I felt uneasy the entire morning.
While I was excited to see my mother, the thought of not seeing Tristan for however long made my heart ache. It was the uncertainty—I had no idea how long I would be gone and that was the worse part.
I didn't know how long I could go without his kisses or feeling his arms around me. His embraces had to be one of my favourite things in the world. He made me feel protected.
I knew that I would miss looking into his eyes, oh his eyes, they had to be the most beautiful eyes I had ever seen. They were attentive, deep and full of emotion. I had once heard that the eyes were the window to the soul and I never realised how much until I met Tristan.
They were dark at times, tainted by the horrors and pains of the war. From his eyes alone, you could see all the trauma he had experienced in his life. But other times, they were bright and hopeful. The fact that they looked like that whenever they were on me sent warmth through my body.
"You can't get him off your mind, can you?" Brielle smiled slowly as she poured maple syrup on her stack of pancakes.
Placing my cutlery down against the plate, I felt my cheeks heat up. We were seated in a homely cafe approximately thirty minutes away from the rest of the pack. Brielle had wanted to treat me to breakfast and she said the pancakes were amazing. I hadn't managed to eat much despite it being so delicious because I couldn't get Tristan off my mind. "He's all I ever think about—is it the same for you?"
Brielle's smile widened at the reminder of her mate. I barely registered the familiar look in her eyes. She was as enamoured with Christian as Tristan was with me. "All the time. It gets embarrassing after you mate." She leaned closer to me and lowered her voice so the humans wouldn't pick up on our conversation. "He loves to get into my mind and listen to what I'm thinking. It's resulted in a lot of sessions if you catch my drift."
I was happy that I had swallowed my mouthful because I would have choked. Brielle laughed and leaned back in her chair. "You'll understand when it happens."
That mere sentence sent my mind into a frenzy. Tristan was taking everything at my pace and I was thankful for that, but I could tell that his resolve was slipping. Last night had been a prime example of that. I knew that I wanted it to happen sometime, but I pulled back every time I felt things getting too heated.
He made me nervous.
"I can't control myself around him, Brielle. From the moment I saw him—" I blew out a breath and shook my head.
"Don't." Brielle simply replied. "Don't control yourself. He's your mate—let yourself be free with him."
Acknowledging her words, I nodded and made one last attempt at eating my pancakes. When I cleared my plate, Brielle ordered two mugs of hot chocolate and gave me another one of her signature smiles. They were genuine and sweet.
"I know I don't need to say this, but thank you for giving him a chance. He smiles a lot more now and that's all the pack wants—for Alpha to get the happiness he deserves." She reached over the table to clasp my fingers in hers. "You give him the happiness he deserves."
I couldn't stop the grin that fought its way onto my face. "He's a good man, I see that now."
She squeezed my fingers gently. "He is." Her eyes glazed over and I couldn't ignore the way my heart sped up at the thought that it was Tristan she was speaking to. "I guess he's been thinking of you too—he wants to see you, said he has a surprise."
Butterflies swarmed my stomach and I smiled curiously. "A surprise...? What is it?"
Brielle rolled her eyes playfully. "Well I don't know, it's a surprise!" she let go of my hand and brought her mug to lips. "Let's drink this and we'll go back."
Nodding, I blew the steaming liquid to cool it down before taking a sip of the rich chocolatey goodness. I had to stop myself from scalding my tongue in my haste to finish it all, too excited to see what my surprise was.
As promised, Brielle footed the bill and looped her arm through mine as we began walking back. I thoroughly enjoyed her company and although I had never had a best friend before, I knew she would soon become mine. The walk back seemed shorter, and when we stopped at the gates to Tristan's house, I pulled her into a tight hug.
"I don't want you to worry, but I'm going back to my old pack to see my mother. I don't know when I'll be back, but I'll call you." Her arms wrapped around me and she squeezed back before pulling back with a disappointed frown.
Taking her phone out of her pocket, she handed the sleek device to me. "Even if we can't call, I'll text you." She tucked it away once I put my number in. "I hope you come back soon."
Giving her one last hug, I mustered up a comforting smile. "I hope so too."
When I turned around, I came face to face with the sentinels and felt my heart almost stop. They still looked as menacing as ever. Standing there frozen for a long moment, I gathered up the courage to say something. "Do you guys ever sleep?"
They were silent and something told me they never spoke.
"What are your names?"
I was ignored once again. With a shudder, I thanked them for opening the gate before I made my way through the front yard to the front door. When I had left in the morning, Tristan had placed a key in my hand and kissed me softly, stating that this was my home too.
It had warmed my heart.
Opening the front door, I stepped into the warm house and tried to sense if he was somewhere upstairs. Walking up the stairs, I made my way into the empty bedroom, immediately noticing the small suitcase he had pulled out for me in the morning.
I had left it empty because I couldn't bring myself to pack some clothes—it would've made all of this real and I didn't want to think of how I would feel being away from him.
Sighing, I stopped procrastinating and dragged the suitcase to his walk-in wardrobe. Because I had come with practically nothing, I knew I didn't have to pack that much. I was sure everything in my room would have been left untouched. But, to ease the ache in my heart, I folded many of his shirts before placing them in my suitcase.
I had to bring something of his to comfort me and I knew his scent would do the job. Deciding to change into one of his shirts, I made myself comfortable, knowing that I would miss having his scent so close to me when I flew back to London. Stopping myself from taking his entire wardrobe, I zipped up the suitcase after I packed everything I needed and it was then that I sensed him.
He walked through the door, searching for me before his gaze settled on mine. I instantly felt better and a smile pulled at my lips. Standing up properly, I noticed he had his hand behind his back and I grinned widely. "What's in your hand, Tristan?"
"Turn around, αγάπη μου." He responded gently with a small smile. Deciding the anticipation was too much, I quickly turned around without question and held my breath as he swept my hair across to fall over my right shoulder.
I felt the electric pull surge through me as he lowered his head to kiss my neck softly. "I saw this when I was in town and it reminded me of you." He pulled back and moments later, I felt a cold sensation on my neck. It was when he clasped it that I realised he had bought me a necklace.
Reaching up, I gripped the pendant with my fingers and gasped in surprise when I realised what it was. It was a real daffodil within the glass and the light reflected off the golden petals as I brushed my thumb over the smooth glass. Daffodils were my favourite flower.
Turning back around, I stepped up onto my tiptoes and kissed him slowly. "I love it so much—thank you." I murmured against his mouth, lifting my hand to thread my fingers through his hair, tilting my head up to deepen the kiss. His hands settled on my waist and he pulled me closer until there was no space left in between us.
I could feel his heart beating in his chest and with my free hand, I pressed my palm against the soft material of his shirt. His lips were soft as always and I smiled softly. "I want to take this shirt with me too."
He kissed me once more before glancing down at his shirt, chuckling as he stepped back to tug it over his head.
Lifting me to wrap my legs around his waist, he kneeled onto the bed, placing me on my back as he hovered above me.
"I don't even want to think about you leaving." He closed his eyes and rested his forehead on mine. "I crave your presence too much."
Raising my hand to cup his cheek, I tilted my head and pressed my lips to his for a sweet kiss. "I'll call you every day, I promise." His blue eyes were darkened by sadness and I gently caressed his face.
"I won't get to hold you or kiss you." He whispered the words against my mouth. He leaned back and his gaze dropped down to my neck to the place that was all too enticing for him.
I watched him and tugged him down. He breathed in my scent and as if he was trying something, his elongated canines drag across my racing pulse. I threaded my fingers through his hair and held him to my neck.
He stilled and he exhaled deeply into my neck. "Kara, don't ask me unless you're sure."
He could feel my heart racing against his chest and I couldn't control my breathing from the anticipation. I was nervous but I wanted him to take that step.
"Please, Tristan." I knew what I was asking of him, but at that moment, it was all I wanted.
His fingertips gripped my hips to the point that I knew he would leave a bruise. But, I couldn't focus on the slight pain that it elicited because when he broke the barrier of skin with his canines, sinking lower until his lips pressed against my neck, I could only feel pure happiness.
Tensing underneath him, I held him against me tighter as he marked me, keeping me in place. I could barely form coherent thought and my lips parted. The only thing I could think about was him and now the first step had been taken, I would finally be able to mind-link him, and feel whatever he was feeling.
Tristan prolonged the bonding experience for as long as he could before gently pulling away from my neck.
He licked at the two bites, sealing the wound as I gathered my bearings. "Tristan..." I sighed into his ear, feeling the closest I had ever felt to him since meeting him.
Something foreign surged through me and I knew that I would no longer be able to hold myself back if I was able to feel his emotions on top of mine. He pulled back with dark eyes and nipped at my lips as his canines returned to normal length. A tender look quickly covered his face as his eyes dropped to admire his mark on my neck and he gripped my chin in his hand.
It was like the supercharged moment between us quickly turned affectionate.
His eyes stared deep into my soul as he rested his forehead against mine. 'Come back to me.' He quietly pleaded in my mind, taking me off guard with how vulnerable he sounded.
Hearing his voice in my head felt better than I thought it would and I closed my eyes as I kissed him softly. "I'm yours, Tristan. I'll always come back." Hugging him tightly, I felt him rest all his weight on me. It was at that moment that I felt so much emotion towards him that I teared up at the thought of leaving him.
He had marked me and that meant I was his. Forever.