Expensive Cat Food (MxMxM)

Part 44

Part 44 (Owen Pov)

Hearing everything Irene had to say to Damian was like listening to nails dragging on a chalkboard. It made him want to leave right away and remove Damian with him. Damian didn't deserve his mother's cruel words being tossed at him. His own flesh and blood, which they had established before, were horrible people, but a man can hope for change. Maybe they could have seen Damian in a better light; in a small way, they did. Though they didn't see him as useless anymore, more like a pawn to be sold off to a wealthy family for better ties and benefits. Listening made Owen want to do nothing but punch the women, even if it's not seen as proper. He wouldn't mind slugging both women in the face, not hesitating for the chance to do it.

Damian was the only thing stopping him; the shifter was pressed tightly into his side. He swore he felt warm tears staining his sleeve, making Owen still in his action. Everything was crumbling around them so fast; he had hoped maybe they would have more time to figure out what to do with the situation they had found themselves in. But now, Nova and Bethany had appeared to run away without warning, leaving and tossing their problems onto Damian's lap. Now Irene was banging at their door, demanding people they don't even have or talk to. Damian seemed crushed that his sisters were nowhere close anymore, tossing him behind again. Owen would yell at them if they randomly showed up again on their steps. He wouldn't even allow them anywhere near Damian if he could. Maybe Elania was right, shifters can't be trusted, and Damian shouldn't have rebuilt the bridge connecting him to his sisters.

"We should get back inside," Owen looked down to be met with Damian's hair. His face still pressed into him, refusing to move away even an inch, wishing not to lose contact with Owen. Owen sighed, running a hand through Damian's waves, soothing the crying man clinging to him. "Please, we need to get inside. Then we can talk with Kane about what's going on." Owen spoke softly, hoping not to sound irritated though it was growing within his stomach. He wanted to do nothing but go after the Bellina family and possibly bury them. Gradually Damian shifted away, drawing his face away from Owen's arm to peek upward. His amber eye's glistened with tears and rimmed red; even his cheeks were streaked with them as they rolled downwards sluggishly. "Okay," he said quietly, throat sounding scratched from the silent crying he had been doing. Owen smiled warmly down at him, hoping it would lighten the mood slightly, bending over and kissing Owen's forehead.

Damian smiled waterly, sadness still evident on his face. Owen wanted to do nothing but wipe away all the fears swirling around his mind. Taking away all the growing doubt instead, he wrapped his arm around Damian's waist and started guiding him back into the building. They moved slowly as Damian dragged his feet, hardly shuffling towards the door; he even took the steps painfully slow. Almost like how he first started to gain strength back into his legs and how it took him ages to merely climb a few steps. Now Owen was watching once again Damian struggle. However, instead of pride filling him watching the event, anger pulsed wildly within. Damian was breaking down, pulling back into his shell, and withdrawing. An Owen had no clue how to remove the shifter from the negativity. He never was great at dealing with emotions, constantly pushing them down till they bubbled to the surface. But this wasn't about him. Instead, his lover was suffering because of some wicked older woman who could figure out that her cruel words fucking hurt people.

When they finally cross the threshold, Owen rushes Damian into the office—not giving anyone a sliver of his attention or time. He needed to get Damian somewhere safe, so they could figure out what to do. Owen slammed the office door, causing the wood to creak under his force and also causing Damian to flinch. Quickly he pushed Damian onto the couch, rubbing his hands on Damian's silky skin, reassuring himself that Damian was still here. He was whipping away the salty tears from the shifter's watery eyes. "I'll be back soon; I'm going to grab Kane. Don't leave this spot," Damian looked scared back at him. The terror of being left behind clearly flashed through. Owen smiled, kissing Damian quickly, reassuring him that he would be back.

Owen strolled out of the office, trying to keep his composer, not wanting any of the customers waiting to see him breaking down. He stepped into the back room, seeing none of the vet assistants anywhere; clearly, they were busy with patients or taking a break somewhere else. He glanced around, not seeing Kane anywhere either. He couldn't be that busy, though Owen had left without saying anything, leaving Kane to look after everything. Guilt twinged his gut; he should have said something before abruptly leaving. Owen walked over to one of the computers, looking to see which exam room Kane was in; however, it showed that he wasn't in one of the rooms. He stepped back, confused; where could Kane possibly be if he wasn't in an exam room or surgery? Suddenly, strong arms wrapped around his waist, pulling him into a strong wall of muscles. "You leaving me behind to handle everything was cruel," Kane peppered kisses down Owen's neck. "If you need to go somewhere, you could have left a note."

Owen dislodged himself from Kane's arms, staring back at the more prominent man. "Damian's family showed up at the front desk," Kane bristled at the mention of Damian's family. He stepped back, shocked, "When did they get here?" Owen looked down; he knew damn well that he should have gotten Kane. But there wasn't time to make excuses to the patients and run around like headless chickens trying to cover their asses. Kane grabbed his wrist lightly, rubbing his thumb rhymic over Owen's veins, showing he was willing to listen. "They already left; I went out with Damian to deal with the problem," he said quietly, hoping Kane wouldn't be as angry if he acted meek. Owen knew it was a shitty tactic, but now wasn't the time to argue; they needed to get to the office and comfort Damian. He was willing to be yelled at later. "They talked, and his mother said some mean thing to him, we should get to the office. Damian is sitting on the couch waiting for you and me." The rubbing stopped, and Kane released Owen's wrist, making him want to whine.

"Please, let's talk about this later. We need to get to Damian right now." Owen had never felt so small before when talking with Kane. He never felt like this; he knew Kane didn't like being left out of things. Something Kane had picked up from his childhood, and Owen stomped on that. He wanted to crumble right there and beg for forgiveness. Without saying anything, Kane left the room, heading to the office. Owen wanted to do nothing but crumble into the dirt. To no longer be there, Owen stayed in the back room instead of heading to the office, taking patients. He didn't deserve to comfort Damian with Kane. He could barely keep either of his lovers happy; he had done nothing but mess up. Maybe he needs to give them time to think over even being with him. Because at that moment, Owen didn't feel like he should even be here.