Flyers Fuzzbutts and Fisticuffs Page 3

  Doyle groaned. “What movie are we seeing?” he asked.

  “Lego Batman,” Louis moaned, staring at their tickets. “Is this really the movie Cullen’s gone to see?”

  Doyle nodded, jerking his chin. “He’s up there,” he said. They both looked at the back row, where Cullen was seated with Kathleen, Sherman, Chaz, and their tribe, plus John and Cameron’s kids, Murphy and Aiden’s children, and about a dozen more. Two newcomers, Dorothy and Arthur Fielding, were also sitting with the group, looking settled and happy after their recent move from England.

  “We’re over that side,” Louis said, pointing to the back right. Groaning again, they trooped up the stairs to their seats, cramming into them like sardines.

  “I can’t see,” a little voice complained behind them, and they twisted around, towering over the kids behind, despite being seated.

  “Sorry,” Doyle said, glancing at them.

  “Why don’t you swap places?” their mom, Jayne, said sweetly, smiling at the bear shifters, looking amused. Jayne was John Hasting’s sister and a snow leopard shifter.

  “Er, we might squash you,” Louis said, wincing.

  She waggled her brows. “Just swap, guys, the movie’s about to start.”

  Doyle got up and lifted both kids into his arms, who squealed with laughter at being so high up. Stepping up a row, he swiveled, placing the children in the seat in front, as Louis managed to leap up, as well. Fortunately they were by the wall so there was nobody on the other side.

  “Thanks,” Doyle whispered as the lights went down.

  Jayne laughed, patting his arm. “You do know this is Lego Batman, don’t you?”

  He nodded. “We do now,” he sighed.

  She grinned, hooking her arm through his. “Enjoy,” she said, winking, and handed him her extra-large tub of popcorn. “By the time it ends, trust me, you’ll need a crane to lift you out of those seats. They’re not built for super-sized bear shifters like you two.”

  He rolled his eyes, but laughed, as well. “That’s why we bought a surround-sound home-cinema system. Saves us having to cram ourselves into tiny tots seats like these.”

  “Ssshhh,” hissed the kids in front. Ducking down, he tried to stay quiet, hearing a quiet chuckle from Jayne.

  * * * *

  Cullen stared in amazement as Doyle and Louis entered the movie theater, looking around in horror as they viewed the mass of kids. He grinned to himself, seeing their resignation, then the trudge to their seats on the opposite side.

  Freddy, sitting beside him, nudged his arm and began singing the tune to Love Boat.

  “Told you they were smitten,” Freddy drawled in his ear.

  “They’re not here because I am,” Cullen retorted, blushing despite himself.

  “They bought a state-of-the-art system for their house, a few weeks ago, because they hate being squashed up like that,” Sherman drawled on the other side. “Trust me, Freddy’s right. Those boys are here for you.”

  Cullen flushed bright red at their knowing smiles and couldn’t help but look across the theater at the huge bear shifters. He giggled suddenly, seeing them swapping with Jayne’s two cuties, swinging the little ones into the air, then easing them gently down again. Those guys were so great with kids, it was amusing to see their horror when confronted by so many in one place.

  He locked gazes with Doyle, who smiled shyly, waving. He nodded awkwardly, wrenching his gaze away, but within seconds, he couldn’t help his gaze roving that way again, like a homing beacon. Louis was staring intently at him, looking at Cullen with a wistful yearning that tugged at Cullen’s heart. He had wished for that sort of a look from Ghost, once, but it had never happened. To have these two big, strapping bears gazing at him with such longing, almost adoration, was a balm to his soul.

  “Why don’t you ask them out?” Freddy suggested.

  “Both of them?” Cullen hissed.

  “Bear shifters like to share,” Sherman said, waggling his brows.

  Cullen’s flush deepened, and his mind rushed to thoughts of being sandwiched between the two in bed, as they tag-teamed plowing his ass. His cock rocketed to life, telling him his libido was out of limbo finally.

  “I didn’t know they liked me that much,” he said lamely.

  Freddy laughed hysterically, elbowing him. “Are you kidding?” he snorted. “Those boys have done everything but moon at you for attention. Why do you think they’ve been spending so much time at the mall, taking the same shifts you have?”

  “I just figured that was their hours,” Cullen said, shrugging.

  “Nah, they asked for those shifts, buddy,” Freddy said. “Evan told me. He got a job working at the new sporting goods store at the mall, run by Zion and Shelby.”

  “Pipe down, you guys,” Moe hissed at them from the row in front. “You’re ruining the movie. Geez! You’re worse than children.”

  “Sorry,” Cullen hissed back and zipped his lip.

  “Later,” Freddy whispered, then they settled down to watch the screen.

  * * * *

  “He smiled at us,” Doyle murmured to Louis, grinning.

  “I know,” Louis replied, looking ecstatic. They high-fived. “Shall we ask him out?”

  “Really? So soon?”

  “Soon?” Jayne asked in a low whisper. “Guys, I live out at the ranch, and even I know that you fancy Cullen. You’ve been drooling after him since you got to Sage. That’s years.”

  “We didn’t want to put pressure on him,” Louis said, flushing. “He had enough going on, what with Ghost on the loose, and all the crap with Flashpoint.”

  “He visited you a lot when you got shot,” Jayne said, smiling knowingly.

  “He felt bad because he figured he brought Ghost into town, ergo, everything else happened because of him,” Louis replied. “I don’t think he was thinking about us romantically.”

  “You were shot by Ronan, not Ghost,” Jayne said.

  “I know, but Ronan did that because he felt bad, because he let Ghost and Morag stay at the hotel, who helped Crash the sociopath escape from San Quentin when he was being transferred. Then, when Crash went after Mystery, Chill, and Bone, and we found out what happened to Shark and Oliver, Ronan had to take care of it,” Doyle explained, barely pausing for breath. “And Cullen feels as though he’s responsible somehow for Ghost being in Sage, even though Ghost had already targeted Sage.”

  “You guys,” whined Jayne’s children again, turning to glare at them.

  “Oops, sorry again,” Louis said, clapping a hand over his mouth.

  They huffed, then about-faced.

  “Later,” Jayne mouthed.

  Nodding, they settled down to watch the movie.

  * * * *

  Cullen waited for the swarm to subside before he eased out of his seat, unable to resist a quick check to the other side of the theater. He’d been doing it all through the movie, completely distracted by fantasies about him and two big bear shifters in various sexual positions, fucking each other senseless. He hoped no one asked him about the movie…he couldn’t remember a thing.

  “They may need help,” Freddy said, grinning when Cullen realized that Louis and Doyle looked to be in pain. “These seats aren’t made for big-assed bears.”

  “Language!” Little Moe said sharply.

  “Sorry.”

  Cullen smirked at his friend, who was as bad as John for being a potty mouth.

  “I’ll just go and see if they’re okay,” Cullen said casually, hearing a guffaw from several of the adults nearby.

  “Sure.” Sherman grinned. “We’ll round up the fuzzbutts.”

  “Cullen has a boyfriend!” Flint chimed in, giggling with Moe, as he and his brothers were herded from the cinema.

  Cullen was already moving, hopping over the seats to the aisle, dodging departing theatergoers and managing not to trip over any wayward children.

  “Are you all right?” he called as he approached the row they were on.

 
They looked startled, then bashful. “I think they’re stuck,” Jayne said helpfully, rising from her seat and patting Doyle’s arm. “Come on, Jem and Joshua, let’s get some hot chocolate before we head home.”

  Cullen smiled at her as the small group departed, then watched with interest as the bear shifters huffed and puffed, eventually squeezing free of the small seats.

  “We may have added a few too many pounds when we were in hospital,” Louis said sheepishly, his cheeks red with embarrassment.

  “I blame John and his never-ending supply of pastries,” Doyle added dourly, his skin tone matching his friend’s.

  Cullen understood perfectly. “Yeah, John goes a little overboard with the treats,” he said, smiling shyly at the pair. Both had the most exquisite espresso-colored eyes, twinkling with highlights of gold, soft and warm as they stared at him, as though mesmerized.

  “Yeah, we probably didn’t have to demolish quite so many, though,” Louis laughed, patting his belly. He was certainly not fat, his physique pure muscle, but he had a slight paunch. “We’ve had to do extra hours in the gym to get fit again.”

  Cullen smelled their earthy, seductive scent, and felt a tingle of awareness rocket through him. “It’s certainly paying off,” he said softly. “You look great.”

  He flushed at being so bold, but was pleased he’d said it. Considering how big and tough they looked, he had the feeling they were not too experienced when it came to dating. They acted like untried cubs, awkward and lacking in confidence.

  “Do you want to go out on a date?” The three of them spoke at once, stopping in surprise to digest the question, then grinned at each other.

  “You’d like to go out with me?” Cullen asked, tilting his head, seeing their nervousness.

  “We’d love to,” they said in unison, which had them laughing again.

  “Which night?” Cullen couldn’t believe he was actually contemplating dating again. But his heart was racing, in a good way, and his excitement was nothing like what he’d felt with Ghost. That had been tinged with anxiety, as he’d always had to be careful what he said around the man. Ghost had been short-tempered and overly sensitive. His bears were simply adorable.

  “Whenever you like,” Louis said eagerly. “You can choose where you’d like to eat, too.” He glanced at his belly ruefully. “As you can see, we’ll eat most anything.”

  Cullen stepped back a little as they approached the end of the row, stepping into the aisle. The theater was now empty but for them, so they began walking toward the exit. “You like your food. That’s not a bad thing. You’re not fat,” Cullen said, sensing something underlying the words.

  Doyle shrugged. “We’re bear shifters, so we’re supposed to be big. Not everyone likes chunky.”

  “Has someone been mean to you?” Cullen scowled, figuring he’d punch anyone who said anything nasty. Doyle and Louis were great fun and loved to play. They were tough in a fight and had survived weeks in an abandoned mine in Colorado, with a group of other victims of Flashpoint, including the resident cheetah shifters, a wolf shifter pack, a mixed clan of wolverine shifters, plus some of their own kind.

  “People like to tease,” Louis said mildly, shrugging. Cullen heard a tinge of sadness, though.

  “If it hurts your feelings, you should say something,” Cullen advised firmly. “Sometimes people don’t realize how hurtful their words are.” He reached up to kiss Louis’s cheek, who turned into the caress, their lips meeting softly. Startled, Cullen opened his mouth a little and felt the warm slide of the man’s tongue gliding inside, gently tasting him as though he was the finest wine. Cullen moaned, sinking into Louis, feeling the man’s rigid cock pushing at him urgently.

  Doyle glanced at them, and growled softly, moving in to sandwich Cullen between him and Louis. He nuzzled at Cullen’s neck, driving Cullen insane. Whimpering with desire, Cullen turned his head, wanting to sample Doyle, as well, and found himself in a sexy three-way—his body super-hot and his cock throbbing almost painfully.

  They parted, panting hard, and Cullen was tempted to give in to his passion and have them take him right then and there, then wrenched himself back to sanity. They needed to take this slower. Not rush into the sexual side of things, but dammit! He wanted them.

  “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to tease you like that. I just…” Cullen stammered to a halt, not wanting them to think he wasn’t interested, or blowing hot and cold deliberately.

  “We know,” Doyle said gruffly, kissing him on the nose. “I know you’ve been hurt,” Doyle said, opening the door and leading the way out into the foyer.

  “Cool, it’s snowing,” Cullen said excitedly, staring out at the street. The town was covered in a light dusting of the stuff, as though sprinkled with icing sugar.

  “With Thanksgiving out of the way, it’s not long until Christmas,” Louis said.

  “I hope we have a white Christmas,” Doyle added, grinning like a big kid. “I love the holidays.”

  “I do, too,” Cullen said, tugging on his jacket, a thin leather affair not really suited to a Wyoming winter.

  “You should get a thicker coat,” Doyle scolded, removing his own jacket and wrapping it around Cullen’s smaller frame. Cullen sighed as the heat of the big shifter’s body seeped through, and he closed his eyes, inhaling the man’s scent, almost drooling.

  “You look good wrapped in my jacket,” Doyle said softly, his big hands still clutching the lapels.

  “He’d look better wrapped around both of us,” Louis murmured, his dark eyes intense with desire. Cullen shuddered as the images he’d been tossing around during the movie suddenly emerged again. The one of these big, gentle giants double fucking him was his favorite.

  “I’d like that,” he said, watching their nostrils flare, the scent of their instant arousal pungently obvious.

  “We don’t want to push you into anything you don’t want,” Doyle said, cupping Cullen’s cheek gently, his thumb brushing lightly over Cullen’s soft mouth.

  “I want,” Cullen almost whined. “I’m tired of all work and no play.”

  “We’re just for playing with?” Louis asked, sounding hurt.

  “I know that my dick just found new life, very recently, that I’ve been having all kinds of naughty daydreams about the two of you. I also know that I really, really want to get to know you better,” Cullen replied huskily, leaning into Doyle’s touch as Louis moved in on the other side, surrounding him with heat. “I like you a lot. Am I ready for something deeper just yet? I don’t know…but I’d like to find out.”

  “I guess that’s all we can ask for,” Doyle murmured, tilting Cullen’s face up for a kiss. A moment later Cullen had his second taste of bear…and found a new craving. Moaning, he tasted chocolate, a hint of coffee, and a stronger hint of buttery popcorn. He smiled against Doyle’s questing lips. These bears did like to eat.

  “Hmmm, let me have a go,” Louis complained, turning Cullen into his arms, then diving in for a sample. Louis was spicier, his breath a little minty, another flavor that Cullen knew would soon be his second addiction. These guys were seriously hot.

  “Cullen? Is that you?” Cullen tensed in shock as he heard a female voice, in a distinctive accent. Russian. One he hadn’t heard for a long time. Irina.

  He eased away from the bears, staring at the young woman who stood there, a young boy beside her, who he assumed was Mika. Her hair was long, strawberry blonde, and plaited neatly into a single thick braid down her back. Her eyes were the purest green, her features flushed from being out in the cold. The youngster was the spitting image of her, in male form, his face exquisitely beautiful, though his eyes showed his nerves, and he looked to be in a little discomfort.

  “Hi,” he said, clearing his throat.

  She smiled slightly. “Sorry for interrupting,” she said, her pale eyes showing faint amusement. He had arranged for some friends to help get her out of a dangerous situation, in Russia. Using the Shifter Network, he had coordinated a risky e
scape plan. That had been a month ago. He hadn’t heard from her since then.

  “I didn’t know when…” he began, then cut himself off before he said too much.

  “It’s so good to see you, Aunt Gertrude,” he said, coming up with the name on the spur of the moment. She wrinkled her nose, but didn’t protest. “How have you and little Joseph been?”

  “Is that Uncle Cullen?” the boy whispered. “Why did he call me Joseph? My name’s Mika.”

  “Poor dear’s been through so many time changes, he’s forgotten his own name,” the woman said, smiling and glancing around nervously.

  “You look tired, Aunt,” Cullen said. “Why don’t we go get you both into your hotel?”

  “Would you believe it? I was so eager to see you, I quite forgot to make reservations,” she said, wincing as she glanced around again.

  “You need a place to stay?” Louis asked. “You do look tired.”

  Cullen studied the woman’s face. She was more than just tired. He was surprised she was still on her feet. She was exhausted, terrified, and showed herself to be on the edge of her resources. It looked as though she and Mika had walked a lot of miles.

  He stepped toward her, freezing in place as three men entered the foyer behind her. They had vicious, predatory looks on their faces. Their target was the female.

  “Aunt Gertrude, why don’t you and young Joseph here come with us?” Louis said suddenly, moving swiftly to stand beside her, his arm around her back. Doyle did the same, lifting “Joseph” in his arms and ruffling his hair.

  “I bet you’d like a hot chocolate loaded with sprinkles and cream, after that long ride from California, huh, Joseph?” Doyle said, and the youngster smiled and nodded, and for just a second, pure excitement showed in those too-old eyes at the mention of a treat.

  Cullen saw the confusion, though, at the talk of California, then a quick understanding, revealing quick intelligence as the boy looked at the three newcomers.