Page 43 of Matthias’s Protective Embrace (Cardinal Falls #3)

Chapter Twenty-Six

FRANK

I’ve pinched myself three different times this morning trying to figure out if this is real. Either dream me is really good at pinching, or I’m moving in with Matthias today.

“Where do you want this?” Tyler pauses in the front yard, holding a big box full of my school materials.

“My office.” Matthias’s voice still makes me shiver when it’s commanding like that. Apparently, it has no effect on Tyler.

“Sure, no problem. I’ll carry all the heavy books to the back of the house.”

Matthias wraps his arms around me, pulling me toward him in a quick movement. I love the way it feels being wrapped up in his arms like this, him towering over me. The sense of safety and comfort washes over me immediately. I let out a contented sigh, not worrying about who might hear me.

“We should probably help.” It’s my stuff, after all.

There’s very little I own, and since the furniture Matthias has is fancy and not second-hand Ikea , there’s no reason to bring the stuff from my old room.

Matthias wrangled his friends to do the moving.

That leaves clothes and a handful of personal items. In exchange for a couple hours of moving boxes from one house to another, we’re hosting a backyard barbecue later today.

A first after all the work done on the yard.

We’re hosting. The words still sound a bit foreign to me. That I’m included in the people who live at this address. It’ll take a while to get used to it. Given how often Matthias likes to have people over, I’m sure it won’t take long before I come to terms with it.

“This is the last one,” Oliver announces.

He’s got a small box in his arms and a backpack over his shoulder as he heads inside.

I suspect most of the stuff is being piled in the living room.

I’m not looking forward to unpacking everything, even if I’m looking forward to starting a new life with Matthias.

Or continuing the old one.

“We should get inside, Firecracker.” Matthias pinches my ass—another reminder that this isn’t a dream—and grabs my hand, leading me inside.

As expected, the living room is a mess. Tyler might be the only one who carried anything further than this first room.

“Don’t worry about it. We’ll work on it tonight. Let’s enjoy the rest of the day.”

Daddy approved procrastination? That’s something I can get behind. I do my best to put the chores out of my head and follow the noise into the kitchen. It didn’t take his friends long to help themselves to the beers in the fridge.

As I listen to the conversation around the room, I’m struck by how much has changed in the last several months.

Not simply my address, but my whole life.

Matthias is his own big piece of that, but also his friends and family.

They’ve welcomed me into the fold with smiles and support.

And not once has anyone complained about the changes in food being served.

Well, that might change once they find out that Matthias is grilling veggie burgers.

I told him not to do that. I can easily get my own food or grill mine first and let everyone else have their typical fare.

He shook his head and promised no one would mind.

Oliver’s phone buzzes, and he holds it out in front of him before scowling and stepping out of the room. I watch for a second before I’m distracted by Matthias whispering in my ear.

“Should we show them the backyard?”

It’s been about a month since all our work wrapped up. The place looks incredible. I saw every little bit of progress, so sometimes it’s hard to appreciate the final product. It’s only in looking back, thinking about what it looked like on that first day, that I can see the changes. “Let’s do it.”

Matthias clears his throat dramatically. It does the job of shutting everyone up, even if they do roll their eyes at him. “Let’s move outside.”

The brief announcement is met with cheers from his friends.

Once everyone’s piled out onto the deck, it’s on to a round of oos and ahhs from the crowd. Many of them directed at me. I’m sure my face is bright red, but I don’t care. The place does look pretty good like this, an actual oasis in Matthias’s home instead of simply a space.

Oliver joins us a minute later. “Uh, Aaron called. He’s tied up at work. I guess they had too many people call out, so he’s not going to make it.” There’s a long pause like he’s waiting for something .

“Sucks for him,” Nathan says, clapping a hand on Oliver’s shoulder. “More burgers for you.”

I barely know Oliver—or any of the guys, really—but the look on his face says he wasn’t expecting that response. “Oh, um, okay.”

“Veggie burgers,” Matthias corrects. Five people turn and stare at him. “We’re grilling veggie burgers today.” The way Matthias says it, while possessively putting a hand around my waist, sends a flash of heat straight to my cock. I like being his, like the way he insists on protecting me.

“There better still be chips,” Tyler says.

Graham kisses his cheek. “We brought the chips, Tyler.” Tyler seems almost surprised by that revelation. Maybe he’d been too focused on carrying things. I noticed Tyler did the majority of the heavy lifting.

“In that case, veggie burgers sound excellent.”

MATTHIAS

It’s hard to believe I put off this renovation for so long.

Sitting in my new yard, with my friends and their partners, it seems like this whole thing was meant to be.

Not only did I get a great place to entertain everyone, I found Frank in the process.

That alone makes it worthwhile. The fire pit doesn’t hurt.

I’m looking forward to turning these backyard hangouts into a regular thing.

Thursdays are still reserved for our original group, but we need a place to hang out now that our little circle is growing.

Today, we’re only short Aaron due to his work schedule.

It’s a shame he can’t be here to help us christen the place, but given my current plans, I’m sure he’ll be here many times in the coming months.

Maybe he’ll be the next one to bring a significant other?

Then Oliver. It’s a good thing there’s plenty of space back here.

“Do you want another?” I ask as Graham eyes the grill.

“I shouldn’t, but yes. I’m going to pretend that since it’s made from vegetables, it’s automatically healthy.”

I chuckle because I’ve thought the same thing.

Frank asked six times if I was sure about only offering veggie burgers today.

They love them, which I knew they would, but it’s more than that.

They’ve adopted Frank into their life and accepted that it means sometimes we might be passing on the usual meals.

And despite what his family might have him think, it’s not that big of a sacrifice.

If someone here is craving a burger that badly, they’ll pick one up on the way home.

I pull another patty off the grill and add it to the bun Graham has prepared on his plate. “Thanks. For the food and hosting. We’ve missed coming over here.”

Deep down, I always worried that once our little group started pairing off, they wouldn’t need this anymore.

Or, more accurately, wouldn’t need me. Instead, it’s only made our little group stronger.

I glance over to see Frank and Oliver in deep conversation, heads bowed as they whisper about something.

Whatever they’re scheming about, I’m sure it’ll cause all sorts of problems. They’re both trouble.

Even though I don’t know Oliver as well, I’ve seen the little glints of a troublemaker shine through.

It’s crazy to think that he and Colt almost dated.

Or maybe that five minutes together counts?

Either way, he found himself part of our group. My family. My home.

My home with Frank. Suddenly, the need to be close to him overwhelms me. With no reason not to, I walk over and scoop him up in my arms.

“Hey! Put me down.” His shriek carries through the backyard.

Instead of listening, I take his seat and put him on my lap.

He rolls his eyes and sighs dramatically, but then he curls into me, putting his head on my shoulder.

He needs this as much as I do. “As I was saying before I was interrupted”—he clears his throat, making sure I know that I’m the interruption—“I can’t wait to read the next book in that series.

H.B. always does such a good job with the world-building.

I’ve been waiting months for them to announce the next release. ”

“Well, I can’t say much, but I can assure you that you’ll see an announcement soon,” Oliver says with a chuckle.

“What does soon mean?”

“It means soon.” Oliver shakes his head. He’s learning how impatient my boy can be when there’s information he wants.

“You’ve got plenty of homework to focus on in the meantime.

” I give him a quick squeeze. We’ve got a pretty good schedule down, and the statistics class this term seems to make a bit more sense to Frank than the calculus one did.

Though, the homework often leaves him cursing the professor at the dining room table.

“Fine, but the minute the book comes out, I’m parking myself on the couch until I get through the whole thing.

” Somehow, I don’t doubt that. I’ve seen him do that a few times.

He’s not a big reader unless it’s for class, but when it comes to something he loves, he can quickly turn into a ravenous beast, unwilling to budge until he finishes the thing.

A bit crazy when the ones he’s reading are thick volumes.

“I’ll make sure you get an early copy. ”

Frank does a little dance on my lap, and I still him with my hands. Any more, and we won’t be able to move from this spot for a little while.

Oliver and Frank go back to their discussion. I tune out the words, content to simply listen to the general chatter of the group, letting the conversation blend with the sounds of the birds and the wind rustling through the leaves.

Pretty perfect, if you ask me.