Chapter 9 Tears #3
I’d fucked up enough already. I wasn’t keen on making it worse.
Instead, I gripped him by his ass and tugged him into my lap.
I manhandled him until he straddled me, his arms around my neck, then I squeezed him tight.
He shook with sobs. To my great relief, he clutched at me with all his might, hiding his face in the crook of my neck.
Hopefully, my scent would calm him down. It should have that effect on my mate.
“You’ve done nothing wrong. I scared you and hurt you. Of course, you wanted to get away from me. I’m so sorry, my love.”
“Why can’t I leave?”
“You’re tied to me, and I’m tied to you. We’re true mates. In the beginning, we can’t be apart at all.”
“But that’s not possible. I only know you from my dreams. You can’t be real.”
“Can you smell me, love?”
He nodded, smearing tears and snot into my skin. I didn’t mind in the least.
“Does it soothe you to breathe in my scent?”
A few heartbeats of hesitation, then a careful nod.
I cupped his nape and pressed a few kisses along his hairline.
“Does it help when I hold you?”
“Yes,” he rasped, his breathing calmer.
“When I said you couldn’t leave, I didn’t mean that I forbid you, Leo. You literally can’t. Just like I can’t be away from you. We’re bonding. We need to stay close to each other. It’ll get easier in just a few weeks, I promise.”
“Why?”
“It’s like that for all dragon couples.”
He made a sound, like a small scoff, and I remembered with painful clarity how he’d spat at me that dragons didn’t exist. My poor Leo.
“It’s going to be okay,” I said ineptly. “It’s all going to make sense.”
He didn’t say anything else. He clung to me, breathing raggedly.
After a while, I carefully lay on my back, bringing him with me.
I massaged his back, rubbing slow circles from his shoulders all the way to his ass, and he relaxed into me.
I lightened my touch until I was only brushing his skin. Then I dragged the covers over us.
As I felt him fall asleep, I had only one thought in my head, and I held on to it like a lifeline.
I needed to call Lawrence.
I didn’t sleep for shit. I couldn’t. I held Leo for the rest of the night, guarding him in his fitful, shallow slumber.
Sprawling over me, he seemed to sleep deeper toward morning, and I stayed still so I wouldn’t disturb him. When he shifted, peering at me with glassy eyes, he smiled—just a tiny quirk to his beautiful lips. Thank the universe for small mercies.
“Morning,” he murmured and pressed his lips to my chest.
“Good morning. How are you feeling?”
He frowned thoughtfully. “Good. Sleepy. And you?”
“Glad to wake up with you in my arms. Did you sleep well?”
“I’m sorry for freaking out. I feel much better now. I had strange dreams but good ones.”
I refrained from telling him off for apologizing. I suspected it would only lead to more apologizing, and I wasn’t sure I could bear that. “What did you dream about?”
He blushed, looking down shyly. “The dragon.”
I winced and opened my mouth, but he spoke before I could.
“It wasn’t a nightmare.” When he glanced up at me, excitement flickered in his eyes. “I dreamed about flying, and in the dream, I wasn’t afraid.”
“We can fly together.”
He gave out a small snort of laughter. “Last time I vomited, remember?”
“Vividly. But it would be different if you sat on my back with a proper harness.”
“A harness?”
“For safety. So I don’t have to hold you in my claws.”
He frowned, playing with the smattering of gray hair on my chest. “I still don’t know if you’re real,” he murmured.
Bracing myself, I breathed out the next question, “Do you want me to be real?”
For an excruciating few seconds, his eyes roamed my face. “I think I do.”
Rolling us to the side, I kissed his cheek and down his neck, and he made a little sound, almost a laugh. “Your beard tickles.”
The brightness in his voice made my oversized heart beat faster. I gulped his scent from the spot underneath his ear. “I’ll do my best to make you happy, Leo. I swear.”
“Thank you.”
I huffed. “You have to stop thanking me for every little thing I do or won’t do.”
“I’m sorry.”
“And stop apologizing.”
“Sorry.”
As expected. I glowered at him, trying to make it look teasing, and to my great joy, Leo’s mouth twitched at the corners.
Leaning back, I studied his gaze. He seemed wary but excited, too.
“I think there’s someone you could talk to.”
Leo flinched. “Like a shrink?”
“No.” I searched my mind for the right words while Leo made an even worse conclusion.
“A priest?” he asked, sounding terrified.
I couldn’t help but laugh. Me? Sending Leo to a priest? “Hell no. Lawrence is just a friend. He’ll understand what you’re going through better than I can.”
After breakfast, I left Leo wrapped in a blanket in the living room, staring at the blank surface of the pool. He’d eaten well, and his cheeks had gotten some color back.
Pacing around my office, I called Lawrence.
“Davidson! How are you?”
“I’m good. Listen, I need you to come here.”
A beat of silence followed. “Where’s here?”
“My house.”
“It’s Sunday, sir, and I’m spending time with Ernest and his family.” He only ever called me sir now when he was annoyed with me.
“It’s an emergency.”
“Sorry, I need to take this outside,” he said away from the phone.
Shuffling and banging sounds followed while I waited.
“What kind of emergency?” he asked, his voice clear again.
“I…found my mate.”
I had to hold my phone away from my ear while Lawrence squealed like a fucking piglet.
“Oh my God, Davidson, that’s amazing. What’s his name? What does he do? And how did you meet him? I’m so happy for you! We have to celebrate.”
“Calm down.”
“I need to tell Ernest. That’s fantastic!”
“Calm down, for fuck’s sake, and listen.”
“You’re being rude again, Davidson.”
I rolled my eyes. Sometimes I missed those days when he used to be too afraid of me to get sassy.
“I said I had an emergency. I need your help.”
The urgency in my tone finally broke through his senseless glee.
“I’m listening.”
“I need you to explain things to him.”
“Me? He’s your mate. I hate to break it to you, but you are now in a relationship. Stop wasting time with me, and go take care of your omega. Oh! Or is he an alpha?” He sounded excited at the possibility for some reason.
“No. Leo is an omega, human.” I rubbed the bridge of my nose. “He’s terrified of me. He lets me hold him and touch him, and it calms him, but he’s obviously not doing well.”
“You have to gain his trust,” Lawrence said, sounding annoyingly like someone’s dad.
“I’m trying. And in the meantime, he’s going through hell.”
“You just need to be patient, Davidson. You’re bonding, and he’ll feel it soon enough.
Why would you think I’d be of any use? He needs your reassurance.
He’ll be fine in a few days. I’m so excited for you.
Finally! You must be over the moon.” His voice went higher in pitch, and I gritted my teeth so I wouldn’t snap at him.
“Yeah, I’m prancing around, throwing confetti in the air. Listen to me, Lawrence, I need you to help him. Please. He keeps crying and trying to leave. Please. I’m begging you. Help me help him.”
The phone crackled with his exhale. “How?”
“Just talk to him. Explain how it felt for you. You’ve been through the same not so long ago. You know how it feels.”
“Not really. Ernest is way nicer than you.”
I growled. Was he making fun of me? Now? “My mate is hurting, Lawrence!”
The desperation in my voice must have finally gotten to him because he sighed. “Okay. But just because I’m curious about him. Let me talk to Ernest, and I’ll message you when I’m on the way.”
“Thank you.”
“You know, you’ve never begged me for anything ever. He’s having a good influence on you already.”
Why was I even tolerating Lawrence’s behavior? Oh right—because I needed him. “Just hurry, please.”
“On my way. See you soon!”
When I came back, Leo was standing by the glass wall, looking outside.
It must have begun raining while I’d been on the phone, and the glass was now covered with glistening drops.
I went to hug him, but he rubbed his forearm over his chest, his lips curling with subtle discomfort he promptly tried to hide.
“Does your chest ache?”
Gaze cast downward, he nodded.
“Do you want me to…”
Before I could finish the sentence, Leo lifted his sweatshirt high enough to expose his nipples. Then he cupped one pec in his hand, the nipple sticking out, and looked at me through his eyelashes.
I’d never seen anything more erotic in my life.
His cheeks were still blotched, eyes red and puffy from crying for half the night, lips chapped, and he was offering me his milk. Blatantly and submissively.
It would bring him relief, right? Nursing his alpha was supposed to soothe him, so it wasn’t selfish of me to take what he was offering. Was it? As if I could resist.
I hoisted him up, holding him around his waist and under his ass, and he wrapped his legs around me.
My hunger made me see red. I latched on to his nipple, sucking forcefully, rubbing my tongue along the underside to get the milk flowing.
Leo held my head to his chest with both arms, crying out.
The taste had my dick throbbing in my pants.
Switching sides, I gorged myself on the perfect flavor.
My mate writhed and moaned, rubbing his groin against me.
It turned him on, of course. Lifting him high up in the air, I pulled his sweats just under his ass and shoved two fingers inside him.
His slick felt thick like oil, and it coated my fingers, dribbling down my hand.
With one arm around his back, I held him to me, supporting a good part of his weight by my hand in his ass.
He bore down, squeezing my chest with his knees, trying to fuck himself while I sucked his flesh in so deep the tip of his nipple brushed the roof of my mouth.
He came sobbing, his nipples letting out spurts of clear milk.
I needed to fuck him quickly before Lawrence arrived. Bonding was like that, right? We needed it like water. Nothing weird about it.
Except he cried in my arms twice already and keeps trying to escape. But he needs me. He’s humping me like crazy…
With my face pressed against his chest, I took a step in the direction of the sofas. Or so I thought.
The next second, we were flying.
The cool water of the pool swallowed us both, sloshing loudly around us before flooding my mouth and ears. I quickly adjusted my hold on Leo, hugging him to me and bringing us to the surface.
He spluttered and coughed, clutching my neck while I swam us to the edge.
“Fuck, darling, I’m so sorry. I’m so fucking sorry.”
Wiping his face, Leo coughed some more.
“I’m sorry.” I smoothed his wet hair back while he blinked at me rapidly.
“It’s okay. I’m fine,” he rasped.
“Sorry. I just…forgot.”
“Why the hell do you have a pool in your living room, Davidson?” he asked.
“I like water.”
He bit his lip, his gaze flickering between my eyes.
And then he snickered.
The quiet sound of his amusement was like a spark of new life. A sweet, warm sensation hugged my heart, and when I hugged him to me, he dissolved into a fit of giggles. My own chest bubbled up with laughter.
Oh, thank heavens!
My Leo laughed with me. He’d be okay.