Page 16 of Hansen

Evan grinned, but there was something lurking in his eyes.Hansen opened his mouth to ask what was going on, even though he suspected that Evan was just overwhelmed and still thinking about everything.He didn’t get the opportunity to ask because the door opened behind him, and two women came in with a small army of children.

Evan’s eyes widened at the sight, and he looked like he was about to run.Hansen didn’t blame him.He wouldn’t want to deal with one kid, let alone a dozen.

“Do you still have cupcakes?”one of the women asked.Her hair was ruffled, and there was a streak of something on her cheek.She looked like he was about to collapse.

“Pleasetell me you still have cupcakes,” the other woman said.“Janice insisted that she could bake the birthday cake, but it was a disaster, and we need something to celebrate with.”

The first woman—probably Janice, considering the way she glared at the second woman—held out a candle.“There.Even one cupcake would be fine.”

“I want a cupcake, too,” one of the girls said.

“Me, too!”a boy added.

A third child was poking at a potted plant in the corner, while a boy started crying after the girl next to him pulled his hair.

Evan and Hansen looked at each other.Hansen had no idea what to do, and Evan was clearly lost.“You should ask Orion for help,” Hansen suggested.

“He’s not here.He went home early with Davey.”

The crying was getting louder, and Janice looked like she was about to punch the other mother or run out the door.Something needed to be done.

Hansen sucked in a breath.He had no idea what he was doing, but he wouldn’t let Evan face all of this on his own.It might only be a bunch of children, but as far as Hansen was concerned, they were more terrifying than hunters.

He forced himself to smile and turned toward the two mothers.“I’ll go check in the back if we have cupcakes.”

Janice dropped the candle into Hansen’s hands.Thankfully, now that she knew Hansen and Evan were going to try, she turned her attention to the crying boy.

Hansen rushed into the back room, pausing only long enough to tell the child poking at the plant to be careful.He almost cried in relief when he opened the fridge and found a tray of cupcakes.He didn’t know if Orion had gotten them ready for tomorrow, but he didn’t think Orion would mind if they used them tonight.Hansen would text him to let him know what had happened, just in case.

He grabbed the tray and rejoined Evan.The potted plant was missing a leaf now, and Janice was scolding the child.The crier had stopped crying and was in the other mother’s arms, sniffling, but his smile quickly returned when he saw the cupcakes.

Hansen put the tray down on the counter and stuck the candle into one of them.He turned to Evan because he had no idea how much they were supposed to ask for all these cupcakes.How much would that cost?

“You’re not lighting the candle?”Janice asked.

“We can provide the cupcakes, but you’ll have to take them home to eat them,” Hansen quickly said before Evan could offer to have the party at the bakery.

Janice scowled, and when she opened her mouth, Hansen was pretty sure she was about to demand they be allowed to stay.Evan looked on the edge of tears, and Hansen couldn’t allow that to happen.It was his job to protect his mate, even from an angry mother.

“That’ll be fifty dollars,” he quickly said, ignoring Evan when he made a strangled sound.

Hansen didn’t look at his mate.He stared at Janice until she finally took out her phone, but he had no idea how to take the payment.Thankfully, Evan was moving again, and by the time Hansen was done packing the cupcakes into one of the boxes Evan kept behind the counter, Janice was ready to go.

Hansen followed the two mothers and their hordes of children to the door, locking it as soon as the last kid was out.He was pretty sure he saw Janice scowl again, but he didn’t care.She and the small demons were out, and they weren’t coming back in.

Hansen had been at the bakery for only a handful of minutes, yet it had felt like an eternity.He sighed in relief and turned to Evan, a smile already on his lips.The smile vanished when he realized he couldn’t see Evan.

“Evan?”he called out.

A hand appeared over the top of the counter.Evan waved, and Hansen rushed to his side, wondering why his mate had curled up on the floor and was hugging his knees.Had something about the situation reminded him of the labs?

“Hey,” Hansen said softly as he crouched next to Evan and put a hand on his knee.

“What would I have done if you hadn’t been here?”Evan asked.

“Whatever you could.”

“I froze.I didn’t know what to say.”

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