Chapter 3
Chapter Three
Odem
As soon as Ronan opened the door, he froze. “How the hell do I get home? Where even am I?”
“You’re at our compound,” Alex replied. “Are you sure you want to leave?”
“Compound? Am I trapped? Sherrif Larkin said I could trust the brothers and Ionus said I was free to go. Now, how the fuck to I get off psycho island?”
Emerson shook his head. “I get that you’re upset but what I don’t understand is why you’re so harsh and negative.
Odem is one of the best men I know. I’d trust him not only with my life, but with my son’s.
He’s the farthest thing from a doofus,” Ronan actually cringed when Emerson threw that back at him.
“He’s a gentle, kind soul and he deserves to be treated as such. ”
Go Emerson!
“I’ve never once questioned the Goddess before, but I am questioning her choice in mates for Odem.
” Emerson kissed my cheek and I blew a raspberry on Cade’s as he held him and the sweet cherub giggled.
The dragonets laughter warmed my heart. “You need to get in touch with whatever God or Goddess you pray to and ask for forgiveness for your less than desirable attitude.” Ronan stood there, mouth wide open while Emerson carried Cade right past him and out the door.
“Look man, I get it. I was sideswiped by Ionus when the whole mate thing went down between us, but I’ll tell you this much, I’ve never once regretted it.” Alex glanced at me and I shrugged. “If you expect to have any friends in this family, you better pull your head out of your ass real soon.”
I had a mate. He was mean. But hot, and all for me. “When can we get your stuff?”
“Get my stuff?”
“Yeah, move you in. Here. With me.”
“Odem,” Alex shook his head. “This isn’t helping your case.” Whatever. I wanted my mate here with me.
“Hell no. I am not moving in with you.”
“It’ll hurt being away from me.”
“Not as much as it will being with you,” Ronan sung back.
“Alright then, I’ve got a question for you. How did you find me today?”
Ronan scoffed. “I just followed your stench.”
Mate
“How-how did you do that?”
We’re mates, so we can communicate like this. Isn’t it fun?
Shit. I caught Ronan before he hit the floor and laid him on the couch beside Alex.
“This is really happening, isn’t it?” Ronan asked him.
“That it is and Odem’s right, it will hurt to be apart from your mate even more so since you’re carrying his eggs.”
“Fuck.” Alex didn’t say anything, just left Ronan to battle his inner turmoil. For me, it was a no brainer. “Fine, but I get my own room.”
“But mates sleep together.”
“If you stick that lip out any further you’ll trip over it. My own room or no deal.”
“Choose your battles wisely, Odem,” Alex reiterated, words Ionus said a million times over the centuries to me.
“Have it your way. Now can we go get your stuff?” What was there to think about? I mean, I’m here. Isn’t that reason enough to never leave?
“Dear brother,” Alex rose, Luna had dozed off in his arms and looked every bit the sleeping princess she was. “I love you, but sometimes, there is no help for you. I’m tapping out. Good luck.”
“And then there were two.”
Ronan shook his head. “I have no clue what to do with you.”
“I do,” I waggled my brows seductively, though given the look on his face that might’ve been a hashtag-fail.
“Look what your ideas got us into!” Ronan protested. “I’m knocked up. With twins!”
“And I’m thrilled. Do you have any idea how long I’ve waited for my mate?
Literal centuries.” This all made so much sense to me.
Why I craved repeats with him. Why once I’d had him there hadn’t been anyone else.
I’d fly over his place at night and land nearby, watching him sleep.
Creepy? Maybe to some, but to me it soothed something deep in my soul, and now I understood what that was.
Mate.
“Stop that! Get out of my fucking head!”
Brother, I’m guessing it’s not going well given your sudden mood change?
Leave it to Ionus to grasp that emotion.
I just don’t know what to do with him. He’s just so…angry.
Remember how Alex was? Tried to escape and injured himself?
Yes, but he wasn’t pregnant then and Ronan is. I can’t risk him doing something stupid and not only losing him, but the twins.
And you, Caro reminded me. If our mates die, so do we.
Fuck. My. Life.
How did I end up the one with a mate that despised me?
Is he still there?
Yes, Mattias, for the time being.
Normally I’d say just be you but that’s not working. Let him rest, make dinner, and show him you can be an adult.
Hardy, har, har. Quite the smartass when it isn’t your ass in the hot seat, Caro.
Been there, done that. Got that mate and don’t want a refund.
Goddess, please give me the strength to not choke my brothers.
“Do you want to lay down and rest?”
“With you?” Yeah, the disgust in Ronan’s voice wasn’t missed. Funny how when I knotted him I was some sort of sex god he cried out to as he orgasmed. Multiple times, I might add. And now, not so much.
As much as I wanted to say yes, now clearly wasn’t the time.
“No. I can show you to your room.” Reluctantly, he stood.
“Might as well give you the grand tour while we’re at it.
You’ve seen the living room and where the kitchen is.
My office, library and horde room are on the other side of the stairs. ”
“Horde? So, it’s true, dragons have hordes?”
“Aye. Is there anything you collect?”
“Shoes. I have like three hundred.”
“Holy crap, in that tiny apartment of yours?”
“Yes, and trust me, it’s a challenge to get around my closet.”
The best idea popped into my head and mentally, I changed rooms to put him in. “This wing has all three spare rooms, each with their own bathroom. The wing across the walkway has two spare rooms, plus the main quarters, which is our room.”
“Your room.”
I sighed. “Yes, my room. Would you like to see it?” Maybe that would sway him.
“No thanks, I need a nap. Which room do you want me in?”
I couldn’t care less because I had a plan, so this separation he insisted upon was only temporary. “Pick which of the three you like.”
“You don’t want me in your wing?” This man did not trust me in the least.
“You’ve rejected me so why should I want you?” There, two can play this nasty game of his. Kinda. I really don’t have it in me to be mean unless it’s in battle, but I could be sneaky.
“Hmm. Okay.” Ronan walked through all three rooms, checking out the closets and bathrooms. Each were a mirror image in size and finishes so I wasn’t sure what exactly he searched for. “I’ll take the middle one.”
“Suit yourself. I’ll get you when dinner’s ready.” Before he could respond, I disappeared to the office. The ideas I had for both rooms next to mine were running rampant.
Ionus, can you ask the contractor to call me. I have some work for him.
Hate sex damage the drywall already?
I could feel my brothers laughing. I wish. I want to convert the two bedrooms next to mine.
At one point I had his number, no clue what happened to it. A few seconds later, a text came through.
Ionus: This time, save Donovan’s number.
Ah, I knew he had a name.
Me: Thanks.
Ionus: Here, you’re gonna need Jacob’s as well for the nursery furniture.
There was so much to remember and do. Ugh, I needed a secretary just to sort my life out.
Me: Thanks.
We’re here for you, brother, but I gotta admit, this shit is funny. No one deserves a snarky mate more than you.
Gee, thanks, Caro.
You’re welcome. FYI, I found popcorn, so next time he goes all diva mode, give a shout-out so we can enjoy the show.
A million finger emojis are headed your way, Caro.
Ah, tsk-tsk, little brother. You may be a grand uncle but you’re the jester of the brothers. If you recall correctly, both Ionus and I warned you that payback was a bitch for the shit you gave us when our mates arrived. Now it’s your turn in the hot seat. I, for one, am enjoying this immensely.
Fuck. My. Life.
I was thinking that a lot today
All I wanted was a mate. And lots of sex. And babies. Did I mention I liked sex? Well, I had all that, kinda, until Ronan wound up pregnant. Time to up my game and win my mate over, then have tons of make-up sex.
Me: Donovan, Odem Denarius here. I’ve got some work if you’ve got the time.
Donovan: Hey Odem, I’m headed out your way for another job now. I can stop by in about an hour. Does that work for you?
Me: Perfect, I’m the middle house. See you then.
He probably knew that, but oh well. One more to reach out to before I start clearing the rooms and making dinner.
Me: Jacob, Odem Denarius here. I’d like to commission nursery furniture as my brothers, Ionus and Caro, have.
Jacob: Congrats!
If only he knew…
Jacob: How many are you adding to your house ??
Me: Two, fraternal twins.
Jacob: Excellent. Gender neutral furniture?
Me: Yes, please and thank you. Spare no expense, I want the finest for my offspring.
Goddess, how wonderful it felt to say that. Not for the monetary value or fine furnishings but ordering for my own dragonets.
Jacob: Timeframe?
Me: Great question. Let me get back to you on that but likely around the four-to-five-month timeframe.
Jacob: I’ll get to work on the drawings. Send me your email and I’ll send them over for approval in about a week.
I fired it off and headed back upstairs.
It had been so long since I’d been in those two rooms I’d forgotten what I had stashed in them.
When I opened the first box, it all came back to me.
I’d been in the midst of rearranging my horde and of course got distracted.
Damn squirrels. The contents in these boxes were part of my stone collection.
Opals and Rubies were many of the stones I had a hard time passing by. Diamonds, in their original form, were another. My horde was worth far more than it could ever be valued on paper for. Guess it was time to move it all back downstairs.
Amidst the moving, Donovan showed up.
“Hey man, good to see you,” I greeted him. “Let me set this box down and I’ll show you the rooms.” Donovan waited in the foyer while I dropped the box off in the horde room. “Sorry about that. How’ve you been?”
“Great,” he smiled. “With all of you finding your mates I should consider building a home for myself up here,” Donovan chuckled. “Seriously, I’m happy for you guys.”
“Thanks, it’s been a crazy couple of years for sure. Mine is currently napping and not very happy with me. I’m hoping these renovations will bring him around.”
“Seriously his loss, you’re a great guy.”
“Thanks, that means a lot.” Both rooms bordered the main bedroom.
“This one I’d like to turn in to a walk-in wardrobe.
Ronan has, like, three hundred pairs of shoes and a lot of clothes.
Maybe in the center do an island style dresser.
Drawers for clothes, lingerie, and jewelry and have one end be a, what’s the desk thing you sit at and do your make-up? ”
Donovan chuckled. “A vanity.”
“Yeah, that with a lighted mirror and fancy chair. Maybe a chandelier in the center of the room and backlights in the shelving along the wall and a secondary door that connects to the bedroom.” I could see it as clear as day, just wasn’t familiar with some of the lingo.
“I’ll have a better idea of just how many clothes and shoes Ronan actually has once we get him moved in. ”
“This will be one gorgeous room. How about I draw it up and email it over for you to review. Let me know if there are any changes and we’ll go from there.”
“Perfect. Now for the other. You’ve done a couple of these lately so I’m sure you know more of what it needs than I do.
” Across the hall we entered a, thankfully empty, room.
Still had a couple more boxes to get out of the dressing room, but I’d take care of that in a few.
“And this one is the nursery. Like I said, we’ve got twins coming.
Gender neutral like you suggested would be great.
” I envisioned a mural that spanned the walls.
Beautiful outdoor scenery, dragons in flight—the whole works.
Now to see if Donovan and I shared the same muse.
“Wait a second, something just dawned on me.” I feared what Donovan was about to say. “You’re not telling me that Ronan, the sassy twink that works at the diner, is your mate?”
“Yup, one and the same.”
“Gotta say, I’m not gonna miss being told to go get my own ketchup.”
Jezz, that had me laughing. “Well, I’ve worn a few drinks myself, courtesy of his hands. Not sure what his pregnancy will bring, but I’m hoping somewhere along the line he quits throwing shit at us.”
“Ha-ha, might be wishful thinking, but if any man is up for the task, it’s you, Odem.”
That I was. Sassy might not be his kink, but it sure as hell was mine.
Donovan took a few measurements. The work didn’t require walls to be moved so nothing structural, nor permit wise. I was beyond excited to start shopping, and the chance that I’d be the one to build the nest was high, given that Ronan hadn’t a clue what that even was.
“Alright, I’m out of here. I’ll have something to you in about a week.” Donovan shook my hand before he left. Then I headed to the kitchen to wine and dine my mate with some fine cooking courtesy of moi.