Protecting the Line, Draft 1, CH 05
#5 of Protecting the Line
draft 1 of Book 4 in the inheriting the Line Series.
Denton deals with revelations he never wanted to learn by focusing on home, his family, his company, and finding his missing friend. All the while, a hidden war spreads around the world.
Supposedly in charge of running the war against his uncle, Arnold discovers that it's a difficult thing to do when every elder around barely wants to sniff in his direction. But he's an Orr, and he fully intends on kicking them all in the balls, if that's what it takes to save their collective miserable asses.
write brief description of chapter here
if you want to read ahead of everyone else, the complete story is available on my Patreon https://www.patreon.com/kindar
or, you can buy the published book from Amazon https://amzn.to/45guhAx
Posted using PostyBirb
"Shouldn't we go home and sleep?" Marcus asked as they entered the elevator? "You barely slept during the flight back."
Zikabar looked at his husband, vibrating with excitement. "How can you think of sleep at a time like this?"
"Because I doubt the situation will have changed in eight hours." Marcus yawned.
"How can you say that? In eight hours everything could be different. Things change so fast at that age."
The doors open and Zee ran through the corridor, following the signs. He entered the large room, filled with men looking through a long window. He located Denton, seated, looking exhausted.
"Denton," Zee squealed, grinning from ear to ear.
The cheetah forced a smile and stood. Zee hugged him so tight Denton coughed.
"Oh my god, oh, my god." He pushed Denton at arm's length and looked him over. He tried to made his face stern. "How did this happen?"
Denton sighed. "It's complicated."
"Really?" Marcus said, joining them. "Complicated? That's what you're going with?"
"It must have been complicated," Zee said, having trouble not smiling, "because I know for a fact that that," he indicated Denton's crotch, "doesn't turn on for women."
Marcus looked around and lowered his voice. "I expect magic was involved?"
Denton nodded. "How did you even find out about it? Last I heard you two were in San Francisco."
"A little birdie told us," Zee squeed.
"More like a big birdie," Marcus said, "about this tall, able to change the way she looks, and fiercer than many of the people at the Bureau."
"Of course Magdee told you," Denton sighed. "I'm going to kill her."
"You will do no such thing," Zee admonished the cheetah. "Now, how is it that I had to hear about it from her and not you?"
"It's complicated."
"Denton, dear, please uncomplicate it for me."
"We weren't talking when it happened."
"But then we were," Zee said.
"And we were busy chasing a tree woman serial killer, then my family was held for ransom."
"There was time after that, Denton," Marcus said.
Denton stepped away. "Zee, Marcus, I didn't want the kid. As far as I was concerned he wasn't mind. I didn't talk at him because anytime I thought about him, I had to think about his mother and that's still hard."
"Hard?" Zee had his arms around the cheetah again. "Denton, what happened?"
"Magic doesn't always act the expected way, Zee. What should have given me the boost needed to be able to perform didn't like that I'd changed my mind."
"Didn't they know how it worked?" Marcus asked. "Fred seems to know everything about magic."
"Max was the one to do it, and no, it wasn't something new. He used the same phrase on Martin, it's the one they use anytime they want to have sex with a woman. What they never had to deal with was an unwilling man."
"They forced you?" Zee looked around for the cougar. How dare he do that to Denton? Denton grabbed his arm before he could give the man a piece of his mind.
"Zee don't."
"He--"
"Max has already punished himself enough over what happened. He didn't realize. Like I said, he used it on Martin so he thought it was safe. It is safe. He won't ask me to do that again."
"If you didn't want him, why go through with it?" Marcus asked. "Before the magic was used, why agree to it at all? You never talked about wanted children."
"I didn't." He chucked. "Can you imagine me a father? But I'm the only surviving member of my family line, so Max and Martin were insistent. I caved to shut them up. I told them they'd raise the kid, not me I wasn't going to have anything to do with him. And that was before the magic disaster."
"What changed?"
Denton looked down, a smile formed on his lips and as he looked up at that Zee saw a change come over his best friend. The tiredness vanished, his eyes became bright.
When he spoke awe filled his voice. "I held him. I held this little bundle, and he mewed at me." He grinned. "At me. And I realized it then. He's my son. Mine. Not theirs. Mine. Regardless of how he came about, he's mine to look after, to keep safe." He grabbed Zee hand. "Come on, you have to see him."
Denton pushed the men away from the window and Zee was surprised to realize they were all men he knew, friends of Denton, many were part of the Society, but most were everyday friends. Zee startled at a fox looking through the glass, Was that the Detective Denton knew? No, he realized, simply another fox here to enjoy the event.
"That's him," Denton said, pointing.
"Oh." Zee shook in please. "He looks just like you!"
Denton frowned. "I think it's too early for--"
"No, no! Look at that little nose, all that fluff." Zee felt himself melt. "Oh he will have men falling all over themselves." A thought occurred to him and his excitement vanished. "Will it be men or women?"
"Men, he's gay."
"How can you know?" Marcus asked, and even his usually stoic husband was smiling.
"It's a Society thing," Denton answered, looking through the window. "We're all gay. It's His will."
"Well, for what it's worth," Marcus said, "I think you're going to be a great father."
Denton snorted. "You have no idea what you're talking about. I'm a workaholic. I don't know how to relax. I'm already a nervous wreck thinking of all the ways I'm going to screw this up."
Zee hugged the cheetah. "Denton, you have us, we will make sure you take time for him."
"I doubt we're going to have to even do that," Marcus added. "You're going to make him your job."
"That's part of what I'm afraid of. If I obsess about him, I'm going to smother him." He sighed and looked around. "I need to deal with something. You two look tired. You don't have to stay. I have all of those to give me moral support."
"Don't worry," Marcus said. "I'll make sure uncle Zikabar gets home to sleep before too long. Once the excitement is over, I'm probably going to have to carry him back to the car. He worked during the entire flight."
"I'll see you later then."
Zee was aware of Denton leaving, but his focus was on the baby. Uncle Zikabar. Uncle Zee. He smiled. He liked the sound of it. This would be a first for him. He had nephews, technically, but they were in India, and he'd never met them. This would be amazing. His very own little man to spoil. He grinned. He was going to drive Denton insane with the way he was going to spoil him.
"Marcus, we--" he stopped as he saw the look on his husband's face. Marcus hadn't heard him. He too was looking at Denton's son, but there was a quiet yearning on his face.
They'd talked about children, years ago. They'd agreed they didn't want them. Zee had grown up the son of a single mother who had to spend her time working to give them a reasonably good life. He didn't consider himself a workaholic, but he knew he gave his work at the Bureau whatever focus he had left after everything he gave to Marcus. He didn't think he could adapt to having a child.
"We could adopt," Zee said. "We don't have to go through what Denton must have to have a child." He leaned against the mule deer and Marcus put an arm around him.
"Maybe later, we're both too busy with our careers."
"I didn't realize you wanted children, Hun."
Marcus looked down at him, smiled and kissed his forehead, their antlers clacking quietly. "I didn't know I wanted them either, until now."