Glancing around her bedroom, I adjusted to the sunlight streaming in. Her bedroom furniture was cherry color, a matching set, unlike the pieces I cobbled together during my many moves and then left behind. The walls were painted a moss green. Colorful quilts hung on a rack and vibrant paintings of landscapes covered the walls. Beside her bed were a stack of books on her night table. One was a hardbound collection of Shakespeare’s sonnets, others appeared to be mysteries.
I enjoyed discovering the different aspects of her life, seeing what made her happy, and wanted to learn more. Because this woman who slept soundly in my arms was the only one for me. And I’d do anything to protect her and make her happy.
Now that I knew this, what could I do with this epic realization? Should I tell her?
No. Definitely not yet. I didn’t want to ruin what we had by scaring her away. After all, we’d only had one night together.
But I couldn’t keep things from her either.
I held her while she slept and debated what to do. At least, the one consolation was that she’d spent every night with me. That meant no guy showing up at her backdoor. I thought about asking her about him, but why ruin it? She was here with me, and I couldn’t let jealousy ruin what we had. I already had the intense and confusing mate situation to contend with.
Several minutes later, meowing and scratching at the door woke her.
Pandora blinked her eyes open and glanced at me from sleepy eyes. “Looks like the cats want breakfast.”
I kissed her forehead. “I can feed them, and you can rest. Just tell me what to give them.”
She sat up, covering her breasts with the sheet. “It’s fine. I’m awake.”
As she climbed out of bed, my gaze raked over her beautiful curves. Could I convince her to come back to bed after she fed the cats?
I had one of my own to feed. Tuxy might be freaking out by now, wondering where I was and whether I’d give him breakfast.
Cockblocked by cats.
“I better go feed my little guy as well,” I said.
Pandora pulled a top over her head and then tipped her head. Her gaze dropped to the lower part of my body and then she nodded with realization. “Oh, the little guy next door.” She arched her brow. “I was going to say—it’s not exactly little.”
I chuckled and then climbed out of bed to put on my boxer shorts.
Once we were in her kitchen and her cats were fed, I wrestled again with what to tell Pandora.
I couldn’t keep it from her, but if I told her after spending one night with her, would I scare her away?
Most likely. It was too much too soon.
“Do you have time for a quick breakfast before you go?”
Since Tuxy had plenty of dry food, he could wait a little longer. Besides, it would give me time to wrestle with what to reveal. I remembered the not-so-helpful input from Lucas and Sebastian when they noted their trouble with sharing that info with their mates. I frowned.
There was no easy way to deal with this. Should I tell Pandora that she was my mate?
PANDORA
I made us scrambled eggs while Austin toasted bread and smeared it with guacamole. Once I brewed tea, and he poured coffee, we sat down for breakfast together, joined by my overly affectionate cats. They brushed against Austin’s legs.
“I think they’re trying to claim you,” I teased.
His eyes flickered wider with a glint of fear. “What?”
“The cats,” I replied, motioning down at them. “They must be trying to mark you with their scent. You’re their possession now.”
“Oh.” He released a shaky laugh. “They must smell Tuxy on me. What are their names?”
“Desi, Fifi, and Cleo,” I pointed to each.
He bent down and greeted each with chin and cheek rubs. When he sat up, he took a sip of coffee. “Although I’d love to spend the morning here with you and maybe go back to bed, I better spend some time with my cat to assure him I haven’t abandoned him.”
