Byron looked at Meryn. "That's actually a very solid theory."
"Yup, it should also take the wind out of her sails in case she tries to revive that terrible rumor about Lady Adelaide using black magic to get pregnant." Meryn yawned. Adelaide and Byron looked at her in shock.
"Where did you hear that old story from?"
"I have my sources." Meryn boasted.
Byron rubbed his chin. "Very good move Meryn. You're right. No one can resurrect that old tale to hurt Adelaide anymore. Excellent maneuvering." Byron's approval made her sit up straighter.
"My little politician. How is your condition?" Aiden asked softly.
"Oh. My cramps? Better. I found an old bottle of Aleve at the bottom of my backpack. I'm doing great." Meryn fought the urge to jump into his lap. What in the hell was wrong with her? She felt jittery, like she couldn't sit still.
"Aiden." Byron pointed to Meryn. Aiden's face broke out in a smile. Wordlessly, he lifted her out of her seat and into his lap. She let out a long sigh of relief and buried her face in his chest.
"I didn't think it would affect her being human." Aiden murmured as he rubbed his cheek against her hair. Meryn felt like purring. When she realized what she was doing, she froze.
"What's going on?" She pulled back to look up at Aiden.
"That's the mating pull. It will get stronger and stronger the longer we're together." Aiden nuzzled her neck. Meryn turned to Adelaide and Byron.
"How in the hell do you function?" She knew they had been together for a long time. Byron just laughed.
"We're mated Meryn, that feeling like you just have to touch your mate never goes away, but it does get easier after you've been claimed." Adelaide explained.
"Damn period!" Meryn snuggled down in Aiden's arms. Byron blushed and coughed.
"On that note, I'll be in my study until dinner." He leaned down and kissed Adelaide before making his way to his office.
"Why don't you take Meryn upstairs for a nap?" Adelaide suggested.
"We're going to patrol around the house." Colton announced as he, Darian, Gavriel and Keelan stood.
"I'll check in with you later." Aiden also stood with Meryn nestled in his arms. They gave a smart salute and filed out the back door. Aiden smiled at his mother and walked upstairs.
"I could actually get used to being carried around like this."
"I could get used to having you in my arms all the time too." Aiden said and carried her into their room.
CHAPTER SEVEN
When Meryn woke from her nap completely cocooned in Aiden's arms she had been surprised that she hadn't felt trapped or annoyed. With her previous boyfriends she had often found herself praying at night that they would stop breathing loudly so she could get to sleep, yet sleeping next to Aiden felt natural. The nap had done her wonders, she felt like a new person.
They were now downstairs in the dining room for dinner. The Alpha Unit and Aiden's brothers had joined them again. Meryn believed it was Marius's cooking that had them visiting not her company.
When Aiden reached across the table for the basket of bread she noticed something black on his upper arm. Curious, she started to lift up the sleeve of his tee-shirt. Aiden seeing what she was after pulled the sleeve up to his shoulder. The tattoo was of a large shield, the inside quartered with different symbols in each quadrant. Strange letters made up the edge of the shield and Celtic knotwork tied everything together.
"It's gorgeous. What do the different symbols mean?" Meryn reached forward and traced the lines.
"The shield represents being a unit member. In the upper left hand corner, the crest with the griffin, that represents Lycaonia. The griffin has the body of a lion and the head and wings of an eagle. Since the lion is considered the King of Beasts and the eagle the King of Birds it was chosen to represent all shifters. In the upper right hand corner, that is the Greek letter for 'A' or Alpha. It depicts I am in the Alpha Unit. Below that is a longsword representing my choice to do battle and defend our people. In the lower left hand corner, the circle inside a square inside a triangle inside another circle, that's the symbol for transformation indicating I am a shifter. At the top of the shield is my family crest and the star in the middle represents that I am the Unit Commander. The tattoos are spelled so that if a warrior changes units the symbols can be updated." Aiden pointed to each symbol with reverence. Meryn looked over to Byron. Obligingly, he lifted his sleeve and he had an identical tattoo, since he had also been Unit Commander before Aiden. His tattoo had one more symbol than Aiden's though. Byron pointed to the laurel wreath hanging from the top of the shield.
"This means that I am an Elder, someday Aiden will have this added to his tattoo as well."
"What are the squiggles along the edge?" Meryn asked.
Darian laughed.
"Those aren't squiggles, that is the written language of the fae. They are spells to keep us safe, to help us heal and to ask the Gods to watch over us." Darian lifted his sleeve. His family crest was different, but the symbols for Lycaonia, the Alpha Unit and the longsword were the same. She pointed to the intricate sun done in Celtic knotwork.
"Is that the symbol for the fae?"
Darian nodded.
"Since we're doing show and tell ..." Keelan grinned and lifted his sleeve. Instead of a sun he had a crescent moon facing left, a full moon and another crescent moon facing right.