Malcolm
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With the exceptionof her spike of panic, Scarlett only had a few blips of nostalgic sadness today, and it made being stuck in my office a thousand times easier, knowing Kasen was keeping her out of her head. This is only the second time he’s been around her and already he has a good grasp on her moods, what she needs; no connection necessary or fumbling around desperately trying to figure out how to make her happy like I did.
He’s good for her.
While there’s admittedly a small spark of envy, it’s merely because he makes it seem so easy while I’ve been stumbling around in the dark for months. I have no ill will for the man; there’s a reason he was one of the select few I trusted to bring up to speed when I brought Scarlett home. He’ll never let any harm come to her, not even from herself. It’s just a shame that he’ll so readily sacrifice his own happiness like he doesn’t feel he deserves it.
No wonder he and Scarlett get along so well.
Bypassing the guards stationed at the elevator entrance with a nod, I withdraw my key to open the door, tapping the up arrow. Once I’m alone again, I sigh, using my free hand to rub at my temple. This morning didn’t go like I’d hoped. Those two needed a push, but short of him confessing he was her mate and sending her spiraling, the only thing I could think of to make sure that she didn’t feel guilty about being drawn to him was if she thought I was a kinky bastard.
Now she thinks you’ve got a thing for the man. Motherfucker.
I’ve spent the better part of the day looking at the situation from her perspective, and the only conclusions I can come to that makes sense is that either she thinks I’m pretending to have a crush to make her feel better about liking the guy because I’d support her in anything, even at the sake of my pride. Or that he’smyfated. And instead of being sheepish, she was grinning with purpose, so I’m leaning towards option number two.
But she was really receptive about the idea of bringing him into our relationship for my sake, not shying away from the idea of creating a pack with the guy. Even if her wires are a bit crossed, it gets us moving in the right direction. She just hasn’t realized thatshe’sthe center of our unit, not me.
One step at a time, I suppose.
The elevator doors open and I nearly drop the bag of takeout that I’m holding. The place is a mess; a board game laid out on the coffee table, bags with contents spilling out strewn across the floor, and Scarlett, sitting at an easel near the far wall with supplies littered around her. Stretched out against the glass wall in front of her on his side is a massive black bear, a sheet draped across his lower half as he props his head up with one arm.
Scarlett whirls around with wide eyes, paint smudged across her guilty face. “It’s not what it looks like!”
I cough into my fist to mask my strangled laugh, looking around the scene again, but it’s just as ridiculous the second time. “I’m not even sure what you think it looks like, to be honest here.”
Carefully picking my way across the room, I bend down to kiss the top of her head on my way to the kitchen table to set down the food. Kasen shifts back, clutching the sheet around his waist and blushing hard enough it spreads down his neck and I snort.
I swear, they’re the same person. I’m not surprised in the slightest their souls fit together seamlessly.
Kasen shuffles off to the bathroom as Scarlett hops to her feet, joining me in the kitchen and reaching for the plates. “I’ll get everything cleaned up before bed, don’t worry.” She meets my eye sheepishly as she adds, “Kasen swore you’d be more upset if we interrupted your meeting to ask permission than you would be if we bought some things to do.”
Leaning in, I steal a kiss to set her at ease before saying, “He’s partially correct, though I’d never be upset if you called me no matter what I was doing. But yes, that’s exactly why I gave him my card; I knew you'd refuse to use yours more than necessary. All I ask is if it’s something over, say, ten grand, you at least shoot me a text first?”
Her eyes widen as she balks at the idea, and I smile. “I’m selfish enough that I’d like big surprises like that to come from me, and depending on what it is, there are likely routes I can acquire it that would give me a tax break. Did you have fun today, then?”
She’s still reeling, nodding numbly, but recovers quickly enough, a wave of joy and excitement reaching me that makes my heart squeeze. She was in such a dark place when I found her, a part of me was worried that every trace of the girl she was before being bitten would be lost forever under the weight of her experiences. But if there’s one thing Scarlett never does, it is cease to amaze me.
“A bit of a rough start, but we turned it around,” she confirms, doling out food. "And I think I might be able to con him into playing online with me tomorrow if he remembers to grab his laptop in the morning."
She doesn’t even make it to her seat before stealing a few hasty bites from her plate and I cock my head, checking her over as she slips into her chair. There’s a contented aura about her and an easy going look in her eyes, but now that the happy flush is fading from her cheeks, she seems paler than before, eating quicker than usual.
Ah. She’s trying to take the edge off.
She fed from me last night, but even though she should be fine until tomorrow, it must’ve been a trial of restraint being around Kasen all day if he smells like she claims. Getting some food in her should help tide her over until he leaves, and then I’ll make sure to insist she drinks from me again tonight. My cock twitches at the desire to insist she do so now, but that seems unnecessarily cruel to rub in the face of the man currently relegated to the friend zone.
“He’s right,” Kasen declares, drawing both of our attention as he emerges fully dressed in jeans and a simple black t-shirt, jerking his thumb at her painting. “No wonder he couldn’t tell what it looked like; this is terrible.”
Scarlett flips him off without missing a beat. “I’d like to see you do any better.”
He raises an eyebrow, simply gesturing to what looks little better than a fuzzy stick figure being mummified. “Even a five year old could do better. If you’re going to issue a challenge, at least get the bar off of ground level first.”
She bursts out laughing rather than being offended, using her foot to push out the chair across from her for him. Kasen meets my gaze with a knowing sense of dread that he hides before Scarlett can notice, coming to take the seat at my left of the square table. It puts one of them at either side of me, and I know she arranged that intentionally.
She’s so supportive it actually hurts. Literally. The awkward situation is a physical pain that has me needing to keep a firm block on my connection to Scarlett so she doesn’t pick up on anything. I finally get the bond I desperately wanted with my mate, only to have to close it off.
“So, how was work?” she asks, trying to get the ball rolling.
