Page 35 of Roman
“You really want me here?”
I sighed. “We’ll talk more during our meal, but yes. Why wouldn’t I? You’re my mate. I’ve claimed you. That’s how mates work. Do mates not live together in your realm?”
“Yes, but…I’m not sure why I’m being like this. I guess because things are different here than they are in our realm.”
“Do you not live in single enforcer housing with your brother? And are there not mated enforcer houses not far from the council building?”
The O that formed on Beau’s mouth was adorable and had my mind going places it didn’t need to be going at the moment.
“Exactly. Now, let’s eat. There’s a whole lot to discuss over the next few hours. I’m not sure how quickly fae go into heat, or is it that you have a fertile period? Either way, we need to discuss certain things before that happens.” I was no expert on things, but from past experiences, I fully expected Beau to get thrown into heat or whatever sometime in the next day or two at the most. It was going to be interesting because I absolutely wasnot prepared to take care of my new mate during a heat just yet. There would be a quick trip to the store for supplies a little later, but first, other things needed to be discussed.
Chapter 14
Beau
Ifelt absolutely…terrible. I tried to think back to what we ate that would make me feel like I’d gone several rounds with the enforcers when they were training in their self-defense classes. Would food do that? Why did every inch of my body hurt? I tried to roll over, but there was a massive wall of warmth beside me, and it felt like there was a heavy weight across my side and wrapped around my stomach. Roman. I tried to smile, but I just didn’t have the energy to. How was that even possible?
It didn’t matter that Roman’s arm was holding me prisoner—I needed to pee. I tried to roll over again, hoping to be able to move, but the man’s arm was locked into place. That wasn’t good.
“Roman?” I said, my voice not sounding like my own. That didn’t matter, though, because Roman instantly sat up.
“What?” he asked. “Beau? You’re awake.” Roman was suddenly hovering over me, looking quite disheveled and a bit panicked? Did he always look like that after a night’s sleep?
“Yes, but I feel terrible, and I really need to pee,” I told him, my voice still incredibly scratchy and not my own. I tried to move again, but it was really no use: I was too weak. “Help? Please? What’s wrong with me?”
Roman’s eyes widened seconds before he disappeared. He somehow jumped up and was standing beside me in seconds. I didn’t even have the chance to protest, not that I would have, when he slid his arms under my back and legs and effortlessly scooped me up into his arms. We were in the bathroom shortly after, where Roman carefully set me on the toilet. That was something I was incredibly thankful for. I wasn’t sure I would be able to stand. I didn’t need to, though, because my mate was amazing, and he somehow already knew that.
“Why does my voice sound funny? And why do I feel like I’ve been pummeled? Not that I’ve ever been hit because I haven’t. But I think this is exactly what I would feel like if I had.” Roman knelt in front of me, and I tried to notice things about him. He looked…unkept. “What happened? Why do you look like you have seen better days?” Immediately, I realized what I’d said and winced. “Sorry. I don’t know what’s wrong with me. I think you’re sexy all the time, but you look different.”
Roman chuckled. “You honestly don’t remember anything about the last week?”
I tried to think about the last week. “It was a lot of trial and error. I spent a lot of time thinking about the menu at the bakery. I tried a lot of recipes, but some didn’t work out because they needed things from my realm. Did you know your apples here are different than ours?”
Roman smiled. “Beau, sweetness. You’ve been in heat for the past seven days,” Roman told me. “You and I claimed each other last Sunday. We’ve been mated a week and a day now. Your voice probably sounds scratchy because you need to drink something. That and you’ve done a whole lot of moaning and screaming over the past several days.”
My eyes widened. I’d done what? “I’m sorry. Did you say we’ve been mated for a week?”
Roman nodded before he stood up. He crossed the room to the tub and turned on the water. “Do you remember anything about the evening that we claimed one another?” he asked as he bent down and turned on the water for the tub.
I thought about his question and nodded but realized that with his back to me, he couldn’t see. “Yes,” I whispered. “We went downstairs after our shower and had dinner. Then we went to the couch and were talking about babies and how we both wanted them. That…we then…” I remember sitting on Roman’s lap on the couch, my back to his front, and it had been incredible. It was the perfect position because when his knot expanded inside me, he was able to move us to our sides. We drifted off to sleep, and Roman had to have taken us upstairs at some point after that. But that was all that I remembered.
I looked up at Roman as he came back to me. When he knelt down again, I became concerned about the look on his face. “That is all that you remember?”
I shrugged. “I’m sorry, but yes.”
Roman nodded slowly before he stood. “Are you finished?”
I wondered if he was irritated with me. “I am. Are you mad?”
“Not at all. I’m a bit concerned, but I’ll not worry about it too much.” Roman bent down and scooped me up once again as if I didn’t weigh anything. I guess compared to him, I didn’t. And he was an alpha and quite a bit stronger than I was. He carried me across the bathroom and placed me in the tub. He held on to me as I sat down, and I couldn’t keep my disappointment off my face when he obviously wasn’t going to be joining me. “Do not give me that look,” Roman said.
“What look?”
“The sad look. I very much plan on joining you in the tub. But at the moment, I’m going to run downstairs and get something for you to drink. And probably a small snack. You need torecover from the past week, and getting something more than a few bites of fruit and energy drinks in you will be a good start.”
I nodded. He wasn’t wrong. I wasn’t sure what happened though. I’d had fertile periods before, but they had never been so intense that I couldn’t remember a thing, nor had they lasted more than a couple of days.
“I would love some water, if you don’t mind,” I told Roman.
