Page 36 of His Treasured Mate

“No, we can’t.”

“Why not?”

“Because I am not a masochist, but you are quite sadistic.”

I just laughed.

“Try to take a little nap, please.”

“Only if you lay down with me.”

“For a few minutes.”

I was far more tired than I was willing to admit.

He laid down on the bed and then pulled me against him, spooning me from behind. I loved when he did that. I felt so cherished and safe inside the little cocoon he created. His hand rubbed my stomach, feeling our child kick within me.

“Settle down in there and let Mommy rest.”

A smile lit my face as I quickly drifted off to sleep.

*****

When I awoke, Thomas was gone, but I knew he hadn’t gone far. I could almost pinpoint his location with scary accuracy. That had been going on for a bit now, but it was still another powerful sign that we were moving towards sealing our bond forever.

It should terrify me. If that happened and something happened to Thomas, it would happen to me, too. God forbid if one of us died. It would leave our children as orphans in this world as we’d follow each other into the afterlife. But as scary as that sounded, there was also a sense of peace in it. I knew without a doubt that our families would surround our girls with the love and support they needed in life. And the truth was, I couldn’t imagine a life without my mate in it. I was ready for the bond to seal, though I wasn’t certain I was ready for him to be privy to all my inner thoughts. We’d cross that bridge when we came to it.

I got up and walked back downstairs, feeling more refreshed than I wanted to admit.

The kitchen was buzzing with excitement and filled with the delicious aroma of home-baked goodies. I stood there and watched all the action as my mother directed a chorus of grandkids while my siblings and their mates sat around chatting.

“Lily!”

I turned just in time to see Elise tackle me in a hug.

“I’m so happy you’re here.”

When she stepped back, I saw tears in her eyes.

“Don’t you dare,” I warned her. But it was too late.

She started to cry, so I started to cry.

Patrick walked over and froze. He looked back and forth between us as we stood there hugging each other and bawling.

“Bloody hell. What the feck is going on here?”

Thomas walked over and put an arm around him, leading him away.

“Times like this, you just walk away.”

This made E and I laugh and then cry some more.

Maddie’s oldest son, Oscar, peeked his head out of the kitchen and frowned as he shook his head at us.

I started laughing. “When you were little and someone would wake your sister from a nap, you’d make that exact same disgruntled looked.”

“You’re right,” Elise said.