21. Twenty One

Twenty One

Griffin

Rain's mom ended the call soon after, asking us to call her back once we had time to process what she needed.

"Explain." My voice was more terse than it should have been. Rain was also in shock. "Please," I amended in a softer tone.

"Okay," Rain took a breath and steeled himself. "This is all I know. So, I was away searching for a rare flower for a potion Tabitha, my cousin's wife and sort of business partner, wanted for something shop related. I stocked the plants for her and she paid me pretty well. There were a lot of online orders." Rain reached for his soda and took a sip.

"While I was away, the vampires came in and took over. My cousin, August, was the coven leader. He left with Tabitha, their kid, Star, and Toby, Tabitha's brother. Toby had summoned a demon."

"I am so sad I didn't get to meet Zephyrin!" Sunny was like a puppy, I swear.

"Same." Okay, Rain was just as bad.

"A demon? Seriously?"

My mates looked at me.

"Demons aren't all bad. Zeph is apparently very sweet," Rain said. "Anyway, that's not the point. Half my family were leaving. They heard about the vampires coming, sorry Sunny, and knew I'd be scared, so my parents decided to leave, too."

"And you couldn't join them because?" I'd wondered this before. There had never been a chance to ask why Rain had come to Umberwood instead of following his family.

"They didn't want me to. My mom said that Westhaven was treating my dad but they wouldn't take me too. I would have to apply and wait. She urged me to make my own path and once Dad was better, we could see each other. Mom was great at updating me. I did wonder why she didn't ask much. Just thought she was stressed about my dad."

"So, what's wrong with your dad?" I asked. Sunny was soaking up this information. I thought he knew some of this already, just not the finer details.

"His magic has these weird surges. Normally they are treated and then they stop. Unfortunately, it's been made worse because his familiar has gone missing. His cat, Jones. When a familiar and witch are separated for too long it can cause pain and a witch's magic can degrade. Basically my dad's magic is eating itself trying to find Jones."

"Could the cat be dead?" Sunny looked upset over the idea. It was a valid question.

"No." Rain looked certain, though also sad, likely wondering about the fate of the cat. He went and picked up Jinx to cuddle him, needing the reassurance his own familiar was safe. Jinx stayed close, sensing Rain's upset.

"The magic keeping them together would have rebounded on Dad once Jones was released by death. It's incredibly painful to lose a familiar I've heard, but the witch recovers quickly. With Dad, he's gotten steadily worse even with all the healers in Westhaven have done. They put out a search party but there's been no sign of Jones."

"Would turning him really help him? Does he want that?" The thought of inflicting this on another made me sick, but if it was all I could do to save someone Rain really loved, I would do it. They had to be fully aware of what they were getting, though. There was also the risk they wouldn't make it through the turning.

Rain set all too knowing eyes on me. "My mom would have talked his ear off over it. She would have all the pluses and minuses in columns for him. He's fairly alert when he is awake, so he can choose for himself."

"Why a werewolf though?" A vampire I could understand. What I was, it was a curse.

"They're in a supernatural haven, do you really think they don't have a way to make sure he's not suffering? Who knows, they might be able to teach me something to make it easier for you."

Our witch wouldn't ask us to go. He wouldn't need to. Sunny would follow him to the ends of the earth. He would turn Rain's father without question.

"When do we go?"

I shook my head. Sunny was predictable.

"As soon as possible. The shop opens tomorrow so I have to be there for the first few days. We'd have to arrange flights, sort the pack if Griffin wants to come—"

"Sweetheart, I'll follow you anywhere. I might not understand why your dad would want this, being a Were will make him a second class citizen in places. But if you want me to, and if he agrees, I'll do it. That's how much you mean to me already."

"Griff!" Rain launched himself into my arms and sobbed against my neck. I held him to me tightly while Sunny stroked his back.

"It'll be okay. I'll speak to the pack tomorrow. Call Tor and Nora to come back early if necessary. We can make it up to them later."

Sunny's affectionate smile and the kiss on the end of my nose made it worth it.

Despite having a million things to do in order to prepare for our trip to Westhaven, I was not missing the store opening.

Leaving Roscoe in charge after our argument over me going away wasn't the best feeling, but I'd be damned if I missed this big moment for my mate.

Roscoe's warnings that the pack might not be mine when I returned didn't deter me from going. I needed to prove myself as a worthy mate. How could I be that if I left my other mates to face this without me?

If the pack did decide they were better off without me in my absence, then so be it. I would figure something out with the new leader. Unless they were a tyrant, then I would take it back by force. Sunny and Amara would help me.

Call me curious, but I was interested in Westhaven. They weren't all that far from Umberwood. A day's drive, maybe. We opted for a flight, and would be disguising Jinx as a puppy to get him on the plane. Sunny could have used persuasion but it would have been too draining. A glamor was easier.

The sanctuary would have taken me when I was newly cursed. I'd thought about it. Something had stopped me. A feeling like I needed to be out in the world and needed to earn my absolution for the crime of killing my sister. Deep down, I knew it wasn't my fault. Even if I'd been rational, I couldn't have known she wouldn't have made it through the change. I did.

I wanted to know why they'd manipulated Rainbow in such a way. Were they really as benevolent as they seemed? Maybe that was just me being suspicious. I had no idea what future the Seer had been granted a glimpse of.

Rain and Sunny were standing by the door to the store when I arrived, beaming and holding leaflets for their potential customers.

There was quite the crowd already assembled. I saw Macy from the café standing first in a long line of people waiting to get in. Figured. Umberwood hadn't had anything like it in some time.

Waiting to the side, I let Rain do his little speech and introduce his team. Amara even popped her head out of the door at her name.

He cut a ribbon with fancy scissors. I took photos of it for him to see later. I was so damn proud of him for starting his life over and making it something to be proud of. He was an inspiration.

Inside the store, the potential customers milled about asking Sunny, Amara and Rainbow questions when they got the chance. I took more candid photos of them so we could remember this event in years to come. Eventually we would have to move on before they noticed we weren't aging, unless Rain could glamor us, though that sounded exhausting.

In our long lives, we'd have to move over and over, unless we went to a sanctuary town where we could live as supernaturals in the open.

Despite his warnings, the pack was still there waiting for me to lead it when I returned to them after a couple of hours at Rain's store.

Also waiting for me was Tor and Nora.

"Hey, why did you come back so early?" I asked as I invited them inside my house.

"That's new," Tor remarked as he spotted new pieces of furnishings. All colorful, all welcome in my house because they came from my mates.

"Sunny and Rainbow moved in," I offered as an explanation.

"Damn, you move fast!"

"Pay up!" Nora nudged her mate. Tor slipped her a twenty from his pocket.

"Not even going to ask. What has you back so soon?"

"Did you think we were going to stay away when we heard about the other night?" Tor looked offended.

"Uh, yeah?" I shrugged. "I dealt with it."

"Not the point, Griff."

"I had it handled," I said stubbornly. They didn't need to cut their honeymoon short for me.

"Roscoe tells me you're going away." Tor changed the subject before we ended up arguing.

"Rain's dad is sick. We need to go help him."

"So me coming back is perfect. I can pretend to do a hostile takeover and we can plan to take Southridge down when you come back. Buy you some time to have a break with your mates. Get to know them better. " He waggled his eyebrows.

I ignored him, and felt a prickle of unease. Going to war with the other pack was the last thing we wanted.

"They won't stop, Griffin. My dad will never let you lead this pack unless he's dead or banished. Maybe not even then. We need to do something to send a message to them. Tor acting like he won the pack will give us some time in peace."

Nora was right. If Tor could hold onto the pack for me, I could figure out a way to get them the peaceful future they deserved. One where Were shifters were equal to born shifters.

"Honey! We're home! Is dinner ready?" Sunny thought he was hilarious.

Thanks to the meeting with Tor and Nora, I hadn't had time to go to the store or even think about cooking anything I had at home. They'd texted to say they were on their way home, so I'd ordered some Thai food and had enough time to put the finishing touches to the cake I'd started in the morning before the opening.

A big chocolate cake with congratulations in white letters and a rainbow on it for my Rainbow. I'd gone to the local butcher for some blood for Sunny. It felt strange buying veal's blood. Not an experience I wanted to repeat again soon. Maybe he could feed from me. I wasn't sure if my blood was toxic to him. Rain had liked it, feeding Sunny, so I wanted to feel what it was like for myself.

We ate at the table, feeling like a family. They had already crawled under my skin and made a home there. These two different beings were parts of me I didn't know I needed. Sunny and his endless optimism. Rainbow and his forgiving heart.

Rain teared up when I presented the cake. "Griff! This is amazing! Thank you." He rose from his seat to kiss me. "You are so thoughtful." He snapped a pic to send to his mom and sister.

"Sunny, come show me how to heat this up." I led our vampire to the kitchen where I showed him the pot of blood.

He wrapped his arms around me and dipped me in a kiss. "I'd rather eat you if you're up for it," he teased when he let me back up.

"I'm open to you having a nibble if you need blood."

That froze him in place. "Seriously?"

"If I'm not toxic to you or something."

"I'd need to check with Kayden. I think it's just your claws and teeth I have to watch out for. Your come was yummy and not bad for me, so I'd imagine your blood is safe."

"Not a risk I'd like to take if we don't have to."

"Okay, I'll call him then. Can you be fucking me when you let me bite you? That really works for me." Sunny announced before he left the kitchen to make his call.

I nearly choked on my spit. Living with Sunny was never going to be boring.

"Did I hear what I thought I heard?" Rainbow asked, a smear of chocolate frosting at the corner of his mouth. I kissed it away before answering.

"You did. Want the second part of your treat before we join him in the bedroom?"

"Hmm, yes please. I'm going to grow so spoiled and fat with you two."

"Never." I kissed his head. "Come have a bath."

Running the bath for him didn't take long. Sunny opted for a shower when I told him about my idea. We luxuriated in the water for a while, just relaxing after a long few days.

By the time we joined Sunny, he was already stretching himself. "Two cocks and a taste of our wolf? Best day ever. I wish I remembered when my birthday was. I forgot it when I turned."

"Let's just call this your birthday then," Rainbow said, joining Sunny on the bed. He kissed him and stroked over his hard muscles down to his peachy ass. He pushed a finger inside him alongside Sunny's three, making the vampire groan.

I stood at the bottom of the bed watching them together, stroking my rock hard dick. Getting off like this would be easy. They were so perfect.

Rain wasted no more time. He slicked up and sank his cock inside Sunny's stretched hole. "Griff, come stretch him more for you."

Taking the offered lube, I coated a couple of fingers then teased Sunny's rim. Rain was no slouch in the tackle department, with a thick cock. Sunny was going to feel the burn until his healing kicked in.

I worked a finger into his ass, stroking Rain's cock and earning moans from both of them. Ever so slowly, I opened him further, so I could eventually slide in too.

"Come sit on my cock, sweetheart. Make it easier for you to get a bite."

Sunny pushed off Rain's length, climbed onto my lap, and lowered himself on me. His hands clutched my shoulders while Rain pushed back inside from behind him.

Feeling Rain's cock sliding alongside mine while we were both deep inside Sunny was something I would never forget.

"Alright, sweetheart?" I ran my hands up and down his body soothingly.

"So full. Damn!" His eyes rolled back in his head as he began to move.

In this position, taking both of us, Sunny had all the control. I tried to stay still and let him fuck himself into an orgasm.

Being squeezed so tightly and feeling the heat of Rain and the strange coolness of Sunny in my arms, was incredible. Nothing compared to this.

Until Sunny licked my neck and bit down.

There was no way for me to express the euphoria that exploded through me when his fangs pierced my neck. I came so hard I blacked out for a moment, only to float into oblivion as Sunny sucked my blood.

My cock slipped free of his body as he licked the wound clean.

"I want that now," Rain muttered. "Wow, that was hot."

Sunny lifted off him and lay down. "Come here and fuck me then."

My cock tried to get hard again as Rain re-entered Sunny. They moved together, arms around each other. Rather than feeling left out of this intimate moment between them, I felt happy for them both. Happy that Rain trusted Sunny to bite his neck and that we could both feed Sunny.

"Close," Rain gasped.

Sunny struck, his fangs sinking deep into Rain's neck. He barely took any blood before he sealed the wound then kissed it.

Rain slumped over our vampire. He gave a contented sigh before moving aside.

Our vampire was still hard.

I leaned down to take him in my mouth. My fingers slipped inside him easily. I fucked him with my fingers, twisting and hitting his prostate. The head of his cock leaked precome onto my tongue as I traced around the head with my lips.

"Feel me fucking our come into you?" I whispered against his glans.

"Oh fuck!"

Taking him deeper, I added another finger.

He came with a shout onto my waiting tongue.

"If I wasn't already dead, that might have killed me."