Chapter 11 #3
I placed a full bowl in front of Konrad, then one beside him. I went back and got us spoons, and while my mate dug into his meal, I poured myself a mug of tea.
A moan behind me brought a smile to my face.
I was still grinning when I sat down. Moaning of a different sort reached our ears, and I looked at my mate.
His face heated red, causing me to laugh.
I wasn’t sure why he was embarrassed. We’d just done the same thing a few hours ago before we’d cleaned up in the small pool of water.
“I warned you. They cannot keep their hands or their shafts to themselves.” I was honestly surprised I was an only child.
I knew they’d had other heats catch, but Da had talked about how the babies never survived to birth or died shortly after.
I was mad for them because they were such amazing parents and deserved many children running around them.
Konrad cleared his throat. “Perhaps they will have another now that you are mated. For the longest time, I, too, was an only child.”
I wrapped my arm around Konrad’s shoulder and pulled him into my side. I gently kissed his temple, then laid my head against his.
“I know you miss them and always will. I hope that one day you will remember them and think of the happier times. Right now though, I understand what they endured is too fresh in your mind.”
“I just do not understand why, Aleric.”
“Neither do I, my mate. If I were dreaming about you and needed to go to my homeland to rescue you, why could I not have had the dream sooner, stopping you from being taken and them murdered altogether? I should have left sooner. Maybe then they would still have been alive.”
It was a question I had asked myself many times. I did not understand why. I was thankful I had been sent to rescue my mate, but why did his family have to suffer so?
“Please eat. I know it can be difficult to do so with what they are doing. The noise is a bit less noticeable in my room, which happens to be on the other side of the house,” I said.
Konrad picked up his spoon and took another bite. “Do you think your da will teach me to make this? I have not had this particular vegetable before. It is quite enjoyable.”
I grinned. “I’m sure he will. Just make sure you do it sometime when Father is busy.
Otherwise, your lesson will get interrupted.
” I wasn’t going to tell Konrad that I, too, could teach him to make the stew.
Many meals were interrupted because Father found Da cooking and decided it was exceptionally sexy.
We ate our stew with me answering the new questions Konrad had about the mountain—they seemed never-ending—the house, and what he could do to help out. He wanted to feel as if he contributed, and I only wished to pamper him after the ordeal he’d been through.
When my mate’s bowl was empty, I took it and refilled it. He tried to argue with me about taking too much, and I quieted him by reminding him that he was carrying my child and that there was more than enough. He finally relented when I showed him the pot of stew and how much was left.
When we finished with the meal, I took the dishes to the tub and quickly washed them.
Konrad tried to help, but I insisted he sit and rest. He looked tired, and I figured a hearty meal would do that.
Once the dishes were cleaned and stacked, I took my mate’s hand and led him to the other side of the house and my room, where for so many nights, I’d longed for someone exactly like him.
“Wow. It’s…my room was half this size. And I shared it with the twins.”
“You like it, then?” I wanted to please my mate, and although I had every intention of building him his own place come spring, I wished for him to be happy with our space we would share until then.
“I do, Aleric. It’s…the bed is tall.”
I chuckled. It was. There was a reason for that, one I could not wait to finally experience. I had a desire to bring my mate pleasure while standing next to the bed and he was lying on the edge. I would be able to finally experience that soon.
“You’re thinking about knotting me.”
I grinned. “I am, presently. But I do think about other things as well.”
Konrad snorted before he sat on the trunk and pulled off his boots. When he yawned, I pulled down the blanket and patted the bed. I had been gone for months, and my scent would no longer be on the bedding, but Konrad and I would change that soon enough.
Konrad didn’t have to be asked. He took the hint after he stripped out of his clothing. He climbed right in and covered his mouth when he yawned again.
I quickly pulled my own clothing off, tossing it on the floor next to his, and climbed into the bed with my mate.
I pulled him to me, snuggling up behind him, and sighed.
This right here was what I had been missing.
My mate in my arms in my bed. The small structure I’d made in the cave was fine for a while, but here we could stretch out, and the mattress below us was soft and comfortable.
“I love you, Aleric.”
“I love you too, Konrad.” I kissed the back of Konrad’s head and closed my eyes. We were finally home.