Page 5 of Back to You (Legendary Shifters #14)

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RONAN WASN’T SURE WHAT he was doing here. Well, he was carrying boxes inside a house, but how had he ended up helping Preston move in with Bryson?

He remembered that he’d been talking to Bryson as they trained in the gym.

Both of them were guards, and they’d been spending a lot of time together on the job.

Bryson had taken Ronan under his wing after Ronan had become a guard, and Ronan was glad for that.

That was probably why he volunteered when Bryson had mentioned that they’d need help moving Preston in.

He wasn’t the only one helping today. It seemed like half the pack was here, moving furniture, emptying boxes, laughing, and talking. It showed Ronan how much they cared about each other, and it made him a little bit jealous. He was still an outsider.

Not for long. He’d never thought he’d have a pack, but he did now, and he was planning on doing everything he could to integrate. Rosewood would be his home until he died. The pack would be his home, and while he needed to give himself time, he couldn’t wait to feel like he was part of it.

Considering the number of people present, it didn’t take long to get everything inside the house.

Ronan wasn’t surprised when the move turned into a party.

Someone ordered pizza, and someone else grabbed beers from the fridge.

Ronan was handed one, but he didn’t drink.

He held it in his hand as he moved around the living room, trying to find a spot where he could stand and not be in people’s way.

He recognized a lot of people in the living room.

Bryson and Preston were there, of course, but Reece was also present, talking with both of his boyfriends in a corner.

He had his arm wrapped around Sage’s shoulders as he leaned forward and kissed Carey on the cheek, causing him to laugh.

Cam and Toby were standing together and talking to Leslie and Griffith, Cam’s betas.

More people had gathered in small groups and were having fun.

Ronan told himself to relax, but that went right out the window when he noticed Bryson talking to a guard by the living room door.

Bryson was frowning while the guard looked confused and a little bit afraid.

It wasn’t a look Ronan wanted to see on anyone, but especially not on someone who was supposed to protect the pack.

From the uniform the guard was wearing, he was working right now, so there had to be a good reason for him to be here.

Ronan was even more convinced of that when Bryson turned away from the guard and looked around the room. His gaze caught on Cam, and when he moved toward the alpha, Ronan knew something had happened.

He didn’t reach them in time. They were already halfway out of the room by the time he got to Leslie and Griffith. “What happened?” he asked.

They glanced at each other. “Cam had something to take care of.”

“What?”

Griffith’s eyes narrowed. “I don’t think it’s any of your business.”

It probably wasn’t, but Ronan needed to know.

Had someone found out he was here? Was he putting the pack in danger by staying with them?

There were plenty of other rare shifters who lived here, but Ronan had been the last one to arrive.

Even if they weren’t here for him, his job was to protect the pack and its members.

It was to protect his alpha. He should be with Cam.

He nodded at the betas and walked away from them.

The guard was still hovering by the living room entrance, looking like he wasn’t sure he should come in.

He was younger than Ronan, and while Ronan hated to intimidate people, he wouldn’t hesitate to use his bulk to his advantage if it gave him what he wanted.

He strode toward the guard. The man jumped when his gaze stopped on Ronan, and Ronan tried to make himself a little less intimidating, but he knew what he looked like, just like he knew that, as a shifter, he was intimidating and rare enough that most shifters were afraid of him.

It wasn’t every day that one talked to a wyvern shifter.

“Where did they go?” he asked the guard.

“Uh, who?”

“The alpha and the people who left with him.”

At least Cam wouldn’t be facing whatever was happening on his own.

Bryson and Preston had gone with him. Bryson was Cam’s brother and a guard, and while Preston was a lawyer, his shifted form meant he’d be able to defend Cam from pretty much anyone.

He also wouldn’t hesitate to kill if it meant protecting his alpha.

He’d shown that when he’d killed Fulton.

“The gates. There’s a guy saying he’s Fulton’s son there.”

Ronan sucked in a breath. “Fulton only had one son,” he murmured.

The guard blinked rapidly. “All right? I mean, I don’t know if the guy was lying or not, but he didn’t look intimidating. He smelled human, anyway.”

Ronan pushed past the guard and rushed out of the house. Cam hadn’t asked him to go with him, but he didn’t hesitate. He needed to know who was impersonating Fulton’s son. When he got his hands on the guy, he was going to give him a good shake. No one should impersonate someone who died.

No one should impersonate Ronan’s mate.

He ran toward the gate that opened into pack territory.

It didn’t take long for him to reach it, and when he did, it was to see four people standing there.

He wasn’t surprised that Preston had been left behind or that Cam was outside the gate with Bryson, talking to a man.

Ronan couldn’t see the man’s face from where he was, but it wouldn’t be long.

From a distance, this man could really be Fulton’s son. It hurt to see, but that pain quickly morphed into confusion. The closer Ronan moved to the gate, the more confused and in pain he was.

What the fuck was happening?

He came to a stop next to Preston. Preston quickly glanced at him and nodded, but Ronan couldn’t nod back. He couldn’t do anything but stare at Vincent.

His mate really was here.

It shouldn’t be possible. Ronan had been told that Vincent had died.

Of course, that had happened just before Fulton caged him and sold him off for the first time.

Had Fulton lied about his son dying? Ronan had never thought of that possibility, but he couldn’t ignore what was right in front of him.

Vincent glanced up. Ronan knew the second he saw him and recognized him. His eyes widened, and they stared at each other.

“Everything okay?” Preston asked as he leaned closer and touched Ronan’s arm.

Ronan continued staring. “I’m fine,” he croaked.

“You don’t look fine. Do you know this guy? He said he’s Fulton’s son and that he never knew what his father was doing. Is that a lie?”

Ronan started to shake his head, but was it a lie? He didn’t know anything for sure anymore. “I don’t think so.” It couldn’t be a lie. Vincent couldn’t be like his father. Ronan’s mate couldn’t be a monster.

“Are you sure you’re okay? You’re pale, and you look like you’re about to keel over. Maybe we should go back to the house.”

In any other circumstance, Ronan would’ve allowed Preston to convince him. He couldn’t move, though. He couldn’t step away from Vincent. His mate was back from the dead.

Ronan couldn’t stop thinking about what had happened a few years ago.

Fulton had told him that Vincent had died.

Then he’d turned and ordered the people who were there with him to pack up the apartment to get Ronan.

Ronan hadn’t understood what it meant until they’d circled him and had told him that if he followed them, he wouldn’t be hurt.

It had been a lie. He hadn’t gone willingly, and they’d spent the next few years hurting him. He’d been numb for most of the time, lost in his pain over his mate’s death.

And now, his mate was standing in front of him, very much alive.

* * * *

VINCENT WAS FROZEN. He couldn’t look away from Ronan, who, for some reason, was standing behind the gate, staring back at him.

Vincent hadn’t seen his mate in a few years. After Ronan had ghosted him, packed up his stuff from their apartment, and vanished, Vincent had looked for him, but he hadn’t been able to find him. He’d even hired a private investigator, but nada.

Ronan had been a loner before meeting Vincent.

He’d lost both of his parents, and he’d never had a pack.

He’d often told Vincent that he was the first person who’d made him feel seen, yet he’d abandoned Vincent without ever telling him that he wasn’t happy.

Vincent had tried making his peace with it, and he’d thought he’d managed, but with Ronan standing in front of him, he realized that he hadn’t.

He still loved the bastard. He was also angry and confused and in the middle of something important that meant that he couldn’t storm over to Ronan and demand an explanation, no matter how much he yearned to get one.

He was also afraid to find out. There had to be a reason Ronan had left, and Vincent wasn’t sure he wanted to know what that reason was. They were mates. Ronan was never supposed to run from him.

“The pack accepts your apology, even though it’s clear you had nothing to do with what happened,” Cam said, pulling Vincent back into the conversation he’d been having with the alpha. “I’m not sure I understand what you’re doing here, though.”

This was what Vincent should focus on. He was here for a reason.

He wanted to offer Cam the money he’d inherited from his father, but he wasn’t sure how to do so without offending anyone.

He also wanted a reason to come back, even though that probably made him an asshole.

“I’m not sure, either. I just know that I needed to talk to the people who finally saved the world from a monster. ”

He could feel people watching him. Now that he’d turned back to Cam, he found that he couldn’t look back at Ronan again. He was afraid of what he’d see if he did.