Love Bite - 10. Chapter 10

Damon’s POV

Tyler was quiet the entire flight across the Atlantic and I knew he had to be tired because, hell, we were all tired. However, there was something off about his mood and I didn’t know what it was, but he had been pre-occupied since we left the house.

We reached the hotel we would stay at while we looked for a house close to his brother’s ‘pack’ for lack of a better word. I knew how much Jon meant to Tyler. With him and his mate having a child I knew Tyler would want to spend as much time with them as possible; plus we would be close enough he could go home to visit the rest of his family.

I looked across the room to where he sat looking out the window and decided I needed to find out what was on his mind.

“Cariad, what’s wrong?” I asked.

“Nothing Liebling. I’m just tired.” I could tell that wasn’t the only thing, but I also knew I wouldn’t get anything else out of him. “Come on let’s go to bed, it’s been a long day.”

He came over and got his pajamas out of his bag and went to the bathroom to change. While he was in there I changed into my own. I wanted to complete our bonding but there was something that told me it wouldn’t be a good idea at the moment. Tyler seemed like he was lost in another world as he came out of the bathroom and put his clothes on the floor next to his suitcase.

He climbed in bed and faced away from me and I couldn’t help but feel like he was giving me the cold shoulder, as if I had done something wrong, but I couldn’t think of anything I had done. Oh well, it was time for bed and maybe he would talk to me the next day to tell me what’s on his mind.

***

I woke to the sound of someone crying. I looked around but couldn’t see Tyler anywhere. I saw the bathroom door slightly ajar. I climbed out of bed to go to him. I knocked on the door and heard him sniffle before I pushed the door open further to find him on the floor with his head on his knees.

“Cariad, what’s happened?”

“I’m…hmm…fine,” he sniffled.

I closed the toilet seat lid and sat down in front of him. I reached out and rubbed my hand through his hair. “Beloved, what has you so upset?”

He lifted his head and I could see the tear tracks and the red eyes showed he had been crying for some time. I handed him a hand towel to wipe his face and waited patiently for him to tell me what was bothering him to the point he was reduced to tears.

“You’ll think I’m stupid,” he said with a sniffle.

“You could never say anything that would make me think you’re stupid.” I couldn’t understand where this came from.

He sniffled a little more. “How long are you going to stay with me?”

“What do you mean? You are my beloved and I will never leave you.” I was floored he would think something like that.

“I saw how you were with Ursula. I know you don’t want a man for a mate. So how long are you going to pretend to be happy with me?”

“Ursula is like my little sister who just killed her beloved –“

He interrupted me with, “If not her, then some other woman will take you from me.”

He bent his head so it rested back on his knees. I reached out and lifted his head so I could look him in the eyes.

“Cariad, there is no one for me but you. You are it for me. I will never look at a woman or another man in a sexual manner. I looked for you for years and I will not give you up no matter what.”

He looked at me as if he was searching my soul for an answer to an age old question. He seemed to find it because he nodded and stood up, only to pick me up and sit with me in his lap with his head resting on my shoulder.

I wrapped my arms around him when he said, “I’m sorry, I guess this shook me worse than I thought. I know it’s a stupid worry, but I was scared something would pull you away from me because of what happened when my mom found her mate.”

“Isn’t your dad her mate?”

“No. Mom had given up hope of ever finding her mate and dad had already found and lost his mate. They fell in love and got married. One day when she was in town with baby Jon she came across a gay couple that was visiting. One of the men was her mate and he refused to leave his husband for her. She was crushed. I know we are mates and that there is a bond there, but if her mate can refuse the bond and refuse to be mated to a woman, then I’m worried that you can ignore our bond, find a woman to bond, fall in love with, and raise a family. Besides I’m a freak. I don’t even know what I am anymore. I’m a bear but now I am also a vampire so what do I class myself as?”

“Cariad, I promise you I will never turn you away for a woman. You are not a freak, you are both a bear and a vampire. While I have never heard of a cross mating between a vampire and another super natural creature, that doesn’t mean it couldn’t happen. You in fact prove that it can happen with a positive outcome.” I tightened my arms around him and kissed him on the side of his head.

“If you are happy with me as your mate, then why haven’t you tried to mate with me?”

“I haven’t tried to mate with you because I wanted the issue with Spencer dealt with and that has only now been done. I didn’t push the issue last night because we were both tired and I could tell there was something bothering you. Please promise me if you feel like this again that you’ll talk to me about it.”

“I promise…” he was interrupted when his stomach growled. He ducked his head when I chuckled. I lifted his chin and saw the blush on his cheeks.

“I think it’s time to get something to eat, but first let’s get cleaned up.” I kissed his head and swatted his ass. When he stood, I stood and turned the water in the shower on. “I’ll take a shower when you’re done. I’m going to pull up some real estate listings and see what there is available in the area, then you can look them over while I’m in the shower. Once I’m done we can share which ones we like and want to take a further look at. Sound ok with you?”

“Yeah, sounds like a plan Liebling.” He kissed my shoulder before I turned and left the bathroom. I knew it seemed like I was being bossy, but it felt like he needed the nudge in the right direction, so that’s what I gave him.

Tyler’s POV

I knew he tried to get my mind off thinking he will leave me for a woman, but I just couldn’t shake the feeling. My situation wasn’t the same as my mother, but it worried me that there was even a little similarity between us. I love her and understood that having her mate refuse her would hurt, but I didn’t want to go through the same pain myself. There was a part of me that believed he wouldn’t leave me or choose a woman over me, but there was a small part of me waiting for the other shoe to drop so to speak. Things were just going too well and rushed for me.

I stood in the shower with the water pounding on my shoulders as I came to the decision that I would live in the moment and build a great life with Damon. Most people my age wouldn’t even dream of settling down at the age of eighteen, but I knew there was no one else in the world for me.

I turned the water off and ran my hands through my hair to get most of the water out. It was while I dried off that I realized I had no clean clothes in the bathroom with me. I wrapped the towel around my waist. I grabbed my dirty clothes and left the bathroom. I found Damon sitting at the small table by the window looking at his computer.

“Find any prospects?” I asked as I dumped my clothes next to my suitcase. I searched through my bag and settled on a pair of jeans with a t-shirt.

“Yeah, I found a few that sound promising. I’m gonna get my shower, then we can compare lists when I get out.”

“Okay.” I waited until he was in the bathroom to get dressed. While we’re mates he hadn’t seen me naked yet and I was nervous for him to do so.

***

I heard the water shut off and looked at the list I had made of potential properties. From what I’d seen Damon seemed to love huge houses, but I didn’t want anything that would feel too formal. I found five I felt would work for the two of us. They were large enough that we would have room if we decided to adopt later on.

Damon stepped out of the bathroom with only a towel wrapped around his waist and it took all my willpower to look away from him. I looked back down to my notes and made a few notations until I heard him clear his voice from behind me.

“Did you find anything?”

I turned and saw he had put jeans on. I wasn’t sure which was worse; him in a towel or him in jeans that clung to his hips.

I cleared my throat and said, “Yeah I found a few. I don’t think we need a huge house because for now it’ll just be the two of us, but I want it big enough that family can stay with us when they come to visit.”

“I completely agree. How many bedrooms were you thinking?”

“I was thinking three or four.”

Damon rubbed a finger along his chin and looked deep in thought before he said, “That should do. We can always move to a bigger house if we need to or even simply add on to it.” He came over and pulled the other chair so it was right next to me and held out his hand for my notes. “Can I see the ones you found?”

I handed the notebook to him and waited as patiently as I could. I didn’t know how he would respond to them.

With a nod he said, “Okay, let me call the realtor and get them started. I’m glad they’re all listed with the same company and we won’t have to go elsewhere.” He put his hand on my shoulder and gave it a squeeze.

I let out a breath of relief that he liked them. I felt him looking at me, so I turned my head and saw his dazzling eyes as they shined with love. He leaned over and kissed my forehead. He stood and slid his blue button down shirt on. I couldn’t understand why he always seemed to be dressed professionally. I made a decision. It would be my mission to get him to loosen up and enjoy life.

I stood and pushed my chair back. I walked over to where he stood and placed my hands on his hips. I tugged him to me and said, “I’m not a child that needs a kiss on the head to show I did a good job. If you’re gonna kiss me, then give me a proper kiss.”

I leaned my head down with a hand behind his head I brought it to me until our lips met. It was a tentative kiss at first before passion began to take over. I nipped at his lower lip before I darted my tongue into his mouth only to pull it back. His tongue followed mine and explored my mouth. He pulled my hips closer until you couldn’t tell where he ended and I began.

“Mmmm,” I groaned as he deepened the kiss.

I felt him harden against my leg. I put my hands on either side of his head before I pulled away slightly panting and nipping at his lips. I knew if I didn't slow things down we would complete our mating right then and there. I wanted it to be special now that we weren't under direct threat from Spencer.

"Cariad, what's wrong?" he asked.

"Nothing Liebling.”

“Okay, I hope you know you can tell me anything.”

“I know I can. Now let’s look at these properties so we can put them in order of what we want to look at first.”

“Good idea, let’s do that.”

We both sat down at the table and Damon slid his chair over next to mine. This caused our legs to touch. He turned the laptop so we could both see the screen, slid his arm around the back of my shoulders and leaned in towards me.

I showed him my list and he pulled up the listings so he could see them. “These are all good. I think any one of them would suit us just fine. Let me call the realtor.” He pulled out his phone and dialed the number of the real estate company. “Yes, hi. My name is Damon Arthen and I’m calling to see about setting up a viewing of some properties you have listed on your website…Yeah we can be there in two hours…Sure that’s fine. They all appear to be listed under the same agent…Alright, we’ll see you then.” He ended the call and set his phone on the table.

“I’m guessing we have an appointment in two hours?” I asked.

“Yeah, what do you want to do until then?”

“Let’s go get something to eat. I saw a diner as we drove through town. If it’s the same one, Jon says the food there is really good.”

“Sounds like a plan to me. Let me button my shirt and we can leave.”

***

“Love, make sure you lock your door. I don’t expect any problems but it would be best to not tempt anyone,” Damon said as we climbed out of his car.

“Yes Babe.” I rolled my eyes but hit the lock button before I shut the door. After all if someone wanted in the car bad enough they would find a way into it.

I looked around and was entranced by the small town feel without it being an extremely small town. We were on Main Street and about to go into the real estate office to look at houses. The one I really wanted was a four bedroom two story house on five acres of land, and there was a horse barn with four stalls. It’s close enough to the pack lands we could ride horses over to visit if we wanted to, but it’s far enough away from the city to be considered rural.

I walked around the front of the car and took the hand Damon held out for me. He opened the door of the office building for me to step through before he followed behind me. I ground my teeth when we walked in and were greeted by a woman who apparently thought it was good for business to wear a shirt that exposed the top half of her breasts. Some people had no respect for themselves.

“Welcome to Gary Mann Real Estate. How can we help you today?” She asked when the belled jingled above the door.

“I called a couple of hours ago about looking at some properties today,” Damon stated smoothly. I wanted to hit him because he had turned on the charm, but then I realized it was something about him that will never change and it didn’t mean he would leave me for her or anyone else.

“Ah, Mr. Arthen of course. I’m Lisa, which properties did you want to look at?”

“Lisa, we’re wanting to first look at the four bedroom house out by the lake.”

“Alright let me pull the information and we can go look at it. Were there any others you wanted to look at today?” she asked as she stood.

“We want to look at that one first, and then will make a decision after we see it,” Damon replied.

“Okay.” She walked to a small cabinet and pulled a set of keys from it before she grabbed some papers off the printer. She came back over to us and asked, “Do you want to go in one vehicle or do you want to follow me?”

Damon looked at me and said, “We’ll follow you.”

I let out the breath I didn’t realize I had been holding at the small smile he sent my way which told me he remembered our conversation and my insecurities. It was then I realized my fears were unfounded.

“Babe we can all ride together. It doesn’t make sense to take two vehicles.”

She looked between us as if she was trying to work something out in her head. “It doesn’t matter to me. Some people don’t want to ride with the agents because they don’t know us.”

“If you’re sure Tyler. I don’t want to make you uncomfortable.”

“I’m sure.”

We followed her out of the office and found we had unknowingly parked next to her. She unlocked and Damon opened the passenger side door and held it open for me. It made me positive in my decision and I couldn’t help but smile at him.

I could see the disappointment on her face when I sat in the front seat but she quickly smiled and started the car.

I looked out the window as she drove and I was amazed at the beauty of the area. It made me happy we had decided to settle down in Moses Lake and be closer to Jon and Tim. It helped that we’d be close enough we could always visit the rest of my family as well.

Damon’s POV

I knew riding with the real estate woman made Tyler uncomfortable, but I was proud of him that he was trying to get past his insecurities. I hoped we liked the house so we didn’t have to spend long with her.

We pulled up to a two story house with a lake and dock behind it. I loved it because there would be plenty of room for Tyler to shift and spend time in his bear form. It would also be nice to raise a family there. The house had the look of a cabin and a rustic sort of feel.

She pulled to a stop. I got out and quickly opened Tyler’s door. I took his hand as we walked to the front door. I looked around and saw the small field of wildflowers next to the house, and we could see the barn from the porch. I knew we would purchase some horses to be housed there.

We walked into the foyer of the house and I felt Tyler’s hand tighten around mine. I knew he had liked the ad he had seen and from the look of wonder on his face I could tell he loved it even more in person. I looked at him until I had his attention and he nodded his head. We walked through the rest of the house and it confirmed our prior decision.

“We won’t need to see the other properties, we’ll take this one,” I told the agent.

“Are you sure? It does have a hefty asking price.”

“Lisa, I’m aware of the asking price and I already have everything arranged. The offer simply needs to be made to the seller and the paperwork signed.” Tyler and I turned and walked out of the house.

The outside may’ve had a rustic look but the inside was warm and comforting; it was also very modern in appliances.

We waited for Lisa next to the car. She walked out with her phone to her ear. “They seem very sure they can afford the asking price…It’s a couple…Alright I will process the paperwork.” She got to the car and said, “I’ve spoken to the owner and he said to fill out the paperwork and if the financing goes through the house is yours.”

I looked at Tyler and saw happiness shining through his eyes. I knew we had made the right decision. We got in the car and headed back to town to complete the transaction. Hopefully the house would be ours within a few days.