Fated Forgiveness (Kindred of Arkadia Book 4) Read online

  Rebecca's face turned to a mask of horror before her bottom lip started to quiver.

  "Oh no," Kate said, looking around for another cup of coffee.

  "Connor hates me and Doc hates me!" Rebecca ranted.

  Sebastian looked over to Liam pleadingly. Liam smiled and nodded. He stood and scooped Rebecca up in his arms before sitting down and settling her on his lap.

  "Okay, baby girl, why did they take you off caffeine?" He asked gently.

  Sebastian's heart was melting. His mate had to be the kindest man he had ever met, how could he have ever doubted him? Rebecca was as exasperating as she was amazing. Living with her he'd had some of the best times of his life. Liam seemed to have infinite patience when it came to the tiny human.

  "They think I'm too excitable, that I'm all over the place and expending too much energy. I tried to tell them that this is au naturel"—she pointed to herself—"but they didn't believe me. All because I've lost a pound or two." She sniffled, looking at Liam pitifully. Sebastian's ears perked up and he saw Kate lean forward.

  "What do you mean, 'a pound or two,' Rebecca?" Kate asked sternly.

  "It was only two pounds and ninety-six ounces," she mumbled. Liam frowned. Sebastian looked at Kate, who was frowning down at her fingers.

  "You've lost eight pounds? Since when?" Sebastian asked, putting them both out of their mathematical misery.

  "Since last week." Rebecca sighed and stared down at her lap.

  "Rebecca!" Sebastian gasped. Liam saw the shocked expression on his face before turning to stare with concern at his friend.

  "Is that a lot?" Liam asked, looking from Sebastian to Kate and back.

  "In addition to what she lost in the first trimester due to morning sickness, it's drastic," Ma said, coming from behind the counter. She held out a tall frosted glass with what looked to be a milkshake to Rebecca.

  "What's that?" She eyed the glass with a colorful swirly straw sticking out of the whip cream suspiciously. She took the glass and scrunched her nose.

  Ashby and Gabriel walked into the diner. Ashby smiled when he saw what Rebecca was holding.

  "That is my newest concoction. I made it especially for my Alpha Mother. I gave Ma the recipe last week and made sure we had all of the ingredients here," Ashby explained.

  "Is it a milkshake?" Rebecca asked, perking up.

  Ashby winked at Ma. "Something like that. Try it." He sat down next to Kate as Gabriel took the last empty seat filling the table.

  Rebecca took a small sip from the glass and her face brightened. "It tastes like coffee!" She attacked the straw and inhaled half the cup. Ashby winked at Sebastian and nodded to Rebecca, who was sucking up the last of the concoction through the straw, trying to get the whipped cream off the side of the glass.

  "What was that?" Sebastian asked curiously, leaning forward and taking a sniff.

  "It's a mochachino-flavored protein shake that I doctored up. Not only does it taste like coffee with no caffeine, it's filled with all her daily vitamins, and also acts as a meal replacement, which will hopefully help her gain weight." Ashby looked extremely proud of himself.

  Rebecca looked at Ashby, her eyes wide. "But it didn't taste bad." She frowned down at the empty glass.

  "That's the point. It should help satisfy your coffee cravings too. Ma and I have been worried about how much weight you've lost, so I thought this would be the closest thing to coffee you can get. Don't you like it?" he asked, looking dejected. Rebecca quickly backpedaled.

  "Of course I like it. I love it! I'm just surprised I like it." Rebecca rubbed her small belly.

  "I'm full." she said, and yawned.

  Sebastian had the urge to shift and curl in her lap. He had been looking after her for months, and it was hard to let old habits die.

  "Aww, is my baby boy purring? Yes he is! He liked the new milkshake," Liam said, making baby noises at Rebecca and rubbing her stomach. Sebastian and Ashby laughed.

  "Put my mate down so I can beat you to death." A low grumble filled the diner.

  "Look, Rebecca, it's your grumpy bear. Be careful or he might find out about our torrid affair. Shush," Liam said, in a mock whisper. Sebastian rolled his eyes.

  Gently, Aleks lifted Rebecca out of Liam's lap. He pulled over a chair from another table and sat down with Rebecca snuggled against him.

  "As if she would touch your mangy ass. And the baby isn't purring, he's growling. He doesn't like you." Aleks grunted.

  Rebecca thumped his shoulder. "Don't say that. The baby loves his Uncle Liam." She yawned again.

  Liam pouted and looked down at his empty lap. "Now my lap is empty." He looked up at Sebastian meaningfully.

  Sebastian stared at him for a moment, stood and shyly walked over to Liam, who grabbed him around the waist, pulling him into his lap.

  "Come on, Becca, it's time for your appointment. We get the test results back about your vitamin levels today," Aleks said, putting Rebecca on her feet before standing.

  "Thanks for my magic shake, Ashers. I can't wait to have another one for lunch." Rebecca leaned down and kissed his cheek.

  He smiled up at her. "I have to watch out for my godson," Ashby replied.

  "I'm out too. Caleb and Bran have a surprise picnic waiting for me," Kate announced.

  "If it's a surprise how do you know about it?" Sebastian asked.

  Kate winked. "I have my ways. Later guys." She waved and headed out behind Rebecca and Aleks.

  "I hate to ruin what is obviously a much-needed tender moment, but I was wondering if I might discuss something with you, Liam?" Gabriel asked.

  Sebastian thought that the elegantly dressed prince seemed out of place at the diner. The way the vampire kept looking at Ashby, he could see that Gabriel wouldn't let the beautiful man out of his sight for long, even if it meant hanging out in the diner.

  "Sure, what's up?" Liam asked.

  "The townspeople haven't warmed up to my coven yet, in particular, a Mr. Gilberton, the proprietor of Bobbles and Things." Gabriel's melodic voice soothed Sebastian's frayed nerves. He felt himself relaxing into Liam, who tightened his hold.

  "Gilberton is a nasty old bastard who hates everyone. What has he done this time?" Liam sighed. Liam had grown up in Arkadia, and everyone knew that he and Mr. Gilberton had bumped heads on more than one occasion. The old man usually backed down because he believed that Liam would one day inherit his grandfather's council seat and become an Elder.

  "He said some particularly nasty things to David and Daniel. Now they don't want to leave the house. They were the only ones willing to venture into town, and I'm afraid the entire coven is now suffering from their boredom." Gabriel sighed, and Sebastian peeked over to Ashby, who was rolling his eyes. Sebastian had to agree with Gabriel, though. The twins were a handful.

  "I'll speak with him today. I'm not saying he'll listen, but I'll warn him about the potential negative side effects on his business, if he were to piss off my pride. I swear they eat their weight in chocolate on a weekly basis." Liam shook his head.

  "Actually, I have a favor to ask regarding the pride," Ashby said, twisting a napkin in his hands. Liam looked at Ashby's nervous gesture and raised an eyebrow.

  "Ashby, relax. You're my friend. Now, what can my crazy bunch of lions do for you?" he asked, as his hand started to rub up and down Sebastian's back. Without conscious thought, Sebastian arched his back and began to purr. When he realized what he was doing, his head snapped down and he looked at Liam, Ashby and Gabriel, embarrassment flooding him.

  Liam leaned in and whispered, "Never be embarrassed by how I make you feel. I think that purring is the sexiest shit I have ever heard." Liam nipped Sebastian's ear.

  Gabriel cleared his throat and Ashby elbowed his mate, his cheeks turning pink. "What Ashby was going to say, is that we would like to extend an invitation to the lions to visit us at the coven house. Of all the groups here in Arkadia, your pride has been the most welcoming, especially Rian and Talon. We'd like to foster as
many friendships as possible." Gabriel explained.

  Sebastian knew that Rian and Damian had already been to the coven house a few times. He didn't know about the rest of the pride.

  "They were probably looking to get laid," Liam said bluntly. Sebastian's mouth dropped and he slapped Liam's chest.

  Liam looked down at him, looking confused.

  "What?" he asked, and Sebastian could tell he had no idea at all why he was being hit. He palmed his forehead with his hand and shook his head. He heard a snort. When he looked up Ashby, was trying to contain his giggles.

  "I'll explain later," Sebastian whispered, and Liam shrugged before turning back to the vampire prince.

  "That's cool, Gabriel. Just let me know what you'd like to do and I'll let my guys know."

  Gabriel and Ashby stood.

  "Excellent, I'll get Roman to organize an event. We have to do something, it makes me uneasy that the people are still nervous around us. Nervous people sometimes react in fear." Gabriel's eyes changed from a deep blue to an impenetrable black before turning back to blue. Sebastian and Liam stared up at him, unblinking.

  "Neat," Liam said.

  Gabriel raised a single dark brow his eyes twinkling. "I'm glad to see that the two of you have found your way to each other. May your mating be a happy one." Gabriel inclined his head before he and Ashby walked out of the diner.

  "I'm glad we found our way, too," Sebastian said quietly.

  "Let's go chat with Gilberton and then head to the pride house so we can relax and talk, would that be ok?" Liam asked

  "I'd really like that," Sebastian said, getting choked up.

  Liam pulled him down and kissed him on the top of his head. "Come on, kitten, we'll walk to Bobbles and Things then head home."

  Sebastian hopped down and Liam stood. Sebastian prayed to every single deity he had ever heard of that what Liam said would be true and that the pride house would become his home.

  * * * *

  "Mr. Gilberton, I just had an interesting conversation with Prince Gabriel," Liam began, as he and Sebastian walked through the door.

  Gilberton looked at Liam through thick, gray, bushy eyebrows and muttered. "What did the fag bloodsucker want?"

  Sebastian's eyes widened as he edged behind Liam, trying to make himself as small as possible.

  "To discuss your attitude and blatant contempt towards not only vampires but also homosexuals, who, by the way, make up a large percentage of your clientele," Liam said, crossing his arms over his broad chest, widening his stance as he stood in front of the counter.

  Sebastian saw that Lucy, the store's only employee, had backed away from the old man to stand closer to one of the display cases. The red panda clearly did not want to be associated with Gilberton.

  "I see the rumors about you mating with that little fag are true. Your parents would be ashamed to call you their son, Liam Lewenhart," Gilberton spat venomously.

  Sebastian felt Liam tense at the mention of his parents. He placed his hand against Liam's muscled back in a show of support.

  "Mr. Gilberton, my parents are as closed-minded as you are. Evidently you don't need pride business or fag money. Come on Sebastian, let's head home," Liam said, firmly wrapping an arm around his small mate.

  "Don't threaten me, cub! Your father was a thousand times the Alpha you will ever be. I'm sure he'll be interested to know his only son is a cocksucking queer!" Gilberton shouted.

  Sebastian heard the bells on the door chime. He and Liam turned to see Kate, Caleb and Bran standing in the doorway. The men held the twins. Kate's mouth was open and she appeared to be speechless.

  The small, dark-haired boy in Caleb's arms leaned forward and began to growl at the old man. The other twin mimicked his brother and alternated between growling and hissing.

  "I'm not craving chocolate for our picnic anymore," Kate announced as she turned and left the store, her mates right behind her.

  "You are costing me business!" Gilberton shouted.

  "No, the hate that you spew is doing that. Come on, Sebastian." Liam led Sebastian out of the store.

  Kate, Caleb and Bran were waiting for them on the wide sidewalk outside of the shop. Kate's face was pinched in anger.

  "I had no idea he was treating people like that. If I hadn't met up with my boys coming out of the grocery store and decided I wanted chocolate, I would never have heard that crap. If he says those types of horrible things to you as the lions' Alpha, what must he be saying to others?" She shook her head.

  "You know we support you, Liam. I'll spread word around the pack to find another place to get their sweets." Bran bounced Landon, who was now all smiles and blowing kisses to Liam.

  Sebastian could see Liam's eyes softening as he reached for Landon. Bran smiled knowingly as he passed the boy over.

  "Have you missed your Uncle Liam? I bet you've missed Uncle Rian, too," Liam said, kissing the small boy on the neck and making him squeal. Sebastian leaned forward and began to purr. Landon broke out into giggles and began to purr loudly, sounding like an excited kitten.

  "We'll bring them by later in the week. I take it that the two of you…" Kate let the thought trail off as she pointed between Liam and Sebastian. Liam smiled, showing off his even, white teeth against his golden tan.

  "Yup, I've pretty much pulled my head out of my ass and we're going to make this work," Liam said.

  "Good! Rebecca and I were planning an intervention. If you hadn't come into the diner we were going to hunt you down." Kate's eyes danced wickedly.

  Liam swallowed hard. "No, we're good! I swear."

  "We better let Ashby know he may be getting more people in Sweet Nothings, if the pack can't come here for candy," Caleb said.

  Liam handed Landon back to Bran. "Let him know I'm cutting the pride off as well."

  Sebastian winced at the thought of poor Ashby and the increased business, especially since the tiny shifter wanted to spend more time with his prince. He looked at Kate and remembered the conversation he and Liam had just had with Gabriel.

  "Could you…maybe…could you see if some of the wolves could help the vampires integrate more? Most of the town is still afraid of them." Sebastian spoke quietly.

  Liam kissed the top of his head. Sebastian relished the feel of his mate's lips on him.

  "Thank you for remembering, baby." Liam turned to Bran, Kate and Caleb. "Gabriel is worried that people are still afraid of the vampires. Scared people, especially shifters, may make poor choices on how they react to a perceived threat. Gabriel has invited my lions over for a mixer. You may want to see if you can do the same for the wolves. The last thing we want is tensions getting any higher in Arkadia. Rebecca hasn't said anything, but I know this has to be weighing heavily on her, since she pushed to have them move here."

  Bran frowned. "We'll do what we can, but we're trying to overcome hundreds of years' worth of fear and distrust."

  "If people see the leaders actively welcoming the vampires, that will go a long way," Liam said.

  "We can do that." Caleb nodded.

  Sebastian knew that Caleb had a soft spot for Ashby, since Ashby and Nic had watched the twins for him before Ashby mated.

  "Great, I think people just need to see that the vampires aren't just going to run around town ripping people's throats out," Liam said, rubbing a hand up and down Sebastian's back.

  It seemed his mate had to touch him as much as he desired to be touched. Sebastian couldn't be happier.

  "No, but David and Daniel might talk them to death." Kate laughed. Sebastian had to smile. David and Daniel were trouble.

  "That's the honest truth," Bran said, kissing the top of Landon's head.

  "Okay, we're off to find Ashby, then get to our picnic. See you guys later," Caleb said, taking Lucas's hand and helping him wave bye-bye. Liam and Sebastian waved as they walked away.

  "Come on, kitten, let's go home," Liam said, and Sebastian loved the sound of that.

  Chapter Two

  As they
walked through the door, they passed Rian and Damian heading out.

  "Ri, can you let the pride know that we are no longer buying anything at Bobbles and Things? If you have to special order something let me know, I'll help defray the cost." Liam kept walking with Sebastian as if he hadn't given Rian a reason for a total meltdown.

  "Why the hell not!" Rian demanded sputtering. More than half the pride was standing around them acting as if they were already starting withdrawal symptoms.

  "Because he has strong opinions about Alphas who are cocksucking fags. He also shared that my parents would be ashamed of their only son," Liam said bitterly.

  Rian's head snapped up and he opened his mouth as a long hiss escaped. "That bigoted motherfucker! Come on, Damian," Rian said, turning towards the door. Damian and, surprisingly, Talon and Rex started to follow.

  "Riiiaaann. Don't cause any trouble," Liam warned.

  Rian turned back to his Alpha, a bright happy smile on his face. "Trust me," he sang, and the four walked out.

  Liam sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose.

  "They'll be fine. At least Rebecca isn't involved," Sebastian offered.

  Liam looked up and gave a half smile. "Thank heaven for small favors. Come on, kitten, let me show you the house," Liam pulled Sebastian close.

  "Through there is the kitchen and…" Liam started as they began walking through the house.

  Sebastian stopped and stared at the floor. "I know," he whispered.

  Liam stopped walking and then turned around. When Sebastian looked up, he could see the muscle in Liam's jaw working before a tight smile crossed his face.

  "I keep forgetting that you've been here before." Liam sighed and dropped his head back. He took a deep breath, and when his head came back up his smile was gentle but his eyes were sad.

  "Come on, kitten, let's go to the library. From what I can remember of your cat days, you liked that room the most." Liam held out his hand. Sebastian jumped forward and grabbed it. He rubbed his cheek along Liam's hand similar to the way Liam had done to his at the diner. Liam's face brightened and his smiled widened. Wordlessly, they walked through the house until they were in the pride's library.