Chapter Four

Delaney

There’s no way there were this many bodies in my bed when I fell asleep. Who the fuck has their hairy ass toes on my pillow?

Whatever. They can have the bed.

I stumble into the bathroom and throw myself under the shower, dying for caffeine already. How is it only a few weeks into the school year? Even with how busy my downtime has gotten, it feels like I’ve been in school for months.

There’s something bothering me that I can’t figure out as I throw on something suitable for class, then go about figuring out breakfast.

My phone.

I never heard from Wilder last night. He always calls before he goes to bed; I was planning on swinging by his office during the gap hour I have today, but maybe I should try and touch base with him before I have to go to class?

I’m worried that my relationship with him isn’t growing as fast as it could because we’re both so busy and because we live in two very different buildings, but that just means I have to try and carve purposeful time out of my schedule and prioritize him. It doesn’t feel fair that others are getting more of my time when I’m not even courting them.

Suddenly I’m desperate for a kiss from Wilder, so I decide to wake one of the twins in case they get snotty about me going somewhere alone.

I’m waking Jackson because it’s his foot currently resting where my head was. He’s changing that pillowcase for me later. Was that there the whole night? Ew. Men are gross.

“Hey, wake up. We’re going to get coffee for Ash.” I poke him in the forehead.

Jackson grabs me and pulls me into bed, making me fall over him so my crotch is right on his face. “Mm. Got my breakfast right here.”

I squirm and try to pull away as he tries to eat me through my pants. “This is all I need.”

“Should I take somebody else?”

“Ugh. Fine, no need to get ragey. I’m getting up.”

I check my phone again while he stumbles out of bed and does the bare minimum to prepare for the day, trying to reign in the anxiety that says the only way Wilder would have forgotten to call last night would have been if he suddenly decided I was a terrible idea and eloped with somebody else, or maybe he got kidnapped by a foreign circus that instantly recognized his talents and offered him bookoo bucks to join their show. Fuck. I hate the idea of a long-distance relationship.

Those are so clearly the only two options.

With a heavy heart, I head down the hallway with Jackson’s arm around my shoulder, aiming for the coffee shop between my dorm and Wilder’s office. Maybe if I bring him a really good cup of coffee and a nice, buttery, blueberry muffin he’ll reconsider leaving me.

“August is going to get all your school stuff together and meet us at your first class so you can spend a few more minutes with Ash.”

“Oh, okay. I should have just brought it with me.”

“That’s okay, that’s why we’re here. You okay? You sleep well?”

I turn and scowl. “Yes, except I woke with your feet inches in front of my face and your toe hair resting serenely on my soft satin pillowcase.”

“Cory was taking up where I wanted to sleep, I had to squeeze in where I could.”

“You’re not even sorry?”

“I was still in your bed, so I’m happy.”

I roll my eyes as he opens the door for me. The coffee shop is crazy, which is to be expected since students exist on coffee, but I generously let Jackson stand in line while I steal one of the only empty seats in the place so I can try and get a hold of Wilder again. At this point my aim is to annoy him enough that he texts or calls me just to tell me to chill.

He hasn’t responded to any of the texts I sent today and it’s too loud in here to call him, so I settle for yet more texts and try and sit patiently whilst also imagining all the people and/or situations that are clearly more important than me.

“Hey, you’re Adler’s sister, right?”

I look up from my phone and am taken aback for a minute by the angelic face in front of me. Purple eyes, broad shoulders, flawless dark skin, and a smile that should feel blinding but instead has me wanting to smile with him. “That’s me.”

“I’m Spencer,” he says, extending a hand. “I’m on his team.”

Ah. A football player. That explains the ridiculous shoulder span. “Delaney,” I offer back, taking his hand.

He sits on the little table in front of me, a bit twitchy. “Hey, so I just wanted to apologize for the whole ball incident thing when you came to visit Adler. I really don’t know how the ball got so out of control. I’m glad you stopped it before it hit your friend, but I just, I feel really bad.”

“Are you guy I thew the ball back at? The one that sounded like a giant rubber duck when it hit you?”

“My reputation precedes me, I see.”

I shake my head and fight a grin. That was stupid. “If I hadn’t stopped that, I’d probably be a lot more violent with you right now.”

“Well thank you for your admirable restraint. I take it you grew up playing with Adler? He’s told us about your guys’ dad, how he got him into the sport.”

“Oh, I have zero restraint, I promise. I’m just satisfied with the damage I already did for the threat to one of my mates.”

“Oh shit. Yeah, that makes it worse. Well, it sucks either way, but I’d be pretty pissed too if someone threw a ball at my mate.”

“You’re mated?” I ask, for some reason feeling quite some way about that.

“Uh, no, I just meant, I can imagine how it would feel if I had one and hypothetically, they were threatened by some stray ball flying at their face.”

“Uh-huh. You’ve got a good imagination, then?”

Damn he looks uncomfortable. I love it. Instead of responding to that, he blurts out, “I think my sister lives across the hall from you.”

“You know my family, you know where I live; Spencer, are you stalking me?”

His face flushes, and once again I find his discomfort hilarious. “No! It’s just hard not to take notice of a woman like you.” He looks around the coffee shop as if the entire female student body population can be summed up with the sample that’s currently inside of it. “I’d notice you anywhere,” he says a bit softer.

Okay, now he’s being kind of cute. “What are you studying?”

“The ol’ ‘what are you studying’ question, huh? I guess I deserve that.”

“What are you talking about?”

He rubs the back of his neck. “That’s like the most over-asked question in college. You can’t find out anything about a person with that. Especially because so many people enter a career field that has nothing to do with their program of study eventually.”

“Ookay…what do you like to ask to get to know somebody, then?”

He scoots just a little bit closer and squints at me. “What’s your favorite breakfast cereal?”

“I don’t really like cereal.”

He reels back. “Did not see that one coming.”

That’s what Jackson walks back into, handing me my coffee from a tray full of other drinks and a bag in his other hand with what looks like a half dozen pastries judging by the strain on the paper handles. “You good, babe?”

“You should apologize to him, since it was his face you almost broke,” I tell Spencer as I slurp some of my coffee.

Spencer stands and folds his arms across his chest, bowing his head slightly in respect. “I am. Sorry, that is. I don’t know how I lost control of that ball so badly. I was just telling Delaney how bad I’ve felt since it happened. I’ve been hoping to run into you actually,” Spencer says as he turns back to me. “You guys seem busy, so I’ll let you get on with your day. I, uh, have something for you though,” he says as he digs something out of his pocket. He hands me a piece of notebook paper that’s folded up into some sort of complex design and gives a terse wave before leaving the coffee shop.

I stand up and smile to myself because men that get awkward are delightful.

“Were you able to get ahold of Ash?” Jackson watches Spencer until he’s out of sight, and I watch Jackson because he’s pretty.

Then I have to force myself to focus on something else because I think I’m supposed to be at least a little productive now. “No. It’s kind of weird, right?”

“I’m sure everything’s fine. Maybe his phone broke or something.”

I appreciate Jackson’s reassurances even if I don’t believe him. “Yeah, maybe.”

The whole way to Ash’s office I just feel...off. I try and pull on our bond, but it feels like there’s something heavy sitting on it, dimming the feedback. That’s alarming.

Then my phone rings. “Finally,” I say as I hit the green button and bring the phone to my ear. “There you are. I was starting to worry because you never texted or called to say goodnight, and I got wrapped up in trying to stop about fifteen different fights between my mates and my boyfriend.”

“Delaney Duncan. Even your voice is enchanting.”

“This isn’t Wilder. Who is this?”

“Darling, must we? You know exactly who this is. Look, I need you to do something for me. I have my son here and we would really like it if you could find the time to swing by and settle a little misunderstanding we seem to find ourselves in.”

I look around me wildly even if it won’t give me any clues as to where Wilder is being held. No go though, I’m still in the middle of a college campus. Luckily, I’m not one to panic in bad situations; not with parents like mine. I know they’ve prepared me for any sort of situation, this included.

Also, if I’m ever faced with a very violent octopus wielding knives and threatening to consume my brother, I’m also set.

“You must be the elusive pride male. I’ve heard…so much about you.” I signal to Jackson to get out of the flow of foot traffic and to alert his brother so we can start figuring out a game plan.

“Yes, I am. Rane Wilder, at your service. I’m going to send over an address for you to this number. Please join me at your earliest convenience so we can talk. I tried to speak with the both of you a few days ago, but it seems you were otherwise occupied. Do wear something nice, it’s only respectful.”

“I’ll be there, but can I please speak to Ash first? I just want to make sure he’s okay.” Because if his father is answering his phone after I haven’t heard from him in almost a whole day, things can’t be good. Surely they aren’t dangerous though, right?

“Of course. When you get to the location, just follow the pathway until you see us. If you walk straight down, you can’t miss us. Do hurry.”

There’s some grunting and laughter, which sounds not at all happy, and then I hear the thing I’ve been needing to hear. “Hi Delaney. Do you have your other guys with you? Are you safe?”

“Ash? What’s going on? I’m fine, don’t even worry about me. I want to know if you’re okay because you haven’t exactly painted your father in a nice light.”

He exhales heavily, and I know he’s editing his situation to make me feel better. “It’s…something I figured was coming. Look, you don’t have to come. In fact, I’d prefer it if you didn’t. This isn’t something I want for you.”

“Talk to me. If you need me to be there, of course I’m going to be there. I just want to know what ‘there’ is and if you’re in any way harmed. Because if you are…things are going to go down. I have brass knuckles on me at all times and access to about 30 different toxins. 55 if you give me a few hours.”

“That’s…really? Stop distracting me. I’m supposed to be the one that protects you.”

“Yeah, you mated the wrong person if that’s what you pect.. We are going to protect each other when it comes time to, because neither one of us are weak. We each have things we’re going to be a bit better at due to circumstances, but I don’t expect you to save me. I will save myself when I need to.”

“Hold on one second, I’m just going to step somewhere more private.”

I put my phone on mute and start filling Jackson in on what I know so far. His jaw is clenched, and I can see the stress in his neck, but his training is kicking in because he looks calm and levelheaded. Mostly.

“Okay, are you there?”

“Here.”

“Gods, Delaney. It’s all so stupid. I fucking hate him. I don’t think I’ve ever said that out loud before, but it’s true. I’m sorry I couldn’t contact you last night before bed, I knew you would be upset by that.”

“I was. Are you going to tell me what happened?”

“Not sure if Jackson remembers, but when you three were over a few days ago, my father showed up. Jackson came down the stairs, positively high on you, and screamed at him and pushed my father out of my home and locked the door. Jackson was completely nude by the way, so that was a treat for both of us.

“I’ve been avoiding my father since, because I knew that was going to cause some very big questions, but he’s invoked shifter law. He…Delaney, you don’t want to mess with him. Shifter politics are fucking messy.”

“Maybe they’re messy if your parents don’t run the entire council. I have fathers on the council seats, Ash. Did you forget that?”

“No, I didn’t. I wanted to handle this though without crying to my mate’s fathers I’ve never officially met for help. There’s no way they’ll be impressed with how you and I became mated.”

“Again, communication would have been a really good thing to do; because my parents love me, and if I’m happy, they’re happy. They’re not going to threaten you or do any of that bullshit. I promise. What do I need to tell them?”

“The shifter leaders are all on their way here; they’re trying to avoid filing something with the council though. My father is claiming I threatened and abducted a lion shifter and mated her by force, which I clearly did. He’s filing a complaint trying to get our bond nullified.”

“Cute, but that’s not happening.”

“Delaney this isn’t something you can sass your way out of, okay? This is a real problem. I know I did things the wrong way, but I thought I was going to protect you. I have failed, and now…”

“Don’t you dare condescend me. I was raised running up and down the halls of government buildings. I’m awesome at this kind of stuff so they don’t frighten me. You keep underestimating me though and it’s going to cause problems. Are you safe? And what will happen if I don’t show?”

“I’m fine. I’ll just get in a bit of hot water if you don’t come. I can handle it though, there’s really no need for you to get involved.”

“I’m about to ask for your father because I have a feeling he’ll give me more information. Ash, I am your fucking mate . So let me ask that again. What will happen?”

“They’ll probably imprison me until they can sentence me. For something like this? You know shifters value mates, and the punishment…it doesn’t matter.”

“Well, it doesn’t matter because it’s not happening. Obviously, I’m going to get to you—”

“It’s several hours away, down near where you’re from. You can’t just skip class, Delaney.”

“I can if I tell the headmaster that there’s a political situation with one of his staff members that I need to sort out. I’m a princess, I’m sure that grants me some clemency to handle such situations if they arise. And I don’t care about fucking class if you’re in trouble. You’re important to me. We’re going to sort this mess out, and then I’m going to stay the night at your house alone, and I’m going to fucking make sure you understand what you mean to me and punish you for putting yourself in danger, am I understood?”

“This is a terrible time to give me a boner, Delaney.”

“Well, too bad. Keep pushing me and I’ll make you come in your pants in front of everyone when I arrive there.”

“You…might want to leave your parents out of it. And I say that because there’s a good chance we’ll be expected to prove our bond in front of the pride.”

“Are you saying there’s a chance I’ll have to give you a very public fucking?”

Jackson chokes, and August runs up to us still tucking his shirt in, clearly having rushed out the door. “I sent Cory and Adam to class,” he whispers.

“I told you that politics are messy. Did you not think I meant that literally?”

“That doesn’t even bother me. Should I wear something sexy? Do I have time to change? What’s your favorite color? I’ve got lingerie in every shape and color.”

“Oh my gods. Why do you sound so excited about the idea of fucking me in front of a bunch of strangers? Delaney, this isn’t what I want for us.”

“Are you telling me you won’t fuck me if they say we need to?”

“That can’t be our first time.”

He sounds really stressed out, which checks, but he needs to learn a lesson here. “I’m going to take care of everything, okay?”

“I don’t like the way that sounds.”

“You know what I don’t like? Having a mate that chooses to keep me in the dark about things. Is this the part where I remind you that you’re the one that wanted a mate? Why do we keep needing to have this conversation?”

“Fine. Can you please give Mark and Ryan a ride? My father left my auxiliary out of this because he knows he can get away with it. Ryan’s going to be pissed.”

“Yeah, I’ll track them down and fill them in.”

“Thanks…I’ll see you when you get here, then. Sorry, again.”

“Stay safe.”

We hang up and I debate for only a second what I should do.

Technically I’m really not a part of the lion shifter community so they don’t even have actual jurisdiction over me. The fact that I chose a lion as my form is arbitrary. I wasn’t born to their pride, so I don’t actually report to the pride male.

“What are we doing?” Jackson asks, no doubt reading my manic energy.

“We’re calling my parents.”

“Thank fuck. I mean, as hot as it would have been to see you take him in front of everyone, your parents run the fucking council, and your mom is the goddessdamned queen. There’s no way the pride male has more power than that. Thank you for not being stubborn and trying to do this on your own.”

“It’s tempting. But if I don’t have to miss class, I shouldn’t; I know Wilder doesn’t want me involving my parents but that’s stupid. In fact, I think my mom and I are long overdue for a chat.”

I don’t have a long time until class, but I have enough time to do what needs to be done. “I’m assuming one of you have access to Ryan? He doesn’t know what’s going on, so we need to fill him in, but tell him there’s no point in him getting to wherever the fuck Ash’s dad has him because we’re going to handle the goddessdamned situation.”

I just need to enjoy a few sips of my coffee first, because it’s starting to get cold. I walk most of the way to my first class and find a step to sit on out of the way and dial up my mom, not even feeling bad about pulling her away from whatever’s on her schedule since this is most definitely her business.

“Hey sugar lips. What’s up? Did you get your weekly shipment of candy panties? What flavor were they this time?”

“Mom, can we please be normal for a minute?”

“Honey, that was normal. I got key-lime. I wanted to compare notes.”

“Gross. Like, big gross. This is not the time to discuss bedroom activities with you and dads. You know I have a rule; strictly between the hours of 7:00pm and 7:02pm. No other times.”

“Ugh, fine. If you didn’t call for that, then why are you calling? Not that I don’t love hearing your voice.”

“Well in true our family tradition, I’ve not told you that I took a few mates. I know, I’m supposed to bring them home, and I will, promise. We’re just trying to settle into things first, okay?”

“Jackson, August, and who?”

“Of course you already know about Jackson and August. Did they tell you?” I narrow my eyes at them, wondering if they’re still reporting to my parents over me even now. Did they seriously go behind my back and treat me like a job?

“Don’t worry, nothing from them. The goddess just knows and because she knows, I know too. Which means I also know there are some little shits at your school. We can deal with that later though. Don't forget I know what it’s like to be in your shoes; it’s overwhelming. I know you were going to tell me when you were ready. We’ll celebrate properly once you’re ready to do that.”

“Thanks, Mom. Look, we’re running into some problems and it’s something that you and dads need to step in and straighten out. One of my mates is a lion shifter; his dad is the pride male, and I think he just abducted my mate, Ash Wilder, and is holding him until I get there. I spoke to this pride male and he informed me that I needed to come to wherever the fuck they are and clear up a misunderstanding, but Ash said that they’re involving the shifter clan leads and trying to skate under the radar of the council. They are under the impression that Ash kidnapped a lioness and forced a mating and are charging him, or trying to charge him accordingly. Ash thinks I’ll have to go and prove my bond in front of the pride—"

“Fuck, no. Okay, send me any other info you have. You’re not a lion shifter, you’re registered as a poly, so even if all that wasn’t bullshit, you don’t have to comply. Do we like Ash’s dad, or can we have some fun?”

“Never met him, but Ash basically told me he was an abusive mate to his mom. Ash thinks his dad was responsible for his mom dying, and now…he’s been trying to find a new lioness to mate That’s why Ash mated me, because he didn’t want his dad getting his claws into me.”

“Nice euphemism. I’ll get your dads on it, and we’ll have all the info we need to lock him up and or check him into indentured servitude. Your pick.”

“I mean, obviously if he did kill Ash’s mom, he deserves a really nice spa day.”

“Ah. I hear you. Okay love, I’ll take care of everything. And Delaney? Thanks for trusting me with this.”

“Of course; you’re the scariest person I know. I’m going to get to class. Feel free to record the interaction for me. I’d love to show it to Ash’s auxiliary later.”

“Love you.”

“Bye, Mom. Love you, too.”

“Spa day?” I spin and see Adam, not at all where he’s supposed to be.

“Your class is that way,” I say, pointing to the opposite end of campus.

“You needed me.”

“I mean, I’ll take a hug, but I’m good. Honest. Mom’s taking care of it.”

Adam doesn’t hesitate to wrap his arms around me, taking away the little bit of tension I was holding onto. I’m honestly not worried about Ash now that my parents areon it. It was definitely the right call.

“Ash’s dad is causing problems. Stirring up drama with the lions and other shifters, trying to get me there so he can make me jump through hoops and I’m sure it’ll be rigged. But we’re not doing that.”

“Good. That would be dumb.”

“Which is why I’m just going to class instead.”

“That’s my girl. You want to meet up for lunch later?”

“Okay.”

He kisses me, and it doesn’t take very long before I’m pushing myself against him and burying my hand in the nape of his neck, chasing a connection I’ve always wanted to have. He chuckles at my eagerness, then squeezes my ass to get me to pull away. “Keep me posted on the situation with Ash; you going to be with him tonight?”

“Yeah. He needs to learn some things.”

“Yeah, he does. Okay, I better get going. Love you.”

He winks and jogs off, leaving me standing there, open mouthed, because how did he just drop those words so casually?

“Let’s get to class. You need to work on that assignment with Wil.”

That’s enough to get me moving, and I know it’s amusing to the guys that I’m so excited to see my little fake mate.

When I get close to the classroom, there is a group of students circled up outside the door. Expecting something else bad to happen, I try to skirt around the edge, but then I hear Wil call my name, so I pause, taking closer stock of what’s actually happening.

He’s got a shy expression on his face, which is par for the course with him, and behind him are three other students, all wearing matching outfits. Gray sweater vests, white long-sleeved button ups, and red bow ties. August and Jackson push me towards the center of the circle so I'm right up front, and then Wil brings some sort of small whistle instrument to his mouth and hums a pitch before slipping it back into his pocket. He takes a big breath and then the quartet of students break out in an a Capella version of a super cheesy love song.

My cheeks hurt I’m so happy.

Wil keeps eye contact with me the whole time, even though I can see that he’s trembling from the adrenaline of doing such a thing, and I appreciate so much that he’s putting himself out there even if I suspect it’s just to ace this assignment.

One of the things the 'mates' had to do is make their mate feel special in public, and that could have meant so many things, but he’s choosing to serenade me. The first half of the semester is all about the fake bondeds wooing the conduit, but then it flips and I’ll have to do pretty much all the same assignments, focusing on him.

But this? Collaborating with other students and putting himself out there?

It's just so… sweet . I can hear Wil’s own voice cutting through the harmonies and the base, singing back up next to the person singing lead, and maybe some people would be embarrassed by this attention, but I think it’s the coolest thing ever.

I hear some snickers of students as they pass by us into the classroom, Shelly making a point to roll her eyes as she flashes what looks like a newly gifted bracelet, but I can’t take my eyes off of Wilford. Behind those thick glasses he wears, his turquoise eyes are vibrant and sparkling, as if he’s putting as much emotion he can into the lyrics. When the song is over, a bunch of students clap, and he scratches the back of his neck like he’s not quite sure what to do with himself now that it’s over. So, I step into him trying to look for consent to touch him and I wrap myself around him for the first time. He’s tall, much taller than me somehow, and he’s not built like some of my mates are, but I find the shape of his body is perfect for holding onto. He is lanky and awkward, but he smells like fresh linen and laundry and warmth.

“Was that for me?”

His arms tentatively wrap around my shoulders, and he pats me a little awkwardly, clearly not used to being in such close contact with somebody else. “Actually, I’ve been trying to woo this teacher for years now—"

I lean back to see our teacher through the doorway, and she’s at least in her late 60's and looks so over everybody’s drama. I'm trying to decide if he's serious or not but then he cracks a smile. “Was that sarcasm, Wilford? Did you just make a joke?”

I finally bring my arms back into myself, but he flinches, his hands grabbing my hips to keep me there. “Sorry,” he says, dropping them immediately.

And then I lean close and kiss him on the cheek, letting my head linger so that our cheeks are touching for just a moment. “I know that was just for the assignment, but I loved it. Seriously. That you went to so much effort to organize it? It means a lot to me, Wil.”

“It wasn't just for—”

“Alright, alright, class is starting. Please get in here, people.” I want to growl at the teacher for cutting off Wil, because I want to hear the rest of what he was going to say.

Unaware of my sudden annoyance, Wil grabs his bag off the floor and holds his arm out so I can walk into the classroom first, but he doesn’t bring it up again as we work on our assignment in class, although he does lean in a bit closer than normal.

Do I… like him?

He rushes out of class when it’s over, not giving me the chance to ask him anything else and I sigh in disappointment.

“You make him so nervous,” Jackson says with a chuckle, grabbing my hand. August grabs my bag and walks behind me and Jackson as we head to my next class.

“I didn’t know he sang,” I tell them. “His voice was nice. Rough but rich. Deep.”

“No fair that he gets to do that kind of a thing for you. If I tried to sing, I think I would lose points with you.”

I look back to August, but he looks dead serious. I’ve never actually heard them sing, but I doubt I would find it offensive. “You know I don’t care about how you would sound. It’s the gesture that I’d enjoy.”

August hums the whole way to my community leadership class, which I’m fidgety throughout, waiting for my mom to get back to me and wondering what’s going on with Ash.

I wish this was the day I had human behavior with Cory before Wilder’s history class, but I'm by myself here.

The second our professor dismisses us, I’m whipping out my phone so I can call and beg my mom for an update.

“There she is,” my mom croons. “We’re just having lunch with your mate here. Care to say hello, apple of my eye?”

“What? You have Ash? What happened? Is everything okay?”

The phone gets passed. “Delaney?” Ash asks, sounding like he’s sulking.

Knowing my mom has him is a relief, because now I know he’s safe. I’m still fucking pissed that he didn’t get me involved sooner, but I’m thrilled that we were able to get him out. “Hey. What happened?”

“Well, your mom made my dad shit himself in front of the entire pride, so that’s going to make family get-togethers awkward.”

“Are you… mad at me?”

“I asked you not to get them involved. It’s not that I’m not appreciative, but—"

I cut him off. He's being whiny. “Did they handle the situation, yes or no?”

“Obviously yes since I’m sitting here,” he snaps.

“You know what? Whatever. You can’t ask me not to get my family involved when my family has the connections they do. I was worried about you and didn't want to have to deal with all that I would have had to deal with had I come over there without them.”

“You mean you didn't want to have to deal with the pride? With my pride? The one I’m now acting pride male for? That’s what you didn’t want to get involved in?”

“You know that’s not how I meant it. It would have been ridiculous for me to drive all the way over there, when my parents are right near there anyway, just to try to appease your father. Who by the way I’m sure deserved to shit himself in front of everybody. I hope it was really loud and disgusting and stained his pants. I hope it ran down his legs slowly and then came out the bottom of his pants so that everybody had to witness it. I also hope it was really fragrant so that everybody felt like gagging because I'm pretty sure I hate that man.”

“Yeah? Well it was, you happy?”

I start laughing so hard that it's difficult to talk. Because yes, I am happy. I love my mom so much.

When I finally get air in my lungs again it’s my mom on the phone who assures me I did the right thing, even if I don’t need that reassurance. If Ash wants to be mad, fine. Let him be mad. I stand by what I did, and I’d do it that way again if I had to.

“We’ll have him home soon,” my mom tells me. Then she passes the phone to Papa Foster.

“Hey, short stack. Sorry we made your man here grumpy.”

“That’s okay, Dad, I appreciate you guys taking care of the problem for me.”

“That’s why we’re here, and we’re proud of you. Jericho had a fucking blast taking that guy down. I’m sure you don’t need me to tell you this, but don’t you dare apologize to Ash for calling us. He needs to understand who he's aligned himself with.”

“Don’t worry Dad, I understand where I stand.”

“Good. I like him, he gives a good glower.”

I roll my eyes.

“Anyway, your brother broke his phone, so I haven’t been able to get ahold of him. Is there any way you could run over to the football field and show him something for me?”

“Yeah, what is it?”

“I’ll send it over in just a second. He’ll know to do with it.”

“Alright, I have a gap before my next class so I’ll head over there now. Tell everybody else I love them.”

“You’re coming home next weekend, right? If you aren’t, we’re heading there. You promised once a month and I’m sick of waiting.”

“Oh yeah, I could probably do that.”

“Feel free to bring all your people with you.”

“I'll see what I can do. Talk to you later, Dad.”

“Bye, Delaney.”

I put my phone in my pocket and shake off the conversation with Ash. Then I fill in Jackson and August. “My mom embarrassed Ash’s dad in front of the whole pride, which I think is hilarious. They took him in for questioning and are going to look into all the other claims, Ash is the acting pride male for now. He’s also angry with me for getting my parents involved.”

“That’s dumb,” August says.

“I agree,” I say as I start heading toward the football stadium. “But he's allowed to feel how he wants to feel. He'll get over it. In the meantime, I have to go give my brother a message, because apparently his phone is broken.”

I link hands with my mates as we head over there, swinging our hands back and forth and not letting Ash’s negativity bother me. It makes me sad because I was hoping we’d be past having a rocky relationship, because all I really want is just to get along. Now I’m wondering if that will ever happen.

I open the doors to the stadium closest to Adler’s office, hoping he’s around somewhere. I’m only ten steps in when somebody comes hurling into me and knocking me over. My back hits the floor kind of hard and I hiss in a breath, wondering what it is about the man on top of me that incites such violence. “Seriously Spencer,” I grit out, “the near miss of the football wasn’t enough? You needed to make it a little more hands on?”

“Oh my gods, I am so sorry. I completely tripped at the absolute wrong moment. Are you okay?”

Jackson shoves him off of me and pulls me up, inspecting my head tenderly. “No, she’s not okay, you idiot. You just rolled her over and smacked her head against the tile floor. Why would you think she’s okay?”

“It was an accident, Jackson,” I remind him.

“I don’t care. Asswipe needs to watch where he’s going.”

“Let me get you some ice. Please?” Spencer looks worried.

“Weren’t you heading somewhere? You were in an awfully big hurry.” August starts to massage my head gently around the injury, easing me somewhat through the dull throb.

Spencer waves me off. “It can wait. Please let me help?”

“No, get out of here. We’ve got it,” August snaps as he picks me up. He doesn’t care if it’s my head that’s injured not my legs, I've learned not to fight him on things like this. If he wants to carry me around like a dainty princess, I’m all for it.

I hear uneven phantom footsteps the entire way back down to Adler’s office. When I peek over August’s shoulder, it's to see a worried-looking Spencer. He’s biting his nails and flicking his eyes up to me every two seconds, dancing on his toes in an awkward strain as he walks, but clearly scared to get too close.

“What did you do to her?” Adler asks as August pushes his way in after a precursory knock.

“I’m so sorry, coach, it was an accident.” Spencer pushes in as well, inserting himself. “You know how I get when I’m focused, and I was running because I had this appointment, and I just didn’t see her, I swear. I ran right into her, and I think she hit her head pretty hard. I’m going to go get her some ice.” He drops his bag and rushes out, not letting anybody give him the option to do otherwise.

I pat August’s chest to tell him to put me down. “I’m fine,” I reassure my brother as I drop into one of his guest chairs. “It was an accident. Head’s a little sore, but that’s about it.”

“Okay, good. What’s up? I’m assuming you didn’t walk all the way down here just to test out how comfortable my chairs are?”

Spencer comes back in with a big bag of ice, and I realize he’s limping a bit as he does. “Hey, are you okay?”

He waves me off. “Fine, fine. Let’s get this on you.”

I don’t miss the wince when he shifts his weight again, and now I'm thinking again of the awkward way he was moving on the way down here. “Were you hurt too? Out of the two of us, there’s way more riding on your ability to function normally. I’m not the one that has to be on that field, getting rushed and crushed by a bunch of gigantic people. Sit,” I order, standing and forcing him down into my spot.

Now Adler’s interested because he is an assistant coach here after all. Spencer's one of his guys and if he’s hurt, then it’s not a good thing.

But Spencer is trying to play hero. “I’m fine. I just twisted my ankle a little as I fell, that’s all.”

I scoot down and lift up his jeans a little, and I can tell immediately that it’s swollen. “Spencer, this doesn’t look good.”

Keeping his eyes trained on the ceiling, he looks like he’s fighting tears. “I’ll be fine. I have to be.”

“You have a game in a few days.”

“I’ll see if I can find an appointment at the clinic. They usually have somebody on board that can sort out this sort of thing.”

“They’re also usually booked out. You need this healed by tomorrow’s practice? Yeah, that’s quite a risk.”

“ Please Delaney?” Adler asks, his hands in prayer position, eyes attempting to appear much larger than they actually are. “I'll owe you big time.”

I sigh heavily. “Fine. Only if he agrees though.”

“Only if I agree to what?” Spencer asks, but he’s distracted, already writing off the situation as being unfixable and making plans to accept his fate. I can see the look of defeat on his face.

I stand to get my hands on my hips, rocking back on my heels a little to make it maybe slightly less awkward. “So, I’m sure you can see that I’m a bodysmith.”

His cheeks redden. “Are you? I… hadn’t—”

“Shut up,” Jackson says. “It’s probably the first thing you noticed about her. Gorgeous, long platinum hair, giant tits, curvy ass…bullshit you didn’t notice.”

“I was trying to be a gentleman,” Spencer mumbles.

“There are way too many men in this room,” I mumble right back. “Look, I might be able to help you.”

He looks up sadly, but interested. “What do you mean?”

“I… have this thing. Some bodysmiths can heal minor injuries when they want to.”

“What?” August asks, feigning mild outrage. “I didn’t know that. How come we didn’t know that?”

“Probably because you’ve never been injured around me? It never came up.” I shrug because I don’t go around announcing my abilities to everybody I'm involved with. That would be weird.

“Wait. What do you have to do?” Jackson asks, getting ideas. “You're a bodysmith, which means…” He sighs in defeat. “It's something sexy, isn’t it?”

“It would make sense,” August replies. “She works off sexy magic. Do you have to blow him to make it work? Because if so, I'm pretty sure I sprained something, too. Just now, yep. When you weren't looking.”

“Whoa,” Adler protests, covering his ears with his hands. "We need to have a serious discussion about boundaries here, guys.”

This is funny to me, so I laugh kind of loudly while trying very hard not to. My brother’s never been super comfortable talking about my magic because of what it involves.

I wipe an errant tear from my eye. “Just a kiss,” I tell them.

“That’s almost worse, though!” Jackson whines. “It’s more personal.”

I turn to face him. “You’re telling me that kissing somebody is more personal than wrapping your lips around their cock and sucking them into your throat until they explode?”

“Okay, I hear how dumb that sounds now that you put it into such exquisite detail.” Jackson adjusts himself and eyes my mouth like he's about to ask for something. “Fine. Help the poor kid.”

“You can seriously do that?” Spencer asks, straightening in his seat.

He pulls his shoe and sock off, inspecting the damage and it definitely looks uncomfortable. No way he’s playing a game or even practicing on that.

“No promises, but I can try. I don't have a lot of experience with healing, but in theory I should be able to, yeah. I at least know that I have that ability. My mom doesn’t, so we've sort of fumbled through developing that particular skill.” There I go spouting random facts about myself. Is it hot in here? I start fanning myself.

“You’d think you’d be better at flirting considering what you are,” my brother says, backing out of his office. "You have ten minutes. Clothes stay on, you hear me?”

“Wait, I did come in here for a reason. I was on the phone with Papa Foster and he wanted me to tell you something.”

“Oh yeah, I need to go get my phone fixed today. Everything okay with the parents?”

“I can catch you up later, just some political drama with the shifters and my mate. No big deal.”

“For the love of the goddess, how long have you been in school now, eight years? You need to visit me more because I’m missing way too much. You bringing everyone home this weekend to meet them?”

“Yes, Adler. Here,” I say before opening up my texts from Papa Foster as I hand my brother my phone. I haven’t checked to see what Dad wanted me to tell him, but Adler just stares and then starts laughing, handing me back my phone. I’m curious.

“You're an asshole for walking all the way down here for that. Ten minutes,” he says as he hits the door frame on his way out.

The door shuts behind him and then I look at my phone to see a meme that my dear old dadso desperately needed me to show my brother that he asked me to walk all the way over here to deliver it. When a a gif of someone flipping off the camera in a very dramatic fashion plays, I feel really stupid for not looking at the message beforeagreeing to play messenger.

“Your family seems…interesting,” Spencer says as hetakes a glimpse at my screen.