Chapter 13

Chapter

Thirteen

" S o how are things going with Samuel?" Logan asked.

Jake looked over from the tailgate of his truck, where he sat eating his sandwich. The snow had started to melt off, the cloud cover breaking up to give them much-needed sun.

Which had flooded a drain in the downtown, of course. He and Logan had come down to dig it out, and they were going to have lunch before they moved a metric ton of snow and melted it so the same thing wouldn't happen again tomorrow.

"Good. Good." He smiled a little, because tonight he was going to work up to a nice, long goodnight kiss.

"I'm glad. I was a little worried for you. You were being stupid."

"Hey, I get no respect around here," he teased, but then he sobered. "I was, some."

"And in some ways, you were just a wounded bear. I get it. But I'm glad you got your head out of your ass."

"Ha." He looked around. "Does this winter seem as though it's deep to you?"

"Snow wise? Yeah. You think it's Samuel, don't you?"

"I think it was, yeah. He was scared. Sad. Really worried. Now he seems to be setting himself to rights."

"I think you're helping with that."

"I'm sure trying. I want to take it slow and let him trust me, but man, it's tough." Jake made a wry face. His body was…sore.

"Well…" Logan grinned. "I can tell you from experience that the mate bond forms faster if you just, you know, go for it. Do it. Samuel won't complain, I bet."

"Mmmhmm. And what if he gets pregnant?"

Logan snarfed a chip before answering. "Hey, Grant is a great age for a brother or sister."

"Says the guy who begs Lars to come babysit just so he and his mate can sleep."

Logan burst out laughing. "Guilty. But I do love those kids. It's so worth it."

"Well, I would hope so. Would be weird if you didn't."

He was seeing a whole different aspect about that this sort of thing these days, especially since Grant was getting older, and he had another adult to help whenever he needed it.

Sometimes, when he didn't need it.

He also had someone who had a book on every single subject known to man or dragon.

And someone who was trying to learn to cook. It was quite the challenge, but Samuel was trying.

"How's Grant doing?"

"He's very happy. The cries of ‘Ammu Ammu' ring day and night."

"Is that what he calls Samuel?"

Jake nodded. "Yeah, it's adorable. He came up with that all on his own. Never occurred to me that he'd be able talk and make up names, I guess. Not this young."

"Yeah, part of me wants to hear the girls say daddy, and part of me wants them never to learn to talk. It's a thing." Logan winked at him.

"I'd tell you I didn't understand that, but it would be lying, that's for absolute sure." Something Samuel said twinged his memory.

"So, something weird came up between me and Samuel. He insists that Lars is an omega. I told him it wasn't possible because Lars is a guardian, and he says that in his wing the omegas are guardians all the time."

Logan didn't say a word.

"He brought up the idea that, you know, omega bears will do anything for their cubs, and he has a point."

"Mmm." Logan watched him with those gold eyes, munching another chip.

Jake tilted his head. "He's an omega?"

Logan smiled faintly. "Lars is fierce."

"He is. I just—" Okay, there had to be a reason it wasn't common knowledge, and why Logan wasn't committing to telling him now. Jake wasn't stupid. "Right. None of my business."

"Well, as it goes, guardian business is all guardian business. But Lars prefers not to make statements."

"We're not in any kind of danger, are we?" Or was it just that they were a small wing with no one who wanted to be a guardian?

"Not that I know of, though we do have a lot of natural resources here that other wings would fight for. What we have is a lack of available guardians."

"That was my exact thought." Jake made a zipping motion across his lips. "Okay, my lips are sealed."

"Thanks, Jake. Lars and I both appreciate it."

"Can I just ask who else knows?"

"Jason, of the guardians and elders."

That made him feel better. Oh, he would bet Amber and Mari knew. Maybe a few others. But not Bea? So he was on good footing.

"I'm not too slow then."

"Or Samuel isn't."

"God, he's the most book-learned dragon I've ever met."

Logan raised an eyebrow. "Not the smartest?"

"I think that's Amber." He brushed crumbs off his hands after his last bite of sandwich, then took a sip of hot coffee out of his Thermos.

"You could be right. But she's also very caught up in her world of books and tea."

"True. The two of them really need to spend more time together." He thought Samuel would love Amber. He just really hadn't had a chance to get to know her.

"You should have a party."

Jake squinted at Logan. "What?"

"A party. You know? A get-together? Where people come to your house and bring wine and cheese and stand around and talk to each other?"

He rolled his eyes. "Yes, I know what a party is. Explain why I should have one?"

"Well." Logan held up a hand to start ticking things off his fingers. "A lot of people are desperate to see what you've done with your house. It will reinforce your status as a guardian. People will get to meet Samuel in an environment you control. Same with Grant. They'll get to see him, and it will make the memory of Susan and Jolie ease."

"Hmm." He pondered that, and he thought Logan had a point. Also, tons of folks had been cooped up at home since the big snows had dumped, and it would be nice for them to get out and do something fun. "Okay, sure. Why not?"

"Good deal. Set a date. Say Saturday in a week and a half."

"So soon?" His eyebrows flew up.

"Yes. Otherwise, you have time to talk yourself out of it. You can do it. And Samuel will fall right in and be a host. He was raised to do shit like this." Logan's grin was knowing.

"Mmm." Butterflies danced in his stomach. His sister had always been the social one, the one who could effortlessly put together a do and make people like it… "Okay, I'll talk to Samuel when I get home."

"Good." Logan crumpled up his lunch sack. "Back to work, huh?"

"Yeah. Making it safe one parking lot and road at a time," he teased.

He was going to host a party with his mate.

This was what his life was coming to.

Weird.