Wild Warrior (The Weavers Circle 2)

“I did it,” he whispered, his voice raspy. “I did it. Let her out.”

“Are you sure? You don’t sound sure.” Baer eyed the door.

Wiley felt around inside Ruby’s head and only felt love and a desperate need to be out of the basement and with the people she cared about. “She’s good.” He grinned and stood, turning toward the door. He quickly unlocked it and she burst out of the basement stairs, nearly knocking him down in her exuberance. He laughed and kneeled to hug her. Her tongue hit his cheek and he laughed again. “Oh, you really are a sweetheart, aren’t you?”

Baer kneeled next to his dog and wrapped his arms around her, burying his face in her fur. “You okay, girl?”

Ruby blasted them with love. Wiley threw his head back and laughed, so happy to have helped her. She stood in the midst of their arms, her tail wagging furiously and basked in the affection.

The others joined them, everyone taking a turn to love on her. The poor dog just felt so much relief, she was giddy with it.

“You did it,” Dane said quietly as he stroked his hand over Ruby’s head. “You healed her.”

“I just took out what didn’t belong. She’s fine now.”

“She certainly is, the precious thing.”

Baer snorted. “I think you love my dog as much as I do.”

Dane merely nodded and kept loving on her. “I’m going to go cook you a steak.”

Ruby didn’t understand him, but she recognized affection and basked in it.

“No steak, but we can give her some treats.” Baer stood up and whistled for her to follow him as he walked toward the kitchen.

Wiley stayed where he was, his head throbbing, but he didn’t care. He’d done what he set out to do—he’d beat the witch. They finally had their edge over the pestilents.Chapter 25Baer found Wiley in the game room that would soon become his office…once that witch was taken care of. There were details that needed to be sorted out, like Wiley’s apartment and meeting Wiley’s grandmother, but it could wait for now.

Bone-deep relief and contentment settled over Baer whenever he thought about it. Soul mate. Wiley was his soul mate.

And they were building a home together.

Sure, it currently included four other guys and would soon include more, but he didn’t mind. When he needed private time with his lover, the house was big enough to provide more than a few secret nooks. When they were in the mood for company, they never had to travel far to find someone to hang out with.

Best of all, those someones were family.

His chief concern was keeping Wiley and his family safe. That couldn’t be achieved until they got rid of Ardette and all the pestilents.

All his life, he’d been reckless, too impulsive for his own good. That was changing for him. Grey was right. He was different since Wiley had come into his life. He was trying harder to focus and take his time, to not leap into a situation headfirst without figuring things out. Wiley needed him to be a strong and steady influence in his life. Wiley would only thrive with a person who was responsible. Baer was more determined than ever to be that man for his soul mate.

Baer poked his head into the game room and found Wiley lying on the sofa with his feet propped up on the arm while he stared at the ceiling. His sketch pad was on the floor, and strangely enough, his pencil was in the little divot between his nose and lips. Those perfect lips were protruding in a pucker, so he could hold the pencil in place without using his fingers.

“Are you deep in thought or—” Baer asked, but he didn’t get the entire question out.

Startled, Wiley jerked upright. He attempted to grab the pencil, but instead hit it with enough force that it went pinwheeling across the room to hit the wall. Baer instinctively ducked, though it didn’t come anywhere near him.

“Shit!” Wiley swore as he struggled to get upright enough to put his feet on the floor.

Baer chuckled as he walked over to pick up the pencil. “Don’t worry about it. I didn’t mean to surprise you.”

Wiley groaned and flopped back on the couch. “I’m stunned you even could. I’ve been so aware of you and your feelings since we bonded. I thought it would be impossible for you to sneak up on me.”

“You looked deep in thought.”

Another grumble left Wiley, and Baer could feel his lover’s frustration. Baer placed the flying pencil on the coffee table along with the sketch pad before sitting on the couch near Wiley’s head. He carded his fingers through his blond hair, pushing it from his face. Intense pleasure rippled through Wiley and washed over Baer. Happiness. Love. It was all there, singing through their connection and wrapping around Baer.