Curtis's Dads 23 by Lynn Hagen Page B

know. He won’t even talk to me to tell me what’s going on. I’ve tried calling him, but your father always comes back on the phone, saying D doesn’t want to talk. I can’t figure him out,” Sloane said as he took a seat at the table.
    That sucked. “You should go upstairs and say your piece through the door. If he won’t talk to you, at least you said what was on your mind.” Chauncey was proud of himself. He sounded like a psychologist. Maybe he should get a job at the resource center. Nah, he loved ranching too much.
    “You know what?” Sloane asked as he stood from the chair he had been sitting in. “You’re right.”
    “Oh hell,” Curtis mumbled as he shook his head.
    “What?” Chauncey asked. It sounded like good advice to him.
    There would be a door between them. So if D didn’t want to talk, all he had to do was ignore the wolf. Sounded right smart to him. What could go wrong?
    “I have to go to work tomorrow. Murphy needs me,” Curtis said as he stabbed at his dinner.
    “Hell no!” Chauncey bellowed, slamming the palm of his hand onto the table before he could catch the outburst.
    “I’m not a prisoner!” Curtis shot back.
    “Calm down, boys,” his pa said as he sat his fork down and steepled his fingers. “I don’t see why your mate can’t go to work.”
    Chauncey gaped at his pa as his hands fisted on the table. His pa held his hand up, sitting back in his chair. “He will just have to deal with a few bears hanging around the bookstore.” Curtis opened his mouth and then clamped it shut. Chauncey was really waiting to hear why that wasn’t plausible. He didn’t like his mate out in the public eye, but Curtis would soon rebel if he felt like he was locked away. And then the real fun would begin.
    “Okay,” Curtis finally said.
    “Good,” Pa said as he nodded. “Chance, Chauncey, and Sloane will be there with you.”
    Chance grinned from ear to ear as he sat back. “How many hot college guys are there?” he asked Curtis.
    Chauncey growled. “My mate doesn’t know how hot they are. He’s mated. Duh!”
    “Mated, not dead.” Chance pointed out to Chauncey before turning back to Curtis. “How many?”
    “A lot.” Curtis giggled as he leaned away from Chauncey.
    “I want to go,” Alex said from across the table.
    “You what!” Gavin shouted and then growled. “Hell, no. No way. Out of the damn question. Unless you want me to kill them all.” 
    Alex snorted. “I don’t want to check out the hot college guys. I want a job there.”
    Gavin’s jaw dropped. “But your job is to be my mate.” Alex slapped his hands onto his hips, glaring at Gavin. “That’s not a job. Or is it ?”
    Gavin swallowed, shooting Chauncey a menacing glower before turning back to his mate, kissing serious ass. Chauncey chuckled. The small mate may like to prance around his bedroom in pantyhose, but he knew who wore the pants in that relationship. Gavin crumbled every time Alex looked like he was pouting.
    “Pussy.” Olsen snickered. The smile fell from his face when his mate, Tater, glared at him. Chauncey knew they could communicate telepathically, and he bet his last dollar Tater was chewing him out.
    “Okay, okay,” Olsen said as he held up his hands.
    “Now who’s the pussy?” Roman, the youngest brother, laughed.
    Steven smacked him on the back of his head as he shook his head.
    Chauncey glanced over at his pa to see him smiling. It seemed the mates ran the house here. Chauncey didn’t mind. He’d let Curtis run anything he wanted. It was funny as hell though, seeing the smaller men rule the larger ones.
    “You’re all whipped.” Riley growled as he picked up his cup of coffee and took a drink.
    “Just wait, son. You’ll find out what it’s like to give your heart to someone,” his pa said.
    “Hardly,” Riley scoffed as he pushed his chair back, standing. “My mate will do what I say, and that’s it.”
    “I can’t wait to see him fall on his ass,” Roman