“I’ll tell Richie the same.”
“’Kay,” she said, snuggling more deeply into bed. “I want to sleep some more.”
“It’s only 3:30, you’ve still got a few hours.”
“Then why am I awake?! We are not going to do this every morning, are we?” she asked.
Remi laughed as he headed out of the bedroom. “No, the restaurant is closed on Sundays.”
She sat up to yell after him. “You know what I mean!”
“Yes, I do. And I’ll be sure to wake you only for the morning sex,” he said.
“The morning… oh, that’s a thought,” she said, her mind suddenly wandering to all the things they could share before they had to face the day. “But, what about today?” she called after him, as she threw back the covers and got out of bed. “Ow, ow,” she whimpered, leaning against the bed.
Remi appeared in the doorway grinning at her. “That’s what about today. I didn’t think you’d be up to it,” he said, walking over to her and gently picking her up in his arms before kissing her, passionately, deeply, then laying her back in bed. “Get some more rest. Call me if you need something. I’ll see you later.”
She smiled at him with a goofy grin on her face as she allowed him to tuck her into bed. “Okay.”
He pecked her lips and left her to get some rest. She listened as he went out of the front door, locked it behind himself, then the sound of his footsteps as he walked off in the direction of the restaurant.
Her phone buzzed again and she picked it up to look at the screen. It was her mother.
“Since when do you sleep at Remi’s?” Maia asked.
“Since we’re mated now. Oh, yeah. We’re mated now. I’ll be home later to change before work. Love you.”
Cristie grinned as she grabbed Remi’s pillow and hugged it to her as she settled in for a few more hours of sleep. “This is nice,” she whispered to herself. “So very nice.”
~~~
“Riley, honey! Wake up!” Maia said, crawling into bed and sitting on her knees beside him in the dark.
“What is it?” he asked, sitting halfway up and looking at Maia beside him holding her phone up in the darkness. “What’s wrong?”
“Cristie’s mated!” Maia exclaimed.
“Wait, what?!” Riley exclaimed just as loudly as Maia had. “Since when?”
“Last night, apparently.”
Riley looked over toward the windows. “It’s still night.”
“Okay, so earlier tonight.”
“She messaged and said she’s mated? To Remi, I presume.”
“Not exactly. She didn’t come home, and didn’t answer when I messaged her, so I messaged her nonstop starting about thirty minutes ago when I got up to pee and realized she’s stillnot home and her car isn’t either. She finally answered and said that she fell asleep at Remi’s. I asked her since when did she sleep at Remi’s and she said since they’re mated, and oh, yeah, they’re mated now!”
“I’ll be damned,” Riley said, a slow grin started to spread across his face.
“I know! It’s great news! I’m so happy for them,” Maia said.
“I’m happy for me. She won’t be mad at me anymore,” Riley said.
“You’re happy for her, too,” Maia said.
“I am, of course. But I’m happy for me, too.”
