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Cullen shrugged. “Because you don’t get to go there. I guess you can try; it won’t hurt you. I mean, the dragons might hurt you—I don’t know how they feel about unicorns. How do dragons feel about unicorns?”

Hawk snorted. “I think you’re okay, and I’m a dragon. After all you’re making waffles. I know an entire slew of dragons that would be all over that.”

“That would be something that we’d have to look up in the library, maybe?” Corbin said. “Or talk to Dev and Ollie? Maybe Brandon?”

“If you can find him.” Cullen rolled his eyes and took a rock out of Elliot’s mouth. “At any rate, Cade is one of the guardians of the village that’s down at the bottom of the mountain and Poe’s his mate. He’s like a horse guy, Poe, I mean. He was a cowboy when he was here.”

This was complicated. He might need to make notes. Maybe a chart. “Wow.”

“Right? It’s a whole new universe.”

Orion nodded. He’d really stepped right into something this time. Yarrow would just lose his mind.

“So you guys let human-world peeps into the other realms?”

Hawk shrugged. “Occasionally. But we’re also here to keep them out. Guardians.”

He put a stack of waffles on the table, then poured more. “Okay. Okay, cool. That’s fair. So the veil is like, narrowed down to here?”

Cullen nodded, expression speculative. “Both lands are pretty big. I bet there’s more portals somewhere, but so far, we only know this one.”

“That makes sense to me too. I mean, can you imagine if this was it?” Cullen rolled his eyes. “We’d have to be insane to think we could defend it, just the four of us.”

“Five.”

“What?”

Corbin stared at Orion. “You’re here now. You know about us. Congratulations, you’re fucked.”

“Huh.” Panic hit him right in the chest, and Orion fought the urge to go all hoof and horn and make a run for it.

Shhh. It’s okay. It’s better than okay. Really. He’s just being an ass. Cullen stopped on the way to the table to kiss his cheek.

Right. Sorry. Sorry. Centuries of magical pens and fences and dungeons…

I would never lock you up. But I thought—Cullen lowered his gaze.I thought we were mates.

Oh, we are. I am here to stay. I just had a moment. It’s a lot of change.

It is. Cullen buttered and syruped a waffle for Elliot. Hawk would have, he thought, but he was catching a glass of orange juice before it went over the side of the table. Elliot had fast hands.I’ll help you through it. We’ve had a little more time to adjust.

Hawk set the orange juice down, very little having sloshed out. Corbin handed him two full plates. “Take these up to Cosmo. We’ll watch little bit.”

“Thank you so much.” Hawk bowed his head at all of them, then grinned at Orion. “And thank you for making bacon. I know it is not something you eat.”

“Your son insisted.”

“Ah. Yes. He is very bacon-focused.” Hawk chuckled. “Be good, my son.”

“Yes, Papa!” Elliot bared his sharp little teeth.

He poured more waffles, then sat down with his, buttering and syruping liberally. Yum. He loved that sweet and creamy flavor on top of crispy goodness.

He licked his fork, then glanced up to find Cullen watching him. Thankfully, Corbin was busy with Elliot and didn’t see the violet fire that Cullen sent his way.

He hummed, reaching out with one hand, and Cullen took it, the vibrations between them strengthening as they touched.

Yeah, okay, maybe he was here to stay, but the panic was gone. This was his mate, and Orion was here for Cullen. He would support this sweet fae, and his home and family, with everything in him.