MATED TO THE ALPHA TWINS

CHAPTER NINE

KARLA'S POV

Ace was really here. Not a dream. Not an illusion. He was really here. I snuck glances at him from the corner of my eyes. I watched as he listened to the doctor on all the things I had to do and not. He was so focused on it that one would think he was listening to an impending war strategy.

"How long in between for her medications?"

"Two hours." The doctor replied. "They're strong enough to knock her out so she can choose not to take them."

"She will definitely take them." He said seriously, and I rolled my eyes. Even the doctor thought I didn't have to take it.

They talked for about two more minutes, with Ace asking questions that I didn't even think to ask, and I was the patient. It was safe to say that he knew me even better than I knew myself. Finally, the doctor declared that I could go home.

My heart sank at the word. I had no home to go to. I had run from home, and in doing so, I left everything and everyone I knew behind. He squeezed my hand as if to tell me that he knew what I was thinking. I squeezed back.

"You're coming home with me." He said, and I beamed up at him. He had no idea how good that felt to hear. Or he did.

Thirty minutes later, I was dressed in his joggers and a long tee. I told him that it was not necessary, but he wasn't hearing anything about it.

He also assured me that there was a car waiting in front of the hospital.

"A car? Am I being deported?" I joked, but he took it very seriously.

"I'm never letting you out of my sight. Never."

"Ace, I didn't mean it like that."

"I know." He sighed and wrapped me in one more layer of scarf. It was as if he wanted me to turn into a human burrito. "I just... I don't want you to stress yourself at all."

"What happened to being the strongest person you know? Both body and mind?" I teased, and that finally made the corner of his lips twitch.

"You had me worried, that's all."

"We need to talk, you know that, right?"

"We will," he agreed. "Once you're all better."

"I'm good, and you know it. Even the doctor said I was back in perfect health."

"The doctor also doesn't know why you were unconscious for two whole days over a simple blood loss."

I glanced down, avoiding eye contact. There was a simple explanation for that, and I wasn't going to ruin this moment by bringing it up. He knew my tell, and he clocked that there was something I was not telling him, so he just nodded.

"We will talk more at home." I have a lot of questions for him, but I would keep them for later. We got into the car, and it stopped less than five minutes later.

"This was what you insisted we ride in a car for?"

"Excuse me for wanting to follow the doctor's instructions."

"The same doctor you claimed was not all that competent?"

"I have forgotten how much of a smart ass you are, little one."

"I'm not so little anymore, am I?" His eyes raked over my figure with something that didn't used to be there before. Heat. He looked at me like he wanted to eat me. His gaze finally moved to my face, firmly focusing on my lips.

"No, you're not." He said roughly, and my pulse jumped. "Come." He offered me his hand. I took his hand, and he helped me out of the car. My body shook with the electricity that flowed through me at the touch of our hands.

I had felt this way before. With his brother. But this was more potent, rawer, and hotter. There was no way I would survive if he ever rejected me. How I know is that I wasn't freaking out about the fact that I have a mate and that it was his own twin brother. Now, he was my mate.

I took a deep breath and followed him into the modest home that sat two stories. It was modest compared to the pack house back at home, but it had a more homely feel to it. It suited him more, and it made sense.

"You're the Alpha, aren't you?"

"Yes, baby." He said casually and kept on walking as if he didn't just turn my world upside down by the simple term of affection.

The inside was even more cozier. Out of the blue, I had a vision of two little boy and girl that looked like Ace running around the beautiful wooden floor inside.

"Where is everyone else? You don't live alone, do you?"

"I had Rayden, my beta, send them all away for the day so you can get a feel of the place without people in it. It's very important to me that you like it."

"Oh." My brain could not process anything more than that.

"We will go on the full tour later." He said. "Can you walk the stairs, or should I carry you?" He didn't even let me make my decision before he scooped me up in his arms.

"I can walk, Ace."

"The doctor said no strenuous activity."

"Walking is strenuous now?" He ignored me and began to talk.

"The ground floor is for everyone in the pack. The kitchen is there and the living room. I have a small study there for meetings that aren't so personal and things like that. The second floor is where guards on duty sleep and freshen up. We hold impromptu meetings there too. The last one is strictly off-limits to everyone except the maids that clean there. Even then, they don't go into my personal bedroom. I'd know if someone broke those rules."

"So you clean by yourself?"

"Yes, I'm not so big that I can't clean my room and take care of myself."

"That's sweet." I giggled, and he smacked my butt.

"You're so cheeky." Finally, he put me down and opened the door to a large, airy bedroom. The floor was covered in a thick black rug. It was so soft that I wanted to lay there.

"Wait until you see how soft the bed is." He chuckled at my reaction to his rug.

"I'm going to be staying in here with you?"

"Yes," he said it as if it was the most normal thing in the world. "Karla, wait, this isn't a one-sided thing, is it?"

"What?'

"You're my mate."

I took a deep breath and nodded. "Yes, I know."

"So, what's the problem?"

"I... I just... Don't you think it is moving too fast?"

"Too fast?" He chuckled. "Honestly, Karla, a part of me has known for a long time that we're going to end up in this exact situation."

"Me running from my home and somehow meeting you in a totally strange place?"

"I didn't know the details, but I've always known that we would end up together. You've been my best friend all my life, so I know..."

"I understand what you're saying."

"You do?"

"Yes." He set me up on his bed and covered me up. "There's something I have to tell you, though."

"I'm all ears."

"There was a reason I took so long to wake up. It was because I was heartbroken."

"Who broke your heart?" He asked in an all-too-calm tone.

"Aiden."