16. Thoren

Chapter sixteen

Thoren

(First dates probably shouldn't include concrete plans for family expansion)

D ec's fear and confusion send my protective instincts into high alert, which puts the rest of my brothers in the same state. We talk about the plan in exacting detail, which we don't normally do, and we go over as many possible back up plans as we can think of. We have plans A to J (Dec was helpful with some of his suggestions, and I'm confident in plan A because of that) before Uncle decides we've done enough for today, and tells us all to go rest up, including Dec, who's wide-eyed with a scent full of adrenal hormones. There's no way he'll be able to sleep in his state, but I happen to know exactly what to do to help him come down.

While the rest of my brothers head to the roof to rest, I pull my glamour back on for the walk back to my room. Mr. Simms greets Dec and me as we step out of the elevator, wagging his tail and licking Dec's hands. Dec's scent almost immediately smells of the sweet love that he has for my uncle's stolen pet.

"Such a good boy, Mr. Simms," Dec coos at the dog, petting him and feeding him treats from his pocket.

"I didn't realize you had treats in your pocket for him," I comment, surprised. Usually I can smell food, especially dog food, but Dec's scent appears to mask the treats from my nose now.

"Of course. Mr. Simms is a part of this family and he deserves as much of my regard as the rest of you." Dec straightens from his bent position, smiling at me. "Did you know he's been sleeping with me at night? I have to leave the doors to my rooms open in case he needs to go out, and I've considered installing a doggie door for him, but I haven't decided if I want to do that or if I'm comfortable with just leaving it open for him."

I take his hand and thread our fingers together, walking him toward the kitchen. We've been in a meeting for hours; he needs sustenance. "I'm surprised that Uncle hasn't been more obnoxious about losing his pet to the butler. He loves Mr. Simms."

Dec chuckles quietly, following me without hesitation. "I wondered if someone would be missing his company. He's an excellent snuggle buddy."

"Mr. Simms usually follows Uncle around all day. I doubt you noticed it, but the door to his office and the conference room both have doggie doors specifically for Mr. Simms. That dog knows how to call the elevator and which floors will get him where he needs to go. I haven't seen him in the basement for weeks." I ponder that for a moment, before concluding, "I believe you may have stolen Mr. Simms' loyalty."

Dec shrugs, blushing as he smiles. "I didn't mean to, but I'm not going to complain. I love Mr. Simms."

"Clearly he thinks highly of you too." I squeeze his hand as we enter the kitchen and release him, pointing to the small kitchen table. "Sit, if you want. I'm going to prepare us a meal."

Dec stops in his tracks and looks at me in horror. "No you very well are not," he objects, slipping around me and putting himself between me and the rest of the kitchen. "I will not be taking a verbal beating from Jax tomorrow because you decided to fuck around in her kitchen. She has left us prepared food in the oven and I will be more than happy to serve it, but you aren't touching anything except the drinks in the drinks fridge if that's what you want. I will take water and a long pour of wine."

"How do you know she left food?" I ask, backing away from the fiery glare he's using to keep me from cooking in my own kitchen.

Dec snorts. "I asked her to prepare a meal that would keep warm in the oven while everyone was arguing about making plans."

"Ah. Ever the organizer. Is that why your mother named you Decisive?" I tease, watching as he turns pink again and scoffs.

"That is not my name." He turns away to hide his blush, opening the oven and using a set of mitts to take two large casserole dishes out of the oven.

"What is your name?" If I'm staring at his ass while I ask that, it's because I think I see his underwear lines, and if he's not wearing a thong, I'll let Hawthorn beat me in our next sparring session.

Dec sets the second casserole dish on the stove top and smirks at me over his shoulder. "Tell me the truth, have you asked your uncle? Or snooped through my employment contract?"

"I have not gone snooping, but I did ask Uncle and he told me to ask you." I could pull up Dec's employment contract right now on my phone if I wanted to, but I enjoy our game and know the reward will be well worth the wait when he finally tells me.

Dec's smile is warm as he turns away to fetch a couple of plates. "Maxime is the decent sort, isn't he? Can't be said of my mother, and I honestly don't know why I haven't changed my name other than it's a whole process, and my Uncle Clive always said my name with so much... love and affection that I'm worried I'll forget if I change it how good life can be when you're steeped in the love of another person."

I can't see his face, but the way his voice cracks on the word love pulls me to him like the gravitational force of his body suddenly increased. I press in directly behind him and wrap him in a hug, holding him as close as I can. "It sounds like your uncle was very important to you," I murmur, offering him what comfort I can. I don't know what I will do when Uncle Maxime falls into the dawn, but my heart aches that he must refer to his uncle in the past tense.

Dec leans against me, resting his weight in my arms as he serves us both some of the decadent casserole that Jax made for the family. "He raised me. My mother abandoned me and he took me in. He was older than her by fifteen years, and she was already forty when I was born. I found a letter when he passed—this was three years ago—that he'd kept in his safe with his will and other important documents. It was from my mother to my uncle. When she learned that he'd stepped up, she told him that she wouldn't petition the court for custody as long as he paid her a monthly stipend and he didn't change my name. Even after he adopted me legally, I wasn't allowed to take his name; instead he changed his to match mine. I didn't realize that, of course. He never told me that he did that and I was a baby. I thought he'd given me his surname, but he hadn't. He'd changed his instead."

Dec picks up both plates, and I reluctantly release him. "That's a devoted parent. I'm grateful you had him and regretful that he isn't still in this world."

Dec sets the plates on the table and retrieves glasses from the cupboard, spurring me to return to the task of getting our drinks. "I was lucky he wanted kids and had never had them. I was lucky that he was my closest living relative and that he had the money, time, and wherewithal to pursue becoming my legal guardian and adoptive parent. I'm grateful he took me in."

There's a note of sadness in his scent as he talks about the man, and I can't help pulling him back into my arms as soon as I set the drinks down. I pick him up and press his face into my neck where my scent will be the strongest, thinking warm thoughts toward him so that my scent will comfort him. I know he's not a gargoyle who'd be able to pick up the nuances of my scent and understand my actions without words, but I'm hoping that he will get some benefit from the skinship.

"We will toast to uncles who love us," I rumble, sitting with him on my lap and pulling his plate next to mine. I've eaten many meals with one of my younger brothers on my lap, and Faulkes almost never stays in his own seat. The big brute is the cuddliest of us all and needs skinship more than any of us. Dec is tiny compared to him; it'll be easy to eat with him on my lap.

Dec breathes in deeply, nose pressed to my neck and nods. "Yes, let's do that. Is this a date?"

I feel the temperature of his skin rise as soon as he realizes he asked that question. I don't blush, but my wings tingle with the realization that perhaps this is a date. I really, really do not have a single degree of chill, do I?

Dec pulls away from my neck and moves to get off my lap, but I lock him in place without thinking and a short growl of disapproval erupts from my throat. He narrows his gaze at me. "Thoren, I need human words."

My teeth grind together, and I swallow the fine particles of sand that coat my tongue from them. He needs words. Human words. Right. "This is a date, you are my—mine. You are mine, and in order for that to not be true, you're going to have to run away like Arcan did."

Dec stares at me for an eternity of seconds that tick by connected by moments of time slowed by the singularity created by my declaration.

"I'm glad I'm not the only one of us suffering from Mine-itis," he finally says, turning thoughtful. "It's weird though, right? I've never been particularly possessive of anything or anyone. I was a kid who shared so well that when other kids took my toys, I was absolutely unbothered. My uncle thought there was something wrong with me because I let go of things so easily. But here we are, and I meet you, and you're... well, you're you , and now my heart and mind keep chanting ‘mine-mine-mine' like it doesn't matter if you don't want me. It's stupid because I'm not an asshole about consent. I know what it is and how to respect it, but I'm fairly certain that I would find a big stick to conk you over the head with and a crane to drag your stone ass to my cave if you tried to leave me. Wow, I need to stop talking now." He slaps his hands over his mouth, shaking his head like he can't believe he just spoke every thought we're both thinking.

I pull his hand from his mouth, chuckling softly. "It's a whole mood, isn't it? Caveman conking and I'm keeping you no matter what. My ancestors locked their mates in their wings so they couldn't escape."

Dec pours our drinks and hands me the glass of wine. "I thought you weren't allowed to mate," he says, then raises his glass. "To the uncles who raised us. We are grateful for their love."

I clink my glass against his and sip the dry wine with him. Setting my glass down, I answer his unspoken question. "When we were a young species, mates were our breeding partners, but the word implies a lifelong companion now. I have always wanted a mate, and my plan was to go back to Ukon to find one among the other Trustworthy, but only about fifty percent of my species ever seeks a mate. Uncle has never expressed interest in a mate. He's always been extremely settled having his nephews, and that's true of most of the aunts and uncles who raise our spawn. Very few couples raise children; most of them care for a nest, although some are breeding partners. My mother sought a mate and they were breeding partners."

"Do your brothers want mates as well?" he asks, giving me the opportunity to take a bite of meaty, potatoey, cheesy goodness.

Jax is entirely too talented as a chef and it's a shame that we're too selfish to let her leave us without much whining and begging. She's tried to get a job elsewhere twice, and Uncle raised her salary to outmatch the competition. I think she job hunts whenever she decides her skills have improved enough to warrant a raise, but she is worth every fucking penny we pay her.

"A few of them have said they would seek out mates when we go back to Ukon, but the others are content with our plan to harvest the nest we hatched in." I'm looking forward to becoming an uncle to a flock of hatchlings.

"When do you plan to go harvest the nest?" Dec asks curiously.

"The eggs we're watching will be ready to hatch in about three years. The nest isn't full yet, but we've watched a new egg added to it about once a year, so it will be full in about three, and then we'll bring our babies here." Three more eggs and the nest will be full enough for the spawn to hatch.

"Ok, you've lost me. Why does the fullness of the nest matter to when the hatching happens?" he questions, confused.

"Our young hatch together or not at all. The egglings remain dormant as their nest fills up, but once their nest is full, the bond between egglings will snap into place and then they mature and hatch. Our species doesn't want to live alone, and we are born bonded to our nestmates. We live together, grow together, and many times the bond lasts for the entire lifetime of the nestmates."

"So, on our first date, we now have a rough date for when we're going to become parents. That seems fast," Dec mumbles, like he didn't mean to say that aloud.

But, yeah, it's true. "We have three years to decide if you want that."

I would let him go if he didn't want the babies. They've been part of my plan for fifty years already. We waited for the last group to leave the nest and then put our mark on it so everyone would know that we intended to take the next group. Once a week, Faulkes travels to the nest to make sure our children are still healthy and that none of the eggs have cracked. We've lost four eggs in the last ten years, but we're hopeful that the next three will be strong enough to withstand the wait, and I won't give them up for any mate, even one as delicious as Dec.

"Dec is short for Delicious," I suggest as my mind wanders back to what he's hiding under his clothes.

"It's not, and if I'm with you, I'm all in on gargoyle babies. I won't even complain about sharing custody with your brothers," he smirks, tapping my plate with his fork. He's already finished his food, but I've been talking about gargoyles this whole time and I'm not even half done. "Hurry up, slow poke."

If the way his scent turns thirsty is any indication, I'm going to need the energy.

Yesss .