Page 8 of The Prince's Mate

“What?” I mumbled into my pillow, where I’d been trying to bury myself so I wouldn’t have to deal with any of this.

“We need a change of scenery,” he said, and I sat up, my interest piqued. Getting away from Otherworld—from Caelan—might be a good idea. But where would I go?

“Any ideas?” I asked, and Ro slithered over to me.

“Glad you asked. Your dads are due to check in with the demons in the human realm. It’s time you got yourself a job, isn’t it?” he suggested, and I grinned.

“Yes, that’s perfect!” I exclaimed, grabbing Ro and pressing a kiss to the top of his head. He hissed loudly, his forked tongue brushing my neck, and I pulled him off with a laugh.

He jerked away as soon as I let him go, slithering all the way to the other side of the room. “I told you to stop doing that,” he groused.

“And we both know you could stop me yourself any time if you truly wanted me to,” I shot back as I got out of bed. Today at breakfast, I’d ask my dads to let me go to the human realm. When I was younger, I hadn’t been a big fan of the human realm, but over the years, I’d grown to love it.

“You’re such a brat,” Ro’Shassz grumbled, and I chuckled.

“You love me anyway. Don’t you, Ro?”

“Yeah, yeah, yeah,” he said, leaving the room while still muttering.

I headed to the bathroom, turning on the shower and stepping inside. I was one of those rare creatures who liked taking cold showers—a fact Dad still hadn’t stopped mocking me about. I raised my face up, closing my eyes against the spray.

A memory from last night flitted across my mind, of Caelan in his bed, the sheets twisted around his legs, his bare skin on display.

I bit my lip as my cock started to harden and then snapped my eyes open. What the fuck! Shaking my head, I turned the water even colder as my skin heated up. Had I just been thinking about Caelan and…

Okay, he wasn’t bad to look at. His aqua blue eyes with cat-like pupils were unlike anything I’d ever seen, and his cat ears made him look equal parts sexy and cute. And sure, he had a physique I’d die for —though I didn’t get it even after dying, so fuck that—and his hair looked really soft to the touch. I had a distant memory of gripping it while I sat on his shoulders, and they’d felt pretty damn soft then.

Good lord, what was wrong with me? I needed to get a grip. This was Caelan I was thinking about. The same Caelan I hated.

“I hate him,” I said out loud, as if doing that would make it more believable. I rushed through the shower, needing to get out of my head. Ro’s idea sounded better with each minute.

I dressed in dark jeans and a green t-shirt, brushed my hair into some semblance of order, before I declared myself ready. We had a standing breakfast date daily, mostly because I wasn’t a fan of cooking for myself, and Da never minded cooking for me. And I was running late.

Ro’Shassz followed me as I grabbed my phone and closed the door.

“Damn, that smells good,” I mumbled at the scent of bacon that filled the hallway. Sometimes, I felt really bad for the rest of the Otherworlders, since they didn’t eat. Everyone should be able to enjoy the joy of eating.

“Okay, I’m going to do whatever it takes to convince them,” I muttered.

“That’s the spirit!” Ro added with a hiss, and I chuckled before opening the door to my dads’ suite. Here we go.

Caelan

I found Ro’Shassz outside Damien’s suite, and it didn’t take a genius to figure out what that meant. Still, I had to know for sure. “Is Walker in there?”

“Yep,” Ro replied, and I sighed. Taking a deep breath, I raised my hand to knock, when Ro said, “Stop.”

“What?” I asked, raising a brow at him. “Don’t tell me Walker told you to keep me out.”

“Nah, I’m just being helpful,” he said before wrapping himself around my leg. Before I could ask what he was doing, I was inside Damien’s suite. “Shh!” he hissed before I could say anything, and I realized Walker and his dads were in the kitchen. We were in the small hallway between the living room and the front door, so they couldn’t see us.

“Listen,” Ro directed, and I frowned at him.

“Why are you making me eavesdrop on my friends?”

“Shh!” Ro hissed with a scowl, and I rolled my eyes before listening.

“I want to go to the human realm,” Walker said, interrupting Damien mid-sentence.

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