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 April Kelley

Bad Mate
Saint Lakes Book Ten
 First published by Hard Rose Publishing 2023

Copyright © 2023 by April Kelley

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored or transmitted in any form or by
any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, scanning, or otherwise without written
permission from the publisher. It is illegal to copy this book, post it to a website, or distribute it by any other
means without permission.

This novel is entirely a work of fiction. The names, characters and incidents portrayed in it are the work of
the author's imagination. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events or localities is entirely
coincidental.

April Kelley asserts the moral right to be identified as the author of this work.

April Kelley has no responsibility for the persistence or accuracy of URLs for external or third-party
Internet Websites referred to in this publication and does not guarantee that any content on such Websites
is, or will remain, accurate or appropriate.

First edition

Editing by No Stone Unturned

Cover art by Studio ENP

This book was professionally typeset on Reedsy

Find out more at reedsy.com
 Contents

Blurb
Prologue
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Seventeen
Chapter Eighteen
Chapter Nineteen
Chapter Twenty
Chapter Twenty-One
Chapter Twenty-Two
Chapter Twenty-Three
Chapter Twenty-Four
Chapter Twenty-Five
Chapter Twenty-Six
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Chapter Twenty-Eight
Chapter Twenty-Nine
Chapter Thirty
Chapter Thirty-One
About the Author
 Blurb

W hat do you do when your life changes in the blink of an eye?

Keaton finally has a family. Nothing good has happened in his life until he’s able to call Saint Lakes
home. Meeting his fated mate should be good as well, but the shadows of his past come back to
haunt him.

Tim Pyke has turned over a new leaf. Since his son mated with a Somerset, it’s not like he has
much of a choice. He’s part of the family, after all. He still doesn’t intend to mate with anyone who
isn’t a cougar shifter like himself. When he meets the prettiest vampire he’s ever seen, his instincts
toward his fated mate are too strong to ignore.

Keaton is the only one who can save the clan from a dangerous human, but he must get past his
fated mate to do it.

Bad Mate is the sweet yet action-packed tenth book of the MM Paranormal Romance Saint Lakes
Series. If you like sassy vampires and cougar shifter farmers with some very strong ideals, then
you’ll love this romantic novel.

Trigger Warning: Violent death of an animal.

 Prologue

T he room always smelled like sex. It didn’t matter how many times Keaton washed the sheets
or sprayed air freshener. Maybe it was a stronger scent because he was a vampire, so his
senses were sharper than the humans who dominated the brothel.
Sweat, latex, and cum. That was all there was.
Something else had to matter sometime down the road. At least for Keaton. Eventually, he had
to find a different profession or get eaten up by people who wanted to fill a hole and sometimes
fulfill a fantasy.
Keaton stared at himself in the bathroom mirror. Most clients didn’t notice anything but his
ass or mouth, depending on what they paid for. And since the majority were human, they tended
to overlook the little things. Like the tiredness Keaton wore like a mask.
He was exhausted.
He was burning out and ready for something that wasn’t sex work.
Keaton poked at the puffiness under his eyes. Maybe it was the lighting. He kept his room dim
because it created a certain atmosphere. He went the sensual route. It also kept his clients from
discovering he wasn’t hard, since he never allowed face-to-face contact for the clients who wanted
his ass. It was easy to fake it. The lighting choice helped.
Some sex workers were no-frills or gimmicks, which was still a gimmick in some way, but it
worked for them. They went through clients faster when it was all bend over and put it in, which
meant they made more money. Keaton went that route with some clients. If they made demands
and tried to own him, then he dialed down the romantic vibe a lot. They didn’t get the whole
boyfriend routine either. And Keaton had even refused clients if they got too far out of hand. It
hadn’t happened in a while. He’d learned the hard way to be assertive.
His regulars didn’t walk all over him. Most didn’t even try.
A knock sounded on the door.
Keaton put on his silk robe, leaving it open so his client could see his tiny panties. They didn’t
leave much to the imagination, which was the way he liked to spend a workday.
Jeff, his least favorite regular, stood on the other side of the door. He wasn’t on Keaton’s
schedule. That he was there at all was suspect.
Keaton tightened the sash around his waist, tying the robe closed. He gave his best fake smile
and leaned against the doorjamb. “You gotta make an appointment.”
“Just give me ten minutes, baby.”
“No can do.” Keaton ran a finger along Jeff’s shoulder. “You know you’re not the only one I
love.”
“I don’t intend to fuck you.” Jeff smirked.
“Then what can I do for you?” Keaton dropped the act and kept it all business. With a guy like
Jeff, who often tried to take more than Keaton was willing to give, it was best to start where he
intended to end.
“Can I come inside?” Jeff knew what coming into Keaton’s room meant. He had to pay and
since he wasn’t on the schedule, he didn’t pay Mister before entering the brothel.
“Money up front.”
“It’s not sex,” Jeff said again.
“Doesn’t matter. Money up front.” He wouldn’t do anything for Jeff for free. Jeff knew that.
When he nodded, Keaton stepped aside. He’d always been good at paying, never trying to get
out of it.
Jeff scared him a little. He was manipulative and way too interested in the fact Keaton was a
vampire. His interest was more clinical than anything, which made sense in some ways because
Jeff was into some sort of research, but Keaton felt studied more times than not. It was creepy.
Keaton shut the door behind him but didn’t move away from it. If he needed to make a quick
escape, he’d be able to if he stayed close to the only exit in his room.
Jeff dug into his sports jacket. He pulled out a thick envelope and handed it to Keaton.
Keaton took it, feeling for any clues as to how much money was there. The envelope was
unmarked. No writing and nothing to indicate the amount. If Jeff hadn’t been the one to hand it to
Keaton, nothing would have told him who gave it to him.
So some shady shit was about to go down and Jeff didn’t want it connected to him. Not through
Keaton, at any rate. “How much is it?”
Jeff smiled. “Ten thousand. But don’t take my word for it.”
Keaton most definitely wouldn’t. He opened the flap and looked inside.
He didn’t have to count it to know it was a lot. Alongside the bills was a small sheet of paper
with an address on it.
He met Jeff’s gaze. “What do I have to do?”
“Someone will ask questions about me. Get them to go to the address written on the sheet of
paper. How you get them there is up to you. Just keep my confidence.”
Keaton nodded, trying for nonchalance. He wasn’t sure if he pulled it off. Jeff often saw more
than Keaton wanted him to. He tried to keep his stomach from churning, but nausea set in.
Jeff intended to fuck someone over, and he’d stuck Keaton right in the middle. He thought
Keaton was expendable, which meant his life was at risk. If not his life, then his current existence.
Knowing Jeff, he intended to keep Keaton as either his pet or his experiment.
Not good. Not good at all.
“What are you getting me into, Jeffrey?” What a mess. Jeff was a scientist who experimented on
paranormals. A guy couldn’t do what he did to people without a whole lot of money. And whoever
backed him financially probably owned him in some ways. Jeff was scared of that person.
Jeff reached for him, but Keaton twisted out of his hold.
Keaton smiled. “That will cost extra.”
Jeff’s expression hardened, and he grabbed the back of Keaton’s neck. “It costs what I say it
does, vampire.”
Keaton hadn’t always worked for a brothel. Working for Mister was safer than being on the
streets where he’d started. He’d learned the hard way how to defend himself. Keaton gripped Jeff’s
wrist, pressing on it. The pressure point shut down a nerve in his hand, which forced Jeff to let
him go.
Jeff cried out.
Keaton moved out of reach. “You touch me when I say, not whenever you want. You know that,
Jeffrey.”
A knock sounded on the door and Keaton sighed. He figured it was his next client and cursed.
The man on his schedule was a human who wanted to believe he was the only one.
Keaton opened the door with a smile, ready to explain Jeff’s presence away in a very platonic
way, which wasn’t a lie. They hadn’t done anything but talk.
A human, dressed in a cheap gray suit, stared at him with a blank expression. It was that more
than the gun peeking from underneath his jacket that made Keaton’s breath hitch. Keaton pegged
the guy for a hitman right off. He definitely had that vibe.
“Dr. Perkins must come with me.” His voice was deep and direct, holding just enough
indifference to set the fear in motion inside Keaton’s body. “Get him. Now.”
The guy’s hand shot out, and he shove Keaton aside. It happened so fast Keaton didn’t have
time to react. Keaton fell to the floor. Keaton scooted until his back hit the mattress and made
himself as small as possible.
But he needn’t have worried. Jeff and the hitman forgot about him. “Senator Fowler wants a
word, Dr. Perkins.”
The sweat beading up on Jeff’s forehead said that much. “So the senator knows where I am? Is
that correct? Or is it just you who knows? Perhaps all this can be our little secret, Harold?”
Harold gripped Jeff’s arm so hard he cried out. “Only stupid people keep secrets from the
senator.”
Harold propelled Jeff down the hall.
“Does he want me alive?”
“For now.”
Keaton got to his feet. He shut and locked the door. His mind scrambled to find a way out of
the shitstorm Jeff had just brought to his doorstep but he didn’t know enough to see one about
what was really happening to see one.
 Chapter One

K eaton Maddox sat in Estelle Somerset’s kitchen with his hands around a mug. Caffeine would
probably make his insomnia worse but not drinking it hadn’t made a difference. Decaf didn’t
work. Hell, he could drink water and still be wide awake. Plus, the Somersets had a raspberry-
flavored creamer that totally stole Keaton’s willpower.
The microwave clock read six o’clock in the morning. He’d been awake since around two.
He had one choice. Stay awake while the rest of the world slept. And why? Because adjusting to
a different lifestyle was proving more difficult than he’d thought. For most people, nighttime
meant shut-eye, but for Keaton it had always been the time to get to work. He hadn’t figured out
how to turn himself around yet.
The darkness hid a lot and maybe it made johns feel okay about paying for sex. Keaton wasn’t
judging. He’d made a living off men who waited until the sun went down to sin. There wasn’t
much room for him to get all high and mighty, despite his circumstances changing.
The change was for the better. The Somersets were amazing people and Saint Lakes was a nice
little town. He wasn’t used to having people to rely on. An entire family of paranormals added up to
very overwhelming, given the extreme difference to how his life had been for his first twenty-
three years.
Not only that, but Keaton was never alone like he’d been before. He wasn’t exactly introverted.
He liked having people around. Being a sex worker in a brothel meant he was by himself as much
as he was around people. He’d had to pay attention to his body. He’d only been able to take so
much. Pacing himself had been better for his health.
He’d been lonely before, even in a room full of people. He hadn’t realized there was a difference
between that and being alone until meeting the Somersets. He’d never had a best friend before, but
Ladon was becoming one for him. He wasn’t sure how Ladon felt about their friendship, but
Keaton’s definition of friendship had changed since coming to Saint Lakes.
The Somersets made him feel as if he were a part of the family. He wasn’t sure if he could trust
it, but that didn’t mean he appreciated it any less.
His life had taken a turn for the better. He was grateful. Truly. But where was the
counterbalance? Bad always happened near good. The other shoe would drop at some point. What
form would it take and where would it land?
Keaton stiffened. His hold on the mug tightened when Estelle came through the door. He
wanted to be left alone with his thoughts. He needed to sort them out and get to a place where he
could accept all the things happening in his life. But in a house full of people, sitting in a common
area wasn’t so smart considering his agenda. He’d get company, like it or not.
He cleared his throat, trying not to scare Estelle with his presence, but failing when she
clutched her chest and spun around.
“Sorry.”
 Estelle recovered quickly, going to the cupboard for a mug. She hesitated to grab the full
coffeepot. “Is Ladon awake?”
“I made the coffee.” Keaton chuckled. No one wanted Ladon to make it. He added way too
much coffee, so it came out strong and somehow, the grounds were in the pot too. Given that it
was a drip coffee maker, Keaton didn’t know how Ladon managed it.
“Can’t sleep again?” Estelle filled her mug and then went to the refrigerator for the creamer.
The Somersets had three different flavors of creamer, their favorite being the sweet cream. They
bought a non-diary variety Sage and Lucas used whenever they came by. Estelle favored the
raspberry one just like Keaton.
“It’s still a problem.”
“Do you want to talk about it?” Estelle added the creamer to her coffee.
Did he? Not really, but it couldn’t hurt. “I’m just…waiting for the ugliness to begin. I’m used to
it.”
Keaton had wondered where he would sleep during certain periods of his life and hadn’t
known when he’d eat next. The Somersets gave him all he needed. His own bedroom. Food. And
more love than he’d ever had. It was so much. It made his chest ache.
Estelle grabbed a spoon from the drawer and stirred her coffee. “What will you do if something
does happen?”
Keaton shut his eyes and rubbed where it hurt the most. “I don’t know. I’m scared you guys
won’t want me around anymore.” There. He’d said it. The thing he was worried about happening
more than anything else.
Estelle left her coffee at the kitchen island half prepared and closed the distance between them.
She pulled a chair from the table and sat facing him.
Living with a witch like Estelle was sort of like always having a warm hug. Her ability to read
his mind with just a touch of her hand saved him from having to explain himself. It was a faster
way to have a therapy session. Or what Keaton imagined therapy would be like. He’d never had
enough money to afford the luxury of improving his mental health.
Estelle held out her hand.
Keaton didn’t hesitate to take it.
It was almost immediate, the way she entered his mind and poked around. And then she
projected nothing but love.
When she let his hand go, he hugged her. “I love you too.”
He’d always known he was capable of love, but never really felt it until he met Estelle. She
radiated it, allowing him to give it back to her.
“I’m going to make you a promise,” she said when the hug ended.
“You don’t have to.”
“That’s the beauty of a promise, isn’t it? No one has to, and I don’t often make them unless I
know I can keep them.”
The abundance made his heart full, but it didn’t feel heavy. The exact opposite in fact. He’d
never felt lighter. “What will you promise?”
Estelle smiled and grabbed his hands again. She leaned into him, staring into his eyes. “No
matter what happens, I will always be here for you.”
Keaton’s new normal just got a lot better. More so than Ladon bringing him to Saint Lakes.
How was that possible? “You’ll keep it?”
Her expression turned pointed. “Yes.”
Keaton tried to keep the tears at bay and succeeded somewhat, although just barely. “I’ve never
had that before.”
“Now you do.” Estelle stood and went back to the kitchen island. She finished stirring her
coffee and took a sip. “I plan on doing some early morning gardening. Would you like to help me?”
“Gardening? In the dark?”
“We’ll be able to watch the sunrise. It’s very relaxing.”
It sounded a little dangerous. What if there was a snake or a big bug? Keaton wasn’t sure he
wanted to face something like that in the daylight. He couldn’t imagine how that would go down
in the dark. Although snakes and bugs fascinated him as much as they scared him.
“I grew up in the city. Didn’t do much gardening.”
“I have a feeling you’ll enjoy it.”
Keaton shrugged. Might as well try it. Gaining a new skill would do him good, considering he
didn’t know how to do much. And no one had given him their time before. He felt special for the
first time in his life.
 Chapter Two

T he air in the truck filled with suffocating tension. The insecurity breathed down Tim Pyke’s
neck, showing teeth that would have scared him if it had been anyone else besides his son
Josh in the car. It all added to the discomfort tightening Tim’s chest muscles around his
heart.
Josh averted his gaze out of the window, his face long and set in hard lines that reminded Tim
of himself only without the gray blending with the blond on his temples and the five o’clock
shadow Tim couldn’t shave away no matter how hard he tried.
“How’s Kristin doing?” Tim had talked to her on the phone earlier that morning and was well
aware of her current state. He didn’t know whether Josh knew they communicated or how often.
Talking about Kristin seemed like the best approach. It let Josh know he’d changed his attitude
toward their mating.
He was trying, dammit, and he just wanted Josh to say something instead of sitting in silence.
Josh made a noncommittal sound and otherwise didn’t speak.
Tim sighed. “She told me she’s pregnant.” Some days Tim felt ancient, like grandbabies should
have been a thing long before Kristin had gotten pregnant. On other days, he felt at about the right
age for them. Maybe having a kid around the farm would breathe new life into everything. The
gods knew they needed it. Letting him play with the piglets and foals in the spring and taking him
for tractor rides like he had with his own boys sounded just the thing he needed. “I’ll love the boy.”
The corner of Josh’s mouth turned up. “Might not be a boy.”
Tim shook his head. “Pyke men have boys.”
Josh’s gaze narrowed. “Oh, so now you’re dictating my child’s gender, just like you tried to
with my mating.”
Tim sighed. Everything he said came out wrong. He might deserve Josh taking offense, but it
didn’t make it feel less tragic. “I had all boys. Grandpa had boys. His father before him and the
generation before that. All boys. Stands to reason is all.”
“Males decide the gender.” It was as much of an apology as he was likely to get. In some ways,
Josh was a lot like him. Headstrong and massively stubborn. It had been cute when he was little,
but not so much since he’d grown into an adult. Especially when all that stubbornness pointed
Tim’s way.
“Yeah. That’s what I’m saying.” Tim had to bend because if he didn’t, he might lose Josh. It was
bad enough that Marshall had stopped coming around. Tim hoped by adjusting his attitude,
Marshall would visit more often.
“You know what your biggest problem is.” Yep. The apple didn’t fall far from the tree. Josh had
always been bold when he thought something was wrong. It just took him longer than it did Tim
to say something, but once he did, he didn’t censor himself. And the little shit held a grudge, too.
“What’s that?” He might as well hear Josh out, since he was working on a few of his problems,
anyway. Having them pointed out might hurt his feelings, but maybe Josh saw a problem Tim
didn’t. It was all about solving the issue and moving forward.
“Every fucking thing Grandpa said, you took to heart. He told you shifters had to keep the
bloodlines pure, and you never questioned it. He could have told you the sky was a lovely shade of
green, and you would have agreed.” Josh didn’t understand how his grandpa had been as a parent.
Being raised by a bigot had made him one, too. And no matter how wrong Tim’s father had
been, Tim would have gotten backhanded for thinking any other way than the way he’d been told.
But Tim’s dad had been a loving grandfather to all his grandkids, Josh included. He’d softened
with age and hadn’t been the same person later in life.
“If you’re told something enough times, you believe it.” It sounded as though he was making an
excuse. He wasn’t. It was more of an explanation. “I’m sorry, Josh. I truly am.”
Tim could explain until Josh didn’t want to hear it anymore, but sometimes the best thing to
give was a heartfelt apology. When Tim was wrong he did his best to own it.
Josh sighed and shook his head. “I don’t need another apology, Dad.”
“I’m trying. That’s all.”
“I know.”
“I’ve made mistakes. I can’t take them back. All I can do is learn from them.”
“You’re a good parent. I’m not saying you’re not. Better than Mom.”
“I’m sorry she doesn’t keep in touch with you and Marshall. She should.” But he didn’t care
about his ex-wife other than on a basic level. He didn’t wish ill on her and hoped wherever life had
taken her, since she had left, made her happy. But the fact was, he hadn’t tried very hard to have a
good marriage. And she hadn’t either. It turned out being forced to marry someone didn’t force
love. His only regret was that the divorce had affected his boys.
“It was just the mating with Kristin thing. It’s a lot to forgive. Your prejudice cost me years
with her.”
“She’s amazing.” Tim loved Kristin like a daughter. She shed a bright light on the Pyke family.
Tim hadn’t realized how dark their lives had been until Josh had rebelled and forced Tim to see
reason. “I’m glad you went against me.”
Josh snapped his gaze to Tim.
Tim smiled. “I’m serious about that. If you’d listened to me, we would have been miserable.”
“‘We’?”
“We.”
Josh opened his mouth, but no words came. Finally, he said, “I don’t know what to say.”
“You don’t have to say anything. I know I screw up and I know I need to fix it.” Tim parked in
the feed store lot. “I’m glad we talked about it. We need more of a discussion and I’m open to that.
But can we do it after we get the feed? Shelby Whitmore is probably working at the counter, and
she gossips like your mother used to. Hell, they used to be friends. All they did was yammer about
other people. That’s how I know she’ll blab.”
Josh chuckled. “Fine.”
Tim shut off the truck engine and got out.
Josh followed.
 “I appreciate you helping on the farm again.” Tim had raised both his boys to take
responsibility when needed and Josh had done that, despite telling Tim he wouldn’t. It had taken
him a while to get the nerve to show up again. Tim had hired Luke Billingsly, who stole just about
anything small enough to fit into his pocket. After having to replace a few things, Tim was glad to
have Josh back.
“Yeah well, it’s too much work with the two of us.” Josh waved to Chase, who he’d gone to high
school with.
Chase waved back.
“I know.” He needed to hire a farmhand but was reluctant after Luke had pulled his shit.
“Something to think about.”
“I think the Somersets could help with that. They have a new family member. Maybe that guy
knows about farming.”
Another Somerset. It was news to Tim, but he’d been working nonstop so he hadn’t been over
to Estelle’s place for a while.
If the new kid could identify the difference between hay and corn, Tim would hire him. He
might be a little gun-shy about taking on someone again, since he’d failed so well the first time, but
the Somersets were good people. Even if the new person wasn’t on the up and up, they’d make sure
he stayed on the level.
 Chapter Three

T he internet was a great tool, but it didn’t help with everything. When a person needed a job
but the town they lived in was so small and tightknit no one posted jobs anywhere. It was all
word of mouth.
Keaton sighed and sat back in the desk chair, staring at the screen. He looked up when
someone entered the room. He’d met everyone but hadn’t had a chance to get to know all the
Somersets yet. They were a larger family.
The guy was big but had a baby face that made him appear younger than he probably was.
There was wisdom in his gaze that suggested he was a much older paranormal. Keaton would
guess he was a dragon shifter based on his size. His name was Bandos, which sounded like a gang
name if Keaton had ever heard one. He also had a bandana around his head seventy percent of the
time Keaton encountered him and he wore either sleeveless flannel or leather. So yeah, it definitely
seemed as if he belonged to a motorcycle gang.
He had a cup of coffee in one hand and his arm around a little dude so blond and fair-skinned,
he almost appeared albino. His name was Echo. It was a strange name. Maybe even stranger than
Bandos. But the name fit. He always smiled, too.
Keaton hadn’t had many encounters with Echo, but those he had were always pleasant. He’d
like to get to know him better. Keaton thought maybe he’d make a good friend. He could use more
of those. Bandos seemed like a cool guy too.
Keaton smiled and then stood. “Sorry for stealing your computer. I was just looking at the
employment sites.”
“No worries.” Bandos handed his mug to Echo. “Probably not gonna find much on the internet
unless you’re looking for work in the next town over.”
Keaton chuckled. “Learned that the hard way.”
“Might want to talk to the alpha,” Bandos said.
Keaton nodded. “I know. I wanted to find something on my own first.”
Echo touched his arm. “Having a support system is hard to wrap your head around.”
Keaton sucked in a breath. “It is.”
“I understand how you feel.” It was nice having someone who had been through something
similar, but it sucked at the same time. In a perfect world, no one would have to feel lonely and
desperate for help.
“Hey, would you like to hang out? Maybe go to the diner or something.” Keaton could connect
with Ladon about a job later. He had enough money saved to last him a little while, although not
long. He’d much rather get to know Echo.
“I’d love that.” Echo held out his hand to Bandos. “Lay it on me, Sugar Daddy.”
Keaton snorted when he chuckled.
Bandos shook his head and dug into his back pocket. “Vaughan is a bad influence.”
 “Vaughan is the best influence. I like his influence. His influence makes me…feel good.” And
by influence, Echo definitely meant his dick.
Bandos chuckled and put two twenties in Echo’s hand. “I know exactly how it makes you feel.”
Echo slid against Bandos. “I like yours too.”
Keaton averted his gaze because it felt as if he were intruding. If he had a mate out there
somewhere, then he’d want something solid, something he could count on to be good every day, or
at least workable. Not that he wanted a relationship. But mates sort of happened to people when
they weren’t paying attention.
Sometimes he thought he was too washed-up. Having sex worker on his résumé wasn’t
something he could change, and it wasn’t popular amongst the masses. Keaton didn’t want sex
anymore anyway. It had been a long time, if ever, since it had been good. He didn’t remember
anyone ever rocking his world.
Whatever sexual relationship Echo had with his mates, the love they had for each other
enhanced it. That fact came through in the way they looked at each other. It was beautiful to
witness, especially for someone as jaded as Keaton.
Keaton had so many questions about how a mating worked with three people. Not the sex part.
He’d had a threesome before. He was curious about the intimacy. They seemed to have a brand of
humor that was all their own, which was cute.
Echo grabbed Keaton’s hand and pulled him from the room. “Diner then?”
Keaton nodded and threaded his arm through Echo’s after letting go of his hand.
“We’re borrowing your car,” Echo yelled before meeting Keaton’s gaze. “Do you know how to
drive?”
“No. Never learned.”
Echo chuckled. “Me either.”
Keaton leaned into him. “How far is it? Maybe we can walk.”
“I’d ask Bandos, but he’s investigating. He needs to focus.” Echo’s wheels were turning as if
trying to come up with some solution to their problem. Or maybe he was communicating with one
of his mates. He must have come up with something, because he grinned. “Vaughan has agreed to
drive us.”
Vaughan raised his eyebrows as they entered the kitchen. “On one condition.”
Echo let go of Keaton’s hand and smiled. “What?”
Vaughan grinned. “Two conditions.”
Mother Estelle watched them with an amused expression.
Echo giggled. “Which are?”
Vaughan wrapped an arm around Echo and hugged. “One is a kiss.”
Echo obliged. “That was easy.”
“On my dick.”
Echo playfully slapped Vaughan on the arm.
“None of that talk in my kitchen.” Mother Estelle pointed the wooden spoon she’d been using
at him. “Your brother is bad enough.”
“Which one?”
 “All of them. And Keaton doesn’t need to hear it either.”
Keaton had heard and done far more than just a blowjob. He shrugged. “I’m used to it.”
Everyone knew what his former profession was. He wasn’t ashamed of it. He’d taken care of
himself the best way he knew how. Just because he was in another chapter of his life didn’t mean
he regretted his past.
“You shouldn’t be exposed to that. Not in this house.” She went back to mixing whatever was
in the bowl. It looked like something with strawberries. Whatever it was, he hoped it was for
dinner because he wanted in on that. He loved strawberries.
“You’re right, Mom. Sorry.” Vaughan leaned into Echo and whispered something in his ear.
Whatever he said made Echo giggle again. “Deal.”
“The second condition is you have to let me teach you to drive,” Vaughan said.
He would like to learn, and Vaughan was a pilot. If he could fly a plane, then it stood to reason
he was probably an even better driver.
“All right, Wolf,” Echo said.
“I’d like to learn too, if that’s okay.”
Vaughan nodded. “No time like the present. One of you can drive to town.”
Keaton shrugged and held his fist in his palm. “Rock, paper, scissors?”
Echo did the same. “Which is winning? Driving or not driving?”
“Not driving.” They said at the same time, which made them chuckle.
They counted down and Keaton lost. “Looks like it’s my turn.”
 Chapter Four

I tverge.
was a pleasant day. Not mild enough to have his window down as he drove, but it was on the
The trees had buds on them, so new life was getting ready. The ground had thawed and
dried enough that Tim thought about all the steps he needed to take to get the fields ready for
planting.
He wasn’t paying attention and rolled up on the vehicle in front of him faster than he should
have. He let off the gas and pressed the brakes hard so he wouldn’t ram the guy from behind.
When the car slowed more, he honked. “Get a move on already.”
The road wasn’t marked so the speed limit depended on the conditions and drivability, but it
was capped at fifty-five miles per hour regardless. There were a few curves but it was well-
maintained so forty-five worked best. Tim’s speedometer read thirty. Way slower than was
warranted.
It looked like Vaughan’s car, which confused him because Vaughan drove like he was running
from the law. Tim might have bitched about speeding if Vaughan didn’t drive so well.
Someone stuck their arm out of the passenger side window and waved him around. Tim rolled
his eyes and turned to see if it was clear.
No other cars were in sight, so Tim put his blinker on and started to make his way around the
slowpoke.
The person driving braked for reasons Tim couldn’t figure out. He thanked the gods he saw
the rear lights come on, or he would have clipped the back corner. It wouldn’t have been more
than a fender bender, but Tim didn’t want the hassle of reporting it. And he would have reported it
because whoever was driving deserved to get a ticket and a higher insurance payment.
Idiot.
Tim pressed the button to roll down the window and slowed to a crawl as he came alongside
the car. “What are you doing?”
It definitely wasn’t Vaughan driving, but someone Tim hadn’t ever seen before. He looked
more like a boy than a man, but appearances could deceive in a paranormal town. Age was difficult
to discern for paranormals. The guy’s eyes glowed red, and he flashed his fangs.
Vampire. And a pretty one at that.
Tim’s fangs dropped and his eyes shifted to that of his cat. He sucked in a breath and caught
the faintest hint of the guy’s scent. Lavender. Just enough of the smell to turn Tim’s world upside
down.
His heart beat a wild rhythm. It wanted to leave his chest and go to the pretty vampire.
“Fuck you,” the guy yelled. The only thing he did right was not take his eyes off the road, even
when he stuck his middle finger up at Tim. If he had, he might have had a different response.
Maybe a similar one to Tim.
If Tim could turn the boy onto his lap and spank him, he would have. It would have been a
fitting punishment for his foul language.
“By the gods,” Tim whispered and sped up, passing the car.
Leaving felt wrong. He wanted to stop in the middle of the road, grab his angry little mate, and
wander off to a secluded place so they could get to know each other better. And maybe hide.
Hiding from the world and his responsibilities sounded like the thing he needed when he met
the pretty vampire for the first time.
As much as he wanted to stop, he didn’t. He drove to Saint Lakes’ only shopping complex. The
complex had a market as well as a few other shops, all attached and they shared the same parking
lot. He needed to get groceries and then head back to the farm. He had chores to finish before
nightfall. But Tim couldn’t go inside yet.
His chest ached. He couldn’t decide if it was because he’d seen his mate for the first time or if it
was because he’d left him behind.
Gods, he hoped that was Vaughan’s car. His sole focus had been on his mate, so he hadn’t
noticed anyone else. It had to be Vaughan, though. Right? If it was, he could find his mate without
much of a problem. Maybe it was the new Somerset Josh had talked about. If he asked Vaughan, he
would likely get teased, which would annoy him, but he’d learn where his mate was and maybe
even more about him.
He shut off the engine at about the same time his mate turned into the parking lot.
Tim watched as Vaughan got out. Mystery solved then.
Vaughan’s expression turned from one of fear to relief.
Vaughan had two mates. Bandos was an investigator for the clan and the other a fae named
Echo. Bandos was the biker type, complete with a badass motorcycle. Echo was a small man with
such fair skin Tim hoped he wore sun screen all year long. Like after he showered, he used it as
lotion because if he didn’t the poor guy was doomed.
Echo slid next to Vaughan.
When Tim’s mate exited the vehicle, his voice carried across the parking lot. It sounded nice.
The softer registers appealed to Tim in ways he hadn’t expected. “That was harder than it looked.”
“You nearly killed us.”
“It’s not my fault someone else was on the road. And did you see that asshole back there? He
could have been nicer.”
Vaughan blinked at him as if he lost his mind. It surprised Tim when Vaughan came to his
defense. “It’s not like Tim knew you were a new driver. And braking at the exact wrong time
didn’t help. Which I told you not to do.”
Tim’s mate put his fist on his hip and pointed his finger at Vaughan. “I want a new teacher. You
don’t get how scary other cars are.”
Tim chuckled, despite thinking how ridiculous that was.
Kristin pulled into the lot. She didn’t see Tim. No one seemed to notice him, which suited him
up to that point. He waved, getting Kristin’s attention, but no one else’s.
Kristin smiled as she crossed to Tim, but her smile died when she saw he had partially shifted.
Kristin had an expressive face. She couldn’t hide her emotions if she tried, not that she did very
often. When she scowled, Tim knew it was out of concern.
 “What’s up, Pops? You all right?” Pops. Sheesh. He wouldn’t let his own boys get away with
calling him that, but Kristin was special. She had a way of lightening Tim’s mood just by being
nearby.
She raised her eyebrows when she saw him.
“I need to tell you something.” Tim could count on her to keep his confidence. He knew he
could because she’d kept the fact that Josh was her mate from everyone for years. Never once did
she kick up a fuss about Josh rejecting her. Not until Josh had sniffed around her again.
“Okay.”
“You see that little feisty vampire, yelling at Vaughan.” Tim nodded in the guy’s direction.
“Keaton?”
Keaton. Now he had a name.
A pretty name for a pretty person.
Tim rubbed his chest. “He’s my mate.”
Kristin’s eyes widened. Tim could have announced his candidacy for the presidency, and he
would have gotten less of a response.
“Don’t continue to stare at me with your mouth open, girl.”
And then Kristin laughed. The sound travelled around the parking lot. It would have grabbed
Keaton’s attention had he not already gone inside the diner. Vaughan was the last to enter, and he
turned, waving to them as he made his way inside.
Tim huffed and got out of his truck. Kristin had to move away from the door to let him out. He
wrapped an arm around her shoulders and led her into the grocery store.
He thanked the gods she mellowed during the walk across the lot. By the time they made it
inside Tim’s fangs had receded, and his eyes had shifted back to his human counterpart. His cat
wanted to go to his mate, but Tim needed time to process.
Keaton wasn’t a cougar shifter, which went against everything Tim had been taught about
mates. It went against his homophobic, prejudiced father. And Tim had never been a rebel. He
knew his father had been wrong about how shifters mated. But logic went out the window with
Tim’s emotions. He still felt like a bad son, not doing what he was told.
“You deserved my response. You know that, right?” Kristin whispered, but softened her words
by leaning into him.
“Yes.” He deserved any response she gave him.
“And you know it’s okay to mate with him, right?”
Tim grunted. He wasn’t sure if he was agreeing or not. He wasn’t ready to respond, so
noncommittal would have to do.
He supported Josh and Marshall mating with whoever the gods had chosen, regardless of who
that person was, especially Josh bonding with Kristin. His problem was he hadn’t applied that same
openness to his own life. It was because he hadn’t thought he had a mate. He figured maybe the
gods had punished him for not standing up to his father.
His shortcomings were never more apparent than discovering his mate was a vampire.
“You’re allowed to be happy.” She grabbed a cart. Whether she intended to help Tim shop or
she was shopping for herself and Josh, Tim didn’t know, and he didn’t question it. Getting
groceries would have to wait because he couldn’t focus on anything but what she’d just said.
“It’s…I think I’ve been punishing myself.” Saying it aloud left him vulnerable and he wouldn’t
have been so open with anyone else, but he could with Kristin.
Kristin stopped pushing the cart to hug him. They stood in the middle of aisle one. “You
shouldn’t.”
“I fucked up.”
She understood he meant he’d made mistakes with his boys. But she still shook her head. “You
almost did. Almost. Josh and Marshall take a lot for granted, Tim. I should know. Like the fact
you’re a great father.” Sometimes Tim forgot Kristin hadn’t always been a Somerset. She’d come
into Estelle’s life the same way all Estelle’s kids had. Whatever she’d experienced before hadn’t
been pleasant. And she’d been a kid.
“We should always protect the children.”
Kristin released him and smiled. “That line of thinking makes you a good parent.”
Tim winked. “It’s one of my better opinions.”
She pushed the cart again. “Almost doesn’t count. That’s all I’m saying.”
Maybe it didn’t. He’d have to roll the thought around in his mind some. “I think I want to meet
him.”
“You want my help?”
“Yes.” He needed to come to some sort of understanding with himself before meeting, though.
“Just…”
“Just what?”
“I don’t know.” He needed to wait until he knew what to say. He could be a bumbling idiot
sometimes, like when he was nervous. And he usually said the first thing that came to mind, which
had gotten him in trouble more times than not.
The gods only gave him one mate. He didn’t want to make a mess of it before he’d begun.
 Chapter Five

K eaton sat in the back of Vaughan’s car while Echo threatened their lives. He gripped the edge
of the seat as if that was the thing that would save his life when they careened into the field on
their left, which was a better option than the forest on their right.
“Slow down!” As teachers went, Vaughan wasn’t a very good one. He panicked way more than
he should.
“I’m not going that fast.” Echo was, for sure, speeding. He went about ten miles over the limit,
which wouldn’t have been a big deal, but the condition of the road was poor. The road commission
had patched it, but it was a half-assed attempt that made the road bumpy in spots.
“I’m pretty sure this is how my life ends.” Keaton sucked in a breath.
“You were just as bad, Keaton.” Echo had a point. They sucked in their own individual ways.
Keaton had the exact opposite problem. He drove too slow.
“Brothers in suckage.” Keaton chuckled.
Vaughan snorted. “There ya go. Something in common.”
Echo took his hand off the wheel and held his fist for Keaton to tap. Keaton would have, but the
car veered, crossing the road. Echo overcorrected and Vaughan cursed.
“Holy shit!” Keaton wanted out of the car like yesterday.
“Stop the car, Echo,” Vaughan yelled.
Echo followed Vaughan’s order, putting the car in park in such an aggressive way it surprised
Keaton that the gear shift handle stayed intact. He got out of the car and made his way to the
passenger side.
Vaughan exited the vehicle. “You almost went into the ditch.”
Echo didn’t say a word as he took the seat Vaughan had exited. He crossed his arms over his
chest.
Keaton had a little experience being a fly on the wall when it came to couples’ arguments. Some
couples had come to him to put a thrill into their relationship. Sometimes, the thrill led to jealousy.
He wasn’t sure why people decided it was okay to argue around him, but they didn’t seem to
mind him being there. Or maybe it was that Keaton was forgettable when he lost his usefulness.
Either way, it was never comfortable.
Vaughan got behind the wheel and put the car in drive. He started down the road. The silence
held tension. “I’m not wrong, baby.”
Keaton could just about see Echo’s wheels turning, wanting to make it Vaughan’s fault. It
wasn’t anyone’s fault. Not really. Echo needed more practice and Vaughan had reached a limit. It
was a very scary moment.
Echo still didn’t speak, but the tension eased a bit for reasons Keaton didn’t know. And then
Echo said, “You need more patience.”
“I need a fucking diaper for when I piss myself.”
 Keaton chuckled. “We’ll buy you some for next time.”
“Oh no. Nope. Bandos gets to take you next time.” Oh good. They had someone else who could
teach them.
It didn’t take long to get to the Somerset house. They were only about a mile away.
Vaughan put the car in park and shut off the engine but stayed inside. When Echo went to exit,
Vaughan stopped him with a hand on his arm. It seemed they wanted to have a private
conversation about what happened after all.
“Thanks for the driving lesson.” Keaton didn’t linger. He got out and went into the house.
Bandos was making his way through the kitchen like a dragon shifter on a mission. But when
he saw Keaton, he stopped. “What happened?”
“Vaughan took Echo and I for a driving lesson.”
Bandos waved his hand as if to say he knew that already.
“Let’s just say we suck at it. And Echo is very scary when he drives. He has a lead foot.” Keaton
grinned. “And I have a renewed appreciation for life.”
Bandos shook his head and sighed. “Vaughan yelled?”
“Sorta, yeah.” Keaton would call it more of a response out of fear, but whatever.
Bandos shook his head. “I can feel them. Their emotions. Through our bond.”
Keaton didn’t ask, but he had wondered why Bandos had seemed a bit frantic. Keaton nodded.
“Understandable.”
He’d never met people more open. There was a vulnerability about almost all the Somersets. It
was refreshing and a little scary all at the same time. He couldn’t imagine himself so open, but
maybe that was something he should work toward. Closing off his emotions had allowed him to
function day-to-day before coming to Saint Lakes. But it had been needed in his former life. His
new one, not so much.
Bandos patted his arm. “Are you all right? You disappeared for a second.”
Another thing about the Somersets was they were all tactile. Keaton might have shied away if
not for the fact they were like that with everyone, not just him. They included him, not singled
him out. It was such a change from his norm it was difficult to get used to, especially when males
touched him. However innocent their intentions, it left Keaton a little leery each time.
“I’m just thinking about how open you guys are with your feelings.”
Bandos smiled. “Not used to it, huh?”
“No. Almost everyone I knew from my old life had an agenda.” Most of the time, that agenda
had been very obvious. But not always. Not with certain clients.
“Well, I know I can safely speak for all of us when I say we only want you to be happy.” He
knew Bandos was sincere. The honesty rolled off him.
“Thank you.” Keaton went in for a hug.
Bandos returned it. “You’re a Somerset now, kid. Might want to wrap your head around that
because once you’re in, we keep you.”
“Well said, dear.” Estelle came into the room, followed by Kristin and Ladon.
Kristin grinned, but Ladon seemed like a guy on a mission.
“Bandos, you might want to stop Vaughan and Echo from fuc…” Ladon darted his gaze to
Estelle. “…fornicating in their car in the driveway.”
Bandos released Keaton and shrugged. But he headed out of the door as if to do the alpha’s
bidding.
The three remaining Somersets stared at him as if they knew a secret they wanted to share
with him but were afraid of his reaction. Keaton was used to the spotlight, so it didn’t bother him
until the stare went on for an uncomfortable amount of time.
“What? Am I kicked out or something?” It was his biggest fear. Despite what Bandos said about
being part of the family and Mother Estelle’s promise that morning, he’d never belonged anywhere
for very long. He was used to wearing out his welcome.
Ladon scowled. “Of course not.”
“We have a job for you.” Kristin’s had a mischievous expression. She was about to tease him.
Ladon glanced at Kristin, frowning with confusion.
Keaton smiled. “Oh yeah? What’s that?”
“Do you know how to juggle? One of us has to entertain the alpha.” Kristin’s grin widened.
Ladon rolled his eyes and shook his head. “Seriously?”
“What’s the problem?” Keaton sighed. There was always an issue when someone tried to
lighten the mood.
Kristin chuckled. “It’s nothing bad. I promise.”
“It’s probably not good either,” Ladon mumbled.
“Will one of you tell him, please?”
Mother Estelle wrapped an arm around Keaton’s shoulders. “Everything will be all right.”
Holy shit. What is happening?
“You have a mate.” Ladon said it as if he thought he was dropping a bombshell.
Keaton was so confused. “Everyone’s supposed to, right?”
He met Mother Estelle’s gaze, wanting her to reassure him because the confusion lifted a bit as
soon as the words left his mouth.
“Your mate saw you earlier today.” Ladon still sounded all doom and gloom.
“Oh.” Keaton’s confusion didn’t lift until he thought about it. There could only be one reason
Ladon would be so apprehensive. “Please tell me they aren’t female. Because I’m gay. Very gay.”
“That’s very obvious, dear.” Mother Estelle squeezed his shoulder gently.
Kristin shook her head. “It’s my mate’s dad.”
Keaton raised his eyebrows. “Josh’s dad?”
Kristin bit her lip.
That implied a big age gap and with paranormals, it might be even more of one. Keaton was
twenty-three years old. Young by most people’s standards. What would having an older mate be
like? Maybe he was about to find out. “Oh.”
Kristin sighed. “He’s kind of prejudiced against certain matings. But he’s working on it.”
“’Kind of prejudiced’?” What did that mean?
“Tim’s father arranged his marriage to his wife.” When Kristin said wife, Keaton stiffened.
Kristin rushed to explain. “But they divorced a while ago. When my mate was still a kid. Tim still
harbors some…of those ideals.”
 “So he doesn’t want to mate with me. Is that what I’m hearing?”
“He does. I think. His cat definitely wants you, but he’s stubborn.” Kristin scowled.
Keaton shrugged. “It’s not like I’m not used to rejection. Sort of the story of my life.” He was a
foster kid, after all.
Kristin looked to her mother for help with a stricken gaze, as if she thought she had messed up
somehow.
“You’ll be coming in on the tail end of a family argument between Tim and Josh. Josh hasn’t
forgiven Tim for meddling in his mating with Kristin. That’s the main reason we’re telling you.
The second reason is because Tim can be…surly. And that’s on a good day.” They made him sound
like an asshole.
Keaton took a deep breath. “All right. When do I meet him?”
Ladon was the one who answered. “Now. If you want. He owns a farm just a few miles from
here.”
His soul perked up a little. “A farm?”
Mother Estelle tightened her hold just enough to get his attention. “Who better to learn from
than your mate?”
Holy shit. This was really happening.
 Chapter Six

T im fought the urge to run to his mate. Keaton would likely be with the Somersets, which
meant he was safe. Tim knew that from a logical standpoint, but his cougar wanted to be the
one to provide protection. He wanted other things, too. Bonding was at the top of the list. And
the more he thought about it, the more impulsive he felt. Waiting or taking his time thinking was
more in his nature but if he thought about it too much he’d end up right back in the past with his
father’s voice in his head.
He’d never wanted someone as much as he did Keaton. The need was there, though, taking
over by slow degrees. It was as if a cloud had swallowed him. Everything was invisible except the
fogginess. He breathed in the dense atmosphere until he couldn’t think about anything else,
including giving his attention to the farm.
Tim sighed and put down the wrench. He needed to get the tractor running, not think about
his pretty mate. Tim hadn’t ever had a problem focusing on the job before. He loved what he did.
Being shorthanded meant he put in a lot of hours, but he enjoyed that too. Knowing the amount of
work that needed to get done stressed him out, which was the part he didn’t like.
He couldn’t afford a distraction.
The tractor always needed tweaking at the beginning of the planting season. He’d had it a long
time, and at that point, it needed to be finessed into doing its job.
Josh was somewhere on the farm, avoiding him. Tim was just grateful he was there to lighten
the workload. They still needed a farmhand. The sooner, the better. But they finished the work
every day. It made for long days, but it was the best he could do.
The farm had grown since his father had passed it on to Him. Tim had changed a few things
over the years. Bought eighty acres of neighboring land from the Millers. That had been the best
decision he’d made because it expanded his grazing pastures and gave him a bigger hay field. He
sold more hay than he needed to keep, which put him in the black after every harvest. When his
father had been alive, he’d done things the old-fashioned way. His unwillingness to change had
almost cost them the farm because of a high interest loan during a recession. Being more
successful every year felt good, but it also meant they had a lot to do to keep the farm running.
Most of the time, he found farming cathartic. Tilling the dirt, planting, and even taking care of
the animals allowed him to live amongst nature every day. It was the thing most took for granted.
They ignored the grass underneath their feet, but Tim nurtured it. He grew things and felt good
about that.
Lately, it was the only thing he felt good about. Everything else needed to be reevaluated, at the
very least. Sometimes he felt as if he couldn’t do anything right.
The sound of a vehicle pulling into his driveway brought Tim out of his head.
He didn’t have a lot of friends, so very few people visited. Anyone who did was likely a
Somerset. Somehow, the Somersets were a forgiving bunch, and he’d become family, but it was
more by default than them liking him as a person.
Kristin always did, so it didn’t surprise him when he saw her. But then she didn’t count as
company because she was part of the family.
Josh already had Kristin in his arms. They were discussing something, whispering to each
other like teenagers with a secret. Why they didn’t use their bonding link was beyond Tim, but he
guessed it didn’t matter because no one was privy to their conversation, including Tim.
It was the other car that drove down the driveway that had him raising his eyebrows. Tim
sucked in a breath when he saw his mate sitting in the passenger seat. Ladon drove.
Ladon parked beside Kristin’s car and got out. He waited for Keaton, who held onto Ladon’s
shirt in a way that made Tim green with jealousy. He still didn’t come out of the shadows of the
barn though. He’d rather watch his mate for a bit longer.
Keaton looked even smaller next to someone as big as the alpha, but dragon shifters were big
people. Tim was about average—six-foot-one the last time he’d gone for a checkup and the doctor
had measured him. That had been a long time ago when he was still a teenager, though. But he
hadn’t grown much since. He wasn’t old enough yet to shrink with age, either.
The age difference between them was clear, even from a distance. It made Tim wonder if he
could keep up with someone as young as Keaton. How much energy did he have?
By the gods, he was gorgeous. He wore blue jeans and a black T-shirt with rainbow colors
painted across it, as if he were the beginning of a work of art. The gods couldn’t have made Keaton
more beautiful if they’d tried.
Josh, sucking in a breath and saying “by the gods”, drew his attention away from Keaton.
Tim sighed and came out of hiding. With Josh knowing where he was, it was only a matter of a
few seconds before the others saw him. His mate being the most important one.
As soon as he came out of the shadows, his mate’s eyes glowed blue. When he spoke, his fangs
poked out. “You!”
Tim’s eyes shifted. He stopped when he realized his mate stalked toward him with his fists
clenched and his hands on his hips. Never in Tim’s life had he thought an angry person was sexy
until seeing Keaton.
He raised his eyebrows when his mate stood in front of him. “You were the asshole who yelled
at me.”
“You can’t drive, mate.” Maybe he should have finessed the situation, but he didn’t know how.
He’d never been good at sugar-coating his words.
Keaton’s pretty lips thinned into a fine line. “I’d never driven before.”
“Guess that explains things, then.” Tim stepped into him and breathed in Keaton’s scent. It
calmed him. He didn’t know he’d had tension until some of it disappeared. And he felt lighter, less
stressed. His mind was clear, but also focused just on Keaton as he had almost from the moment of
seeing him. He forgot about all the problems having a much younger vampire mate would bring,
not that he’d been worried about them that much. Instead, he thought about how smooth Keaton’s
skin looked and how he wanted to hold him.
Gods, Tim had never been attracted to anyone as much as Keaton. He wasn’t used to it and
didn’t know where to put it all because Keaton eyed him with just enough wariness to make Tim
protective, even from himself.
Keaton huffed and put his fist on his hip. “You’re older than me.”
Tim didn’t know what to say to that. He wasn’t one to blurt out the first thing on his mind.
Usually, he thought about his words before speaking. For the first time in his life, he forgot to have
a filter. “You look younger than my sons.”
“That’s because I probably am.” Keaton folded his arms over his chest. “I’m twenty-three. My
name is Keaton.”
“Kristin told me your name.” Tim wanted to get more of his scent, so he leaned in until his nose
was inches from Keaton’s neck.
“They told me your name is Tim.”
“Yeah,” he whispered. “Tim Pyke.”
“Well, Tim Pyke. Since you seem to think I’m such a shitty driver, you can teach me.”
“I suppose I could.” Tim had taught his boys. He could probably handle teaching a feisty mate,
too.
Tim moved away to meet Keaton’s gaze.
“It’s a date then.” When Keaton smiled, it lit up his entire face. Tim could see it for the rest of
his life and die a happy cat shifter.
Tim’s chest ached. He didn’t want to think about his feelings too hard. Or at all, if he were
being honest. Feelings weren’t his strength and Keaton drummed up so many, it was difficult to
put them into boxes. Nothing was neat and tidy. It was all a jumbled mess of emotions he’d never
felt before.
Tim sighed. “Don’t suppose you want a job?”
“Being your mate?” Keaton smirked. “How much does it pay?”
Sassy boy.
“Josh and I need a farmhand.” Tim wasn’t likely to get anyone else. At least not someone from
Saint Lakes clan. If anyone needed the work, he would have heard about it already. Anyone from
outside town came with a lot more problems because they might be human and living in
ignorance. Tim had never been comfortable pretending. He wasn’t good at deception.
“So we’re not talking about how we’re mates. Got it.” And say what? Tim had no idea how to
process it. It was all instinct up to that point. Even offering Keaton a job, knowing he had no
farming experience. Or maybe Tim was stereotyping, but the kid looked like he’d lived in the city
his whole life. His sneakers and skinny jeans told his story almost as well as how he took
everything in around him with a wide-eyed wonder. Had he ever stepped foot on a farm before?
Tim sighed and turned. “Come with me.”
“What if I don’t want to?” Why would Keaton not want to?
When Tim turned, he raised his eyebrows. “Then don’t. If you want to start with the animals,
then Josh will show you.”
“‘Animals’?”
Tim pointed to the barn that held the pigs. Then one with the horses inside. “I’d show you
myself, but I have to finish with the tractor.”
“So…. we’re not going to bond? Is that what I’m hearing?” Why did Keaton feel the need to talk
about everything the very second they met? The boy needed patience.
“Is it okay if we talk about it later?” he asked as he walked back into the barn.
“No. Because I don’t know if I want to bond. I need to know your expectations before I decide.”
Tim could feel him dogging his heels and something about that made him smile.
“I don’t really know how to answer that. Don’t have expectations at the moment. I need to
think about it and come up with a few.” It was the truth, but not what Keaton wanted to hear. The
huffing coming from behind said that much.
Tim was in the camp of bonding sooner rather than later. Tonight, after dinner, sounded like
the perfect time. But he’d follow Keaton’s lead since he was on the fence about it.
“Think out loud. With words.”
Yeah, that wouldn’t happen. Tim couldn’t do that even if someone held a gun to his head and
tried to make him. “How about you talk while I think?”
Tim entered the barn that served as more of a garage. They kept the equipment inside.
Keaton leaned against the work bench with his arms cross in front of him and stared at him
while Tim stared back. “What?”
Tim smiled and turned to the tractor. “Hand me that wrench.”
“Oh.” He heard rather than saw Keaton pick up a tool and cross the few feet to get to him.
“What should I talk about?”
Tim took it and handed it back. “The other tool is the wrench.”
Keaton huffed again. He seemed to enjoy doing that, or maybe it was just Tim.
Keaton took it and then plunked it onto the bench. Tim turned to make sure Keaton picked the
right one the second time.
Tim smiled when Keaton handed it to him. “Thanks.”
Keaton sucked in a breath. “Oh.”
So Keaton had a reaction to his smile. That was good to know.
Tim’s smile widened, but he turned to the tractor again.
Keaton slid next to him. So close his body heat seeped into Tim, warming him. “What are you
doing?”
Tim pulled Keaton toward him and pressed himself closer.
“Just giving it a tune-up. Making sure everything works,” he whispered. He pointed to the bolt
and then handed the wrench to Keaton. “Give that one a turn.”
“Wait. Am I tightening or loosening it?” Keaton bit his bottom lip as he worked.
Smart kid.
Tim smiled. “Tightening.”
He held Keaton around the waist.
When he heard the scuffle of shoes on the dirty concrete floor, he glanced at the open barn
door and saw Ladon, Kristin, and Josh staring at them.
Ladon raised his eyebrows. “You all right, Key?”
Tim wanted to take offense that Ladon had to ask but the new leaf he’d decided to turn over
was difficult for others to see still. But they would at some point because he wasn’t about to
mistreat Keaton for any reason, including letting his old way of thinking cloud his judgement.
 “Huh?” Keaton stopped wrenching long enough to answer Ladon. “I’m fine. Helping. I’ll be
home later.” Keaton darted his gaze to Tim. “Maybe. I’ll call you if I need a ride.”
Ladon smiled and met Tim’s gaze. “I’m here if you guys need anything.”
Tim nodded in thanks.
Josh stood with his mouth open. “Dad?”
Tim raised his eyebrows. “We’ll talk about it later.”
And then Josh gave him a reluctant smile. “Still need me to hire a farmhand?”
“I need you to finish the pig chores. Kristin, honey, you can help if you want. You’re not
obligated.” He didn’t let Kristin help often. He didn’t want her to feel as if she needed to. The farm
belonged to her just as much as Tim, Josh, and Marshall. It didn’t matter if they laid their heads in
the bedroom Tim kept for them or if they chose Estelle’s place.
He hadn’t considered how letting her help might make her feel as if she belonged to the family
until the moment her face lit up. “Oh, my gods. I get to help. It only took him finding his mate.”
“Smartassed Somerset.” Tim winked, letting her know he was joking.
Kristin dragged Josh out of the barn. Ladon gave Keaton one last glance before heading out as
well.
“Did you say pigs?” There was interest in Keaton’s question.
Tim could almost see the wheels turning in Keaton’s mind, trying to figure out what he should
ask next.
“Yeah. We have a barn full. Piglets even.” Tim slid closer until his front pressed to Keaton’s
back. Tim hadn’t gotten hard from another person in a long time. He’d had other things to think
about besides romance and sex. But Keaton was different. The attraction was unlike anything he’d
felt before. Tim had been hard more than not since the moment he’d seen Keaton cursing at him
from the driver’s seat of Vaughan’s car.
Keaton stiffened. “I don’t…I’m not ready for that.”
Tim backed off, giving Keaton room. “I’m not ready for that either. Can’t help it. My body
responds to you.”
Keaton turned and handed the wrench to Tim.
“Mine does to yours too. But I…I have a past.” It was an odd thing to say, and implied Keaton
had a few nightmares. Tim wasn’t sure he was ready to hear about them.
“What sort of past?”
Keaton shook his head. “Not ready for the conversation, either.”
“All right. We won’t do anything until we’re both ready.”
“That might take a while.” Keaton averted his gaze.
“That’s okay.”
“They told me you had a wife.”
Tim sighed. “The boys’ mother. We’re divorced. She wasn’t my true mate. Obviously.”
“Why did you marry her?”
“It’s complicated.”
“They told me it was because your parents forced you.” Well, that didn’t sound that complex
when Keaton said it.
 “My father mostly.”
“I didn’t have one.” Keaton focused on the barn floor, moving the dust around with his shoe.
“You didn’t have what?”
“A father. Or a mother either.” It didn’t explain much about Keaton’s reluctance to bond, but it
was a tidbit of information.
He’d gather all the little scraps Keaton threw his way.
“I didn’t expect to find you. I don’t know what to think.” Keaton met his gaze.
“Same here.” He just knew he thought with his nether regions way more than he should,
forgetting about everything he’d been told about mating outside his species. While he thought it
was a good thing and knew it was about time Tim rebelled, he needed to think with his brain and
listen to what Keaton was saying.
Tim smiled. “At least we have something in common.”
“That’s true.” Keaton returned the smile, but it didn’t last long. “Is it okay if I help with the
pigs?”
Keaton needed space.
“Sure.” Tim could give him that.
“It’s just that I need time to…well, process.” Keaton held up his hands as if he were
surrendering. “It’s not that I’m saying no to bonding.”
“We’ll go at whatever pace you need.” Look at Tim not being a grade-A dick even when he
wanted to bond and figure everything else out later. If they had a connection and an internal link,
it would solve a lot of their problems, especially getting to know each other better. But he couldn’t
shove his weight around someone like Keaton and expect to get away with it, not that he would
even if he could. He might have done that in the past with certain clan issues, but he’d thought he
was right. Hell, he had been correct about who shouldn’t be alpha. It’d been his execution that
needed work.
Keaton smiled again, as if softening a blow. “Not that you have much of a choice.”
“It’s okay that I don’t.”
Wanting to bond right away had changed to wanting to give Keaton what he needed. He
wanted to be a good mate. He’d do whatever it took.
 Chapter Seven

K eaton didn’t know which barn housed the pigs. It had to be easy to find. It was the one with
pigs inside. Problem solved. Or so it should have been. There were a lot of outbuildings, and he
wasn’t sure if he was allowed to explore.
Like the one Keaton had just left, from the outside, it was a barn painted green and white. On
the inside, it was a well-lit garage with tractors and other farm equipment neatly stored away,
waiting for use.
Tim even organized his tools and the workbench except for two tools lying on top. Keaton
suspected Tim had been using them before getting interrupted.
Was it Keaton, or did Tim seem a little stressed? And also hard. Very. Very hard.
Hard and stressed. Keaton had a solution to those problems.
He sighed.
He wished he knew how Tim would react to Keaton’s former profession. Some people made
him feel like a leper. Or that he was less than them somehow, but Keaton wasn’t ashamed. He’d
supported himself better than most twenty-three-year-olds. He hadn’t had someone else to rely on
for financial help. Or any other forms of support, for that matter. Not until coming to Saint Lakes.
Not knowing how Tim would react held him back.
And then there was the fact he’d never had a relationship before. Starting off with sex seemed
like a good way to create a ton of problems, even for mates. It seemed more reasonable to get to
know each other first, especially with Keaton’s history. And maybe that wasn’t the paranormal
way, but Keaton hadn’t been around very many of his own kind, not to mention shifters and
witches and whoever else existed. He’d been in the human foster care system, so he’d grown up
with human ideals. It wasn’t that long ago he’d learned about vampire ways.
Keaton went back into the tractor barn. He might as well find out the ground rules on
exploring.
Tim was…hot. With the tractor hood thingy lifted and his denim-clad ass on display, it was
difficult to look anywhere else. He also had wide shoulders and a tapered waist. He wore a leather
belt and cowboy boots, making Keaton think of horses and open fields.
Tim on the back of a horse…damn. Imagining it made Keaton hard.
Keaton hadn’t had a physical response to another person in a very long time. It might have
been Jasper Hiler in twelfth-grade choir. And that was because he’d dropped his pants in class
during the last week of school as a prank on Mrs. Felder, the teacher. The teacher hadn’t thought it
was funny and no one in class had either. Laughter hadn’t been Keaton’s response. As much as
he’d thought Jasper was an asshole, he’d had a nice cock. The school pressed charges and Jasper
had gotten in trouble.
If Keaton had gotten hard since, it wasn’t memorable. Or the reason for it wasn’t. He’d
remember Tim though. He wouldn’t forget him for as long as Keaton lived. Talk about silver fox.
Yum.
Keaton cleared his throat to get Tim’s attention.
Tim met his gaze. He smiled, but his brow furrowed. “Did you change your mind?”
Keaton shrugged because he didn’t know. He knew he needed to get out of Tim’s way so he
could clear his mind. Being surrounded by his pine scent clouded Keaton’s head. But he also found
it difficult to walk away from him, however temporary.
“I didn’t know which barn.”
Tim took a step closer but hesitated. “Mind if I show you?”
Shit. It seemed as if Tim had gotten the wrong idea earlier. At least he was a nice enough guy
not to touch Keaton when he wasn’t sure it was welcome. The gesture said a lot about Tim. It put
Keaton at ease.
Keaton didn’t even realize he was wary until he wasn’t anymore. When everyone he’d ever had
sex with always only wanted that from him, it left him suspicious of everyone. He’d gotten plenty
of unwanted touches in his lifetime. People thought because he was a sex worker, they could take
whatever they wanted as if he were nothing more than a thing to be used. It was the worst part of
the job.
Keaton nodded. “Thanks.”
Tim started past him, but Keaton grabbed his arm. When Tim stopped, Keaton took Tim’s
hand, lacing their fingers together. Tim met his gaze with surprise but seemed pleased. He also
didn’t question Keaton.
They walked out of the building together. When Tim pointed to the outbuilding all the way to
the left, Keaton stiffened again. He had hopes that Tim would give him the grand tour, not point
him in the right direction. “It’s that one there.”
Keaton rolled his eyes. “You’re gonna make me ask, aren’t you?”
“What do you mean?” Tim scowled, which Keaton shouldn’t find sexy, but there it was on
Tim’s face.
“Can you show me around?” Keaton hadn’t ever begged for someone’s attention, and he wasn’t
sure how he felt about it.
“Don’t have the time right now. Got a lot of work.” Tim sighed and darted his gaze to the
ground. “You caught me at a bad time.”
Keaton didn’t know what to say, so he kept asking questions while trying to pull Tim along
with him toward the barn. “Why?”
“Do you want the long or short version?” Answering a question with a question. Not a cool play
on Tim’s part. It told Keaton the answer made Tim nervous.
“Do you have time for the long version?”
Tim chuckled. “I guess I’ll have to make time.” Considering he walked beside Keaton, still
holding his hand, he meant it.
Keaton smiled and leaned into him until their shoulders touched. “Thanks.”
“Thought you needed space.”
“I do.” But it was difficult to stay away, even for a few minutes. It was a weird feeling, especially
since common sense told him to think before he acted. “I want to hear the long story.”
 Tim sighed. “First, I want to say I did what I thought was best.”
“Right. This is a story about how you nearly fucked up Josh and Kristin’s mating, isn’t it?”
Keaton had been told enough to know Tim wasn’t the most open-minded person. At least not all
the time.
“All right. It’s the short version then.” Tim let go of Keaton’s hand long enough to open the darn
door. He held it for Keaton to enter first.
He should have followed his nose. The smell was atrocious. Keaton never remembered a time
when he had actually smelled pigs, but then he had lived in the city his entire life.
“That is horrendous.” Keaton pinched his nose closed.
“It’s not that bad.” Instead of taking Keaton’s hand, Tim touched the small of his back, guiding
him down a long walkway. On either side were pens of pigs. Some were little and others so huge
they might weigh close to six hundred pounds. They looked about that size. They kept the huge
ones by themselves. But the babies seemed to be separated by size, with little ones squealing at
them when they walked in the door. “You’ll get used to it.”
One little guy caught Keaton’s attention because he had big brown eyes and floppy black ears.
The rest of him was black with a tan strip around his middle.
“Aw, aren’t you cute.” Keaton leaned into the pen, trying to touch the little guy. The rest of the
pigs squealed and scattered. They must view him as a threat, even though he’d never hurt them.
Tim reached over and scooped the little guy up with one hand. If there was a rockstar award
for pig wrangling, Tim deserved it. He held out the wiggly, squealing guy for Keaton. “I have to
warn you. She’s never been cuddled before.”
She. Okay then.
“But she’s so cute.” Keaton held her to his chest. She didn’t want to be cuddled at all and let him
know by squealing and wiggling in his arms. He hoped she would calm down after a while.
Hopefully, she’d figure out he wouldn’t hurt her.
He met Tim’s gaze and grinned. “I’ve never held a pig before. I think I’m gonna call you Carol.”
Time chuckled. “You’re in luck with that one. We’ll keep her. After she grows, she’ll make good
babies.”
Wait. “What does that mean for all the rest of them?” Keaton had a sinking feeling about the
answer.
“I’ve sold most of this lot already.” Tim nodded to the pen next to the one they stood beside.
“That lot too.”
“But they’re babies.” Keaton held the little girl closer to his chest, which she didn’t like, but he
was protecting her. She’d understand later.
“When they get to that size…” Tim pointed to a pen of much bigger pigs. “they’ll be food.”
Oh, the horrors! Poor pigs. And also, Keaton didn’t want to know about farming anymore.
Keaton turned and headed out of the barn, leaving Tim standing next to sweet little babies he
would eventually murder just so he could eat them.
Talk about a sicko.
Josh and Kristin came in, carrying a big bucket filled with what looked like slop. The pigs took
notice, snorting with excitement.
 Josh glanced behind Keaton, probably meeting Tim’s gaze, before smiling and focusing on
Carol. “Where are you going?”
“Out of here.” Keaton ran a hand down her little back. “No one will eat you or make you have
babies.”
Josh grinned. “I love this so much.”
“What? What did I say?”
Tim slid beside him, resting a hand on the small of his back. “Nothing. He’s just having fun at
my expense.”
“How?” Keaton thought he understood the answer but wanted to hear it from them.
Kristin answered. “Your sass is exactly what Daddy Tim needs.”
Daddy Tim. Oh, that was…that made him hard just thinking about referring to Tim that way.
When Tim stuffed him full of his cock. Or screaming that name while orgasming. Daddy Tim
would make him come. He didn’t doubt that. He wouldn’t have to worry about not liking the sex
because Tim would make sure he loved it. At least in his imagination.
Keaton took a deep breath. You need to stop.
Tim raised his eyebrows but didn’t comment.
And then he did something that made Keaton rethink his stance on going slow even more than
he already was. He whispered in Keaton’s ear, so close his lips touched the shell. “We can’t keep
her in the house, baby.”
Keaton turned to him, unable to resist. He wanted to get closer. Close enough to live inside
Tim.
Tim wrapped his arms around Keaton.
“I don’t want them to be eaten.” Least of all Carol.
“I’m sorry, but it’s reality. You’ll have to adjust.” Well, that answer sucked.
Keaton stepped back, out of Tim’s embrace. “Can you sell them to people who want pets?”
Tim chuckled. He actually laughed at Keaton as if it were a big joke. If it was, it was at Keaton’s
expense. It killed his sexual desire and the little fantasy he’d had playing in his mind.
Keaton’s chest ached. He stood staring for far too long for Tim not to have some clue as to
Keaton’s thoughts on being laughed at, so he turned and started toward the door again.
Maybe it was ridiculous to make a statement like that. Keaton had been ignorant of where
bacon came from. Reality smacked him in the face, and it hadn’t been pleasant. He understood
why some people didn’t eat meat.
“It’s mean to laugh at me.” And with that he left the barn.
Carol started squealing again when they exited. She tried to wiggle out of his arms, but he had
a firm hold.
The sun was high and bright compared to inside. His eyes burned with the need to adjust.
“Where should we go, Carol?” Was going back to Estelle’s house an option when he’d stolen a
pig? He could imagine Estelle’s face when he showed up with Carol in tow. Keaton chuckled at the
thought.
He heard someone behind him. Instinct told him it was Tim.
“I’m sorry I hurt your feelings.” And he sounded as though he meant it, which made Keaton get
over it way quicker than he probably should have.
“Apology accepted.”
“What’s funny, baby?” Tim’s tone was gentle, as if he were talking Keaton down from a ledge.
Something about it struck Keaton as humorous too, and he laughed harder.
When he turned, Tim smiled. He didn’t speak until he calmed some. “I was just picturing
Estelle’s face when I brought Carol home with me.”
Tim didn’t like something about what Keaton said. It was clear in the way his expression
hardened. He opened his mouth and then shut it again. “I’d like it if you stayed with me.”
Keaton knew why Tim had hesitated. He’d wanted to make a demand but rephrased it.
“Were you about to command me?” Keaton narrowed his eyes. “You were, weren’t you?”
There was a tic in Tim’s jaw, and he averted his gaze. “I didn’t, though.”
“You wanted to.”
“But I didn’t.”
“But you wanted to.” They could go back and forth forever. Keaton wouldn’t be the first one to
give in. He knew that much.
“Yes. But I knew it wouldn’t be good for our mating, so I reworded it.”
“Well, how about you reword this, Timothy Pyke…” Keaton would have put his fists on his
hips if he weren’t holding a pig. “My home is with the Somersets until I decide otherwise.”
“All I said was I’d like it if you stayed on the farm. With me.”
“The intent was there.”
“But not stated.” And around they went on the merry-go-round of the stupidest argument ever
held.
Keaton went to speak, but Tim cut him off. “You can’t take the pig to Estelle. She doesn’t have
the proper space for her.”
“Her name is Carol.” Keaton almost told Tim to say it. “You’re not eating her.”
Tim waved away the comment. “I said I wasn’t.”
Tim turned toward the pig barn.
“What are you doing?” Were they done arguing? It didn’t feel like it.
“Getting her a friend or two. Pigs don’t do well alone.” Really? Tim was giving in?
“Did I just win the argument?” Keaton grinned as he followed Tim inside.
Josh and Kristin were pouring their buckets into the feeding troughs in two of the pens.
“No, because we weren’t arguing about whether I let you keep the pig. We were arguing about
you living here.”
“Actually, we were arguing about you trying to demand that I live here.”
“And now we’re arguing about what we’re arguing about.” Tim was right. They were.
And Keaton was wrong about what the stupidest argument was. They’d won the prize with the
last one.
Keaton changed the subject. “Where will we keep them?”
“I have an empty spot in the next barn over.” Tim bent and scooped up a piglet. It was all white
with one black ear. He held it out for Keaton’s inspection. “Congratulations. It’s a boy.”
Keaton chuckled. “Do you think he looks like a Kevin?”
 Tim’s expression never changed from one of annoyance when he said, “Not even a little.”
“Kevin it is then.” Keaton grinned. “Can I pick one more?”
Tim handed Kevin over. Keaton had to hold the piglets like footballs in order to carry them.
They were heavy. Maybe thirty pounds each, so together they weighed Keaton down.
Tim scooped up another one. It was all white—or the peachy flesh color of some humans.
“Girl.”
“Peaches.”
Tim shook his head and then held out his hand, asking for Keaton to hand him a piglet,
lightening Keaton’s load. Keaton gave him Carol because she’d grown used to being held and was
less of a handful. Since Tim had two of them and Keaton only the one it was a nice thing to do.
Tim nodded toward the door. “It’s the next barn over.”
Keaton turned and left the barn again. “Thank you.”
“You’re welcome.” Tim followed him.
“I can’t save them all, can I?” He wished he could.
“No. I know you want to, but it’s the way things are.” And Tim couldn’t change it, even if he
wanted to. Farming practices being what they were, he had to make a living somehow.
“It feels wrong.”
Tim sighed. “It’s because you’re a city boy.”
“Not entirely.”
“Yes.”
“No.”
At least now he knew how their mating would go. Circular arguments that ended with the
feeling of being on a nauseating amusement ride. Except Keaton had always liked roller coasters.
 Chapter Eight

F or a Somerset dinner, where everyone spoke, sometimes all at once, Tim could hear a pin
drop. The others at the table watched Tim and Keaton as if they were part of a theater show.
Something about them being mates fascinated everyone. Tim was well aware almost everyone
wanted to see his reaction to Keaton.
Keaton sat across from Tim, playing with his food more than eating it. To be fair, Tim wasn’t
interested in eating either. He wanted to find a private space and kiss Keaton until he’d gotten a
taste, not that he thought just one kiss would be enough.
Keaton affected Tim in ways he’d never experienced before, and he wasn’t just talking about
his cougar being so close to the surface. He wasn’t talking about his dick, either. He was old
enough to control himself in that regard, although Keaton wiggling around on his chair every few
minutes as if his hardness made him uncomfortable threatened Tim’s control. And so did that
pretty smirk, come to think of it. No, Tim hadn’t ever been possessive before meeting Keaton, but
he couldn’t keep the growl from his throat when others watched Keaton react to Tim’s presence.
No one but Tim should see his mate hard and wanting.
Tim wished he hadn’t growled because he gave away too much.
Of all the people at the table, he didn’t expect an empathetic response from Ramsey, but there it
was. When their gazes met, Ramsey nodded, letting Tim know he had a place to lay his problems if
he wanted one.
Tim acknowledged it with a smile.
Josh, sitting between Ramsey and Kristin, grinned like a damned idiot. When their gazes met,
Josh’s grin got bigger. By the gods, he wanted to stay stoic and maybe even get a little angry, but
Tim knew he deserved it.
“Problem, Dad?” Josh took a bite of his food.
Tim tried to maintain severity but couldn’t contain the humor. “Shut it, boy.”
Josh chuckled.
Tim looked to Kristin for help. She might only have a small baby bump. It went unnoticed
depending on her choice of clothing. But she had a permanent glow. “You gonna control him for
me?”
Kristin raised her eyebrows. “What are you gonna give me?”
Tim chuckled. “I don’t know.”
Kristin put her fork on her plate. “How about you let me raise goats on the farm?”
Tim shrugged. “You can raise anything you want. Don’t need to ask. Looks like we already
have pet pigs anyway. It’s more to love.”
“‘Pet pigs’?” Estelle asked.
Before Tim could answer, Keaton did. “Did you know Tim sells baby pigs to people who
murder them?”
 “Tim supplies Saint Lakes with meat and produce, dear. It’s fresh and local, raised humanely,
unlike the meat in most supermarkets.” Of all the people, he never expected Estelle to be on his
side.
“I think I want to be vegetarian.” Even as Keaton said it, he took another bite of pasta. The
tomato sauce had herbs and sausage. Estelle probably had gotten the ingredients for the sauce
from Tim, especially the sausage. Tim knew she preserved a lot of vegetables and fruits. If she
wanted something Tim didn’t grow, she was good about getting it from one of the other farmers or
growing it herself.
She was the biggest supporter of buying local.
Kristin slapped Josh’s shoulder in a playful manner. “You told me he’d say no.”
“I thought he would.” Josh smirked at Tim and rolled his eyes. “Thanks, Dad.”
“Your grandma had goats when I was young. I can’t say I remember much about raising them,
though.” Tim’s gaze went from Josh to Kristin. “We’ll all have to learn.”
“Awesome.” Kristin seemed about as excited as if she’d received a Yule gift.
“Can I learn, too?” Keaton had a sweet voice, even when he sounded so uncertain. What Tim
didn’t understand was why Keaton was unsure. From the moment they met, Keaton had been
spunky. As annoying as Tim found it, he liked that version of Keaton better.
Everyone at the table seemed to hold their breath as they waited for Tim’s answer, as if they
expected him to say no. It was ridiculous to think he would.
Tim met Keaton’s gaze, holding it as he smiled. “I’d love that.”
Keaton returned the smile.
“Did you have animals growing up?” Tim used the opportunity to feed his craving for
information and he was shameless about it.
“One of the foster homes had a dog. I think I might have been ten or eleven, but I was only
there for a few months before I had to move.” Keaton poked at his noodles with his fork, making
circles in the extra sauce collecting at the bottom of the plate. “I watch documentaries when they
come on television.”
The blush Keaton got made him even prettier, although Tim didn’t know how that was
possible.
“Human foster care?”
“Yeah.” Oh, that tilt of Keaton’s chin spoke of defiance.
“What happened to your parents?”
“I have no idea. They left just like everyone else does.” Keaton twirled the noodles around on
his fork.
“You think I’m going to leave?” Tim growled.
Everyone at the table held their breath.
Instead of answering, Keaton turned to Estelle. “Can I be excused?”
Mother Estelle nodded, although she frowned. “You didn’t need to ask.”
Keaton left his food as he exited the room.
Ladon stood, intending to follow, but Tim stopped him by reaching across the table for
Keaton’s plate.
 “He’s got abandonment issues. With good reason.” Ladon’s comment might have been stating
the obvious, but he clearly thought Tim needed to hear it.
He grabbed their napkins.
“He landed in the right family to deal with them.” Maybe he’d even let Tim help, too.
Tim carried both plates through the living room, following Keaton’s scent up the stairs. He
knocked on a closed door three down on the left.
“Can I just be left alone, please?” Keaton’s voice was muffled.
“Don’t think so, baby.” Tim leaned against the wall and spoke in a normal voice. Keaton had
good enough hearing to make out what Tim said. All vampires had heightened senses.
The springs on the bed popped right before the door opened. Keaton’s pretty, defiant gaze met
Tim’s. Keaton eyed the plate. “You brought my dinner?”
“Not just that. I came to talk. I’ll leave you alone if that’s what you need, though.” Tim hoped
Keaton wouldn’t send him away, but he’d go if that happened.
“To talk?”
Tim held up the plate. “And eat.”
Keaton stepped aside, letting Tim into the room.
A full-sized bed sat against the far wall. Keaton or someone kept it made, but the quilt was
rumpled in the center. Keaton must have just left that spot. Tim could almost picture him sitting
cross-legged, staring into nothing as he contemplated…whatever problem rolled around inside his
sassy brain.
A dresser, with a pair of sunglasses and a wallet sitting on top, was right inside the door. It
appeared old but sturdy and matched the headboard on the bed.
Keaton sat in the rumpled spot, cross-legged, just like Tim had pictured.
Tim held out the plate. “You didn’t eat much.”
Keaton hesitated before taking it. He set the plate in his lap and then took the napkin, placing it
on the bed beside him. “Thanks.”
“Mind if I sit?” Tim gestured to the chair next to the dresser. It was close enough that Tim
could reach out and touch the edge of the mattress, although he couldn’t touch Keaton, which was
a good thing, considering where his thoughts went every time he saw him.
Keaton shrugged and picked up his fork, gathering noodles around the tines.
Tim sat with his elbows on his knees and watched Keaton eat a few bites.
“Don’t watch me eat. It’s weird.” Keaton didn’t look up.
Tim smiled. He could stare at Keaton all day. “Sorry.”
Keaton darted his gaze to Tim as he chewed. Once he’d swallowed, he asked, “So, why did you
really follow me up here?”
Tim wasn’t sure if he were that transparent or Keaton was good at reading people, not that it
took a genius to figure Tim out. “I’d like to know why you left the table.”
Keaton averted his gaze and shrugged. “I have issues. I didn’t want to pretend anymore.”
Tim shifted, leaning against the back of the chair. He had a lot of questions, most of them
centered on Keaton’s past. He didn’t voice them. Yet. Waiting to see if Keaton would talk again
seemed like the right way to go because if he had something to hide, he’d reveal it at some point.
 Sure enough. Keaton kept going after a couple of bites and taking a few breaths. “When I left
foster care, I had nothing but a few bucks and a trash bag full of my stuff. I’ve never had people
who cared until coming here. Everyone before always wanted something. Did you know someone
paid me ten thousand dollars to screw over Ladon?”
That took Tim by surprise. “I take it you didn’t follow through.”
“No, and I didn’t take the money either. Almost did. Took it with me when I left the brothel
with Ladon and Magnus. But I left it in a hotel room because I couldn’t follow through.” Keaton’s
eyes widened, and he sucked in a breath. It was as if he hadn’t meant to say part of that.
Tim stiffened. He set his plate of food on top of the dresser. “What did you just say?”
Keaton straightened his spine and jutted his chin out. “I was a sex worker until I met Ladon
and Magnus.”
Tim’s cat ruled him, making him almost feral.
“What are you doing?” Keaton backed away until he was all the way to the corner. “I’ve sworn
off sex, so it’s not gonna happen, buddy.”
He couldn’t stop snarling, even when he tried. He didn’t want his cat to rule because he was
afraid of scaring Keaton. It seemed Keaton hadn’t grown up around paranormals. Not even his
own kind. So he hadn’t been around shifters either. His cat was an apex predator. Keaton would
definitely fear him, although he shouldn’t.
Shit, he was going to shift. He couldn’t remember the last time he’d done so without
consciously wanting to. Probably puberty when his cat had come out to play for the very first time.
He stood and pulled his shirt off, ripping it at the bottom in his haste. The last thing he needed
was to get stuck in his clothing. His pants came next, but by then he was halfway there. The
change hurt from the inside out because he held back as long as he could.
He grunted when the pain became too much.
Keaton hopped off the bed, moving around his plate of food with a grace he shouldn’t have on a
bouncy mattress.
His grunt of pain turned into a snarl when his shift was complete.
And Keaton backed away. His legs hit the mattress, so he climbed onto it again, folding himself
into the corner. His knees coming to his chest, covering most of his body.
All Tim and his cat wanted to do was soothe Keaton, so he jumped onto the bed with Keaton.
Bouncing a bit when the mattress shifted under his weight.
“Ladon! Help!” Keaton held out his hand, so Tim grew closer, taking it as an invitation. “Oh,
shit. Okay. It’s all right, big giant kitty. I’m not food. Don’t eat me. Help!”
Okay, so the hand gesture wasn’t an invitation, but a way to ward Tim off. Now he knew.
 Chapter Nine

H oly shit! Holy shit!

Oh my gods, it’s lying down. On the bed.
“Nice kitty.”
The cat huffed again, which came out as more of a growl, so maybe it meant that noise instead.
But Keaton thought Tim would have huffed if he’d been annoyed and maybe there was a little of
the man left inside the giant cat.
Keaton hadn’t ever seen a cougar in real life. It wasn’t as though they roamed amongst the
skyscrapers. He’d seen them on television, and they appeared big on the screen, but the one on the
bed seemed bigger. His imagination was nothing compared to it.
The cat faced the door as if it wanted to keep its prey cornered.
When the door burst open, the cat stood, giving the intruder a low growl.
Ladon stood in the doorway, scowling at the room at large, but Keaton in particular. He took in
the scene and seemed to come to some conclusion. “What made him shift?”
“I don’t know.” How the hell was Keaton supposed to know why Tim had turned into a cougar?
The full moon? He had no gods damned idea.
Ladon stepped inside, and when the cat snarled, he held up a hand. Whatever it was about the
gesture worked because the cat laid on the bed again. Or maybe it was the power rolling off Ladon.
Either way, it settled the animal. “Something happened, Keaton.”
Keaton sighed. “We were talking. That’s all.”
“What did you say?”
“I think it was the brothel comment.” Keaton hadn’t said anything else that he could think of to
set Tim off. “I don’t think he wants me anymore.”
“Nah. Makes me crazy to think of Magnus with anyone else. Probably the same with Tim,”
Ladon explained.
Tim growled and stood again. He circled the mattress like a house cat before lying closer to
Keaton. When the purring started, it took Keaton by surprise. He wanted to find out if his fur was
as soft as it looked, but he wasn’t sure of his welcome. It was a cougar, after all.
Ladon chuckled. “He’s cognizant, by the way.”
Keaton met the cat’s gaze. That dark gaze held a bit of wisdom, more than Keaton had at any
rate. And maybe it held kindness, too. “You’re still my mate?”
“He’s still Tim. I promise,” Ladon answered.
Keaton frowned at Ladon. “I was talking to the cat.”
Instead of getting offended, Ladon chuckled again. “Right. Well, I’m out unless you need
something.”
Keaton shook his head as he put his plate on the nightstand. It was by sheer miracle he hadn’t
spilled his dinner all over the comforter. He had to stretch his arm above the cat’s head to do it,
holding his breath the entire time. The cat didn’t move except to follow Keaton with his gaze.
The door clicked shut, leaving Keaton alone with the giant predatory animal.
Keaton wasn’t sure what he expected. For it to rip him apart, maybe. But all it did was lay still
and purr.
“You can understand me?” Keaton whispered.
The cat nodded.
“Guess that means you can, huh?” Keaton scooted closer.
He reached out his hand, hesitating. The cat licked his fingers, his scratchy tongue scraping
across Keaton’s skin. Keaton chuckled because he’d never been licked by a cat before.
Tim must have liked making Keaton laugh because he licked him again.
Keaton ran his hand down Tim’s side. “Soft.” Just as he expected.
Keaton scooted closer because the purring soothed him. He ran his hand over the fur in a
continuous pattern before laying his cheek against it. “I hope this is okay.”
The purring grew louder as if Tim were saying it was.
Keaton laid against Tim’s middle, on his side. He could fall asleep like that if given half the
chance. Apart from the steady rumble under him, they were silent.
It was rather peaceful. Keaton wasn’t sure when being around shifters wouldn’t boggle his
mind, but he’d been in Saint Lakes for a while and it hadn’t happened yet.
“They gave me a few hundred dollars and a temporary place to live after aging out.” Keaton
kept his voice at a whisper. “I wanted to work with animals after high school but couldn’t figure
out how to do it without going to college. Couldn’t afford that so I got a job waiting tables. I didn’t
have a lot of money saved before I wore out my welcome at the temporary housing. Had enough
for an apartment, but I couldn’t afford to keep it on a server’s salary. We had a regular who came
into the diner all the time. He said all sorts of nice things. He became my first client. It was enough
to pay my rent, but not much else. I figured out I could make more stripping, so I did that for a
while. I made even more at the brothel, so I stayed even after I didn’t want to do it anymore.”
One thing always led to another when it came to money. Getting by hadn’t been good enough,
and that had taken him down a road of taking on more clients and ones who paid more. He
wouldn’t have been able to do that job very much longer had he not met Ladon and Magnus. The
clock had been ticking away after every client, and his body grew more tired.
“I’m glad to be done with that life, but I’m not ashamed of it. Nothing you say will make me
think I should be. It paid my bills. I have savings. Enough to live off for a while. Most twenty-
three-year olds can’t say that. I won’t apologize, so don’t ask me to.”
The body underneath him shifted, which creeped Keaton out, but he didn’t move because Tim
was probably naked. He’d gotten that way to shift, so it stood to reason that he still was. His head
still rested against Tim’s hard abdominal muscles.
Keaton held his breath. A part of him expected Tim to upend Keaton’s life. He expected nothing
less than Tim rejecting him before treating him like trash.
Tim just ran his fingers through Keaton’s hair. “I’m a possessive asshole. That’s all.”
Keaton smiled. “That’s why you shifted?”
“Just like the alpha said.”
 “You’re not judging me?”
Tim sighed. “I’m a judgmental asshole. I’ll admit that. But I’ve never judged anyone for making
a living the best way they know how. That includes you, baby.”
It sounded too good to be true, but Keaton was a glass-half-empty sort of guy. “I don’t want to
have sex just to come.”
“All right.” Tim’s agreement came quickly.
“I want to feel a connection. I want it to be about making love.”
“I want that too.”
Keaton sat up, facing Tim. “So you’ll wait? Oh.”
He’d seen a lot of naked bodies in his life, but none made him hard upon gazing at it, until Tim.
Tim’s cock was hard. That was the first thing Keaton noticed. It was also big. Bigger than most,
anyway. He wasn’t a size queen or anything, but damn, it was gorgeous. The second thing he
noticed was the six-pack abs. They were…lickable. Like whipped-cream-along-the-ridges
lickable. The third thing was the tattoo on his arm. There were two names. The first one read
Marshall, and underneath that, Josh. It said a lot about how much he loved his children and wasn’t
that just about the sweetest thing Keaton had ever seen.
Keaton went to touch the tattoo but thought better of it.
“You can touch me,” Tim whispered and smiled. “We won’t do anything else until you’re
ready.”
“Are you sure?”
Tim frowned. “Am I sure of what?”
“That we won’t do anything?”
“Are you asking me if I can restrain myself?”
Keaton shrugged. He was, but the way Tim said it, all scowling and pissed, made Keaton not
want to say so.
“Anyone who tells you they just have to fuck is a piece of shit.” Tim grabbed Keaton’s hand and
brought it to his arm before letting go. “Not that you’ll need to remember that. No one but me will
ever touch you again.”
Keaton rolled his eyes and ran his finger along the first name and then the second. “So I
shouldn’t give into you when you want to have sex, but it’s okay if you’re a possessive dick.”
“If you want to make love, we’ll make love. And I’m your mate. You’re not supposed to want
anyone else.” Tim was kind of sexy when he got all indignant.
“I don’t want anyone but you,” Keaton whispered and kissed Tim’s shoulder. “No one has ever
made me feel as if I belonged the way you do.”
True to his word, Tim kept his hands down to his sides and let Keaton explore. “You’re mine. I
won’t ever deny you.”
Keaton didn’t know he needed to hear Tim say it until the words were between them. Tears
pricked his eyes, making them swim a little. He had so much to say, but the emotion made a lump
form in his throat.
He pressed his forehead to Tim’s shoulder. “I won’t deny you, either.”
Tim wrapped an arm around Keaton and pulled him closer. Given that one of them was naked,
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