Page 29 of The Prince's Mate

"You've been spying on us since the beginning?"

"I was not spying. I was doing my job, just like that lug over there," he hissed, glaring behind us to where I imagined Ajax stood.

"Ajax had it covered, Ro," Walker said, and I decided to stay quiet because this was clearly between Ro and Walker. Those two had been joined together since Walker came to Otherworld.

"So, you don't need me anymore?" Ro asked, and Walker's eyes widened.

"No! That's not what I meant. I just need you to not be so close to either of our dicks," he grumbled, and Ro shook his head.

"Trust me, I don't want that either. I'm scarred for life," he said, his tiny body shuddering.

"Why didn't you just magick away?" I asked, and he turned his eyes on me, blinking slowly.

"Because your horniness melted my brain, that's why," he grumped, and I realized with a chuckle that he'd actually forgotten he could do that.

"Maybe we should head back, anyway. It's late," Walker said, and I agreed. Even though I didn't want this date to end at all, I knew it was time to head home. Ajax must be itching to go home too, and we'd already taken up quite a lot of his time.

The drive back to the apartment was uneventful, and Ajax dropped us at our doorstep with the promise to be back whenever we needed to go out. He insisted on giving us hisnumber before he left, and Walker shook his head fondly as he closed the door behind him.

"I bet he and Max would become instant friends if they met," Walker said, and I chuckled.

"Yeah, they'd probably spend hours talking about the best ways to keep someone safe," I said, and Walker grinned over at me. His lip gloss was all but gone now, his eyeshadow a little smudged, and he looked even better now if that was possible.

"You're looking at me like that again," Walker said softly as he stalked over to me where I leaned against the back of the couch.

"Like what?" I asked in a breathy whisper that was very unlike me.

"Like you want to kiss me," he replied, leaning closer until our lips were millimeters apart. "Like you want to do it again and again."

"I'm outta here," Ro grumbled, but all my focus was taken up by the man in front of me. Because that was what Walker was. A man. He wasn't a kid any longer, and I was free to love him in all the ways I wanted to.

Suddenly, I needed something more than I needed the kiss he was offering, and I wrapped my arms around his middle, tucking my face into the crook of his neck. His arms came up around mine almost instantly, and a soft sigh slipped past my lips as I sank into him.

"I'm here," he murmured, and I wondered if this was okay. Did Walker expect me to be stronger, to act like I wasn't losing my shit? Because I didn't know if I could do that.

"Sorry," I mumbled against his skin, unwilling or rather unable to move away.

"Trust me, holding you in my arms is not a hardship," Walker said, and I smiled against his skin. Maybe it was okay to let him take the lead, to follow instead of lead.

If I was being really honest with myself, I could admit that I'd always yearned to let someone else take the reins in some matters. Maybe it was a product of my upbringing, or maybe that was just the way I was. It was why Day and I hadn't worked out in the long run. We were both too submissive to have a fulfilling relationship together, not that we'd ever considered what we had a relationship.

Trusting Walker was easy, though. Despite the fact that he'd hurt me in his own way quite a few times over the years, I knew it was only because he'd been hurting too. I knew he wouldn't do that to me again, not now that everything was out in the open. I could trust Walker, trust him to be myself around him, to know he would take care of me, no matter what.

I pulled back slowly, chewing on my lower lip as I met his eyes. Walker smiled, a wide and free smile, and took my hand in his, leading me to the bedroom. I followed without a word, awed by how much had changed since the last time we'd shared this bed the night before the last. Then, the silence had been choking, sucking all the air out of the room. Now, it was comforting, like nothing bad could penetrate this bubble of silence.

Walker

Caelan was a…sweetheart. I'd been right about his love of touching, because that hug had us pressed together from shoulders to toes. I'd felt so close to Caelan that I wouldn't have been surprised if we'd somehow melded together.

Pressing a kiss to his cheek, I dropped his hand, pointing my thumb over my shoulder toward the bathroom. "I'm gonna go clean up, okay?"

"Sure. I'll...get ready for bed," he said, sounding lost in thought, and I nodded before grabbing a pair of pajamas and heading into the bathroom.

I brushed my teeth and washed the sand off me, then threw the clothes into the laundry. I couldn't believe Ro had snuck into my pants, or that he thought I didn't need him anymore. Sure, now that I had Caelan, I wanted to spend all my time with him, but that didn't mean I actually would.

Ro'Shassz was my best friend, had been since I was five, and that would never change. I just had to make sure he knew that too.

My thoughts turned back to Caelan as I dried myself and pulled on my pajama pants and shirt, wondering if maybe he'd be up for some cuddling. I had a feeling he'd resist the idea even if he really wanted it. He seemed to have a hard time letting go, even though the more time I spent with him, the more I realized that was exactly what he wanted. If he didn't feel ready to ask me for what he wanted, I was going to offer it until he felt ready enough to do so.

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