Alpha's Fate (Black Moon Saga Book 2)

Chapter 9: Rest Stop

It seems as though the trio have barely gotten started with their mission to stop in and visit all the allies who have pledged to support Kylie against Black Moon in the days to come, but already the task is taking its toll on the pregnant mother-to-be. She is exhausted, and even after a nap in the car, she does not feel refreshed and ready for another day of driving.

Her eyes snap open only an hour after she drifted off to sleep and she quickly repositions herself so she can get a better look at the scenery out the windows.

“Where are we headed now?” she asks, startling Adam out of his quiet thoughts.

“I was figuring on pointing us south, ready to meet up with Luna’s Grace should they agree to it, since we’re already so close,” Adam informs her. “I’m still waiting for a text back from Melissa about who to contact. I was thinking of driving maybe another hour and then finding some lodging for us so we can wait comfortably in the meantime.”

“Sounds good to me. I’m feeling like maybe I need a day or two just to rest,” Kylie admits. She shifts in the seat, trying to find a position that will allow her to stretch out her stiff limbs a little.

Adam watches her, studying her as much as he can with brief glances while his attention is still fixed on the road. He suspects she is more uncomfortable than she is letting on and starts to be concerned that their pacing has been too rushed.

“You know what? Why don’t we look for someplace around here and just call it a day now,” he suggests, though in his mind the decision has already been made.

Kylie smiles appreciatively at him, only slightly concerned that it is barely even lunchtime and they haven’t accomplished much. The witches were a bust, so basically, they’ve just been burning fuel. Then she decides she doesn’t care. She’s tired, and he’s offering her a chance to lie down in a bedroom that does not share a thin wall with Adam’s teenage nieces. Some alone time and privacy will be nice.

“I have an idea,” Tian says. “Kylie, you’re getting close to the point where it would be better not to shift or teleport anymore, but you’re not quite there yet. Why don’t we take advantage of your urge to rest, and head back to my home for a few days? I’m sure Dorian would be delighted to see you both again.”

Kylie’s eyes light up at his offer, and Adam chuckles as he sees that this decision has already been made as well. “I think that is a great idea, Tian,” he agrees to the offer.

She pulls out her phone to being searching online for a place where they can park the car for a few nights, finding a location only about a half hour from where they are currently. She sends it to Adam’s phone, which he has secured to the dashboard because they’ve been using it for GPS navigation.

“I just sent you the location of a place to park while we’re away, so we should be all set,” she declares, and then settles back into her seat. Tian reaches forward to cup her shoulder with his hand and give it a gentle rub with his thumb. She reaches up with her own hand to cover his, and then leans into their joined hands and sighs contentedly.

“I’ve been missing Dorian. This will be perfect,” she declares, already looking forward to going back there.

Soon enough, they arrive at the parking garage where Kylie directed them and Adam is able to secure a week of parking, which should give them plenty of time to visit and rest. They take what belongings they anticipate needing and find a private alcove away from prying eyes and security cameras. Adam and Kylie hold onto Tian and he uses his power to sweep them all away in his sulfuric swirl of smoke.

It seems strange, but Kylie can’t help feeling glad to be back in the room in Tian’s basement with the weird markings on the floor and strange collection of liquid in bottles that line the walls. It’s not the room so much as what it means, that she is back in a place that had started to feel like a second home during her first extended visit.

Adam is glad to be back as well, though he doesn’t share her attachment to this place. What he appreciates is how much Kylie enjoys it, and how well she seems to rest under this roof. He suspects this will turn out to be exactly the respite she needs, and well-timed too. Her meeting with Luna’s Grace should prove to be an intense experience, judging by their reputation and what little he knows of them.

After Tian finishes his recuperative blood rations, he takes Kylie’s suitcase from her and leads them back upstairs through the main part of his home and upstairs again to the same guest room she and Adam stayed in before. Kylie heads straight for the bed, beginning to discard what she considers to be unnecessary pieces of clothing along the way until she is only wearing her t-shirt and under shorts.

“I’m sorry guys, but it’s nap time,” she informs them, already crawling under the covers and settling in amongst the pillows.

Adam follows suit, comfortable enough with Tian that he doesn’t even care that the vampire is still in the room when he strips down to his boxers and crawls in the bed with Kylie. He’s not that tired but cuddle time with his mate is something he has been craving more of lately, so he is not about to miss this opportunity.

Tian approaches the bed and sits for a moment to allow himself to lean down and kiss Kylie’s forehead, intending to bid her goodnight and then dismiss himself to his own room. Teleporting to his home is always a fairly demanding endeavor, but it is especially so when he brings company with him. He needs a nap as much and perhaps even more than Kylie does.

As he shifts himself away from her and begins to stand from the bed, her arm shoots out and grasps his hand tightly as if to prevent his leaving. He chuckles and gives her hand a squeeze, attempting to break away from her grip but she doesn’t let go.

“No, stay,” she insists sleepily. “I want you to make a Kylie sandwich.”

Adam chuckles from his position on the opposite side of her, already cuddled up behind her in a spooning position.

“You can, if you want to, Tian. I don’t mind. But if you’d prefer your own bed, then by all means, have at it. I’ll try to distract her so you can escape.”

Tian smiles and gives a slight chuckle, both delighted and amused at the situation. Though he has grown more used to Kylie visiting him in a bed to cuddle here and there, she has never done so when she already has Adam to keep her company. He ponders what this development might mean, but only for a split second because he is truly too tired to be thinking.

“I’d love to join, if you’re sure it’s alright.”

He glances again at Adam to give him a chance to change his mind, and receiving no complaint, pulls back the covers and slides under them. He scoots as close to Kylie as he feels would be appropriate, not wanting to disturb the way she is positioned against Adam. He rests his head against the pillow in front of her and tucks his arm underneath, lying on his side face-to-face with her. It seems like he barely takes two breaths before sleep overtakes him, her smiling face the last thing he remembers as he drifts off.

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The first thing he becomes aware of as he begins to wake up is how his engorged member is straining against the front of his slacks. He panics, remembering that Kylie was in the bed with him when he went to sleep. Then he realizes the scent of her is filling the room, her pheromones so potent in this moment that he is nearly powerless to resist them, and it occurs to him that she might be the cause of his current condition.

His eyes snap open and he takes in the sight before him, Kylie in just her tiny little boy shorts wiggling up against Adam, who has his arm wrapped tightly around the front of her and his hand fisting a handful of her hair, turning her head so that her neck is exposed to him. Her face rests against that arm, her eyes closed as she gets lost in whatever he is doing to her from where he spoons against her backside. He has his face buried in her neck, teasing his mark with his teeth, and she is moaning and writhing against him, seeming not to care that her breasts are completely exposed to Tian’s view.

Tian only watches for a moment, wondering what he is meant to do here. They don’t seem to be bothered at all that he is still in the bed, mere inches from her, or perhaps they have simply forgotten. He can already feel his incisors threatening to elongate and senses that what little control remains is quickly slipping away from him. She-Alpha pheromones are one of his favorite drugs, and one he has not had the pleasure of enjoying in centuries … but he feels it would be wrong to take advantage and impose on this moment without discussing it with them beforehand, when all are in a rational state of mind.

He quietly slips out from under the covers and excuses himself from the room, closing the door behind him softly to create a barrier between himself and that intoxicating scent. Adam and Kylie did not seem to notice him at all as he was leaving, which in his mind reinforces his suspicion that their activities were not meant to be an invitation for him.

He makes his way downstairs and to his study, pleasantly surprised to find that Dorian has beaten him there. The warlock has his feet up on the desk, which Tian knows he has probably done in the last thirty seconds because he could sense his approach and knows it would annoy him.

“You’ve found your way home, Old One,” Dorian comments, not bothering to look up from whatever he is reading.

“It’s good to see you, too, Dorian,” Tian answers him, trying not to be the first to violate the game they’re playing, pretending to be nonchalant about their reunion. His affection for the man gets the better of him, though, and to his dismay he realizes tears are beginning to prick at his eyes.

“Oh, come now, Tian, no need to get all weepy,” Dorian teases him. “That girl really has done a number on you, hasn’t she.”

He rises from Tian’s chair and comes around the desk to embrace his oldest friend, soaking in his familiar scent and relishing in their moment of closeness.

“She’s upstairs, you might be interested to know.”

“Yes, I sensed that you had returned and sought you out a bit ago. Imagine my surprise when I discovered you in her room, in her bed, with her, rather than in your own, alone.”

“I cannot tell whether that is an accusation of some sort.”

“No, no, simply an observation. I’m happy for you, Tian. I’m glad you will have someone once I am no longer here. It has been a concern of mine, you know.” He places an affectionate kiss on the top of Tian’s head and finally breaks apart from him.

“Yes, well, let’s hope that isn’t anytime soon.”

“It will be,” Dorian says simply, as though he knows with certainty that it is true, but without a hint of what emotions he might be feeling about it.

“You’ve seen it in your dreams,” Tian states as the realization dawns on him, knowing this is how Dorian comes to know things with that sort of certainty.

He also knows he is not likely to convince the man to tell him more about it. A sinking feeling of dread comes over him. The idea of losing Dorian is a painful one, second only to the experience of losing Ramona.

“I have,” Dorian confirms. “And I have accepted my fate. It shall be the sort of end I can be at peace with, and I hope that you will be as well.”

“Oh?” Tian is surprised that Dorian has shared even that much.

“Yes. And when the time comes, do not try to stop me from doing what I am meant to do. That is all I have to say on the matter,” Dorian declares, the finality of his tone enough to discourage his friend from pressing the matter.

“I shall take that as a warning and try to keep it in mind,” Tian responds, struggling to not let himself become consumed with wondering what Dorian has seen. He is well aware of how Dorian feels about trying to interfere with fate and how it tends to make a mess of things.

Dorian leaves him, heading off to the kitchen to begin preparing dinner for himself and their guests, anticipating that their pregnant she-wolf will be hungry. His suspicions are confirmed soon thereafter when she and Adam finally emerge from the bedroom. She follows her nose straight to the enticing aroma in the kitchen, and Adam joins Tian in the study to have a chat about what he knows had to be an uncomfortable situation for the vampire to wake up to.

Tian is already sitting at his desk scouring some dusty old tomes when Adam joins him. The sight brings a smile to his face as he muses about how cliché it is to find an ancient vampire bent over an antique desk studying ancient tomes. Tian looks up from whatever he is working on and greets him with a smile of his own, inviting him to sit with a simple gesture of his hand.

“What are you reading?” Adam inquires, his curiosity distracting him from his original goal.

“I am looking through all my old records and trying to puzzle out somebody, somewhere who might be able to help us with our witch problem,” Tian explains. “In all honesty, it is why I brought us here. I can sense that Kylie has grown more attached to me and does not like for us to be separated, so I decided to bring her with me this time, while I still can.”

“You are spot on about that,” Adam agrees. “Is that anything I should be concerned about, like some mystical process with consequences yet to come? Or is it just par for the course when you get close to a vampire?”

Tian smiles tensely and chuckles nervously, which Adam does not find comforting.

“Adam, this is what I warned you of before. I hesitate to remind you of it now because I do not wish to upset you, but I feel like I was pretty clear and up front about this before I allowed myself to get close to her.”

“I guess it has slipped my mind what you’re referring to,” Adam admits, beginning to worry what he has allowed to happen to his mate.

“It’s our mate bond developing,” Tian tells him, bracing himself for Alpha rage, having realized it himself only a short while before.

“You’re not even mated to her,” Adam argues, racking his brain to remember when Tian ever informed him that he was trying to mate with her.

“Well, what I mean is we share an empathic bond, the same as mates do, and the more time we spend developing that bond, the stronger it grows. I believe it has gotten to the point that the way she feels about being separated from me is nearly as strong as how she would feel being separated from you. And to be clear, I did try to keep my distance to prevent this from happening, but it was you that began nudging us together and allowing us to share the sort of quality time that serves to deepen and strengthen that sort of bond. I’m sure you are aware, as well, that she is able to mind-link me without me forcing a physical connection to her mind. That’s a mate bond, Adam.”

“Oh,” is Adam’s only response as he processes that. Tian is right. He did warn him of this. He did also try to prevent it. “I guess I didn’t fully think about it and connect all those dots.”

“I suppose I could have done more to be sure you were aware of exactly how it was progressing between us, but I thought you could sense it and see it happening. And to be completely honest, it only clicked for me today when she didn’t want me to leave her in the bedroom. I knew we were developing some sort of co-dependent connection, but this is far more than even I suspected.”

Adam purses his lips together thoughtfully. “No, you’re right. I have been aware of it, and I have played a part. I just didn’t want to acknowledge it, I think,” he admits.

“You don’t seem angry,” Tian points out, “which is frankly, shocking.”

“I’m still processing. It will come.”

“I’m so sorry, Adam. We could try to separate us for a bit and see if we can undo it somewhat.”

Adam sighs, knowing that isn’t at all what he wants for Kylie. “No. I want to be mad, but I just can’t find it in me. And do you know why? She’s happy. She’s safe and protected. Not only is she fully capable of defending herself, but she has her Alpha mate and a powerful vampire by her side. She learns so much from you and enjoys your company. Hell, I enjoy your company. I don’t like the idea of her having a mate bond with anyone but me, but as you said, I’ve sensed it, seen it, known it and been fine with it this whole time. Sometimes, I even take advantage of it. Just promise me you won’t take it so far as to actually mate with her. I don’t think I can handle that.”

Tian nods, a tense smile stretching across his lips. “Of course, and I suspected that would be how you felt about it. I don’t require that from her, and I promise you these fangs shall stay clear of her neck. There will be no issue there.”

“I appreciate that, and I do trust you.” Adam pauses for a moment, remembering why he came here in the first place as he scratches the back of his neck uncomfortably. “And on that topic, I feel like I need to apologize to you, Tian, about earlier.”

“There’s no need,” Tian assures him.

“I appreciate that, but I still feel like I need to say it. We are grateful that you are always willing to drop everything for her and cater to her every whim, but you don’t have to. You didn’t have to sleep in our bed just because she wanted it. Beyond that, it was inconsiderate of us to allow ourselves to get intimate while you were still there with us. I’m so sorry, Tian. It won’t happen again.”

“Adam, I enjoyed sharing that bed with you both, as I always enjoy an opportunity to rest with her. It is somehow even more enjoyable when you are both involved, and I appreciate that invitation beyond measure. As for the rest, I understand. I won’t lie, it was confusing for me to wake up to and I nearly gave into my more primal urges, but I have a pretty good sense of where you stand on that and I knew better. It was not an issue to excuse myself and allow you the privacy to do with your mate the very activities mates are meant to do.”

“And I suppose this is why at the end of the day, I really don’t mind that you share a bond with her that could be characterized as a mate bond. You have got to be the most thoughtful, considerate person I know.”

“You don’t know what that means to me, Adam, or even what you mean to me. It is Kylie I am bonded with, but I have a lot of affection for you as well.”

“I think this is the part where we hug,” Adam tells him. He says it teasingly, but it does feel like this conversation needs to be sealed with a hug. He makes his way around the desk and leans down to embrace Tian affectionately.

Kylie appears at the doorway, knocking twice against the doorframe to announce her presence.

“Aww, that’s so sweet,” she coos at them when she sees them together.

Adam straightens and turns to look at her with a smirk on his face.

“Can’t you see we’re in the middle of something?” he jokes playfully.

“Well don’t let me disturb you, guys. I just thought you might want to know that dinner is ready,” she informs Adam.

“Sorry, Tian, but I am a werewolf, and the promise of filling my belly is more tempting right now,” Adam apologizes to him in jest, eliciting a chuckle from Tian and a dismissive wave of his hand.

Adam follows Kylie back to the kitchen, the growling and grumbling from his belly growing more demanding the closer they get. It occurs to him that he hasn’t eaten since breakfast and wonders how Kylie seems to be so chipper considering that breakfast was her last meal as well.

“I helped Dorian with some of the dinner prep and snacked on the scraps,” she explains without him audibly asking the question.

“I keep forgetting that you can do that now,” Adam admits with a chuckle, referring to their mate bond allowing her to hear his thoughts when she’s nearby if he doesn’t forcibly block them from her.

And then he remembers that she could do that with Tian at one point, too, and that was before they had spent very much time together. He could drive himself crazy wondering about their connection and whether it is really a mate bond, but he decides to push it out of his head because it doesn’t really matter. Right now, what matters is dinner.

Dorian is at the counter island when they enter the kitchen, pouring wine into two glasses. He looks up and gives Adam a welcoming smile.

“Good to see you again, Adam,” he greets him, holding out one of the glasses to him. “Our Young Wolf has been telling me of the adventure you and Tian have been taking her on.”

Adam chuckles at the familiar nickname for Kylie and takes the glass from him. He is glad to see Dorian as well, despite their rocky start, and has grown to appreciate the sort of fatherly relationship he has developed with Kylie.

The three sit and share a pleasant meal of perfectly mouthwatering roasted lamb and lightly glazed root vegetables, comfortably conversing with one another. Adam marvels at how confident and eloquent Kylie has become, able to hold her own against Dorian, the master of riddles and witty banter, and wonders when exactly that happened. When they first came here, she seemed to be more in awe of the man, and now she has no issues standing toe-to-toe with him.

He loses himself for a moment thinking again of how she so easily forms bonds with people and wondering at what point her relationship with Dorian will cross that line and become more like with Tian. Then he starts worrying about her relationships with witches and warlocks in general, considering that unlike werewolves and vampires, they do not have true mates except in rare circumstances. Then he remembers that she doesn’t really know any other than Anya and Dorian, neither of whom seem to be interested in her that way.

Finally, he realizes he is getting too much in his own head about something that is silly to be worrying about. He trusts Kylie. She only started getting close to Tian at his encouragement. Tian has been good for her. There’s no better friend for a person who is a bottomless pit of wonder and curiosity about the world than someone who has experienced so much of it.

He takes a breath and shakes his head to clear it of all the worrisome thoughts. Kylie is his, and maybe a little bit Tian’s, and most importantly, she’s happy.

He looks up at her sitting across the table from him and laughing with Dorian, and she smiles at him. That one smile fills his entire heart, and nothing else matters anymore.