Total pages in book: 85
Estimated words: 79314 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 397(@200wpm)___ 317(@250wpm)___ 264(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 79314 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 397(@200wpm)___ 317(@250wpm)___ 264(@300wpm)
Jag turned to look at him, all too close for comfort, but he could be like that sometimes, getting into people’s personal space. “So he’s fair game now?”
“The fuck? Of course not,” Shane roared and shoved his head right back to the ground.
“Why would you let him go like that then? And you say I’m the one who’s hard to understand!” Jag shook his head under Cerberus’s scrutiny. “If he’s yours then you keep him. You protect, provide, and mate with him, not leave him crying and driving off on his own! What if I wasn’t there to escort him out?” he said, as if the junkyard was overrun by rabid bears.
Shane had seen Ros shed tears, but hearing about it from someone else punched even harder, and he dragged himself into a sitting position, facing Cerberus, who stepped closer with a whine that made Shane hug his neck.
“Thanks for… taking care of that for me,” he said, because he figured the appreciation might steer Jag far away from Ros.
Poor Ros with whom Shane definitely hadn’t protected last night.
He let out a howl and slapped his own aching face first with one hand, then the other, but the sting didn’t bring much relief to his throbbing heart. As weird as Jag was, maybe he was right when it came to this? Shane had mated with Ros, but not only had he not taken any responsibility but had also attempted to use the poor boy as a pawn. And Ros had done nothing to deserve it.
For all Shane knew, he might not even be Ed Beck’s real kid.
Cerberus whined and pawed at Shane’s hand so he wouldn’t slap himself again, but Jag let out a howl similar to Shane’s own and sat closer. It should have annoyed Shane, made him want to scold the crazy fucker, but he couldn’t sense a false note in Jag’s behavior, nor a hint of mockery. This moment felt like a primal connection that didn’t require words. Jag was just there, ready to feel this pain alongside Shane.
Jag’s recipe for a successful relationship sounded so silly, so simplistic, yet it was exactly what Shane longed for. Provide, protect, and mate. He couldn’t imagine a happier life.
He didn’t know how yet, but he would find a way to unfuck this.
Chapter 14 – Shane
A month had passed since Shane had seen Ros or heard from him in any capacity, but the longing to reach out had never been greater. He’d been telling himself that he ought to give the boy space and let him deal with what happened, no matter how much Jag tried to convince him otherwise. But there was another side to this coin—the more time passed since Rosen had stormed out of the shipping container the more scared Shane was of seeing disgust in Rosen’s blue eyes.
Jag’s pseudo-tribal views were irrelevant most times, but he could have had a point about a wounded deer making for an easier chase. He’d pestered Shane about going after Ros for days after Thanksgiving, but that ship had sailed when college started its winter break.
Shane had resigned himself to staying strong and waiting instead of stalking Ros all the way to Ed Beck’s home. While the vision of climbing in through Ros’s window seemed romantic in his mind, he was well aware that after the way they’d last parted, sneaking up on the boy would be the worst possible move.
So he busied himself with training Cerberus, did any work Frank wanted him for and distracted himself by spending time with the new buddies he’d so far mostly ignored. Jag started growing on him once he bonded with Cerberus, and while Dex had dirt and worms for brains, he was fun to be around. Unfortunately, the latter also had the libido of a school boy and kept flirting with Shane whenever Frank was out of sight, which was yet another reminder of how much he missed the boy.
Rosen had such a genuine smile, and had adored Shane despite them being from different worlds. How could Shane have been so dumb? He could have had his cheeks caressed by Rosen’s warm thighs right now, he could be running his fingers through the long wavy hair and making out with Ros as if he were twenty again. Fate had given him another shot at the youth he’d lost to prison, and Shane had fucked it up. Getting that chance taken away hurt every day, and the only thing pushing Shane forward was the thought that he would be attempting contact again.
The cops hadn’t knocked on Frank’s door so far, which meant that Ros hadn’t reported the attack. That had to count for something. Maybe not all was yet lost.
“Tell me when you’re ready,” Dex said and rubbed his hands together. He then lowered his sweatpants to expose the top of his underwear to the rhythm of the music beating inside the frat house. It had snowed recently, and while the thin white blanket had since thawed, the cold confined the Back-to-School party inside the building, with the exception of the poor souls who had to go out for a smoke.