Page 15 of A Bunny for the Bear
They shared a look, then nodded at me. "Sure thing, son," Uncle Champ said as he steered us towards his old beat-up truck.
I hopped in the back since there wasn't any room in the cab for me to be comfortable. That, and I had a feeling the two of themwanted to talk about me in peace. I would still hear the muffled sound of their voices even with the wind and noise of the truck, though I could tune them out. I'd done it for many years while I lived under their roof.
The drive was short. As soon as they pulled up to the house I hopped out. Of course the two of them weren't going to let me off the hook that easily. They followed me to the front door and then inside.
When the door shut behind us all, Uncle Champ propped himself against it as he waved us towards the couch. "You two go sit. I'll stay right here in case things get out of hand."
I took a deep breath, worried that this was how life would be now. I’d had one unfortunate incident. Now everyone was going to walk on eggshells around me.
The scent of my mate filtered through my nose a moment later. I was reminded yet again that he had somehow been here.
My aunt must have seen my confusion because she pressed my shoulder to ease me down, then she sat beside me. She took both of her hands and wrapped them around mine.
I wasn't sure if she was trying to hold me steady or give me comfort.
"I'm about to tell you something, but I need you to remain calm, okay?"
“Sure,” I answered.
She shared a look with my uncle then faced me again. "Your mate lives on the other side of this duplex."
Everything came to a grinding halt.
"He lives here?" My voice was steady as I forced myself to remain calm like she’d asked me to.
Aunt Souli nodded. "Yes, he does. You're not going to go over there right now though. In fact, you're not going to approach him at all."
“I don't intend to, but Fate’s asshole, this is really fucking ridiculous.”
"Hey!" my uncle shouted. "Watch your mouth around your aunt."
"She curses a lot more than I do," I told my uncle. "She just plays innocent around you."
Aunt Souli pressed both hands to her chest after releasing me suddenly. "How dare you betray me? This is a criminal offense.”
Her dramatics had us all laughing. It eased the tension in the room, but it was quickly brought back to life when she pulled out her phone.
"Give me a second," she said as she typed away furiously on the screen.
I kept quiet because I had a feeling I knew what she was doing. I had been aware enough to hear her tell Ross to give her his number. And she had said she needed to check with him before she told me some things.
A minute later, she nodded and tucked the phone back away.
"Okay, Ross said that I could tell you what he shared with me. What I'm about to say is privileged information. Champ doesn't even know it yet."
My uncle nodded at me. "She's right. The woman always has all the juicy details before anyone else, and this time she was sworn to secrecy."
“I understand what you're saying, Aunt Souli. Whatever you're about to tell me, I'll listen, and I'll do my best not to react. My bear is pleased to know that our mate is close by. I think it's enough for now to keep him at bay.”
"Good," she told me, voice firm.
Then she went on todamn nearbreak my heart.
She told me about my mate's old pack, about the way he was mistreated and bullied, how they basically tortured him for years, making him feel like he didn't deserve any sort of peace or happiness. She told me about how he didn't think he would have a mate, yet he came all this way just to try.
She also explained that he was a small shifter, though she didn't tell me what type. I had a few guesses in mind. My bear wasn't bothered in the slightest either, which was good news.
It wasn't that I was a predator, and he was prey. If Fate deemed him to be mine, then there was no question to it. I would love him and protect him through anything. Even his past wouldn't get to haunt him as long as I was around.
