty. He liked that. The blond-haired cutie had spunk, even
though Sully could smell fear coming off of him in waves. He sniffed
again…and again.

Fuck!
Sully growled and jerked the man’s hand away from his mate’s

shirt. “If you touch him again I’ll teach you what it’s like to be
bullied.”

Torem snapped his head around to Sully, his mouth hanging

slightly open. The Beta quickly schooled his features and glared at the
couple. Sully knew Torem had no clue what was going on, but the
Beta wouldn’t let these two assholes know it.

“Yeah, now get the hell out of here.” The short blond man who

was his mate inflated his chest and jabbed his finger toward the
couple. Sully once again had to fight not to burst out laughing at the
way his mate was being so courageous. It made him proud.

Sully snapped his arm out, pointing toward the door. “I think you

should leave.” The couple stood there motionless for a moment, and
then the one with the greasy-looking brown hair sneered at the guy
sitting down.

“This isn’t over.”
“Yes, it is.” Sully stepped in the fucker’s personal space, making

sure there was no mistake that he was giving a threat, not a request.

Sully 33

The couple backed away, giving the two shorter men menacing

glares before walking out of the tavern in a huff. Sully kept his eyes
on their backs until the door closed. He relaxed his stance as he turned
back to the pair at the booth. “Friends of yours?”

The feisty one standing snorted and waved his hand at Sully.

“Hell no. Those jerks are money hungry—umphf.” The one standing
grabbed his arm and rubbed it. Sully cocked his head, wondering why
the man sitting had punched the one standing. The blond rubbed his
arm once more before dropping his hand. “What?”

The pale, black-haired man glared at blondie, giving a slow shake

to his head. Sully wondered what was going on that he needed to
know about. He slid into the booth, Torem sliding in next to him.
“Tell me what’s going on.”

The black-haired man blushed and looked away, choosing not to

answer Sully.

“We don’t even know you guys. How do we know you’re not con

artists as well?” This earned the blond guy another punch in the arm.

“Will you stop?” Once again he was rubbing his arm.
“My name is Sully. This is Torem.” Sully nodded toward the

Beta. “Now we know each other, so talk. What are they trying to
scam?”

“I’m Austin, this is Julien. He’s a florist.” This time Austin

dodged the flying fist. Sully was starting to get the impression that
Julien didn’t like any information about his life, not even his name,
being revealed.

Austin settled back, his eyes watching Julien as he spoke. “How

do we know you two aren’t scam artists as well? We don’t even know
you. For all I know, you’re on the most wanted list.”

Sully could see his mate was wary and mistrusting. If he’d been

dealing with a con artist, Sully didn’t blame him.

“I’ll be right back.” Austin pushed from the booth and turned to

Julien. “Don’t listen to anything they’re trying to sell. Just say no.”
He spun around and headed toward the bathroom.

Lynn Hagen

“That bad?” Sully asked as he tried to make polite conversation

with Julien while he waited for his mate to return. He froze in his seat
when he noticed that intoxicating scent of his mate hadn’t dissipated.
It stayed strong. Sully leaned forward, sniffing at Julien.

The man cringed back, staring strangely at Sully. Oh fuck. Sully

inhaled deeply and realized that the scared little black-haired man
sitting across from him was indeed his second mate.

Sully sat back, not wanting to scare his mate any more than he

already had. “So, you run the floral shop around the corner?” Sully
wasn’t surprised when Julien didn’t answer him. His mate’s eyes kept
darting to the bathroom, looking for Austin. Sully wanted to do
something to comfort his mate, but he was at a loss of what to do.

Julien probably saw him and Torem together and thought they

were another couple of con artists. Sully nudged Torem, kicking his
head to the side, giving him the sign to get lost. Torem grunted and
pushed from the booth, still giving Sully a perplexed look before
walking back over to the bar.

“Julien, is it?” Sully tried to start a conversation, but Julien looked

at him like a deer caught in the headlights. “Nice boots.”

“Why are you sitting here?” Julien practically growled the

question.

Okay, note to self, don’t talk about the boots. Sully sighed. This

was not going the way he had always imaged it would when he found
his mate, or in this case, mates.

A thousand sarcastic and witty comebacks raced around in his

head, all vying for the opportunity to be the first to come rushing out,
but Sully bit them all back. Julien was prickly already. He didn’t need
to run the guy off. “The booth had plenty of room. Figured I’d park
my ass here while I ate. Do you mind?” Sully asked as Theo walked
over on cue and laid his plate down in front of him. Damn it smelled
good.

Sully 35

“No, I mean why are you here? Why did you stop James and Ed?”

Ah, so the fuckheads had a name. Good to know. Sully filed the
names away as he picked up his fork.

He shrugged at Julien, staring into some gorgeous ass blue eyes.

“Don’t like seeing anyone messed with.” He sucked the pasta in, the
string swinging around and slapping his chin as it disappeared. Sully
picked up the napkin and wiped the sauce from his face.

“I don’t need anyone’s pity.” Julien grumbled as he peeled away

the paper label on his beer bottle. He picked at it as his eyes started
darting back toward the bathroom.

“Your boyfriend hasn’t deserted you. He’ll be right back,” Sully

said, feeling Julien out and trying to get a handle on the duo’s
relationship. He didn’t have to wait long.

“He’s not my boyfriend. We’re just friends,” Julien said and then

looked as though he wanted to kick his own ass for giving away
something about himself. He winced and then his jaw tightened, like
he wasn’t going to say another word.

“He trying to sell you something or talk you out of anything?”

Austin asked as he slid in next to Julien. Austin’s green eyes twinkled
under the florescent lights as he assessed Sully. It was an
uncomfortable moment that seemed to stretch out forever before a
smile, complete with pearly whites, graced Sully.

“What?” Sully asked as he wiped the sauce from his chin again.

The smile didn’t reach Austin’s eyes, and Sully could smell
apprehension all around Austin.

“You eat spaghetti like a kid.”
Sully looked down at his plate, seeing only one string dangling

from the tines, waiting to be sucked in through his lips. He chuckled
and lifted his fork, attaching his lips to the end of the pasta and
sucking it in through his mouth. When the end of the rope smacked
his chin, Sully smiled and wiped the sauce. “I guess I do.”

This got a genuine smile from Austin, even a small one from

Julien. “Okay, put all your cards on the table. Tell us what it is you

Lynn Hagen

want, and you can save us all from dancing around each other. I have
two left feet so I’m anxious to get this over with.”

Sully sat his fork down on his plate and stared into Austin’s eyes.

“I don’t think you could handle the truth.”

“Please. I was born handling the truth when the doctor smacked

me on the ass. That told me right there that life was full of surprises.
What surprise do you have?” Austin asked as he clasped his hands in
front of him on the table, giving Sully the evil eye.

Sully picked his fork back up, wondering how off his little blond

mate really was. “First, I’m going to surprise you by eating this entire
plate of pasta. Theo piled it high enough for three. And then I’m
going to surprise you by taking a leak, washing my hands, and then
probably belching a few times. My grand finale will be paying the bill
for everyone at this table.”

“Not impressed.” Austin sat back, his lithe fingers scratching over

a chest Sully would love to lick, suck, and bite.

“Sorry I’m not more daring. I left my wig at home.” Sully twisted

the pasta around the fork before shoveling it into his mouth as he
remembered the time he had to don that wig to help Knox out. “But
you can tell me about those con artists,” he said after chewing his
mouthful.

“Why? How do I know you’re not working with them? How do I

know that wasn’t all a setup to gain our trust?” Austin asked as he
pounded his fist on the table.

“Because everyone in this town knows him, including the mayor,”

Theo said as he joined them. This wasn’t going exactly the way Sully
had envisioned it, but if Theo could help him out of this fucked-up
mess, he’d gladly take the help.

* * * *

Sully 37

Theo had no intention of interfering with Sully and his mates. But

it was becoming painfully obvious that Sully needed bailing out. He
was crashing and burning at a high rate of speed.

“Well, I kinda know you,” the blond man admitted to Theo. “So if

you’re vouching for him then I guess he’s not a con artist.”

Theo wanted to laugh but bit back the urge. Things seemed pretty

tense already around the table. The one man with the black hair sat
there watching everyone. Theo remembered him from the few times
he had frequented his tavern before.

“Gee, thanks,” Sully teased the blond. Now that the tension was

broken, Theo made his way back to the bar. The lunch rush was in
full swing. He was needed. He’d thought about hiring more help, but
Theo wasn’t sure yet if that’s what he wanted to do.

“They look happy now.” Torem smiled from the other side of the

counter.

“I suppose.”
“That was nice of you to step in and help Sully.”
Theo had a bad habit of always trying to help others out. The

problem was, most of the time it came back to bite him in the ass. A
few things worked out though. Like Sammy. He was a great guy—
even if Sammy’s mate hovered around the entire shift.

Theo wrapped his knuckles on the counter in front of Torem.

“What’ll you have for lunch?”

“Just a sandwich.” Torem rattled off his choice as Theo called one

of the servers over to take Torem’s order to the back.

“Where’s Sidney and Dino?” Theo asked as he leaned against the

bar. The great thing about owning his own tavern was that Theo got to
know everyone in town. There weren’t too many places to eat except
his place and Harold’s Deli, so most people wandered into his tavern.

Torem snorted as he took a drink of his beer. “They’re coming.”
Theo didn’t stop to ask what that was all about. Most people

confessed their life secrets to him anyway, no use begging for more.
“Let me know, and I’ll get their lunch orders right away.”

Lynn Hagen

“Thanks,” Torem replied.
Theo wrapped his knuckles once more before walking over to the

left side of the bar where someone was holding his hand up. Theo
knew most people who came through here, but this man wasn’t
familiar to him. Theo walked slowly, sauntering over with his best
swag. This man was hot, and Theo wanted to make a good first
impression.

He tipped his head in a nod, giving the guy a lazy smile. “What

can I get for you?”

The stranger’s eyes twinkled as he returned a killer smile toward

Theo. “I’ll start with a Michelob.”

Theo’s hands itched to run over the stranger’s strong and tattooed

biceps. They made his gums itch to take a small bite from the golden
flesh. “Coming right up.” Theo was surprised his voice held steady as
he walked away to get the man’s beer. He could have grabbed one
from the cooler below the bar, but he needed a moment to calm his
heart and hopefully shake off his erection.

It had been too long since someone affected him that way. Theo

knew the exact date by heart. It was the day his mate had died. That
was twenty years ago, and he hadn’t felt the strong urges he was
feeling now since then.

He’d scratched his itch when he needed to, but this stranger called

to Theo’s wolf like nothing he’d ever felt before. The guy wasn’t his
mate. There was no pull, but Theo wouldn’t mind getting to know
him better.

His hand dipped down into the cooler on the other side of the

horseshoe-shaped bar, his fingers going numb after a moment of
keeping his hand submerged. Theo finally took a deep breath and
sauntered back over to the stranger that was flipping his world on its
ear. “One Michelob.” He held the bottle up before setting it on the
counter.

Lynn Hagen

Chapter Four

Julien wasn’t sure what to make of Sully. Hell, he was still

working Austin out in his mind. How the hell did he go from dating a
loser like James to having these two gods sitting with him? Maybe
James had slipped something in his drink and Julien was hallucinating
all of this.

“So, mind telling me why you’re so interested in us?” Austin

asked. “Unless you’re only interested in one of us.”

Julien could hear the apprehension in Austin’s voice and

wondered what in the hell was going on around here? “I have to use
the bathroom.” Julien pushed at Austin until his friend moved out of
the way. How the hell could Austin sit there and flirt with someone
else while he was sitting right there? It was James and Ed all over
again.

“Okay, I’m moving, I’m moving.” Austin scooted out as he glared

at Julien. “There’s no need to knock me out of the booth.”

Julien ignored him as he tried his best to walk without a limp to

the bathroom. That was all he needed, to see pity, or worse, in Sully’s
eyes. “Like I care,” Julien muttered as he pushed into the men’s room.
It wasn’t like he had a chance with Sully anyway.

“What the hell is wrong with men lately?” Julien asked aloud as

he used the bathroom. He wasn’t comfortable around men as it was.
Now couples were coming at him in droves. Julien had to admit that
being around Austin was fun, if not psychotic. He hadn’t had that
much fun in a long time. But now he was flirting with Sully? Just
when Julien was beginning to open up to Austin, too.

Sully 41

“I don’t need any of them,” he argued with himself in the mirror.

“I was better off by myself.”

Julien straightened and closed his mouth when the bathroom door

opened. He grabbed some towels and dried his hands, tossing the
paper into the trash can. When he turned around, he saw Sully
standing there. Julien wasn’t sure what he should say to the handsome
man.

“I’m not trying to steal Austin from you,” Sully offered. “You

know what’s going on as well as I do.”

Julien shrugged as he leaned against the counter. “There’s nothing

to steal. We’re just friends.” He ignored the rest of what Sully said.
There was no use laying claim to it. Who would want someone with a
bum leg?

“Good.” Sully walked right up to Julien and cupped his face,

taking Julien by surprise as Sully’s warm lips connected with his. His
body shuddered as Sully backed him further into the counter, settling
between Julien’s legs.

Julien gasped as Sully’s tongue licked across his lower lip. No

sooner had his lips parted then Sully plunged his tongue in. Julien’s
head was spinning from the drugging effect Sully’s touch had on him.
If this was a dream, Julien prayed he didn’t wake up.

All too soon the kiss ended, leaving Julien feeling achy and needy.

He was afraid to have Sully move because the man would know just
how much Sully had affected him by the bulge in the front of this
pants.

“You kiss wonderfully,” Sully growled low in his ear. Julien’s

body gave one low throb at the stranger’s words. And Sully was a
stranger. The reality of that crashed over Julien like a bucket of ice
water. He pushed at Sully’s chest, trying to get the handsome man to
back away.

“I don’t know you.”

Lynn Hagen

Sully backed away without a fight, giving Julien the space he

obviously wanted. Julien wanted Sully to move back into position as
soon as the heat cooled from his body. Are you fucking crazy?

“I’d like to get to know you.”
Julien didn’t know what to think. Why would someone as

handsome as Sully want to get to know him? It was like he dated
James and then bam, all these men were coming out of the woodwork
to date him. What was the catch? There was always a catch.

“I need to get back to Austin.” Julien scooted down the counter

until he was free and clear of Sully before hurrying to the door. He
was confused as hell about all of this. Not one but two gorgeous men
were vying for his attention. Julien just couldn’t figure out what the
hell was going on.

The one thing he knew for sure, and what scared him the most,

was the fact that both men were his mates. And the second fact he
knew for sure was that neither would want him when they realized the
extent of his injury. It was no use laying claim to either of them. The
one factor Julien couldn’t figure out was how he ended up with two.
How in the hell did that happen?

* * * *

Austin sat in the booth, stretching his neck to see where Sully had

gone. He wasn’t sure what to think, but Sully was one hot ass dude.
Austin was confused by his instant attraction. He usually didn’t jump
on one guy when he was trying to court another. It just wasn’t him.

He saw Julien emerge from the men’s room, making his way back

over. His brows pulled tight when he saw Sully coming out a second
later. It really wasn’t any of his business. Julien was a free man to flirt
and date whomever he liked. But it didn’t sit right with Austin.

As much as it bothered him, Austin had no right to question

Julien. It was Julien’s business what he did with other men. His
business alone.

Sully 43

Austin scooted out of the booth to allow Julien in, watching him

slowly make his way to the wall.

“So, are you going to go after Sully instead?” Austin mentally

punched himself but still waited for Julien to let him know where he
stood. His skin prickled with anxiety as Austin sat down beside the
gorgeous man. This was grueling.

Julien twisted his face up as he stared at Austin. “What? You

think because he came into the bathroom that I’m gonna fuck him
now?”

Okay, so maybe he should have kept the question to himself,

because Julien was giving him the stink eye now. Austin squirmed
under Julien’s glare as he tried to think of a way to dig himself out of
the hole he just dropped his ass into.

“Are you hungry?”
Julien gave him a glare for a moment longer before he shrugged.

“That’s what we came here for.”

Just great. Now Austin had Julien pissed at him. Something he

didn’t intentionally want to do. “I’ll be right back.” Austin hurried
away from the booth and hoped his friend would be cooled off by the
time he came back.

“Theo,” Austin called to the owner. Austin frequented this place

enough to know the owner and some of the patrons, but he’d never
been in here when Sully had come in. He would have noticed the god.

“What can I get for you, Austin?” Theo asked. The owner seemed

preoccupied. He stood there in front of Austin, but his head kept
swiveling to his left.

“Two lunch specials.”
“You got it. I’ll have it brought over to your booth.” Theo

wrapped his knuckles on the counter and walked off.

Well, okay then. It wasn’t like he didn’t want anything to drink.

Who would want something to drink with their lunch? Austin shook
his head as he glanced back over at his booth. Sully had sat back
down across from Julien and they were talking.

Lynn Hagen

Austin quickly walked back over with every intention of pissing

on his territory. He spotted Julien first and there was no way this
walking muscle-bound god was going to steal Julien from under him.
They had history together. The trip to the hospital was held fondly in
Austin’s heart, and there was no way some tall, manly, drool-worthy
god was going to take Julien away.

Austin was so screwed.
“You come back to steal my man?” Austin asked as he slid into

the booth, making sure his body touched Julien’s. Julien rolled his
eyes and pushed Austin a few inches away.

“Knock it off,” Julien grumbled.
“Nope, that’s not my intention,” Austin mumbled.
“Just what are your intentions then?”
Austin’s head snapped up to meet Sully’s inquisitive eyes.

“Uh…”

Sully smirked. “That’s what I thought.”
“Hey!” There was something strangely odd about this

conversation, but Austin couldn’t quite put his finger on it. He seemed
to be losing some battle he didn’t know he was fighting.

“You still haven’t told me about those two boneheads,” Sully

reminded him.

Austin’s eyes widened when Sully’s hand tightened around the

glass he was holding. He was surprised the damn thing didn’t shatter.
He could almost feel the waves of anger rolling off of the big man. He
just couldn’t figure out why Sully was so upset.

Unless the man was upset because Austin wasn’t giving up on

Julien. “I saw him first!” Austin slapped his hand over his mouth the
moment the words passed over his lips. He felt his face flush with
color when Sully simply cocked an eyebrow at him.

“What the hell is up with you?” Julien hissed in his ear. “Have

you lost your ever loving mind? He could wipe the floor with both of
us and not even break a sweat.”

“You’re not scared of Sully, are you?” Austin whispered back.

Sully 45

“Have you seen the man?”
“Sully won’t hurt you.” Somehow, Austin just knew it was true.

“He wouldn’t touch a hair on your head.”

“There are other ways to hurt people than physically, Austin.”
Well, damn. Austin didn’t have a response to that.
“Hey, the man is right here, and neither of you are as quiet as

you’d like to think you are.”

Austin closed his eyes for a moment and wished he could sink

through the bench seat. If he spent any more time with his face being
red, Julien was sure to send him packing. He looked like the world’s
biggest fuckup. Big surprise there. His parents always told him that
was his calling in life.

Austin sighed and turned back to face Sully. “Sorry, man.” He put

a heavy emphasis on “man” just to be a shit. It worked. Sully
chuckled, which alleviated some of Austin’s embarrassment, but not
all. It didn’t help when Julien elbowed him in the ribs. “What did you
do that for?” Austin asked as he rubbed his ribcage. Today just wasn’t
going like he thought it would.

“Because I could!” Julien snapped as his jaw jutted out.
Yep, Austin was batting a thousand today. Now Julien was pissed

at him. Sully thought he was an idiot and the man was trying to steal
Julien away from him. To top it all off, he was still no closer to
getting Julien to agree to go out on a date with him.

Some days it didn’t pay to get out of bed.

* * * *

Sully wasn’t sure what was going on between his mates, but he

still wanted to get to the bottom of those two scam artists. He watched
Julien from across the table, wondering why his mate didn’t or
wouldn’t acknowledge that they were mates.

Was he that undesirable?

Lynn Hagen

Austin smiled when Theo brought their lunches to the table. Sully

wanted to growl at the tavern owner for putting the look of delight on
Austin’s face when he was having a hard time getting the man to
smile.

“Thanks, Theo.” Sully nudged his head to the side to indicate he

wanted Theo to beat feet. There was no way he was going to let the
sexy tavern owner linger around. He was having a hard enough time
already with these two. Sully didn’t need complications.

“So what do you two do for a living?” Sully asked when Theo

took the hint and got the hell away from their table. He noticed Julien
roll his eyes and Austin wince. Just what the hell was going on with
these two?

“Julien owns the floral shop, as I already said,” Austin answered

for their dark-haired mate. Julien shoved an elbow into Austin’s side
as he glared at him.

“Oh, come on, man. Don’t tell me that’s a secret as well? All he

has to do is walk in and see you there. Lighten up,” Austin griped as
he stabbed at his food. “I mean, if you want your presence all cloak
and dagger, buy a cape.”

Sully could see the embarrassment on his dark-haired mate’s face.

Julien was turning a delightful shade of red. Sully chuckled as he ate
his pasta. He was dying to know everything about Julien. He seemed
so damn secretive.

“And you?” he asked Austin.
“A little bit of this and a little bit of that. Nothing concrete at the

moment, but I’m working on it.”

So his blond-haired mate was unemployed. No biggie. With the

job market the way it was, one couldn’t be held accountable for it.

“You?” Austin asked.
Sully sat his fork down, wondering how much, if at all, Austin

knew about shifters. How did he tell a human that he was a wolf
shifter and a soldier for the alpha of his pack? “A little bit of this and
a little bit of that.”

Sully 47

“Yeah, I know that feeling.” Austin glanced up at Sully from

under his lashes as he ate his lunch. Sully was satisfied for now that
he knew where he could find these two. It just amazed him that his
mates had been in this town all along and he never ran across them
before. It wasn’t like he had any good reason to go to a flower shop.

Sully pushed his empty plate aside, wiped his mouth, and then sat

back. “I guess I’ll be heading out. Do you mind if I come by and
visit?”

“I don’t think—”
“Sure, why not.” Julien shrugged. Sully was a little surprised that

Julien was the one agreeing. His quiet mate hadn’t been very
receptive or sociable since meeting him. Sully pushed his way from
the booth, ready to head out and give his mates some space when
Austin caught his arm. Sully could see the longing in his blond-haired
mate’s eyes. He would have given anything at that moment to erase
that look.

“You aren’t out to hurt us, are you?” Austin asked.
Sully reached over with a hand and squeezed Austin’s. “No.” He

wasn’t sure who had hurt Austin before, but Sully was determined to
make sure it didn’t happen again. “I’ll be stopping by to see both of
you.” He winked and then headed over to the bar where Torem was
sitting.

“Two of them, huh,” Torem stated when Sully nodded for them to

head out. He wasn’t really in the mood to talk about it. For some
strange reason, Sully felt overprotective of the two. He didn’t even
want Torem to know their names. He wasn’t sure why he was feeling
so possessive, all Sully knew was that he would kill those two scam
artists if they came near his mates again.

“Go figure. I never saw that one coming,” Sully teased as he gave

Theo a quick wave goodbye, wishing Torem would change the
subject.

Sully could feel the heaviness in his chest as he glanced back at

his mates. He didn’t want to leave them but he knew grabbing the two

Lynn Hagen

and taking them home wasn’t an option at the moment. He felt better
knowing where they would be, where he could find them.

Torem headed out of the tavern door first, both having to push

their way through the lunch crowd. Sully tried to look at everyone
there. He didn’t like not knowing where those two fuckheads had
disappeared. He didn’t want to leave his mates and then find out that
the two sharks were off in the cut somewhere watching and waiting.

“You okay?” Torem asked once they cleared the entranceway and

headed for the Beta’s truck. Sully wasn’t, but he nodded anyway.
Every cell in him wanted to rush back in there and grab his mates,
never letting them go.

“Yeah, I’m cool.”
“Are you sure you want to leave them?”
No, he wasn’t, but he knew the two in the back booth needed time

to absorb him. Julien already knew who he was, and Austin needed to
find out. Sully wasn’t a patient man, but for his mates, he would
become one.

“It’s fine. I know where to find them.” Sully gave Torem a tight

smile before opening the passenger door and climbing in.

Sully gave Theo’s Bar and Grill once last glance before Torem

pulled away from the tavern.

Sully 49

Chapter Five

Okay. Julien wasn’t going to panic. No, he wasn’t. He was already

having a hard enough time trying to figure out what he was going to
do about Austin, now Sully? It wasn’t as though he could tell them to
fuck off or anything like that. They were his mates for crying out
loud.

How in the heavens did he end up with two mates? Julien walked

down the steps from his apartment above the flower shop to find
Austin waiting outside the front door. He was always waiting at the
front door. Julien couldn’t understand what Austin saw in him. He
knew why Sully wanted him, and it irritated Julien.

The only reason Sully was slightly interested was because they

were mates. If it weren’t for that fact, the man wouldn’t have looked
twice at him. No good-looking man did. Austin was another story
though. He was a strange enigma. Austin was human with no clue
about mating, so why was the guy always coming around and coming
on to Julien?

Julien wasn’t going to fool himself into thinking he had it like that

with these two very hot guys after him. He wasn’t ugly, but he was
well aware of his disfigurement. Why would anyone want to be with
him? And Austin had seen his leg and brushed it off as if his leg was
no big deal. That was what made Julien want to get to know Austin
better.

To see what his angle was.
He moved through the floral shop slowly, trying his best to hide

his pronounced limp as he made his way to the door. “I thought I
canceled my subscription to Strays magazine.”

Lynn Hagen

“Yeah, yeah.” Austin pushed the door open and walked in. “Think

you’re funny this morning, don’t ya.”

Actually, Julien had thought it was very funny. Guess Austin

doesn’t get my brand of humor. Julien shrugged more to himself than
at Austin. He walked back through the store and over to the counter,
taking a seat on the stool as he looked over his orders for the day.
Some people would call him old-fashioned, but Julien liked to keep
his orders in an appointment book. His record keeping was done on
the computer, but he liked to have his appointments in his hands,
handwritten in a book.

He scanned over what needed to be done today as Austin moved

around the store. He noticed Austin’s movements and looked up from
his book with a frown. “Didn’t you clean before you left last night?”

Austin smiled over at Julien with that nothing-but-straight, pearly

white-teeth smile. Every time Austin did that, Julien’s cock became
uncomfortably hard. It wasn’t so much that Austin was his mate, but
the fact that the guy was devilishly handsome. Julien always wanted
to give in when Austin looked at him that way and let him fuck him
into the greenery.

“Nothing is ever too clean.”
Julien’s heart did a pitter-patter when Austin began to move his

way. He wanted to do more with Austin, hell yeah he did, but the
knowledge that his mate would see his disfigurement had always
made him put the brakes on. “It’s clean enough. I don’t see how you
keep finding things to do around here. The shop isn’t that big.”

Oh hell, Austin was still moving closer. Julien looked down into

his appointment book, pretending he was busily looking over the
day’s to-do list. He could feel Austin when his mate stood next to
him, so close that all Julien had to do was turn his head and they
would be in kissing distance.

Julien swallowed and realized that his mouth had gone bone-dry.

Austin reached over and brushed Julien’s hand as he tapped Julien’s
book. “What do we have to do today?”

Sully 51

His mate’s breath rushed across his heated skin, making Julien’s

hands shake as he held the book up, almost using the small, thin
ledger as a shield. “Three orders so far.”

“Only three?” Austin’s hand brushed down Julien’s back, settling

on the small of it. Julien desperately wanted to lean into his mate’s
touch, to be held and told he wasn’t worthless now, and that his leg
wasn’t a factor in any of this. James had taught him better though.
The scam artist wasn’t that good-looking, and look how he had
treated Julien, so what could he hope for with this treasure of a man?

“Yeah,” Julien croaked out. “Only three.”
“When is the first order due?” Austin asked as one of his

fingers—the thumb Julien assumed—played over his back. Julien bit
his bottom lip to hold back the moan that was going to spill if Austin
kept up his finger play. He could feel a wet spot on the front of his
jeans, and all Austin was doing was rubbing his back. Julien
wondered what his body would do if Austin went a little further.

The kiss Sully had given him in the bathroom damn near made

Julien come in his jeans. He remembered that. It had been way too
long since he’d been laid. It wasn’t like James had been willing to
touch him, so technically it had a few years since he’d had sex.

Julien’s body began to shake as Austin leaned in a little further,

inhaling his scent as if he were a were-creature. “You smell amazing.”

“Th–Thank you,” Julien managed to say as his nerves jumped. He

wanted Austin to stop and knew he would kill the man if he did.
Never before did he feel so damned confused. He had lectured
himself upstairs about how it was just sex, no biggie. But now that
Austin was standing next to him, so close that it was sinful, Julien felt
like a train wreck.

“You’re welcome.” Austin’s breath whispered across Julien’s

neck, setting his skin ablaze as he sat there waiting to see what Austin
would do. He prayed his mate would go for it and then prayed that he
wouldn’t. Julien was going to pass out from so much pent up sexual
want.

Lynn Hagen

Julien froze, not moving one damn muscle when Austin’s soft lips

ghosted across his ear. Turn your head and get a kiss, numbskull.
Julien nearly did that until he chickened out. His disfigurement
stopped him from making any advancement.

“I want you, my little sexy friend,” Austin whispered into the shell

of his ear and then backed the statement up with a flick of his tongue.

Julien shuddered.
He was rusty when it came to men and sex, but Julien wanted

more, so much more. He chanced it and leaned closer. It seemed that
Austin was waiting on that signal. Both his arms circled around
Julien’s waist, pulling him closer as he brought his lips down Julien’s
jaw and then around to his lips.

Julien felt like he was going to shake apart as Austin seized his

lips. He tasted Austin for the first time and knew he would never get
enough. Julien fisted his hands in his lap as Austin breathed him in,
kissing him slowly and softly as if he were fragile glass. Julien’s
hands trembled as he lifted them up, placing them on Austin’s
shoulders. He was rewarded for his effort when Austin thrust his
tongue deeply into Julien’s mouth.

Oh, God, Julien couldn’t think straight with the scent of his mate

surrounding him. He took the ultimate chance and gave control over
to his mate. Julien whimpered as he tried to scoot closer, turning his
body around so Austin could push into the apex of his legs. Julien
desperately wanted to wrap his legs around Austin’s waist and forget
every single reason he had fought this.

Austin growled against his lips, hauling Julien closer as his mind

shattered, leaving him open and vulnerable. Austin’s hand played
over Julien’s back, coming back down to cup his ass, bringing their
cocks closer as Julien forgot his own name.

He wanted to cry when Austin broke the kiss, resting his forehead

against Julien’s. “We better stop or I’m not going to stop,” Austin
warned as he breathed raggedly against Julien’s cheek. His fingers

Sully 53

dug into Austin’s shoulders, holding him close as he tried to get his
breathing and libido under control.

“Do you want me to stop?” Austin whispered the question so low

that Julien almost thought he imagined it.

He was unable to verbalize his wants. Julien was terrified of what

was happening between them. He shook his head slightly, praying to
whoever would listen that Austin didn’t use him and then toss him
aside. It would kill him.

“Good, I didn’t want to,” Austin said as he pulled Julien from the

stool. Julien slid from his seat, his body pressing against Austin’s.

“I’m scared,” he said as he buried his face in Austin’s neck.
“I know.” Austin’s hands ran up Julien’s back and then carded

through his hair. Julien shuddered. He was tired of being alone. He
wanted to feel alive again.

Their cocks brushed against one another’s, making Julien

desperate to feel them together, unhindered. Julien felt Austin’s
fingers touching the edge of his skin, making him pull closer. “I want
more.”

Austin nodded. He pulled away from Julien, making his skin cool

off and leaving him cold. His mate didn’t go far. He locked the shop
door and then crossed the room back to Julien, pulling him toward the
stairs that led to his apartment.

Julien pulled back, his senses somewhat returning. Austin must

have felt this because he turned around and cupped Julien’s face,
kissing him until he forgot what he was about to protest. Austin
walked backwards, climbing the steps slowly as he led Julien upstairs.

Julien squeaked when Austin fell backwards, his butt landing on

the steps. Austin laughed as he pulled Julien down with him, pulling
Julien’s shirt over his head. Julien raised his arms, allowing Austin to
undress him. “Damn,” Austin whispered as his hands smoothed over
Julien’s nipples. “Just, damn.”

There was no way Julien was going to stop his mate. He was

making Julien feel like he mattered once more. Austin sucked one

Lynn Hagen

nipple in as his fingers played with the other one, making Julien moan
out loud.

Austin pushed away from the steps, pulling Julien with him as he

sucked at Julien’s chest, guiding them both upstairs. Julien wasn’t
paying the least bit of attention to where they were going. All he
knew is that he didn’t want Austin to stop.

His mate pushed the door open to the apartment, guiding Julien in

as he toed his shoes off. Julien kicked his off as well. Austin never
broke the suction of his lips as he shoved his jeans down. Julien
nearly swallowed his tongue when he saw his mate was not only
commando, but just as hard as Julien was.

Julien’s mouth watered to taste Austin’s hard cock. His mate’s

cock was surrounded by a nest of golden-blond hair, making Julien’s
heart thunder behind his ribs as he stared down at the halo of delight.

Austin walked backward to the couch and then turned, pushing

Julien down onto his back. His mate crawled between his legs, finally
letting Julien’s puckered nipple go. Julien wanted to pull his mate
back, make him suck it a little longer. It had felt too good to let his
mate go, but Austin seemed to have something better in mind.

His mate scooted down, popping the button and unzipping his

jeans. Julien immediately grabbed Austin’s wrists, fear taking hold at
the thought of his mate seeing his leg up close.

Austin’s eyes snapped up, staring at Julien from under the shadow

of his blond lashes as he shook his head, pulling his hands free. He
never stopped staring at Julien as he curled his fingers into the
waistband and pulled Julien’s jeans down around his hips. Julien was
terrified.

His cock slapped his stomach as Austin licked his lips, a wicked

smile playing across his mouth as he dipped his head and took
Julien’s cock into his mouth.

Julien cried out as Austin’s fingers dug into his hips. It had been

so long since he had felt anyone sucking his cock that Julien thought

Sully 55

he was going to explode any second. His hands automatically
threaded through Austin’s hair as his mate pleasured him.

Julien knew for a fact Austin was trying to suck his brains out

through his cock.

* * * *

Austin knew he had to scatter Julien’s brain cells to make his

soon-to-be lover forget about his leg. He couldn’t understand Julien’s
fears. He had seen the scar at the hospital, and to him the scar was no
big deal. It wasn’t small, but it wasn’t ginormous either.

He flattened his tongue, rubbing it up and down over the bundle of

nerves under the helmet as he slowly pulled Julien’s pants free.
Austin knew Julien wasn’t paying any attention to his denim slowly
leaving his body. He was expertly sucking his lover’s cock, making
sure Julien’s mind was preoccupied.

Austin dropped the jeans to the floor as he let his saliva run down

Julien’s cock, wetting a finger with it. Austin suckled at the head as
he separated Julien’s ass cheeks. He prayed Julien didn’t stop him. He
was so damn hard that it hurt. Austin wanted nothing more than to
sink balls deep into Julien’s soft skin.

He pushed his finger into Julien’s asshole, stopping at the first

knuckle, waiting for his lover to object. When Julien mewled,
writhing under him, Austin took this as a green light and pushed his
finger in further. He moved his finger around, looking for Julien’s hot
switch. He grinned around the beauty’s cock when Julien damn near
jumped off of the couch when Austin’s finger grazed over the walnut-
sized gland.

Austin ran his tongue up and down the prominent vein alongside

Julien’s cock as he tempted fate and inserted a second finger. There
was no way in hell he was leaving Julien’s apartment without fucking
this gorgeous man. No damned way. Austin scissored his fingers as he
pulled Julien’s cock to the back of his throat.

Lynn Hagen

Julien lay under him panting and sweaty as he inserted a third

finger. Austin was going out of his mind with lust as he readied his
lover for his cock. He couldn’t believe how tight Julien was. He
didn’t remember his lover telling him he was a virgin, but damned if
he didn’t feel like one.

Austin let Julien’s cock slip from between his lips as he pushed to

his knees. He pulled his shirt over his head and tossed it aside as he
crossed his fingers that Julien wouldn’t change his mind. “Lube?”

Julien’s arm waved toward the bedroom. Austin smiled down at

his disoriented lover, wanting to lick every damned square inch of his
creamy flesh. He hopped up, racing in the direction Julien had
pointed. Austin didn’t want to take too long, fearing Julien would
change his mind. He snagged the bottle from the side stand and then
raced back into the living room as he struggled to get his jeans off.
Austin practically dumped the whole damn bottle onto his cock as he
lathered the gel from tip to base. He climbed back onto the sofa,
getting onto his knees between Julien’s legs.

He could see some sort of reality filtering back into Julien’s eyes,

and Austin wasn’t going to have that. He pushed Julien’s legs back
and curled his fingers around his cock, lining it up as he stared down
into Julien’s beautiful blue eyes. “Ready?”

Julien’s Adam’s apple bobbed as he nodded, fear and longing in

his lover’s eyes. Austin gave Julien a quick nod and then pressed the
head of his cock against Julien’s hole. Austin eased forward, unsure
of Julien’s sexual experience. He really didn’t want to hurt his lover.

His jaw clenched at the tight fit as he worked his cock in, inch by

slow inch. Austin placed his hands on Julien’s shins. Not only did he
want to help Julien support his wounded leg, but also he needed
something to grip as he lost his damn mind.

“So, so, so tight,” Austin chanted as his fingers dug into Julien’s

shins. He took Julien’s bad leg and straightened it out, placing it on
his shoulder, hoping that made his lover more comfortable. It must

Sully 57

have worked because the tension drained from Julien’s face as his lips
parted and his eyes rolled back.

Austin smiled at his new lover. He was so damn hot.
The couch wasn’t very big, and Austin wished he had taken the

extra steps to make it to the bedroom, but he had been so afraid Julien
would change his mind. Austin leaned forward, bracing one arm on
the back of the couch and the other on the seat. He looked down into
Julien’s glazed eyes as he smiled at his friend. “Hi.”

Julien smiled back, melting Austin’s brain.
“Hi.” He laughed.
Austin leaned forward, gaining a kiss from Julien before pulling

back. He didn’t want to put an undue pressure on his lover’s bad leg.
Austin thrust deeper as he reached a hand over and tweaked Julien’s
pretty little nipple. Julien gasped when Austin did this.

“My leg.” Julien looked away as he said this.
Austin lowered it until it was around his waist, watching Julien’s

side profile to see if the move bettered it. He reached over, laying his
fingers under Julien’s chin, and brought his head back around, leaning
forward to kiss away his lover’s shame.

Julien just didn’t know. Austin would do anything for him and

thought he was the sexiest man alive. There was nothing about Julien
that repulsed Austin, and his lover needed to understand this.

“Give me more, please,” Julien begged into Austin’s mouth.

Austin’s heartbeat throbbed in his ears at Julien’s small plea. He
planted his hands on either side of Julien’s head as he pulled his hips
back and thrust hard into Julien’s tight entrance.

Austin knew what his lover wanted when Julien cried out,

hitching his hips higher as his fingers dug into Austin’s chest. Sweat
dripped from his temples as Austin became a little rougher, trying to
give Julien what he wanted without hurting him. His pelvis slammed
into Julien’s soft mounds as his cock was massaged by Julien’s tight
grip.

Lynn Hagen

“Oh hell,” Austin groaned. He wasn’t going to be able to hold out

much longer. He had waited too long to be right here, inside of
Julien’s body. Austin reached down, pulling at Julien’s cock as he
hammered into his lover. Julien became very vocal as Austin
repeatedly punished Julien’s ass.

He had to admit to himself that he liked the fact that Julien wanted

it a little rough. It gave him free reign to let his desires loose without
restraint. Austin reared back, grabbing Julien’s legs and pulling them
to his shoulders as he grabbed Julien’s hips, thundering into Julien’s
ass at lightning speed.

“Yes,” Julien hissed as his hands curled into the couch. Austin

wiped the side of his face on his shoulder as his cock sawed in and out
of Julien’s ass. He couldn’t hold out. Austin was about to come, and
there was nothing that was going to stop it.

Julien arched his back as he shouted, his seed erupting onto his

chest and chin as his whole body shook. Austin slammed his eyes shut
as Julien’s tight star pulsed around his cock, slinging Austin over the
edge at breakneck speed.

Austin cried out Julien’s name as he came, his semen bathing

Julien’s inside. Austin gasped for air, his chest heaving as he opened
his eyes, looking down at his new lover. Julien lay on the couch with
his eyes closed and his head turned.

Fuck. Austin prayed his lover wasn’t regretting what they had just

done because there was no way this was only happening once.

Austin was now addicted to Julien with every breath he took.

Sully 59

Chapter Six

Sully pulled the door open to the flower shop to find the place a

total mess. His senses went on alert as he scanned the small shop. He
didn’t see either of his mates, but that didn’t mean they weren’t lying
somewhere hurt.

He slowly made his way to the back of the shop, keeping his ears

open and sniffing the air. Sully growled when he smelled those two
fuckheads that had been harassing his mates at Theo’s Bar and Grill.
If they hurt either of his mates, Sully was going to make sure they
paid—slowly and painfully. He wasn’t an ex-soldier of the sadistic
Jackson for nothing. He had learned a thing or two. Although Sully
didn’t like to think about his time under Jackson’s ruling, he would
use his knowledge to maim anyone dumb enough to come near what
was his.

Sully walked slowly into the back room, his eyes taking

everything in. The back door looked as though it had been forced
open. He growled at the flimsiness of the wood that should have
protected his mate. He was going to make sure Julien got a better
back door. Hunter, the wolf that owned the hardware store, would
help another mate out. Sully was sure of that.

The back room looked as though it hadn’t been the victim of

whoever broke in. Sully turned on his heel, his heart beating out of
control as he looked for either or both of his mates. There were steps
behind a door that Sully had opened. He guessed it to be Julien’s
apartment. Without thought, he climbed the stairs quietly, letting
himself in. Sully was going to have a talk with Julien about locking
doors.

Lynn Hagen

The small apartment looked pristine and in order. So whoever

broke in hadn’t come upstairs. Sully felt a small relief knowing the
vandals hadn’t invaded his mate’s personal space. He closed the door
and then walked back down the creaking wooden steps. He was
perplexed that the place was trashed and his mates weren’t here.

Julien didn’t seem the type to wander the streets. Sully had

noticed a pronounced limp when Julien walked and knew it had to be
painful for his mate to get around. Sully pulled his cell phone out,
calling the house.

“Sup.” Rave, another soldier, answered the phone.
“I need help down at the floral shop. It looks like someone broke

in and trashed the place.”

Rave’s playful voice vanished, a menacing tone replacing it.

“Which floral shop?”

“There’s only one in town,” Sully replied as he stared at the

broken stems on dozens of roses. “I think I know who did this.”

“On my way.” Rave hung up.
Sully slid his phone back into his pocket as he studied the shop.

Whoever did this was trying to leave a message. The thing was, Sully
was the one to receive it. Now he and his fellow soldiers were going
to go on the hunt for the one responsible.

He wanted to clean the mess up before his mate saw it and lost his

mind, but Sully knew he couldn’t touch anything. Instead, he called
the sheriff. “Jesse, it’s Sully. I need you over at the flower shop.
Someone broke in and trashed the place.”

“I’ll be over in a minute. Don’t touch anything.”
Sully rolled his eyes. He wasn’t that inexperienced. He knew what

Jesse and his deputy, Craig, needed to do.

Sully stepped back outside of the shop as he waited for whoever

showed up first. He hoped it wasn’t either of his mates, although he’d
like to know where in the hell they were. Sully leaned against the
brick building as he looked around the street. The morning sun was
already blazing hot, making Sully sweat in his black T-shirt and jeans.

Sully 61

He stood up straight when he saw Rave and Taz heading his way.

Those two got into more trouble than the law allowed. It was Rave
who was the levelheaded one, but he always let Taz talk him into shit.

Sully shoved his hands in his front pockets as he waited for Rave

to park his truck. They never spoke of feelings, especially after being
under Jackson’s rule. And the fact that they were guys, but Sully had
an overwhelming urge to thank Rave and Taz for getting here so fast
and taking this seriously.

“What’s going on?” Rave asked as he closed his truck door.
“You have to see this.”
Taz jumped out of the passenger’s side, slamming his door closed

as he walked toward the shop.

“Watch it, jackass,” Rave growled as he narrowed his eyes,

shoving his index finger in Taz’s direction. “I’ll make you sit in the
back on the way home if you do that shit again.”

“That might be fun.” Taz chuckled.
“Fine then, I’ll tie your ugly ass to the hood,” Rave threatened as

he stepped up onto the sidewalk.

“Ignore dumbass,” Rave said as he approached Sully. “What’s

going on?”

Sully could only shake his head at the two. He should have known

what to expect when he made the call. “Someone broke in and tore
the shop to shit. I don’t know where Julien or Austin are though.”

“Julien and Austin?”
Sully forgot the fact that he hadn’t said a word about his mates.

Torem knew, but apparently he hadn’t said a word either.

“My mates.”
“No shit.” Taz stopped walking toward him when he heard what

Sully had said. “That’s means we’re all getting deuces, huh?”

Sully shrugged. “The pattern keeps continuing that way. Maybe

it’s in the water here.”

“Maybe,” Rave said as he bit his lower lip. Sully knew every

soldier in their pack feared finding their mate, or mates it seemed.

Lynn Hagen

Even the ones who had already found theirs struggled with what
Jackson had done to them or had made them do in the name of the
Eastern pack.

Sully had those same fears, but finding his mate was something

that he had always craved. Now it seemed he had two to contend with.
The three stepped into the shop, Rave and Taz cursing as they looked
around.

“You say you might know who the vandal is?” Taz asked as he

stooped and stared at the roses. Sully knew he didn’t have to say a
word. Taz wouldn’t touch anything.

“When I found my mates, they were being accosted by these two

scam artists. The scene looked heated, but I chased them off. I have a
feeling they’re getting their revenge.” And it looked to be a costly
revenge.

The three looked at the front of the shop when they saw the

flashing lights swirl around the interior walls. Sheriff Jesse DeKalb
had shown up. Sully cursed when he saw Julien and Austin walk past
the front window. He was relieved to see that they were unharmed,
but he was hoping to let Jesse and Craig do their jobs and then clean
up before either of them showed up.

“Looks like your fellas have returned,” Taz warned when they

heard yelling coming from outside. Boy, did Julien sound pissed off.
Sully cringed as the front door slammed open, Julien standing in the
doorway looking like an angry bull.

“What the fuck happened in here?” he shouted across the shop.
Rave and Taz remained silent, letting Sully do all the stammering.

“I found it like this. I called the sheriff as soon as I saw this.” Sully
splayed his arms wide to encompass the room. He wanted to smack
Taz when he heard the grey wolf snickering behind him.

Austin moved Julien aside as he stepped into the flower shop.

“Did you do this?”

Sully fisted his hands at his sides as he narrowed his eyes at his

blond mate. “Yeah, and then I called the cops on myself.”

Sully 63

“Hey, I had to ask, shithead. Have you ever seen World’s

Dumbest Criminals? You just might have called them after trashing
the shop.” Austin growled at Sully.

Julien laid a hand on Austin’s arm, shaking his head. “I think it

was James and Ed.”

“Who are James and Ed?” Taz asked.
“Depends on who you are,” Austin grunted as he stood in front of

Julien. This just kept getting better and better. Sully wanted to blow a
whistle and call a timeout as accusations started flying, everyone
beginning to argue all at once. Julien was arguing with Rave as Austin
became flippant with Taz. He was glad to see his mates getting along
so well with his pack. Not!

Sully raised his arms above his head, slapping the palms of his

hands together. The loud, clapping noise echoed throughout the small
shop, gaining the attention he was after.

“You guys want to chill the hell out?” Sully asked as Jesse and

Craig walked through the door.

* * * *

Taz sniffed the air when a faint smell wafted his way. He looked

over at Sully’s mates and the contrite look on both of their faces.

One of them was a were-creature. If he had to guess, he would say

the dark-haired one. The blond seemed a little clueless in Taz’s
opinion.

“What’s going on in here?” Sheriff Jesse DeKalb asked as he

walked through the front door.

Austin pointed a finger at Taz. “He’s an ass. Arrest him.”
Taz rolled his eyes, if Austin only knew. Jesse was a mate. There

was no way the sheriff was going to arrest him for being an ass. He
would have rotted in jail eons ago if that were illegal.

“I’ll see about arresting Taz after you tell me what happened

here,” Jesse said as he looked around.

Lynn Hagen

“I haven’t a clue,” Julien stated. “I was out getting a bite to eat

and came back to these three in my shop and you coming in.”

These three? Maybe Taz was wrong about which mate was the

were-creature. He couldn’t understand what was going on, but damn
did he feel sorry for Sully.

* * * *

Austin stared at the men in Julien’s shop. He wasn’t happy about

coming back to what apparently was vandalism. Something told him
that these men weren’t the responsible party. He watched as the
sheriff began to question everyone. Austin wasn’t sure why, but he
became offended when the sheriff started questioning Sully.

“He didn’t do it,” Austin huffed as he walked over to the tall and

handsome man. “Sully wouldn’t do something like that.”

He noticed the way Sully smiled, his eyes softening as he looked

down at Austin. Julien stood ramrod straight as he looked around his
shop, but Austin could tell it was because he was standing so close to
Sully. Austin reached a hand out and pulled Julien to his side,
watching the sheriff talk to the two men that were with Sully.

Austin was surprised when Julien came willingly. He had

expected his lover to bristle at the idea of Austin defending Sully. He
was pretty shocked when Julien stood between Austin and Sully,
wedging his way to stand between both of them.

“I wasn’t accusing Sully of anything,” the sheriff clarified after

talking to the two men. “It’s all routine questioning.”

Austin didn’t care about routine questioning. He didn’t like the

fact that the sheriff was questioning Sully at all. He looked up at
Sully, his eyes drinking in the sensuality of the handsome man’s
physique.

He shouldn’t be thinking this way. He was with Julien. Austin had

slept with him and emotionally committed himself to Julien. So why
was he lusting after Sully?

Sully 65

“Thanks,” Sully said quietly, smiling down at Austin.
Austin couldn’t help but give Sully a big, goofy grin at the way

Sully was looking at him. He grabbed his side when Julien elbowed
him. His lover was getting a little too accustomed to putting him in
his place—although Austin couldn’t figure out what he was doing
wrong.

“What?” he mouthed.
Julien once again jutted his chin out as he snapped his head away

from Austin. The only thing Austin could do was stand there clueless.

“You’ll need to contact your insurance company to file a claim,”

the sheriff said. “I would go over to the hardware store and get a
better door for the back of the store if I were you.”

“Already ahead of you, Jesse.”
Austin didn’t like the familiarity between Sully and Jesse. He

could feel the green-eyed monster rearing its ugly head. He stepped in
front of Sully, staking his claim as he gave the sheriff the stink eye.
“We’ll be going with Sully to the hardware store.” He pointed his
finger between Julien’s chest and his.

“Calm down, fella. I’m not out to steal your mate.”
Austin caught the slight shake of Sully’s head and wondered what

in the hell was going on. “My what?”

“Uh, if that’s all, I’m gonna head out now,” the sheriff quickly

said as he and the deputy practically ran for the door.

“I never claimed to be a genius, so someone tell me what the hell

just happened,” Austin said as he turned back to the room full of men.
Everyone’s eyes darted around, no one looking directly at Austin.
Even Julien pretended to be preoccupied with picking up the broken
flowers.

Austin growled as he threw his hands in the air. “Fine, don’t tell

me. See if I get anyone a birthday card.”

“It’s not like that,” Sully said from beside him. “It’s a little more

complicated than just tossing out an answer.”

Lynn Hagen

“You better toss something out before I get pissed and kick all

three of your asses.” Austin couldn’t kick a rock’s ass, but they didn’t
know that.

“I like him. He’s feisty as hell.” Rave chuckled. Austin ignored

the man as he glared at Sully and then Julien. He was pissed that his
lover knew what was going on but Austin was clueless.

“We’re shifters,” Julien said quietly from his squatting position.
“What’s a shifter?”
Austin squeaked and jumped back when Julien was kneeling one

moment, and the next there was a fox blinking up at him.

“Holy fucking shit!” Sully jumped back.
“Why are you freaking out? Aren’t you one of those?” Austin

pointed down at the furry animal backing away.

“Uh, no. I’m a grey wolf,” Sully said as he knelt, putting his hand

out in front of him. “Come here, Julien. No one’s gonna hurt you.”

“Why is he scared?” Austin asked as he watched the fox back

himself into the wall and then curl up, wrapping his long tail around
his body.

“Because a fox is a very uncommon shifter.” Sully pushed

forward until he was on his hands and knees, slowly crawling forward
as the fox began to shiver.

“I don’t want him to be scared,” Austin said softly as he walked

across the room and then sat next to Julien, scooping the small
creature up and setting him in his lap. Julien buried his face in the
crook of Austin’s arm, hiding from everyone in the room.

“Well, it’s not like I want him to be scared either.” Sully reached

out and ran the back of his knuckles over Julien’s fur.

“Stop that.” Austin swatted at Sully. “He’s my lover.”
Sully chuckled as he shook his head. “No. He’s our mate.”
“Okay, if one more person uses that word without telling me what

it means, I’m gonna make good on my promise and put you all on
your asses.”

Sully 67

Sully leaned back on his heels as he stared at Austin. “Fate thinks

the three of us would be a perfect match as life mates.”

“How do you know?” Austin whispered. He had always dreamed

of calling someone his own, and he had thought he found that in
Julien, but he was allowed to have Sully as well? “Does Julien know
this?”

“I know because I feel the pull toward both of you. It’s an inborn

need to be near you, protect you, and claim you. Yes, Julien knows.”

Austin narrowed his eyes as he pulled Julien’s shivering form

from the crook of his arm. He lifted Julien’s chin, glaring at him. “If
I’m your mate, why in the hell did you give me such a hard time?”

Julien struggled to free his chin, his body squirming around.

Austin let it go as Julien buried his face once again. As angry as
Austin was at Julien keeping a secret that monumental, how the hell
was he supposed to stay mad at the guy when he was like this? The
fox was too damn cute and cuddly for his own good.

“Is it me or are the mates getting stranger and stranger?” Taz

chuckled from across the room.

Lynn Hagen

Chapter Seven

Julien sat on his couch in his apartment. His hands were clasped

together and tucked between his knees as he stared at the floor.

“Why didn’t you say something?” Sully asked as he stood over by

the window overlooking the street with his arms crossed over his
chest.

Julien shrugged. He wasn’t sure what he should say. “I guess for

the same reason you don’t go running around announcing you’re a
wolf.”

He chanced a glance at Austin to see his mate sitting quietly on

the other end of the couch, looking a little lost. As prickly as he had
been toward Austin when they first met, Julien cared about what he
was going through. “Austin.”

Austin held his hand up as he shook his head. “Not yet. I’m still

trying to absorb all of this.”

Julien nodded as he stared back down at his hands. He hated

feeling this way. He was half tempted to tell these two to go away and
leave him to his lonely and miserable life. It may have been that, but
at least he didn’t have to wade through the murky waters of a
relationship with two men and the difficulties of getting to know them
and placing his trust in their hands.

No, being alone was much easier.
Julien’s head snapped up when Sully sauntered across the room,

plucking Julien from the couch. “What are you doing?” he squeaked.

Sully didn’t say a word. He walked through Julien’s apartment

until he found his bedroom and then tossed Julien onto the bed. Julien

Sully 69

scrambled to get away, but Sully grabbed his ankles and pulled him
back across the mattress. “I’m claiming my mate.”

Julien’s heart thundered in his ears as he gulped. Sully didn’t look

like he was kidding as he pulled his black T-shirt from the waistband
of his jeans and removed it. Julien stared at all the hard muscles
outlining his mate’s body. And there were enough of them to stare at.
Sully was well sculpted and had prominent veins running along his
enlarged biceps.

“I–I can’t.”
“Then don’t. But I’m going to,” Sully said as he bent at the waist

and removed his black boots.

Panic set in at the thought of Sully seeing Julien’s hideous scar.

He knew for a fact that as soon as the handsome man saw it he would
turn away in disgust. “My–My leg.”

“I don’t want to fuck your leg. I want to fuck your ass,” Sully

stated as he unsnapped his jeans and then peeled the zipper down.

Julien’s eyes were fixated on the dark happy trail that started at

Sully’s navel and then ran down to a thick patch of dark hair. He
could see the head of Sully’s cock peeking out, clear liquid glistening
at the eye as Sully reached for Julien’s boots.

“I like your boots.” His mate smiled.
Julien came back to his senses, desperately yanking his foot away

from Sully’s grip. “You don’t have to make fun of them,” he spat.

“I could have sworn I was giving a compliment.”
Julien jutted his jaw out as he gave Sully a challenging look. “I

know that I’m not supposed to wear pink boots but I like them, so
stop teasing me.”

Sully cocked his head to the side, studying Julien for a brief

moment. “Who has killed your self-esteem?”

The name James was on the tip of his tongue but Julien refused to

let it go. He didn’t want to admit to this god that he was terrified to let
Sully see him naked. He was ready to plead with the man to leave him
be.

Lynn Hagen

Sully dropped his foot and then crawled onto the bed, pulling

Julien into his arms. “I’m not judging you, Julien. I’m the last person
that could ever judge someone.”

Julien heard the haunted words. He could tell Sully was speaking

the truth. Julien wasn’t sure what his mate had endured, but he was
starting to relax around him. “What happened?”

Sully tucked Julien’s head against his bare chest as he sighed.

“It’s a very long story. But I was once a soldier for a very cruel alpha.
My life wasn’t my own, and I did things I’d rather not talk about,
ever. Whatever you’ve gone through, whoever has deflated you, let it
go, babe.”

That was easier said than done. Julien wanted to. He wanted

desperately to let his hurt and mistrust go, but life had taught him a
bitter lesson. He felt the bed dip, and then Austin’s heat covered his
back.

“My parents think my greatest achievement will be spending the

rest of my life in prison,” Austin confessed. “They pretty much think
I’m a worthless waste of their hard-earned money.”

Julien had never known this about Austin. He had always seemed

so cheery and optimistic. It must have taken a lot of courage to hide
all that hurt behind the walls he had built.

Before Julien could change his mind, he was confessing as well.

“My cousins found out that I was gay and tried to kill me. They were
the ones who did this to my leg.”

He could feel both Sully and Austin go rigid. “What did they do?”

Sully asked in a low growl.

Julien hated to think about what had taken place so long ago. It

was still too painful. “They beat me to an inch of my life and then
thought it would teach me a lesson if they hit me with their car as they
ran away. One of my cousins got out to see if I was dead, and when
he realized I wasn’t, he pulled out a small pouch from his front pocket
and let the lip of the pouch spill its silvery content onto my leg. It was

Sully 71

the spot where the car had struck me.” Julien took a deep breath
before pushing on.

“My parents found me in the front yard. I had crawled all night to

get home. When my dad found out why my cousins did that to me, he
ordered me out of his den.”

Julien had to take a deep breath as Sully crushed him to his broad

chest. He wasn’t going to cry. Julien had cried enough in the past few
years for a lifetime worth of mourning at what he had endured. “I’m
okay.”

“If I ever run across your family, I hope I’m behind a wheel,”

Austin growled. Julien couldn’t hold back the laugh. As bizarre as
Austin’s declaration was, it was the sweetest thing Julien had heard.

“He’s vengeful.” Sully smiled as he looked over at Austin and

winked. “It’s turning me on.”

Julien glanced down at Sully’s groin to see he was telling the

truth. His mate had a very nice package expanding the front of his
jeans. Julien almost whined to be able to see it, but his fear of his
disfigurement stopped him. Austin had seen it and made no big deal
about it, but would Sully? Even though his mates now knew his
sordid past, he still was hesitant to show his shame.

Julien held his breath as Austin kissed the back of his neck, his

hand circling around Julien to unsnap his jeans. “I want to feel you
again.”

So did Julien. He glanced up at Sully, watching his mate’s

reaction as Austin removed his boots and jeans. His hands curled into
fists as he fought not to cover his scar. He wanted this. Julien wanted
to be claimed, but it was the rejection he feared.

* * * *

Sully could feel Julien trembling as he leaned over and cupped

Julien’s face. He couldn’t have that. Sully took Julien’s lips in a

Lynn Hagen

passionate kiss, feeling Julien give himself over freely. His mate
practically purred as Sully took his lips in a deep kiss.

“Ah hell,” Austin moaned from beside them as he quickly got rid

of his clothes. “I’ve never been with two guys before.”

Sully broke the kiss, looking down at Julien’s dazed blue eyes.

His mate was gorgeous as he stared up at him, looking like a lost man
in the throes of passion. Sully reached over and pulled Austin toward
him. “Neither have I, so I guess we’ll learn.”

Austin’s eyes blazed before his lips attacked Sully’s. He liked

how aggressive Austin seemed to be. It turned him on to know he
wasn’t the only one hot and ready. Sully’s free hand grabbed Julien’s
hair, pulling his mate toward them. Sully had never had a three-way
kiss before but was finding out very quickly how much he loved
them. Austin was the first to pull away, licking his lips as his eyes
darted between both of them. “Damn, that was hot.”

Both Sully and Julien watched as Austin slid down the bed and

situated himself between Julien’s legs before engulfing Julien’s cock.

Julien’s head fell back as a loud moan escaped his lips. Sully lay

there and watched in utter fascination, his own cock throbbing almost
painfully at the erotic sight. There was no way he could just sit back
and be a spectator. He had to touch, to kiss, and most of all, someone
was getting fucked. He didn’t mind which one it was, but one of them
was going to have Sully’s cock buried deeply inside of them.

“I want some of that,” Sully moaned as he slid down on the other

side of Julien. Austin smiled around Julien’s cock, lapping his tongue
over the soft, spongy head. His blond-haired mate looked seductive as
hell with Julien’s cock in his mouth. Sully leaned forward, taking a
taste for himself. He moaned at Julien’s manly taste.

“Good, huh?” Austin smiled.
“Let’s find out how you taste.” Sully leaned forward, taking

Austin’s cock into his mouth. Damn if the taste didn’t explode over
his tongue. Austin groaned, his hips hitching as he took Austin’s shaft
to the back of his throat.

Sully 73

Sully reached down, yanking at his jeans, trying his best to get rid

of them without releasing Austin’s cock from between his lips. It was
awkward, but he managed. Sully kicked them the rest of the way off
and got even more comfortable as he sealed his lips around Austin’s
shaft.

His hand spanned over Austin’s belly, feeling the muscles quiver

as Sully worked his tongue over Austin’s cock. The sultry moans
coming from both Julien and Austin had Sully’s balls drawing up
tight, ready to explode.

Sully reached a hand down between Austin’s legs and played at

his tight puckered hole. His mate pushed his body down, trying to
impale his ass onto Sully’s fingers. Sully released Austin’s cock and
then sat up, searching the nightstand for lube. He grinned when he
spotted the well-used bottle.

He rolled back over, bottle in hand as Sully squeezed a fair

amount onto his fingers. He chuckled softly when Austin held his
hand out. Sully gave the same amount to his fair-haired mate before
tossing the bottle aside. Sully separated Austin’s mounds, circling his
wet fingers around the tight entrance before pushing one in.

Austin’s cheeks squeezed together for a moment, letting Sully

know it had been a long while. Sully didn’t move until Austin’s
backside relaxed. He leaned forward, taking the tip of Austin’s cock
into his mouth before he started pushing and pulling his finger in and
out of Austin’s ass.

Sully could hear Julien moaning louder and knew Austin was

preparing their dark-haired mate in much the same manner. On the
last outward pull, Sully added a second finger. He scissored them
apart as he stretched his mate, preparing him for Sully’s cock.

“Another, another,” Austin chanted around Julien’s prick. Sully

slid both fingers out and then added a third, thrusting deeply. Austin
ground his ass on Sully’s fingers as Sully fucked Austin’s ass.

He pulled back, tapping Austin’s hip, telling his mate to get into

position. Austin released Julien’s cock as he got onto his hands and

Lynn Hagen

knees. “Lie on your back,” Sully instructed Julien. His mate blushed
but did as Sully told him.

Sully grabbed Austin’s hips, situating Austin in the apex of

Julien’s legs. “Get the point?” he asked as he nipped Austin’s ear.

“It doesn’t take a genius to figure it out.” Austin said flippantly.

Sully smacked his ass, teaching his mate to mind his tongue. Too bad
the lesson was useless. Austin seemed to enjoy the small swat to his
ass.

“Do it again,” Austin teased as he stuck his ass out further. Sully

was too busy staring at his mate’s balls hanging between his spread
legs. Sully reached down, palming them and then rolling them around
in his hand.

“No fair,” Austin groaned.
“I never claimed to play fair, babe.” Sully watched as Austin

grabbed his cock and lined it up with Julien’s waiting hole. He
groaned along with his mates as Austin breached Julien. Sully didn’t
waste any time. He crawled behind Austin and bent his mate over,
lubed his cock, and then sunk in balls deep.

After a moment of fumbling, Austin and Sully fucked in a rhythm

that had him on the edge and ready to howl. Sully grabbed Julien’s
legs as he thrust deeply into Austin’s tight ass. It was a feeling unlike
anything he had experienced before.

Sully’s canines descended as instinct took over and he leaned

forward, biting into Austin’s tender flesh between his neck and
shoulder.

“Oh god,” Austin cried out just as Julien leaned up and struck the

other side of Austin’s neck. Austin’s ass began to throb as he came,
milking Sully’s cock. The tight squeeze sent Sully over the edge,
making him roar with his release.

Sully could hear Julien crying out as the fog of lust slowly lifted

from his mind. Sully took in ragged breaths as his heart beat out of
control. He blinked a few times to gain focus as he pulled his
softening cock free.

Sully 75

“Damn,” he groaned as he pulled Austin down with him to the bed

and then pulled Julien onto the other side. These two were going to
wear him out. He could already see it.

* * * *

Craig walked into the flower shop to see Julien cleaning up the

mess. He hated to see anyone the victim of assholes, and Julien had
two of them to contend with.

“You need some help?”
Julien yelped as he fell on his ass, grabbing his heart with one

hand.

“Sorry.” Craig reached down and helped the man to his feet. “I

didn’t mean to scare you.”

“Why are you here?” Julien asked suspiciously as he looked

behind Craig. He wasn’t sure what the shifter was looking for, but it
made Craig turn around and glance at the door.

“I know what it’s like for someone to fuck with you. My uncle

was the original asshole. I just wanted to see if there was anything I
could do to help.” Craig looked around the flower shop. “Where are
your mates?”

Julien took a step back at Craig’s question. “Why?”
Craig exhaled as he waved his hand around the shop. “Because

they should be helping you. Look, I’m not the bad guy here. I have
two sexy-as-fuck mates, so your virtue is safe. All I want to do is
help.” Geez, talk about defensive. Craig wasn’t sure he’d ever seen
someone so guarded before. Well, except him when he first arrived
here.

“They’re sleeping upstairs,” Julien said hesitantly as he bent at the

waist, picking up broken pieces of what Craig assumed to be vases.

“Tell me you have insurance.”
Julien seemed to bristle at Craig’s question. “Of course I do.”

Lynn Hagen

Craig rolled his eyes at the way Julien huffed. “I’m here off duty

to help you. Let’s get this place cleaned up and take inventory of what
was damaged. Afterwards, we can head down to Theo’s.”

Julien opened his mouth to answer Craig when the small bell

above the door jingled. They both turned to see two men come
strolling in, large smug smiles on their faces.

“You!” Julien cried. “Get the fuck out.”
Craig had a feeling that the two standing in the doorway were the

ones responsible for this mess. An uneasy feeling took hold in his gut
as he situated himself between the two men and Julien.

This was just a little too easy with these men showing up. Craig

had a feeling the shit was about to hit the fan and fast.

Sully 77

Chapter Eight

Chey watched Bald Eagle as his mate walked through the front

door with the other Beta, Torem. His fingers curled around the
doorframe of the living room as his eyes drank in the handsome man
that was his mate.

They were having the house razing celebration this weekend but

Chey felt anything but happy. He was an omega, able to heal anyone
from the inside out.

And that was his curse as well as a gift.
From what he had learned, Bald Eagle had been the prime victim

of the ex-alpha, Jackson, and was so emotionally wrecked that
everyone protected the soldier, even from Chey.

In order to let his mate claim him, Eagle would have to suffer

greatly. One touch, and Eagle would be thrown back into his past,
reliving every single event that he mentally and emotionally suffered
from.

Chey couldn’t let that happen. And no one in this house was going

to allow it either. Sully had already threatened him away from Eagle
when Chey first arrived and his ability was discovered.

Not that Chey blamed Sully. After the life these soldiers led, none

of them wanted to remember their past. But in remembering, they
would heal. Too bad none of them were willing to go through the
process.

Chey averted his eyes when Bald Eagle glanced his way. Never

had there been a more gorgeous specimen of a man made in Chey’s
opinion. Eagle was every gay man’s wet dream.

Too bad he couldn’t go near the guy.

Lynn Hagen

“You know, I’ve been thinking about your dilemma,” Sidney, his

best friend, and Dino and Torem’s mate, said as he approached Chey.
“Maybe you could wear a condom. You wouldn’t be touching then.”

“Please tell me you didn’t come up with that on your own,” Chey

said as he shook his head at the jaguar shifter. He would think that
being mated to the Beta and the construction worker had something to
do with his strange ass way of thinking, but that was all Sidney. He
liked that Sidney was mated to his brother Torem. Too bad he was
still as nutty as ever. “Have you been dipping back into the Red
Bull?”

“Nope.” Sidney tapped his temple. “It’s all me. Scary, huh?”
“Downright frightening,” Chey said as he stole another glance at

his mate. He could feel his face heat up when Eagle smiled at him.
That damn smile—with the deepest dimples Chey had ever seen—
should be illegal in all fifty states and around the world. Chey could
feel his damn knees buckling.

“Condom, my brother, condom,” Sidney sang as he walked away.
Chey was beginning to wonder if Sidney was dropped on his head

as a cub. That would explain a lot. Chey hid his smile when Sidney
came running back.

“Oh yeah, bingo tonight. You’re going this time whether you like

it or not. I’ll get you some white gloves or something so you don’t
have to worry about touching, but you’re going, mister.”

Chey really could use an outing. “Okay.”
“I knew you would argue. You’re going if I have to…wait, did

you just say okay?”

Chey grinned widely at his batty friend. “Yes.”
“Oh, okay. Cool. See you at the front door at seven. If you aren’t

there, I’m hunting you down.” Sidney narrowed his eyes at Chey
before walking away…again.

Chey looked up to see the foyer empty. His chest felt heavy as he

turned around, wondering where Eagle had gone as he walked into the
living room and dropped down onto the sofa.

Sully 79

Being an omega sucked.

* * * *

Austin scratched one butt cheek as he yawned and made his way

downstairs. He hadn’t meant to fall asleep, but having sex with two
men had overloaded his brain. Austin felt a little slutty now that he’d
done it, but he was going to fucking do it again.

His foot faltered when he stepped into the flower shop. There was

no way he was seeing this. Austin took a step back. No one had seen
him yet, which gave him a chance to run back upstairs and drag Sully
out of the shower.

“This is only the tip of the iceberg, Julien. If you don’t pony up

the dough you owe us, next this little shop of yours will be burned to
the ground,” James said from by the front door.

Austin saw red at the mousy-haired man’s words. Didn’t he know

that the man standing next to Julien was a cop? Those two really were
too dumb for words.

“I have to inform you that I’m Deputy Craig Hanes—”
Austin gasped when James slammed the side of Craig’s head with

a wooden gnome that had been lying on the floor. Craig went down
like a sack of potatoes. Was the weasel fucking crazy?

“You brought a cop here?” Ed collared Julien, slinging him

around the shop like a rag doll.

“Let him go!” Austin shouted as he flew across the room, jumping

on Ed’s back. He was enraged that Ed had hurt Julien, and Austin was
determined to teach the asshole a lesson. He grabbed the man’s hair
and yanked with all his might as James repeatedly punched Austin in
the back.

He felt something hot and painful tearing at his back, but Austin

was determined to get Julien from Ed’s clutches.

Lynn Hagen

A roar flooded the room as Jesse stepped into the flower shop and

saw Craig knocked out cold on the floor. Austin’s eyes bugged when
he saw long teeth protruding from Jesse’s mouth.

Austin’s fingers slipped from Ed’s shoulders as he hit the floor,

screaming loudly when his back exploded with unbelievable pain.

Right before Austin passed out, he saw Sully come into view,

shifting into a wolf and attacking Ed and James.

* * * *

“Holy dildos and doughnut holes,” Sidney gasped as he walked

into the flower shop. Sully and Jesse were snarling and snapping as
Dino, Torem, and Sammy walked in behind him.

Sully had forgotten that some of the pack was coming to help

restore Julien’s shop, and right about now he didn’t care. Julien was
rolling around on the floor, holding his leg and crying out in pain.
Austin was passed out as blood seeped from under him.

“Get a damn ambulance here!” Jesse shouted as he crouched over

Craig. “Austin, Julien, and Craig need to get to the hospital.”

Sully growled as Torem and Dino pulled James and Ed to their

feet. “Are they the ones who did this?” Torem looked around the
shop.

“They’re the ones,” Jesse said menacingly as he stood, walked

over to James, and cocked his arm back, punching the bastard square
on his jaw.

The sheriff pointed a finger at James as his eyes narrowed. “If

anything is wrong with my mate, I’ll make sure you suffer.”

“I’ll be free before the sun sets. You’re the sheriff and you hit me.

I’m off the hook,” James said smugly.

“I didn’t see a thing,” Dino said and a few of the men nodded in

agreement.

“That’s bullshit and you know it,” Ed shouted.

Sully 81

“I know a guy who knows a guy who can make you disappear,

buddy,” Sidney snapped. “So don’t push your luck. I have a can of
Red Bull and I know how to use it.”

“Get them out of here,” Jesse commanded.
As soon as Torem and Dino pulled the two men from the shop,

Sully shifted back to his human form. He knelt down between his two
mates as he whimpered. “Get them to the fucking hospital.”

“The ambulance is on its way,” Sidney assured him. “I need to

call Avanti and tell him what’s happened to Craig.”

Sully watched the jaguar shifter walk outside and extract his

phone. He knew Avanti was about to go apeshit, and so was Sully if
the ambulance didn’t get there soon. The sound of the siren broke into
Sully’s thoughts as swirling lights bathed the flower shop. He wanted
to kill the two bastards who had attacked his mates, but Sully was too
worried about them right now to leave their sides.

Sidney hurriedly ran back in and tossed a pair of jogging pants at

Sully. He was grateful someone was thinking straight around here.
“Thanks.”

“Don’t mention it,” Sidney said as he stood next to Sammy.

“We’ll stay behind and see if we can’t clean some of this up.” He
waved a hand around at the mess in the flower shop.

Sully nodded. The shape of Julien’s store was the last thing on his

mind right now, but he appreciated that the mates were willing to
pitch in and help out, even in this small way.

Sully watched helplessly as the paramedics loaded Austin into the

back of the ambulance. “You’ll have to take him in. We only have
room for one.” The man nodded toward Julien. “Another ambulance
is right behind us for him.” He nodded toward Craig. “I’m real sorry,
but we have to take the critical first.”

Sully lifted Julien from the floor, cradling his mate to his chest as

he walked through the wreckage of the shop and out to his truck. He
gently set Julien down on the passenger’s side, buckling his mate in,
and then ran around his truck to jump into the driver’s side.

Lynn Hagen

It all seemed like it was moving in slow motion. Sully feared he

wasn’t going to get Julien there in time to ease his pain. The
ambulance even seemed like it was moving too slow, taking too long
to get Austin to the hospital. Sully knew it was his state of mind, but
he wished everything would speed the fuck up. His nerves couldn’t
take too much more of this.

He followed behind the ambulance, trying his best not to speed

around it. Thank fuck the hospital came into sight. He parked his
truck in the emergency parking lot when they finally made it to the
hospital lot. Sully scooped Julien from the passenger’s seat and
carried him through the sliding glass doors.

“I need help,” Sully shouted as he entered the emergency room.

He carried Julien over to a gurney and laid his mate down. Julien was
still holding his leg and crying, pain pulling his face tight as sweat
decorated his skin. Sully felt so damn helpless. He wanted to kill
something, anything to make his mate stop hurting.

“What do we have here?” a young doctor asked as he approached

Julien with a disinterested look on his face. Sully didn’t like his ho-
hum attitude. It pissed him off, and he was ready to throttle the
fucker.

“We have someone who needs a damn doctor,” he said with a

growl.

“I am a doctor,” the man huffed as if Sully had slapped him.
“Okay, let me put it another way. Get the fuck out of here!” Sully

shouted in the man’s face as he pointed a finger in the opposite
direction, away from his mate. There was no way someone who had
the frame of mind that he was working in a process center rather than
a hospital was going anywhere near Julien.

“Julien?” Another doctor approached quickly as he reached for his

mate’s leg. “What happened?”

“Who the hell are you?” Sully stepped closer to his mate, ready to

kick this one’s ass as well.

Sully 83

“Dr. Samuel. I’ve been seeing Julien about his injury since it

happened.” The doctor leaned in closer, dropping his voice down to a
whisper. “I’m a shifter, so he’s safe with me.”

Sully felt a small amount of relief that one of the damn doctors in

this hospital actually cared. “He was attacked. I’m not sure exactly
what happened, but he’s in a lot of pain. Can you help him?”

Dr. Samuel nodded as he looked over Julien’s leg. “Let me get

him to X-ray, and then we can take it from there.”

Sully glanced around before asking the doctor the question on his

mind. “Won’t his X-ray show his different bone structure?”

Dr. Samuel nodded. “It will, but this hospital is mainly staffed by

were-creatures. We don’t boast about it, and that’s what keeps the
were-community safe. Files and pictures are locked away. We have
some human physicians here, but they are given only the human
patients.”

This was good news to Sully. He felt like he could really trust this

man with his mates, to a point of course. “My other mate is human.
Austin Riggers. He came in by ambulance. I need to find out about
him, doc.” Sully glanced down at Julien to see a fine sheen of sweat
coating his mate’s skin. It hurt his heart not to be able to take his
mate’s pain away. He reached a hand out, trying to wipe the sweat
from his mate’s skin.

“Two mates?” The doctor looked stunned. “Okay. I’ll set Julien

up for his X-ray and then check on Austin. If I remember correctly, he
was here last time with Julien.” The doctor reached out and squeezed
Sully’s shoulder in what he assumed was a gesture of comfort or
reassurance. “We’ll give both of them the best medical treatment we
have in Pride Pack Valley.”

Sully nodded as he rubbed his hands over his head. “Thanks,

doc.”

The only thing left for Sully to do was pace. Dr. Samuel sent

someone right away to take Julien down to X-ray and he had to wait
for the doctor to check on Austin. Sully was going to go out of his

Lynn Hagen

mind with nothing but thinking time on his hands. He needed to be
doing something, like going after the men who had done this to his
mates.

“How are they?” Zeus asked as he walked through the emergency

room doors, Toby and Jasper following close behind. The alpha
looked worried as he approached Sully.

Sully shrugged, hating that he had no news to go on. Once again

the feeling of helplessness washed over him. “Julien was taken to X-
ray, and Austin was brought in by ambulance. Dr. Samuel is going to
check and see what is going on with Austin. I don’t fucking know
anything right now.”

“I’m going to check on Craig. I’ll be back,” Jasper said as he

pulled Toby along with him.

Fuck. Sully had totally forgotten about the deputy. He felt like a

shit for not asking Dr. Samuel to check on Avanti’s mate as well.

“You had your mates to worry about,” Zeus said as if reading his

mind. “Jesse and Torem took the two responsible for all of this to jail.
Torem had to restrain Jesse from attacking them when James
threatened him with a lawyer. This is going to get ugly. Avanti got
news of what happened and went ballistic. Torem had to assign
guards to watch the two. Craig’s mates aren’t taking this well. They
want blood.”

Sully could understand how Avanti and Jesse felt. Seeing one

mate crying in pain and another lying in his own blood was enough to
make Sully want to join Avanti and Jesse in trying to kill those two
prisoners.

He tried to take a calming breath as he walked over to a hard

plastic chair and took a seat as more soldiers showed up. Sully was
grateful for the show of support from his pack members, but all he
wanted was to see his mates. He needed to know that they were going
to be okay. He worried about Julien’s immense pain. He had learned
that the reason Julien limped was because some of the silver dust had

Sully 85

meshed into his thigh muscles. Sully hated that Julien would be in that
condition for the rest of his life.

He didn’t even want to think about his human mate. Austin lying

there in his own blood set Sully’s temper off. He tried to calm his
wolf, but it wanted revenge.

“They’ll pull through,” Taz said as he walked over and squeezed

Sully’s shoulder. “They’re strong men.”

Sully stood so fast from his seat when he saw Dr. Samuel heading

his way that he made himself dizzy. Dread knotted his stomach at the
stern look on the doctor’s face. This wasn’t going to be something he
wanted to hear.

“Alpha.” Dr. Samuel tilted his neck to show Zeus respect. Zeus

tapped Dr. Samuel’s neck before the doctor turned to Sully, shaking
his head.

“It’s not good. Austin is human, incapable of healing as we are,”

Dr. Samuel said in a soft voice.

Sully felt his world turn upside down as he shook his head. “But

he’s mated to me. He shouldn’t be able to get sick or hurt.”

The doctor shook his head once again. “This is different. He was

stabbed in his back. His MR shows hemorrhaging in his spinal cord.
Cerebrospinal fluid leaked out. He may not walk again.”

Sully fell back into his seat, tears falling down his face as he

thought of his feisty mate bound to a wheelchair. Anger ripped
through him like a hurricane as he thought of the one responsible for
his mate’s injury. “I want him dead,” Sully said through clenched
teeth.

Zeus pulled Dr. Samuel aside, lowering his booming voice that

tended to carry over even the loudest of noises. “There is someone I
want to bring in. I’m not going to say any more about it, and he will
be snuck into Austin’s room. Can I get your cooperation on this?”

Dr. Samuel nodded. “Not a problem. I’ll let you know as soon as

he’s out of recovery and put in a private room.”

Lynn Hagen

Sully heard them, but his mind took in only half of what they were

saying. Images of Austin in the throes of passion circled around
Sully’s head as he thought of his blond-haired mate. None of this was
right. He wanted justice, Sully style.

“Where is he?” A woman stormed into the emergency room.

“Where the hell is my son?”

“And you are?” Dr. Samuel glanced at Sully before turning his

attention on the irate acting woman.

“His mother. What the hell happened? Did he try and rob a store

and get caught?”

Sully stood there with his mouth hanging open. This was Austin’s

mother? He couldn’t believe she automatically assumed the worst.
Austin was a great guy that wouldn’t hurt anyone, not on purpose, and
it pissed Sully off to hear the woman who gave birth to him talk in
such a demeaning manner about her own son.

“No,” Dr. Samuel bit out. “He was a victim to a malicious attack.”
Mrs. Rigger sniffed, looking at the doctor with disdain. “I

wouldn’t be surprised if he had it coming. Now where is he?”

“He’s still in surgery,” the doctor informed her.
Mrs. Rigger’s face turned an odd shade of red as she clutched her

purse close to her chest. “I’m not paying for all of this.” She waved
her hand around. “Whoever attacked him can foot the bill.”

Zeus stepped in front of Sully just in time. He was a millisecond

away from reaching out and throttling the woman. How the fuck did
Austin turn out sane after being raised by the she-devil?

“I’m paying for his medical costs,” Zeus said calmly. Sully was

surprised the alpha didn’t growl it out.

Austin’s mother sneered at Zeus as she waved her purse in the air.

“Why would you do something like that? Only people looking for
something act that way. What’s your angle with my son?”

Sully had had enough. He was worried sick about his mates and

wasn’t going to stand here and listen to this loudmouth witch. “Austin
is my boyfriend, that’s why.”

Lynn Hagen

Chapter Nine

Chey hurriedly walked down the hospital corridor, Zeus and Eagle

following close behind. He didn’t think he was going to be able to
come and help Austin from the loud protests Eagle had given, but his
mate had finally relented, after telling Zeus and Chey he was coming
along.

That was the first time his mate had fought for him, and Chey

loved every minute of it. Too bad he couldn’t hug Eagle and thank
him for looking out for him. Too bad he couldn’t touch Eagle and
show him how much he appreciated him.

Too bad period.
He jumped when he heard a noise coming from down the hall. It

wasn’t that they weren’t allowed into Austin’s room, it was the fact
that some rogue wolves had been spotted earlier and everyone was
worried about Chey’s omega status being discovered. He was highly
sought by many alphas. Any one of them would kill to possess Chey.

This was not something he neither was proud of nor boasted

about. It had caused a lot of grief for many people, and Chey would
rather forget who he really was and have a chance at a normal life.

He pushed the gloomy thoughts from his mind as he approached

Austin’s hospital room. He knew it was the human’s because there
was a guard outside the door.

Chey nodded at the guard and then pushed the hospital door open

to Austin’s room, Zeus at his back. He glanced at the man that was
Sully’s mate. Even though Sully had constantly warned Chey away
from his own mate, Chey didn’t harbor any ill feelings. He would do
whatever it took to try and help Austin out.

Sully 89

He walked to the side of Austin’s bed, feeling the pain coming off

of the human in waves. Austin may be unconscious, but his pain was
vibrating off of the walls. Chey pulled his sleeves back as he grabbed
a chair and set it next to the bed. He took a seat and then laid his
hands on Austin’s back.

Chey knew that healing Austin was going to takes its toll on him.

It always did. But helping other people with his gift/curse was what
Chey was destined to do.

Even if the price was his mate and happiness.

* * * *

Julien blinked a few times as he slowly came awake. He groaned

and grabbed his head. It was pounding out a staccato beat as he
waited for his vision to clear.

He spotted Sully sleeping in a chair in the far corner of his

hospital room. Julien lifted his chin, drawing in air to calm himself as
memories flooded his mind. James and Ed had come to his shop and
attacked him. Julien remembered James kicking out as Ed flung him
around, smacking Julien’s leg with his foot and making it bend into an
unnatural position.

He turned his head and gazed at the bed situated next to him.

Craig was lying there asleep. Avanti and Jesse were bent over the bed
on either side, fast asleep themselves. Julien was the only one awake.

Austin.
Julien needed to find out what had happened to his human mate.

Memories flickered through his mind of Austin lying in his own pool
of blood. Julien knew his mate wasn’t dead. He would be able to feel
it if Austin were, but the pain of not knowing what had happened to
him had his chest constricting.

He flipped the covers back and cursed at what he saw. His bum

leg was in a large, white cast.

So much for sneaking out.

Lynn Hagen

Julien knew that all he had to do was shift and he would heal the

broken bone, so why did they cast him? It didn’t make any sense. He
placed both of his hands on the white cast, pushing it toward the edge
of the bed.

Julien made sure he didn’t make a sound as he hobbled from the

bed and snuck out of the room. He knew that if he woke Sully and
asked to see Austin that he would only be forced back to bed. Julien
was on a damn mission to locate his other mate and see with his own
two eyes that Austin was okay. It bothered him that he was sharing a
room with Craig and not Austin. Julien couldn’t figure that riddle out
any more than he could figure the big clumsy cast out.

Shit was getting weird around here.
He looked over his shoulder to make sure he hadn’t wakened

anyone before pulling the door open and hobbling out into the
hallway. Julien had to hold on to the wall, his stability shot to hell
with this clump of clay wrapped around his leg. This mission was
tuckering him out quicker than he would have liked. Beads of sweat
were forming on his upper lip, and he had only walked twenty damn
feet.

Julien slowly walked down the hallway, his fingers pressed

against the ugly green of the hospital wall. His eyes scanned around
the area, wondering where they would place Austin. Julien tried to
crouch down when he saw Zeus standing outside a door, two others
with him, but the damn cast prevented it. Julien noticed that one
looked slightly like Sully. Well, okay, he had the same tattoo on his
neck that Sully had, but the other looked like a cop.

That must be Austin’s room.
Looking around for a place to hide, Julien spotted a utility cabinet.

He quickly hobbled over to it—as quickly as the cast would allow—
and then slid around the side. He peeked out. His brows pulled
together when he saw Zeus and the man with the tattoo walk away.
Why would they leave his mate? That made no sense.

Sully 91

Julien was even more confused when the cop looked around and

then slid into Austin’s room. Something wasn’t right. He could feel it
in his bones. There should be no reason the cop needed to be in
Austin’s room.

Julien walked around the cabinet, hobbling as quickly as he could.

That was his mate in there, probably unconscious and definitely
defenseless. He wasn’t going to just sit by and not investigate. He
came to a skidding halt when the cop emerged, pulling a slim man
with short black hair from the room. Julien wasn’t too sure who the
guy was, but he had to help.

“Stop!” Julien shouted at the top of his lungs as he raced as fast as

his cast would let him. There was no way he was allowing another
person to get hurt while he was around.

The cop’s head snapped up, a growl curling his lip back as he

pulled his gun from its holster and fired at Julien. He was getting
pretty damned tired of being assaulted, Julien thought as he hit the
floor.

It all happened so fast that Julien could only watch in utter

amazement while lying on the linoleum. Zeus and the man with the
tattoo came barreling down the corridor, fangs exposed as the cop put
the gun to the young man’s head.

“Stay back or the omega dies.”
“You know you won’t make it out of here,” Zeus growled as he

held the man with the tattoo back. “You’ll be followed and taken
down like the mutt that you are. This is his mate, Eagle, and he won’t
let you rest.”

“Let him go!” Eagle shouted as he clawed at Zeus to get to the

small man.

Julien had to think. There was no way he was going to let the cop

just waltz right out of here with another mate. He rolled closer to the
nurses’ station, staying out of sight as he shifted.

Lynn Hagen

Holy hell it hurt. Julien had to bite his bottom lip in order not to

cry out. He wasn’t sure what James had done to him, but his leg
seemed worse. Even in his fox form, Julien limped.

Julien snuck around a supply cart, behind some portable machine,

and then he placed one paw in front of the other as he slowly crept
behind the small man. He was dying to look into the room and check
on Austin, but Julien knew there wasn’t time.

Julien dipped his head, wondering what he was going to do now

that he had gotten close. It wasn’t like he was a wolf. He was a
fricking fox for crying out loud. What was he going to do, scratch the
cop’s eyes out?

He saw Eagle watching him closely as the cop gripped the man

tighter. “Move out of the way so we can get out of here. If you make
one move toward me, I’ll shoot him dead.”

“Is there any other way to fucking shoot him?” Zeus growled.

“You’re dumber than I thought.”

The cop pulled the gun away from the man’s temple, pointing it at

Zeus. “I’ll show you dumb.”

Julien pounced. He jumped on the young man’s back, shifting as

soon as he made contact. They both went down with a crash, Julien
and the young man rolling away from danger.

He closed his eyes when he saw Eagle shift, attacking the cop.

Julien didn’t want to see what the soldier was doing. It was bad
enough he had to hear it.

“Julien!” Sully shouted as he raced across the hallway. “Damn it,

Julien.”

Julien could feel his body being lifted from the floor and cradled

against Sully’s massive chest. He started to tell Sully to get the doctor
because of the pain in his leg, but that was when Julien noticed his leg
was pain-free.

What the hell?

* * * *

Sully 93

Austin could hear the noise coming from the corridor right outside

his hospital room. He struggled to get up but was too exhausted to
move. He wondered what happened to the small man that had come to
visit him.

“Nurse,” Austin croaked out as he tried to reach for the red button

on the side of his bed, but his hand didn’t want to lift properly. It had
to be the drugs they gave him. There was no way he should be this
loopy.

“Austin?”
Austin once again tried to lift his head but had no success. He

wanted desperately to see his mate’s face. “Sully?”

“It’s me, babe. How do you feel?”
Austin felt a hand brush over his hair, twining through it as Sully

came into Austin’s line of vision. He’d never been happier to see one
of his mates. “Sully.” Austin wasn’t sure where it came from, but he
began to cry.

“Shush, baby. It’s gonna be okay.” Sully used his thumbs to brush

aside Austin’s tears.

“What happened to me? What’s wrong with me?”
“You were stabbed, baby. The doc says the surgery went well.”
Austin could hear hesitation in Sully’s voice. There was more. He

was sure of it. “Tell me.”

He could see Sully swallow before answering him. “There’s a

chance you may not walk again.”

Austin’s head spun at Sully’s words. His heart sank and his head

began to hurt at the possibility of never walking again. Before his
anger could take hold, the man who had visited him earlier came back
into his hospital room. He stood there for a moment, looking unsure
as he stared at Sully and then Austin.

“What?” he snapped, not feeling up to entertaining guests at the

moment.

Lynn Hagen

“I came to finish,” the man said as he took a tentative step

forward.

“Finish what?”
“Your healing. My name is Chey. Just lie still and let me do all

the work.”

Austin glanced up at Sully, wondering what the nutty man was

talking about. It was then that he noticed Julien standing behind Sully,
and he was buck ass naked. “What the hell?”

Julien twinkled his fingers at Austin, saying hello.
“I’ll explain our mate’s undress just as soon as Chey is finished,”

Sully grumbled as he swiped a sheet from Austin’s bed and wrapped
it around Julien’s bare shoulders. Austin had to still be unconscious.
None of this could be real.

He glanced helplessly at Sully as Chey laid his hands on Austin’s

back. He heard someone else come into the room but was too
preoccupied with what was going on to bother finding out who it was.
The heat coming from the hands on his back burned into his skin.
Austin cried out as flashes of his past began to fly through his head,
intermingling with the pain in his back.

He wasn’t sure what was happening to him, but visions of his

parents and his life at home began to play through his mind. It was as
if someone hit the fast forward button, but every god-awful scene
played in his head. Austin lay there like a babe and cried as his father
smacked him into a wall, telling him that he would never amount to
anything. Austin actually felt the pain on his face. He didn’t want to
do this. The man touching him needed to let go.

“No!” He tried to free himself, but the man held on.
“Regardless, if I let you go or hold on, you’re going to relive it,

Austin. It’s better if I guide you through this.”

Austin didn’t want to be guided through anything. He wanted to

forget, to never remember the pain his parents had put him through.

You’ll never amount to anything, Austin Riggers. I don’t know

why I wasted my time nursing you. I should have left you on the

Sully 95

doorstep of the church,” his mother said as she backhanded him.
“You’re worthless.”

“I swear, I didn’t steal from Mrs. Trenton. She’s lying!” Austin

cried as he shielded his head, trying desperately not to feel another
blow.

“You ungrateful son of a bitch. How dare you malign her name!”

his mother screamed as she began to kick him.

Austin rolled into a ball, trying his best to block her assault. His

father just sat at the table, reading his newspaper as he sipped his
coffee. Austin knew right then that he hated his parents beyond words.
He was going to do whatever it took to get out of their house.

“No!” Austin cried as multitudes of memories assaulted him. His

body broke out into a sweat as he lay in the man’s arms and cried,
wishing the nightmares that were his past would just go away.

* * * *

Julien felt tears slide down his face as Austin cried. He wanted to

rip the stranger away from his mate, but he knew he was healing
Austin. Still, Julien was pretty sure watching Austin go through hell
was the hardest thing he ever witnessed.

“He’ll be okay when this is over,” Sully whispered into Julien’s

ears as he wrapped his arms around him. “I’ve seen what Chey can
do. While it’s painful in the beginning, it will heal Austin in ways you
can’t even imagine.”

“He’s hurting so much, Sully. If Chey is healing him then why

does it hurt so much?”

“Chey doesn’t just heal physical wounds,” said a voice from

across the room.

Julien glanced over to see another man standing in the doorway. It

was the same one he had seen out in the hallway with Zeus. “You’re
Eagle, right?”

Lynn Hagen

The man nodded. “By touching your mate to heal him physically,

Chey has to heal him emotionally. That’s what Chey does.”

Julien frowned at the anguish he could see in Eagle’s eyes as he

gazed at Chey. “I heard Zeus say Chey was your mate.”

“He is,” Eagle replied. Julien inhaled at the pain etched on Eagle’s

face when he raised his head. “I have memories I cannot relive.
Because of that, Chey and I can never be mates. We can never touch.”

Julien’s mouth dropped open. Now that he had mated Austin and

Sully, he couldn’t imagine not being able to touch one of them. He
was pretty sure he’d curl up and die first. His heart went out to the
two men.

“I’m sorry.”
“Me, too,” Eagle said sadly as he took a step back, standing

against the wall as if he were blending into the background. Julien
studied him for a moment and then turned back to Austin, watching
his mate slowly calm down. His breathing seemed to level out as a
light snore fell from his lips.

“He’s completed his journey,” Chey said as he got to his feet.

Julien could see the exhaustion on the man’s face as he smiled weakly
at Julien and then Sully. “He’ll always have the memories. He’ll just
be at peace with them now.”

Julien wanted to ask if Chey had seen Austin’s memories, but

from the look on Eagle’s face, he kept his lips closed.

The man was already suffering enough from healing Austin and

being denied his mate. Julien wasn’t going to add to that. He watched
Eagle open the door, keeping a distance from Chey as the two exited
the room.

Sully 97

Chapter Ten

Theo leaned against the counter, talking with a few of the mates

when he noticed the man who seemed to make him forget his own
name sitting at the bar. Theo hadn’t remembered him walking in but
could feel the man boring a hole in his back with his eyes.

He talked a few more minutes with Toby and Jasper before

excusing himself. He didn’t want to seem desperate, so he grabbed a
hand towel, tossed it over his shoulder, and took another patron’s
order first. The stall tactics may have been working to delay him
rushing over, but they didn’t help his hardened cock or his racing
heart.

Finally, after Theo thought enough time had passed, he sauntered

over. He was hard-pressed not to look the man straight in his eyes. He
knew the stranger would see the longing, and Theo wasn’t going to
put himself out there like that again. Once was enough to keep his
heart guarded, and he knew this man would steal his heart if he
allowed him.

“Michelob?” Theo asked with a steady voice.
The stranger’s sexy-as-sin lips pulled back into a smile that Theo

could only describe as wicked. He nodded his head as his eyes openly
assessed Theo’s body. He could feel his body flush at the blatant
perusal.

Theo grabbed the beer, popping the cap and setting it on the

counter. “Name’s Theo.” He didn’t dare hold his hand out for a shake.
Theo feared touching the man and losing control.

The man gave Theo a low and erotic chuckle as he lifted the beer

from the counter. “I know who you are.”

Lynn Hagen

Right. It’s not like his name wasn’t over the door. Theo felt kind

of foolish as he stood there for a moment with a blank mind.

“I am Nazaryth,” the man said as he slid his hand across the bar,

palm up.

Theo wasn’t so sure he should take the man’s hand. His gut told

him to run as far away from Nazaryth as possible. Against his better
judgment, Theo slid his hand into the stranger’s and gasped as images
assailed him.

The stranger leaned in closely, pressing his lips to Theo’s ear. “I

am the leader of the Winged Beasts of Zanthar, and you, Theo, are my
mate.”

* * * *

Sully sat in the chair in the hospital room with Julien in his lap

fast asleep. He kept an eye on Austin, but he was still sleeping since
Chey left. Sully was against the omega coming to live with them from
the start, knowing the small wolf had the capability to destroy them
all.

But as he sat there watching Austin sleep peacefully, he began to

understand Chey. He even went as far as feeling sorry for him. He
saw the pain in Chey’s eyes when he was healing Austin, and Sully
didn’t wish that haunted look on anyone.

He held his arms out as Julien squirmed around and then resettled

himself before wrapping his arms back around his mate.

Sully sat forward, his arms tightening around Julien as Austin’s

eyelids fluttered open. He waited to see if his mate was going to cry
or smile. Sully didn’t care which one but would prefer the smile.
Austin had a million-dollar smile that lit up Pride Pack Valley.

“Can I walk?” Austin asked from his hospital bed.
Sully felt his heart squeeze and his chest tighten as he shook his

head. “I don’t know, babe. I honestly don’t know.” He hated giving
Austin an uncertain answer. He wished he could say his mate was

Sully 99

good as new, but Austin had yet to walk. He had yet to get off of his
stomach.

Austin gave a slight nod as his eyes danced over to Julien. “How

is he?”

“Miraculously, pain free. He tumbled to the floor with Chey, and

now he doesn’t have any pain in his leg.”

Austin gave Sully that award-winning smile. “He shouldn’t be

tumbling with anyone but us. Did you spank him for it?”

Sully felt like a shit. His cock was hard as steel with images of

spanking either of them. “Not yet. I was waiting for you.”

Austin’s eyes averted Sully’s, falling to look at the floor. “That

may be a long time then.”

“Let’s see what Dr. Samuel has to say when he comes in. He

shouldn’t be too long. The morning shift has already started their
rounds.”

Austin gave him a weak smile this time, as if trying to reassure

Sully that he was fine. That was bullshit and he knew it. His mate was
just as worried as he was. He didn’t like the fact that Austin refused to
voice his fears but understood that men normally didn’t.

“Do you need anything?” he asked as he rearranged his sleeping

Julien.

“To walk again.” Austin said it jokingly, but Sully could see the

fear in his mate’s eyes. He hated this. Hated the fact that he was
helpless to do anything for Austin. Sully had been through enough
under his ex-alpha Jackson’s reign of terror. He had sworn that no one
else he cared about would be hurt. Yet, here Austin lay, possibly
crippled for life. His jaw clenched to stop the scream from escaping
his lips. This shit just wasn’t fair. Austin was a good man who didn’t
deserve this.

“Good morning,” Dr. Samuel said as he entered the room.
“Morning, doc,” Austin said with a little too much cheer in his

voice.

100

Lynn Hagen

Sully could tell it was forced but said nothing as the doctor

approached Austin’s bed. “I hear you had a visitor. How do you
feel?”

Austin glanced over at Sully before turning his smile on the

doctor. “Great. I’m ready to run a marathon.”

Dr. Samuel chuckled. “I just bet you are. Let’s have a look.”
Sully waited anxiously as the doctor examined his mate. He

braced himself for the worst as he counted off the ways he could
make life easier for Austin. He’d make sure a ramp was built onto the
new house and everything wheelchair accessible. There would be
nothing Austin would want for.

He knew the entire pack would be there to help his mate. The

soldiers were like brothers. They were brothers after the ordeal they
had lived through.

“My goodness,” Dr. Samuel exclaimed. “Very interesting.”
“What?” Sully asked as he stood, gently setting his tired mate

down comfortably in the fold-back chair and tucking the sheet around
his small frame before crossing the room. He wasn’t sure what he was
going to see as he joined the doctor at Austin’s bedside.

“Whoever visited him did a miraculous job. Of course, I’m only

looking at the external healing, I’ll have to send him to get a few
MRIs, but he has healed as if in shifter form. His scars are virtually
nonexistent.”

Sully felt hope burst from his heart as he stared down at the sliver

of a surgical scar. The skin wasn’t even pink and puckered but in the
stage of being at least a year old. There was a small white line were
the surgeons had cut into Austin’s back, but that was it. “That’s good
news, right?”

Dr. Samuel chuckled as he patted Sully on his shoulder. “It’s very

good news. Let me arrange for him to be taken down for his MRI. I’m
willing to bet he’s completely healed.”

Sully 101

Sully wanted to shout for joy but held off until the doctor took

some pictures and would see Austin’s condition internally. The
prognosis had to be good for Dr. Samuel to be so optimistic.

If his mate could walk again, Sully would…okay, he wouldn’t

kiss the doctor, but he’d vigorously shake his hand. “Thanks.” He
smiled.

“I told you,” Austin said smugly. “You can’t keep a good man

down.”

Sully saw it for the teasing that is was, but he also saw the relief in

Austin’s eyes.

Sully would forever be in debt to Chey.

* * * *

Julien ran his hands over his shirt as he walked beside Austin and

Sully. He was nervous as hell to meet Sully’s family. For too long he
had been on his own. To find himself suddenly with an extremely
large family was a bit unsettling.

He still couldn’t get over the fact that he was walking without a

limp. It was exhilarating and strange at the same time. But what was
even more miraculous was the fact that Austin was walking. A little
slower, but he was upright, and that was all that mattered.

“Do you need us to slow down?” Sully asked Austin.
Austin exhaled loudly as he punched Sully in his well-muscled

upper arm. “For the hundredth time, no.”

Julien snickered at the indignant look on Austin’s face. He was

such a drama king. Julien knew that Austin was the least bit irritated.
The man practically danced a jig when Dr. Samuel declared him
healthy and able to walk.

“Why exactly are we here again?” Julien asked Sully as they made

their way to the back of a very large and expansive home. In Julien’s
eyes, it was the most beautiful home he’d ever laid eyes on.

102

Lynn Hagen

“To tear this piece of shit down,” Sully said as he waved a hand at

the house.

“You’re kidding, right?” Julien asked incredulously.
“Nope. It holds too many bad memories that my family would like

to forget about.”

Julien didn’t press the subject when he heard the bitterness in

Sully’s voice. He didn’t know about his mate’s past, and Julien wasn’t
one to pry.

He gasped, along with Austin, when they rounded the corner and

saw the big wrecking ball lingering in the air, waiting to do its joyful
duty. Julien snaked one hand in Sully’s and the other in Austin’s as
they approached a large group of men. He wasn’t good with crowds.

“Glad you made it,” Eagle said as he walked over to them. He

smiled when he saw Austin walking.

“I’m happy my mate could help.”
Austin snorted. “You and me both.”
“How’s Craig?” Sully asked.
Julien had been worried about the deputy but Sully hadn’t known

anything when he inquired about the man who fought by their side.

Eagle chucked a thumb over his shoulder. “Recovered and giving

Avanti and Jesse hell.”

Julien smiled at the news that Craig was fine. He would have

hated it if something had happened to the man who stood up for him
and Austin.

He looked up toward the sky to see the sun set and then heard the

crickets begin their nightly serenade. Julien looked around as Tiki
torches were lit all over the yard. He tugged on Sully’s hand, waiting
for his mate to look at him.

“Why didn’t you have this earlier?”
Sully smiled as he pulled first Julien to his chest and then Austin,

as he nodded to a dark-haired man across the lawn. “Because Trevor
can’t be out in the sunlight.”

Sully 103

Julien gaped at the man chatting away with a blond man. “He’s a

vampire?”

“Yep. And if you have a problem with them, don’t let Sammy or

Knox know.”

“How can I have a problem with them if I’ve never even met

one?” Julien asked.

“Did you just say vampire?” Austin pulled from Sully’s arms to

take a step forward, his eyes glued on Trevor.

“Calm down, Austin. He won’t drain your blood.” A man

chuckled as he approached them. “He only likes to make you think he
will when he’s in one of his moods. That’s usually when he’s been
hanging around Sidney.”

“Julien. Austin. This is Torem, beta to Zeus,” Sully introduced

them.

Julien was lost at who Torem was talking about. He had a feeling

it was going to take a long time before he figured out who all these
people were in relation to each other.

Everyone quieted when Zeus stood on the back porch. Julien

wasn’t too sure how significant the destruction of the house was, but
he saw a few soldiers with stern jaws as they listened to Zeus give his
speech.

Cheers went up when the alpha declared the new house ready and

that everything had been moved into it. The crowd was directed to
move to a safer distance as a man gave the signal to the person sitting
in the seat of the massive piece of equipment.

“That’s Dino. He’s not only the foreman on the project to rebuild

the new house, he’s Torem and Sidney’s mate.”

Julien took a closer look around, noticing some men standing

alone while others stood in a group of three. “Does everyone have two
mates?”

“Looks that way,” Austin answered. “Now I don’t feel so slutty.”

He chuckled.

104

Lynn Hagen

“You’re not a slut.” Sully growled as he pulled them into his

arms.

Julien watched in awe as the wrecking ball made its first contact

with the enormous home. He noticed a few men with tears in their
eyes, including Eagle. He felt sorry for the man when he saw Chey
standing close, but not touching. What would it be like to be near
Sully but unable to touch him?

Torturous, plain and simple.

* * * *

Austin’s naked form jumped on Sully’s back as his mate spun

around, swinging his arms behind him trying to dislodge Austin.

“Get him, Austin.” Julien laughed as he jumped from the bed.

Austin looked over Sully’s shoulder to see Julien drop to his knees,
taking Sully’s cock into his mouth. Austin groaned at the sight. He
never thought he would be the type to like ménages, but considering it
was Sully and Julien, Austin couldn’t see it any other way.

“It looks like it feels good,” Austin whispered in envy.
“God, yes,” Sully croaked out.
Austin wrapped his arms tightly around Sully’s shoulders as he

watched Julien suck Sully’s cock. Damn if his wasn’t leaking,
begging to be next. Julien’s lips were perfect, as if they were made
just for cock sucking. They were plump and pretty.

Austin slid off of Sully’s back, wanting a closer look. He dropped

to his knees, watching as Julien licked and slobbered all over Sully’s
cock. He licked his lips, wanting to taste what Julien was so obviously
enjoying. He leaned forward, darting his tongue out as Julien moved
over, giving him room.

“Oh hell,” Sully moaned as his hands raked through their hair.

Austin smiled up at Sully before leaning in, taking Sully’s balls into
his mouth. They worked together, giving Sully all the pleasure he
could handle until they heard him shouting. Austin pulled the cock

Sully 105

from between Julien’s lips, sucking down the remaining release as
Sully bucked.

Austin grabbed Julien as Sully staggered over to the bed and

collapsed. He pushed Julien up onto the bed, grabbing the lube on his
way. Austin took pleasure in preparing his mate as he locked eyes
with Julien’s beautiful blue ones.

Julien smiled as lust filled his eyes. He spread his legs wider for

Austin as he inserted a third finger. Julien’s eyes rolled back as he
lifted his hips higher. Austin cut his eyes at Sully as his large mate
crawled over to watch.

“I thought you were down for the count?”
Sully twisted his lips to the side as he looked at Austin with a duh

look. “And miss this? Not on your life.”

Austin turned his attention back to his smaller mate, twisting his

fingers as he watched ecstasy flash across Julien’s face. He pulled his
fingers free, and then lubed his cock, pushing into what could only be
described as heaven.

“Damn,” Sully whispered. “You two are the sight.”
Austin dropped to his arms as he took Julien’s lips in a searing

kiss. He pulled back and then rammed forward, knowing Julien liked
it a little rough. Austin yelped when a large hand landed on his ass.

“Are you crazy?”
Sully chuckled, giving Austin a wicked grin. “My handprint looks

good on your ass.”

“My boot print will look good on yours if you do that again. I let

you spank me once, so that better have lasted you because it won’t
happen again.”

Sully roared with laughter as Julien punched him on his arm.

“Move it, buster. I’m hornier than hell and want to get off.”

Austin sighed. He braced himself as he jackhammered into

Julien’s tight ass, giving his mate exactly what he asked for.

106

Lynn Hagen

Julien became vocal as Austin fucked him into the mattress and

Sully jacked Julien’s cock off. The sight of Sully’s large hand
wrapped around Julien’s cock had him close.

“Oh god,” Julien cried out as jets of cum shot out of his cock.
Austin lost his mind when Julien’s ass pulsed around his shaft. He

cried out, slamming his cock into Julien’s ass as his balls emptied. He
slowed his movements, his body jerking as miniorgasms rocked his
body.

Austin was no use now. He dropped to the bed, his breathing

unsteady as he closed his eyes. Fuck if these two weren’t going to
wear him out.

Sully 107

Chapter Eleven

Sidney jumped around as he waited for Julien and Austin to get

their asses downstairs. It was bingo night, and he was amped up.

“What’s taking them so long?” he whined as he bounced around

the flower shop.

“Calm down before I smack you,” Jasper threatened.
“Bring it on, Red. I can handle you.” Sidney bounced around,

holding his fists up as he did some fancy footwork.

“He’s been in the Red Bull again, I see.” Trevor chuckled as

Tristan rolled his eyes.

Sidney ignored them. If Torem or Dino found out he fell off of the

wagon, his ass would be toast. “Have not,” he said indignantly then
quickly looked in the other direction. He really needed another Red
Bull.

“Dude,” Tristan snipped, “knock it the fuck off.”
“What?” Sidney said as he turned to look at the man.
“You’re tearing all the leaves off Julien’s flowers.”
Sidney’s eyes rounded as he looked down to see a plant in front of

him. Half the leaves were on the plant. The other half were on the
floor. “Damn.” Sidney quickly shoved his hands into his pockets.

Maybe this wasn’t such a good idea. It had only been the

one…okay, three Red Bulls. But that was it. Man, his goose was
cooked.

“Hey, ready to go?” Julien asked as he bounced down the stairs.
Sidney smiled. It was pretty cool to see the guy walking without a

limp. The limp wasn’t really as noticeable as Julien had thought it

108

Lynn Hagen

was, but it was good see a sparkle in Julien’s eyes that hadn’t been
there before. It kind of matched the bounce in his step.

Sidney hopped over to stand next to Julien and bumped shoulders

with him as he rubbed his hands together. “Ready to go play bingo?”

“Yeah.” Julien frowned for a moment then glanced at Tristan and

Trevor. “Is he always like this?”

“I think he fell off the wagon.”
“Did not!”
“Wagon?” Julien glanced back at Sidney. “You’re an alcoholic?”
“Geez.”“ Sidney rolled his eyes. “I am not an alcoholic. I just

have a small…err…Red Bull problem.”

“Red Bull?” Julien’s eyebrows shot up. “Red Bull, as in the

energy drink? That Red Bull?”

“Yeah.” Sidney’s eyes beamed. “Got one?”

* * * *

Austin rolled his eyes as Julien tried to wade through the crowd of

old ladies surrounding the bathroom door of the bingo hall. Sidney
was holed up inside, hiding in fear for his life if Austin understood the
yelling from inside the bathroom correctly.

Tristan and Trevor were no help. They just stood off to one side,

laughing their collective asses off as the scourge of Pride Pack Valley
tried to gain entrance to the bathroom so they could string Sidney up.
At least, that was what the women were threatening to do.

Austin started to wade into the crowd when he saw two rather

large men come through the door. He feared for Julien for a moment
until he heard one of them shout and push through the throng to get to
the bathroom door.

The other went to stand next to Trevor and Tristan. Austin turned

his attention back to the crowd of angry women and tried to find his
mate. Sidney seemed to have his rescue coming. Austin needed to get
Julien out of harm’s way.

Sully 109

“Julien!” Austin shouted over the crowd of angry voices. He still

didn’t quite understand what Sidney had done wrong, but he had sure
pissed off a lot of little old women. They were out for blood. Austin
just hoped it wasn’t his blood.

“Julien!”
“Stop shouting,” Julien said from right beside Austin. “I can hear

you already.” Julien pointed to his ears. “Great hearing, remember?”

Austin rolled his eyes, grabbed Julien by the arm, and propelled

him toward the front door where Trevor, Tristan, and the very large
man stood. Austin pulled Julien back a little when they reached the
small group. He didn’t know who the man was, but he was huge and
scary looking.

“Who are you?”
The man’s black eyebrow arched slightly. “Avanti.”
“Is that who you are or what you do?”
The man glanced over at Trevor and Tristan then back at Austin.

“Avanti is my name. It means ahead in Italian. What do you mean by
your question?”

Austin ignored him. He wasn’t sure what the hell he meant either,

but he was nervous for crying out loud. He couldn’t be held
accountable for what he said. “Fine. Then who are you, Avanti?”
Austin wasn’t taking any chances, not when his mate’s safety was at
stake.

“I am a pack soldier.” Avanti calmly folded his hands together in

front of him. “Who are you?”

Austin had a feeling that the man knew exactly who he was. “I’m

Austin, mate to Sully and Julien. And I may not be like you, but if
you hurt a hair on Julien’s head, you’ll find out exactly how big and
bad I can be.”

“Austin!” Julien gasped. “You don’t talk to a pack soldier like

that.”

“When it comes to your safety, yes I do.”

110

Lynn Hagen

Avanti was grinning when Austin turned away from Julien and

looked back at him. Austin was almost shocked out of his shoes when
Avanti bowed his head slightly.

“Message received and understood.”
He sounded almost respectful, enough so that Austin felt guilty for

automatically assuming the guy was a badass. “Look, I’m sorry. I
don’t know how this whole pack thing works. I just can’t let Julien
get hurt any more than he’s already been. If I’ve offended you then I
apologize.”

“You have not offended me, Austin. Every man has a right to

protect his mate.” Avanti pointed his finger at Julien. “And you need
to remember that. Soldier or no soldier, Austin has the right to state
his claim on you and protect you as he sees fit. No soldier would
argue with him.”

Austin’s mouth dropped open. He couldn’t believe the guy was on

his side. He wasn’t even pack. Maybe he should mention that. “Uh,
you know I’m human, right? I’m not pack. I’m not sure if the same
rules apply to me.”

“You are pack!” Avanti snapped, loud enough that Austin took a

step back, jerking Julien along with him. “You will need to swear
fidelity to Zeus, but that’s just a formal thing. You became pack the
moment Sully claimed you.”

“But I’m human,” Austin protested.
“So is my mate, Craig.”
Austin’s eyes widened. “Craig, the deputy? That’s your mate?”
“Yes, and I believe I have you to thank for coming to his rescue.”
Austin frowned. “You do remember that we both had our asses

handed to us, right? We were in the freaking hospital.”

“True, but you went to my mate’s rescue despite the danger to

you. That’s not something I will easily forget.”

“Oh, man, you gotta know I was just trying to keep my mate safe.

I wasn’t trying to be brave or anything. It just kind of all happened in
a big blur.”

Sully 111

“And that makes it even more commendable.”
“Dude, seriously—”
Avanti held up his hand. “I will not change my mind, so you can

stop arguing with me. Jesse and I owe you for saving our mate. We
will not forget.”

Austin rolled his eyes then glanced over at Julien. A small snicker

fell from his lips when he saw Julien’s mouth hanging open as he
stared at Avanti. He reached over and tapped Julien under the chin.
Julien’s mouth snapped closed even as his face flushed.

“God, you’re cute.”
Julien’s eyes narrowed.
“Sexy,” Austin said quickly, holding his hands up. “I meant

sexy.”

* * * *

“Sully, I need to speak with you.”
Sully glanced up from the maps he was looking through. He was a

little surprised to see Zeus in the study as they had just talked not ten
minutes ago when the alpha had asked him to make out a new guard
rotation.

“What’s up?”
Sully stood up straighter when he saw the deep frown on Zeus’s

face. He wasn’t going to like what the man had to say and he knew
even before Zeus began to speak.

“There’s been a problem down at the jail.”
“A problem?” Sully asked. A tickling began at the bottom of his

spine and started to work its way up, growing colder by the second.
“What sort of problem?”

“James has escaped jail.”
“What?” Sully shouted. “How in the hell did that happen?”
“I suspect more of the rogues or ex-followers of Jackson were

involved.” Zeus rubbed the back of his neck as if the tension was

112

Lynn Hagen

overwhelming. “Two deputies were knocked out, one died. Jesse is
investigating it now, but he thought we should know.”

“Fuck!” Sully ran his hands down his face. “Are there any leads?”
“No, but—”
Sully glanced over quickly when Zeus stopped speaking. “What?’
Zeus drew in a deep breath. “Jesse thinks James is going to go

after Julien again.”

Sully’s heart sank down to his toes. “Julien,” he whispered then

went running for the door. Sully just knew if he didn’t get to Julien,
something horrible was going to happen. James had it out for Julien
something fierce.

He jumped into his truck and started for town, wheels spinning up

gravel in his wake. If anything happened to Julien or Austin, he’d
never forgive himself. He was a pack soldier. He was supposed to
protect them. If Austin and Julien never talked to him again, he
wouldn’t be surprised.

Some mate he was turning out to be.

* * * *

Julien’s eyes almost popped out of his head as Torem carried his

mate out of the bingo hall bathroom over his shoulder, kicking and
screaming. The ladies of the bingo hall had started shouting the
moment Torem opened the door. Torem had shouted for everyone to
be quiet once, and then silence had fallen over the room.

Torem had promised that Sidney would be properly disciplined

and weaned off of Red Bull once again before he was allowed back
into the bingo hall. That seemed to satisfy the old ladies enough to let
everyone escape unscathed.

Julien followed behind Torem with Austin, Tristan, Trevor, and

Avanti. He was still a little shocked by the way Austin had spoken to
Avanti. He might not have been a wolf shifter, but even he knew to be

Sully 113

respectful when talking to a soldier. Being disrespectful was a good
way to have his ass handed to him.

On the other hand, he couldn’t help but be delighted with the way

Austin, a human, had stood up for him. Austin knew Avanti could
kick his ass, and he still stood up to him. Julien was even a little
aroused by that.

Hell, who was he kidding? He was a whole lot aroused by that. He

wanted nothing more than to take Austin home and get fucked into
the mattress, with Sully fucking Austin. Sounded like paradise to him.

“How fast do you think we can get home and get naked?” he

whispered to Austin.

Austin stumbled then caught himself. His face was flaming when

he looked at Julien. “Home?” Austin licked his lips. “Naked?”

Julien snapped his fingers in front of Austin’s face. “I want you at

home and naked in my bed,” he said, pronouncing each word clearly.
“And then I want you balls deep in my ass. Is that clear enough for
you?”

Austin gulped. “Yeah.”
“Then get moving!”
Austin turned around and ran smack into someone. They both

went crashing to the ground. Julien rolled his eyes and ran over to
help them up, an apology on the tip of his lips until he saw the gun
aimed at Austin’s head. His eyes slowly lifted up to see the one face
he hoped to never see again in his lifetime.

“James.”

* * * *

Austin knew he had to think quick. He wouldn’t allow Julien to

get hurt. He wouldn’t allow any of the men he was with to be harmed
either.

“All you had to do was hand over the money, Julien. That’s all Ed

and I wanted.”

114

Lynn Hagen

“But it’s my money!” Julien shouted as he fisted his hands at his

sides.

Austin commended him on his bravery, but now was not the time

to grow some balls and stand up to this con artist. Austin tried to
convey this with his eyes, but Julien was too busy giving James the
stink eye.

“Yours, mine, details, details. Do you think I care who earned it?”

James growled.

“I’d suggest you lower your weapon and let him go.”
Austin was shocked to see Avanti standing behind Julien, his face

pulled back in raw rage.

“Who the fuck are you?” James asked as he slowly backed away.

Austin didn’t blame him. Avanti was one scary ass dude when he
wasn’t angry. Pissed off and he was terrifying.

“A friend.” He winked at Austin.
Was this whole town fucking mad? Was Austin the only sane one

around? He didn’t want a damn wink from Avanti. He wanted James
taken down. He raised his eyebrows, his lips parted as he held his
hands out to his sides. “What the fuck?”

“Shut up.” James jerked him around some as he pressed the gun

harder into his temple.

“I got you.” Avanti nodded at him. “No worries.”
“I honestly thought you were cool,” Austin said incredulously.

“But now I see you’re as nutty as everyone else.”

“I said, I got you.” Avanti drew out the words, making Austin

pause in his ranting. He noticed the way Julien was licking his lips,
his eyes staring past Austin. Okay, he had to play it cool. There was
someone sneaking up on James. He could handle this.

He just hoped that whoever it was didn’t fuck this up and Austin

was left with his brain on the damn ground. Avanti winked at him
once more. Now Austin saw the gesture for what it was. A signal. He
lowered his lashes once, telling Avanti he understood. Somewhat.
Maybe, hopefully. Okay, he didn’t have a clue.

Sully 115

Everything happened so fast that Austin wasn’t sure what to do. A

roar filled the night as Austin was pushed to the ground. Julien came
running to him as Avanti shifted into a fucking wolf. A fucking real,
live wolf, and leapt over him.

Austin’s body jerked when he heard the gun go off. The first thing

he did was check Julien for injury.

“I’m fine.” Julien pushed Austin’s hands away as he got to his

feet. “Sully took care of him.”

“Really?” Austin asked as he rolled to his belly and pushed to his

feet, dusting himself off as he looked at his larger mate.

Oh man. He shouldn’t have looked. He really shouldn’t have

looked. Was there any way to hit rewind so he could close his eyes
and not see such a sickening sight?

“Are you going to be sick?” Julien asked as he hurried to Austin’s

side.

“Hell yeah,” Austin said. He wasn’t too manly to deny the

queasiness in his gut. He jumped when he heard Sully’s inhuman
voice howl. He could have sworn he heard the words Sully style.

Austin shook his head as he looked over at the other mates who

were standing there looking frightened as hell. Well, except for
Jasper, he just looked pissed. Austin averted his eyes when he saw
that Jasper’s canines were all the way past his bottom lip and his eyes
were a weird shade of red.

Pride Pack Valley was one freaky place. The people that lived

here were just off the fucking wall.

“Can we go home now or does someone else want to try and beat

me up, tear me to pieces, or fucking harm one of my mates?” Austin
knew he was shouting by the time he finished, but he was starting to
lose it and he knew it.

If he didn’t get some downtime from all the crazy ass shit going

on around him he was going to burst a blood vessel. He could feel it.
It was like a slow throbbing in his head that just got worse with each
pulse.

116

Lynn Hagen

“Come on, love,” Julien said. “Let’s get you home.”
“Home is good,” Austin said. He started to wonder if he had truly

cracked when a huge grey wolf walked up to him, shifting as he did.
By the time it reached Austin, Sully stood in human form before him.

Austin looked him up and down, one eyebrow shooting up.

“You’re naked! Get some fucking clothes on!”

Sully blinked and waved his hands around the area. “I just took

down a man with a gun to your head, and in wolf form I might add,
and all you can do is tell me to put some clothes on?”

“Yes!” Austin crossed his arms over his chest and stomped his

foot for emphasis. He knew he was being a shit and acting odd but
somehow, that seemed to be the least of his worries right now. “I
think under the circumstances, I sound perfectly reasonable.”

“Yeah, in your own little freaking world!”
“No,” Austin said, “I think I’m in your world right now.”
“No,” Julien said, “we are in our world.”
“You’ll live,” Jasper snapped. “Shut up, go home, get fucked, and

have a nice night.”

Trevor and Tristan went into hysterical laughter at Jasper’s words.

Sidney stepped forward and held out a can of Red Bull. “Here, this
will help. It always helps me. It’s really good. You’ll see. It—Hey!”
Sidney shouted when Torem grabbed the can and threw it as hard as
he could. “I was gonna drink that. It was my last one.”

“Oh, hell no!” Torem yelled. He grabbed Sidney and tossed him

back over his shoulder then started walking away. “Just wait until I
get you home, Sidney. Dino is going to kick your ass.”

“It was just the one can.”
Austin’s eyes rounded when Torem smacked Sidney on the ass.

“How many cans?” Torem asked. “And don’t lie to me because I’ll
know.”

“Okay, okay,” Sidney whimpered. “It might of have been

three…or five. I’m not sure. I lost count.”

Sully 117

“If you lost count then you’ve definitely had too many. You’re

grounded from the bingo hall for a month.”

Austin simply stood there with his mouth hanging open as he

watched Torem carry Sidney off into the darkness until Sidney’s cries
of defeat faded away. He turned to look at the other mates, concerned
for the funny man.

“Torem and Dino won’t really kick his ass, will they?” he asked.
“No.” Jasper snickered. “But he’s gonna wish they did after they

get done with him.”

“What are they going to do to him?”
“Fuck him unto unconsciousness.” Jasper shook his head. “That’s

the only thing that works with Sidney. Keep his mind on something
else and he won’t think about his Red Bull addiction.”

“He’s really addicted to Red Bull?” Austin asked. “Seriously.”
“Honey,”—Jasper laughed—“you have no idea.”
Austin wasn’t sure how he felt about someone else calling him

honey other than his mates. It seemed like something that should just
be theirs to call him. But he was too confused about the whole
situation to say anything. He didn’t think making waves about a little
name would endear him to the pack, and he wanted to be accepted.

Hearing from Avanti that he was now part of the pack, even if he

still had to do some fancy commitment thing with Zeus, made Austin
feel good. After all of the crap he experienced at the hands of his birth
family, he had always felt like he had missed out on something. He
just never expected to get his wish through one man, let alone two.

Sully and Julien were a miracle as far as Austin was concerned.

He turned to look at his two mates, happy to see Sully wearing a pair
of sweats, and wondered if maybe it was time to take his mates home
and show them how much he cared about them.

“Julien mentioned something earlier about going home and

getting naked. Do you think maybe we can try that?” He waved his
hand around the area. “This really isn’t my scene.”

118

Lynn Hagen

Sully chuckled and held out a hand to both him and Julien. Austin

tried not to look like he was running as he quickly walked over and
grabbed Sully’s hand like a lifeline. He felt a hundred times better
once Sully’s hand closed around his. He didn’t even mind the amused
chuckles he could hear from behind him.

When Julien pressed against his side and grabbed his other hand,

Austin thought he might have been able to face anyone and anything,
just as long as his mates never let go of him. Maybe this was what
family was? Austin wasn’t positive if this could be considered a
conventional family, but he sure as hell wanted it to be his.

* * * *

Sully felt the tension drain from Austin’s body once he was

encased between him and Julien. He knew, as a human, that Austin
was dealing with a whole lot more than he should have. The death and
destruction he had witnessed in just the last few days would have
been more than enough to weaken even the strongest human.

Unfortunately, it was a side effect of being mated to a shifter.

Their lives were dangerous, but they were also rewarding. They might
need soldiers and guards, people to protect the pack. But they also
needed mates, family, and the pack to show them why they fought so
hard for the life they had.

Sully knew he had two perfect examples of why he fought every

day right next to him. He had his world next to him, and he would
fight to the death to keep them there. Sully moved over to slide
between his mates, wrapping an arm around both of them.

“So, what is this great plan of yours?” he asked as he looked

between Julien and Austin. “Go home and get naked and then what?”

“If I have to tell you that…” Austin snickered. “We have bigger

problems than I thought we did.”

* * * *

Sully 119

Julien chuckled as Sully took off running toward the truck after

Austin. By the time he reached the truck a few moments later, Sully
had Austin pressed up against the side of the truck. He looked like he
was trying to give Austin a tonsillectomy.

Julien watched for a moment because it was just too arousing not

to, then cleared his throat. The two sets of eyes that turned to look at
him didn’t hold a trace of guilt. Even if they had, it would have been
overshadowed by the lust burning in them.

Julien waved his hand toward the truck. “Can we go home now?

As sexy as it is watching you stick your tongue down Austin’s throat,
I’d much rather watch you shove your cock up his ass, and we ain’t
doing that out here on a public street.”

“Bossy, bossy, bossy,” Sully groused as he opened the truck door

and waited for Austin and Julien to climb inside. He started the truck
up and put it into drive. Before the truck started moving, Sully looked
at Julien then pointed at the very obvious erection bulging in Austin’s
pants.

“It’ll take us ten minutes to get home. I expect that to be in the

same place it is right now when we pull into the driveway, so you’d
better do something to keep it there.”

Julien blinked for a moment then burst out laughing. “And you

call me bossy?”

Sully frowned and stepped on the gas. “Just do it.”
Julien rolled his eyes and turned to look at Austin. “This is going

to work a whole hell of a lot better if you don’t have any pants on.”

Julien smirked when Austin’s eyes widened and he scrambled to

unbutton his jeans and push them down his legs. The second Austin’s
purpled cockhead popped up, Julien pounced, swallowing Austin
down to the root.

“Oh my fucking god!” Austin screeched. “Your mouth was made

for sucking cock!”

120

Lynn Hagen

“Shut up,” Julien growled as he lifted his head. He could feel his

face warm up at Austin’s words of praise. “You’re breaking my
concentration.”

Austin pressed his lips together.
Julien grinned and went back to sucking the man’s cock. If either

of his mates actually knew how much he enjoyed sucking their cocks
he’d be in big trouble. Julien didn’t know if it was the way they
tasted, the way they smelled, or the way they wiggled when he did it,
but he was absolutely addicted to sucking their cocks.

Julien pressed his tongue into the small slit on the top of Austin’s

cock, groaning when he was rewarded with little drops of pre-cum.
Damn, he tasted good. Julien did it again then licked down the heavily
veined side until he reached Austin’s balls. A lap or two with his
tongue got him a deep groan from Austin—reward number two.

Julien started sucking in his cheeks and bobbing his head up and

down. He could feel the swelling in Austin’s cock and the way his
balls were starting to draw up close to his body. He knew Austin
wasn’t far from an orgasm. Sully had said to keep him hard, not let
him blow his load.

“No!” Austin shouted when Julien lifted his head.
“Sorry, hon, I can’t let you come just yet.”
“I was so fucking close.”
Julien grinned. “I know. I was down there.”
His grin started to fall from his lips when Austin’s face went from

agonized to stern. He suddenly felt like just maybe he should have
kept sucking. “I can—”

“You can drop your pants,” Austin growled.
Julien stared at Austin for a moment then glanced over his

shoulder at Sully. When Sully nodded his head, Julien unbuttoned his
pants and pushed them down his legs. He frowned when he realized
that both he and Austin were naked from the waist down and Sully
was naked from the waist up. Somehow, that didn’t seem quite right
to him.

Sully 121

Julien cried out when he was suddenly lifted then laid back on the

bench seat between Austin and Sully. There really wasn’t enough
space. Julien’s head rested on Sully’s thigh. His ass rested on Austin’s
lap. He felt ridiculous.

He also felt Austin’s hands start skimming his body. He didn’t

care if he looked ridiculous or odd scrunched between the two men.
He was right where he wanted to be—sandwiched between his mates.

“Soon, Sully,” Austin said.
“Got it,” Sully replied.
“Got what?” Julien asked, tilting his head back to look up at Sully.
Sully just chuckled and waved his hand toward the tent in his

jogging pants. “Why don’t you get on your hands and knees and do
something about that?”

Julien arched an eyebrow. “You’re driving.”
“It’s called road head, babe.”
“It’s dangerous,” Julien insisted.
“I’ll drive slow.”
Julien frowned but rolled over onto his hands and knees when the

truck slowed down. He wasn’t too sure about giving Sully a blow job
while he was driving, but he had slowed the truck to a relative crawl.

Julien pushed Sully’s jogging pants out of the way then leaned

forward and wrapped his lips around the hard cock jutting up at him.
The sweet musky taste of his mate exploded across his tongue almost
immediately.

Julien started to groan, but it turned to an all-out wail when he felt

Austin’s fingers push into his ass. Where Austin had gotten the lube,
Julien would never know, but he was thrilled that they had it. He
wasn’t sure they would make it home without having to pull over.
Someone was going to have an orgasm. Julien was hoping it would be
him.

Julien arched his ass into the air when Austin started moving his

fingers in and out. There were only two things he could think of that
felt better and one of them was currently in his mouth.

122

Lynn Hagen

“Sully,” Austin growled.
“On it.”
Julien didn’t care what they were talking about. He was in heaven.

He had a cock in his mouth and fingers in his ass. Things didn’t get
much better than this.

“Hey!” he cried out when the truck suddenly stopped and Sully

pulled away from him. “I was playing with that.”

“You’ll get to play with it again, baby,” Sully said as he opened

the door and slid out. “Right now, I think Austin has something better
for you to play with.”

“Huh?” Julien glanced over his shoulder just as Austin pulled his

fingers free, grabbed him by the hips, and pulled him to the edge of
the bench seat. He cried out, tossing his head back in abandon when
Austin’s cock suddenly impaled him.

“Is that what you wanted, baby?” Austin asked.
“Yesss!” Julien hissed as he pushed back on the cock pushing into

him. He felt Austin pause and almost climbed the dashboard in his bid
to get the man to start moving. A moment later, Austin’s entire body
shuddered.

When Julien glanced over his shoulder again, he could see Sully

standing behind him. The ecstasy on Austin’s face told Julien exactly
what happened. Julien grinned and pushed back on Austin once more.

“Fuck me!” he demanded.
Julien thought maybe he had demanded too much when Austin

suddenly started pounding into him. And then he didn’t think at all.
He just felt. He felt each and every thrust of Austin’s big cock into his
tight ass. He even felt it when Sully thrust into Austin. It was like
being fucked by both men at the same time.

It was perfect and it sent Julien over the edge so fast he should

have been embarrassed, and he might have been if he hadn’t heard
Austin’s roar of completion just moments after his. Sully’s growl
followed moments later.

Sully 123

Julien slumped down onto the bench, panting heavily. He could

feel the sweat pouring off of Austin as the man leaned against his
back. Julien reached back and felt around until Austin’s hand landed
in his. A moment later, Sully’s larger hand covered both of theirs.

Julien smiled, totally content for the first time in his life. His pain

was gone. He had the love and protection of two sexy-as-hell men,
and he had a growing family that accepted him as a fox and a gay
man. Did anything get much better than this?

* * * *

Chey watched as Torem walked through the front door, Sidney

tossed over his shoulder and screaming to wake the dead.

“I’m protesting the confiscation of my Red Bull. Those ladies at

the bingo hall blew things way out of proportion.”

Chey shook his head at his best friend. He was glad some things

would never change. Sidney would always be nuttier than a bed bug,
even if he kicked the Red Bull habit. He’d been like that his whole
life.

Chey walked from the living room as he made his way to the

stairs. He was still tired from healing Austin, the lingering effects
slowly dissipating. His foot faltered when he saw Eagle walking down
the hallway with Memphis, one of the other soldiers. He averted his
eyes.

Not only was Chey shy, but he was an omega. It was in his nature

to be submissive. He felt his face flush when he heard Eagle’s voice
coming closer, talking to Memphis.

“I think we’ll be better off in this new home,” Memphis was

saying.

Chey waited with bated breath to hear Eagle speak. He could

listen to his mate’s deep as whiskey voice all day and never tire of it.
When he heard nothing, Chey took a chance and glanced up.

124

Lynn Hagen

Eagle was standing close, looking right at him. Chey felt his entire

body flush as his mate smiled at him.

“I just wanted to say that I’m proud of the way you helped Sully’s

mates.”

Chey’s heart beat feverishly behind his chest. His mate had said

he was proud of him. “Thank you,” Chey replied as he looked down
at his feet.

“You’re welcome,” Eagle whispered close to his ear.
Chey had to fight not to reach out and grab his mate. His fingers

itched to touch any part of Eagle. He saddened when Eagle stepped
away and continued his talk with Memphis.

No matter. Eagle had said he was proud of him. Chey would relish

that compliment until they could figure out a way to be together.

THE END

WWW.LYNNHAGEN.COM

HTTP://FACEBOOK.COM/LYNNHAGEN.MANLOVE

HTTP://LYNNHAGEN.BLOGSPOT.COM

HTTP://GROUPS.YAHOO.COM/GROUP/LYNNHAGEN

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Lynn Hagen loves writing about the somewhat flawed, but

lovable. She also loves a hero who can see past all the rough edges to
find the shining diamond of a beautiful heart.

You can find her on any given day curled up with her laptop and a

cup of hot java, letting the next set of characters tell their story.

Also by Lynn Hagen

Ménage Everlasting ManLove: Zeus’s Pack 1: Jasper

Ménage Everlasting ManLove: Zeus’s Pack 2: Avanti

Ménage Everlasting ManLove: Zeus’s Pack 3: Knox

Ménage Everlasting ManLove: Zeus’s Pack 4: Torem

Ménage Everlasting ManLove: Zeus’s Pack 5: Hunter

For all other titles, please visit