CARNIVORE [MxM+]

Chapter 37

Tycho Black.

I didn't dream last night. And that's okay.

I woke up content and warm. Riley was still pressed into my side and Alexei was still hiding in my neck. Their body heat felt like a damn heater and I was all for it. I looked past Alexei, expecting to see Xavier still, but he was gone.

Click

The door opened slowly, and in came the devil himself. He was still in his pajamas and if I'm honest, he looked like a mess. Not just a 'just got out of bed' mess, either. He gave me a short nod when he saw I was awake and motioned for me to follow. He turned, ready to leave, but when he realized I hadn't gotten up he looked back questioningly. I motioned toward the two sleeping men damn near lying on top of me.

"They're heavy sleepers, Tycho. Trust me, just move them." I winced as he talked at full volume, but sure enough, they didn't budge. I tested his theory, slowly pulling Riley away from my side. It worked. I lifted Alexei from my neck and replaced myself with a pillow, then slowly crawled out of the large bed.

My feet met the ground and I turned around just in time to see them gravitate toward each other like magnets in their sleep. They held each other, not noticing I left.

"Come on. We need to talk." Xavier's words made me nervous, but I knew he was right. There was certainly plenty to talk about it.

I followed him out into the kitchen, where two plates of eggs, bacon, and toast sat. And they looked good. I guess Xavier could see the surprise on my face.

"Riley is the cook because he loves it, not because he's the only one who knows how to." He sounded slightly offended. I couldn't help the smirk that formed on my face. He commanded me to sit and I obliged quickly.

He began to eat immediately, so I did too. It was awkward and I prayed I wouldn't make some slurping noise or something while eating to make it worse.

Out of curiosity, I began watching Xavier as he ate. He was incredibly polite, with a straightened back and elbows off the table. He used his napkin often, even though I couldn't actually see food on his face. I looked down at myself sort of embarrassed. My elbow was propped up on the table with the fork in my hand, and I didn't even have a napkin. I hoped he wasn't calling me gross in his head.

We finished the food (which was amazing) and Xavier quickly took both of our plates. He rinsed them quietly before turning back to me. He made eye contact with me, and for some reason, I felt like I needed to hold it. After a while, I watched as his eyebrows and stoic expression slowly unfurled. He looked away and down at his feet as if he were suddenly ashamed.

He started hesitantly. "Tycho... I wanted to say that I'm sorry. For everything. For treating you differently the minute you stepped in this house." I tried to speak but he cut me off. "No, let me finish. I owe you that much."

He came back over and sat down in front of me, pushing his chair closer. "What you did to Alexei all those months ago... it was, difficult for me to forgive you for it. It's just- I couldn't trust you. Alexei has had people his entire life play the same trick on him, where they'd hurt him in some way and then worm their way into his life a week later. It's not my story to talk about, but I'm sure you can put two and two together. Alexei was mistreated at a young age, and that causes me to be extremely protective of him."

He finally got the courage to look up at me. His eyes were watery. "I'm sorry for being such an asshole. You don't deserve everything I've put you through, okay? I hope you know that. You're- worth more than that. I'm sorry for ever mistreating you, and I can promise that will change from now on."