Page 14 of Back to You (Legendary Shifters #14)

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RONAN WASN’T SURE WHY he’d been invited to meet with Braden, but he was glad he was there.

He wanted to be involved in everything regarding Vincent.

He trusted that Cam wouldn’t do anything to his mate, but he understood that not all pack members might believe that Vincent was innocent of what his father had done.

That was where Braden would come in. Once they had his report, they could point to that if anyone tried to raise doubts and start trouble.

Hopefully, Fulton wouldn’t manage to continue ruining Vincent and Ronan’s lives from the grave.

Ronan wouldn’t put it past him, but he hoped that Braden would dig deep if he did find something.

Considering he worked with Remington, there was a good chance that he would.

“I have to admit that I’m a bit confused,” Braden said.

He was sitting in front of Cam’s desk, looking from the alpha to Ronan. Ronan wasn’t about to explain. It wasn’t his place.

“Ronan is here because the man I want you to look into is his mate,” Cam said. He leaned back in his chair and took a sip of coffee. “As well as Fulton’s son.”

Braden whistled. “I see.” He looked at Ronan. “How does that make you feel?”

He didn’t know the entire story. Hell, he didn’t know the story at all.

“Vincent and I met ten years ago. We were together for six years, and we were happy. Vincent’s father wasn’t, though.

He hated me, which wasn’t a problem because Vincent only saw him once or twice during that time.

They never got along, and Vincent didn’t have any love for the man. ”

“Did anyone?”

Ronan snorted. “Not that I know of.”

“So you want me to, what? Make sure that Vincent wasn’t involved with anything his father did?” Braden asked as he turned to Cam.

“I have to know for sure,” the alpha explained.

“I don’t think Vincent was involved, both because Ronan trusts him and because he didn’t give me that impression when we talked.

My pack might have questions, though, and since Ronan is a pack member, there’s a good chance that Vincent will become one, too, and people need to be able to trust him. ”

“I can do that. I’ll need some info, but it shouldn’t be a problem.” Braden hesitated. “You want me to tell you everything I find?”

He wasn’t asking that to Ronan, but Ronan wanted to answer anyway.

He pressed his lips together, though. It wouldn’t be right to ask Braden to tell him what he found.

Ronan had always trusted Vincent, and that hadn’t changed.

No matter what had happened over the past four years and what Vincent had done, Ronan still trusted him.

Besides, he was sure that whatever he wanted to know, he could ask, and Vincent would tell him.

This report would be for Cam, not for Ronan.

“I do,” Cam confirmed. “Please put everything into a report you’ll send me, and only me.

I don’t need you to find every detail of Vincent’s life, so don’t dig too deep into his private life.

I just need to be sure that he wasn’t involved with his father and that he won’t be a danger to the pack and Ronan. ”

“I can do that.”

Ronan forced himself to relax in his chair.

This was going the way it was supposed to.

Braden would look into Vincent, and he wouldn’t find anything.

If he did, he’d dig deeper, and he’d see that Vincent didn’t have anything to do with his father.

Cam and everyone else would be able to relax, and Ronan and Vincent could finally leave Fulton and what he’d done behind and focus on their future.

“How are things going with him?” Cam asked.

Ronan blinked back to the present situation. Braden was still there, but he was typing something on his phone, which was probably why Cam felt comfortable having a semi-private conversation with Ronan.

“Things are good,” Ronan said. He could feel a smile spread on his lips like every time he thought of Vincent. “We’re taking things slow because we’ve both been hurt, but knowing that Fulton is out of the picture helps. He can’t hurt us anymore.”

“I don’t see anything that worries me,” Braden said, drawing both Ronan’s and Cam’s attention.

“What?” Ronan asked.

Braden looked up from his phone. “I had someone start digging. For now, it seems like Vincent hasn’t had any contact with his father for the past few years.

Fulton tried, but Vincent never gave in.

There are no indications that he worked with Fulton or that he’d seen him recently.

It’ll take me more time to dig into the accounts, but I think it’s safe to say that Vincent isn’t problematic. ”

Cam nodded. He didn’t look surprised. “Good. Continue digging, but avoid his personal life unless you absolutely have to.”

“Will do.” Braden glanced at Ronan. “I’m glad you have your mate back, man.”

“Me, too.”

Braden laughed. “I bet. It sounds like you two haven’t had it easy lately.”

“Hopefully that’s over now.”

“You should both stay for lunch if you have nothing better to do,” Cam said.

Ronan cleared his throat and got to his feet. “Actually, I’m seeing Vincent.”

Braden looked delighted by that, which didn’t make sense because he and Ronan weren’t friends.

Ronan was instantly suspicious, but he told himself not to be.

He wasn’t in a cage anymore. He could trust these people.

At the very least, he could trust Cam, and Cam trusted Braden.

Braden didn’t have any hidden motives. He was probably just a friendly guy, and Ronan could use more friends.

“Well, I’ll accept that offer for lunch,” Braden told Cam. “Unfortunately for me, I don’t have a mate waiting for me.”

“Stick around, and you might just find one,” Cam teased.

Ronan didn’t know if Braden was human or a shifter, and he wasn’t going to ask, not right now anyway. If he wanted to make friends, though, he needed to make an effort. “Maybe we can grab lunch soon?” he offered.

The fear of being rejected was strong, but Ronan shouldn’t have worried because Braden beamed.

“Let me give you my phone number,” he said, wiggling his fingers until Ronan placed his unlocked phone between them.

“I’ll be in town for a few more days, but Remi and I are working on opening a new office in Greenwood, so you’ll see me around anyway.

Just let me know when you’re available.”

Ronan didn’t understand why Braden was like this, but maybe he didn’t have to. “Thanks. I’ll call you.”

“Or text. I don’t have any jobs planned, but you never know.”

“I’ll let you know the final results of Braden’s dig for information,” Cam added. “And please, say hello to Vincent for me. I look forward to seeing him again eventually.”

Ronan wanted to ask if the alpha was lying, but he didn’t dare. Even if Cam was only nice because Ronan was a pack member, what difference did it make? Unless Cam was willing to kick Ronan out, he’d have to welcome Vincent in.

But Cam was a good person, and after giving Ronan a chance, he was giving Vincent one, too.

That was all Ronan wanted—a future with his mate, a place to call home, somewhere safe where he wouldn’t have to worry about being caged or sold off, friends and people to care about.

It was everything he’d never had except for his six years with Vincent.

“I will,” he promised.

His chest felt tight, and he didn’t like the sensation, so he quickly left the office.

He was overwhelmed, and he didn’t want to break down in front of his alpha.

He didn’t think that Cam would regret welcoming him into the pack, but he wanted Cam to think that he was strong and capable of protecting him and the pack.

He needed to be able to do that. For four years, he’d thought he’d die alone, with only memories to soothe him. Now, he knew he wouldn’t die alone. He didn’t have to worry about what he’d do next because he’d been handed a golden opportunity on a silver platter. He finally had a place in this life.

Ronan was safe. He had support, and he would continue having that support even if things with Vincent crashed and burned. They wouldn’t, though. There was no reason for that to happen, and Ronan wouldn’t allow it.

After so long, he had every chance to be happy, and he would be.

* * * *

VINCENT SHOULDN’T BE nervous. He and Ronan had seen each other several times since they’d found each other again, and things were going well.

It was odd to have Ronan back in his life, but it was what Vincent wanted.

It was also what Ronan wanted. He’d been honest, and so had Vincent.

They were both in this for the long term, and that wasn’t going to change. Really, Vincent shouldn’t be nervous.

He was.

Even though he knew Ronan, that was in the past. Ronan was another person after four years, just like Vincent.

They’d both been hurt, and Ronan had been through hell.

The man responsible for that might be dead, but the memories he’d created weren’t.

Sometimes, Vincent wondered how Ronan could look him in the eyes and be with him.

Vincent’s father had taken everything from both Vincent and Ronan.

He was gone, but there was no denying that.

As far as Vincent was concerned, it was a miracle that Ronan wanted anything to do with him.

When he thought about what had happened, he didn’t want anything to do with himself, even though he was nothing like his father.

He hated him. Fulton was gone, but Vincent’s resentment and hatred were still very much present.

He suspected he would hate his father for a long time—maybe forever—and he was okay with that.

Even though he and Ronan had a second chance, he couldn’t ignore the fact that they wouldn’t have needed one if Fulton hadn’t gotten involved.

“Don’t you have a date to get ready for?” Peter asked from where he was spread out on the bed.

Vincent forced himself to smile at him. “I do, and I am getting ready.”