In Love with My Kidnapper's Son

Chapter Two, Part I

Wow, thanks for all the votes on the last chapter, everyone! Each and every one is appreciated so much. 

Thank you all for reading, and I hope you enjoy this chapter! 

                                                                            Chapter Two, Part One 

“Logan!” Ava shrieked the werewolf’s name as she tackled him into a hug. She felt his muscular arms wrap around her in an embrace, and his baritone laugh burst from his chest.

“Hey, little human!” he exclaimed.

“Be careful with her,” Damien said from beside them as he watched Logan crush her into a hug. “Remember, she’s fragile.”

“Oh, shut it, shifter,” Logan said. “I’m not going to hurt your ‘butterfly’.”

“You’d better not,” Damien muttered. “She’s precious.”

Logan chuckled and released her from his brawny embrace. “Of course she is,” he said with a wink toward Ava.

“Logan!” a high voice shrieked from another room. “You’re home!”

The three turned toward the away from the front door Logan had just walked in and toward the kitchen, where the voice had come from. The werewolf grinned at the sound of the voice, and began walking toward it. Ava followed him down the hallway, with Damien walking beside her. The shifter slipped his hand into hers and then brought her hand to his lips to kiss it.

Logan looked over his shoulder, catching Damien in the act of the kiss. He rolled his multi-colored eyes at the couple. “You two are disgustingly cute, you know that?”

Ava squeezed Damien’s hand. “James says the same thing.”

 “Yeah, well James knows what he’s talking about,” Logan said with a smirk.

They continued down the hallway until exiting into the kitchen. A teenage girl stood at the stove, stirring at a large pot. She turned away from the stove to flash a grin at Logan.

“Maddy,” Logan said. “You’re cooking!”

“I know!” she said, withdrawing the spoon from the pot. “I feel so domestic!”

Logan laughed and went over to her, his arms extended in preparation to swoop her into a hug. Maddy set the spoon down and embraced him. Ava felt a slight pinch of jealously as Maddy easily reached her arms around Logan’s neck; she had been forced to stand on her toes to accomplish this task.

Logan placed an affectionate kiss on the top of Maddy’s head of blonde hair. “Damn, I missed you,” he murmured.

“I missed you, too,” Maddy said. “Why do you always have to leave for so long? I mean, can’t your wolf pack hang around the area?”

Logan ruffled her hair with his hand before letting her out of his embrace. “You know I have no control over that. I’m not alpha.”

“Well, tell Caleb he’s not allowed to keep you away from home for too long,” Ava said, referring to the leader of his pack. “Everybody misses you too much.”

“Speaking of everybody, where’s Hayden and James?” Logan asked.

“James is out hunting,” Damien said.

“Well, that’s a fine time to get hungry,” Logan muttered. “Right when your son gets home.”

“You know he means nothing by it, Logan,” Ava said. “And Hayden is probably in his room.”

Logan rolled his eyes. “Hayden!” he shouted up at the ceiling. “Get your reclusive ass down here and come say hi to your brother!”

A few moments later, an annoyed snarl came from upstairs.

Logan shook his head in an exasperated manner. “He is such a werecat.”

“I’m not like that,” Maddy protested.

“Nope,” Logan agreed, “you’re special.”

“So,” Damien said. “How’s the pack?”

Ava nodded, wishing to know the same information.

Logan shrugged. “Good, I guess. We’ve got a couple new members.”

“Are any of them girls?” Maddy asked.

“One. But you can forget about trying to set me up with her.”

Maddy groaned in an exaggerated display of exasperation. “You are so picky!”

“I’m only twenty-two, Maddy. I get to be picky if I want to.”

“You’re going to die an old, lonely virgin.” This cynical comment came from behind Damien. Everyone turned around to find Hayden standing there, wearing his customary black clothes and bored expression.

“Thanks, Hay,” Logan said. “I give that comment a lot of credit, coming from a nineteen year old still living at home.”

“Nineteen is a perfectly acceptable age to be living at home. And what have I told you about calling me ‘Hay’? I’m not horse food.”

“Alright,” Ava said. “Stop the bickering and go hug each other.”

“Are you kidding me?” Hayden said. “I’m not hugging the wolf. He probably hasn’t showered in weeks.”

Ava looked over to Logan and realized that, while Hayden’s comment was an exaggeration, the werewolf did look a bit scruffy. His clothes were ragged from the weeks of non-stop travelling werewolf packs did, and his brunette hair, usually so neatly trimmed, was a shaggy mess. But his multi-colored eyes were bright with happiness, which told her he was satisfied with his life, despite its wild and unpredictable ways. “You do look like you need some sleep,” Ava said to Logan.

“I could probably use a nap. But first, I want to see what our little Maddy has been cooking.”

“Ava and Damien actually made it,” Maddy said. “I was just finishing it up. It’s spaghetti.”

“Sounds good to me,” Logan said. “When will it be ready?”

“Any minute,” Ava said. “It just needs to simmer.”

Logan nodded. “Good. That gives you guys time to update me about the war.”

Ava bit her lip. “The war” had always been how Logan jokingly referred to the conflict between her father and James. But she knew it was no laughing matter.

Her father’s mission was to kill all existing Shadows. He had a strong following of people behind him, and plenty of resources. When he had first appeared years ago, James had been one of the many Shadows who had tried to stop him. While he had eventually broken away from the group organized to destroy Ava’s father, a grudge still existed between James and her father. Throughout the years it had resulted in many dangerous and volatile encounters, and it still existed, seemingly with the sole purpose of bringing violence and anger to the lives of both men.

“It’s gotten… interesting lately,” she said. “My dad called the other day.”

Logan’s eyebrows shot up on his forehead. “He contacted you?”

“Yeah. He was threatening James and saying he wants me back.”

“But we’re not going to let him get near her,” Damien said quickly. He took a step toward Ava, as if to prove his words, and once again intertwined his fingers with hers.

“Well, obviously,” Hayden said. “I mean, we’ve been feeding and taking care of her for five years. It’s not like we’re just going to forfeit all those grocery bills and hand her back over.”

Ava smirked, knowing this was the closest the werecat would ever come to admitting any kind of brotherly love.