Chapter 6
They were all exhausted when they eventually pulled back into their driveway the next evening. University of Alabama had seemed convenient to their home pack in the northern part of Florida when they’d all decided to relocate, but now that this was going to be a regular occurrence, Logan wasn’t so sure. Just thinking about the sixteen hour round trip drive they were going to make at least monthly from now until the baby was born had Logan tense. He wondered if Ryan and Izzy were going to have to move back to pack lands when they got closer to delivery time. It might be for the best, but Logan wasn’t going to be the one to suggest it just yet.
The news was still too fresh and Izzy had bitten his head off enough for one day. The other shifter’s car sickness was mildly suppressed with Sylvia’s tonic, but the ride had still been hard on Izzy. Izzy’s tongue had reacted to his physical stress by spewing acid at any perceived slight during the drive. Unfortunately, since Logan was driving, he’d taken the brunt of Izzy’s ire.
Despite the persistent nausea, Izzy appeared to be coming around to the idea of being pregnant, but Ryan was having a surprisingly hard time coming to terms with the news. Logan wondered why he wasn’t as ecstatic as most mates when they found out they were going to be a dad. Ryan had never had a problem with children before that Logan had noticed. Logan decided to let it go for now, but would pull Ryan aside to talk it over if his reticence seemed to continue much longer.
Logan froze momentarily as he turned the key in the look, dreading what he’d find when he opened the door. Logan hoped Judas hadn’t done too much damage to their home while they were gone. He’d made sure the cat had an extra bowl of food and three bowls of water laid out in the kitchen. He’d even left the seat down on his toilet just in case. After walking in on Judas drinking out of the john several times already, Logan knew it wasn’t below the cat’s standards.
The cat’s litter box had also been thoroughly cleaned and Logan had left him an old shirt to sleep on, spread out on the recliner. He’d made sure to research online how to make a cat as comfortable as possible when left home alone for an extended period of time. It’s not that Logan cared whether the cat was happy or not, he told himself. Logan just wanted to avoid having to replace any more of his personal belongings. He’d already lost too many items to list to Judas’ unpredictable temper.
Logan finally pushed opened the front door and scanned the room quickly. He failed to pick up any obvious signs of damage or unpleasant odors. The cat was nowhere to be seen, but that wasn’t unusual. Judas was not a social creature. Logan let out a sigh of relief and he couldn’t avoid hearing Ben’s answering chuckle behind him. Logan was too tired to pick a fight with his brother, though, so he ignored Ben’s laughter.
He’d driven most of the way home himself, despite the offer to trade off from everyone else in the vehicle. Logan suspected they’d all been more than a little uncomfortable with the aggressiveness of his driving, but once he had pointed the vehicle toward home, Logan had felt the urgent need to get there as quickly as possible. It was bad enough they’d had to stop twice for Izzy to pee. Logan wasn’t willing to stop again just to switch drivers.
Everyone mumbled their goodnights as they split off into their respective rooms. Logan stopped in the kitchen and refilled Judas’ empty food bowl. He was pleased to see a few nuggets of food remained in the bottom and one of the water bowls was almost full. Knowing he hadn’t left the cat wanting made him surprisingly proud.
Picking up the empties, he placed them in the sink before heading to bed. Logan’s jaw popped as he yawned widely. Pushing his bedroom door open, he found Judas curled up asleep in the middle of his pillow. He flicked a glance at the recliner and saw the shirt he’d left on the chair obviously untouched.
“You little fucker. I bet you slept in my bed the entire time we were gone didn’t you?” Logan asked the cat. He would deny to his grave the tone of fondness that accompanied the accusation. Judas raised his head and mismatched green and blue eyes blinked back at him. The cat mimicked Logan’s wide yawn and quickly went back to sleep. Logan kicked his shoes into his closet and dropped his shirt and shorts across the end of his bed. He eyed the cat and debated pushing him off his pillow. Sighing audibly, he took the other side of the bed, letting the cat keep his place. I’m such a sucker. Logan set his alarm for six and switched off the light. He was asleep before his eyes were even fully closed.
Metallica’s Enter Sandman blared exactly at six in the morning as planned. Logan blinked and rubbed the grit from his eyes. He silenced his phone as he sat up; scanning the room for Judas, but the cat was gone. He heard someone puttering around in the kitchen and smelled the unmistakable aroma of cooking bacon and knew instinctively where he would find the beast.
Logan took a quick shower and, towel-drying his hair, finally made his way to the kitchen. A much livelier Izzy was standing over the stove whipping up what looked like the makings for breakfast tacos. Logan almost felt himself tearing up in relief and not just for Izzy’s return to cooking. Before he could stop himself, he had Izzy in a bear hug from behind, the other man complaining audibly and hitting Logan in the thigh with his wooden spatula.
“Let go of me, doofus. I’m going to burn the eggs,” Izzy complained. Logan placed a loud kiss on the top of Izzy’s platinum head and released him.
“I’m just so glad you’re better. It feels like weeks since I’ve had a real meal,” Logan said as he pretended to wipe fake tears from underneath his eyes. He’d never admit the dampness he smoothed into the legs of his jeans.
“Glad to know that’s what you’d miss most about me, asshole,” Izzy said. Logan flinched and looked down to see Judas biting the back of his ankle repeatedly. He jumped away before the cat could draw blood and Izzy burst out laughing.
“At least the cat’s on my side,” Izzy said. Logan stood rubbing his ankle while he waited for the coffee to finish brewing.
“Traitor,” Logan said to the cat. Judas blinked and started washing his paws, ignoring Logan’s barb.
“So you’re really feeling better then?” Logan asked, honestly concerned. He poured himself a cup of black coffee and took a sip, feeling his shoulders relax the instant the hot liquid poured down his throat.
“I do. That concoction Sylvia worked up is gross, but it seemed to do the trick for my stomach. I’m actually hungry this morning and if Junior agrees, I might keep my breakfast down this time,” Izzy replied. Logan saw him place his free hand across his lower abdomen unconsciously as he’d seen several pregnant females do before.
“Well, even if it’s gross, I’m glad it's helping. It was making us all crazy to watch you be sick all the time. As hard as it was on me, I can’t imagine how difficult it was for Ryan,” Logan said. He put his empty mug down and made short work of setting the table while Izzy finished cooking. Logan had to shove Judas out of the way with his foot several times as the cat kept lying down in the middle of the kitchen floor. Taking notice of their dance, Izzy chuckled.
“What?” Logan asked, unaware of the spectacle he and the cat were making.
“That cat really likes you, doesn’t he? Everywhere you go, he follows,” Izzy replied.
“I don’t think that means he likes me. It just means he likes to torment me,” Logan said as he reached across the table to lay out another set of silverware. “OUCH! Damn it, Judas! Quit biting my ankles,” Logan groused at the cat and pushed him away with one foot again. When Izzy started to laugh, Logan aimed an accusing finger his way and the other man mimed zipping his lips.
Logan was the first to leave that morning since his new job started before eight. He hated construction hours, but it was a paycheck as they had all agreed. He knew from previous experience that the further along a project got, the earlier he would be getting up and the later he would be getting home.
Logan pulled on his work boots to complete his outfit of ratty jeans and a t-shirt. He grabbed a long sleeve button up that already had paint on it in case the sun came out. He didn’t need sunburn on his first day, even with his superior healing ability. Constant exposure to the sun would have his skin smarting just as annoyingly as it did any human. He would just suffer hours instead of days while it healed. Logan headed for the kitchen, shoving his black locks under a baseball cap.
Logan smiled as he saw his lunch sack lined up along with the others in a neat line. He smirked as a thought flew threw his mind that Logan was sure would earn him a beating from his pierced pack mate. Of them all, Izzy was obviously the most maternal, always making sure they were well-fed and comfortable. Izzy was definitely going to extremes, however, to prove his mothering abilities with his seemingly impossible condition. Feeling the cat weave itself between his feet, Logan looked down to meet the mismatched eyes staring up at him.
“I have to go to work. I’ll be back later,” Logan told the cat. Judas glanced at his bowl as if signaling he needed to be fed first. Logan spied the egg concoction Izzy must have tried to feed the cat.
“Don’t look at me. I didn’t put that there. It’s Izzy’s fault. Maybe next time you’ll be nicer to me and bite his ankles instead.” Judas’ ears flattened as if he understood every word. His nose pointed up in the air and the cat stoically stalked away. Logan chuckled at the cat’s antics and went to empty out the eggs, replacing it with the cat’s usual dry food. When the first jingle of food hit the bowl, the cat was back, weaving between Logan’s feet again purring loudly. Logan patted him on the head and stepped back, leaving the cat alone to finish his boring breakfast.