Birthday Time

Addy

The morning sun streams through the window, assaulting my eyes. I shift in the bed, trying to remember where I am, when an arm pulls me closer to a solid body. I tense up as a face buries into my neck, taking a deep breath.

“I haven’t slept this well in months,” he murmurs.

As my mind catches up with my surroundings, I relax a bit. I turn over to see him smiling at me. His hair is tousled, making him look incredibly attractive. My eyes take in his face slowly. He watches my gaze before closing his eyes and taking a deep breath.

“I’ve dreamt of this morning for almost a year. Waking up with my mate in my arms as the day begins—it’s a dream come true,” he says, his eyes slowly opening.

I swat his chest playfully. “I bet you’ve had more than a few women wake up in your bed.”

He frowns, his eyes searching my face. “Why does that matter? The past is the past. This is what matters now—us, waking up together like this. I even ordered a new mattress yesterday, after you were found. We can start fresh.”

I lower my gaze. “It still hurts a bit, knowing there were others before me.”

He flips me onto my back, hovering over me. “I’ve told you, none of that matters anymore. You’re all that matters to me now. That’s a promise.”

The door bursts open and his sister walks in, huffing. “Really?”

He turns his head towards her, growling. “You could knock before barging in.”

She giggles as she closes the door. “I thought you two were going to wait.”

He smirks at me. “Oh, this? She was just telling me how good I look when she wakes up. I was showing her how much I appreciated the compliment.”

He lowers his hips slightly, letting me feel his morning arousal. I squirm, trying to escape from under him, and his eyes darken.

“Don’t do that unless you plan to spend the day in bed with me,” he warns, lifting his hips away from me.

I push him off me, sending him tumbling to the other side of the bed. Myra flops down on the couch, clicking her tongue. He gets up and slides back under the covers.

“She can’t stay in bed with you. We have appointments for my party. We need to eat breakfast before we start our day,” she says, wiggling her fingers.

He groans as I start to get out of bed. His arms wrap around my waist, pulling me back into bed. I shriek as I fall back onto his chest.

“We can have breakfast sent up here. I want some cuddle time,” he says, pulling me closer.

I hold onto the mattress as he pulls harder. The sheet comes off the edge as he wins the tug-of-war. He wraps his arms around me, pulling me against him, and drapes a leg over mine.

“Gross,” Myra says. “This is making me want to take another shower. My big, tough brother has gone soft.”

He glares at her over the covers. “You’ll be the same when you find your mate. I’ve been waiting for her to wake up for about half an hour.”

I look up at him. “Why didn’t you wake me up? I could have been up and dressed before she barged in.”

He chuckles. “You were sleeping so peacefully. I didn’t want to disturb you. You make a cute sound when you sleep. It’s not a snore, more like a little meow.”

I glare at him. “I do not!”

“You do,” Myra says. “I’ve heard it plenty of times when you’ve spent the night. The first time, I got up looking for a kitten before I realized it was you.”

I pull the covers over my head. “Is this pick-on-me morning?”

The covers are yanked off. “No, but it will be if you don’t get up and get moving. We have things to do, girl.”

“I told you, breakfast is on its way. I’ve already contacted the kitchen. They’re bringing it up hot. There’s no need to rush out of bed,” he says, pulling the covers back over me.

I sit up quickly. “I need to get up. We can’t get caught like this yet.”

I move faster than he can react, scooting to the edge of the bed and jumping onto the floor. I head for the bathroom, closing the door behind me. I look in the mirror and gasp at my reflection. My hair is a mess, sticking up in all directions. I use the bathroom and then grab a brush from a drawer to tame my hair. When I come back out, he’s sitting up against the headboard, his arms crossed over his muscular chest. My eyes roam over his bare chest and arms, taking in the bulging muscles. He smirks, catching me in the act.

“Like what you see?” he asks, flexing his arms to make the muscles jump.

“S-sorry,” I stammer, dropping my gaze and rushing into the closet. I grab a pair of shorts and a matching top and turn to leave, only to bump into his chest.

“I told you not to apologize for looking at me. One day, you’ll see all of this and more. I don’t mind. It lets me know you’re interested,” he says, his hands on my hips.

“I-I know,” I say, feeling my cheeks heat up. “I’m still getting used to all of this.”

I hurry back into the bathroom, hearing him chuckle behind me. I change into the clothes I picked out and come back out to find him dressed in blue jean shorts but still shirtless. I head to the table to sit down just as there’s a knock at the door. He opens it, takes a tray from the woman outside, and carries it over to the table, flexing his muscles as he moves. He’s doing this on purpose, trying to make me swoon over his body.

He sets the tray down and takes a seat. He lifts the cover off the tray to reveal a variety of food. “I wasn’t sure what you’d want for breakfast, so I asked for a little bit of everything.”

I pick a piece of pineapple off the tray and pop it in my mouth. We eat and talk about the party. Most of it will be centered around Myra.

“About halfway through the party, I’ll make our announcement. That will give her time to see if her mate shows up and give us more time to mingle and dance,” he says, taking a bite of his pancake.

“Aren’t you worried people will figure out about us before the announcement if you’re sticking by my side?” I ask, picking up a strawberry.

He puts his fork down. “No, not really. They’ll find out halfway through the party anyway. If some of them figure it out early, I don’t care. You’ll be announced as my escort when we enter.”

I drop the kiwi I was holding. “W-what?”

Myra puts it back on my plate. “You didn’t realize you two would be walking in together?”

I look at her. “I thought we would be. I didn’t know he expected me on his arm.”

They both stop eating to look at me. “Why wouldn’t I want you on my arm? This is going to be one of the biggest days of our lives. The next big day will be when we announce our mating ceremony, and the last will be when we start having pups.”

“I’m sorry, I just keep making you angry with me,” I say, tears welling up in my eyes.

He wipes a tear away before it falls. “I’m not mad, Addy. You just need to accept that this is your life now. We’re going to be together from now on, and there will be times when you’ll need to be at my side.”

“I thought that would start after the announcement, not before,” I say, sniffing.

He gets up, squats down in front of me, and looks into my eyes. “Don’t cry, baby. Will you please walk in with me? It will make a statement that you might be mine and it will show other unmated males not to bother you. If they figure it out, I don’t care. The only thing that matters is you being at my side during this party.”

Myra puts her hand on my arm. “We told you this would happen when we bought that dress.”

I take a few quick breaths. “I’m not sure I’m ready for this kind of attention yet. What if I do something stupid?”

They both shake their heads slowly. “What does it matter? Macie will never bother you again. This will show everyone at school that they can’t touch you or even think about it. It will announce how powerful you’re going to become. You won’t do anything stupid,” he says, taking my hand.

Myra glances at her wristwatch and rises to her feet. “We’ve got to go. We’re due at our appointment in five minutes. Time to get all glammed up for my party. You’re going to love it.”

He gets up too, tugging me along. “I’m excited to see how you’ll look once they’re done with you. You’re going to be the belle of the ball tonight, so unrecognizable that they won’t know who you are.”

He wraps me in a quick embrace, planting a kiss on my forehead. Just as Myra grabs my hand and starts to pull me out of his room. We’re halfway out the door when Macie walks by, shooting us a nasty look. I glance back just in time to see her pause at his room before disappearing into the open doorway. I tug on Myra’s arm, pointing behind us.

“She just went into his room. We need to go back,” I insist, trying to halt our progress.

But Myra just tugs me along more forcefully. “He can handle her. We’ve got a tight schedule if we want to get everything done in time. Nothing’s going to happen, trust me.”

I want to believe her, but Mystic’s unease is contagious. He told her to leave him alone, so why is she trying to talk to him now? I can’t shake off the uneasy feeling that’s creeping up on me.