Chapter 27

CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN

Ozen found it difficult to sleep that night. Knowing Avery was just down the hall was distracting. He found himself getting up more than once to check if Avery was doing alright. He slept soundly and never stirred, but Ozen couldn’t seem to settle. He ended up falling into a fitful sleep well past midnight and woke up only a few hours later, rising with the sun as usual. The fatigue made him grouchy, and he headed to the kitchen, grumbling to himself, eyes barely open enough to press the buttons on his coffee machine. Only after his second cup was he awake enough to function. He went back upstairs to shower and get dressed, resisted the urge to check on Avery again, and distracted himself by making breakfast. He made a plate for Avery and put it on a tray, intent on bringing his breakfast upstairs, but Avery came down before Ozen had the chance.

“Morning,” Avery mumbled, rubbing his eyes. He looked adorable, his hair a mess of curls and his eyes barely open. It did something to Ozen’s insides to see Avery in his clothes, even something as simple as his pajamas, and Ozen had to look away to get himself together.

“Good morning. I made breakfast. Do you want to eat at the table or upstairs?”

“Here is fine,” Avery said, slipping onto a stool at the kitchen island. “Thank you.”

He liked that Avery wanted to stick close to him and took the stool next to him after Avery’s food was settled in front of him. He also had a cup of coffee and some juice for Avery to drink, and Ozen gave him a pointed look when Avery frowned at them.

“You can’t exist off of caffeine. You’re recovering. You’ll drink both cups and then plenty of water throughout the day. You need to get your energy back before you can even think of doing either of your jobs.”

Avery’s mouth fell open in surprise and he choked out a few jumbled words like he wanted to argue, but wasn’t sure what to say. “But– I need– You can’t–”

“You’ll find I very well can. You’re my feeder. Like it’s your job to feed me, it’s my job to make sure you’re well enough to do it. I neglected that this week, and for that, I’m sorry. I won’t let it happen again. But until I’m sure you’re well enough, I won’t be feeding from you again.”

It almost looked like fear flashed across Avery’s face, which made Ozen frown. “What’s wrong?”

“I just… It doesn’t seem fair. I’m a little tired. You’ll literally starve yourself while you’re waiting for me to get better. That doesn’t seem right.”

For the dozenth time, Ozen was grateful that Avery was his feeder. He was determined to keep him well fed, even after the week he’d had.

He didn’t think refusing Avery outright would get him the results he wanted. He’d need a compromise of sorts.

“Very well. If you listen and do as you’re told for the rest of the day, I’ll consider a small feeding. Not too much, I can handle a day without a full feeding, but I wouldn’t want to add to your stress by going without entirely. Does that work for you?”

Avery nodded quickly. “Yes. I just don’t want you to hurt yourself. Last weekend you went without eating and by the time Monday rolled around, you were so hungry, you looked almost feral.”

He winced at the reminder. He’d been so desperate to believe his issue was a mental block like Doctor Chapman had said that he’d bullied himself into staying away from Avery even though he felt out of control with hunger by the time Monday rolled around. What worried him the most wasn’t how hungry he was, but how much it bothered him that he hadn’t seen Avery in days. That alone set him on edge.

None of his research could explain what was happening to him. There were no articles about the potency of different species or special feeders. Not much was written on starvation effects on incubi either. Everything that was written about it said a week or two of consistent feeding was enough to handle most cases, except for the truly extreme cases, such as incubus who went feral. Since that wasn’t the case for him, it wasn’t relevant and he skipped past it. Doctor Chapman hadn’t called with any more information either, and Dorian had even less luck than Ozen had. There was nothing written about what was happening with regards to Avery, and unless Ozen was willing to contact his father, he doubted he’d find anything else on the matter. Ozen would rather eat dirt than call that man, so he was resigned to going with the flow for now. Not a favorite way to handle things for Ozen.

“I apologize for that. Perhaps next week, once Taron is back and things are a little less hectic, we can sit down and discuss a weekend schedule. I don’t want to take up too much of your time. I’m sure you have other things you’d rather be doing.”

Avery raised an eyebrow, his lips twitching like he was holding back a laugh. “Other things I’d rather be doing than spending time in bed with you? With all due respect, sir, have you seen you?”

Ozen snorted, warmth spreading through his chest at the roundabout compliment. Avery was never subtle about his interests, but he did maintain professionalism at the office, so he only ever showed his desire during their sessions. It was nice to know he found Ozen attractive, and not just the pleasure he could provide. Avery’s desire tinged the air, and Ozen pursed his lips against a smile.

“First rule for the day. No seducing me into bed. Your energy levels are still much too low. You’ll finish your breakfast and go straight back to bed. While you rest, I’ll go to your apartment to pick you up some–”

“No!” Avery cried out, his eyes as wide as dinner plates. He slapped his hands over his mouth, mumbling a quick apology. The mood shift was so fast, it gave Ozen whiplash. Avery shook his head wildly. “No, thank you. I can go by myself. Or… I’m sure there’s a store nearby where I can pick something up. We don’t need to go all the way to my apartment. I’m fine.”

Ozen’s eyes narrowed with suspicion. “Is there a reason you don’t want me to go to your apartment?”

He normally wouldn’t push this kind of thing, but considering the week Avery had, Ozen figured having a few of his own things would be comforting. And it made no sense that Avery was comfortable with Ozen at his house before this last week and suddenly changed his mind.

Avery’s face was flushed with embarrassment and he whimpered when Ozen guided his face up to look him in the eye.

“Avery. Is there something you need to tell me?”

If Avery was seeing someone and hiding the evidence, then–

“I, uh… I didn’t have time to clean up this week, is all. It’s nothing… Just… Maybe I should spend the weekend resting at home. You shouldn’t have to take care of me just because I had a bad week.”

Well, that was a relief. And perfectly understandable. Ozen shook his head. “When that awful week was my fault, I do. And I’m not sending you home to clean. That’s not resting.” He put up a finger when Avery began to protest. “I’ve known you long enough now to know you won’t be able to help yourself. I’ll have my housekeeper stop by your apartment this weekend instead of mine. In the meantime, I’ll give you some of my clothes. They might be a little big, but we’re not going out, so it should be fine.”

Ozen was a firm believer in clothes being washed before wearing them, and new clothes weren’t often as comfortable as clothes that were worn a few times. He wasn’t at all thinking that he preferred Avery in his clothes anyway and him being too embarrassed to show Ozen his messy apartment was a convenient excuse to keep him in them. Though there was nothing wrong with his feeder wearing something attractive, even though Ozen wouldn’t consider his clothes attractive. Not unless they were on Avery, of course.

Avery did as he was told and went upstairs for a nap after breakfast. Ozen almost wanted to join him to make sure he actually rested, but he talked himself out of that. His behavior was concerning, and he had to make a few phone calls, starting with a phone call to Taron.

The phone barely rang once, and Ozen could hear Taron’s muffled voice shouting, “It’s company business. Very important. You know how it is. I need to take this upstairs. Yes, I’ll be back down in a minute.”

Ozen chuckled, listening to his friend’s heavy breathing as he no doubt ran up the stairs to avoid his family. Ozen understood the urge, since he avoided his own family like the plague, but he couldn’t hold back his amusement when Taron finally whispered harshly, “Please tell me you need me to come back. Please!”

“Are you not having a pleasant vacation?”

“Screw you. This was not a vacation and you know it,” Taron hissed. “I don’t care if you have to make it up, but there needs to be an emergency. I need to get out of here!”

“Did you accomplish what you went there for?”

“It only took three days,” Taron grumbled. “She won’t let me leave. She’s trying to demand I move home. Help. Me.”

Ozen chuckled, letting Taron stew just long enough for him to whimper before giving him the excuse he needed. “I do actually need you back. I’ve been so busy that I’ve only managed quick feeds all week. It’s taking its toll on Avery. I don’t want to lose my feeder because I don’t have the time to tend to him like I should.”

“Shit. Is he okay?”

Taron knew how important Avery was to him. Finding a good feeder was difficult, and Avery was the best. While the excuse wasn’t entirely business related, even Taron’s family knew how important feeders were. They wouldn’t keep him there if it meant Avery would suffer for it.

“He’s alright. Resting in my guest room right now.”

Taron was silent for a long moment. So long that Ozen thought perhaps the call was dropped. It happened between realms from time to time. He was lucky that he had pulled the phone away from his ear to check when Taron started shouting.

“He’s where?! You brought a feeder to your home? Where is my friend and what did you do with him?”

Ozen’s expression went dark, and he glared at the wall, his voice terse. “You didn’t see him, Taron. He was so exhausted and upset that he couldn’t stop crying. Not only was he subject to my terrible schedule, he was also being mistreated on the research floor. He didn’t get into much detail, but he made comments about people being unhappy with his job as my feeder and his species.”

It was something Ozen planned to address Monday morning. Discrimination wasn’t allowed in his company, especially against feeders. Their jobs were important in keeping people alive. Ozen would not stop until he found whoever hurt Avery and dealt with them. Taron seemed to feel the same way, because his response was a dark growl.

“What the hell did they say to him?”

“I intend to find out. For now, he’s with me, so I can be sure he’s resting as he should be. And I would appreciate your return as soon as you’re able to prevent another week like the last one. Working two jobs while attending to my needs during a week without you is too much to ask of anyone. Avery deserves to be taken care of.”

“You’re right. I don’t want you losing him because of me. I’ll be home no later than tomorrow.”