The Lost Lycan Princes: A Journey Home

So Close

Jonathan POV 

  We stayed and talked to Shadow and Nadie for a couple of hours. They seemed to be a very warm and caring couple, which is something you don’t often find in an Alpha and Luna. We even got to briefly meet their three kids. Aiyana and Halona were fourteen year old identical twin girls that looked exactly like their mom, and Ahanu was sixteen and looked like his dad’s clone. All three kids were just as sweet as their parents, and Shadow proudly told us that Aiyana was already an expert with a bow and arrow. Halona was just starting to learn, but Aiyana was teaching her and apparently, she was picking it up pretty quickly. Ahanu was already learning how to take over some of his dad’s Alpha duties, even though he wouldn’t shift until he turned eighteen. He told us that his weapon of choice was a rifle, but he could hold his own with a bow and arrow as well. Shadow told us that even though he tried to be nonviolent, he tried to ensure that all of his pack members, women included, knew how to fight and handle at least one type of weapon. He explained that there were some nonshifters in his pack – specifically, humans who were mated to a werewolf – and he wanted to ensure that they could defend themselves in the event of an attack. He also wanted his werewolf – and other supernatural – pack members to be able to fight in either form if they had to. It made sense to me.  

  After we left, I couldn’t help but to reflect back on what he’d said about a possible kidnapping ring. I had asked him why he thought Sebastien wouldn’t have mentioned that to us, and he’d responded that he was probably planning on talking to us about that in person. I guess I could see his point, as that probably wasn’t something Sebastien wanted to tell us right away, or maybe he was worried about how we would react to that and wanted tell us in person for that reason. But still, I thought a heads-up might have been nice. And I could see now why he thought us not telling too many people who we were was a good idea. I would be more on guard now, especially since we had Chrissy to protect now too. 

  ‘You do realize that the king has some of his guards tailing us, right?’ Damien spoke up.  

  ‘What do you mean?’ I asked him. 

  ‘Honestly, I’m not surprised that you didn’t notice, and it took me longer to notice than it normally would have because we’ve both been so engrossed in getting to know our mate,’ he told me. ‘But I noticed as we were leaving the motel earlier that there are four Lycans in a van that followed us at a distance all the way to the pack borders. They couldn’t follow us to the packhouse without being discovered, but as we left, I saw them again. See that yellow minivan, about four cars back in the other lane?’ 

  I turned around to look. ‘Yeah, I see them.’ 

  ‘There’s four Lycans in it,’ he told me. ‘They’re dressed in the uniform of your father’s guards, and I saw a ring on the driver’s finger that shows that he’s of a higher rank within the guard. They are made to give up their uniforms and rings when they retire or quit, the exact details of the embroidery on the sleeves would be very difficult to replicate. From what I saw with just a quick glimpse, the uniforms and ring look authentic, so the chances of them being imposters are fairly slim. But we still should probably ask the king about it to be sure.’ 

  I passed the information along to Jameson, who was driving, and he nodded grimly. He said that Donovan had told him the same thing, and that Donovan also thought that we should mention it to Sebastien, just to ensure that those men weren’t imposters.  

  I pulled my phone out and called Sebastien, putting it on speaker so that Jameson and Chrissy could also hear and speak to him.  

  “Hello, son!” he greeted me when he picked up. 

  “Hi, Sebastien!” all three of us replied together. 

  He laughed. “Hello to all three of you, then! Is everything OK?” 

  “We’re not sure,” I replied. “It might depend on your answer to this question.” 

  His tone immediately turned serious. “Why? What’s going on?” 

  “Did you send some guards to follow us?” I asked bluntly. 

  He sighed. “Those guys suck at hiding, don’t they? Yes, I sent four men to make sure you three were safe. You could be vulnerable before and during your shift, and I needed to be sure you were ok.” 

  We all breathed a sigh of relief. “That’s fine,” I told him. “We just needed to ensure that the four guys following us were sent by you and not by someone else.” 

  “I’m sorry they scared you,” he apologized. “But yes, they’re mine. How are things going?” 

  We told him about meeting Chrissy’s brothers, and about meeting Shadow and Nadie and their kids. He seemed to brighten when we mentioned Shadow and Nadie.  

  “You won’t find a better couple than Shadow and Nadie,” he told us. “We’ve been friends for a long time, and they’re part of a very small circle of friends that I trust.” 

  “They’re like family to me,” Chrissy told him. She told him the story of getting lost as a child and how Shadow and his warriors found her and took her home. 

  “That doesn’t surprise me in the least,” Sebastien told her. “He’s amazing.” 

  “Sebastien, we do have another issue we want to discuss with you, but we’re going to meet Chrissy’s parents in just a little bit so we don’t have a lot of time right now,” Jameson told him. “Is it OK if we call you later tonight?” 

  “Sure thing,” he replied. “Should I be worried?” 

  We laughed. “No, it’s just something we have questions about,” I told him.  

  “Oh, OK,” he replied. “Yes, your mother and I will both be here tonight, so feel free to call us whenever.” 

  “Awesome,” I replied. “Thanks!” 

  “Yes, thanks,” Jameson echoed.  

  “Nice talking to you again, Your Ma – I mean, Sebastien,” Chrissy told him.  

  “It’s nice talking to you and my boys again, too,” he replied.  

  After we hung up, I asked Chrissy what time and where we were meeting her parents. She glanced at the dashboard clock and said, “My mom should have gotten off of work a few minutes ago. Let me text her and see what they want to do.”  

  It didn’t take long for Chrissy’s mom to reply. “She says to meet them at the steakhouse around the corner from our house in about an hour,” she told us. “I’ll show you guys how to get there.” 

“Do we have enough time to stop by the motel and change clothes?” Jameson asked her.  

She nodded. “Yes. We should have just enough time.” 

We were back at the motel within just a few minutes. Once we got back into our room, I peeked back out the window. Sure enough, in the parking lot next door, I watched the yellow minivan pull into a parking space.  

“Looks like Sebastien’s guys are sticking close,” I told Jameson and Chrissy. I pulled the curtain back a little more so that they could see what I was talking about. 

Jameson shook his head. “I guess that’s something we’re going to have to get used to. Every time I’ve seen members of royal families on TV, they have an entourage of guards following them around.” 

Chrissy and I laughed. “Yeah, I guess you’re right,” I replied.  

We quickly changed into fresh clothes, both of us anxious to impress Chrissy’s parents. She insisted that neither of them were the “fancy” type, but we didn’t want them thinking their daughter was with a couple of slouches.  

“If you wear suits and ties, my parents will probably think you’re trying too hard,” she warned us. “If you have polo shirts or something like that, that would work.” 

Jameson and I rarely if ever dressed alike, but we only had a limited number of dress clothes with us. So, we both ended up wearing royal blue polo shirts and black dress pants with black dress shoes. We had both dressed quickly while Chrissy was in the bathroom, and when she came out and saw us dressed alike, she laughed. 

“My parents are going to think they’re seeing double,” she joked. 

I laughed, but Jameson looked worried. “Is that a bad thing?” he asked nervously. “I think I can find another shirt in here somewhere.”  

He started to dig through his suitcase again, but Chrissy stopped him by laying a hand on his arm. “Don’t worry so much, Jay. You both look perfect.” 

He paused and turned to look at her. “Jay?”  

Now it was her turn to look worried. “Is that OK? I-I was thinking I would call you Jay and Jonathan, Jon. Are you guys OK with that?” 

We both looked at each other, then back at her with a grin. “I’m more than OK with that....Chris,” Jameson replied. 

She smiled. “I’m sure you’ve noticed my friends and family often call me that, so I would love it if you guys do too.” She turned to me. “What about you? Are you OK with being called Jon?” 

I grinned at her. “I’m more than OK with it too,” I told her. “And I think Chris suits you perfectly.” 

She smiled at us, and, much to our surprise and happiness, she came over and hugged each of us. She hugged Jameson first, snuggling into his arms for a few seconds. I saw him breathe in her scent, and a look of calm replaced the nervous expression on his face. Then she came to me and did the same. When she was in my arms, I did the same thing I’d seen my brother do. I breathed in her intoxicating scent of cinnamon and vanilla, and I felt my nervousness just wash away.  

After a few seconds, I drew back so that I could look at her face. “So does this mean that you’re accepting the bond?” I asked hopefully. 

She paused for a minute, then slowly nodded. “My brothers love you guys. Shadow and Nadie and the kids love you. I see no reason my parents won’t love you. So with all of that in mind, I’ve decided that I will accept the bond.” Then she grinned at us. “Of course, that could change if I’m wrong about my parents liking you.” 

I felt my heart skip a beat, heard Damien howl with joy, and felt the nerves come back with the force of a freight train, all within the space of about a minute. Tonight had suddenly become even more important. Moon Goddess, don’t let us screw this up.