Page 12 of Once Upon a Rec Center Wish
He shook his head, and though he didn’t meet my eyes, I could see the anguish in his. “He doesn’t want me. No matter how hard I try, he pushes me away.”
“Well, he’s a fool. He doesn’t know what he’s missing. I would love for a chance to be your mate.” I instantly regretted saying those words. I wasn’t supposed to have feelings for Falco, but they seemed to bring a sparkle back to his eyes as he tried to hide a smile.
“You would? You’d want to be my mate?”
I fumbled with my hands as I tried to think of a way out of my mess-up. I went with honesty instead of a lie. “Of course I would. But I’m not suitable for you. That’s why I don’t understand why you’re spending time with me, cooking for me, why you asked me to spend the night that one time.”
Falco shuffled closer, holding my arms and running his hands up and down the backs of them. “You know outer-worlders get to choose who they want as their mate, right?”
I nodded. “Some don’t like that rule, but I think it’s the way it should be. Especially since you leave your entire world behind to be here.”
Moving even closer, until there was only a breath between us, he gazed up at me. “What if I choose you?”
I jumped back. “You can’t. I’m not—”
He clutched my hand. “Not what? You just said you would love for the chance to be my mate. And I’ve had so many suitors over here, but none of them make me feel the way I do when I’m with you.”
My heart raced as I tried to contemplate Falco’s revelation. “But I don’t know how to court you. I don’t know how to be a mate.”
He smiled and squeezed my hand. “Neither do I, but we can figure it out together. And you can start by coming to my house every evening for dinner.”
“I…I…” His confession felt like some kind of dream and I worried I would ruin it all if I said the wrong thing. Yet, there was one thing that still bothered me, something that didn’t fitwith his admission. “If you say you want me to be your mate, why did you toss away the flower I gave you?”
He glanced over at his mantle. “I didn’t. It disappeared one day. I don’t know what happened to it. I thought you’d come back and taken it.”
I shook my head. “I found it in the trees when Onyx was over. I thought you hated it and hated me.”
He reached up and cupped my cheek. “I could never hate you. You’ve been nothing but kind to me since I arrived here. I honestly don’t want anyone else for my mate. I only want you.” With his hands on my chest, he pressed up on his toes and kissed the corner of my mouth. “Will you be my mate, Vern?”
For a moment, I was so overwhelmed, I lost control of my magic and started to shift back to my beaver form. “Sorry,” I said, reabsorbing the magic. “Yes, I would like that. I would like to be your mate.”
“Good.” He kissed me again, this time with more power and movement from his lips. I didn’t know what to do at first, but then a force unlike any other took over, and I pulled him closer while reveling in the contact with the outer-worlder who wanted me as his mate. Me. The youngest of the beaver dam. The one who had accidently run into him when he arrived. If I hadn’t been there, would he have still chosen me?
When he pulled away, he smiled and squeezed my arm. “I’m really glad it was you there to meet me. Seems like it was Fate.” His eyes twinkled before he chuckled. “Now, let’s eat.”
“What about the table?” I just remembered the reason I’d come in the first place.
After lifting the tablecloth, he pulled a wood shim from under one of the legs. “There was never anything wrong with the table. I just needed an excuse to get you here.”
My heart fluttered at the effort he’d gone to simply to bring me back to his house. Yet, it was worth it. I was going to have amate much sooner than I ever expected. I just had to figure out how to court Falco properly and how to be a proper mate so he wouldn’t change his mind in the future.
Chapter Eleven
Falco
My confession brought Vern to my house every evening for dinner. In the mornings, I walked to the community garden to gather the ingredients for whatever dish I dared to make for the beaver shifter. Mostly, I put together stews and soups, but occasionally, I tried out some cold salads, including some with beans. Vern enjoyed them all, never complained once about any of the food I put in front of him. During dinner, we ate and talked, getting to know each other. Yet, after several days, I felt no closer to having him as my mate than I had when I revealed I wanted him.
After we finished, he would help me clean up, then sometimes we went for a walk and other times we chatted on the porch. And when it became dark, he headed back to his dam with a promise to see me the next day.
I wanted more. I wanted kisses that made my toes curl. I wanted to lean on his shoulder or sit on his lap while we talked. I especially wanted sex. Only I didn’t know how to get any of that from him. We talked so much and knew a lot about each other, but whenever I touched him, he tensed. His reaction didn’t make me want him any less, but I yearned to find a way to make him completely comfortable around me. I was sure time would help, but in the Enchanted Forest where outer-worlders were brought to produce offspring, I didn’t know how much time we had. I didn’t know if the wizard would appear and tell me that my stay was over and I needed to go back to my world because I hadn’t gotten pregnant in the allotted period of time.
When I met Nelson in the village, he told me I worried too much, that everything would work out. But I still fretted. I didn’t want to go back to my world. There was nothing there for me toreturn to. In the Enchanted Forest, I had a house—that was a big plus—other outer-worlders whom I considered friends, and no need for money I didn’t have. Aside from keeping house, I had to find a mate and have children. I was partway there but hadn’t completed the mission yet. And I really wanted to have kids. The more time I spent with the families of Nelson, Walter, and Lonnie, the more I couldn’t wait to have offspring of my own. Not every outer-worlder who arrived wanted the same, but they always had the choice. No one was forced to stay and have a baby with one of the awaiting beings. Yet, it still felt like a dream to me. If only I could find a way to get intimate with Vern.
As I waited for him to arrive for another evening, I paced in front of my door. I didn’t know whether to greet him naked and jump on him as soon as he arrived, demanding he take me, or to continue to hope he would one day accept my invitation to spend the night.
Lost in my thoughts, I startled when he knocked on the door.
I opened it right away, still without a plan.
