A Cold Winter's Day 25 (5 page)

“I need something to clean him up with,” Bryce choked out. Chance had never seen so much—He was going to be sick right along with Chauncey. He opened his mouth wide, gagging as he fanned the air in front of his face.

“It’s all the way up his back,” Bryce cried. “We need to clean him up.”

“Bring him in here,” Chauncey said as he dropped the trash can and ran into the kitchen. Bryce picked Cole up, letting the cloth diaper fall into the trash as he rushed Cole into the kitchen. Chauncey had the sink filled with water. “Put him in here.”

Bryce rushed across the kitchen and sat the cub in the water. “Why are we putting him in the sink?”

“Because he’s not old enough to stand in the damn shower,” Chauncey said as he splashed water over Cole. The cub smiled as his small fists slapped the water, his toothless smile making Chance melt on the spot.

“What in the hell is that smell?” Curtis, Chauncey’s mate, complained as he walked into the kitchen. “Whatever you’re cooking, I don’t want any.”

“We’re not cooking anything, honey bunny. We’re bathing a cub.”

Curtis walked over to the sink, his eyes wide as he stared at Cole and then the three brothers. “Why is there a baby in the sink?”

“Because he can’t wipe his own ass?” Chance asked as he grabbed a clean kitchen washcloth. He dunked it into the water and then ran it over Cole’s back, cleaning the stench from the cub. This was just gross, but the cub was cute. That made up for him washing crap from someone’s back.

“Have any of you ever changed a diaper?” Curtis asked as he smiled at Cole.

“Nope.”

“Never.”

“Not on a baby.”

Everyone turned to Bryce, but the guy just shrugged.

“Give him here,” Curtis said as he grabbed Cole and a dry hand towel, wrapping it around Cole’s bottom.

“His bottom lip is shaking,” Chance pointed out. “He’s cold.”

“Then let’s get him dressed.” Curtis walked back into the living room and laid Cole out on the sofa, digging through his diaper bag and grabbing another cloth diaper. “He only has two diapers left. Someone is going to have to go buy some.”

“I can do that,” Bryce volunteered.

“Make sure they’re the cloth kind, the ones with the built-in plastic liner on the outside. That seems to be all that are in here.” Curtis shrugged. “His pa must be into that all-natural thing.”

Chance frowned at the odd piece of cloth Curtis was putting on the baby. “They have different types of diapers?”

“Oh yeah.” Curtis chuckled.

Who knew?

The three brothers watched as Curtis gave Diaper Changing 101 lessons. Once Cole was powdered and had a clean diaper on, Curtis dug through the colorful bag again. “He doesn’t have a change of clothes.”

“Here,” Chauncey said as he pulled his shirt off. “Give him this.”

Curtis stared at the size three X shirt and then shook his head, wrapping Cole in the tent. “All done.” He passed Cole to Chance. “I’m going to head over to my dads’ and see if Heaven or Gabby has any extra clothes for him. I’ll grab some toys and other stuff. Can you guys handle watching him while I’m gone?”

Chance rolled his eyes. “How hard can it be to watch a cub?” They ate, they pooped, and they slept. What was so complicated about that?

“I’ll hurry,” Curtis said as he grabbed his coat. Chauncey followed behind Curtis, giving his brother a devilish grin before he bolted from the house.

“What’s that smell?”

* * * *

“Are you sure he’s safe?” Luke got up once more, heading for the door.

“He has seven brothers that would kill Satan to keep him safe. Relax,” Malcolm said as he sat on the side of the bed. “I’m more concerned with you at the moment. Cole is safe.”

“Have they ever taken care of a baby before?” Luke asked as he paced the bedroom, his eyes continuously flickering toward the door.

Not a day in their lives, but Malcolm was pretty confident his boys wouldn’t screw this up. Malcolm prayed he was right or he was going to be missing a few sons.

He sat there and watched Luke pace, unsure of what to say. He’d never been one to flirt or engage in conversation with someone who was destined to be his.

Hell, Clarisse had flirted with him, pursued him. Malcolm didn’t know the first thing about winning a mate over. He sat there tongue-tied and feeling inept. He hadn’t felt this way since courting his wife.

Malcolm knew how to run a ranch with confidence. He knew how to keep seven large sons in check. He even knew how to be gentle around cubs. What he didn’t know was how to woo a man. The one and only time he’d been with a man was before Clarisse, and the guy had approached Malcolm.

Malcolm knew he was in trouble from the way he had bitten Riley’s head clear off for speaking to Luke disrespectfully—something he needed to apologize to his son about. He knew Riley was only looking out for his family, and Malcolm could have handled that better.

Now he sat here grasping for words.

Luke stopped pacing and dropped down on the bed next to Malcolm, concern and utter hopelessness etched on his face. He was biting his thumbnail as he sat there staring at the far wall.

The silence felt awkward.

“Are you sure he’s—”

“Cole’s fine,” Malcolm reassured Luke as he grabbed Luke’s hand in his. His fingers played over Luke’s, and he enjoyed how soft his mate’s hands truly felt. His fingers were long, lithe, and smooth. Luke’s fingernails were sculpted to perfection and clean as a whistle.

Malcolm’s fingernails were clean, but they weren’t manicured like Luke’s. There seemed to be so many differences between them. Malcolm was large, burly, and hairy. Luke was tall, slim, and elegant.

As his sausage-like fingers grazed over Luke’s slender ones, he could feel his heart beating in his stomach. His fingers flexed when he felt Luke move an inch closer, his eyes cast down toward their joined hands.

Malcolm cleared his throat, but couldn’t find any words worth saying. This courting thing was just as hard now as it had been back then. His fingers traced over Luke’s nails, running along his cuticles as he kept his eyes attached to his hands.

Finally Malcolm braved a small glance. Luke sat there with his bottom lip sucked between his teeth, his cheeks red as roses. When he spotted the nervousness dancing in Luke’s eyes, Malcolm breathed a sigh of relief. He wasn’t the only one feeling awkward at the moment, and for some strange reason, it made him relax.

“Come here,” Malcolm said as he tugged on Luke’s hand, bringing his mate closer. He could feel his confidence returning, chasing away his shyness as he wrapped one large arm around Luke’s waist and pulled the slimmer man into his lap.

Luke was jumpy as hell, but Malcolm was there to ease him into this. Knowing his mate was looking to him to make the first move gave Malcolm all the confidence he needed. He tucked a knuckle under Luke’s jaw, making his mate raise his head to look at him.

“You’re safe here, Luke.”

His mate nodded as his eyes dropped to Malcolm’s lips. He had no problem giving his mate their first kiss. Malcolm cupped the back of Luke’s head, noticing how soft his mate’s hair was as he pulled Luke toward him.

As their lips touched for the first time, Malcolm knew he would never get enough of this man. Luke’s lips were soft, supple, as he opened wide for Malcolm’s exploration. He was gentle, making sure he didn’t bruise Luke’s tender lips.

His other hand massaged Luke’s back, slowly working its way down. Malcolm was itching to feel his mate’s flared mounds. His cock was in full agreement. It had been so long that Malcolm had to concentrate hard to make sure he didn’t come so soon.

It wasn’t easy. Luke was every bit as soft as he had looked, making Malcolm’s head spin as he pulled Luke even closer. He tilted his head, giving him a better angle to taste Luke’s sweet lips.

“Pa,” Chance shouted as he burst into the room with Cole in his arms. Malcolm pulled out of the kiss, ready to skin his son’s hide until he saw how wide Chance’s eyes were. It was almost comical.

“Yes?”

A slow grin formed on Chance’s face and then fell as he nodded his head toward the hallway. “Someone’s here.”

D stood on the front porch, wringing his hands together as he stared at his three brothers. He was glad to see them, but not so glad when he remembered why he had called them.

But he couldn’t blame them since he had called them to come take care of Sloane, something he wished he could take back. He knew it was too late for that as his brothers stood there scowling at him.

That was one of the reasons he had left home. His brothers never supported him in anything he did, so he wasn’t sure why he had called them in the first place. It had been panic, pure and simple.

Even if he told them he didn’t need their help, he had already told them about Sloane, so no matter what he said, they were going to go after his mate.

That was something D couldn’t let happen, but he couldn’t figure out how to stop them.

He had thought long and hard about what Pa had said to him, and D had to admit, Sloane had been nothing but careful and kind with him. Why hadn’t he seen the situation with Sloane for what it truly was instead of listening to his father? He had steered D wrong, and now D had pretty much called a hit on his mate’s head.

Damn, did he feel stupid.

It was probably his most moronic move to date.

And he’d had a lot.

“Where is he, Dudley?”

D crossed his arms over his chest, his legs spread out a little further in a battle stance as he glared at all three of his brothers. He knew the look wouldn’t intimidate them, but he had to let them know that he meant business. He didn’t want Sloane harmed, and he had to convince them of this.

“I’ve changed my mind.”

The eldest brother, Raven, stared at him in disbelief, his mouth opening and closing before his lip curled back into a nasty snarl. “You
want
to be mated to a filthy shifter?”

D bristled at his brother’s term for his mate. Sloane wasn’t a filthy shifter! D’s father had not only poisoned his mind, but his brothers’ as well. He knew they wouldn’t be swayed into thinking anything but hateful thoughts about shifters. Look how long it had taken D to come to terms with the error of his thinking. And he was the easygoing one. Well, Daniel, the second youngest, wasn’t as vengeful as the other two, but he knew Daniel was only here because he never went anywhere without Raven and Remus. “Yes.”

Remus, the second eldest brother, pulled his face back in a mask of rage as he took a step closer to D. Swallowing hard, D prayed his brother wasn’t about to knock him on his ass. It would be the first time Remus had ever laid a hand on him, but from the expression on his face, he was truly pissed.

It was a real possibility at the moment.

Raven and Remus looked as though they wanted to throttle D. Daniel just looked at him curiously. D didn’t care. He wanted to be with Sloane. No matter what they thought of him.

Let them do their worst.

He just prayed he was breathing afterward.

“What’s going on here?” Pa asked as he walked out onto the front porch, his brows pulled down into an angry frown.

D had never been happier in his life to hear the bear’s voice or see the pissed-off look on Pa’s face.