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“Those small pterosaurs, yes.” I grin, and Lily beams that I remembered they’re pterosaurs and not dinosaurs. Then I look back at Eli. “I don’t mind keeping an eye on her for a while longer, if you’re busy.”
Eli smiles softly. “While I appreciate it, and I might take you up on it in the future, I’m actually here to tell you that lunch is ready. It’s waiting for you in Mathew’s office.”
He holds out his hand to Lily. “And our lunch is waiting in the family kitchen.”
Lily waves at me as she follows Eli. “Bye, Aunty Vera.”
“Bye, Lily. And good luck with your presentation.”
She nods excitedly as the two disappear into the hallway.
Lunch, right. That’s probably a good idea.
I stand up, stretching, as I take a deep breath. I kind of don’t want to go back to the office if everything is still doom and gloom in there.
As I look up, I find Caleb leaning against the doorway, his eyes on me warm and filled with joy. “I heard you were hanging out with the resident dinosaur expert.” He reaches for me and I step into his arms, nuzzling his chest.
“Prehistoric animal expert, and yes, I did. It’s like listening to a small and excitable version of Timothy. She’s very polite, if she remembers to be.” I take in his deep woodsy scent, liking this moment of calm with him. “How is the mood in the office?”
He lets out a low laugh as he wraps his arms around me. “I’m sure it will be better once you’re there. We’re just going in circles at this point and the other two are butting heads.” He sighs deep.
“I’m tempted to lock them in the nest so they can fuck it out, or fight it out, whatever they prefer.”
That almost sounds better than when I left, but I’m not entirely sure.
“Hey, don’t worry too much.” Caleb’s voice is soft as he kisses the top of my head. “We’ll figure it out. And they’ll figure things out too. Part of it is just the stress we’re all dealing with right now.”
Well, yes. That, we’ve got enough around here.
Caleb puts his hand under my knees and lifts me up bridal style. “Let’s get some lunch into you. If you’re going to grow a little person inside you, you’re going to need all the energy you can get.”
I lean against him, smiling. “I’m pretty sure that that’s not going to be a problem. Eli has been making us very nutritious meals, so I’m sure that energy won’t be a problem.”
Rest and stress on the other hand… That might be tricky.
3
Caleb
I feel like I kicked a hornets’nest when I picked out the three Hearts guys. I’d simply been surprised to see them and curious why they weren’t listed as Hubert Russell’s pack mates, I hadn’t expected that it would set off all ofthis.
Mathew has been on edge ever since. For the last couple of nights, I keep finding him in his office after everyone else has already gone to sleep.
He’s been so focused on finding out why the Hearts would go after him now and how it’s all connected to Vera and me. It’s become an obsession for him.
Which worries me a lot.
Not just for his mental health, which is clearly not doing too well, but also for his physical health.
We don’t yet know if he’s pregnant or not, we won’t find out for another few weeks, but if he is, these broken nights and the stress on his body can’t be good. His body is already going through enough, with going into heat for the first time in a decade and all, and he doesn’t need this on top of it.
I glance at him from the couch in his office. He’s sitting at his desk, Vera in his lap, and she’s feeding him pieces of the pasta salad Eli made us for lunch as he’s intently reading something on his tablet.
He really doesn’t stop working once he starts, not even to eat. When he’s focused on something, he’ll see it through to the end.
I can see where he got his name ‘The Cleaner’ from, because once he’s got you in his sights, he’ll erase you from the face of the earth if he wants to, he won’t leave a single trace of you behind. He’s very intense.
It’s interesting but also a little scary at times. Especially how he seems to forget the rest of the world when he goes into that state of focus. It’s not healthy. But, I guess, if you don’t have much aside from your job, it’s easy to fall into these bad habits.