Chapter 10 - Sage

I was unsurprised that Rune probably said or did something duchy, and my reluctant mate took offense on my behalf. Auðr may be in full denial about our mate bond, but I’ve seen the glimmers of his protective side. He’s trying so hard to keep that canoe afloat and moving in that river of denial, but it sounds like he’s lost his paddles, and that canoe is starting to rock. I wonder what more it will take to get him out of that boat and his denial.

“What does me having sired Rune and the others have to do with any of them disliking you?” Auðr asked.

“Well, I figure that there’s some sire bond. They are all attached to you as their creator. I mean, you probably have some bond with Caleb. Right?” I said.

“A bond to Caleb… I guess.” Auðr shrugged. “We’re friends, and I respect him. However, I can be away from him and live as I see fit without interfering with how he lives his.”

“That’s the difference between you and the band, Uncle Auðr. Caleb didn’t find you at your lowest. He found you near death, yes, but not at your lowest. If anything, he found you at your most pissed off. The band had all tried to kill themselves, having lost the will to live. You gave them something to live for. You finding a mate, a werewolf mate at that, makes them worry you’ll leave the band. Without you and this band, what do they have?” Léonel said.

“I’m not looking to break the band up. I’m no Yoko. I love living in Bloodmoon and being with my family, but I’m down to be wherever Auðr is. I wouldn’t cramp their style. They can feed and whatever. That’s not my business.” I held my hands up.

“Don’t worry about the band. When I’ve decided what’s happening, I’ll have a band meeting, and we’ll talk about it. The band doesn’t have to break up no matter what happens between us.” Auðr sighed.

“That doesn’t sound like a rejection, but it also doesn’t sound like you’re accepting my siblings.” River frowned.

“It’s okay, River. Bloodmoon respects the mate bond, but we also respect our mates. If Auðr is uncertain, I can’t blame him. The only reason I’m not freaking out with intrusive thoughts and uncertainty is I have Eclipse, and he is all in on being with Auðr.” I assured my twin, not wanting him to cause a scene.

“Fine. I’ll leave that subject alone.” River sighed. “I still want to know about the old drummer.”

“Fine. It’s not all that interesting of a story.” Auðr sighed.

I think he was happy about the subject change, and I don’t blame him.

“Corwin was a sloppy and disgraceful vampire who crossed an uncrossable line that would’ve gotten all of us on the Order’s radar. So, I did what was necessary and killed him before the rest of us could be held to any level of accountability by human laws or the Order.” Auðr explained.

“What did Corwin do that was so bad you had to kill him?” River asked.

“Beyond that, he wasn’t disposing of his victims properly. He had decided to switch his victim type to children. The moment I found out he’d been feeding on children, it was over for him.” Auðr said.

“Well fuck. That’s a well-deserved demise.” Leo nodded.

“What about my question about Rune? I mean, I’m sure it’s just the mate bond, but what happened that made you want to kill him?” Leo asked.

“It wasn’t specifically about Rune or his issue with Sage.” Auðr shook his head.

“Rune has always been an asshole. He likes to present himself as an open-minded person. He says he’s respectful to all people when he isn’t. Over the years, he’s gotten worse at letting his specialism slip through. Many vampires look down on humans despite being one before turning because they are our food. Which is why he was rude to Hana the first time Albert brought her to a show. Also, as a vampire, he looks down on werewolves, no offense, because again, it’s common among our species to dislike werewolves.” Auðr said.

“Okay, so Rune is a cunt. And you’re sticking to the story, and it has nothing to do with Sage and how you feel about them.” Leo said, accepting Auðr’s answer while also teasing him.

Auðr groaned, pinching the bridge of his nose. My poor mate is in for so much annoyance with my family. Granted, meeting River and Leo first might have gotten the worst out of the way. However, it’s hard to say how Mom, Daddy Hale, and Austin will handle meeting my vampire. I’m not super worried about Suzie. She’s pretty chill about most things. However, I should probably keep her away from Rune. If he thought my slap hurt, Suzie would crush his bones.

“Okay, enough teasing, my mate,” I said. “It’s getting late, and we should go home before Mom or Daddy Hale come looking for us.”

“Daddy Hale?” Auðr arched his brow.

“Ooo, is some jealous that his mate called another ‘daddy’?” River teased.

“I told you to stop teasing him.” I smacked my twin in the arm. “He’s our stepdad. We just started calling him Daddy Hale, mostly because it makes him twitch. But he’s awesome and fully mates to our mom.” I assured Auðr.

“I see. The poor man.” Auðr said.

“Hale, as in Hale Shelton?” Léonel asked.

“Yeah, that’s him. Why? How do you know him?” I asked.

“Well, other than that, he was a white wolf, something rare. My grandmother Bethany’s brother was Edith Gibson’s grandfather. Her mate is Maxton Walterson. Maxton was friends with Hale. So, we heard about how Hale lost his wolf when his mate died. Many in my family used Hale as an example of how a person could carry on without a mate and a wolf.” Léonel explained.

“Oh…” I glanced at River, who was thinking the same thing as I was.

‘That a high standard to hold anyone to. Will this make meeting our family weirder?’ I asked in our link.

‘Maybe? I mean, this is our family. Weird is kind of our family’s MO.’ River chuckled.

“Is it going to be a problem for you to meet him? Especially not that he’s gotten a second chance mate with Erin and his wolf back?” Leo asked.

“Yeah. I’ll be fine. It’s not Hale’s fault my parents tried to use him as a healthy example of how to face life without a mate or wolf.” Léonel waved dismissively.

“Cool. Then we’re still on for you to come by tomorrow?” Leo asked.

“Of course. Do you need a ride home? Do either of you have a license, let alone a car?” Léonel asked.

“We both have our licenses and borrowed Daddy Hale’s car,” River said, holding the keys.

“All right. Well, text me when you get home and the address so we can stop by tomorrow. Léonel instructed.

“We? Are you talking like you’re royalty now? Or talking about the mouse in your pocket?” Auðr arched his brow.

“We as in you and I, Uncle Auðr.” Léonel rolled his eyes. “Tomorrow is our free day. I’m going to spend time with Leo, and you are going to spend time with Sage and figure your shit out. And before you try to argue with me, do not make me call Caleb or, possibly worse, tell Albert, who will tell Hana.”

“I don’t think you or anyone you mentioned gets to meddle in my life.” Auðr shook his head.

“Think what you like, but one way or another, you’re going with me tomorrow evening. You can’t simply ignore finding a mate.” Léonel sighed.

“Do you just not want to be around me?” I frowned, holding his clothes a little tighter to my chest.

“Sage…” Auðr sighed. “Fine. I’ll come over tomorrow night. We can discuss all this without my bandmates interjecting their opinions.”

“Good. And I’ll keep my family from butting their noses in, too.” I smiled. “Did you want these back, or do I get to keep them?” I asked, offering his clothes.

“It’s fine. I have a rather extensive wardrobe simply because I throw clothes into the audience.” Auðr held a hand up.

“Good to know. Then I guess I’ll see you tomorrow night.” I smiled, feeling shy now that I had to say goodnight.

“Just kiss your mate goodbye, and let’s go home.” River shoved me into Auðr.

I stumbled forward. It wasn’t some romantic comedy moment or anything. I leaned too far forward and headbutted Auðr in the chest while he was trying to steady me. As he grunted from the impact, I went to right myself, and I knocked into his chin. We both ended up on the floor. Auðr was rubbing his jaw, and I was rubbing the top of my head. All while River, Leo, and Léonel were laughing at our misfortune.

“Fucking… thick… skulled… wolves…” Auðr cursed.

“Sory… fuck… I didn’t… ow… to.” I apologized.

“Oh, you two are just precious.” Léonel laughed.

“Go fuck yourself, Léonel,” Auðr grumbled as he got to his feet and then pulled me to mine.

“Are you all right?” Auðr asked, touching the top of my head.

“Yeah, though, shouldn’t I be asking you that? You’re the one that got headbutted in the chest and jaw.” I chuckled, touching his chin.

Mmm. There goes those sparks again. Everyone else faded away when I locked eyes with Auðr. There was no stopping what happened next, even if I wanted to, which, for the record, I wanted this to happen. I don’t know who moved first. I don’t care either. All that mattered was Auðr’s lips on mine. Damn, do I like how he kisses. Too bad it didn’t last long. Auðr pulled back and cleared his throat.

“You three should go home. I’ll see you tomorrow, and we can talk then.” Auðr said, putting his hands in his pockets.

“All right. I’ll see you tomorrow.” I smiled.

I grabbed the jacket, vest, and tie I’d dropped and left with a big smile. Not simply because I’d get to see Auðr tomorrow. I was smiling because I suspected he did the hands-in-pockets move to keep them to himself. I ignored River and Leo’s teasing on the drive home, too lost in thoughts about Auðr and what tomorrow would bring. I hope my family will like him and vice versa. I need tomorrow to go just right to convince him our mating is right.