AMIDST THE CATS' CRADLE - 14

C H A P T E R F O U R T E E N - - - - - M I T C H

To say that his life had been flipped upside down was a tremendous understatement.

Mitch was left reeling from the revelation of not only being a father, but one to twin sons, an Alpha pair on their own. He immediately thought to contact his mother and shout at the top of his lungs that he had become a father since it was not news to be taken lightly. Something he hardly ever allowed himself to wish for these days.

But eventually, reason triumphed. For the majority of the night, Mitch tossed and turned in his cot while keeping a close ear out for any noises of the infants in distress. Considering Gwen's cautions that the lads were much smarter, quicker, and stronger than they seemed, they had fashioned improvised cots for them. In general, the night went by without incident, but when dawn came, Mitch wasn't sure he'd gotten a wink of sleep.

How should a guy react to learning that his life has changed? It was obvious that he would need to discuss with Jordan in depth about what it meant for both of them, but he also needed to spend time with Gwen and the boys.

Mitch sneaked out of the hotel as daylight dawned, making his way to a neighboring bakery and grabbed some food and coffees to go. Jordan had already left by the time he returned, and Gwen had finished with the boys' morning duties of feeding and changing them.

"I'm sorry! I expected to be back by the time you all woke up. "I must have misjudged how long it would take to get to Donny's," Mitch admitted apologetically, placing the tray of coffee and bagels on the table while Gwen pulled a striped shirt over Duncan's head. "Is there anything I can do to help?" And where has Jordan gone? ”

"He received a call from Jerome. Something to do with a mission. He's explaining everything now, but it could take a while since... everything," Gwen replied as she picked up Duncan. "You are welcome to Dawson. We're prepared, but I believe we might need a break... do you think we could go down to the training rooms? " she inquired.

Mitch grabbed Dawson up with one arm and then took the coffee and bagels with the other, leaving one of the bagels and Jordan's black coffee on the table.

“Tell you what, I can do you one better. Follow me,” he said, waving her along.

She followed with Duncan on her hip and they made their way through the expanse of the large, nondescript Firm headquarters. Mitch kept taking her down staircases and along corridors he was sure she’d rarely if ever visited, until they stepped in through a room and a burst of wet but pleasant warmth hit them in their faces. Butterflies drifting by were the first thing they could see.

“Oh my God! What is this place?” Gwen asked with a gasp, marveling at the scenery.

Large, lush trees grew up feet-tall, and there were plenty of pathways among them, exotic flowers dotting the sides and small bushes behind them. There was grass and tree bark on the ground and everything felt clean and lovely.

“It’s the arboretum,” Mitch said, putting Dawson down.

The boy fell on his butt for a moment but he was up on all fours and then standing a second later, a bit shaky, but definitely standing.

“Whoa,” Mitch said, surprised, while Gwen put down the other boy as well.

“That’s nothing. Wait until they get going,” she said with a laugh.

Sure enough, a moment later both of them were standing and tottering along, definitely walking. It wasn’t normal at all for shifter babies their age, and when Mitch saw Duncan take a few running steps, he was floored. Pride burst in his chest, though he knew full well that there was some nonsense going on with the chemical Gwen had ingested. But that didn’t matter, right? Most of it had to be good strong Allen genes in action!

“They’re… they’re something,” Mitch said with a chuckle as they moved deeper into the makeshift jungle, their pace slow as the boys explored under their watchful eyes.

“Why do they have this here?” Gwen asked, curiosity shining in her pretty eyes.

“Research stuff. The Firm does genetic engineering studies as well, which you probably know by now, but they like messing around with plants and such first. And a lot of the really interesting stuff goes on with really exotic plants, like what happens naturally in the world, you know? That’s how Jordan explained it anyway. I’ve never been much for the world of science myself. I just think this is… beautiful. Like you are.”

Without missing a beat, he took her hand in his, squeezing it softly. Her fingers felt a little cold despite the moderate to warm temperature in the room, but he knew he’d warm them up soon enough. Having her hand in his felt good, though. It felt right. A lot more right than most things he had felt over the last ten or so months.

“Thank you, Mitch,” she said after a small pause, the makings of a blush on her cheeks.

Gwen didn’t blush often. At least that was Mitch’s takeaway from the time they’d had together, as little as there’d been. So whenever he could see her cheeks light up, it was all the more special. There was something so mesmerizing about her and he couldn’t quite put his finger on it.

She was tough but sweet at the same time, a little wild, but in charge of her own emotions. Sexy as hell. The combination was dizzying and he felt himself drawn in more and more, with Duncan and Dawson being one more excellent reason to be around her. Or, well, two, as it were.

“No thanks needed. I’ve made a point of speaking the truth when I can. Plenty of reasons during missions not to, but it makes the time off all the more impactful. I bet you know. The Corps must have been similar,” he said with a shrug, his eyes tracking the way Duncan and Dawson chased one another through the underbrush.

They were already showing some complex understanding of using shadows and physical objects to distract whatever was behind them, or to trap what they were chasing. All signs of a strong young shifter. But of course they were far too young for such things… Mitch had to wonder what else the drug had done and whether it was all good, or if they were simply being treated to the positive side of it so far.

Nevertheless, he put it out of his mind for the time being, giving Gwen’s hand a squeeze as they came to a bench overlooking a tiny pond at the heart of the greenery. He led her there and sat down with her, not letting go of her hand. Luckily she didn’t seem to be interested in doing that either, and was comfortable in his presence.

“I’m so sorry that you’ve had to go through this all alone,” he said, watching the ripples on the pond as the boys thrust their hands in there and splashed a little. “If I’d known…”

“You couldn’t have. I couldn’t tell you. I’m not even sure you’re supposed to know now, but I figure Ace would have to put some kind of detail on us anyway, or keep us hidden here until… until what? The Arctics are destroyed? That seems unlikely.”

“If that’s what we have to do to make sure you’re safe, as well as Duncan and Dawson…” he said, trailing off.

The Arctics were constantly in motion, just like The Firm. Though they had some stationary headquarters, none of the work The Firm did really needed them. Mitch knew there were redundancies for redundancies for redundancies in place and if one or all of the main buildings got blown to smithereens; they’d simply run the whole thing from a bunker somewhere. The Firm controlled a vast network of highly trained personnel across the world by that point, and the US branch was the largest, but certainly not the only one.

Mitch had to assume that The Arctics had to be much the same, though perhaps not on quite the same scale or completely similar training, since The Firm mostly hired out of the armed forces.

“It’s a pipe dream. I haven’t seen a lot of those guys, but the few times I did run across them, it became pretty damn obvious that they weren’t afraid to die for their cause. That’s what sets us apart. We don’t want to die for anyone else’s goals. No, there’s no way they can be taken out like that,” Gwen said with a sigh.

Mitch turned to face her, lifting her chin slightly to look at him. Her eyes were still intoxicating and the way her lips parted slightly… delicious. Not kissing her was a crime, but he held back, having more to say and knowing that if their lips touched, there was no way he could make himself say anything but babble about how fucking hot she was.

“Then we’ll find another way. We’ll hide, or we’ll fight, or we’ll do both. I don’t care. I won’t let anything happen to you or the boys and you know Jordan’s the same way. You’re with us now. We’re together. This is all going to be different from now on. No more doing things alone, without support, without help. You hear me?” he asked firmly, giving her a slight glower, but he couldn’t keep himself from tossing a small smile in there as well.

Looking at her and the boys made him… well, it made him better, and that was something he was not willing to give up. As little as he knew her or them, he was willing and able to fix all the shortcomings of the past and make sure that in the future, none of the same mistakes would be made.

“I hear you,” she said with a soft chuckle, putting her hand on his now.

She moved it to her lips and when she planted a small kiss on his fingertips, Mitch had to suck in a breath. Her lips were electric, and the bolt of desire the touch sent flying through him was impossible to ignore. Throwing one glance at the twin baby boys to make sure they were okay, he slipped his hand around Gwen’s neck and pulled her in for a deep, passionate kiss.

She tasted just as good as he remembered. Having her lips on his made the night they’d had come back in full color, feeding his mind and his body. He could remember it so clearly how she’d whimpered in his arms, pushing against him, demanding more while taking all he had, and he was glad to give it all to her. How she was perfect for both him and Jordan and how everything she did felt like magic.

Gwen was their mate. He was sure of it. The only question was, did Jordan understand this too?

But at the moment, he didn’t have time to muse about that. His tongue slipped into her mouth and she bit at it lightly, making a low growl resonate in his chest. She was feisty. He loved it! Her hands were in fists against his chest, the fabric of his shirt rolled up between her fingers. She tugged him closer, and when they finally broke the kiss, both panting for breath, she still hung onto him.

Staring into her eyes, he made himself a promise. He’d never let her or the boys suffer again. Whatever it took, he’d make sure she was safe and as happy as he could make her.

“Our coffee’s getting cold,” he finally said, noticing the tremor in his voice and not caring.

Gwen’s eyes went wide with surprise and then she laughed, letting go of him and pulling back.

“Oh, so a bit of coffee can win over kissing me?” she teased, a brow arched.

“No,” he said, feeling slightly smug about it all. “There are bagels too.”

He had to duck as she tossed the bag right at his head, laughing out loud. Yes, she was definitely the right woman for him.