Getting Close to the Omega by Lisa Oliver

“There’s
    nothing you can say to me that should be a secret from
    Matthew. You wouldn’t separate any other pair or expect them
    to keep secrets from each other.”
    A strange look flashed over Kane’s face and Matthew couldn’t
    work out what it meant. But he was pleased that Dean had told
    his pack that they were mates and he was also proud that
    Dean was sticking up for their rights as mates, even if they
    were still at the talking stage. So he sat down in the nearest
    chair and Dean sat down next to him.
    “We’ve known each other about five years, haven’t we Dean?”
    Kane started. Matthew saw Dean nod his head, but the man
    didn’t say anything. “I’ve come to care for you a lot over that
    time, Dean, you know that. Finding you in that state when we
    first met, helping you with the problems you had when you first
    came to live here. Seeing how you are now with other shifters
    and any group of people. You can’t blame me for wanting to be
    sure that you think you are doing the right thing by taking
    Matthew as a mate.”
    Matthew could see Dean biting his lower lip, and he looked
    worried, but he still stayed silent. Kane must have been waiting
    for Dean to say something and when he didn’t, Kane went on.
    “Matthew’s an Alpha, and you’ve always had problems with the
    Alpha power. How can you be sure that this is what you want,
    and that you’re not being coerced? And that’s without the sex
    angle. Shit Dean, you don’t even like shifting in front of others
    in the pack, how the hell are you going to cope with Matthew
    seeing you naked?”
    Matthew desperately wanted to say something, anything to
    stop Kane attacking Dean the way he was doing. But he could

    see that Dean wasn’t just blindly taking what Kane was
    throwing at him – he was thinking, and Matthew trusted his
    instincts that were telling him that right now was a good time
    to keep quiet.
    “What have you got against other people’s mating, Kane?”
    Dean asked quietly. Kane looked confused and looked to
    Shawn, who was also sitting silently, but Shawn was looking at
    Dean and Matthew.
    “I don’t know what you’re talking about?” Kane said. “Having a
    mate is a joyous thing, and something to be celebrated in the
    pack. I’ve always believed that even when I didn’t think that
    gays could have mates.”
    “Then why,” Dean said with a bit more bite in his voice. “Why
    did you attack Diablo when you found out that he and Griff
    were mated? And why did you support Troy when he was going
    to complain to the Council about Damien biting Scott without
    permission? Then when Troy had to go and find Anton you
    tried to tell everyone in the pack they didn’t have to go with
    him, even though he was going up against the US Army. And
    now you are attacking me, without thinking that maybe this is
    something that Matthew and I have to work out together.”
    Dean stood up and was pacing the floor, looking at Kane, his
    face red with anger. “You speak about matings that should be
    celebrated, but you know nothing about it. When you met
    Shawn and you didn’t know what to do because we didn’t know
    that Shawn was a Shifter Guardian at the time, we all stood by
    you. We all tried to bring the two of you together and when we
    all heard how different Shawn was, we still stood by you and
    gave you complete unconditional support because we wanted
    you to be happy. And yet not once, not with any of the
    matings that has happened since, have you given any of us the
    same consideration. Now how is that fair?”
    Shawn stood up and started clapping his hands. “Well done,
    Dean,” he said. “Thank you for being able to put into a few
    sentences something I have been trying to get Kane to

    understand for months. Good for you standing your ground and
    speaking your mind.”
    “I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Kane said glaring at
    Shawn, who just smirked at him as he sat down again. Then
    Kane glared at Dean. “Please