Panic began to fill my brain and I was considering making a run for it, Matteo let out a groan of pleasure. “This is the best damn lasagna that I’ve ever tasted.”
The other three people in the room grunted in agreement and my panic immediately dissipated, “You like it?” I squeaked with relief.
Matteo nodded around a mouthful of steaming noodles and sauce, “I grovel at your feet, Tibby Sinclair.” He then mock-bowed to me and a girlish giggle rippled out of me.
“If you giggle like that, Matteo’s never going to let you leave.” Aria pointed out, her amber eyes glittering with amusement as she popped what was left of her bread into her mouth. There was a hint of heat in Aria’s eyes and I squirmed in my chair as my insides warmed more than my plate of steaming lasagna ever could.
The rest of dinner passed easily, the conversation was light as we finished eating. Jacob surprised me the most of all during this time. He fit in with the rest of the pack as if he was one of them. I watched as he easily used, what I was sure, were old inside jokes and teasing. The stern FBI agent melted in front of my eyes and was replaced by a deeply cheerful beta who laughed easily at what the others at the table said. Jacob’s laugh was a deep baritone that echoed throughout the house and you couldn’t help but laugh along with him.
By the end of dinner, the events of the day began to catch up with me and I began to nod off at the table. That, coupled with the fact that I was still exhausted from my heat, and I was practically snoring into my empty plate.
“I’ll take her up to her room.” I heard Aria say quietly as slender fingers brushed against my shoulder, “Tibby, let’s get you up to bed.”
I reluctantly sat up and stretched, ready to find the nearest bed and collapse into it. I waved goodnight to the men still sitting at the table and followed Aria up the modern-looking staircase. It looked as if it was floating in the air because it was only attached to the wall on one side with a long metal railing underneath to keep them level. There was absolutely no way that it was safe, but man was it pretty.
At the top of the stairs was a long hallway that ended with a tall, curtained window at the end. Several doors were on either side and Aria led me past most of them, explaining over her shoulder: “So we haven’t used this room much, it used to be my grandmother’s room but it will work for an omega too.”
“There are six bedrooms and each has its own ensuite bathroom,” Aria continued as we reached the third door on the left.
“I take it that your grandparents hated sharing bathrooms, huh?”
Aria chuckled, “They often hosted guests, so ensuites just made sense for them.”
Aria opened the door and gestured for me to go inside first, reaching inside to flip on the light. The room was definitely not your typical bedroom. The bed was round and pushed into the corner of the room and the middle was slightly sunken in to create a bowl shape. There were soft white curtains around the head of the bed that could be pulled around it to create a sense of privacy. Lots of soft cushions were spread across the floor and a shaggy white rug covered the wood. There were two doors, one that led to a huge bathroom and the other to a large closet. The clothing that we had purchased this afternoon was stacked neatly on top of the dresser that was pushed up against the wall next to the bathroom door.
“Was your grandmother an omega?” I asked, letting my fingers skim across the fluffy duvet that was on the bed.
Aria shook her head, “No, she was a beta but she loved being pampered like an omega, and my grandfather was more than happy to comply.” She spoke of them with so much warmth that it was easy to tell that Aria loved her grandparents.
“I put a basket of blankets in here earlier,” She pointed to a wicker basket that was packed full of nesting materials. “If you need anything else, my room is just across the hall.”
With that, she left, and I was suddenly alone in the room.
Ignoring the basket of blankets, I grabbed a pair of pajamas and a toothbrush and headed into the bathroom. After quickly brushing my teeth, I pulled on the pajamas and threw my hair up into a messy bun.
When I stepped back into the bedroom I frowned down at the comfy bed. That would definitely be a problem. Stripping the duvet off of the bed I folded it and set it neatly on top of the basket of blankets. Next, the pillows and top sheet came off, leaving the bed almost completely stripped. The room wasn’t very drafty, so I wouldn’t get cold—not that being cold was necessarily the worst thing for me when it came to sleeping.
The pajamas I was wearing were flannel, so they’d keep me warm enough tonight. I climbed onto the bed and plugged my cell phone into the outlet on the nightstand. I then curled up into a tight ball in the center of the bed and let the bowl-like quality of the mattress cradle my body.
Even without all of the fluffy blankets, it was still incredibly comfortable. I hoped that it wasn’ttoocomfortable, but it was far too late to worry about that now because my eyes were already drooping shut with drowsiness and I finally gave in to my exhaustion and let sleep take me.
