Howl Down the Moon, page 18
“There is no reason that all three of us have to leave a nice, warm bed at four in the morning,” Slade protested again.
Giggling, Luka nuzzled Rand’s hand. “I still don’t hear anything.”
“Me either.”
Huffing, Slade threw his hands up and marched out the door, muttering beneath his breath about stubborn wolves who didn’t have enough sense to sleep in when they had the chance.
Rand and Luka collapsed against each other, giggling because they could still hear Slade’s mumbling from all the way up the hall, but there was humor there that softened Slade’s rumbling voice.
“Let me guess,” Rand whispered after their laughter had subsided. “He’s good about doing for others and shit about letting others do for him?”
Nodding, Luka couldn’t deny that he’d noticed the same thing.
“I am so sorry.”
Rand’s apology left Luka confused once more, but when he opened his mouth to ask why, Rand placed a finger over his lips, silencing him.
“I’m apologizing because I’m the same way,” Rand explained. “And I can only imagine the struggle you’ll have getting either of us to bend on that.”
“I’m going to have to get really creative and ask for plenty of advice,” Luka replied, smirking up at him. “It’s a good thing Slade gave me a cell phone and put a whole bunch of numbers in it. I’m sure someone can give me some good tips on dealing with stubborn, headstrong mates.”
Taking his cue from Slade, Luka chose that instant to turn and leave while Rand stood there with his mouth half hanging open, trying to figure out how to respond to him. He found Slade in the living room, trying to separate clothing from kitchen and medical supplies.
“Where’d you get all of that?” Rand asked when he joined them, eyes roving over the boxes of supplies Slade was stacking against the wall.
“I asked,” Slade replied.
“Who?”
“Doc Washington and that new doc over at the clinic. I called right after you told us you’d come. Figured you’d have a hard time seeing patients without basic supplies.”
“And they just gave it to you?”
“Why wouldn’t they?”
“Because they demoted me and pretty much made it clear they didn’t want me around unless I had an appointment scheduled.”
Luka gathered up the clothes Slade bought him while he listened to their conversation and how surprised Rand seemed over those supplies.
“And when I told them you’d agreed to come with us and see patients while you were here, they thought it was a wonderful idea,” Slade explained. “It’s next to impossible for a doctor to make it to the borderlands in winter or mud season, and any time there’s an emergency, we’re on our own. Your presence changes all of that.”
“I would have thought they’d look for someone better suited for the position, at least in the eyes of the council.”
Luka picked up on the bitterness in his tone and the shift in his emotions and hoped it wouldn’t spiral into an argument between the two.
“The council knows we’re talking about a clinic for out here,” Slade said. “They’ve already agreed to fund the building and stock it the same as the one in town. Don’t look so shocked. You made a mistake; you owned it; they never intended to punish you for it forever. Besides, they’d have needed to hire the new doc anyway.”
“And why is that?”
“Because eventually we would have met, and I would have asked you to move in with me after we’d learned we were mates, which means they’d have needed someone in town, and knowing you, you wouldn’t have left until they had one, which might have taken a while, and I’m not known for being patient.”
“No shit,” Rand and Luka muttered simultaneously, earning a smile from Slade.
“This is a good thing,” Slade sought to assure him. “By spring, they figure you’ll have a full proposal for everything you’ll need, and they can get started on the build.”
“And you were going to tell me this when?”
“Now.”
Luka watched as Rand pinched the bridge of his nose, shook his head, and gazed up at Slade.
“You do know I’m used to running my own life, right?” Rand asked.
“I know, but all of this jumped off kinda quick,” Slade replied. “I didn’t think you’d object to having the supplies on hand.”
“The point is to actually give me the chance to object, even if you don’t think I will.”
“I’ll try to remember that.”
Rand rubbed his temples, looking like he wanted to say more before huffing, picking up a couple of his suitcases, and carrying them down the hall. Luka followed with his clothes before setting them on the bed so he could fold things and put them in the drawers.
“Oh, soft,” Luka murmured, rubbing a pair of sleep pants against his cheek and sighing contently.
“Glad you approve,” Rand whispered.
Grinning, Luka looked over at him. “Slade said you picked everything out for me. Thank you.”
“Not a problem. Did he tell you why?”
Luka nodded, remembering that conversation and the stunned confusion that had still been on his mate’s face when he’d come through the door. Slade had held Luka in his arms as he’d relayed what he’d learned to his folks, none of their eyes dry by the time he finished relaying what Dimitri had told him.
“I’m glad you were there to stop him from hurting Dimitri,” Luka said softly. “He could have gotten in a lot of trouble.”
“Unfortunately, he wasn’t thinking about that at the time.”
They lapsed into an easy silence while they folded their clothes and put them away. Some of Luka’s old things were already growing tight, so he made a pile of them on the bed so they could be donated the next time they were in the village. At one point, he turned just in time to see Rand putting a framed photo on top of the dresser, his dads with a stunning brown-haired woman standing between them.
“Is that your mom?” he asked.
“Yup.”
“She’s beautiful. Will she come out to visit us in the spring?”
Rand’s face lit up as he nodded. “She’d have been here now, but she’s working with a client on a time-sensitive request. She’s an architect, so she spends a great deal of time traveling between packs, designing homes and helping to line up the building crews to construct them.”
“Does Slade know?”
“Does Slade know what?” Slade asked as he stepped into the room with some of the laundry they’d failed to put away before they’d left for town.
“That Rand’s mom is an architect,” Luka relayed. “Maybe she can help with the remodel you’ve been talking about and the clinic since it will need to run on solar.”
“Remodel?” Rand said. “This place is amazing. Why would you want to change anything?”
“To give Luka a woodshop and you an office so you can continue your research,” Slade replied. “Even if you don’t decide to live here full time, I’d want you both to have the space you need for when you are here.”
“I didn’t tell you about my research.”
“I know.”
“Then how’d you find out?”
“Wanted to know more about you. Figured Doc Washington could provide a few insights, which he did.”
“Why didn’t you just ask me directly?”
“Was still working shit out.”
“I see,” Rand said, crossing the room to stand directly in front of Slade.
Luka noticed that even Rand had to look up a little to meet Slade’s gaze, though not near as much as he did.
“What else did Doc decide to tell you?”
“That you’re a workaholic and would probably require an alarm and reminders to get you to eat and come to bed at a decent time,” Slade replied. “He also said you were a perfectionist, tended to get obsessed with a task, and had a tendency to run yourself ragged without even realizing it.”
“Can we make a deal?” Rand asked.
“Depends on what it is.”
“In the future, I’d appreciate it if you’d come to me if you want to know something about me,” Rand said. “That goes for you too, Luka. If we’re going to make this work, we’re going to have to work on our communication skills. Just because we can speak mind to mind doesn’t mean any of us is a mind reader.”
“Um, isn’t that exactly what it means?” Luka said, grinning widely because, for once, he actually knew the difference and could make a joke about it instead of feeling left out.
Rand smacked a palm to his forehead and dragged it over his face like he was trying to cover the fact that he was laughing right alongside him and Slade.
“I’ll agree on one condition,” Slade said, once the giggling and long-suffering sighs had subsided.
“What’s that?”
“You don’t answer my questions with more questions. That shit gets old after a while and doesn’t get us anywhere, to boot.”
“Yeah, that wasn’t one of my finer moments,” Rand replied. “I got nervous when I saw you there alone. Figured you’d come to tell me it wasn’t working for me to spend time with Luka and to stay away from both of you. I usually pride myself on having far better control of my emotions, but around you two, decorum and reason seem to fly out the window, and I feel like a frazzled mess.”
Luka watched Slade cock his head to the side and slowly appraise Rand.
“What are you doing?” Rand grumbled, squirming under the scrutiny.
“Trying to picture you a frazzled mess after he ruffled you up a little,” Luka replied, grinning when Slade’s mouth dropped open in surprise. “What? I was doing it too.”
“Something tells me you can be a mischievous little imp when you want to be,” Rand teased.
“Oh, believe me, he can be. Don’t let that innocent look fool you. He’s a quick study, and once he gets it in his head to create a bit of devilment, look out.”
“I’ll remember that.”
“Be sure you do, or you’ll get to listen to me say ‘I told you so’ while I’m dodging whatever the hell he has up his sleeve for me.”
Pouting, Luka glared from one to the other. “I am not that bad.”
“I never said anything about being bad—you’re playful and expressive, and there’s nothing wrong with that,” Slade acknowledged. “So put away the puppy-dog eyes. We still have work to do. Whenever you look at me that way, it becomes the only thing I can think about.”
“Ah, so I’ll have to beware of mischief and puppy-dog eyes—good to know—though I’ve gotten plenty of practice resisting those from my patients. You’d be surprised at how many wolves will give me that look to get out of giving blood or doing physical therapy.”
“I tend to be a sucker for them,” Slade admitted. “Which is why I’m not going to look at him again until he stops that.”
“How will you know when I’ve stopped if you’re not looking at me?” Luka couldn’t resist asking.
“Did I mention that he’s a complete shit too?”
“You did now.”
“Has he stopped?”
Rand glanced over at him, and Luka made sure to fix him with the most pathetic look he could manage, which wasn’t much of one when he was trying so hard not to laugh.
“Nope.”
“Dammit, Luka,” Slade grumbled. “Don’t make me come over there and tickle you.”
“Something tells me that’s exactly what he’s after.”
“Really?” Slade said, smirking.
Luka loved the look his mate gave him right before he charged. Of course, Luka scrambled across the bed, trying to make Slade chase him, only to find the opposite side blocked by Rand. Reversing got him tackled, and Slade wasted no time tickling his sides, with Rand jumping in to help him. Shrieking, squirming, Luka laughed so hard his sides ached by the time they were done and flopped down on either side of him. Both must have had the same thing in mind because they bumped hands when they went to drape an arm over Luka, who melted into their embrace.
“I suppose putting things away can wait,” Rand murmured.
“Yeah, we’ve got all the time in the world for that,” Slade replied, nipping the side of Luka’s throat and making him shiver.
“Is he always so responsive?” Rand asked when lightly nipping Luka’s shoulder made him squirm.
“Yup.”
“Damn,” Rand sighed , exhaling against Luka’s skin, making him shiver and his breath hitch. “It’s no wonder he likes soft things if he reacts like this to every touch.”
“Oh yeah, he can get downright squirmy when you hit the right spot,” Slade teased, finding that spot where Luka’s neck and shoulder met and laving over it with his tongue and just the slightest graze of teeth.
Whining, Luka knew what was coming, and Slade didn’t disappoint when he bit just hard enough to almost break the skin. Luka wriggled, each movement producing more pressure and pull on that spot Slade had latched on to. The pulses that surged from his neck to his head were awesome, but the most amazing sensation was when Slade let go and Luka was left with a loose, floaty feeling. He could hear Rand chuckling, but it sounded a bit muffled and dim.
“It’s no wonder he gets squirmy. Hitting a pressure point that hard releases a flood of endorphins,” Rand said.
“Well, then, come on, Doc, and get with the flooding,” Slade urged, turning Luka’s head toward him to expose the other side of his neck. Maybe they still had a lot to work out before their human selves were comfortable living together, but their wolves were running on primal instinct, and what they wanted was to touch, be playful, and mingle their scents. When Rand bit, Luka was certain he felt those same pulsing waves surge down his spine, the last clear thought he had before giving himself over to them completely.
Chapter Eighteen
“YOU BE SAFE out there,” Rand told Slade as he prepared to head out. “I’d hate to end up patching you up in my first twenty-four hours here.”
“Is that your way of saying you don’t want to play doctor with me?” Slade shot back, a devilish smirk on his face.
And Slade called Luka mischievous! In the past twelve hours, he’d had more innuendos thrown his way than he could count. He’d also learned that Luka enjoyed being handled a bit rough and turned to putty when Slade slipped into a growling command voice. If he was being honest with himself, Rand had to admit to shivering too and nearly succumbing to the desire to do whatever Slade said. It bugged him a little, the independent wolf that he was, hating the thought that someone else could do so little to make him bend to his will. Curious, Rand wondered what the man would do if someone flipped the script on him.
“That’s my way of saying I’d much rather play doctor than actually have to be the doctor because you’re bleeding all over the place.”
“Fair enough.”
Rand watched Luka slide into Slade’s arms with a practiced ease, hugging and giggling when Slade picked him up and kissed him thoroughly. Luka’s cheeks were flushed, and his eyes were sparkling by the time Slade put him down again before turning a smoldering gaze his way.
“You wanna come over here and say goodbye too?” Slade growled, the look so heated Rand was thrown for a loop. By the time he got his head out of his ass and managed to find words, Slade had mumbled or not beneath his breath and turned away.
Well, he’d just see about that, Rand thought as he stalked across the room after him. “Slade!”
When the other wolf turned, Rand was surprised to see a flash of hurt and disappointment in his eyes. “What?”
In this case, words were useless, so Rand did the first thing that came to mind. Shoving Slade against the wall and kissing him breathless, and holy shit, the man could kiss. Slade’s tongue invaded his mouth, his arms wrapped around Rand, tugging him flush against him, a low moan escaping him. Rand buried his fingers in Slade’s hair, their kiss growing rough and wild, full of promise of things to come. Rand was breathless when they broke apart, and the look in Slade’s eyes had definitely shifted to something hot and damn near electric.
“Whoa,” Luka whispered.
When Rand turned to look at him, he saw Luka watching them with a hungry, wide-eyed look. Deciding he wanted a taste of Luka too, he crowded into Luka’s space, pressed him back against the wall, and caged him in, pinning him there so he could kiss him.
Where Slade’s kisses were dominant and possessive, Luka’s were sweet, gentle, and a little hesitant at first, until he melted against Rand and moaned; then they morphed into something wanton, with a hint of aggression Rand hadn’t expected from him.
“Fuckkkk,” Slade breathed.
Rand chuckled against Luka’s lips before releasing him slowly, both looking over at Slade as the buzz of an approaching snowmobile drew a second curse from Slade. There was nothing heated about that one—more like exasperated.
“We will be revisiting this moment at a later time,” Slade growled, snatching the keys for his snowmobile off the hook beside the door and stomping out, muttering about bad timing.
Giggling, Luka turned and headed for the kitchen to clean up, Rand right behind him.
“He’s lucky it’s cold outside. It’ll cool him off right quick,” Luka said as he turned the water on in the sink so they could do the dishes.
“And what’s going to cool us off?” Rand asked, shocking himself when the words slipped out. He had no clue where he was trying to go with this, but his wolf was feeling playful and bold, and an afternoon in the house with Luka had some real potential, especially if it left them all riled up by the time Slade got home.
“There are some ice cubes in the freezer,” Luka offered, his face pinking up a little. “I could, um, try something I saw on a video if you think it’ll help.”
Oh, damn. Okay, what kind of video could Luka possibly be talking about? Rand thought, feeling far less reasonable than he was curious, which seemed to be happening a lot where Luka was concerned. Rand decided to go with the unfamiliar urges and see where it took them.
“Do you think it’ll help?” Rand asked Luka even as he headed over to the refrigerator to retrieve a tray.
