Their Beloved Mate.

“Taz, wake up, you are going to be late for work!” A shout came from the other side of the door, followed by a loud bang.  That was enough to get Tazanna out of bed and into the bathroom. In record time, she was done and heading downstairs where she found her mother still in her nurse scrubs making breakfast. “Hey, ma!” Tazanna greeted her mother, dropping a kiss on the shorter woman’s head. “You just got in?” She quickly glanced at the silver watch on her slender wrist. She was the only girl in her workplace that still wore a wristwatch. She loved this particular one as it was a gift from her mother when she turned sixteen.  “Mmmh,” her mother, Jazmine, hummed as she pushed her messy dark hair back and gave her daughter a tired smile. She leaned back on the cabinet. Placing her hands into the front pockets of her scrub top, she gave her daughter a knowing look. “What time did you get home last night?” “Early,” Tazanna muffled around a spoonful of cereal. Her mother frowned. Tazanna never lied about anything, so she was confused as to why her daughter looked tired and had black bags under her eyes. “Couldn’t sleep again?” Tazanna nodded, before sighing and sitting back on her chair. “I slept OK for the first two days after getting that prescription but after,” she shook her head without finishing her sentence. “Same dream?” Tazanna nodded,” same men, different scenarios.” She stretched her hands above her head, trying to get rid of the knots on her neck and back. “I just don’t understand what it means, and it’s driving me nuts.” Jazmine walked to her daughter’s side, pushing away the dark curls so similar to her own. “Do you want me to book you a slot to see a somnologist?” “A sleep doctor?” Tazanna looked horrified as she stood up and walked to the sink. She quickly rinsed her dirty dishes before turning to her mother. “No thanks. I am sure it will go away soon enough.” “But-” her mother started. “Nope,” Tazanna shook her head once again. She collected the bag that contained her laptop, a purse, and car keys. “Will you be home this evening?” Jazmine shook her head, “ah-no. I am covering someone’s shift so that I can have the full weekend off to celebrate your birthday together.” Tazanna nodded, “ok. See you in the morning then. Be good!” “I am the one who is supposed to say that to you!” Her mother called back as Tazanna closed the door. Tazanna smiled at that as she got into her car and started off to work. Her mother was thirty-nine, having given birth to Tazanna when she was eighteen years old. From the story her mother told her, she and her best friends had taken a year off from school to go traveling. It was during one of these travels that she had a one-night stand with a man whom she didn’t even remember his name. After nine months, Tazanna was born. The only thing her mother remembered was that he was tall, dark, and handsome with gorgeous grey eyes. Tazanna concluded two things: she inherited from her father the height and the eyes.  There was a time that she had thought about finding him. With the new technology, all that has been made easy. But after a while, she let go of that notion. What would be the point? The man probably had a family and had no idea she existed. Why disrupt his life like that? She was happy with her mother who showered her with so much love, she didn't need anyone else. She was getting close to her office building when her phone started to ring. “What’s up, Amber?” she answered. “Where are you?” Amber’s voice filled the interior of the car. “Around the corner, about five minutes out. You need anything?” Amber snorted, “your boss is in a mood today. He has asked you two times already in the past fifteen minutes.” Tazanna rolled her eyes, “probably had a fight with his newest squeeze. I’ll be there shortly.” She disconnected the call and concentrated on getting to the office. Tazanna was an assistant to the head of marketing at the management consultancy company. She loved her job as it was challenging, but sometimes her boss was a bit of a nag, especially when he had one of his many girlfriends break up with him. Tazanna had grown up with the business, starting as an intern and working her way up. At twenty-one, she was the youngest person to ever hold her position in the company since it started. Pulling her red Nissan Sentra into the parking space designated for her, she collected her belongings and made her way to the entrance of the huge building.  “I am here!” She shouted at Amber as she passed through the corridor before she entered her office. Depositing her laptop bag and handbag, she took the tab that was sitting on her desk and powered it on before she made it to the inner office where her boss sat. “Good morning, Sam!” she greeted him cheerfully, knowing that always brought a frown on his face.  “What’s so good about this morning?” Sam grunted as he turned towards her from his position by the window. Sam was an older man, with silver hair on the sides of his head. He was a tall, heavy-set man who loved to roll his shirt sleeves to the elbows. Anyone looking at him would not believe that he was head of marketing for a prestigious company. He looked more like a Mafia henchman than a corporate geek. But he was great at his work, and that’s why Tazanna was able to always tolerate his sour moods. “Well, for one, the research team has finally completed the report from last month. We can now move forward with the third phase with this client. And, our marketing efforts have paid off, as usual, and we have landed two more huge accounts.” Sam grumbled once again as he took his seat and placed his elbows on his huge desk. “That was obvious.” Tazanna clicked her tongue, “would it kill you to be more thankful? We had very steep competition this time.” “Yes, but we still won the contracts. What’s there to be thankful about?” Sam raised his bushy eyebrows at her. “Nevermind,” Tazanna flipped her hair as she shook her head. “I was told you wanted to see me?” “Yes, we are having a presentation for a huge client, I think the biggest that we have ever had. I need you to prepare a presentation. I’ll send you the talking points.” Tazanna nodded, “cool. When is this needed by?” “Next week Wednesday,” Sam replied as he moved forward on his chair and started typing. Having worked with Sam for a while, Tazanna knew when she was being dismissed. She quickly got up and walked back to her office. Depositing the tablet on the table, she made her way to the break room to get herself some coffee and catch up on the daily gossip before she could start her day. Working for the company had been the best thing to happen to Tazanna. Not only was she able to hone her skills, but she was also able to forge a friendship that saw her through some tough times. One of those people was Amber, whom she had become so close to that she counted her as a sister. “And so, what did Big Daddy have to say?” Amber asked as she leaned on the counter that held a variety of hot drinks and bites. Tazanna chuckled, “I just wish one day the man in question hears you call him that.” Amber fanned herself, “that man is fineeee! I won’t mind a little tousle and turning on him.” “Mmh,” Tazanna nodded her head, as she licked the remaining sugar on the teaspoon that she was holding. “But I know who would. He is tall, has eyes as dark as the darkest night and he is standing behind you. Hi, Kyle!” Tazanna smiled over her friend’s shoulder to the man standing behind her, giggling at her friend’s red face. “Chat later, Amb.” She turned on her heels and walked away, leaving her friend to deal with her boyfriend. Kyle Masteron was the company’s head of security. He was a very reserved man, about twenty-five years old, though no one really knew for sure. He kept everyone at arms’ length. Everyone except for Amber, of course. The man was so in love with Amber that whatever Amber said or needed, he was ready to provide. And the same went for Amber. Having known Amber since her internship days and way before Kyle joined the company, Tazanna knew that she was smitten by Kyle. Amber was one of those women who believed that s*x was casual, with no need to add emotions to it. She could get pickups from the clubs that they frequented and never even remember the man’s name in the morning.  But ever since Kyle came into the picture, no other man tickled her fancy. And it all seemed to have happened overnight. One day, Amber was her old self, having casual hookups with whomever she wanted. The next day, once Kyle joined, she had eyes on no one else. Sometimes she would catch them seemingly staring at each other and she could swear that they were speaking to each other without words. The day dragged on by and soon enough she was pulling her car to a stop in front of their house. “Good evening, Anna!” Their neighbor called out a greeting as she was making her way to the front door. She waved her hand to the older man, “Evening, Mr. Sanz. How are you doing?” “I could be better. There is something in the air that has me restless,” Mr. Sanz responded, his gaze moving to the darkening skies. Tazanna fought the urge to roll her eyes, but instead put a smile on her face, “I am sure whatever it is, will pass soon enough.” “I hope so,” Mr. Sanz replied, seeming occupied with watching the sky. “Well,” Tazanna said. She continued with her track to her front door. “You have a good evening, you hear?” Maquel Sanz or Mr. Sanz, as he prefers to be called, was the neighborhood strange man. When he first moved into the neighborhood, he would spend hours just staring at their house, without saying a word. He never approached them or talked to them, he just stared while he sat on his front porch.  After seeing this going on for more than three weeks, Tazanna approached him and asked him to stop doing what he was doing and that he was creepy. For a few seconds after that, Maquel looked confused at her, as though he didn’t understand what she was saying. But then he blinked and apologized, making up an excuse that the house reminded him of the place he grew up in and that he kept staring, hoping that he could catch a glimpse of his old life then. After that, Maquel shared a bit more of his story with Tazanna, all of which she took with a pinch of salt because it never really made much sense to her. He spoke as if he had been in the world for centuries, one of the reasons why most people thought he was crazy. Getting into the house, Tazanna quickly ran up the stairs to her room. She discarded her clothes, throwing them on the floor before walking to the bathroom and straight into the shower. It was summertime, and the temperatures got pretty high where she was from. The cold water cascaded down her back, cooling her hot body. She stood under the shower for as long as she could before getting out and walking to her closet. Choosing a short pink strapless dress, she put it on before walking barefooted down the stairs. It was quiet, but she was used to it. Her mother worked three jobs when she was younger, all so that she could provide for her. Now, even though she was working one job, it was pretty demanding and they rarely had time with each other. Walking into the kitchen, she opened the fridge and removed the cold beer. She saw that her mother had prepared dinner for her, but she needed something cool first. Opening the beer, she walked to the sitting room and threw herself on the sofa, a groan escaping her. She closed her eyes and sighed. “Hello, beloved,” the now familiar voice echoed in her head, causing her eyes to shoot open and her heart to race.