My Abused Mate

Chapter 12

April's P.O.V

Waking up next to my mate was the most amazing feeling ever. He had his arm wrapped protectively around my waist and his head buried in the crook of my neck. Small little puffs of air kept touching my skin from the breaths he exhaled. He was so warm also, warm enough that we didn't need a blanket considering that it is bunched up at our thighs.

I run my hand through his hair, knowing that he likes it. I've also noticed that his eyebrows weren't furrowed in pain or fear this morning, in fact he actually looked relaxed. I feel him sigh against my skin, before pulling me closer and holding me tighter.

"Mhmmm, good morning April," he tells me in his raspy morning voice.

"Good morning Aiden, how did you sleep?" He pulls away from me and switches positions so that he is lying down on his back, and I am cuddled up on the side of his chest.

"Considering that I was actually able to stay asleep the whole night, I would say amazingly."

I look up at him to find him already looking at me. I smile at him, glad that he has finally overcome whatever it was that was holding him back.

"Do you want to go downstairs for breakfast?" I ask him.

He looks at me with fake hurt and shock on his face, "you mean, you didn't bring me breakfast in bed?"

I laugh at his comment, before shaking my head. He groans before he gets up out of bed to get ready. I get up also, kiss his cheek, and walk back to my room to get ready also.

Once I am finished, I walk outside of my room to see Aiden waiting for me. I smile and start to walk downstairs. When I feel something on my hand, I look down to see that Aiden had grabbed it in his hold. I look up at him and smile, seeing a little twitch at the corners of his mouth. Since I have never seen him smile the whole time he has been here, and that was pretty close to one, I will consider it a smile.

We walk to the kitchen and see my mother making breakfast while my dad and Alpha Michael are at the counter talking about the rogues. We take our seats at the table and my mother starts to place the food in front of us.

"So Aiden, how are you feeling today?" My dad asks.

"I'm fine thank you," Aiden replies.

We sit down at the counter and wait for our breakfast to come, all the while, Aiden hasn't stopped looking at Alpha Michael. When the food is placed in front of us by my mother, Aiden looks at my parents and then to me with a silent plea, waiting for us to give him the green light to eat his meal. I slowly nod my head and then he digs into his meal like he normally does when given the permission he was looking for.

After breakfast, Aiden and I go into the library so that I can teach him some more about our culture. He has proven to be a fast learner, asking important questions that usually Alphas would ask; 'how long have rogues been a problem?' 'Have there been recent sightings here?' ' What does one do when faced with a rejection? Are they sent to the cells like I was or are they killed off?' Watching him, and seeing how focused and interested he is by our culture, brings back my suspicions of Alpha Michael possibly being his father.

"Hey Aiden?"

"Mhm?" He removes his focus from the ancient textbook and puts it on me.

"Where is your mother?" I ask him. A sad and pained look appears on his face in less than a minute of me asking the question. He looks down at the book and swallows hard, almost as if he is trying to get rid of a lump that has formed. "I'm sorry, it's just you never talk about her, or much of yourself actually, and I.... I just wanted to try and make you happy."