“Don’t get cocky,” I said while still trying to sit up. He didn’t allow me to.
“Oh, no. You’ve got to wait for cocky. That comes later.”
I groaned audibly and allowed my head to fall back on his chest comfortably. His fingers ran through my hair the best they could with all the tangles and curls. He placed a kiss on the top of my head as my eyes slid closed.
“I want to take care of you. Always.”
Repetition
Theo let me lay in bed until dinner when he forced me to come downstairs. He wouldn’t allow me to walk yet and insisted on toting me around the house in his arms. When we arrived downstairs, I noticed Cam sitting at the dining table, shoveling food in his mouth with a large plate of tomato pasta.
“You couldn’t wait two minutes until I got Margo? That’s all I asked; you couldn’t even do that?” Theo groaned. Cam paused and looked at us, caught, wide-eyed.
“Sorry,” he mumbled with his mouth full of food. Theo pulled a chair out with his foot and settled me into it. I propped my leg on another chair and let out a heavy sigh. Even the smallest bits of effort wore my tired body out.
Theo walked back from the kitchen with two large plates of pasta. He set one down and sat in the chair next to me. I picked up my fork slowly and bowed my head to get closer to my fork, so I wouldn’t need to lift my arm. Cam chuckled at me, and bits of food flew out of his mouth. Theo shot a look at him, wiping his forehead from pasta sauce Cam spat at him.
Theo grabbed my fork, gathered some food on it, and held it to my mouth. I glared at him, reaching up to grab it from him.
“Margo,” he scolded, swatting my hand away. “Open your mouth.”
“I’m not a child,” I protested, reaching up once again. Theo dropped the fork noisily and walked out of the room. I followed him with my eyes, wondering what I had said wrong.
“Don’t worry about him,” Cam said more cheerfully than necessary. “It’s just the mating bond and your injury, and you two…doing what you did.”
I blushed a deep scarlet but didn’t try to deny it. “What do you mean?”
“Our instincts tend to push us towards our mates to be fully bonded, especially if our mates are injured. His natural instinct is to keep you locked in his room, mate you, turn you, and never let another soul see you again.” My eyes grew alarmingly wide. “Of course, he wouldn’t do that. He’s probably just fighting with himself.
“I was the same way with Gemma. She didn’t really feel the mating bond as quickly as I did, believe it or not, but I was smitten the first moment I saw her. I couldn’t fully bond with her, and I couldn’t have her close to me always, so it took everything in my power to let her walk out of the door. I did everything I could to be close to her, I even saved her tissues. Not my finest moment,” he cringed. “He’s probably still upset that you got hurt, and his instincts keep telling him to mate with you, so he can protect you better.”
“I don’t want him to be mad at me,” I said sadly, looking back where Theo’s figure disappeared.
“He could never be mad at you, Margo,” Cam soothed me, reaching over, resting his hand on top of mine.
I half grinned, thanking him for comforting me. Theo walked past us and left through the front door. I called his name, but he didn’t acknowledge that he heard me. As he passed the window, I saw him transform into his wolf form and run into the woods. I closed my eyes and allowed my face to settle in my hands.
“Don’t worry about him,” Cam told me, standing up and taking our plates away. “He’s just blowing off steam. Do you want to watch a movie or something?”
I nodded, looking down at my leg once again. “Would you mind?” I was embarrassed to ask Cam for help, but he happily obliged and swept me up in his arms. Once I was settled on the couch, he began searching through Theo’s massive movie collection.
“Your mate has way too many movies,” Cam scolded, shaking his head in disbelief. “He doesn’t even watch some of these. He should give some to me.”
“We’ll get through them all one day.” I smiled optimistically. Cam smirked and rolled his eyes. “What?”
“Look at you, talking about the future and stuff,” he said laughing. “Planning to stick around for a while?”
I groaned and pursed my lips, not paying any attention to his teasing. It reminded me of Caddy, and my heart began to instantly miss him. I settled into the pillows, wanting to relax and enjoy a movie, but my mind started buzzing with questions. How was Caddy doing? Did he fit into his role as Alpha? Was anybody else hurt? Did he miss me? I knew he was only a call away, but a call seemed so distant and removed.
“Margo.” Cam snapped. My eyes shot to his, confused and startled. “I’ve been talking to you for like five minutes, were you even listening?”
I frowned apologetically and shook my head.
“Theo just mind-linked me. He wants to know if you’re angry at him or if he can come back to the house?”
“I’m not mad at him,” I said sadly. Cam gave me a look but mind-linked Theo, nonetheless. Within two minutes, Theo was running back through the door, out of breath, and sweaty. I turned to peek at him over the top of the couch. He smiled at me hesitantly, wiping his face from the sweat that had pooled on his forehead.
“Come over and join us, Teddy!” Cam shouted from the floor where
