Delivered to My Elves (Mail-Order Matings #18)

Chapter Twenty

Aerin

Misty came to the greenhouse and was genuinely interested in what we did. She asked about the names of plants and how they were taken care of.

Last night had been incredible. My skin still tingled from being next to her all night, but it wasn’t enough.

We needed to mate with her. The supernatural part of us demanded it. If she was our mate, she hadn’t said anything. And we were males who needed to hear the words. Sure, she’d given us signs. We’d kissed her. I’d wanted to drown in those kisses. She was so damned responsive to any of our touches. Holding hands. Hugs. The brush of our hands along the small of her back.

And last night. The sounds she made in her sleep. Clinging to one or both of us, making those little whimper sounds.

It was all I could do not to wake her up, tell her she was my fated mate, and beg for her to let me bury myself inside her.

We had lunch together and went about our regular house chores. Anything to keep us busy. Anything to keep me busy.

“I’m gonna go for a walk. It’s beautiful outside,” she said, pulling on an oversized cardigan.

“Do you mind company?” Callon asked. He’d volunteered to clean up after dinner, probably for the same reason I volunteered to vacuum the floors. We had to keep our hands occupied.

Our female hadn’t told us she was ready, and we agreed that everything would be on her terms and in her time, mate or not.

Her smile made my heart melt. “Of course not. I would love the company.”

I didn’t ask for permission. Pulling on a coat, I grabbed her beanie and darted in front of her to put it on her head. “Gotta keep you warm,” I whispered.

“Thank you,” she murmured. Her lips glistened with the gloss she wore.

We started on a familiar path, winding through some of the forest behind our home and beyond the greenhouse. I reached for her hand. Her lithe fingers laced with mine as though we’d been together, holding hands and taking walks all of our lives.

Elves could see well in the dark and shifters could as well, so it was easy to meander through the most shadowy areas between trees without any trouble. It was in one of those dips of darkness that she stopped and cleared her throat.

“If this is none of my business, that’s fine, but I have a question for the both of you. It’s been on my mind since I arrived.”

Callon wrapped his arm around her waist. “You can ask us anything, Misty. Anything.”

“Okay. Why is it that you two glow? I noticed none of the other elves do, at least, not that I’ve met. Just wondering why.”

I stumbled back a few steps. Callon’s eyes went wide and his entire face was devoid of color. “Misty, how long have you noticed that we glow?”

“Since I got off the train. I had to shield my eyes from it, and it wasn’t until I got up close to the both of you that I could see your forms. It was so damned bright. It’s bright still, but it’s a warmer glow now, not as blaring.”

We said nothing for longer than necessary. Long enough to make Misty cover her face and groan. “I shouldn’t have asked. I knew I should focus on our deal. I’m here to be the mother to your children, not your mate or your lover. Goddess, when am I going to learn to keep my mouth shut?”

“Misty,” I said, walking over to her. I wound my arms around her waist and pulled her tight against me. “Listen to me. Listen to us. Elves only glow in the presence of their mates.”

She let out a sob and leaned her head against my chest. “Please don’t toy with me. Tell me the truth.”

Callon encircled her upper waist in his arms and we hugged her between us. “There is no lie, mate. We knew the moment you stepped off the train. We had a feeling before that but as soon as we saw you, it was over for us. If you don’t feel the same, it’s okay. I’m glad you asked, that you finally know our truth.”

Our female continued to sob but looked up after a while. “My bear doesn’t sense any lie.”

“That’s because there is none. You are our fated mate. I know we didn’t plan this but there it is. We understand if you want to continue the deal we had, but we are already in love with you.”

“That’s good,” she said, laughing. “That’s really good because I’ve known you two were my mates since I got here. Maybe before that even.”

We both gasped. “Your bear told you. Your sweet bear told you.”

“Yes, she did. I’ve been trying to keep it all inside because of our deal and you two wanted a breeder, but the way you held me last night…I’m in love with the both of you as well. I don’t care about the deal. I want to be yours. I want to be your mate and have all your babies, not because we have some verbal contract but because we love each other.”

I reached under her chin and took her lips with mine. Callon began kissing the back of her neck. Her hips rocked against mine. “You feel that, mate? You feel how much we need you?”

“Callon? Aerin? Take me home. Take your female home, please.”