To Share You (manxman)

Chapter 34

When I come to, it takes me a moment to comprehend that I feel as fine as I do. My head is fairly clear - however that is even possible - and I remember everything, including my less than graceful fall into a mob of rogues and Raph's scream that I never want to hear again. Once I fell, I couldn't see him anymore, but he was screaming. I had no idea if he was fighting off the rogues to get to me or sitting there petrified, but in that moment it didn't matter to me. He was screaming and his pain was so obvious, that alone made me want to die.

I notice pressure around my hand and when I open my eyes I see my tense mate sitting next to me. He's in one of those cheap plastic chairs. His hand has mine in a death grip and he is so tense, I can even see it in his jaw. For some reason he doesn't even acknowledge me, as if he is so lost in his own thoughts, which are probably mainly resolving around guilt, that he hasn't even realised I've woken up. I decide to slightly squeeze his hand back and I don't even have to wait at all before his head snaps over towards me, his eyes wide and jaw immediately slacked. He doesn't say anything, but the longer we stare at each other the more he goes back to tensing his body and sitting back in his creaking chair.

'I'm sorry.' he eventually says. He's not looking at me, but his fingers are now woven between mine, making a small smile appear on my face.

I carefully scoop over before tapping his hand with my finger in a patient rhythm until he looks back into my eyes.

'Join me?' I simply say and after a few minutes of internal debate on his part, he actually stands up and lies down beside me. His hand automatically lets go of my hand to drape around my shoulders, and is immediately replaced by his other hand. I hum contently and snuggle into him as much as I can. There's no wires on me or anything, but moving does still hurt a bit. My head ends up in the crook of his neck as I slide down a bit to fit the curve of his body.

I'm not sure how long we lie there like that, but he eventually starts explaining what exactly happened when he left to distract the rogues from Sam. They didn't make much contact at first, but did follow him at a distance. Only after quite a while was he blocked off by a few rogues. They didn't give him an opening to escape and his mother made herself known then. She was talking about having killed my dad because he'd intercepted a hunt of hers a few weeks prior. She said it was funny that we had ended up as mates and how she had better access to me now.

I don't say anything or react at all as I listen to him.

'She only said that she'll come get me soon and left and then all of them were gone.' He pauses again and continues to massage my head through my hair before talking again.

'I ... felt so betrayed, on your part. I couldn't stomach the idea of someone so ... close to me having hurt you so much. I couldn't come up with any sound reason why you would want me still.'

His hand is still preoccupied with my hair as he finally finishes. He's said sorry so many times already, I know he feels he has no place here at all. In fact, I'm pretty sure that the only reason he's still here is because I told him I need him.

I slowly pull myself onto my elbows and place them on either side of his head, halfway leaning over him.

'First of all, it was my choice to throw myself into those rogues, so stop feeling sorry okay? And secondly you are not close to that woman. She is a stranger. And therefore all your other arguments are void. Now kiss me to make it up to me and I'll be happy with that.'

I feel a smirk growing on my face and I can't help the happiness that floods me when he actually just pulls my head down and kisses me without another word. It's a short and sweet kiss, no tongue or too much pressure, just two mates being close to each other.