Chapter Five

Jonas could see Kendrick becoming more nervous the closer they got to the town where his brother and his father lived. There was nothing he could do to help, unfortunately, so he did his best to distract his mate, talking about everything and anything he could think of.

Most of the things he told Kendrick were stories about the time he’d spent living with Caroline and Alexis. He wasn’t sure Kendrick was listening, but that was okay. He didn’t need his mate to listen, just to breathe and know they’d make it through this.

Eventually they entered a small town. Jonas stared out the window, wondering if this was the place where Kendrick had grown up. He tried to imagine a younger Kendrick walking down the sidewalk or maybe sitting at the diner, eating a burger. It was hard, mostly because he couldn’t imagine Kendrick as a kid.

“Do you think your father has pictures of you when you were a child?” he asked.

Kendrick frowned. “Why would you want to know that?”

“Because I’d like to see them if he does.”

“I don’t think so. My mother might have some, but I doubt it. I certainly don’t have anything.”

That was sad. “I’m sorry.”

“You have nothing to be sorry about.”

“Maybe not, but I know how it feels. I know where I come from, but sometimes, it’s almost like I just popped up from out of nowhere. I have nothing to remind me of my family and the time we spent together. There are only the memories, but after so many years, it’s sometimes hard to remember.”

Kendrick reached for Jonas. Jonas took his hand and linked their fingers together, squeezing.

“You don’t have anything left from your family?” Kendrick asked in a soft voice.

“Unfortunately, no. My village was destroyed. Me and a few other kids managed to escape, but we couldn’t exactly go back to get our stuff. Even if we’d been able to, the Kudlaks set the village on fire.”

“I’m sorry.”

“You have nothing to be sorry about,” Jonas said, giving Kendrick his words back.

Thankfully, it made Kendrick smile. “Fine. Let’s agree we won’t apologize for things we had nothing to do with.”

“I’m on board with that.”

Kendrick had to take his hand away to continue driving safely. Jonas missed it. He distracted himself by looking out the window again and noticed that they were in a residential area now. If he had to guess, they were getting closer. “Are we almost there?”

“Another few minutes, and we’ll be at the house. Can you call Ryan?”

Jonas picked up Kendrick’s phone and unlocked it by raising it close to Kendrick’s face. He quickly found Ryan’s number and called, putting him on speaker.

“Where are you?” Ryan asked when he answered. His tone sounded urgent.

Kendrick noticed it immediately, of course. “Is everything all right? What’s happening at the house?”

“He’s kicking me out. I came home from work and told him I couldn’t afford rent, and he told me to pack my stuff.”

“That’s what you were planning on doing anyway.”

“Yeah, but I thought he was going to change his mind. I thought that maybe he was trying to teach me a lesson or that he’d put the money away in an account that he could give me once I decided what I wanted to do with my life. I read stories like that online.”

It broke Jonas’s heart to hear that. Even after everything that had happened, Ryan had believed his father loved him. He didn’t see the monster Kendrick had told Jonas about, and while part of Jonas was glad for that because it meant that Ryan had been at peace until now, another part of him was angry.

How dare someone do something like this? Ryan might be eighteen, but that didn’t mean he was self-sufficient. It certainly didn’t mean that he could survive on his own. He had a job, and he was doing his best, but these days, it wasn’t enough. What if he hadn’t had Kendrick’s number? What if he didn’t have a brother to rely on? What would have happened to him then?

It was easy to imagine, and Jonas hated every second of it.

He disliked everything he knew about the three parents involved. Kendrick had said he hadn’t seen his mother in more than ten years, and he had no idea where she was or if anything had happened to her. His and Ryan’s father was an asshole who had forced one of his sons to leave and kicked the other out. Jonas didn’t know anything about Ryan’s mother, but the fact that she wasn’t involved at all told him everything he needed to know. Kendrick and Ryan had been abandoned by the people who were supposed to care about them.

After losing everyone he’d loved, Jonas couldn’t imagine having this kind of relationship with his family. He wouldn’t hesitate to offer a home and any kind of help they could ever need if they were still alive. His family would have done the same, and now that they were gone and Jonas had more people, he knew the same could be said for his friends. Hell, he considered Caroline and Alexis more like siblings than friends. They’d been through too much together for their relationship to be anything else.

All in all, he’d been lucky because he’d found good people. Kendrick had, too. He wasn’t close to his parents, but he had a found family, and now, he also had Ryan.

The one who worried Jonas the most here was Ryan. So far, he hadn’t told Kendrick and Jonas about anyone but his parents, and it sounded like he didn’t have a lot of people in his life, if any at all. He had Kendrick and Jonas now, and he’d make new friends within the clan, but it felt wrong not to have anything to leave behind.

“I’m sorry that didn’t happen,” Kendrick said gently. “But we’re almost there, so you don’t have to worry. You won’t be on the streets for long.”

Ryan sucked in a trembling breath. “Yeah, I know. I didn’t tell him you were coming to pick me up. I didn’t tell him anything, actually. I think he believes I’m going to sleep on the streets tonight and come back tomorrow and beg for him to take me back.”

“He’s in for a rude awakening, then. I don’t want you to worry about anything, Ryan. Jonas and I are almost there, and we’ll take care of everything. Just keep your head down and wait.”

“I’m not going anywhere.” Ryan snorted. “I don’t have anywhere to go, even if I didn’t want to see you.”

“You hurt me,” Jonas declared.

“Fine. I do want to see you, Jonas. Not sure about Kendrick yet.”

Kendrick laughed, and even though he was still tense, he’d lightened up a bit. It would take more than that for him to fully relax, but that was okay. They would have time once they went home.

“I think you’re my favorite brother,” Jonas said.

“How many do you have?”

Jonas thought about the siblings he’d lost in the Kudlak attack and about Alexis and Caroline. “Well, I have two siblings, Alexis and Caroline. We’re not actually related, but we’re family anyway.”

“Family doesn’t have to be blood-related,” Ryan confirmed.

“Exactly. I had more siblings before, but I lost them.”

“I’m sorry.”

“There we are,” Kendrick murmured.

It looked like Jonas had successfully distracted Ryan long enough that he and Kendrick had reached the house. “You hear that?” he asked Ryan. “We’re here.”

Kendrick parked the car in front of a white house with green windows. Someone was sitting on the porch, and Jonas watched as Ryan unfolded his long body and waved at them. He was still holding his phone, but he quickly hung up and stuffed it into his jeans pocket.

He was tall, with floppy brown hair and a wide smile. He rushed forward as soon as the car stopped, and when he got closer, Jonas noticed the freckles dotted on his nose and his warm brown eyes. He looked a bit like Kendrick, but he was more boyish, which made sense since he was ten years younger.

Jonas turned to Kendrick. “Ready?”

Kendrick smiled at him. “I’ve never been more ready.”

* * * *

There were almost no signs of the boy Kendrick remembered in his brother. He recognized the freckles on Ryan’s nose and the soft brown hair, but that was pretty much it.

Ryan’s smile was the same, though.

Even though they were ten years apart, the two of them had been close for Ryan’s entire childhood. Kendrick had been over the moon when he’d been told he’d have a baby brother, and he’d taken his role as a big brother seriously. He’d always tried to help his stepmother with Ryan, and she’d indulged him. He probably had a better relationship with her than he did with his father, although he was concerned because Ryan hadn’t mentioned her once.

Kendrick got out of the car in time for Ryan to slam against him. He was surprised to realize that his brother was a few inches taller, but Ryan was thin, whereas Kendrick was broad and muscled. Kendrick had been training for the past ten years and fighting almost as long while Ryan was still growing.

“I can’t believe you’re here,” Ryan said.

“You better believe it because I’m not leaving without you.”

Ryan leaned back and gave Kendrick a blinding smile. “That’s good, because I don’t want you to leave without me, either.”

“I won’t.” Kendrick squeezed his brother one last time before letting go. He kept a hand on his brother’s arm as he turned toward Jonas, who’d left the car and was watching them with a soft smile. “This is Jonas, my mate.”

Kendrick knew he sounded smug and proud when he said those words, but he couldn’t help it. He was smug and proud that Jonas was his mate. It was hard to believe that someone as normal as he was had a mate like Jonas, who was all sunshine and happiness.

Ryan tripped on his way to Jonas, but Jonas managed to catch him. Ryan blinked at him as if he didn’t understand how he could hold his weight, so Kendrick explained, “I don’t know if I told you about Jonas, but he’s a Krsnik.”

“What’s that?” Ryan asked, sounding interested.

“We’re a complicated species,” Jonas said. “We’re not shifters, and we’re not vampires. We’re a mix of the two, which means that I have these.” Jonas opened his mouth to show his fangs before snapping it shut again. “And that I can turn into a wolf.”

Ryan’s eyes went wide. Kendrick was relieved to see he didn’t look afraid, just in awe. He could easily understand that, since he was in awe of Jonas, too.

“That sounds so cool,” Ryan said. He appeared mesmerized. “So you drink blood?”

“And I eat food. Like I said, I’m a mix.”

“Are you sure you’re Kendrick’s mate? Because Kendrick is pretty boring.”

Kendrick squawked. “I’m not boring.”

“I disagree. You’re very boring, so it’s a good thing you managed to bag a mate like Jonas.”

“I’m not gonna deny that. I was very lucky, and I’m aware of it. You just don’t have to insult me as you compliment him,” Kendrick teased.

Ryan’s eyes sparkled. Kendrick was relieved to see that even though they’d been apart for ten years, their relationship was similar to what it had been when they were younger. Ryan was an adult now, so it would be different, but not that different. Kendrick recognized his brother, which was all he cared about.

He looked at the house. He’d lived here for about ten years, but he didn’t have a lot of good memories of that time. Only his time with Ryan had been good, and he doubted he would have stayed until he’d turned eighteen if it hadn’t been for his brother. Ryan had been everything to Kendrick when he was eighteen, and Kendrick had never stopped thinking about him.

He’d never reached out as Ryan grew up because he’d known his father wouldn’t allow it. He suspected their father would have been pissed if he’d found out, and the thought was enough to make him smile.

“Are they here?” he asked.

Ryan’s smile vanished. “Yeah, but you don’t have to go inside. It doesn’t matter.”

“Of course it matters. What they’re doing to you isn’t right.”

“Probably not, but I’m fine with it.”

“You shouldn’t be, but I get it. You don’t want trouble, and the sooner you’re away from them, the better you’ll feel.”

“Exactly.”

“It doesn’t mean you should leave without saying anything.” Kendrick looked his brother in the eyes. “I’m not surprised our father did this, but what about your mother? She wasn’t a bad person when I left.”

Ryan sighed and glanced at the house. “She still isn’t. She just doesn’t have the guts to stand up to him. Things haven’t been good, Kendrick.”

“Did my leaving get you and your mother in trouble?”

“Oh, no. I don’t think he cared that you left. In fact, I’m pretty sure he was relieved you weren’t around anymore. He used to say it was one less mouth to feed.”

Kendrick snorted. “Imagine that. You’re supposed to feed your kids.”

Jonas snorted softly.

Kendrick was glad to have his support, and he knew that whatever he decided to do next, Jonas would stand by his side.

This was all he’d ever wanted—a family, people to trust, who would be there for him when he needed them. He’d never found it with his family, but he’d found it with the hunters first and with Jonas now. Hopefully, he’d have it with Ryan, too.

Their parents didn’t matter, and if Kendrick had been younger, he wouldn’t have done this, but he had something to say to his father. He couldn’t judge Ryan’s mother, even though he disliked what she was doing—or rather, not doing. He understood being intimidated and scared, but Ryan was her son. He was more important than her husband. He was supposed to be more important than anyone else in the world to her.

He turned toward the house. Ryan grabbed his shoulder, but Kendrick ignored it and strode forward. He wasn’t surprised when the door swung open before he could reach the porch. He was surprised to see how much older his father looked, but he supposed it made sense. His father was human. Kendrick had never understood why Ryan’s mother had chosen him of all people when she was a tiger shifter who would live so much longer and who could have so much better, but it wasn’t his business. It never had been. She’d made her choice, just like Kendrick had when he left, just like Ryan was now.

“I never thought I’d see you again,” Kendrick’s father said.

Kendrick didn’t climb the porch steps. He stopped in front of them and glared at his father. “You wouldn’t have if it wasn’t for Ryan. You know, I thought things would be different for him. I thought you actually loved him.”

Kendrick’s father snorted. “I do. I’m teaching him what it means to be an adult.”

“By kicking them out of the house he grew up in?”

“By making him act like an adult. Everyone pays rent.”

“I don’t. My house was gifted to me, and I’ll always be grateful for that. I’ll always be grateful that I found people who actually cared about me after I left this house. If I’d known how bad things would be for Ryan, I would’ve stuck around, but I don’t feel sorry that I left you behind. You don’t have a heart. You shouldn’t have had children.”

“Who do you think you are, coming here all highly mighty and judging me? Do you know how much it costs to raise children?”

“Not yet, but I will eventually. It doesn’t matter, though. You chose to have kids, which means you should raise them with love. That’s more important than any amount of money, but I get why you don’t understand that. You don’t have a heart.”

Something moved behind Kendrick’s father. Kendrick squinted, realized it was Ryan’s mother, and decided he might as well speak to both of them.

“I don’t know if Ryan will ever be comfortable enough to reach out to you again after today. It’s his choice, and he’s an adult, so I won’t try to stop him if he wants to call or even visit. I’m never coming back, though. The only reason I did is Ryan, and he’s coming with me. I’ll give him a real family and people who will care about him. You should never have become a father. I hope you’re glad that from now on, you won’t be one anymore.”

That was all Kendrick needed to say. He wasn’t lying when he said he was never coming back. He didn’t want to, and there was nothing here for him.

His life and his heart were in the village, with Jonas and Boyd and Chris and everyone else. Now, Ryan would be part of that life.

Kendrick didn’t need anything or anyone else.

* * * *

When Ryan tried to follow Kendrick to the porch, Jonas put a hand on his shoulder and kept him where he was. Ryan turned a panicked look toward him, and Jonas shook his head, wanting to reassure him. “He’ll be fine.”

“You don’t understand. My father isn’t a good person.”

“Oh, I do understand that. I don’t know him personally, but I’ve heard enough about him and what he did to be sure he’s never been a good person.”

“Kendrick is going to get in trouble.”

The way Ryan cared was sweet, especially considering the fact that he and Kendrick hadn’t seen each other in ten years. It looked like things between them had gotten back to what they’d been before as soon as the brothers had seen each other, and Jonas was happy for them.

“With whom?” he asked. “If you mean he’s going to get in trouble with your father, I don’t think he cares. He doesn’t plan to ever see your father again, and he wants to tell him what he thinks of him before leaving. If you’re worried that your father will attack him or something, I wouldn’t. Not only is Kendrick a trained hunter who’s killed many Kudlaks, but I’m here. I might not be a hunter or a fighter, but I’m a Krsnik, and I won’t allow anyone to touch my mate.”

Ryan swallowed. “I wasn’t sure what to think of you initially, but now, I think you’re dangerous.”

Jonas grinned at him. “Oh, I am. Krsnik are born to kill Kudlaks. It’s our destiny, and we’ve evolved to be the perfect hunters. I’m an anomaly because I never wanted to hurt anyone, not even after Kudlaks destroyed my clan, but it doesn’t mean I wouldn’t win in a fight, especially against a human.”

“My mother is a tiger shifter,” Ryan murmured.

Jonas glanced at Kendrick. He was still facing his father, but Jonas had noticed someone standing inside the house behind the man. It was probably Ryan’s mother, but she wasn’t making any moves to come outside, not even to say goodbye to her son. “If she shifts and attacks, we’ll deal with it, but it doesn’t look like she will. I don’t think the two of you are close, are you?”

Ryan sniffed and shrugged, causing Jonas’s hand to fall. “I guess we were close when I was a kid, but after Kendrick left, everything changed. I changed. I was angry, and I took it out on her because I couldn’t take it out on my father. I guess after a while, she decided I wasn’t worth the trouble. As soon I was old enough to take care of myself, she took a step back.”

“She never tried to stop your father from being an asshole to you?”

“Not really. I don’t blame her since I was an asshole to her, and I don’t think she would attack us, but you never know.”

“Oh, I blame her. It doesn’t matter what you said to her. You’re still her son, and she should have stood up for you. I’m sorry she didn’t, but I want you to know that you’re not alone anymore.”

Ryan blinked and stared down at his feet. “You’d do that for me?”

“You’re my mate’s little brother.” Jonas hesitated, but since he and Ryan were going to be in each other’s lives for a long time, he might as well be honest. “You remind me of my brother. I lost him when I was very young, but I won’t ever have the opportunity to see him again like you and Kendrick have. You should make the most of that because not everyone is as lucky as you.”

“I’m sorry.”

“It’s fine, or rather, it’s been a long time. I’m still grieving, and I think I always will, but I’ve made my peace with what happened, and I’m not unhappy.”

Movement on the porch caught Jonas’s attention. He moved faster than any human could and placed himself between Kendrick and his father, who was coming down the porch steps. Kendrick didn’t look scared or even intimidated, but that wasn’t what worried Jonas. No, what worried him was the possibility that Kendrick and Ryan’s father would do something stupid.

The man stumbled back and glared at Jonas. “Who the fuck are you?”

Jonas crossed his arms over his chest and glared right back. “Your son’s mate.”

That gave the asshole pause. He looked from Jonas to Kendrick, then back to Jonas again. “Of course you’re gay.”

“What I am doesn’t matter,” Kendrick snapped. “And you can only dream of finding what I have with Jonas.”

He put a hand on Jonas’s back, and Jonas relaxed against it. When Kendrick took his hand and pulled him away, he didn’t resist. He didn’t actually want to get into a fight with the asshole. He just wanted all of this to be over and go home. If it meant kicking Kendrick’s father’s ass, he would. If it meant throwing Ryan and his stuff into the car, he’d do that, too.

“We’re going,” Kendrick said. “You won’t ever see us again, so make sure you take a good look before we leave.” He leaned closer to Jonas. “Come on. Our priority is Ryan, and he doesn’t look like he’s doing great.”

He really didn’t. He was shaky and pale, and his eyes were wide. Jonas was a bit worried, so he hurried over to Ryan’s side, just in case.

Kendrick started grabbing the bags Ryan had piled up at the end of the driveway. While Jonas guided Ryan to the car, Kendrick moved all the bags to the trunk, and by the time both of them were done, it was time to leave.

Jonas turned toward Kendrick and Ryan’s father. He still stood there, and now that he wasn’t at the front door, Jonas could see Ryan’s mother. She was a pretty woman, but it looked like life had beaten her down—or maybe that had been Kendrick and Ryan’s father. Her dark hair was pulled back, exposing her pale skin and how hollow her cheeks were. For a moment, Jonas wondered if Ryan’s father made her pay for her food, too. He wouldn’t be surprised because it looked like she wasn’t eating well.

“Let’s go,” Kendrick said as he slid into the driver’s seat.

Jonas wanted to go with him right away, but there was one thing he needed to do first.

He marched past Kendrick’s father, ignoring the man’s indignant screaming, and went straight to Ryan’s mother. She was a tiger shifter, but she still cowered back into the house as if she thought Jonas was going to hurt her.

He had no plans of doing anything like that. This woman wasn’t Kendrick’s mother, but that didn’t mean Jonas didn’t care. It also didn’t mean he couldn’t see that she was probably being abused, if not physically, then emotionally.

He leaned forward and grabbed a pen from a nearby table. He made sure to block the view Kendrick and Ryan’s father had of what he was doing as he quickly wrote his phone number on the woman’s arm. She whimpered as he did so, and Jonas could hear Kendrick and Ryan’s father coming toward them, so he moved fast.

“If you ever need help, call me,” he murmured. “I’ll come get you.”

She didn’t say anything. She just stared at him with wide eyes that reminded him of Ryan. When a hand landed on his shoulder, he flicked it off and turned to face Kendrick and Ryan’s father.

Jonas was kind of short, but he knew there was something unsettling about him and every other Krsnik. Even when humans didn’t know what they were, they still cowered, and Kendrick and Ryan’s father wasn’t any different. He took a step back, even though it was clear he’d been gearing up for a fight.

“I’m going,” he said. “The two of you were horrible parents, and I’m glad Kendrick and Ryan won’t ever have to see you again. Please, don’t have more kids.”

He left the house, strolling out as if he were taking a walk in the park. He wanted to show Kendrick’s father that he wasn’t scared. Why would he be when he could defeat the man without breaking a sweat?

He kept up his happy pretense until he was in the car, the door firmly closed behind him. He could feel both Kendrick and Ryan staring, but he gestured toward the road. “Weren’t we leaving?”

The smile Kendrick gave him made Jonas shiver. There was a promise in his gaze, and Jonas couldn’t wait to be home and find out what that promise was.

* * * *

“What was that?” Kendrick asked as he turned on the engine.

He was in awe of his mate. He hadn’t heard what Jonas had told Ryan’s mother, but he’d seen him writing something on her arm, and he could guess what that something was. Even though Jonas disliked her, he still wanted her to be able to call him if anything happened to her. That was how much he cared. If she was ever in danger and managed to call him, he’d run to her rescue, no matter how he felt about her.

Kendrick really wished he could kiss him right now.

Jonas shrugged. “I just wanted her to know she had options.”

“She always had the option to leave,” Kendrick pointed out.

“I don’t know how true that is. You haven’t lived here for ten years, Kendrick. You don’t know what’s happened in those ten years. People like your father don’t tend to get better. If anything, they get worse. I don’t think he’s abusing her physically, but it doesn’t mean there isn’t another kind of abuse at play here.”

Kendrick nodded. In his anger at the way Ryan had been treated, he hadn’t considered that.

He’d liked his stepmother well enough when he was a child, but they’d never been close, and they’d drifted further apart as he aged. Jonas was right, though. If she needed help, she should be able to get it. Kendrick wasn’t sure he would have volunteered to be that help, but if Jonas had to come back, Kendrick would come with him.

“Can I ask you something?” Ryan asked from the backseat.

Kendrick glanced at him through the rearview mirror. His brother still appeared a little spooked, which wasn’t a surprise. “Anything.”

“It’s just that I want to give her a chance to do what’s right,” Ryan murmured. “Do you think we could get a room somewhere for the night? We can go to your place tomorrow, but just in case she decides she’s ready to leave him, I want to be close by.”

Kendrick and Jonas exchanged a glance. Jonas shrugged and took out his phone, probably to text Clay and Rowan that they were sticking around. He didn’t even ask because he already knew what Kendrick would say.

“Of course we can,” he told his brother. “If there’s anything you need, you just have to tell us. We’ll do our best to give it to you.”

“I’m not used to that.”

Kendrick remembered how that felt. His brother was eighteen, and he’d probably missed out on many things growing up with his parents. Their father wasn’t the kind of person who took his kids to the park or did anything fun with them. It was the opposite. He found something to criticize in everything they did, tried to push them harder every day, and took advantage of them and whatever work they did. He wasn’t a good man—he’d never been, not even when Kendrick was a child—and that was something that seldom changed. Kendrick was completely done with him, but it was clear that Ryan wasn’t done with his mother.

That was okay. Eventually, he would have to let her go if she didn’t try to get free. Hopefully, she would, but Kendrick was afraid to hope for Ryan’s sake.

He followed the directions Jonas gave him once he was done texting Clay and Rowan. Trust Jonas to find one of the few luxury hotels in town. The thing hadn’t been there when Kendrick lived in the area, and he wasn’t sure the town needed it, but it was better than a crappy motel, and when he mentioned the cost to Jonas, Jonas just winked at him.

“I’m one of the few who survived from my clan. Who do you think got everyone’s assets?” he said after they’d gotten the keys to their rooms and gotten into the elevator.

Kendrick gaped at him. “You mean that I can be a sugar baby now?”

Jonas shuddered in horror. “Please never use that word where I can hear it again. No, you can’t be my sugar baby. You’ll have to continue working and kicking Kudlak ass, because you wouldn’t know what to do with yourself if you didn’t.”

That much was true. “Well, I’m sorry that the way you got to be wealthy is through the deaths of everyone you loved,” he offered.

Jonas’s expression softened. “It’s fine. It’s been decades, and even though sometimes it hurts, I survived long enough to find my mate. What more could I want?”

“You guys are freaking weird,” Ryan muttered from the corner where he’d pressed himself. He was only carrying one backpack, which apparently was stuffed with his clothes and other necessities.

“We’re not weird,” Kendrick said as he swung his arm around Jonas’s shoulders.

“We’re just a bit weird,” Jonas contradicted, winking up at Kendrick. “But that’s the way it’s supposed to be. We’re mates, and we match each other’s freak.”

Ryan wrinkled his nose. “Aren’t you a hundred years old or something?”

Jonas gasped. “How dare you.”

For a moment, Ryan looked panicked, but he quickly realized that Jonas was teasing him. His body relaxed, making it clear that he trusted Jonas. It was touching. Kendrick wanted his mate and his brother to get along, and it looked like they would.

“I might live a bit longer than a shifter because of my Krsnik genes, but I won’t live that long,” Jonas explained as they stepped out of the elevator.

“And my brother will live as long as you?” Ryan asked. His gaze flickered to Kendrick, who hadn’t thought about the implications of that yet. He probably should have, but he’d barely had the time to get used to the idea that he and Jonas would be together forever.

“I know what you’re thinking,” Jonas said gently. “You just got your brother back, and you want to be sure you won’t have to watch him die.”

Ryan shrugged. “I mean, we still have something like sixty years together even if you don’t bond with him. I guess it’s not that bad.”

“It’s not, but I won’t let that happen. He’s my mate. I won’t let anything happen to him, not even aging.”

“I don’t think you can avoid that even if you bond with him.”

Maybe not, but Jonas would try.

They’d reached their rooms, and Kendrick handed Ryan his keycard. Ryan took it as if it were fragile, but Kendrick suspected that rather than the key, his brother’s heart was.

Ryan was in pain. He’d lost his father and his mother, and while he’d expected it, it wasn’t an easy feeling to deal with. Kendrick had ten years ago, so he knew.

He remembered how it had felt. He’d thought that no one cared about him, that he was completely alone in the world. He’d thought he was worthless and that was why people didn’t want him. If his parents didn’t even want him, who would?

But he’d found people who did want him, including Jonas. They were his family now, and they could be Ryan’s, too.

Jonas slipped into the room after saying goodbye to Ryan, but Kendrick lingered in the hallway just a bit longer. “I’m glad you called me when you needed help,” he told his brother. “I know what you’re going through, and while I’m sure things are somewhat different, I’ve been where you are. I know it feels like you have nothing, but that’s not true. Even if you lose everything else, you’ll always have me.”

The corners of Ryan’s lips curled. “You and Jonas.”

Kendrick lightly punched him in the arm. “Why does it feel like you prefer Jonas to me?”

“That’s because I do.”

“I should kick your ass for that, but instead, I’ll let you go. You look like you could use some sleep.”

Ryan rubbed his face. “Yeah, I could. I worked as often as I could over the past few weeks because I was trying to make rent, but I failed. I guess it wasn’t worth skipping a few hours of sleep.”

“It wasn’t, but you don’t have to worry about that now. I’ll take care of you.” Kendrick should have done that ten years ago. He’d only been a kid then, so he didn’t blame himself for leaving without Ryan, but he wasn’t a kid now. He was an adult, and he’d be there for his brother, whatever Ryan needed.