Chapter Six

Pax came to awareness with a snap and instantly froze, his eyes still shut. I'm not in my room, or my own bed, and… Pax strained his ears, there's more than one person in this room with me. Pax desperately wanted to peek. The memories of his disaster from the day before came flooding back, and he quickly counted his wins.

He was alive, check.

His magic was back, double check and hell yes.

The fact he was lying on a bed meant his hero must've got him back to some form of civilization. That was probably a win because it beat waking up on the floor or being dead.

Pax's bladder was screaming at him, desperate to attract his attention, but Pax didn't want to move or even alert anyone that he was awake until he knew more about the new situation he was in.

"He's not a shifter." Someone, a wolf/bear hybrid from what Pax could tell, had a low and kindly voice, but the words still stung. "I know your animal side believes he's your mate, but you don't know what type of paranormal he is. He might not feel the mating pull like we do."

"It won't make any difference if he feels the pull or not." Pax relaxed slightly because that was his hero's, Storm's, voice. "I did tell him we were mates. He said before he passed out that he didn't believe he'd ever find his mate because of something his uncle told him. Something about not having wings."

"That's because your mate is a rare and elusive pixie." Pax mentally frowned as a third voice chimed in. Most people have no idea what I am. How the hell can he tell just by looking at me. Oh, my gods, that's a demon. My hero is friends with a demon? But then the voice continued.

"Pixies, special ones like that little cutie on your bed, they don't gain their wings until they claim their fated mates. Damned silly, if you ask me, someone telling him he wouldn't get a mate ever just because his wings haven't evolved yet. That's not how pixies work."

What do you mean by special pixie? Pax wanted to scream the question, but that would blow his fake sleep ruse right out of the bed. Fortunately, his hero came along to save the day, again .

"What do you mean by a special pixie?" The voice came closer, and Pax made sure his eyes were still closed, and he did his best to keep his breathing as even and slow as possible.

"Hmm, you know. That one is like a shifter version of an omega, but they're a pixie instead. They spread sweetness and light wherever they go and have quite powerful magic by all accounts, although like omega shifters, that doesn't usually kick in until after they've been claimed." The demon sounded bored. "Cyrus. Babe. We need to get to the bakery. The lovely Gwen will think we've died because we haven't been in this morning, and we don't want to cause her additional stress. We need to reassure her that we're still alive and well."

"Grab my order of bacon buns while you're at it." Pax wanted to wrinkle his nose. A bakery is a brilliant idea, but my hero has only ordered bacon? Savory food? What about…?

"Pixies love sweet foods," the wolf/bear hybrid, who must be Cyrus, said with a chuckle. "I'll get Gwen to add a few donuts and sweet treats to the order, too, shall I?"

Just the idea of an iced donut was almost enough to make Pax break his wonderful rendition of an unconscious person, but he held his whimper in, just barely, and listened as two people left the room.

"You know," his hero said, sitting on the edge of the bed, "shifters can tell an awful lot about another person, like if they're truly asleep, or not."

"You knew I was faking?" Pax's eyes flew open. Storm's grin was as sexy as it had been the night before, although the shifter was now fully dressed. "Oh…er… I wasn't sure if you wanted to introduce me to your friends yet? Do you have a bathroom I could use please? Like desperately please?"

"Just through that door." Storm nodded in the direction of a door in the corner of what appeared to be a nice room. "Don't take too long. I'm partial to donuts myself, after the bacon."

"Yes, well, we'll talk about your eating habits another time. My bladder's about to burst." Pax scrambled off the bed and sprinted across the room, shutting the door behind him with one hand as he tugged on his pant's button with the other. The sigh he let out as he got his dick pointing in the right direction, finally giving some relief to his tortured bladder, was long and heartfelt.

No one thinks about little things like having to pee when they're being abducted. But Pax appreciated the relief that came from being rescued and being given access to a clean bathroom. Once finished, he shook himself off and tucked himself away and went over to the sink. "You look like an utter mess," he muttered to his mirror reflection as he washed his hands.

His dark hair was all tangled as if he'd been dragged through a bush backward. His facial hair, not that there was much of it, but it looked like he did when he'd been a teenager, desperately trying to look older by not shaving. As for his outfit… Pax looked down at his tight shirt and equally tight jeans – fine if someone was on the prowl, but in that moment, Pax felt self-conscious, like a person might do when they're slinking home after an all-night party. It didn't help that the clothes, once pristine, were now covered in stains he really didn't want to think about.

He checked his wrists. They had healed overnight, which Pax had expected they would do. They'd probably started healing the moment the cuffs had been removed. Okay, so here's the situation. I haven't got a clue where I am, but the place is nice enough. There's a shifter out there who claims we're mates despite what my uncle has told me for almost my entire life... Pax knew shifters didn't bullshit about things like that. More importantly, there're donuts coming.

It was the last point that decided Pax's course of action. The mating question and why his uncle would fill his head with lies, he could examine later. After quickly washing his face and teeth, using the new toothbrush someone, likely Storm, had left him, he clicked up a fresh set of clothes – comfortable ones this time – and ran a comb through his hair. A quick brush of his hand over his facial hair and that was tidy too. "I've got a date with donuts." Smoothing down his shirt, Pax headed out of the bathroom.