Chapter 13 #4
“He’s not sleeping in my room. You’ll have to share yours with him,” he said.
“I know.”
“Oh!” his eyes lit up. “That’s what you have to talk about. You have a lot of stuff and there’s no more room in your closet. You have all the clothes in the world in there. He’ll have to put his outside or something.”
“Or something,” Jade nodded.
“Do you have a lot of stuff? Wait! Where is your house? You don’t live with your mommy!” Jondi said as if he’d only just realized I probably had a house somewhere.
“I have a few of them,” I said.
“You can’t live in more than one house.”
“Most of them have other people living in them. My friends and stuff.”
“Oh! Is that why you need to live with us?” Jondi asked.
The rest of the evening was Jondi quizzing me about everything under the sun.
I hadn’t worked for someone else in years but it was more intense than any job interview I’d ever been to.
He even asked if I knew how not to leave my underwear on the floor because his dad totally hated if you forgot them or your socks on the floor.
I also found out that they almost always ate in the middle of the night and I should wake up if I wanted a snack then too.
By the time for him to go to bed rolled around we didn’t get to read him a bedtime story because he talked himself straight to sleep.
“He’s not usually this talkative,” Jade said, taking off his shirt and settling in on the sofa. “I mean, he’s definitely gotten more talkative as time has gone on but I’ve never heard him interrogate someone like that.”
“He wants to make sure I know what’s what and I’m good enough for his dad,” I smirked.
“I think you might just squeak by the interview,” Jade laughed, leaning his head back against the sofa for a second and then rolling his neck.
“Do you want me to rub your shoulders?” he asked.
“Just my shoulders,” he said and for a second my heart plummeted until I caught the swish of a white fluffy tail across the room. I’d forgotten that Eran and his family were still here. They’d been so focused on their own babies and us on Jondi that it was almost like they weren’t there.
“Okay,” I nodded and got up to circle behind the sofa.
His shoulders were soft and covered with light sandy colored hair.
It was soft too and I wondered if that was where part of his mane hid.
I ran my fingers gently over the hair and decided that it definitely felt more like fur.
Then I worked my fingers into his shoulders.
He had a knot or two and his muscles were so tense.
Had he been nervous all day? Was it because of Ferrick and all the other bullshit? Was he always this stressed out?
“No, stay. It’s late,” Jade said.
“Huh? I wasn’t leaving,” I answered, bemused.
“No, I was talking to Eran. He asked if we wanted them to go home.”
I almost said, of course, we did, but they were Jade’s friends and sending someone home after dark with a basket of babies seemed a bit mean.
I opened my mouth and shut it again. This also wasn’t the time to ask Jade about how close he and Eran were.
Though, watching the white cat knead into his mate’s side made me wonder if being jealous was a waste of my energy.
“Let’s go to the bedroom,” Jade said, standing up.
I sniffed to ensure no one was angry or butt hurt. Eran and Vatten smelled tired. Jade smelled, well, he smelled complicated as if his emotions were all a jumbled up set of knotted cords. Inside the bedroom, Jade shut the door, but stopped me when I moved to lock it.
“If he has a nightmare, he comes in here,” Jade said.
“We are so not getting our claiming vows tonight,” my dragon chimed into my thoughts.
“I know,” Jade said. “It’s probably not how you imagined life right after meeting your true-mate, but it’s important to me that Jondi knows that he can come to me at anytime if he’s scared or needs help or something.
I know that we’ll all have to go through an adjustment period but that’s a non-negotiable for me.
Also, my parents just hatched an egg. I figure when the baby gets a bit older, I’ll probably help out if they end up needing a break and I’m on the list for emergency foster and respite care. ”
“Respite care?” I asked. “I think I know what that is but I’m not sure.”
“It can be a lot of things, but it’s like someone needs help with their kids for a few hours or maybe a few days.
Like they can’t get any sleep or maybe they’re in the hospital or something like that.
I’ve had a few stay overnight because their carriers were having another baby too.
Sometimes they’re teenagers who just need a bit of space from their parents they’re not vibing with right then.
Sometimes that space gives them both time to cool down and then they can work it out. ”
“So, there is zero chance of us ever being alone?” I laughed.
“We are alone, Beryl,” Jade rolled his eyes and stripped off his jeans before flopping onto the bed. He was garbed in only medium blue boxer briefs that hugged his dick and testicles. My nostrils flared and my dick hardened under my clothes.
“Are we, though?” I arched a brow, trying to be playful. “I mean, the living room is full of guests and we’re not allowed to lock the door at night.”
“It’s not like Eran is going to barge in here and ask for a snack or for me to check for river monsters under his bed,” Jade huffed. “Plus, be nice to him. Where do you think Jondi will spend the night when we actually exchange our claiming vows? They’ll have a sleepover.”
“Wait! There are so many things I want to ask about Eran, but we’ll only have time alone if Jondi is at Eran’s house or something?”
“Don’t start,” Jade rolled his eyes. “Every time I think I might actually like you, you say something dumb. I know being a parent is a learning curve, but you want kids, right? Like you want to sire a kid?”
“Yeah,” I nodded.
“Well, then it would be the same thing then. If the baby needed us, we’d be there and believe it or not, they need a whole lot. Jondi goes to school. We’ll have time alone.”
I wanted to roar at myself. Why was my dick trying to rule every conversation now?
“Because our mate is attractive and fertile by the smell of him,” my dragon chimed into my thoughts.
“I’m sorry,” I said and meant it. “I’m---”
“Look, do you think I don’t want to rip your clothes off and ride you until I forget why I’m stressed out?” Jade asked, propping himself up on his elbows.