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“If you’re about to finish that sentence withit’s my problem”, Zack said, “Then you’d better get used to being part of this family, right the hell now.”

Mo gazed at Zack, and then Victor, who nodded once to show his total agreement.

“I still want my clothes,” he said almost belligerently.

“I don’t know,” Victor drawled. “I’m kind of liking you without them.”

Daniel held a hand up. “We’re not ready yet for plants. I need agents in place, and even I cannot run an undercover op at a school without permission. I would need an awful lot of people’s permission, and it would look suspicious if we suddenly had up to four new staff when no one has left. Let’s leave it on the back burner for now while I do more digging into the ones that are already there.”

“There’s an assistant football coach that’s new,” Alex murmured. “He’s the only one I can think of, but he takes a lot of interest in soccer and general athletics as well.”

Daniel nodded. “On it.”

Chapter Thirteen

Itmadenosensefor Mo to go back to his apartment. Even he knew that. He also realized there was no good reason for Victor being with him. The bad guys would never believe they had experienced some sort of romantic awakening while Mo was recovering. It wasn’t realistic.

For humans, anyway.

The next best thing was learning that Christopher was stepping up and taking the kids—nearly all of them—to their friends in Tennessee, where Christopher’s wife would be joining them. Alex was already determined to be their eyes and ears in the school if they went that route. Mac was in college and hadn’t bothered refusing, just arched an eyebrow when asked. Noah also had to stay, as his father would return in a few days, and as a temporary foster child had state constraints anyway.

Mo was expecting problems with Noah as his life had been on a merry-go-round for seven years, the hero worship he had for Alex was new to the mix.

So the rest of the kids, including Daniel’s, left with Christopher and most of their parents. Daniel, Riley, Zack, Victor, Mac, Alex, Tyler, and Noah stayed. Luke decided to go visit Roxanne, Raschid’s pregnant mate, as they’d been asking for some advice on the shifter curriculum at the pack school. Asher returned home alone, with his mate and their family firmly ensconced with their grandparents.

Martin Richards seemed to move in, and Mo really liked the ex-FBI agent. His loyalty to the family was absolute and Alex, in particular, seemed to have a lot of respect for his Uncle Martin.

He should have felt guilty driving people out of their home, but if he was honest, he was relieved. He also loved that this family pulled together, circled their wagons, and made sure every child felt heard and valued. He wasn’t surprised that Alex had wanted to stay, but that the adults had listened and valued Tyler’s arguments had surprised him. Tyler had moved back in and was sticking to Alex. It was like the young alpha had a home beacon system. Zack had explained afterwards that even if they hated it, the kids always got a voice, and Mo loved that.

Really loved it.

In fact, in all ways Zack was becoming more irresistible by the second and while he’d tried to hold back from both of them, he was afraid it was a losing battle. By Wednesday afternoon, the place seemed deserted, and not in a good way. He met Luke for the first time while being warned not to touch him.

Luke had chuckled. “It sounds like I have a deadly disease.” Daniel wrapped an arm around him and the kiss should have come with a warning. Now that the kids were away, it was like all bets were off. They still dialed it down for Alex, Tyler, and Noah especially, but as Riley explained, it was a fact of life.

“I want my children to know I find my mate irresistible,” Riley said honestly. “It’s different for shifters. We don’t date unless our self-control is off the charts, or we have other reasons.”

Which made Mo really think about Victor and Zack. Any other point in his life he would have welcomed them both with open arms, and then he scoffed because every waking moment since he’d even finished college had been consumed with finding Khloe. He didn’t have another life, and not one that he would ever swap while she was safe and home. He’d always been unable to even think of bringing a third person into his shit-show, but Victor and Zack were already there.

And then there was the lure of family. To Mo, who’d never really had it, it was like a siren’s song.

In fact, the longer the day went on even after the family clearing out, the more irritated he became. He’d likened them to the freaking Brady Bunch, and he was getting a little sick of their perfection. How dare they be all loving and supportive of each other? Even Victor, who wasn’t one of them, had busied himself taking packed bags down to the cars and holding children when it was required. Although even he’d looked a little startled at that. In fact, if it wasn’t all a little too perfect, it would have been adorable. Alex had been everywhere like the golden child he was, and even Noah had been able to keep his snarky mouth in check.

And Mo was sick of it. In fact, when Zack had teared up hugging his son goodbye, he hadn’t been able to stand watching it anymore and had gone up to his room, firmly closing the door.

Not that he was sulking or anything. He could hardly be blamed for being a little upset because his life was once again spinning out of control. He told Zack and Victor to go away when they knocked on his door. He was way too hot, miserable, frustrated, and uncomfortable. Hadn’t they ever heard of air-conditioning in this place?

Victor woke suddenly, knowing it was the scent of his mate that had jerked him awake. He didn’t know how he knew, but the urgency, the utter, craven need made him catapult out of bed and reach for his door to open it, uncaring that he was barely clothed in sleep shorts and only those because of the number of children that had been in the house up to today.

At the same time that he yanked his door open, Victor sensed Zack before he even saw him, who looked like he had erupted from his room maybe three seconds faster. Victor stalked toward Zack, but even as his pupils distended and Victor could smell the scent of welcome on his skin, Zack croaked out, “It’s not me.”

Victor still had enough presence of mind to catch Zack’s words before he slammed his mouth down on the lips he’d ached for. Zack tasted glorious, and he swallowed every delicious moan from the big bear until Victor’s cock seemed to thump in time to the pulse rushing the blood to it.

He broke off for air, only to find he had pressed Zack to the wall. Just as he bent his head again, desperate to bite that tantalizing piece of skin on Zack’s neck where his blood tempted and pulsed, he heard a tiny whimper from the room next door. Victor’s wolf roared in fury. Their mate. Their mate was hurt. Zack scrambled as fast as Victor to get to the room, and Victor flung the door open. Through his wolf, he could clearly see their mate in bed despite it being dark.

Thrashing and distressed, Victor lunged toward him. Zack moaned. “He’s in heat. Fuck, Victor, he’s in heat. Can you smell that?”

Which was enough of a startling thought to bring Victor up short, even though the alpha wolf in him roared in his head. Victor could practically feel his claws as he fought to be let out, and for too long a moment, he had to stand and just breathe. Not that breathing was much better, as the erotic scent of Mo in full heat made Victor nearly feral.