A/N: Quote from Chapter 30 of You are the Answer. The conversation is between Riley and his friend and colleague Winnie who discuss whether it's too soon for Rhys and Riley's relationship to head into a serious direction.
*****
"You know it's going to rain, right?" Kennedy asked, placing his chin on the back of the chair.
"Yeah, I'm going to take an umbrella," I answered as I shoved myself into a light green t-shirt.
"Just making sure," he stretched, then leaned his front against the back of the chair again, "I don't want the rain to ruin your date with Riley."
If anything would ruin our date, it would be Riley changing his answer.
I didn't voice my fears aloud and I shook my head in a futile attempt to stop mulling over this matter. It had been all I could think about since I drove Riley to his apartment after our mate talk.
What if he had changed his mind?
I'd tried to convince myself that that could be a good thing, that earlier he had been too drunk on emotions to give me a sober answer and that if he was going to say no to the mating ceremony when we met today, then I just had to work to make that no a sure and irrefutable yes in the future.
I headed for my bedroom door and Kennedy got up from the chair and followed me downstairs.
"Don't forget your jacket."
I rolled my eyes at him.
"You are worst than mom sometimes, you know that?" I nudged him with my elbow before I took my black leather jacket off the clothes hanger and draped it over my shoulders.
"It's not like you wouldn't have told me the same if I was the one going out," my baby brother pointed out.
"And are you planning to go out?"
"A bunch of us are going over to Jizelle's house."
"Take an umbrella and don't forget your jacket," I said, doing my best to imitate our mother's tone.
It was his turn to do the eyeroll.
"Very funny, bro."
I smiled and reached for the door handle.
"Call me if something happens between you and Riley." I heard from behind me as I walked to my car. "Or at least text me."
I didn't respond verbally, but I waved to let him know I'd heard him. I didn't trust my voice to be steady when I thought of what that 'something' might be.
As I unlocked the car door, I looked up. The dark clouds had gathered, obstructing the warm sunlight. The first heavy raindrops began to fall.
*****
I took two steps at a time on my way up to Riley's apartment. My heart beat at un unsteadied, nervous rhythm, my palms sweating once more. Having reached my destination, I leaned the now closed umbrella on the wall and knocked. Once was enough; he opened right away and my heart sank.
"You've changed your mind," I heard myself utter.
Maybe it was because of his slumped shoulders, maybe it was because he took a deep breath as if to prepare himself for something unpleasant, maybe it was just... I wasn't sure how I knew it, but I did. If I had had any doubts, they would've melted away when he looked down at the floor.
"It's okay." My voice cracked.
It wasn't okay.
I wanted to grab his hand, look him in the eyes and assure him with all my heart that he would never find anyone who could love him more than I did, that I would take care of him for as long as I lived even at the expense of my own health, that there was nothing in this world that I wouldn't do for him if he asked me... I wanted to get on my knees and beg him to reconsider.
I pulled my lips into my mouth and bit hard.
I could not say that.
If Riley were to mate me, it had to be because he wanted to, not because he felt sorry for the pitiful state I'd fallen in once I'd heard his rejection.
He looked back up at me.
"I didn't exactly change my mind."
A small flicker of hope burs in my chest like a lonely firework in a darkened sky.
"Come in and I'll tell you," he invited me and closed the door once I was inside. I followed him into the kitchen area, Riley taking my hands in his as soon as we set on the chairs around his table.
"I want to get mated to you, Rhys, I just don't want to do it right away."
I gave a deep, relieved sigh.
My mate's answer was still yes; it was just a little too soon to start making the arrangements for the ceremony.
"There are so many things I need to get used to," Riley went on and I nodded. "You and your pack, you and I as a stable couple, me in a serious relationship... You and your pack," he repeated.
"I understand." I lightly squeezed his hands. Now that I knew for sure that I wasn't rejected, I was happy to give him all the time he needed to feel comfortable. And since he'd obviously thought things through, I was no longer worried that he'd wake up one day and declare that his yes had been a hasty mistake.
"I also want to know what is expected of me after the ceremony. I mean, we should talk about our future together."
I gave him another nod and answered:
"Well, obviously we are going to move in together."
"In your house? The one that is yours, not your parents'?" He clarified.
"I was hoping..." I cleared my throat, a flash of heat warming my face. "I was hoping you'll start calling it 'our home', Riley."
"So we will live amongst the Bullets?"
I leaned away from him, my brows knitting together.
"I thought you were okay with that."
"I am!" He hurried to reassure me, moving forward in his chair. "I am, I just don't know if the Bullets will be okay with that."
"Of course they will; you are my mate." I laughed, expelling the nerves that had attacked me when I thought he'd want me to move away from my pack. "It will be odd for their Beta to live away from the community, even if I am in the same town."
"So they will accept me because I am your mate?"
I leaned forward this time and placed my hands on the sides of his face.
"At first, yes. But once they get to know you, they'll want you around for who you are, Riley," I insisted. "It already happened with my family and Keri, and Anthony..."
"Anthony? Really?" His eyes grew big with surprise. "He's never hinted at it. He doesn't even smile politely when he greats me."
"He's just tense around humans." I waved my hand, then quickly added: "Most humans. And many humans. He's just afraid that if we were to get discovered in public, he'd get hurt so human crowds make him edgy."
"Does that mean I can't have human friends over?"
Ahh... A touchy subject.
Of course I wanted to have Riley's friends over, but having humans who didn't know what we were around us was... inconvinient, at best.
"You can have Winnie and Tim over as long as they give us a heads up before they come. And they stay in the house and not in the yard. And they don't come too often." I felt like sinking in the ground at I narrated the rules. It wasn't fair to Riley, it wasn't fair at all, but otherwise... "It won't be fair to the pack if they constantly have to look over their shoulder each time they want to shift."
"Seems fair." His words were of agreement, but his sigh was deep.
"You'll still see them at work and the four of us can hang out together, go to a bar or the movies." I tried to cheer him up. "You can see them every day if you want, just not often in our home."
"Our home," he repeated, a small dreamy smile coming to his lips.
Riley hadn't had a home in years; it made me proud and glad to realize he was looking forward to building one with me.
I smiled as well.
"I have so many plans for the place. Now that we are together," my hand covered his, "we can make them our plans. I'll make the necessary changes for you to feel comfortable, we can pick the colors of the rooms together, go shopping for furniture... We should check with mom and dad first though."
He raised an eyebrow so I clarified:
"When Everett and Lisa moved in together, mom and dad bought them this huge, carved wardrobe; I'm sure they'll want to get us something as well. They've probably already ordered it. The wardrobe was handmade by a couple of members of our pack; it took them weeks to finish it and knowing how mom likes to plan ahead, she's probably asked them to create something the moment I told her we started dating. You know, so that it would be ready when we move in."
"Wow," he muttered.
"I'm thinking about a second fireplace." I went on, excited that I could finally talk with my mate about this. "In the master bedroom - our bedroom. There's room for a small one right at... You know what?" My eyes found his. "Why don't we go there now and I'll show you?"
"Okay," he agreed and got up.
*****
"Wait here," I told him once I parked the car in front of our future home. I reached to the back seat and felt around for the umbrella. Once in my possession, I got out of the car and opened it on my way to Riley's side. The rainfall wasn't the bashing torrent it had been when we'd left Riley's apartment, but it was still too heavy to omit the use of the umbrella. I held it mostly over Riley, relying on my jacket to protect me from the large drops, but by the time we got in, the water had managed to find its way under the leather and over the back of my t-shirt.
I left the umbrella in the hallway and led the way to the master bedroom.
"This is it." I gestured for my mate to walk in first. Curtains, a double bed and a low chest drawer with spare clothes and some sheets were the only furniture the room had at present. "I'm thinking about the fireplace being over..."
Tap, tap, tap - the sound was coming from the adjoining bathroom.
"Just a sec." I opened the door and flicked the switch, stepping inside. That was my mistake: my feet got wet the second I did so.
The roof was leaking, a steady stream of water falling to the floor.
"I have to take care of this," I told Riley who was peeking around the doorframe. "I got some tools downstairs; it won't take long."
He nodded, swirled around and hopped on the bed.
That was where I found him once I'd returned with the tools - on the bed. That was where he stayed, silent and musing, while I worked and while I changed into dry clothes. It wasn't until I said "fixed it" that his eyes focused and his gaze fell on me.
"Did you change your shirt?" He asked, a slight crease forming between his eyebrows.
"Yeah, some of the water got on me while I was taking care of the leak. Good thing the bathroom is tiled so it was easy to dry the floor."
"You know," the bed screeched as Riley got up and approached me, "I've always had a fantasy about me and a handy man."
His arms wrapped around my neck, his lips almost touching mine as he stood on his toes.
"Really?" I murmured and he grinned wickedly.
"Nah, but I do now."
I raised my hands and let them lay on my mate's hips as my head tilted lower to kiss him. His tongue dashed out of his mouth and licked my lips, prompting me to part them. I didn't give in, keeping the kiss teasingly chaste.
He groaned, frustrated, and pulled me closer; I chuckled and pulled back.
"Not so hasty, Riley; we've got a whole night ahead of us."
"Does that mean...?" He didn't finish his inquiry. He didn't have to; I knew what he was alluding to.
A part of me twitched with nervous excitement under my denim jeans.
"Not yet." I bumped his nose with my finger. "But we can do other things."
"Like?"
The fantasy I'd had in my parent's living room two days ago came to mind. It was too soon for sex, but I had plenty of other dreams we could make true right now.
I slowly slid my hands to his inner thigh; Riley's reflex was to thrust in my direction. My arm wrapped around his waist, his lean body almost weightless, and I carried him towards the bed - our bed - and laid him gently over the covers before I climbed on top of him, my legs at his sides.
I slowly unbuttoned his shirt, teasing both of us with the pace at which my hands were moving, anticipating the sight of the barely muscled skin I was about to expose. My lips followed the direction of my hands and I kissed my way from his collarbone down to his abs.
Riley moaned and my blood rushed under my belt.
"Rhys," he breathed my name and I groaned at the sound. "I hope kissing my torso isn't all you plan for tonight."
I lifted my gaze to look up at his hooded eyes and parted lips, my mouth just a few inches away from the edge of his jeans. I couldn't help but smirk at his beautiful, needy expression.
"Oh, kissing is exactly what I plan, Riley." My hand was on top of his zipper. I could feel the bulge beneath it, the size rivalling that of the one in my pants. "I just intend to aim a little lower."
*****
A/N: If you want to know exactly what Rhys and Riley did afterwards, read chapter You are the Answer (boyxboy) - Chapter 32 from the Dogs, Bats & Monkeys Series - Naughty Bits story; the link is in the first comment. WARNING: MATURE CONTENT!
If you don't feel comfortable with mature content, skip it; you wouldn't miss out on the plot as it's just a sex scene.
Now for this chapter: what do you think?
Happy with the ending?
What are your thoughts on Rhys and Riley waiting before they go for the mating ceremony?
What about on how Riley's human friends can't visit him often when he moves in with Rhys?
THANK YOU FOR ALL YOUR VOTES AND COMMENTS! HAVE A GREAT TIME WATTPADDING! â¤
PS: I'll give you more time to vote on which DB&M extra you want to read in December. I'll announce the results in the next chapter on Sunday, November 20.