Loving Lachlyn (Ashland Pride Two) by R.E. Butler

mouth to protest that he was perfectly capable of protecting Lachlyn, but before he could speak, Jericho raised his hand.  “I’m not saying you can’t handle things, Alek, because I’m certain that you can in most instances.  But if my father were to find out where we live, the men he would send here would not be the sorts that would fight fair.”
    Alek wasn’t the type to piss and moan when someone told the truth.  Jericho was a big man and, judging from what little Alek had learned last night of his history in the den, he was a fierce warrior.  Alek had always considered himself capable of defending his future mate under any circumstances, but he’d never anticipated coming up against pissed off bears with murder on their minds.
    Jericho’s hand landed on Alek’s shoulder.  “You don’t have to be everything for Lachlyn.  The benefit of being part of a mating trio is that we can share the responsibilities of the mating together.  You’re stronger than me in some areas, and I’m stronger than you in others.  Together, we’ll be the perfect mate for her.”
    Alek liked that idea a lot.  He wondered if his brothers and uncles had come to similar terms when they first mated to their women.
    When the dishes were dried and put away, they joined Lachlyn in the large family room where she sat in the middle of one of the couches and discussed the finer points of SpongeBob with two of his cousins, Nathan and Owen.
    “Why is there a lake under the ocean?” she was asking when they came into the room.  She looked up at them and winked.
    “Lachlyn,” Owen said, shaking his head, “it’s a cartoon.  It’s not real.”
    She tilted her head to the side.  “Oh.  But they’re cooking underwater.”
    Nathan laughed.  “It’s just pretend!”
    “I see you’ve met my cousins,” Alek said as the boys hopped up and darted over to another couch.
    He sat on one side of her and Jericho sat on the other.  “Yes, they’ve been setting me straight about the yellow sponge.”
    Alek introduced Jericho to the boys.
    “You’re a bear, like Lachlyn, but you can shift, right?” Nathan asked.
    “Yes,” Jericho answered.
    “Cool,” Owen grinned.  The boys turned their attentions back to the television, and Lachlyn leaned against Alek and sighed.
    “Tired, sweetheart?” he murmured in her ear.
    “A little, but it’s a good tired.”
    They sat in silence while the show continued on, and by the time the credits rolled, Lachlyn was asleep, her head in his lap.
    Jericho smiled and stood.  “I’d like to use the computer now,” he said with a low voice.
    “The office is down the hallway, the last door on the left.”  As Jericho stepped around the coffee table, Alek said, “I can help pay for the IDs. You shouldn’t have to shoulder the burden by yourself.”
    Jericho shook his head.  Keeping his voice low, he said, “It’s probably going to be around ten grand for her and I to have new identities.  I appreciate the gesture, but it’s my deranged father who’s causing the issue, and I have plenty of money saved up.”
    “You never said what you did before you left your den.”
    His brow furrowed.  “I was my father’s enforcer.”
    Without another word, Jericho left the family room, and Alek was left thinking about Jericho’s job.
    Tuesday morning, Alek left the warmth of Lachlyn’s side and got ready for work.  He absolutely didn’t want to go into work, but he now had a mate to provide for and needed his job and the benefits that came with it for their new family.  Jericho had made arrangements for new identifications for himself and Lachlyn, and he was going to pick them up later today at Don’s house.  He was waiting until Alek got off work so that they could go together since Jericho didn’t have a vehicle of his own.
    Leaning over, he kissed his still-sleeping sweetheart’s cheek and nodded at Jericho, who was using Alek’s iPad to read the local news, and headed into