"Get out! You can come back in after I turn your sorry excuse for an office into a proper management center. Scoot!" Elizabeth made a shooing motion.
Gavriel walked over and pulled her close. Before she knew what he was doing, he gave her a kiss that scorched her down to her toes. Pulling back, he growled low. "You're sexy when you're being feisty."
"You haven't seen anything yet," she challenged.
"Good. I'm feeling better today; I'm going out to help Aiden direct the men. If you need me, I'll be just outside," he whispered before kissing her one more time.
"What about me? I need some love before we go outside for drills," she heard Aiden grumble trying to kiss Meryn who was turning her head back and forth giggling. Finally, Meryn let him capture her lips.
After both men had gotten their kisses, they moved towards the door.
"Oh, Aiden," Meryn called.
He turned to her. "Yes, baby?"
"You better read up on how to use a Mac," she warned.
Groaning, he turned back and both men left to start drill practice.
The rest of the afternoon flew by. By the time she was done she had racked up quite a shopping list, but damn, the man didn't even have paper clips! Both she and Meryn were exhausted when Ryuu interrupted them letting them know it was time for dinner.
"You know, when the new desk gets here and everything gets set up, I may take over his office for myself. This is going to be sweet." Meryn shoved her laptop in her little backpack and turned to face her.
Elizabeth thought about it for a second. "Let's order a second desk for you. Let's face it, you'll be in here more than Aiden, there's no reason why the two of us can't share this space while we're getting these cavemen organized."
"Yes! I'll tell Ryuu to order a new monitor and docking station too."
Elizabeth cracked her back. It felt good to be working. She had been afraid that she wouldn't be able to find any projects to work on while in Lycaonia; little did she realize that Fate had a way of giving you exactly what you needed.
"We better hurry. The men won't eat without us and if we make them wait they get snarly." Meryn walked out into the hallway. Together they walked to the dining room. When they entered five men stood from where they had been sitting at the table. Aiden pulled out the chair next to him for Meryn and her mate did the same for her.
Smiling she sat down and he scooted her chair in for her. One of the things she always missed when she lived amongst humans was the courtly manners preserved by her people. When Gavriel sat down she boldly reached over and took his hand. Without changing expression, he turned to look at her. Under the table, he rested their joined hands on his thigh and gently massaged her knuckles.
She had always wondered how matings worked. Whenever she asked her father he always said, 'You'll know when you find your mate. There's no stronger force on this planet than that of two mates coming together'. He had been right. It wasn't instant love, or trust or intimacy. Just a deep-seated sense of belonging. She had been in a few long-term relationships in her life, but none of those had ever developed the level of comfortability that she already had with Gavriel. If she felt this way in the first twenty-four hours, she couldn't imagine how her parents must feel having been mated over one hundred and fifty years.
"You look so serious, what were you thinking?" Gavriel's voice broke her train of thought.
"I was actually thinking about how incredible the mating process is. We were strangers this morning, yet I can't imagine tomorrow without you. Then I thought, if I feel this way in just the first day, I wonder how my parents feel having been mated for over a hundred and fifty years now," Elizabeth explained.
The men around the table smiled at her.
Aiden laughed. "My parents have been mated for over a thousand years. From what they tell me the bond gets more intense."
Elizabeth swallowed hard. "I may not make it," she muttered.
Gavriel leaned in and nuzzled her neck. "We'll be just fine."
Meryn nodded and looked over at Aiden. "I know what you mean. With all the sex it's almost like I don't get anything else done."
One man dropped his fork. The other turned his head, his shoulders shaking and the one she recognized as Colton laughed outright. Aiden just stared at his mate blushing.
"Meryn!" he exclaimed.
She looked around confusion on her face. "What? I said 'almost'. I do get a lot accomplished. I'm not sure about you though."
From their intertwined fingers she felt a tremor. She looked over to see her mate's mouth twitching furiously, but being the conservative vampire he was, he tried to hide his emotion. Elizabeth giggled at Aiden's expression. When Gavriel turned to look at her with a sardonic expression on his face, she couldn't hold back her mirth any longer. She covered her face with her other hand and laughed heartily. The men around the table joined in.
When they settled down Meryn looked around the table. "I don't know what was so funny."
Elizabeth held her stomach. "Don't Meryn, please, it hurts to laugh so much."
Ryuu smiling, set two large bowels of pasta on the table. "They were amused at Aiden's reaction to your words Denka, nothing more. Laughter is good for the soul," he explained.
"Oh. Okay." Meryn held up her bowel and Ryuu served out a generous portion. He then served Elizabeth before moving on to the men.