Page 65 of Dragon's Surprise

But the question wasn’t whether Adar knew or even how he would react when he found out. The question was what it meant. Why wasn’t Oliver jealous? By all standards, he should be because Adar was his fated mate. He had no doubt about that whatsoever. So why was he not feeling threatened by this new development?

He wasn’t stupid. The most obvious answer was that Delton was his mate too. That they were a triad. The entire pack consisted of triads—Rhene and Erwan being the only exception—so that explanation would make total sense. Except it didn’t.

If Delton was Oliver’s mate, why didn’t he feel it the way he did with Adar? He liked Delton well enough, and he trusted him, but that deep sense of knowing Oliver had experienced with Adar from the start was missing. What did that mean? Surely, if Delton was his mate too, Oliver would’ve had that same feeling, no?

Along the same lines, it was also weird Adar and Delton had known each other for, what, two years before Oliver had come along. If they were fated mates, why hadn’t they ever connected? They’d barely known each other, so it didn’t make sense at all.

Plus, Oliver was pretty certain Delton didn’t feel about Oliver the way he did about Adar, which only clouded the whole matter even more. It was so messed up, and Oliver had no clue how to unpack it all.

He’d finally fallen asleep, but here he was, still groggy from a lack of sleep and praying for the caffeine to kick in, and his mind was already returning to the problem that had kept him awake. Was he doomed to keep spinning this around in his head? Surely, there had to be a way to find an answer, right?

The irony was that the one person most qualified to help him make sense of it all was Delton, considering he was a psychologist, but, of course, that was impossible.

Wait.

Was it? Would it be out of the question to talk to Delton about it? Be honest with him and see if he had any theories on how this all fit together? Oliver put his empty coffee cup down. Going straight to Delton felt much more honest than discussing it with anyone else behind Delton’s back—and that included bringing it up with Adar.

The more he thought about it, the more he liked the idea. He waited until he knew Delton’s training session with Adar was done and headed to the beta’s home office, hoping he wouldn’t be with a client. When he arrived, Delton sat on the bench in front of his cabin, sipping from a cup of tea and reading a book.

“Hey.” Delton closed his book. “You’re here to hear how the session went, I assume?”

Oliver nodded. He still preferred to use body language rather than his voice. “And to talk to you.”

“Oh. Of course.” He gestured, and Oliver sat next to him on the bench. “Can I get you something to drink?”

Maybe he would be less nervous if he had something in his hands. “Water, please.”

It took all of thirty seconds for Delton to come back with a glass of water. “How did it go?”

That was a safe start, right?

“Good, I think. Adar is still sleeping. His friend said he always sleeps for a few hours right after. His body needs time to recover.”

That made sense, though Oliver still found it hard to wrap his mind around the whole concept of someone liking pain and actively seeking it. Maybe he would never understand and have to take Adar’s word for it? “How was it for you?”

Delton looked surprised. “Good? I mean, I learned a lot, and I think I did well. He got what he wanted out of it, he said, so…”

It would be easy to keep up the farce and ask what Delton had gotten out of it, but that wouldn’t be fair. It felt too much like playing with him and his feelings, and Oliver could never be that cruel. You didn’t choose who you fell in love with. It happened, sometimes against your will. No matter how things would play out, none of this was Delton’s fault.

Oliver took a deep breath and met Delton’s eyes. “I know you’re in love with him.”

Delton froze, then seemed to shrink, his shoulders slumping as he broke off eye contact. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to?—”

“Why are you apologizing?”

Delton glanced up, a frown marring his forehead. “You interrupted me.”

Oops, he was right. Oliver had. “Sorry.”

“No, that’s not why I said it. I’ve never heard you interrupt anyone. Stupid as it sounds, it’s a good thing. It means you’re getting more comfortable using your voice. I’m excited for you.”

Oh. That wasn’t the reaction Oliver had expected, but his insides got warm. “Thank you. I didn’t do it consciously.”

“Which makes it even cooler.”

Oliver chuckled. “I never thought I’d get praised for interrupting someone.”

Delton laughed too. “I’ll admit it’s unusual, but I’m proud of you.”