Читать книгу Wolf Tales IX - Kate Douglas - Страница 11

Jake raised his head, more than a little surprised by the utter silence, even more by the fact everyone had remained in the room while he told his convoluted story. He was even more surprised that his face was wet, covered in tears. Embarrassed, he scrubbed his cheeks with his palms. Then he turned to Luc.

His friend wept openly, as did Tia.

“Hey man, I…”

Luc shook his head, wiped his face with a handkerchief and grinned. “I’m just thinking how bad I’d feel, knowing all this now, if I’d actually killed you that night at the cabin at Lassen. It’s a good thing my aim was off.”

“That night in Lassen, I probably deserved it.” He looked at Tia when he spoke, but she merely shook her head in denial. He damned well had deserved it, but Luc and Tia appeared to be well past that sordid affair. “I will always owe you, both of you, for your forgiveness. A lot of people wouldn’t have gotten past my stupid stunt.”

Jazzy sniffed and wiped her eyes with the tissue Logan handed to her. She smiled at her mate, frowned at Luc, and then turned to Jake. “What happened at the cabin?”

Jake dipped his head. His skin flushed hot and then cold as shame washed over him. It hurt to admit it, here in front of everyone, but as long as he was spilling his guts…

“I made a complete ass of myself. It was ugly and it never should have happened. We all knew Tia and Luc were in love, but they hadn’t mated yet. We were up at the place in Lassen, the whole Pack Dynamics crew except for Ulrich. We were all screwing around, quite literally…except for Luc.”

Jake glanced at Luc and was surprised to see him smiling. Encouraging him to continue. Amazing. If Luc had tried anything remotely similar with Shannon, he’d be dead now.

He shifted his glance back to Jazzy. Luc was obviously a better man than he’d ever be. “Luc had gone downstairs. He left the room while Tia was with all of us. I imagine he wasn’t real comfortable watching the woman he loved with his packmates.”

Jake shook his head and took a deep breath. It physically hurt to remember something he’d just as soon forget. Without realizing, his hand had gone to his neck, and his fingers covered the pale scar where Luc had torn his throat open.

“It was just Tia with Mik, AJ, Tinker, and me. The sex was really intense…and really good.” He shot a quick glance at Tia and then looked away. “Tia was amazing and everything was going great. At least, until I lost control. I still don’t know exactly what I was thinking, but I shifted and tried to mate with Tia as a wolf—I wanted to get to her before she bonded with Luc, even though I knew she loved him. Some weird part of my brain told me if I got to her first, she’d love me instead.”

Luc actually laughed. “It wasn’t your brain doing the thinking at that point, bro.”

Jake nodded his head, still blown away by his own stupidity. “I imagine you’re right. Anyway, Luc heard the commotion and shifted. He came after me as a wolf. A really pissed off wolf. He almost ripped out my throat. I’m damned lucky he didn’t hit anything vital, because no one would have held it against him if he’d killed me. I was dead wrong. It was attempted rape, no matter how you look at it.”

Tia’s fingers brushed his shoulder. “I forgave you, Jake. So did Luc. That’s all water under the bridge.”

He turned to her and sighed. There was so much love in her eyes. So much understanding. “You’re more generous than I deserve,” he said quietly. “It’ll be a long time before I can forgive myself.”

He tilted his head and gazed up at his mate. Shannon’s cheeks were damp and her green eyes sparkled. “I’m still in shock that Shannon actually loves me, in spite of all she learned when we bonded. I don’t deserve her, either.”

“You’re right.” Shannon flashed her cocky grin, but her eyes were filled with love. “You really don’t deserve Shannon. She’s much too good for you.”

Jake’s tension completely melted away. He looked out across the room and sighed. “Shit. I’m in for it now.”

“Oh!”

Luc spun around and stared up at his wife. “Tia? Sweetie, are you okay?”

She took deep breaths in and out, then once again before all the air escaped from her lungs in a loud whoosh. “That was a good one.” She rubbed her hands over her rounded belly and took a couple more deep breaths. “I’m fine, now.” She waved her hand at the bunch of them. “You may all go back to what you were doing.”

“What were we doing?” Jake grinned at Tia.

“Telling your sordid tale,” Mik said. Then he softly added, “Thanks, bud. That took guts.” He glanced across the room and grinned at Anton. “Now, the one I really want to hear is Anton’s. How’d you and Oliver link up? You two have been together longer than any of us.”

“Sort of like an old married couple,” AJ added. He nudged Mik. “I think they’re even starting to look alike.”

Anton laughed. Then he slowly nodded his head and smiled at Mik and AJ. “You’re right. We have been together a long time. We met when Oliver was a teenager and I was a young man doing sideshow magic in a circus. It’s been…” He glanced toward Oliver. “How long has it been?”

“Twenty-five, twenty-six years. I was about seventeen. I remember it was winter because the circus was over-wintering in Florida. February, maybe?”

Oliver’s clipped British accent seemed more pronounced than usual, his voice deeper. Jake wondered what memories Anton’s simple question might have raised. Oliver took a deep breath, blew it out, and the moment passed. He turned toward Mei and grinned. “It was definitely a long time ago…probably about the time you were learning to walk.”

Mei punched his shoulder.

The teasing went on for a few more minutes. Jake tossed a few barbs at Mik and AJ, teased Oliver and Mei. He’d always felt just a little bit apart when they all gathered, as if he never quite fit, but since spilling his guts he was actually beginning to relax. He’d never been comfortable talking about himself, yet now he realized he felt lighter. As if a burden had been lifted.

A sound caught his attention and Jake turned around. Tia was panting again. Luc sat beside her now with one hand supporting her back, the other resting lightly on her very pregnant belly.

Tia groaned and leaned against Luc. “How long was that?”

Luc checked his watch. “A little over twenty minutes since the last one.”

They both shot disgusted looks at Logan.

“I said it was going to be a long night.” He shrugged, grinning. “Don’t shoot the messenger.” He got up and knelt in front of Tia. Then he placed both palms on her belly and closed his eyes. Everyone in the room went quiet. After a couple of very long minutes, Logan smiled and sat back on his heels.

“You have two very impatient little girls in there. I can sense them. They’re anxious but not frightened, and they are both very healthy.” He shook his head and grinned. “Sure beats a sonogram. I’m amazed by what I can learn from them.”

Luc frowned. “Are you mindtalking? They can’t talk yet, can they?”

Logan shook his head. “No. I’m not trying to link mentally with them, though I can pick up their moods. I’m actually going inside the womb and looking at things on a cellular level. Sort of the way Adam taught me to repair injuries, only I’m just snooping around. Everything’s fine. Just moving at a typical snail’s pace.” He stood up and went back to his spot on the couch. Jazzy crawled into his lap and snuggled against him like a little kid.

Keisha wandered back into the room after changing the baby. She handed Lily to Anton and then sat down beside him on the other couch. He settled the sleeping baby in his arms and gazed around the room.

Everyone switched their focus from Tia to Anton. “I’m assuming Logan knows what he’s talking about,” he said. “I guess I’ve got time to tell you how this all began.” He smiled fondly and dipped his head in respect to Oliver. “How all of us here, together as a single pack, a single family, would not be as we are, if not for Oliver.”

Oliver glanced sharply at Anton. “How can you say that?”

Keisha answered him. “Because he wouldn’t have survived his years in Europe and Asia if you hadn’t made certain he ate and slept and occasionally bathed. Remember, I’ve been inside this man’s head. We all owe you, Oliver.”

Anton raised his eyebrows. “Especially on the bathing part…”

“I’ll second that.” Stefan wandered in with Alex sleeping on his shoulder. The one-year-old was out like a light, but Stefan, just like Anton, seemed unable to put his child down tonight. His gaze met Anton’s, and there was a definite twinkle in his amber eyes. “Oliver told me what it was like, following you around during your years researching the arcane arts.”

“I was afraid of that. I wasn’t very pleasant company during that period, but our story—mine and Oliver’s—started many years earlier. It began when I first met Oliver and had what I can only call my first premonition. I’ve never told Oliver, but I knew from the moment I met him that he would change my life.”