Page 30 of Aaron (Dresden Pride #1)

“You’re starting to piss me off, Zeno. Why would you say those things? They’re not true. I wanted to help Mac today.” He said that just shows him how right he was in finding a mate for himself. “I think you should go home now. I don’t want either of us saying something that we’re going to regret.”

“Fine by me. I know that I’m right in not wanting a mate.

In ten years from now, you’re going to look at her with a bunch of kids and wonder where your life has gone.

While I’m over here having the time of my life without anyone attached at the hip around me dragging me down.

” Aaron suddenly felt sorry for his younger brother.

“You’ll see. I’m going to be so much happier than you, and you’ll be worn out and feeling the pains of being shackled to someone who will be draining you dry. ”

“Go away.” Zeno stood up and left. Aaron didn’t want to feel sorry for his brother, but he found that he did.

That he was willing to forego having a mate in his life because he thought that being without one was so much better.

He’d learn, and Aaron thought he’d like to be right there when he figured out differently.

Or at least he hoped he would figure it out sooner rather than after he pissed away the greatest thing that had ever happened to him.

After filling out the paperwork that went along with the arrest of Mac’s brother, he made his way home.

They were going to go out to dinner tonight and have a good time.

He’d picked up the ring that his grandma Dresden had left for him when she’d passed away.

Aaron was going to give it to Mac tonight and ask her to marry him.

He thought about his brothers and wondered if any of the rest of them felt like Zeno did.

Would they pass up the opportunity to have someone in their life because of something that had popped into their head about he and Mac?

He hoped not. Now that he had her in his life, there was no way that he could live without her being around him.

He wondered if they really would give up on love just to prove that they knew better than the fates about what love was and what it brought them.

Dinner was fun, and they had a wonderful time.

Mac had wanted seafood, and he loved that the place had other dinners that he could have.

While he could eat seafood, he didn’t love it the way that she did.

Then, when dessert came to them, she only nibbled on the cake that he’d gotten for them to share, and he ended up eating the entire thing. He loved all things chocolate.

While they were having their dessert and water, he told her what had happened between him and his brother today. He hadn’t meant to tell her, but he was concerned about his other brothers and wanted to ask what she thought of the entire thing.

“He’ll find her and she’ll get him so twisted up in knots that he’ll wish he had come to her with a more open mind.

” He asked her what she meant. “Nothing but he’s going to find out that everything that he thought was going to happen does, and he’s going to hate it.

He might even hate her for a while. But I have a feeling that once they come together, it might be more epic than when the two of us came together. ”

“You think so?” She said that she was sure of it. “I don’t know. He seemed so dead set against having a mate. What will happen to them if they’re both stubborn and miss each other? What will happen to them then?”

“They’ll come together. I just know it.” He wished he were so sure and said as much to her.

“I think that they’ll be the perfect couple.

Then Zeno will wonder what all the fuss was about when he does fall in love with her.

Mark my words, he’s going to regret saying those things to you when he comes to you for help to get her back. And you’re going to help him.”

“He pissed me off.” She told him with a wink that it wouldn’t last. “I guess not. But for now, I’m going to be pissed off at him until I can say I told you so. I’m going to enjoy that a great deal.”

“Good.” The two of them walked around the sidewalks after dinner.

On their way home, they stopped by the store to pick up some things that they were going to need for the new work week.

Mac had been accepted at the school as a teacher, and she had given her notice to the Feds.

Even her boss had stopped calling her for a change, too.

Calling the president and letting him know that he was harassing Mac had gotten the calls to stop, but for some reason, he didn’t think that the man was finished with Mac yet.

He wasn’t going to allow him to hurt her any more than he did her brother.

This time, the president was in on it too.

By the time they were home and had carried in the little bit of things they’d gotten for themselves, they went up to bed.

It wasn’t all that late, just after ten o’clock in the evening, yet he was exhausted.

He figured that it had to do with the stress of taking care of Benjamin for her, but he was ready for bed.

Then he remembered that he’d not gotten any sleep the night before, thinking about things, and tonight he was going to sleep like the dead.

As soon as he got into bed with Mac, she told him that she wasn’t getting up before noon.

“You really think you can do that? Sleep until noon? I doubt that I’ve ever slept that late, even when I was a kid.” She asked him if he’d been an early riser all his life. “I believe that I have. If I’m not up before seven thirty, I must be sick.”

“I don’t sleep late either. Not even when I was in college and stayed up all night to study. I’d be up at the crack of dawn, ready to start the new day.” He pulled her into his arms and held her tightly to him. “I love you, Aaron. So much.”

“And I love you so very much as well, my love.” He held her until she was asleep before closing his eyes to follow her into slumber.

His last thoughts before going to sleep were that his brother was going to be missing some really great nights’ sleep if he didn’t take his mate when she came around.

But he’d be there when they finally got together to tell him he told him so.

Yes, he thought, that was going to be epic for him and not so much with his brother and his stupid thinking.