Page 28 of Warwick

I shook my head. “No. At the house is fine.” I already knew the food would reheat well, so if it was cold by the time we made it back to the house, that wouldn’t be an issue. I shouldn’t have worried though. After Warwick expertly drove his truck through the drive-thru at the restaurant and then back to the cabin to park his truck, he had us back on Treasure Ridge and in our new place.

It looked odd with my sparse furnishings, and we would definitely need to get more furniture soon, but I was happy to have our first meal together in our new place. What surprised me the most was that the food was still incredibly hot. When I opened my paper carton and saw the steam coming from the food, I looked at Warwick in question.

“Perk of having magic. Food doesn’t get cold if you use magic to keep it warm.” Warwick nodded before taking a bite of his beef broccoli and closed his eyes. He nodded several more times before he opened his eyes. “This place is good. I can see why you like it.”

I grinned. Arik had recommended it to me when I moved into the cabin. I liked Alpha War’s mate, and the fact that he was Master Edison’s son made me feel a bit easier to relate to him. He understood even more than I did what it was like being from a family such as we came from. It wasn’t like any other family, and even if there weren’t voiced expectations of you, they were still there. Arik had been friendly, and despite him being quite a bit younger than I was, he already had five children with his mate. I sighed thinking about that.

“What’s wrong? Is the food not to your liking? I thought that was what you wanted?”

I shook my head. “No, it’s amazing.” I took another bite of my lo mein. “It’s exactly what I wanted. In fact, it’s what I always get. I’ve tried a few other dishes, but this one is my favorite, and I always seem to come back to it.”

Warwick studied me for a moment before he set his fork down. “What’s wrong? There seems to be something off. Did I mess up again?”

“No,” I told him. “I was just thinking about how I found the restaurant. That had me thinking about Arik and how he’s already mated and has kids with Alpha War. That’s all. I was simply thinking about how it can be odd how fate works at times.” I looked around the house. We’d been in it all of twenty minutes tops, and things were still settling in. This is absolutely not how I ever envisioned my life with my mate starting. I had always hoped for romantic gestures and a great love story. I obviously wasn’t going to get that.

I sighed and looked at Warwick. I really needed to ask about the hellhounds. I knew nothing about them and wondered if they were all like this or if I just was unlucky and got the unromantic one. He hadn’t been unkind. But the man hadn’t even smiled at me.

Suddenly no longer hungry, I got up and took my food to the kitchen to put it away. Maybe a run through the forest would make me feel better about things. Familiar emotions crept in, and I knew from past experience that they never brought anything good.

“Are you finished?” Warwick asked as he came up behind me. I noticed that his containers were empty. Mine had barely been touched.

“For now, yes. I guess I wasn’t quite as hungry as I thought I was. Maybe it’s nerves. I’m not sure. Perhaps a run will change that.”

Warwick stared at me a moment before nodding. “Did you want me to go running with you still, or are you wanting time alone to calm your nerves?” Warwick pursed his lips. “I need to check in at the council quick because I need to discuss something with Atticus. But I could come find you after that.”

Oh. I tried to not let my disappointment show, and I might have been successful, but I couldn’t be certain. “Sure. I’m just going to go for a quick run. I might wander my way over to see Grandpa Lev for a bit, but I won’t go far.”

Warwick nodded. “The mountain is safe for the most part. There’s always the chance of a stray mountain lion or bear, but you know the signs of those, right?”

I nodded. I hadn’t ever encountered either, but we all knew that every so often, they would wander onto the mountain. I wasn’t sure how much of a defense I could put up toward a grizzly bear with as small as I was, but I wasn’t too terribly worried about mountain lions.

“I’ll be careful and watch out for them. If we don’t run into one another out there, or if I finish with my run before you do with whatever you need to take care of at the council, I’ll just meet you back here.”

Warwick nodded. He looked as if he wanted to say more, but instead, he simply disappeared. I knew things were new with us and that I had agreed to our arrangement, but that didn’t change the fact that it still hurt that my mate didn’t seem to be even a little interested in us as a couple. I was going to do my best to be optimistic though. We hadn’t even claimed one another yet. Surely he’d eventually feel something for me? Fate wouldn’t be quite that cruel to me, would it?

After putting my food away, I stepped out onto the back deck. It was a large space and could easily be a cozy outdoor space with the right furniture. For now though, it was a blank canvas, much like most of the house. I sat on the steps that led down to the ground, and instead of shifting and going for that run, I let my emotions take over and cried. I knew it wouldn’t do any good, but it was simply too much for me. Didn’t I deserve love? Why did it feel as if that was always going to be denied to me?

Chapter 11

Warwick

Iknew I wasn’t the most intelligent person at the council, but even I understood I was somehow messing things up with Cecil. I didn’t actually need to talk to Atticus about work. But I needed advice about what to do.

I wasn’t sure if Atticus was the person I needed to go to. Master Edison had been mated a very long time, and although he’d already given me some advice, things didn’t seem to be working well. Instead, I decided to go to the person who I probably shouldn’t with such questions. But I’d seen how Alpha Sergei still looked at Alpha mate Chin after all of these years. Everyone in the council had seen how they still were with one another every evening. Without any hesitation, Alpha Sergei still courted and romanced his mate at Dragon Falls. I figured he was probably the best person to ask for advice. So that’s where I went.

What I hadn’t expected was for him to be in a meeting with none other than Alpha Vitomir. It hadn’t been a secret that Alpha Sergei often dealt with the stubborn created polar bear.

“Warwick? Is something wrong?” Alpha Sergei asked when he noticed me lurking outside of his office door. I took a deep breath and let it out slowly.

“May I ask for some advice?” I looked from the created dragon to the created polar bear. Why not ask both? Cecil had mentioned more than once how amazing his great-grandparents had been to him.

“Of course.” Alpha Sergei looked concerned.

I stepped inside and closed the door. I noticed Alpha mate Chin sitting in a chair against the far wall. I’d not realized he was in there before. Not that it would matter. Maybe the omega would have some pointers for me. And perhaps two dragons in the room would deter Alpha Vitomir from getting irate with me when he heard just how much I’d seemed to mess up things with Cecil already.

“What is it that you need advice about?”

I moved to the other side of the room and leaned against the wall next to the window. “I need help with my mate,” I said. That drew not only Alpha Vitomir’s gaze but Alpha mate Chin’s as well.

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