Kadenburg Revealed (The Kadenburg Shifters Series, Book 4) (31 page)

Dimitri’s lips found his in a breathtaking kiss and it was all Rutley could do to keep himself from hyperventilating.  No one had ever kissed him like that before.  Ever.

“We shouldn’t,” Rutley groaned as he pressed his palms against Dimitri’s chest.  “This shouldn’t happen.”

“I know that,” Dimitri panted as he dove in for another kiss.  Rutley released a whine of want and fisted the material of his alpha’s shirt into his hands.  He kissed him passionately and with a hunger he’d been harboring since their night with Kia.  It was damn hard to ignore sometimes.  Dimitri pulled away and stared at him.  “I’ve been thinking a lot lately.”

“Yeah? Me too.” Rutley nodded quickly and captured Dimitri’s soft lips with his own again.  Their tongues met briefly, but as soon as he felt that spark of heat that tended to happen between them, he pulled back.

“Maybe this isn’t as bad as we’re making it out to be,” Dimitri murmured as one of his hands palmed the back of Rutley’s neck.  “Maybe we shouldn’t fight it, Rut.  Did you ever think of that?  What if Liam wouldn’t be as angry about it as we previously thought?”

“We can’t do that to him,” Rutley’s heart began to crack as he writhed against Dimitri’s rock hard body.  He wanted nothing more than to surrender to his alpha.  He wanted to love Dimitri, to pick up where Liam left off and mend him, but they couldn’t do that.  “He was my best friend.”

“And he was my mate,” Dimitri rested his forehead to Rutley’s as his hot breath escaped between their mouths in a puff of white smoke.  “I will never stop loving him, Rutley.  I will always love Liam Bamey with everything I have in me.....”

Rutley closed his eyes and pushed the burning sensation in his nostrils back down his throat.  He couldn’t cry over that.  He fully understood that Liam and Dimitri had a love that would be immortalized in the stars.  What right did he have to get upset over that?  Exactly.

“But,” Dimitri added after a few seconds of silence.  He traced his thumb over Rutley’s jaw and exhaled. “I can’t fight this anymore, either.”

Rutley’s eyes snapped open and he stared into those sparkling depths of emerald green and chocolate brown.  Jesus H. Christ, Dimitri was beautiful.

“Rutley, I love you.” He confessed in a hushed whisper.

He loves me.
Rutley’s entire body began to tremble as he leaned into his alpha.  He wrapped his arms around him tightly and felt the air escape his lungs in a shaky gasp as he squeezed his eyes shut again. 
Dimitri loves me.

“I do,” Dimitri insisted as he held him close.  “I have for a while and do you want to know something?  Presley just told me that Liam gives us his blessing.”

He immediately pulled back to stare at his alpha.  “Say what?”

Dimitri nodded slowly.  “My hand to Calic, that’s what she said.  Liam is actually really glad it’s you....” He grabbed his hand and pulled it upwards to rest against his chest, directly over his rapid heartbeat.  “You’ve been healing this little by little since you came into my life, Rut.  Kia or no Kia....you’ve made me whole again in ways I never thought would be possible.  You’ve pieced me back together in spite of the shit going down in Kadenburg.  You made me want to live again....to love again.”

Oh shit, was this really happening?  Rutley stared at him with wide eyes.

“I...I uh....” Rutley swallowed hard and melted against his alpha’s chest as his fingers disappeared into his disheveled red locks.  “Fuck it.  I love you too.” He groaned as he pulled Dimitri’s delicious mouth against his own once more.

Dimitri growled hungrily as his blunt teeth attacked Rutley’s neck and Rutley only had one thought when his alpha’s hands tore the material of his shirt away from his body.

Best. Christmas. Ever.

T
he annoying ringing of her phone roused her from a dead sleep and it took Natalie a few seconds to figure out where she was.  Home.  She was home.

“Somebody better be dead.” She groaned as she blindly felt around for her phone.  She grabbed the small device and lifted it into the air to gaze at the caller ID.

PRESLEY.

She immediately perked up and pressed the green button before placing it against her ear.  “Pretz? Is something wrong?”

“Merry Christmas, Aunt Natty!” Presley chimed excitedly on the other end.

Oh hell.  It’s not over yet?
  A part of Natalie was hoping she would sleep through Christmas Day, but why would she ever be so lucky?

“Merry Christmas, sweetheart,” she yawned quietly and forced herself to sit up in bed.  “What time is it?”

“It’s a little after nine.  Were you still sleeping? Oh! You were, weren’t you?  I’m so sorry...”

“No, no.  It’s okay.  Is something wrong?” She forced herself to get out of bed.  It would be the hardest part of her day.  She wandered down the hallway and into the kitchen as Presley rambled excitedly in her ear.

“We’re having a Christmas lunch and you’re invited.  Uncle Arnold will be there, but please say you’ll come?  I know a lot of parents refuse to come to their children’s events because of divorces, but—”

“Presley,” Natalie cut her off.  “Your uncle and I aren’t divorced.  We were never married.  The wedge between us goes deeper than anything as human as a divorce.  Sweetheart, you know that.” She frowned.

“I do know that,” Presley sighed.  “But I still want you both to come.  Please?  For me?”

What a clever little cub.
  Natalie rolled her eyes and stared at her reflection through the mirror hanging near the front door.  It had been strategically placed there for last minute fixer-uppers.  Natalie always had a habit of leaving without applying something.

I look like hell.  I probably shouldn’t.

“Please, Aunt Natty?  It would mean so much to me if you’d come.”

Damn it.
  “Of course I’ll come, Presley.  I wouldn’t miss it for the world.  What time should I be there?”

“In about an hour.” Presley replied.  She could hear the happiness in her niece’s voice and Natalie was glad she could do that for her.  If only she had her own happiness....

“I’ll see you then.  Do you need me to bring anything?” She glanced towards the kitchen and frowned.  She didn’t actually have much to offer at the moment.

“No. Just bring yourself.  I’ll see you soon!”

Tossing her phone towards the couch, Natalie groaned loudly.  Christmas lunch, huh?  Everyone would be there to celebrate the holiday and she knew
he
would be right in the middle of it. 

Get over yourself, woman.
Her bear mumbled.

———————————-

A
rnold listened attentively to his niece as she placed a phone call to Natalie.  He wasn’t sure if she’d agree to come over or not, but a part of him really hoped she would.  He needed to speak to her and today was just as good as any other to set things right between them.

What if she doesn’t go for it?
He asked his bear while scratching at the days old scruff on his jaw. 
What if I really blew my chances of making amends?

She chose you when we were young.  Her heart hasn’t changed on that.  You have to make her see that you return her feelings now. 

But I have tried, damn it.  What else can I do?

Whatever it takes.

What the hell was that supposed to mean?  He groaned softly and shook his head before pushing himself up from Presley’s couch.  He needed to get some fresh air before the house was invaded with every ursithrope in town.

Well, that wasn’t true.  The only people Presley invited over were Charlotte, Richard, Natalie, and Dimitri.  It wasn’t like there would be
a lot
of people in the small house, yet he knew Dimitri wouldn’t come without his little pack.  What was going on with the girl with the multi-colored hair anyway?  Louisa had told him what she looked like the night before when she introduced herself.  There was definitely something going on here, and judging by the noises he’d heard coming from the garage on the night prior, Dimitri and Rutley were way closer than he’d realized.

Good for them. They deserve happiness.

It wasn’t much longer before the quiet atmosphere of Presley and Lorcan’s house erupted with loud talking, eager whispering, and joyous laughter.  Everyone seemed to be in high spirits as the mouthwatering aroma of tuna casserole and honey flavored cookies attacked his nostrils.  Urseth he was hungry.

“Does everyone have a plate?” Presley asked.  Arnold couldn’t help but to be reminded of Mrs. Bamey as he nodded in response from his place at the dinner table.  He’d been seated next to Richard and he was okay with that. However, it was the quiet female across from him he wished he could be closer to.

She smells so good.
He groaned inwardly. 
I bet she looks beautiful.

The minutes passed by and his torment grew.  His bear whined in longing for the sweet smelling she-bear who barely said two words during the entire meal.  Even after they were finished eating and migrated into the living room, Arnold made damn sure he ended up beside her on the couch.  She was tense.

“Hello, Natalie.” He said quietly.

“Hello, Arnold.” She replied stiffly.

“I am so glad you all could join us on such short notice.  I know that we usually have our little Christmas morning traditions, but I thought it would be nice to have the family together just this once.” Presley said excitedly.  He could hear how fast her heart was beating and he knew that his niece was on cloud nine.  He could only imagine the confusion written all over Natalie’s face as a smug grin slid across his lips.  Ha.  So he knew something she didn’t, right?

“Lorcan and I really wanted you to be here because we wanted to have our families together.  We wanted to celebrate as a family, Bameys and Goults united and everyone who is part of the bloodline is included in that.  My brother,” Presley sighed.  “Is here with us and I couldn’t be happier about that.”

That was right.  Dimitri was the missing link Presley had told him about after her dreams of Liam Bamey started.  How in the hell had that one slipped by him?  How did he not somehow sense it, or see it?  That boy was the revolution they’d needed all along.

“And my brother is here in spirit.” Lorcan added.  Arnold bowed his head and closed his eyes.  A few quiet murmurs of agreement sounded around him.

“Mr. and Mrs. Bamey, Uncle Arnold and Aunt Natalie, we have something to tell you,” Presley’s smile was evident in her voice as Arnold grinned.  He would’ve given anything to see the look on Natalie’s face as the sensation of anticipation cloaked him.  “We’re getting married!”

It was probably Mrs. Bamey’s squeal that hurt his ears the most, but Arnold had honest to Urseth tried to prepare himself for the cheers he knew would happen.  Lorcan had approached him the night before and asked for Presley’s hand.

“Arnold, Sir, I need to talk to you.”

“Sir? Since when am I a ‘Sir’?”

“Since I decided I wanted to ask for your permission to marry your niece.”

And that’s how the conversation happened.  Lorcan had proposed before anybody arrived and now they only wanted to celebrate with their closest loved ones.  Presley wanted to celebrate with him and that meant the world to Arnold.

“Oh, that is wonderful!” Mrs. Bamey laughed.  “We get to plan a wedding! OH! A wedding!  There’s so much to do.  When do you want to get married?  I think June would be a wonderful month for getting hitched and-”

“The baby is going to be here before June,” Lorcan interrupted his mother gently.  Arnold tilted his head to the side and tried to concentrate on their conversation.  “The baby is going to be here a lot sooner than anybody realizes and we want to be married before he gets here.”

“What do you mean?” Mr. Bamey asked.  His voice was full of confusion and Arnold could appreciate that.  He wasn’t sure he fully understood either.  Lorcan didn’t mention that part last night.  “That cub ain’t had enough time to bake, Lorcan.  June will mark nine months.”

“I’m telling you that our son is going to be born a hell of a lot sooner than June,” Lorcan repeated somberly.  “Liam told Presley that he’s growing fast.  See? Look.”

Arnold couldn’t see what was happening, but judging from Mrs. Bamey and Natalie’s gasp, there had to be a visual going on.  Damn it.

“Presley, your stomach has doubled since last week!” Natalie wailed.  “That can’t be healthy.....something must be wrong.”

“Nothing’s wrong,” Presley insisted.  “It doesn’t hurt.  It isn’t uncomfortable.  My body is adjusting just fine for his growth and even though I can’t explain it....I trust Liam.  He promised everything would be okay.”

“But it goes against the very laws of nature.” Richard Bamey argued. 

“And turning into bears doesn’t?” Lorcan countered.  “Dad, our son is special.  Remember the conversation we had during the blackout from the first winter storm?  I told you what Liam said to Presley.  Urseth has been planning this for decades.  Maybe he’s been planning it longer.  Pierce Carroll trusted in him.  Don’t you?”

Natalie’s sharp intake of breath made Arnold long to hold her, to comfort her.  He knew that her brother would always be a tender subject for her.

“We have to trust Urseth,” Mrs. Bamey said softly.  “It is no coincidence that Anthony Buchanan has returned to us at precisely this time.  It is by fate that this cub surpasses us on every level.  Why shouldn’t he arrive quickly?  We haven’t much time, I fear.  Breslin will make his move soon enough.”

“You’re damn right he will,” Dimitri spoke lowly.  “Breslin’s twisted and sadistic, but he’s also smart.  He has a plan and we need to stay two steps ahead of him.”

“He’s coming back in February.” Natalie whispered.  Arnold turned his head towards her voice and frowned.

“How do you know that, Natty?” He asked gently.

“Because Anthony told me so.  Presley isn’t the only one having dreams.  He’s coming for us in February and that gives us a full month to prepare.”

“A full month to prepare for kicking his ass.” Richard Bamey chuckled.

“February,” Mrs. Bamey echoed gently.  “
That
means we need to be planning a wedding for January, now doesn’t it?”