A Matter of Convenience

Thirty-Seven

~Delilah~

I slam the door behind me and throw myself on the couch in my room. My mate has, once again, pushed me to my limits. I just don’t get him sometimes, and I can’t explain him to others.

I’m sure the question is why I stay with him. That’s simple: I love him, and he’s my fated mate. No matter how irritating he is, I can’t imagine my life without him. He gave me my son, which is the greatest gift I could have gotten. My life has been good, I really can’t complain. My mate, on the other hand, can be the biggest asshole in the entire world.

He’s always been rough around the edges, and the funny thing is that he was worse before I came along, if you can imagine. I always just take him for who he is and try to be that balm to soothe everyone he insults. It’s a tough job, but the Moon Goddess recruited me to be the one to do it.

I turn to watch Trevor pace back and forth. I take in his features, hating how attracted I am to him. He’s 6’2 and extremely muscular. He definitely doesn’t look his age; he looks as young as he did when we met. He barely has a sprinkle of gray hair, and it’s mostly in his short beard. He has dark brown eyes to match his brown complexion.

Trevor stops and looks at me. “Well?!” I sit up on the couch but don’t answer or make eye contact. “Aren’t you going to say anything?! Do you not have an issue with them, just prancing in here and… and…”

“And what, Trevor? And acting like a marked couple? Acting like mates?” Trevor looks shell-shocked and keeps his eyes on me as I stand up and approach him. “What is your issue?”

“My issue?! How can you ask me that when it’s evident? She is NOT Luna material!”

“Uh, duh! She’s not a Luna, she’s an Alpha.” Trevor sighs.

“That’s my point. She’s a fu.cking Alpha! She’s going to be battling him for dominance at every turn. He needs someone who knows their place and will act accordingly. He doesn’t need to fight at home on top of those around him. She’s much too masculine to be what he needs. Why can no one see that but me?” The disgust I feel right now is beyond anything I’ve felt before. I’ve known my husband to be many things, but being sexist isn’t one of them. I have no words right now, and I’m embarrassed that I claim him as my own.

I let my hand out, and it makes contact with his face. He holds the cheek I hit and stumbles back. I see his eyes swirling with black, but I’m not worried. One thing he won’t ever do is put his hand on me. “I don’t know what’s been going on with you lately, but I know I’m fu.cking sick of it. You are being more of an asshole than usual, and that’s saying a lot. I will not lose out on my child or his future children. Get over your issues and pull your head out of your ass.” I walk over to the closet and pull out a blanket and pillow. I throw them at him, watching them make contact and hit the floor. “Get the f***k out! I don’t want you in here until you get your sh.it together.” I turn and walk into the bathroom, slamming the door behind me.

~Isis~

I follow Ericson to his room, rolling everything over in my mind. I think I did what I set out to do, and I think I did it well. I wanted to make a point, and I’m pretty sure that point was taken. His father doesn’t like me, and that won’t change any time soon. I get that, and I accept that.

The door clicks behind me, and I look around the room. I’ve been here before; I wasn’t paying attention to my surroundings. Then I got called away, so it’s all a blur.

It’s definitely a masculine room, I will say. The walls are painted navy blue, which is dark yet beautiful. The bedding and couch pillows are shades of tan and white. This is pretty boring if you ask me, but I guess it makes sense, considering how dark the walls are. This place definitely needs a feminine touch.

The king-sized bed is off to the left side, in the middle of the wall. The back wall is made of ceiling-to-floor windows. There’s a balcony beyond the windows, so I’m guessing that one of the windows is a door. The wall on the right side houses two doors. They are probably the doors to the closet and the bathroom. From the middle of the room to the area by the door, there’s a living room type of setup: rug, couch, coffee table, and a television mounted on the wall. Overall, it’s a nice, spacious room.

I slowly walk over to the couch and sit on the edge of the bed. I look up to find Ericson leaning against the room door, staring at me. I look around myself, trying to push off the feeling of discomfort. His eyes are piercing through the armor I’m trying to keep up, and it’s unnerving. “Uh, is everything okay?” Ericson pushes off the door and strolls toward me.

“Everything is good. I’m just in awe of you. That was some quick thinking, and it definitely hit the mark.” I smile and nod. When the idea hit me, I knew it would be the best thing to do. When we got here, I was gifted with his parents in the same place.

“Yeah, well, you realize that your dad isn’t going to back off that easily, right?” Ericson shrugs and plops on the bed, lying on his back.

“You’re probably right, but I will deal with that. You just keep doing what you’re doing.” I nod and gaze around the room, not really looking at anything in particular. If I’m being honest with myself, and I don’t want to be, I’m nervous being here with him.

Why are you nervous? Are you, maybe, feeling something here?

Shut it, Rona. You know how I feel about him.

I know how you felt about him, but I also know that things change. Before I can respond, I’m pushed to the back of my mind and can’t make it out. Sh.it! Rona has taken control.