His Imperfect Mate 26 by Lynn Hagen Page B

to get away from the verbal fighting. His head was pounding in sync with the rain falling as he climbed into his truck. D slid into the passenger’s side, not saying a single word.
    His mate was mad at him, too bad. He wasn’t going to let D stand there and feel the brunt of what his father had done. It wasn’t D’s fault, and he wasn’t going to let his brothers pin it on him.
    They drove back in silence. The only thing heard was the wipers swishing back and forth and the tires on the wet road. He knew coming here was a bad idea.

    * * * *
    D sat there sulking, so damn angry that he knew not to say anything because he just might regret any words he spoke right now.
    The truck pulled into the driveway, Sloane cutting the motor. Sloane got out, slamming the truck door behind him.
    Oh no, Sloane was not getting away with just walking into the house. D slipped from the truck, slamming his door with just as much anger. “You had no right!”
    Sloane spun around, his eyes blazing as he locked his emerald-green orbs with D’s black ones. “I had every right. You are my mate, and I will not stand by and watch your brothers pin the blame on you.”
    “So that gives you the right to boss me around?” D questioned in amazement, anger pulsing in his voice. He took a step back when Sloane crossed the yard, looming over him. His eyes were filled with anger, but his expression stayed cool.
    “That gave me the right, mate .”
    D slammed his hands into Sloane’s abdomen, pushing the wolf back a step as he swiped the wet hair from his eyes. He was getting soaked to the bone, but D didn’t care right now. The other shoe was falling, and he wanted to be completely focused on Sloane when it happened. “You would probably have that right if you claimed me, but thus far you act as though I’m a temporary fix for you. In-house dick that is nothing more than a convenience for you.”
    Hurt washed into Sloane’s eyes, the silence heavy between them now as his mate’s lip slowly lifted into a snarl. D stopped himself from taking a step back. He wasn’t going to show any fear if his mate was about to sever their ties.
    “Why do think that is, Dudley?”
    The words were harsh, cutting D deeply as he began to shiver. It was partly because of the cold rain, but mostly because of the fear creeping inside of him. Sloane looked ominous as he frowned down at D with so many emotions flickering through his green eyes that D couldn’t get a read on them.
    “I don’t know,” D answered honestly.
    “Because,” Sloane said around a clenched jaw, his fingers curling in to make tight fists at his sides. “You walk around here on eggshells, fear always playing in your eyes, as if you think I’m going to do something to you or kick you out. You have yet to show me the real you. If I can’t have Dudley Constantinople, in all his imperfect glory, then I can’t see myself giving you the full trust of our mating. I set aside my hurt and anger to make this work. The least you could do is return the favor.”
    D stood there stunned as he pushed the fallen hair from his eyes once more. No one had ever begged to see the real him. Hell, they had begged for him to stop acting that way. “But what if you don’t like the real me?”
    “I already told you I don’t want a perfect mate. I just want you, D, just you.”
    “I don’t think before I speak or act. I almost burned your house down, and I screwed up our mating from day one. How could you want that?”
    Sloane smiled at him, his fingers caressing the side of D’s face.
    “Because it’s who you are, the real you. I don’t care if the house burns to the ground. It can be replaced, but never knowing who the real Dudley is will never be satisfying to my soul.”
    Dudley threw his arms around Sloane, praying his mate was speaking the god’s honest truth. “Just remember, you asked to see the real me.”
    Sloane lifted D’s head, tilting it back until his pretty green eyes were staring