Chapter Sixteen
Dashiel
Weeks later, I realized that cooking really was significantly more enjoyable when one’s fated mate occupied the same room.
Perhaps it was because every few moments, I found myself glancing toward Landon, and he would give me a wink or a smile.
Or perhaps it was because the bond had transformed something as ordinary as preparing breakfast into one of the happiest moments of my life, since I could feel his emotions hugging me from inside.
Morning sunlight streamed through the kitchen windows, washing the timber floors in soft gold. Beyond the glass, the forest stirred gently beneath a cool breeze.
Like always, it felt peaceful and quiet.
But now it was more exquisite and vibrant than it had ever been.
The time here together was exactly what we needed after completing the bond.
Time alone.
Time to explore each other.
The scent of freshly baked bread filled the kitchen while eggs sizzled gently in a pan, and off to the side, I heated a kettle, already preparing the tea I intended to introduce Landon to after breakfast.
My attention drifted once more toward the dining table.
Landon sat there wearing one of my oversized shirts and a pair of loose pants, and his damp hair was still tousled from towel-drying it.
He looked so comfortable and at home here.
This cottage was no longer just mine. It was ours.
He was happy here. I had felt his joy many times, fluttering through the bond that was wrapped around my heart, warming it in ways I had never felt before.
He loved me, and he was truly mine.
A small smile tugged at my lips.
Gods. I could spend centuries simply existing like this.
Landon’s phone vibrated on the table. He glanced at the screen before looking toward me. “Monkey.”
I nodded. His son called nearly every day to check in with his father. To, apparently, make sure that I was not keeping Landon hostage.
With a smile, Landon accepted the call. “Morning.”
Monkey’s voice carried across the room, since Landon had placed it on speaker. “Pops! You alive?”
Landon laughed. “Clearly. I answered the phone, just like the last time you checked.”
“So... when are you coming back?”
Landon glanced toward me once more, and when our eyes met, warmth flowed easily between us.
“I’m not sure,” he admitted. He had confessed the other day that he was in no hurry to return to the city. He enjoyed our little—though he would call it big—oasis. Landon cleared his throat. “We’ll come back when we’re ready.”
The simple inclusion of we settled pleasantly in my chest.
Monkey seemed satisfied by the answer. “Fair enough. Is there anythin’ you want to tell me?”
Landon leaned back in his chair and smirked over at me while rolling his eyes. “Not that I can think of.”
“Pops,” he whined like a little boy and not a grown adult.
“I promise we’ll talk when we get back.”
“Okay, I get it. This is your and your elf’s time to connect and work out if you’re gonna stay hooked with the fire lord.”
I snorted.
“Hey, Dash.”
“Hello, Monkey.”
“You better be treatin’ Pops well.”
“I would have it no other way.”
Monkey grunted. “Yeah, I can hear that Pops is happy when he’s around you.”
Landon gave me a sweet look as Monkey’s words filled me with pride. “That means so much.”
“Anyway,” he drew out. “I nearly forgot to tell you, Pops—Riker’s mom has set up a meeting that takes place at the compound for in a week’s time.” He gave his father a date and time.
I paused my cooking as Landon winked at me and told his son, “You should have led with that, Monkey. Now you know when we’ll be back.”
Monkey snorted. “I probably should have. All right, I’ll let Dashiel get back to wooing you. And Dash…”
“Yes, Monkey?”
“Riker said to do that thing he told you about.”
I made a noise in the back of my throat and felt the tips of my ears warm as laughter came from the phone before the call ended.
Landon placed the device down and grinned. “What was the thing?”
“It matters not.”
“Dashiel, you have to tell me now.”
My face burned, and I cleared my throat. “Well… you see, it matters not because I did the thing last night.”
Landon’s grin grew wide. “The one I asked for a repeat of?”
“Yes.” He was speaking of my fingers inside him while I was sucking him deep.
The bond suddenly blasted me with a heady wave of arousal, making my body react. But I also heard his stomach growling. He needed food before we disappeared into the bedroom again.
Never could I have imagined the intensity of the attraction we had for each other. A simple brush of a hand could lead into more.
It was exhilarating.
Landon cocked a brow. “We can go to the bedroom now.”
Huffing, I carried two plates of dished-up food toward him. “I am eager for it, my beloved. But you must eat first. I heard the monster growling.”
He chuckled. “Hell, love, you spoil me,” he said, looking down at the food in front of him.
Leaning down, I kissed his temple before sitting beside him. Ever since our first night of intimacy together, Landon had started calling me his love, and each time I heard it, my body and bond filled with warmth. “I like to cook for you.”
“Next time, it’s my turn,” he told me, picking up his fork.
“Whenever you wish. Maybe I could help too.”
He smiled. “You’d just distract me.”
Yes, I remembered Landon giving up preparing dinner the other day because I had stood too close and looked too good.
“I will try not to.”
Landon snorted, then took his first bite before glancing toward me thoughtfully, his mind already elsewhere. He often did this, which led to questions about so many things. “Can I ask something that probably should have occurred to me sooner than later?”
“You may ask me anything.”
His expression became more serious. “What happened after the warehouse situation? What have people been told at the business? No one’s rung me wondering why I haven’t come into work.”
I reached for my water before answering. “Soren and Spade have been very busy altering the memories of those who required it.”
Landon listened quietly.
“Your coworkers now believe Martin resigned unexpectedly.”
“Resigned?”
I nodded. “To move overseas. Soren felt it would discourage questions. People rarely search for someone who willingly chose to disappear. They believe he accepted employment elsewhere and departed immediately.”
Landon nodded slowly. “And Hawthorne?”
“No one connected to the company remembers him.”
His brows lifted. “Really?”
“Like Martin, he had no family. No close friends. No one who would actively seek him.”
“And me?”
“It was safer to erase you from those you interacted with.” He had given me a list of names the day after but had never asked what it was for. Though, I have no doubt he would have guessed. My mate was every smart.
He was already nodding. “So, I don’t have a job?”
Tension tightened my shoulders. “Did you still wish to have one there?”
He shook his head quickly, and I relaxed—even more so when he said, “I wasn’t there long. I’m not going to miss anyone. I’m sure I’ll find another job.”
“You do not have to, if you don’t wish,” I offered.
“Sorry?”
“You are my fated. Everything I have is yours, and we have plenty of everything.”
His eyes widened. “Everything?”
“Jewels, diamonds, gold, money in many currencies. Do not forget I have lived centuries.”
His mouth dropped open, but he snapped it closed. “I…. You know I’m not with you for your money, right?”
I threw my head back and roared with laughter because I certainly knew Landon had never thought about money when it came to us.
When my mirth slowed, I smiled at him. “It must be my looks, then?”
He grinned. “That and you’re good in bed.”
My cheeks and ears flamed.
He pointed over at me. “But it’s also because of how damn cute you are getting flustered whenever we talk about bedroom things. I love you, Dashiel, for so many reasons.”
My throat thickened.
Landon sighed contentedly and touched his chest. “Yeah, I can feel your love right here too.”
“Like I do yours.”
“I’m glad that’s something the bond gives us. At least then, I’ll know if you get annoyed with me.”
“I doubt I ever could.”
Landon laughed. “We’ll see. We have many more days together. I’m sure I’ll do something… like burn your tea.”
My eyes widened at the horrid thought, making Landon chuckle.
We had already had so many perfect days together, but I did feel that each one topped the last. My life with Landon would be plentiful.
After a moment, Landon studied me for several seconds, so I asked, “What?”
“I like that you smile a lot more now.”
The observation caught me off guard. “Do I?”
He nodded. “Do you know, the day you rescued me, your brother said they hadn’t seen you hopeful before.”
“Did he?”
“He did. But I never told him I like that I’m the reason.”
Emotions swept through the bond. The strongest was love, which nearly stole my breath.
I looked away briefly, gathering myself. Eventually, I said, “I did not know happiness could feel like this.”
His expression gentled, and he reached across the table again, taking my hand in his. “You deserve it.”
The bond shimmered warmly between us. His affection wrapped around my heart, and mine answered immediately.
Breakfast lasted longer than expected because our conversation kept wandering. Landon wanted to know about the forest surrounding the cottage. The animals living within it.
Whether Sashiel was teasing when he told Landon on the phone the other day that elves often gathered for tea ceremonies and they genuinely lasted three hours or more.
“He is correct.”
My mate looked horrified.
“I mean, I know how to party, but tea parties that last that long?”
I laughed. “You would adapt.”
“I think you’re overestimating tea.”
“I could never.” It was my turn to wink now as I added, “He was jesting.”
Landon groaned and huffed out a laugh. “Thank God for that.”
Afterward, I prepared some tea that I had promised him, and he sampled each variety with complete seriousness before deciding one tasted like freshly mowed grass.
“Do not fear. I will find one you will love.”
“Oh joy.” He laughed, but he also looked a little worried about more tea samples. Then again, I would have the same reaction if he was trying to get me to try different kinds of coffee.
Landon suddenly leaned back in his chair and stretched before an overexaggerated yawn escaped him. He stood and wandered around the table until he reached me.
Without speaking, I looked up at him as he leaned down and pressed a soft kiss against my lips, nose, and the tip of my ear, which he then licked.
Desire spiked, making me shudder.
When he pulled back, he smiled. “I think….”
I swallowed. “Yes?”
“I’d like to go back to bed.”
My lips quirked. “You do look tired.”
He nodded with fake solemness. “Come with me?”
I stood immediately. “There is nowhere else I would rather be.”
Hand in hand, we left the kitchen behind. The breakfast dishes could wait.
For now, all that mattered was making sure my fated mate got everything he wanted.