Page 47 of Mated to the Human: Volume One

Merrick stared, too, trying to figure out what Leander was looking at. “What is it?”

Leander’s brows furrowed. “I’m not sure.” He turned to Merrick. “Come on. I need to get you somewhere safe.” He stepped forward, right into Merrick’s space, and wrapped his arms around Merrick’s waist.

“What—” Merrick started to say before Leander gripped him tight—one arm still around his waist while the other hand cradled the back of his head—and with a little hop, shot up into the sky. A scream stuck in Merrick’s throat as he threw his arms around Leander, holding on for all he was worth and pressing his face into the firm swell of Leander’s shoulder.

Holy shit! They were flying, and Merrick couldn’t even attempt to enjoy it. His stomach flipped and swooped while the cool air turned biting against his exposed skin. What seemed like only a second later, they slowed.

“You can open your eyes.” Leander’s warm breath washed over the shell of his ear.

He shivered and slowly lifted his head. Peeking over Leander’s shoulder, he swallowed hard at how far away the ground was. They were hovering above the back entrance of his building.

“I’m sorry for the abruptness of that,” Leander said, voice vibrating through Merrick with how closely they were pressed together. “But I’m afraid something is happening, and I didn’t want you out in the open.” While he spoke, they floated closer and closer to the ground until Merrick felt Leander’s feet settle on solid earth.

“What do you think happened?” Merrick leaned back enough to look at Leander’s face from only inches away. Leander’s gaze swept over him, stopping on his suddenly dry mouth. Several things snapped into place in Merrick’s brain: this was the first time Leander had touched him, he was quite literally clinging to Leander with both arms and legs, and Leander’s arm that had started out around his waist was now firmly beneath his ass, holding him up.

Leander blinked, slow and deliberate, as his tongue came out to run across his bottom lip. Seeming to shake himself, Leander set Merrick on the ground, keeping a hand on his arm to make sure he was steady, then took a step back. “Let’s get inside first.”

On auto-pilot, Merrick pulled his keys out and unlocked the exterior door. As soon as they were through it, Leander pushed it closed behind them and made sure it locked while Merrick unlocked the foyer door and stepped into the hallway.

Again, as soon as he was next to Merrick, Leander closed the foyer door with a firm click and double-checked the lock.

“Upstairs,” Leander said, turning to Merrick and placing a hand on the small of his back.

Merrick blinked, moving toward the elevator with Leander’s palm still firmly against his back. Part of him was giddy that Leander was touching him, taking care of him, and part of him was annoyed that an apparent threat was what it’d taken to get there. He wanted to know if this was actual care on Leander’s part or just some protective drive because he viewed Merrick as his.

Biting his lip, Merrick hit the button for the elevator and stepped inside when the door immediately opened. Leander was right behind him, hand still on Merrick’s back and eyes trained on the exterior doors until the elevator doors cut off his view. As the elevator ascended, he was painfully aware that this would be the first time Leander would be in his home.

The elevator doors slid open again in Merrick’s small foyer. Originally, there hadn’t been anything separating the elevator doors from the inside of the penthouse. He didn’t like that, so he’d added a foyer with a set of solid French doors.

As they stepped out, Leander hummed in approval. “What other access points are there to this floor?”

Merrick unlocked the door. “There’s a backdoor that leads to a service elevator and the stairs.” Pushing one of the doors open, Merrick stepped into his home and kicked off his shoes on the mat beside the door. He looked back at Leander standing just behind the threshold. “Um, are you coming in?”

“If you’d like,” Leander said carefully before clearing his throat. “You’ll have to invite me. Otherwise, I can’t enter.”

“Oh.” Merrick’s eyes widened. “Please come in.”

Leander gave him a warm smile and a little nod as he stepped inside, closing and locking the door behind himself.

“Now, will you tell me what’s going on?”

Both their phones started buzzing. Merrick sighed and pulled his out of his pocket at the same time Leander stepped away from him, doing the same.

“Hello?” Merrick asked, pressing the phone to his ear.

“Merrick?” a woman’s voice said. “This is Calliope. I’m on the Paranormal Council.”

“Yes, hi, Calliope. What can I do for you?” He glanced across the room. Leander was standing statue-still near one of the windows that faced toward downtown with his phone still pressed to his ear.

“This is something of a wellness check. Hollis and Derek were attacked a few minutes ago as they were leaving the gala.”

Merrick’s stomach clenched. “Are they okay?”

“They are. Are you okay? Did you make it home? We can send a team to escort you—”

“No, no. I’m fine. Leander and I are at my apartment.”

Calliope let out a relieved-sounding breath. “Good. We’ll keep you up to date, but I’d ask that you please be cautious. A team of hellhound enforcers will be patrolling your area. Don’t hesitate to contact me or any other council member if you need anything.”

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