Chapter Sixteen
Ernest
Every muscle in Ernest’s body ached, his mind was filled with the wonder that was his amazing, and still sleeping mate.I have my own person… my mate… no more worry about someone ridiculing me when they don’t get their own way or stealing my car to make their getaway.Admittedly, the last bit had only happened once, but Ernest had never felt so right.His elephant was calm, although slightly unnerved from the sounds of traffic outside, and Toby’s bed—while big—wasn’t what Ernest was used to,but I have my person.My Toby.
Compromise.That word loomed large, like a neon sign, in Ernest’s brain, shining bright in the warm afterglow of epic sex.Compromise was also a word that had so many layers, so many connotations.It was essential for mates who led two separate, independent lives to be able to compromise on various elements of their lives together.Ernest knew this, and he knew he would easily give in to most things that Toby wanted—his mate only had to express a wish, and Ernest would stomp around ensuring he could make that wish come true.
Ernest had a chance to look at the apartment while he had been getting a washcloth to clean his sweet mate and make him feel more comfortable while he was dozing.The apartment was still new.It had that smell of freshly painted walls, and even the scent of sawn timber, even though no timber could be seen.The paint smell didn’t bother Ernest.It was more that he could hear the traffic noise outside.It wasn’t blaring, but for someone with sensitive ears, it was difficult to ignore.
The space is functional.It’s really nicely done.Ernest was doing his best to be fair—actually, he was clinging onto the word compromise like a life preserver.The space was clearly built with two people in mind.Toby’s living room wasn’t big, but it was comfortable.The kitchenette wasn’t big either, but it seemed to have everything a person might want to cook a meal.
Toby’s bedroom was a reasonable size, and the bathroom was bright and clean, and it even had a separate tub.But then Ernest had a tub as well, and it was a lot bigger than the one installed for Toby to use.
Everything about me and my home is bigger,he thought glumly.Toby clearly didn’t have an issue with his size when it came to bedroom activities,but we’d have to change out the bed if we end up both living here.Ernest pressed his lips together, resisting the urge to sigh.The bed could be another issue.It was clear the bed was relatively new, but the springs were sagging under Ernest’s bulk.
I can’t expect everything my own way.Toby could be very happy here.He only has to walk up the stairs to go to work in the morning.His two friends live here too.Friends that he’s very close to.I can’t take him away from that.
But Ernest couldn’t deny that the thought of spending the bulk of their time in a little apartment—when Ernest had a whole house—left him unnerved.
Ernest wasn’t quick enough to swallow his sigh a second time.He had no right to feel unsettled.He was barely an hour into their mating, and while Ernest knew his elephant—and him—were not keen on change, they had every reason to celebrate because Toby was in their life.The claim had been made and accepted.He and Toby were made for each other.Ernest was starting to feel guilty because he was reluctant to give up all he’d worked for just to be a decent mate.
But isn’t that what I have to do?Pierre had certainly thought so.He had only been angling for bond-mate status, but he took it as a personal insult every time Ernest got out of bed to go to work.Ernest recalled the countless hours he’d spent cooking food so he and Pierre could have a romantic night at home, only for Pierre to insist that he simply had to eat at one of the many restaurants in town—a meal Ernest was expected to pay for.
In hindsight, Ernest knew that Pierre never cared about him at all and was more concerned with the health of Ernest’s bank balance.He never seemed to understand the work it took to maintain the successful business Ernest had.
Right or wrong, Pierre would only do what he had to do to get what he wanted.He never cared about the other person—something Ernest didn’t realize until it was far too late.
I know Toby would never be like that,but Ernest couldn’t shake the feeling that if he so much as suggested that he’d give anything for Toby to be living in his home, that Toby would take that as some kind of insult, or worse, would think that Ernest was overbearing and controlling.
“Hey!”Toby’s voice and a hand on his arm jolted Ernest out of his thoughts.“You’re thinking hard enough to start a fire,” Toby chuckled.“Please don’t tell me you’re regretting what we’ve done already.”
“Gods, no, I’d never think that.Not in the slightest.You’ve made me the happiest man alive.”Ernest encouraged Toby closer so that his head was lying on Ernest’s chest, with his curls tickling his nipple.“I’ll admit it.I was just thinking about your apartment and how things might work out.”
Ernest hoped he’d said enough.He refused to lie to his mate, but he worried that his concerns about their future living arrangements—especially before they’d had a chance to talk about it—would be misconstrued as criticism.
But Toby chuckled, so maybe his sweet mate could read his mind now they had claimed each other.
“It’s pretty, isn’t it?”Toby said.“The apartment is freshly painted.”
Ernest nodded.
“Very clean and new.”
Ernest nodded again.
“It’s not like a proper home, though, is it?It’s more like a hotel room,” Toby said, sounding thoughtful.
Twisting his neck, Ernest looked down at his mate in shock.His mouth dropped open, and he was sure his eyes were bugging out of his head.“What did you say?You don’t like this place?”
“I like it well enough.It’s definitely a step up from the way Morty, Niall, and I were living before,” Toby chuckled.“The place I had before this building was remodeled was really little—like you’d probably have to go into the bathroom backwards to sit on the toilet because there was barely any room to turn around.”
“So you do like this place?”Ernest was getting confused.He could at least turn around in Toby’s current bathroom.
“I do like it, I’m grateful for the space, but I’ve got more of an attachment to my things than the space they’re sitting in.”
“Your things?”
“I know they don’t look very fancy or coordinated, but my dresser is one I have had my whole life.It came out of the home I grew up in.And, oh, the chair—did you see the chair in the living room, the big red one with the comfortable cushions?That chair is to die for—honestly, I know it’s a bit shabby—I found it in a thrift store.But it fits my butt like it was made for me, and I bought that myself with my first ever paycheck.Things like that.”
