Grayson grumbled as he finished getting ready in the clothes the queen had provided them. After spending the entire afternoon loving his mate and exploring his body, the last thing he wanted to do was get dressed and head to dinner with a bunch of strangers. Especially when he felt ridiculous in the clothes he had on.
Instead of the casual outfit he’d expected to be given, he had been handed dress pants and a dark blue silk shirt. There was also some sort of vest included in the mix that he had no intention of deciphering, let alone putting on. He’d never worn anything this fancy and he knew that Adam and Russell would be teasing him to no end.
A knock on the connecting door had him turning toward it. “It’s just us,” Adam yelled.
Sighing, Grayson figured he might as well let them in and get the teasing out of the way. “Come in.”
Opening the door, Adam walked in, followed by Russell. Grayson blinked as he took in their clothing. They were exactly like his own, only the colors of the shirts were different. Adam’s was silver while Russell’s was charcoal.
“Did you guys end up with weird vest things, too?” he couldn’t help but ask.
Russell snorted while Adam snickered. “Yeah, but we’re not wearing them either,” Russell declared, and the three of them burst into laughter.
“Where’s Ethan?” Adam asked when they calmed down.
Focusing down at his shirt to make sure he’d buttoned it correctly, Grayson replied, “He’s just brushing his teeth.” Confident that every button was in the right hole, he took a seat on the couch and started putting on the black dress shoes that had come with the outfit.
“And where’s Beema?” Adam asked.
“We left him by the fireplace,” Grayson mumbled absently while he finished tying his dress shoes, then stood again.
“Oh shit!” Adam exclaimed before running to the fireplace.
Worried, Grayson turned to see what the problem was and his insides turned to ice. Beema was no longer lying by the fireplace. He was on the logs, and he was on fire. Racing across the room with Russell by his side, he stopped next to Adam, but didn’t know what to do. He had nothing to extinguish the fire with, and even then, how was he going to tell his mate that his familiar had somehow ended up in the fire and was now dead?
Ethan’s sweet voice had him spinning around along with the others, trying to somehow block Ethan’s view of the fireplace. “Okay, I’m ready to go. Let’s grab Beema and…what’s wrong?”
Staring at the fear on Ethan’s face, Grayson knew he couldn’t drag it out. He had to tell him. “Beema’s in the fire!”
Grayson winced while his wolf growled at him. He wanted to kick his own ass for just blurting it out the way he had, but he didn’t know how else to say it.
“Oh, you had me scared for a minute there. I thought something horrible had happened.” Ethan shook his head and chuckled. “Come on, Beema, you know Aunt Bella probably ordered some super special fish just for you, so move it.”
Opening his mouth to try to explain it again to his mate, Grayson hesitated when he heard a noise behind him. Turning to look behind him, he yelped and jumped back. Seconds later, both Adam and Russell had released their own yelps and were standing slightly behind him. There, sitting calmly on the stones in front of the fireplace was Beema, and he was still on fire.
“Reel it in, Beema, or we’re going to be late,” Ethan ordered from Grayson’s side. Although, when he had ended up so close was beyond Grayson. The only thing he could focus on was the cat in front of him.
In front of their eyes, the flames seemed to die down and Beema’s eyes glowed brighter and brighter. It was like he was absorbing the flames, but familiars couldn’t do that…could they?
“Um, not to be rude or anything, but what the fuck just happened? Beema was on fire. How is he not dead?” Adam asked quietly.
Ethan walked over to Beema, who leapt into his arms, then Ethan turned around. “Beema is…unique. He’s immune to fire, amongst other things. Aside from you three, no one else knows that.”
“Not even your aunt?” Russell asked.
“No. Not because I don’t trust her, but because I don’t trust the people around her. Hell, my own sister is trying to take over the world using black magic.”
“We won’t say anything, my mate, I swear it to you,” Grayson vowed, and the smile he received filled him with warmth and happiness.
“I know. It’s why I told you rather than tinker with your memories.”
“You can do that?” Adam asked, his voice betraying his astonishment.
“Um, yeah, but I don’t like doing it. Not unless it’s a matter of life or death. But regardless, I wouldn’t do that to any of you.” Ethan shifted from one foot to the other, betraying his nervousness.
“We believe you,” Russell stated, and Ethan turned to Adam, who nodded.
“Thank you,” Ethan whispered, and Beema purred from his spot in Ethan’s arms.
“Shall we?” Grayson offered his arm to Ethan.
Ethan’s smile lit up his whole face as he stepped up to Grayson’s right and placed his hand in the crook of his arm. Beema jumped to the floor, leading the way out of the rooms and toward the dining hall.
****
Walking into the dining hall on Grayson’s arm, a certain sense of pride filled Ethan. This would be his first meal with his mate since they claimed each other, and as much as he would rather be in their room, he didn’t mind being there…not too much at least.
Approaching his aunt where she sat, he noticed the four chairs on her right were empty, which appeared to be where Beema led them. Beema leapt onto the small armrest of the chair directly next to his aunt, and Ethan settled into the seat with Grayson beside him. Russell and Adam claimed the remaining two chairs. His aunt was resplendent in a long ivory dress with a sash that happened to match the sapphire blue shirt he wore.
Subtle, he thought sarcastically.
What? Grayson mentally asked, making Ethan jump a little. He’d forgotten that they could talk mentally. Of course, now that he remembered, he also recalled how they’d accidentally found out during sex when they’d shared their feelings, resulting in the most intense orgasm he’d ever felt.
Ethan? Grayson prompted.
Sorry, I got distracted. I was just thinking that Aunt Bella isn’t really being subtle by making sure my shirt matches her sash. Plus, she made your shirt a darker version of mine.
Ah, I see.
You’re forgetting that she’s queen. She doesn’t need to be subtle, Beema added.
True, Ethan agreed.
Now focus, both of you. And no mental footsie.
What the hell is mental footsie? Grayson asked, his confusion clear.
Knowing Beema as well as I do, I’m guessing he means no projecting sexy thoughts or images to each other during dinner.
Yes, that’s exactly what I mean, so be good!
Before Ethan could respond, his mate tensed up, but not in a good way.
What’s wrong? Ethan tried to keep a calm and blank expression, resisting the urge to turn to Grayson.
One of the Fae women is glaring at me. I think she’s the one I dumped on the floor.
Ethan let his gaze roam and immediately spotted the woman Grayson was referring to. She was beautiful, but then so were almost all of the Fae women.
Intrigued, he asked, Dumped how?
She sat on my lap, and seconds later when the queen walked in, I stood up. I think she landed on her ass. I didn’t really pay attention to be honest, but she looks familiar.
Ethan fought with everything in him not to burst out laughing, but a few snickers slipped past his lips anyway. He heard Grayson sigh beside him and could no longer contain himself, although he did try to keep his laughter quiet. Eventually he got a hold of himself, but by that point, the woman was glaring at them both.
Two hours later, the food and plates had been cleared from the table and everyone was relaxing. Glancing around the room an hour later, Ethan found the gazes directed at him and the shifters were mostly curious ones, with a few blank expressions. His aunt didn’t acknowledge the stares, or even introduce the four new faces who were all seated at the royal table. It amused Ethan that so many wanted to know who they were, yet no one was willing to ask. Although, a few of the women looked like they wanted to approach. As long as they stayed away from Grayson, Ethan had no issues with them.
A sudden thought occurred to him. Grayson? Are Adam and Russell gay?
Ethan winced as his mate started coughing. He hadn’t been paying attention when he asked the question, otherwise he wouldn’t have done it just as Grayson took a drink. While Ethan was glad that Grayson hadn’t spit out the water in shock, he wasn’t happy that it had obviously gone down the wrong way. Patting his mate on the back, he sent a tiny thread of magic to help ease the discomfort.
Sorry.
It’s okay, mate, but can you please explain why you’re asking if my betas are gay? The slight growl toward the end of the sentence made Ethan pause for a split second.
Because the Fae women are obviously interested in the three of you, so I need to know if it’s only you they should realize they need to stay away from, or all three of you.
Grayson coughed again. Ah, I apologize, mate. My wolf doesn’t want you to be thinking about anyone else. I do understand why you were, but my wolf just doesn’t like it.
Doesn’t your wolf believe that I’m yours? Ethan asked curiously.
Suddenly he could feel the wolf through the bond and something seemed to click into place. Ethan wasn’t a wolf and couldn’t give Grayson a claiming bite, so his wolf didn’t feel claimed like Ethan did. Since he didn’t like the idea of any part of his mate being unhappy, he sent acceptance and affection down the bond even as he planned to come up with something to show the wolf that they were his just as he was theirs. He heard the howl in his mind, then received a clear image of the wolf in his head, curling into a ball and going to sleep.
Before he could question Grayson about it, he sensed a presence behind his right shoulder. When he turned, he discovered the woman who had been glaring at them.
Oh this should be fun, Ethan thought to Beema and Grayson.
“Yes?” he asked her, not liking that she was so close, though he did have to wonder why she was there.
Beema came to the rescue. Your aunt is on the dance floor having the first dance in order to break the ice for the others.
Well, if this Fae wannabe thinks that she can dance with my mate, she is seriously deluded.
“The dance floor is open,” she pointed out, her gaze going from Grayson to Ethan. He knew the Fae women didn’t like to ask a man to dance with them. They just expected that they would be asked.
A sudden idea came to Ethan. “You’re right, thank you for pointing that out,” Ethan said as he stood, smiling at her the entire time. He could see the flicker of triumph on her face for a split second before she put a blank mask in place. Ethan almost wished he didn’t have to take his eyes off her for the next bit.
Turning to Grayson, he held out his hand. “Dance with me, mate?” The woman gave a shocked gasp and the anger practically poured off her. Even so, he didn’t take his eyes off his mate.
“I’d be delighted to,” Grayson replied, standing and taking Ethan’s hand in his before dragging him toward the dance floor.
A quick glance showed that the woman was having trouble getting hold of her emotions and, in turn, her features. Her face was tomato red and her hands were curled into fists. It looked like she was doing everything she could to restrain herself before she did something, like start yelling and make a spectacle of herself.
“I guess that’s one way to avoid dancing with the woman,” Grayson murmured.
“Oh no, dear, this isn’t just for her, this is to show everyone that you’re mine and I won’t be sharing you,” Ethan declared, allowing Grayson to pull him into his arms when they got to their destination.
“I have no problem with that, mate, but just so you know, you’re just as much mine as I am yours,” Grayson informed him, his eyes flashing amber as his wolf seemed to agree.
“Perfect.”