Strange Love

When the last girl was placed into a bed, Russ turned his attention to Jaden. "That leaves you... alone..."

Jaden nodded. "It's fine, I prefer it that way. Besides, I'll probably be spending the rest of the night keeping an eye on them."

Russ swallowed down the lump in his throat. "You should get some rest as well. I'm sure you must be exhausted...." He ran a hand through his hair. "Is... is there anything you need before we call it a night?"

Rin smiled as he put his phone back in his pocket. He snapped his fingers and a basket appeared. With a wide smile, he handed it over to Jaden. "My mom sends her condolences and best wishes at a new start, all at once. She doesn't like dwelling on the negative for long, you see."

Jaden blushed slightly as she took the basket. "What is in it?"

Rin shrugged. "I'm not sure, she just said it was things all girls need. Knowing mom, it's hard to tell." He rolled his eyes as he slapped Russ on the back. "You wouldn't believe some of the things she sent during the honeymoon!"

Russ chuckled, "I'm sure I don't want to know the things you and my sister used during your honeymoon either."

Rin laughed hardily, "You're probably right there! Speaking of which, I'd better get back to her and the baby." He nodded to Jaden. "Enjoy, see you later, hopefully."

Jaden watched as the man disappeared before turning questioning eyes to Russ. "He is married to your sister... with a child?"

Russ nodded as he ran his hand through his hair once again. "Yeah, I guess you don't hear of wolves and Gin together very often huh? It's a bit weird, but Rin's been our friend for several years now, and they're happy. That's all that really matters, I guess."

"Most wolf clans wouldn't share that belief..." She said sending him a skeptical stare from behind the large basket.

He shrugged. "Maybe so... but as you already heard earlier from our council rep, I don't really follow clan rules, and I don't expect others to either..."

Jaden tilted her head. "What do you mean by that?"

Russ let out an uneasy sigh. "I mean they follow you. They've chosen you as their alpha... and I don't want to change that, but I do want to help them... to help all the wolves on this island."

Jaden narrowed her eyes. "What are you asking exactly?"

"Stay... be their alpha..." He shrugged sheepishly.

"And?" Anger flared in her tone.

Russ studied her nervously. "And nothing. I don't have their trust, you do. I'm not asking anything else of you other than you stay long enough to see them rehabilitated. We already have everything set up and ready..."

Jaden nodded. "I'll think about it..."

Russ forced a smile. "Good, in the meantime make yourself at home. Don't hesitate to ask the staff for whatever you need."

Jaden rolled her eyes. "Ask the staff... you really are a prince." She turned away from him toward the door of the room she had chosen.

"Whatever you're thinking right now, you're wrong you know... I may be a prince. This might belong to me, but I didn't grow up here. I didn't grow up in anything close to this. Most of my childhood was spent bouncing from one tiny apartment to another, and you know what, I wouldn't trade those days for the world." A smile curved his lips as the fond memories flashed through his mind. He shook his head. "I asked you to stay for the same reason Ry and Poseidon are here... I don't know how to be royal." He shrugged again. "I still don't know if I want to be..."

She scrunched her brows. "What do you mean you don't know if you want to be?"

He shrugged as he pushed his hands down into the pockets of the sweats he wore. "It's true, up until a few months ago, I didn't what anything to do with this entire island let alone the kingdom."

"And now?" Jaden asked in honest curiosity.

Russ met and held her intense jade eyes as he answered. "I want to help the people, all of them... I want to see their way of life brought back... but other than that I don't know what part I want in that way of life outside of finding a way to fund it... I don't want to rule over anyone... I don't know if I even could..."

"I see... and how do you plan to help them if you don't plan to lead them? What makes you think some other power-hungry madman won't try to step in and try to take your place if you leave?"

Russ frowned. "I hadn't really thought about it..."

"Hum... Well then, it looks like we both have things to think about tonight..." Jaden huffed as she turned back toward the door. "I'll give you my answer tomorrow."

Ry waited until she was inside her room before stepping out into the hall. "Talk about a burn..."

Russ ran his hand over the back of his neck. "Yeah... Is it just me or is she..." He let out a heavy sigh as he shook his head. "I don't know..."

Ry chuckled, "Trust me, kid, you're better off not finishing that sentence. She seems like the type who would lay you low for looking at her."

Russ grunted, "Yeah, I get that vibe... So, is it weird that I'm still attracted to her somehow?"

Ry became serious as he studied Russ. "She's an attractive girl, but I would be more willing to bet it's your wolf who has found a possible mate rather than your own physical attraction."

Russ frowned, "Is that even possible? It doesn't feel like that same attraction I felt toward Jos... and I never really cared for Gigi one way or the other."

Ry arched a brow. "How do you feel about Jos now? You were with her at the hospital after the girls were brought in."

Russ's brows furrowed as he thought back to earlier that night. "You know... it was easier being around her tonight... but I figured that was just where so much was going on..."

Ry laughed sarcastically. "I think not. The Russ I know wouldn't have given a fuċk if the entire hospital was burning down, he would have still found a way to show his ȧss."

"There's only one way to know for sure... first sleep then I need to go talk to Jos... I was going to ask her for her help anyway. If there's a person in this world who knows what it's like to be treated as less than human then recover from it, it would be her."

Ry nodded in agreement. "Sounds like a plan." He glanced at the screen of his phone. "It's already 7 am... No wonder I feel like pure shit... Do you think you'll be alright for a few hours? The thoughts of a real bed are making me feel less like the over-protective bodyguard and more like the sleep-deprived bear I truly am."

Russ clapped him on the shoulder as they made their way down the hall. "Dude at this point, I don't give a fuċk if you pass out in bed with me. I believe it's safe to say we'll both be too far gone to fuċk with the other... but I swear if I wake up and you've turned me into the damn little spoon, I'm kicking your ȧss."

Ry arched a brow as he studied Russ. "So, you're not still afraid of me after what I did to you the other day?"

Russ shrugged. "I deserved it... It was a shitty lesson to learn, but after tonight, I definitely see what a prick I've been..."

Ry chuckled. "Glad to hear you've seen the light... but... it wasn't all a joke... You understand that, right? I really do... care... about you..." He sent Russ a nervous glance as they neared the bedroom.

Russ nodded. "Yeah, I get it... but I also realize that not everyone acts the way I did... thank the gods..." He searched Ry's troubled expression. "I trust you, man."

The corner of Ry's lips turned up in a teasing grin. "You sure you're not a little bicurious and trying to seduce me?"

Russ let out a surprised laugh. "Dude, if I were ever that curious, I'd just go shove a damn zucchini up my ȧss!" He slapped Ry's back playfully. "I'll leave you and your endowments for the pros."

"Ha, you're a mess!" Ry laughed as he followed Russ inside. "You sure you don't want to build a pillow wall or something?"

"Dude just fuċk off and get in bed before I change my mind and make you sleep on the damn floor!" Russ kicked off his shoes and slid under the covers. The second the shifting from the other side of the bed ended, he asked. "Do you think that was all the guards who worked directly for Fern?"

Ry let out a long sigh. "I'm not sure kid... there could be more... Honestly I'd expect there to be. It's only smart to leave some behind to report back, and that bastard was a smart man... but I don't think they'll make a move anytime soon. They would be smart enough to realize outing themselves would be certain death or imprisonment..."

Russ nodded against the pillow. "That's what I thought..."

"Get some sleep, kid. Anyone comes in I'll just big spoon them..."

Russ laughed. "That would be enough to scare off most men..."

Ry snickered. "See, you're safe. Now go to sleep."

***

Beautiful singing hit Rin's ears the second he'd teleported into the bedroom. He scanned the room, first locating a sleeping Shelly then searching for the baby. A radiant green glow lit the corner as the beautiful redhead sang to his swaddled son.

"He woke up not too long ago, but Shelly was sleeping so, well, I didn't want to bother her. So we've just been over here sing, haven't we." Charybdis said in a soft, sing-song voice. She pushed up from the rocker with the baby held tightly to her ċhėst. The light from her eyes lessened as she walked toward Rin.

Rin held his arms out for his sleeping baby. "The song you were singing, it didn't..."

Chary chuckled, "It was just a normal song, I ȧssure you. We, sea creatures, aren't always set on malice, you know." She bent and stroked the back of her finger over the baby's soft cheek. "Sometimes a song is just a song."

Rin nodded; a look of skepticism still obvious in his expression as he walked toward the small cradle.

Chary tilted her head. "You don't have to fear me. I'll not hurt Shelly or your son, Rin..."

Rin nodded. "Yeah..."

Chary frowned. "You don't seem very content in that answer."

Rin shrugged. "I guess I'm still working out a lot of what I've learned since coming back."

She leaned against the window seat. "Like?"

Rin held her bright green eyes. "Like why you and your father seem so invested in Shelly and Russ's lives all of a sudden."

Chary held her hands up with a laugh. "I'm not invested at all in that angry boy's life, but..." her eyes moved to where Shelly slept on the bed, a smile curving her lips. "What's not to like about her? She's such a strong woman... and beautiful. You're very lucky, you know." She let out a wistful sigh. "Be glad I'm happily married, or I might have tried taking her from you."

He gave a light chuckle. "I'm sure she would have considered it." He ran his hand over his thick, black hair as he watched his wife sleep. "I love her... and only want what's best for her and our son."

"You are talking about your refusal to stay with Jos and my brother?" Chary asked.

Rin nodded. "I've known she was supernatural for years... but to find out that she's THE Kraken... and worst yet, that she has no control over her cursed form... It's terrifying." He ran his hand over his hair again. "Don't get me wrong, I hate it for her but still I can't put my child and wife in that kind of danger."

Chary nodded in understanding. "You realize, cursed or not, we still have some control... even Jos. Even in her full shifted form, she would never hurt Shelly or the baby unless they were on a boat headed straight toward the cursed island. Do you understand? She is only ever that beast when in the cursed waters nearest her mother's island."

"Yeah, I know... but she wasn't in those waters when she killed all those men back home..." Rin said in a low voice.

Chary nodded. "And had you been here for her trials, you'd understand her motives. They deserved what they got." When his opinion didn't seem to sway, she asked. "Do you trust me here with them right now?"

Rin thought it over. This had been the second time this woman had been left alone with his wife and son. He nodded. "Yeah, I guess why?"

Chary shrugged as she crossed her arms under her large brėȧsts. "I'm a worse monster than Jos, I'm cursed, I've rarely left survivors, and I have no natural enemies or weaknesses. Why would you trust me or any other creature within these walls more than the woman who raised Shelly?"

Rin frowned his eyes moving away from the firey redhead back to his wife. "You make a good point... I suppose I should reconsider... If it's what she truly wants..."

Chary smiled widely as she pushed away from the window seat. "Don't get me wrong, I'll hate to see the two of them go, but you weren't here... you didn't see how much those two need each other... how much they love each other..."

Rin met her gaze. "You're wrong there. I've seen how much they care for one another for years... though Russ has always had his own impact on their relationship."

Chary nodded. "I could see him monopolizing most of Jos's attention but trust me when I say when the pup isn't around... what they have is beautiful. Don't force her to give that up... to chose between you or Jos..."

Rin let out a sigh. "I'll talk to her about it tomorrow... I guess with Fern dead there's really no other excuse anymore anyway."

Chary patted his shoulder. "I'm glad to hear it. I look forward to seeing what the two of you decide in the morning."