Elizabeth listened in as Meryn started describing the different operating systems and computer languages that her new ‘minions’ would have to learn. She jumped from topic to topic excitedly. After an hour Elizabeth took pity on Jaxon and Noah who had started to look a little shell shocked and put a halt to Meryn’s ‘teaching’.
She stood and clapped her hands together, all three looked up at her.
‘How about this? Since the two of you will be moving in let’s make arrangements to get your things here. I’ll put together a rough curriculum with reading materials and Meryn will be on hand for any questions.’ She almost laughed out loud at the enthusiastic nodding from the men.
‘Sounds good to me, I’m not very good at organizing stuff,’ Meryn admitted. Elizabeth watched as both men looked away, not saying a word.
Bless their hearts.
Noah looked at Jaxon. ‘We don’t have much. I can run to the apartment and get our stuff and come back. We pay monthly so we don’t have to worry about breaking a lease.’
Jaxon frowned and looked down at his chair before sighing. ‘I wish I could help.’
Noah shrugged. ‘It’s not a lot.’
‘Maybe Sydney and Justice can help. They live in the city.’ Meryn interjected.
‘Sydney Fairfax and Justice O’Malley?’ Noah squeaked, turning pink.
Jaxon laughed. ‘They’re Noah’s idols; he admires them for living their life on their own terms.’
‘Plus they’re both hot.’ Noah mumbled.
Elizabeth looked from Jaxon to Noah and back again. ‘Are the two of you lovers?’
Noah shook his head frantically. ‘No, Jaxon is my best friend.’
Jaxon ruffled Noah’s hair. ‘I’m straight, but even if I weren’t, I’m too ugly. Noah likes pretty boys,’ he teased.
Noah turned to Jaxon, ‘You’re not ugly and there’s nothing wrong with liking pretty boys,’ he countered.
Elizabeth agreed, ‘You’re absolutely right Noah, they’re my favorite too.’ She winked at him and he smiled, then frowned. ‘But you’re mated.’
‘Mated honey, not dead. Besides you’ve met my mate, a girl would have to be crazy to do more than window shop with a mate like that,’ Elizabeth sighed happily.
‘He is very handsome,’ Noah admitted.
Meryn laughed staring down at her phone, her tiny fingers moving a mile a minute. She looked up and gave a thumbs up to Noah. ‘Justice said he can help you move out. I’ll give you his number so you can text him the address.’ Meryn wrote down the number on a piece of paper and handed it to Noah.
Noah took the piece of paper and held it as if it were the Holy Grail.
‘I have Justice O’Malley’s phone number in my hand,’ he whispered.
‘And the sooner you use it, the sooner you can get our stuff and the sooner we can move in,’ Jaxon prompted, nudging Noah.
Noah stood and nodded. ‘Right. Be back later.’ Beaming, he practically ran for the door.
When he left, Jaxon shook his head. ‘It’ll be a miracle if our stuff gets here in one piece he’s so excited.’
‘He seems very young,’ Elizabeth observed.
Jaxon nodded. ‘We’re both one hundred years old. But he’s always been like that. Even though we’re the same age he always seemed like a little brother to me. Since paranormals view our one hundredth year as the year we become legal adults, Noah and I were promptly kicked out of our homes on our birthdays. My parents no longer wanted to be associated with a son who was broken and Noah’s parents don’t believe in same sex matings.’
‘That’s very young to be on your own.’ Elizabeth frowned. Granted she was only one hundred and fifty, but she had grown a lot in the past fifty years.
‘Pffft. I’m only thirty-four so compared to him I must be an infant,’ Meryn joked.
‘Humans age differently than paranormals. You may be thirty-four but if you were a normal unmated human that would represent one-third of your life span. As a shifter one thousand years to fifteen hundred years represents one-third of our life span. Since you’re mated to Aiden, you will live as long as he does. Since I’m mated to Gavriel, I am now immortal,’ Elizabeth explained.
‘So in paranormal to human conversions I’m older than Aiden?’ Meryn asked.
Elizabeth thought about it for a moment and nodded. ‘If you were going by straight numbers, but in your case I think it may be skewed.’
Meryn stuck her tongue out at her.
Elizabeth laughed. ‘And on that note, I’m going to help Ryuu get their room ready. Meryn try, not to make Jaxon’s head explode with explanations while I’m gone.’ Elizabeth turned to the door.
‘He’ll be fine.’ Meryn reached over and patted Jaxon’s leg. He shot her a look that clearly said, ‘Please hurry’.
Elizabeth wiggled her fingers at them. ‘Have fun.’
She walked out and found that Ryuu had already moved a second bed into the guest suite that would belong to Noah and Jaxon and had a stack of sheets sat on each bed.
‘Ryuu I can make the beds if you have something else you need to be doing,’ she offered.
He moved the second bed into place and stood back. He faced her and nodded. ‘That would be most appreciated. I need to start dinner and need the extra time since we’re feeding more than twice our usual numbers. I have made arrangements with Aiden that the trainees including Meryn’s minions will eat two hours prior to the warriors, pushing back your normal mealtime by one hour to begin at seven pm. That will keep some separation between the two groups and make it easier to serve. As big as the dining room is, I don’t think it was meant for seventeen people.’
Elizabeth counted in her head and looked at him questioningly. ‘Seventeen?’
‘I have factored for each warrior finding a mate. It’s best if we establish separate dining times from the start,’ he explained.
‘Good idea. You go on ahead, I’ll finish up here.’ She walked over and picked up the sheets.
Ryuu bowed. ‘Thank you. I’ll let Meryn and young Mr. Darrow know of our new eating arrangements and let him know I have ordered bars for the bathroom for his ease of use.’
‘That was considerate of you, I’m sure he’ll appreciate it.’
‘If you’ll excuse me,’ he said and left.
Elizabeth looked around the room, in such a short amount of time he had done everything he could to arrange the furniture so that Jaxon’s wheelchair could maneuver. The man was a credit to his profession.
Humming she began to make the beds. Chores like this always relaxed her. They were uncomplicated tasks that allowed her mind to wander. She was just finishing the second bed when she heard footsteps behind her. She didn’t think anything of it until she heard an unfamiliar male voice.
‘Look, my room comes with entertainment.’ The voice belonged to a tall, well-muscled shifter. He had blond hair and cold blue eyes. He had classic good looks that were tainted by a sneering upper lip and the lecherous look in his eyes.
‘I think you’re mistaken,’ Elizabeth said walking towards the door. She wanted to get to Gavriel and Aiden and find out who this man was. When she went to walk past him he blocked the doorway.
‘Don’t be like that, let’s get to know each other better,’ he said reaching out to touch her hair. She pulled back and glared at him.
‘Move. Now.’ She leveled her eyes at him and he smirked. He was enjoying this.
‘I have connections sweetheart, I can make your life easier. Come ‘work’ for me and you won’t have to make anyone else’s bed but mine,’ he offered.
He thinks I’m a servant.
‘I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again. You’re mistaken, I’m mated and I live here. Now move!’ She went to shoulder her way past and he grabbed her and pushed her back.
‘I suggest you leave her alone.’ Ryuu said walking up behind her adversary his eyes completely devoid of emotion. Elizabeth had never been happier to see anyone in her life.
‘Ryuu, thank goodness you’re here.’ She breathed a sigh of relief.
The man turned and looked Ryuu up and down, taking in the apron he laughed. ‘Your mate is a servant. Go ahead and provoke me China man, my family will bury you,’ he threatened.
Ryuu looked past him and met her eyes. He raised a single eyebrow in question. She spread her hands and shrugged.
‘I have no idea who he is, but he’s a complete idiot. And Ryuu is Japanese you twit not Chinese.’ She crossed her arms over her chest.
Snarling he turned and reached for her again. Ryuu simply extended his hand and wrapped it around the back of the man’s neck, a spark of blue flared. The man’s eyes rolled back and he went down. Ryuu let him fall hard, Elizabeth winced as the man’s face made contact with the hardwood.
Ryuu extended a hand to help her step over the odious man that now blocked the doorway. Smiling, she took his hand and he easily lifted her across.
‘If you could return to where Meryn and young Mr. Darrow are, I’ll fetch Aiden and your mate,’ Ryuu offered.
‘Thank you, Ryuu.’ Elizabeth followed him out. He went out the front door to head towards the training grounds.
‘There you are. We were looking for you,’ Meryn said walking up. Jaxon wheeled along beside her.
‘Meryn, let’s go back to the office. It’s not safe here.’ Elizabeth wrapped an arm around her shoulders to steer her back from where they had just come.
Meryn resisted. ‘What in the hell do you mean it’s not safe?’ she asked.
‘There you are, you bitch!’ An angry voice roared.
When Elizabeth looked up the blond man was staggering towards them. Moving quicker than she thought one in a wheelchair could move, Jaxon pushed himself between the oncoming giant and where she stood with Meryn.
Just as the blond man was about to pass him, Jaxon reached out a hand and grabbed his forearm. With his other hand he reached down and set the brake to his chair.
‘Out of my way, cripple!’ The violently angry man protested as he tried to get his arm free. But try as he might he could not escape Jaxon’s strong grasp.
‘Looks like this cripple is stronger than the trainee that placed first in trials. I knew you were an asshole Sterling. What I didn’t know was that you were this weak,’ Jaxon taunted.
Elizabeth stared. This was a trainee?
‘What in the hell is going on here?’ A deep male voice bellowed.
‘Aiden! Sic em, boy!’ Meryn pointed to the one Jaxon called Sterling.
Aiden strode forward and grabbed the front of Sterling’s shirt hauling him a good foot off the ground. ‘Why did you attack my mate?’ Aiden growled low in his throat.
Sterling looked around confused. He pointed to Elizabeth. ‘She’s your mate?’ he asked.
From behind Aiden a low hiss was heard. Gavriel walked over and pulled Sterling out of Aiden’s grasp. ‘No whelp, she’s mine.’ Gavriel let him dangle as he shook him repeatedly.
Sterling gulped and looked from Aiden to Gavriel wide eyed. ‘Sir, I think there has been a huge mistake. I thought she was the house servant and flirted a bit. She took exception and I was about to let her leave when the other servant electrocuted me. When I came out here to find out why I had been attacked, the one in the chair assaulted me.’
Aiden turned to them. ‘Is that true?’
Meryn looked up at Aiden, ‘I’m sorry all I heard was ‘blah, blah, blah, I’m an asshole liar, blah, blah, blah’.’
Aiden ignored his mate and looked to Elizabeth.
She took a deep breath and recounted what happened.
‘He came into the room set up for Jaxon and Noah just as I was finishing making up the beds. He thought that a servant of this house provided certain benefits. I told him in no uncertain terms that he was mistaken and that I was mated. He still blocked my way from leaving the room when I tried to come and get you. That was when Ryuu showed up. This one,’ she pointed to the man suspended by her mate. ‘I’m assuming his name is Sterling, made racially disparaging remarks against Ryuu thinking him just another servant. When he started to get violent Ryuu knocked him unconscious, helped me to leave the room and set out to find you. Sterling woke and came after me. That’s when Jaxon stopped him.’ Elizabeth wrapped up her story and took a deep breath. Gavriel hissed in Sterling’s face his fangs extended.
Aiden turned to her mate. ‘Gavriel, I’m putting you in charge of our newest trainee. He’s to run until he passes out, then he’s to complete all the drills that the others have done. Make sure you are very through in introducing him to our unit lifestyle.’
Gavriel’s smile was terrifying. ‘Come on, whelp, time to break you in.’ Gavriel simply hauled the struggling man towards the door.
‘But I need to change,’ Sterling protested pointing to his dress shoes and slacks.
‘Too bad,’ Gavriel growled. Ryuu opened the front door for them.
‘Thank you, Ryuu. Can I trouble you to make a special menu for this one? Water and gruel for the next week,’ Gavriel requested as Sterling let loose a string of curses.
Ryuu bowed, smiling. ‘It would be no trouble at all.’
Gavriel nodded. ‘He’s to take all his meals alone in his room.’
‘I’ll see to it personally,’ Ryuu promised.
Gavriel half carried and half dragged the trainee out the door. Ryuu shut it behind him.
Meryn whistled. ‘I’ve never seen Gavriel look so pissed.’ She looked up at her mate. ‘I don’t want him here. Can we throw him back and get another one?’
Aiden rubbed both hands over his face. ‘You can’t establish a new method of doing things and then change them the second you don’t like the results. He scored the highest and he chose to come here. If we start playing favorites now it will hurt our case for your sixth man project.’
‘Aiden, he’s unstable,’ Elizabeth shuddered.
Aiden looked at her pleadingly. ‘I’ll have a one to one with him and make it crystal clear what is and isn’t accepted. I’m sure that he was just hyped up about moving in. He’ll settle down after a few days. Until then, Gavriel will watch him like a hawk and dog his steps.’ Aiden tuned to Ryuu. ‘If he gets out of line again shock the hell out of him, at this point a little brain damage may do him some good.’ Sighing, he kissed Meryn on the forehead. ‘Excuse me ladies, I need to call my brother and ask him why he didn’t warn me about that insufferable little prick.’ Aiden walked past them before stopping next to Jaxon. He laid a hand on his shoulder. ‘Good work, son. When my mate isn’t driving you crazy come find me. I’ll show you some exercises that will really work your upper body.’ Aiden continued on to his office.
Jaxon turned to them, a goofy grin on his face. Beth had a feeling that the compliment from the Unit Commander meant everything to Jaxon, especially a compliment on a physical feat done well.
Elizabeth was about to thank Jaxon when the doorbell rang. Everyone looked at Ryuu who was standing closest. He opened the door and a man in construction gear was standing there. Behind him were two more men in overalls, one holding a clipboard.
‘Sir.’ The man in front brought a hand to his hard hat greeting Ryuu. ‘My team was called in by the Unit Commander to build a new closet.’
Ryuu looked past him to the other men.
‘We have a delivery for an Elizabeth Monroe. Overnight freight from Noctem Falls.’ The taller of the two pointed to a very large truck in their driveway. Everyone turned to Elizabeth.
Ryuu cleared his throat. ‘Lady Elizabeth, how many boxes were you expecting?’
Elizabeth winced and walked forward she looked out the door. ‘Is it just the one truck?’
Behind her she heard Meryn whisper. ‘Seriously?’
The delivery driver nodded. ‘Yes Ma’am, we got everything in the one truck, but it’s packed floor to ceiling, front to back.’
Elizabeth started to chew on her lower lip and turned to Ryuu imploringly. She didn’t know what to start first.
He sighed and removed his apron handing it to her. ‘Okay, gentleman, if you would follow me. Your names?’ he asked opening the door wide.
‘Jensen, I’m the foreman.’
‘Ed and this is Mattie.’ The delivery driver said as they all walked in.
Ryuu closed the door and smiled at them. ‘Here’s our dilemma, gentleman. The closet you’re to build is for the contents of that truck. We have recently moved seven trainees into our guest suites and each room is at max capacity. So we’re in quite a bind as to where to put her things.’
Ed looked at Jensen. ‘How long do you think it will take you to build this closet?’
Jensen rubbed his chin. ‘I have two fae craftsmen I can call in. We can be done after sunset, but we’ll have to start now.’
Ed nodded. ‘Let’s do this. You get that closet done today and me and Mattie will leave the truck here overnight. If someone can get us a lift into the city we can visit with some family and then come back tomorrow to haul everything in,’ he suggested.
Ryuu looked thoughtful. ‘Who can we get to drive you to town?’
The front door opened and Noah walked in. ‘Did you guys know there’s a whole bunch of people and trucks out front?’ He had a duffel bag slung over each shoulder and was walking on unsteady feet.
Ed reached out and grabbed both duffel bags in one hand.
Ryuu smiled. ‘Perfect timing Noah. Could you do us a huge favor and drive these two gentlemen into Lycaonia tonight and pick them up in the morning?’
Noah nodded. ‘Sure, but I have to get our stuff out of the car before anyone can fit in it.’
Ed and Mattie nodded at each other. ‘Point the way kid. We’ll unload your car so you can drive us into the city.’
Noah smiled wide. ‘Really? That’s great; some of that stuff is heavy.’ He beamed at the older men. Ed ruffled Noah’s hair.
‘Yeah, come show us what needs to go where.’ Noah walked off with Ed and Mattie chatting about The Jitterbug and how it was the best place in the world.
Jaxon groaned. ‘I knew he smelled like coffee. I’ll never get to sleep, he’ll talk my ear off all night.’
Ryuu turned to Jensen. ‘I’ll show you the space you’ll be converting, if you’ll come with me.’ They both headed up the stairs.
‘I don’t know what in the hell is going on anymore. But since Aiden is in my office, looks like we’ll have to go to the media room. I wanted to get measurements anyway to see how many feet of cable we’ll need to set up servers. Come on Hulk on Wheels!’ Meryn plopped down on Jaxon’s lap to his astonishment.
‘Mush!’ She pointed to the media room.
Elizabeth looked to the ceiling. ‘Meryn! Do not treat your minion like a sled dog!’ She stopped abruptly. Had that just come out of her mouth?
Meryn erupted in giggles and Jaxon laughed. He reached down with both hands and tipped the chair backwards, making Meryn squeal as she grabbed him around the neck, pretty much cutting off his air. But he only laughed again and when the chair came back down on the floor he spun the wheels and they raced down the hall.
Elizabeth couldn’t believe the way her life had made a drastic turn.
Don’t treat your minion like a sled dog?
Standing alone in the foyer, she began to laugh. How had she survived up until now without these crazy people in her life?
The front door opened and she was surprised to see her mate walk in.
‘Where is your charge?’ she asked.
He walked over and pulled her close nuzzling her neck. The gesture sent a jolt of electricity between her legs. ‘I explained what happened to Colton and Darian; they graciously offered to look after the little bastard while I check in on our renovations. I’m assuming that one of the trucks outside belongs to the construction team.’ He ran the tip of his nose back and forth over her neck.
She relaxed in his arms. This was exactly where she wanted to be. The encounter with Sterling had left her more shaken than she cared to admit, even to herself. She loved how Gavriel always seemed to be able to give her exactly what she didn’t even know she needed.
‘Yes, Ryuu is showing them the study now. Jensen the foreman will have to call in two fae craftsmen to get the closet finished by tonight so my things can be delivered tomorrow. Noah is taking the delivery drivers into the city for the night and picking them up in the morning. They are leaving the truck here overnight and complete the delivery tomorrow.’ She explained and with Ryuu’s apron in her hand she wrapped her arms around his waist.
‘When I heard that little punk had tried to hurt you, I seriously wanted to kill him. Where is Aiden? I don’t want that deviant living under the same roof as you,’ Gavriel growled looking around.
‘He’s in his office on the phone with his brother asking about said deviant. Meryn already asked Aiden to send him away, but because of how new the program is, we can’t afford for it to seem like we’re playing favorites,’ she explained.
Behind them Ryuu and Jensen were coming down the stairs. Gavriel stepped back and wrapped an arm around her shoulders. Ryuu walked up and Elizabeth handed him his apron.
‘I take it you’re the foreman?’ Gavriel asked.
‘Yes, sir. Nice place you all have here.’ Jensen said.
‘How long would it take your crew to build an addition to the Alpha estate? Big enough for five trainees?’ Gavriel stared at the foreman whose jaw dropped.
Ryuu began to chuckle and walked away tying his apron back on.
‘Sir? Are you serious?’ the foreman asked.
‘Deadly.’ Gavriel responded.
‘That kind of project takes time, materials, man hours…’ Jensen thought about it. He looked at Gavriel. ‘How urgent is the request?’
‘If we don’t move one of the trainees out of here by the end of the week I may lose my immortal soul for murdering the little shit in his sleep,’ Gavriel snarled.
‘So kinda urgent then. Okay, let me call in some favors. I’m not going to lie, sir, this might get pricy.’ Jensen flushed a bit.
‘Do whatever you have to. Call whomever you have to. The sooner you get it built the larger the bonus,’ Gavriel offered.
Jensen nodded. ‘Let’s get this closet built for your lady and I’ll start making some calls.’ He nodded and headed out the door already yelling for his men.
‘You’re the most incredible man I have ever met and I love you.’ Elizabeth hugged her mate tightly.
‘And you are the most important thing in my life, how could I not ensure your comfort and safety. It’s best for everyone if they have a space of their own. Maybe after time, the urge to rip out his throat will diminish.’ He shrugged. ‘If not I can always torture him during drills.’
‘My hero!’ she pretended to swoon.
He dipped her down, kissed her lips and then straightened them both.
‘I’m going to go make sure Colton and Darian are being harsh enough. Keep Meryn out of trouble.’
‘That seems to be my new duty in life.’ She rolled her eyes.
‘It could be worse, you could be responsible for training that little bastard.’ Gavriel’s eyes flickered back and forth from red to grey.
‘Have fun. Don’t kill any of your trainees at work today, honey,’ she said and stopped. She had done it again! She had said something outlandish, but in this insane house it made perfect sense.
Gavriel sniffed dramatically. ‘I make no promises,’ he said turning her words against her and then left.
Don’t kill any of your trainees at work today?
And she’d meant it?
Maybe she deserved more than a new closet out of this mating.
