Chapter 7

Chapter Seven

Elias had been pacing his living room with his mate in his arms for over half an hour. Leah had not stirred a single time yet. He was both grateful for the time to think and frustrated from wanting to see her eyes.

Damn.

She was stunning. Fiery red hair and brown eyes. Freckles covered her cheeks, making him want to know how many freckles were on the rest of her body. He wanted to lick them and catalogue each and every one.

He was out of his mind. Everything was happening exactly as he’d been informed. It was unnerving, and he wasn’t looking forward to hearing “I told you so.”

He considered taking her into the nursery, lowering her to the changing table, and removing her clothes. He couldn’t do that to her, though. She would eventually wake up in a panic. It wouldn’t be fair. He wouldn’t violate her that way, not even to look at her.

And what the hell was he thinking anyway? He hadn’t intended to… Fuck, he hadn’t intended to feel one-tenth what he was feeling for this precious mate of his.

She squirmed in his arms, making his heart beat faster. He was wrapped all the way around her tiny finger, and she hadn’t spoken to him yet. He remembered his mother telling him she might be thirsty from the potion. It might have left her mouth dry. Plus, there was a good chance she hadn’t eaten today. If her nerves had been half as frazzled as his, she would be hungry.

Elias wondered how the hell he might fix her a bottle while holding her securely against him and chided himself for being so fucking unprepared. But when he opened the fridge, he grinned. Someone—undoubtedly his mother—had fixed three bottles and lined them up on the top shelf. Bless her.

Elias held his mate cradled close to his chest while he used his other hand to warm a bottle up in the microwave. Surely she wouldn’t want to drink it freezing cold. It would give her a headrush.

By the time he entered the nursery and settled in the giant rocking chair, his mate was whimpering in her not-quite-lucid state.

He took a chance and dragged the nipple over her lips, pleased when she opened her mouth and accepted the rubber tip. Almost immediately she began suckling.

His heart was in his hands, literally. His Little girl settled against him, no longer as agitated. She had yet to open her eyes, but she was lucid enough to suckle the formula, and one of her small hands even came up to his where he held the bottle.

When she wrapped her fingers around one of his, he nearly choked. Since when was he an emotional dude? Since never.

One word kept going through his mind. Precious. She was beyond precious. She was his world.

Part of him was irritated by how all-consuming she was and how his life flipped upside down today, but that piece of him that wanted his life to remain how it had been before he’d met her was losing ground.

His existence would forever be divided into two parts: before Leah and after the moment he inhaled her sweet scent for the first time.

His cock had been hard since that moment, and he’d been relieved and pleased when he’d scented her own arousal. She’d been just as affected by him as he had her. At least he assumed so. It was impossible to know her mind or what she might have been thinking or feeling during the ceremony.

His gut told him she’d been on the exact same page. Her heartrate had matched his. Her scent had permeated the room, driving him to want to flatten her to the wall and devour her. If he’d misread her… That seemed unlikely.

The sleeves of her dress were gold lace, and he could see her mark through the tiny holes in the intricate stitching. He was itching to touch it, but kept himself in check, remembering his father’s words of warning.

If he let his finger graze over her mark, would his need for her shoot higher? Hard to believe considering the state of his cock, but he would heed the warning. His father hadn’t left him with that last parting piece of advice for no reason.

Leah suckled the entire bottle down without awakening. She gripped his pinky with her entire hand the whole time.

Elias blinked only as much as necessary, not wanting to take his gaze off her for a moment. He knew her face by heart already. Her button nose, her rosy cheeks, her small ears, the way her red hair curled at her temples, the indentation on her chin, and those freckles… Precious.

When she was no longer sucking anything but air, he set the bottle on the small table beside him. Should he warm up another one? That seemed like too much. Her heart-shaped mouth continued to suck at nothing, making him kick himself for not paying attention to where his family and friends might have put the pacifiers.

He didn’t want to stand and look for them. Instead he trailed a finger along her cheeks and forehead, willing her to awake and join him in this new life. He missed her, which seemed ridiculous since he didn’t know her.

His heart nearly stopped beating when she drew her hand up to her mouth and tucked her thumb between her lips.

Elias was pretty sure his brother’s mate also sucked her thumb on occasion, but he had never thought anything of it. He wasn’t affected by anything any of the other mates did. Not until now. Not until the woman in question was his own mate.

Leah was under his skin; she was inside him. She was his heart and soul. It had happened in an instant, and the bond was growing by the minute.

He was kind of glad he had not sought out information about her before today. He wondered how Brock, Arion, and Damon had been able to stand the waiting, knowing who their mate was and not being able to approach her.

Leah tried to snuggle closer to him, burrowing. It would be a lot easier if she weren’t wearing this dress, but for now, all he could do was tuck his arm around her and rock her.

He was mesmerized by her face, though, and he kept touching her, stroking her skin. His touch seemed to calm her. Her furrowed brow relaxed as he ran his thumb over it.

For a while, she seemed to rest again, almost asleep. Then she began squirming and whimpering before she finally opened her eyes. For a moment, she stared at him, not blinking, and then her eyes widened further as she jerked her thumb out of her mouth and scrambled to sit more upright.

Elias braced her hips with both hands so she wouldn’t fall on the floor. “Hey,” he said softly.

Her body went rigid. She looked at him and licked her pretty lips. “How long have I been asleep?” she whispered.

“A while. I didn’t want to disturb you. I let you sleep.”

“Holding me?”

“Yes.” Elias smiled, hoping if he remained calm, she wouldn’t panic. “I couldn’t bring myself to put you down.”

Her cheeks turned pink. Was she embarrassed? She looked around the room. “Where are we?”

Yeah, about that … He was aware that females from the valley were unfamiliar with the deeply submissive expectations they encountered when they first arrived. Explaining things would be tricky. “This room will be your space. A place you can go to relax and unwind.”

She drew in a breath and scrambled to get off his lap.

He didn’t want her to feel forced, so he lifted her by the hips and stood her on her feet, not letting go for a moment, afraid she might not be steady on her feet yet.

She grabbed his arms and pushed back, stumbling a few steps before catching herself.

Elias flinched. He almost lurched forward to keep her from falling on her bottom, but any sudden movement would probably aggravate her further. He controlled his urge, grateful that she didn’t fall.

He hated the disconnect he felt now that he wasn’t touching her. Like a part of him was missing. But he needed to give her space and time to process.

“This is a nursery, Elias. For a baby.”

“It’s customary for Alpha Protectors to provide their mates with a nursery, Little one.” He kept his voice gentle. This would be a battle.

Her gaze landed on the empty bottle on the small table. She pointed at it. “Did I drink that?”

“Yes, Little one. You were thirsty, and I bet you didn’t eat much this morning before the ceremony.”

She shuddered as she wrapped her arms around herself and took several more steps backward.

“I’m not a baby. I’m a grown woman.”

“I’m aware you’re a woman, Leah. Very aware. Submitting to me and letting me take care of you will not diminish you in any way. We cherish our mates, Little one. And the way we show that is by caring for them.”

She shook her head and stepped back farther. “This is beyond taking care of someone. Taking care of me would be opening a door, pulling out a chair, bringing me tea when I don’t feel well.”

“I’ll do those things, too.”

She swallowed and met his gaze. “I need to use the bathroom. Please tell me I’m allowed to pee in a toilet.”

He chuckled. “Of course you are.” He rose and headed for the door, where he turned around and held out a hand. “Come. I’ll show you where our bedroom is and the attached master bathroom.”