A Prideful Mate (4 page)

“You didn’t tell me.” The look of hurt stopped Kevin from his snappy comeback.

“We weren’t exactly in a talking mood,” he reminded Payce softly.

“I don’t know if I can handle kids. Jaguars sort of mate and dump, they don’t stick around for the after part. I can’t be a daddy.” A PRIDEFUL MATE

Amber Kell

25

Kevin straightened from his position against the counter. “Well, who asked you to? I’m their father. If you want to be a part of their lives, fine. If you don’t, Tia and I have done just fine raising them together. We don’t need a reluctant third party.”

“Who’s Tia?”

Kevin opened his mouth only to have Payce hold up his hand.

“Never mind. I’ve got to get to work. We’ll talk later.” Leaning forward, he pressed a kiss to Kevin’s lips.

Kevin reached out and cupped Payce’s cheeks between his hands. “We
will
talk later. I don’t want any secrets between us. I’m sorry if you’re upset about my kids, but I love them and I wouldn’t trade them for anything. I’m willing to work things out but I won’t give up my kids.”

Payce nodded, but his eyes refused to meet Kevin’s. “I understand.” He gave a rough laugh. “At least philosophically. I’m not asking you to give up your kids. I just need to get used to the idea.”

“Yeah?” Kevin gave him a hard kiss on the mouth. “Take your time. We’re not in a hurry.” Actually he was, his body screamed to complete the mating, but he wasn’t going to tell Payce how much he ached with the compulsion to be bound. Pressuring his mate wasn’t how he wanted to be bonded together forever. A happy mate made a happy life and he wasn’t going to put a foot wrong if he could help it.

“What is it you actually do?” Payce asked with a tired smile.

Kevin shrugged. “I keep track of stuff, accounting.”

“Desk job, huh?” Payce’s eyes tracked Kevin up and down. “You don’t look like a desk jockey.”

“Get to work. You don’t want to be late.”

Kevin didn’t want to discuss what he did. He might lose his mate’s interest if Payce found out he didn’t really do much. At his father’s death, Kevin inherited everything and spent most of his time sleeping in the sun, playing with his kids and counting his money. It was an idle life that he offset by sponsoring a charitable organisation to care for shifter children.

Lion’s Heart was now a worldwide enterprise. Kevin left the day-to-day running to staff, but made sure there were multiple independent reviews of each home so there weren’t A PRIDEFUL MATE

Amber Kell

26

any incidents of abuse. Once a year, Kevin checked out the homes himself. There were twelve homes in all with another two currently being built. Uncomfortable with being a philanthropist, Kevin didn’t want to share that part with Payce. It made him look too goody-goody which wasn’t the way to draw a sexy man to his side.

Men like Payce wanted bad boys.

Kevin could be as bad as needed to get the man he wanted.

Payce left his apartment, letting out a sigh of relief. As much as he liked Kevin and wanted him for his mate, this whole kid thing threw him for a loop.

Male jaguars didn’t do kids. They left them with their mother after inception. Payce didn’t even know who his father was and had no interest in knowing. The fact that Kevin not only knew his kids, but also was a part of their everyday life said good things about the man.

However, it opened up a bunch of insecurities Payce never knew he had.

A glimpse at Kevin’s phone, as he passed, told him they were happy, loved children.

They practically bounced with the joy they had in life.

Had he ever had that joy, even as a kid?

Thinking back, Payce didn’t think so. He wasn’t abused by any means, but his mother never glowed as much as Kevin did when his kids got on the phone. Payce didn’t mind the interruption by the children, even if his body was screaming for the sexy werelion. He did mind that Kevin didn’t want him involved.

When they finished the mating cycle, Payce would be a permanent part of Kevin’s life.

He wasn’t going to be the third wheel—a man introduced as Kevin’s mate, instead of his kid’s second father. If Payce was in this relationship, he was going to be in it completely.

Payce reached the worksite just as he realised he’d talked himself from clueless about kids to becoming father of the year in the space of a few miles. Shaking his head at his silliness, Payce got out of his truck. It took him a few minutes to realise what that pain in his chest was all about.

Yearning.

He really wanted to become a part of that happy family.

He wondered what Tia was like.

“See you made it in.” The foreman’s hard voice broke into Payce’s thoughts.

A PRIDEFUL MATE

Amber Kell

27

He glanced at his phone. “I’m right on time.”

“Hmmm.” Jim Thompson was a big man with a huge gut and a mean streak a mile wide. If he didn’t pay so well Payce would’ve left long ago, hell, half the men would’ve. “I’m going to put you in a new section. The bathrooms on the lower floor need tiling. The boxes are in the hall.”

Payce nodded. “Sounds good. I’ll clock in and get started.”

“Good.” Jim gave him a careful look over. “There’s something different about you this morning.”

Payce shrugged. He wasn’t going to tell his boss he had that ‘just bit by my mate’ glow.

“Get to work.”

“Yes, sir.” Walking away, Payce had to struggle with controlling his erection as memories of his mate surfaced. “Shit.” He tried to think of boring things as he made his way to the lobby bathroom on the bottom floor.

Why they needed a bathroom at the lobby level he didn’t know, but he suspected they were adding a restaurant and some commercial enterprises. It wasn’t really any of his business as long as they paid him regularly. They could put in a zoo and he’d tile the stalls. It was all the same to him. Payce only got interested when he was hired to do mosaics. That was the tile work he loved. There was a deep satisfaction in creating a picture from a gazillion little pieces that he didn’t get from setting a million white tiles all in a row.

However, with the current economy, those kinds of jobs were few and far between.

Not one to fixate on bad fortune, Payce walked through the marble halls, his professional eye checking for errors in the tile he’d helped lay last week.

“Looks good.” Dennis Wills, his best friend and the only other shifter on the job site, sauntered up. His coyote eyes scanned the tile, even as he discreetly sniffed his friend.

“Why are you sniffing me?” Payce asked, waiting to see if Dennis guessed what was going on.

Dennis’ piercing blue eyes went wide. “You’re mated. You found your mate. Yes!!!” Payce’s head spun as Dennis picked him up and swung him around in a circle.

“Congratulations.”

Laughing, Payce tried to catch his balance when he was unceremoniously set back on his feet. “Thanks.”

A PRIDEFUL MATE

Amber Kell

28

“What’s he like?”

Payce sighed. “Absolutely gorgeous.”

“Well, you’re going to think that. He’s your mate. It is a
he,
right?” Payce nodded. “I met him through a dating service.” Dennis shoved his smartphone at his friend. “Show me his picture.”

“Fine.” Shaking his head, Payce logged onto the site and pulled up Kevin’s profile.

“Oh, my God!” Dennis said, staring at his phone. “He’s fucking beautiful! You lucky bastard.”

Payce couldn’t stop smiling. “He is, isn’t he?”

“When did this happen?”

“Yesterday. He’s visiting me from the Cascade Mountains.”

“So why are you here instead of at your apartment?” Payce sighed as he remembered what had him fleeing his home. “He’s got kids.”

“Umm, and you hate kids?”

“No! I don’t know how I feel about kids, but he was all about letting me out of the entire thing. Before I had a chance to respond, he was telling me I don’t have to be part of their lives if I don’t want to, but what kind of asshole doesn’t want to help raise his mate’s kids?”

Dennis was staring at him like he’d grown two heads. “What was your father like?” Payce shrugged. “I never met him.”

“Mine kicked me out as soon as I was eighteen. He would’ve done it earlier if humans let you. He was a complete bastard. What kind of father is your guy?” Payce smiled at the memory. “I only saw him talking to them once, but they stole their mother’s phone to call him. They were young, really adorable.” Dennis kicked him, hard.

“Oww. What the fuck was that for?”

“You have a gorgeous mate who is a devoted father and considerate of your feelings, and you left him to come and lay tile. What kind of idiot are you? Get your ass back home before he decides you’re too much trouble and leaves town.” A PRIDEFUL MATE

Amber Kell

29

“You think he might do that?” Panic filled Payce. Sure he wasn’t all lovey when he left Kevin, but that didn’t mean the man would leave him. After all they were mates. Didn’t that mean he had to put up with Payce’s crap?

Dennis shoved him towards the exit. “Go. I’ll cover for you.”

“Thanks.” He gave his friend a quick hug.

Rushing out of the building, he reached into his pocket and pressed the alarm for his truck.

The explosion rocked the neighbourhood. Before his terrified gaze, Payce’s truck blasted into pieces. Bits of scrap metal whipped through the air smashing into windows and littering the street.

His truck.

Exploded.

Payce ducked as a tire streaked by his head.

Staring at the scene, it took him a moment to realise it was his cell phone ringing and not his ears.

“Hello.”

“Hey, babe. Can you meet for lunch?” Kevin’s soft drawl was a welcoming sound.

“Come get me. My truck just blew up.”

“I’m on my way.” Kevin hung up without another word.

Payce had to give him credit. His mate didn’t panic in an emergency.

“What happened?” Dennis appeared beside him, staring at the bits of metal and flames in astonishment.

“Someone blew up my truck!” He still couldn’t believe it. His hands shook as he tried to put the phone back in his pocket. It proved to be a next to impossible task as his nerves were shot and he couldn’t still his fingers enough to slide it in.

A noise kept distracting him from his friend’s concerned questioning. It took him a moment to realise the sound was his teeth chattering. He’d almost died just as he found his mate. Why would anyone want to kill him?

Kevin would never let him go to work alone again. He could already hear the southern man losing his drawl.

The sound of sirens filled the air.

A PRIDEFUL MATE

Amber Kell

30

Within minutes the fire department was putting out the burning husk of his car and a couple of cop cars arrived to divert traffic and investigate the scene.

“Are you the owner of that truck?” An officer in a blue uniform approached.

“Yes.”

“Baby, are you all right?” Kevin rushed through the crowd to wrap a supportive arm around Payce.

“My truck…” Payce pointed to the now foam covered carcass that was his vehicle.

“What happened?”

“That’s what we’re trying to figure out,” the cop pointed out. A frown marred his forehead as he looked at the pair of men. “I’m Officer Young, could you tell me how this happened?”

“I-I just pressed my alarm button and it exploded.”

“So we’re talking about a bomb of some sort,” the cop said.

“Apparently,” Kevin said. “My m-boyfriend is in shock. I need to get him home. He can come in tomorrow and talk to you. He doesn’t know any more than that he pressed his alarm.”

As Kevin put a protective arm around him, Payce resisted the urge to burrow into his mate’s arms.

The cop nodded and handed over his card. “Give me a call. I’m on duty all day tomorrow.”

“Thank you,” Payce said over his shoulder, because Kevin was already moving them towards a battered truck.

He didn’t say anything as he was stuffed in the truck and buckled in like he was a two-year-old. Payce decided he liked being taken care of. None of his boyfriends before were the nurturing type. Despite his dominant nature, Kevin was extremely nurturing. Payce wondered if it was because he was used to being around his kids.

“We’ll get you home and pack you a bag.”

“What do I need a bag for?”

“Because we’re getting you the hell out of town.”

“I have to talk to that cop tomorrow. I want this bastard caught.”

“Have there been any other things happening?” A PRIDEFUL MATE

Amber Kell

31

Payce turned to look at his mate. “Nothing I thought was on purpose. My foreman hit me with a piece of wood the other day and an iron beam fell and knocked my shoulder out of joint two weeks ago.”

Now that he was thinking about it, there had been a series of accidents. Accidents that he’d put out of his mind once they were over, because he always healed.

“Someone is trying to kill me.” The words left his mouth as soon as the realisation set in. He regretted them as soon as he saw the expression of horror on his mate’s face.

Kevin’s mouth tightened and Payce could see his mate’s hands turn white on the steering wheel. “Who do you think it is?”

“My foreman’s the one who hit me with the wood.” Kevin shrugged. “That doesn’t necessarily make him the bad guy. That could’ve been an accident.”

“Maybe, but the guy has always given me the creeps.” It didn’t take long to get to Payce’s place. He let Kevin help him out of the truck and into his apartment.

“Where’s your suitcase?”

“Hall closet.”

“Go collect your clothes.”

The southern lion’s accent was completely missing.

Shit.

Kevin was pissed. Looking at his mate’s face he saw the sparkly, laughing gaze was gone, in its place were eyes of solid gold, hard, flat and dangerous. A predator peered out at him. Kevin’s lion was close to the surface, roaring to get out and protect his own.

“I-I’ll get my stuff.”

Familiar with his own cat, Payce didn’t run down the hall. He walked slowly, carefully and as casually as possible. The first rule in dealing with a predator was to not to make yourself prey.