Page 5 of Orlando (Council Assassins #20)

SO FAR, THERE HAD BEEN no news. It had been almost a week, and Orlando could tell it was getting to Liam. He didn’t blame him. He was going a little nuts, too, having to stay inside the apartment and stare at the same four walls every day.

They spent time apart in any way they could, which usually meant that Liam was in the bedroom while Orlando was on the couch, but Orlando didn’t like it. Both he and his jaguar wanted to be with Liam, but Orlando wasn’t sure it was a good idea. He didn’t want to push Liam. Even though his mate had said he was fine with it, it felt like tempting fate, which wasn’t something Orlando wanted to do when neither of them could leave. The only reason he had was to get food, and even then, he’d been on edge and watching his surroundings the entire time.

He stared at the TV screen. He’d put on a movie, but he had no idea what it was. He didn’t care, either. He just needed something to distract him, and unfortunately, this wasn’t cutting it.

Nothing was. His every thought was always on Liam in one way or another. Sometimes, it was to think that Liam was in danger, and others, Orlando wondered what Liam wanted from him. He’d said he was okay with Orlando’s past as an almost council assassin, but was he? They hadn’t talked about it again, and Liam had kept a certain distance between them.

Orlando hated it. They were getting to know each other, but he’d thought that being stuck together meant they’d grow closer. Maybe it was just the kind of person his mate was, but Liam was spending a lot of time lost in his mind. He had a lot to think about, obviously, but Orlando wished his mate would share how he felt. Maybe Orlando could help. He wasn’t sure how, but he was willing to try.

He wanted to do something. The problem was that they were stuck in the apartment, so taking Liam out was, well, out. Orlando also didn’t want to leave Liam for too long, which was why he’d been running to the grocery store as few times as he could. All in all, it hadn’t been a great week, even though he and Liam had spent it together. Liam yearned for more, and Orlando wanted to give it to him.

He couldn’t until he was sure Liam was safe.

So, if leaving the apartment was out, where did that leave them? What could Orlando do to make Liam feel better?

Finding out what was going on was one thing. Orlando couldn’t work on it himself—he was stuck in the apartment and didn’t have the connections, anyway—but he’d spread the word, and his friends were doing everything they could. Both Kennedy and Hawthorne had promised they’d reach out as soon as they found something, but so far, Orlando’s phone had stayed silent except for texts from Seymour telling him they were doing everything they could. Orlando had no doubt that Cynthia was on the move, but she hadn’t found them yet, and hopefully, she wouldn’t at all.

His phone vibrated on the coffee table. He was always eager for a distraction, so he snatched it up, grinning when he saw it was Seymour. His best friend had been checking in on him and Liam every day, but Orlando missed him. He wasn’t used to not seeing Seymour for so long.

“Hey,”

he said when he answered.

“You don’t sound right. What happened?”

“Hello to you, too. What do you mean, I don’t sound right?”

“Exactly what I said. Have you and Liam fought?”

Orlando tilted his head to stare at the ceiling.

“We haven’t.”

“But?”

“But he’s avoiding me, I think.”

“You’re stuck in the same apartment. How can he avoid you?”

“He’s been spending a lot of time in the bedroom with his cat.”

Which couldn’t be that entertaining, considering that Orlando didn’t have a TV in there. What was Liam doing? Seymour had brought him a new phone so that Cynthia couldn’t use his old one to track him, but could he really be spending hours on that thing?

Orlando supposed he could be. He’d been doing pretty much the same thing.

“I’m sorry,”

Seymour murmured.

“Thank you, but you have nothing to be sorry about.”

“Neither do you, but I bet you’ve apologized to him dozens of times. Can you knock on the door and ask him to spend time together?”

“Honestly, I’m a little afraid to do that. What if he says no?”

“What if he says yes? You’re his mate, after all.”

“But he’s human. He doesn’t feel the bond as strongly as I do.”

Seymour hummed.

“You know, I’m not sure that’s true. I think humans feel it differently, but it doesn’t mean they don’t feel it at all. Have you tried talking to him?”

“I’ve been giving him space.”

Seymour groaned.

“So that’s a no. You’ve been stuck together in the same apartment, and you’ve basically been ignoring each other. How do you think he feels?”

“He has no reason to worry about this. Of course I want to talk to him. I just think he needs space.”

Liam was definitely avoiding Orlando, which was all Orlando needed to know.

“You and I know that, but he doesn’t. He doesn’t know you. You should change that.”

“I don’t know how. Do I knock on the bedroom door and hope for the best?”

“Well, that wouldn’t be a bad idea. Maybe you can come up with something else, though.”

“What? As you pointed out, we’re stuck in the apartment. Has Kennedy heard anything?”

“He hasn’t yet. He talked to Hawthorne yesterday, but Hawthorne’s still waiting for his friend to let him know what’s going on.”

“How hard can it be to talk to someone from the council?”

“Quite hard, apparently. I promise that we’re working on it. We just need you and Liam to be safe in the meantime.”

“We are.”

Unless Cynthia found them, and Orlando didn’t think she would.

She hadn’t yet. Something told him that was on purpose. It would be easy for her to find his apartment if she poked around the council’s files. They were paying Orlando, so they knew where he lived. She was probably avoiding doing that to give Orlando and Liam more time. Orlando would have to buy her a fruit basket once this was over. She loved oranges.

“So, you’re safe, which means you can work on your other problem.”

“You sound like you have a solution, and I’m almost afraid to ask.”

“You need to woo your mate.”

Orlando glanced around the room.

“How am I supposed to do that?”

Maybe he could buy another cauliflower. Liam had seemed to really like it the last time he’d done it.

“Yes, I know, you can’t leave the apartment. That’s why I’ll bring you whatever you need. I can shimmer it to your door. You’ll have to take care of the setup, but I’m sure you’ll be fine.”

“What setup are we talking about?”

“Well, you can’t take your mate on a date, but it doesn’t mean you can’t organize a date for him.”

“You’re going to have to be more specific because I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

Orlando could hear the smile in Seymour’s voice when he continued talking.

“You know what my favorite dates with Kennedy are?”

“I’m not sure I want to know.”

“It’s not sexual, so get your mind out of the gutter.”

“What is it, then?”

Orlando was curious. He wanted to woo his mate. He just didn’t know how.

“It’s when we have quiet dates at home. We have a nice dinner, watch a movie while cuddling on the couch, things like that. It’s just the two of us, and we can relax and just be with each other.”

“But the two of you have been together for a little while now. Shouldn’t I be taking Liam out?”

“Is he the kind of person who wants to go out for a date? What do you think he’d want to do if he could?”

Orlando’s mind went straight to the community garden. He suspected that if Liam had a choice, he’d want to be out there in the garden, maybe have a picnic.

That actually sounded like a good idea.

“Seymour, I’m going to need your help.”

“Whatever you need.”

LIAM WAS BORED OF STARING at the ceiling. He felt like he’d been doing that for the whole week, but he also didn’t have an alternative. He’d been spending so much time on the phone he’d been given that sometimes, he wondered if the battery might explode. It was his only window on what was happening outside of the apartment, the only way he had to reassure his mother that he was still breathing, and he was overusing it.

He licked his lips. What else could he do? He could probably go spend time in the living room with Orlando, but he’d been avoiding him. Initially, it hadn’t been on purpose. He wasn’t quite comfortable with Orlando yet, and he’d thought it would take a while. It was, but that was partially his fault. So far, he hadn’t given Orlando a chance.

But he’d been thinking enough to make some decisions, and he wasn’t sure how to bring them up or even if he should. He needed to talk to Orlando, but where could he start?

Orlando was his mate. That would never change, no matter Orlando’s past or his future. Even if they decided not to be together, Orlando would always be part of Liam’s life.

But Liam wanted to be with Orlando.

It had taken him a while to wrap his mind around that and accept it, but Orlando was sacrificing a lot to protect him. How could Liam not want to be with him? Orlando had done what he’d promised. He’d given Liam time and space, and Liam had taken them. He’d thought about everything Orlando had told him, had considered the situation from every angle, and he’d come to a decision.

What Orlando had done in the past didn’t matter. What he’d assume he would be capable of doing didn’t, either. Liam was human, and he’d never had to live through some of the things shifters and other paranormal beings had lived through. Even though humans had been kidnapped and hurt, too, it wasn’t something Liam had ever thought would happen to him.

But shifters needed to be protected, which was why the council had been created. If they thought that killing the people they couldn’t punish otherwise was the best way to go about things, who was Liam to argue? He wasn’t a paranormal being.

Orlando had thought he could kill people for a living. Maybe he’d wanted to. Maybe something had happened in his past that had pushed him in that direction.

Or maybe he just felt that he wanted to do something for his community. Liam wished he could suggest something nicer, like the community garden, but it wasn’t his place. Orlando had probably gone through the program because he wanted to protect his people, and Liam couldn’t blame him for that. He could even see it in a good light. Besides, Orlando hadn’t killed anyone, and that was an important part of this.

Parsley poked at Liam’s cheek with his paw. Liam squinted at him, then reached up to stroke a fingertip on the top of Parsley’s head.

“You think I should go there and talk to him, don’t you?”

Parsley yawned, exposing his teeth and pink tongue. That was the only answer he gave Liam, but it was also the only answer Liam needed. He’d already decided what he wanted to do about Orlando.

He wanted to bond with him.

“I know it sounds crazy,”

he murmured.

“But I want to be able to feel if something happens to him. I don’t know why Cynthia hasn’t found us yet, but I think it’s weird and that she’ll find us soon. She and Orlando will fight, and I need to know that Orlando’s okay.”

Liam almost laughed. He’d always talked to his cat, but he was having an entire conversation with him now, which probably wasn’t normal. It was about Orlando, though, and Liam couldn’t exactly go to Orlando to talk about his mate. Days like this, he wished he’d made more of an effort to find friends, but he was always so busy that it had felt easier to focus on his passions. He didn’t regret it, but he really wished he could talk to someone who would answer and not try to bite his finger off.

Luckily, he did have one person to talk to. He reached sideways, trying to find his phone. He’d dropped it on the mattress earlier and had told himself that he wouldn’t pick it up for at least half an hour. He’d never been into social media because he didn’t have the time, but he’d discovered them now that he was so isolated, and it was becoming an addiction. It was a problem he’d deal with in the future, though.

He dialed his mother’s number and waited for her to answer. Like always, when she did these days, she sounded a bit freaked out. “Liam?”

“I’m fine.”

“Thank God.”

“You need to stop freaking out every time I call.”

“How am I supposed to do that? My son is in mortal danger.”

“I guess that makes sense.”

“Of course it makes sense. Wouldn’t you be worried if I was the one in danger of being killed?”

“I need to talk to you.”

There was a pause before his mother answered.

“That doesn’t sound good.”

“It’s not bad, either. I think I want to bond with Orlando.”

“You think, or you know you want to?”

“I know I want to, but I’m a bit hesitant.”

“Well, it makes sense. You and Orlando haven’t been together long.”

“I don’t think we’re together at all.”

“You’re mates.”

“Yes, but things have been tense.”

“Because of the assassin thing?”

“I think I’m over that.”

“Again, you think? Your mate was planning on killing people for a living. Are you sure you’re willing to accept that?”

Liam groaned.

“Do you want me to change my mind?”

“I don’t, but I do want you to think this through. I trust that once you’ve made a decision, you’ll stick to it, but I don’t want you to be rash.”

“I won’t be. I want to bond with him.”

“And you said you weren’t going to be rash.”

“Is it being rash when I already know I’m supposed to spend the rest of my life with him?”

“I’m not sure I can help you with this. Both your father and I are human. This feels like it’s going too quickly, but maybe you’re right. Maybe it isn’t.”

“I want to hear what you really think, Mom.”

“No, you want me to tell you that you’re doing the right thing, and I can’t. I don’t know if you are. I’ve never even talked to him. I’m glad you’re giving him a chance, and I do think it’s a little quick, but maybe you’re right. Maybe since he’s your mate, you don’t need to get to know him. You have the chance to, though. The two of you are stuck together in an apartment. Why aren’t you taking advantage of that? Why aren’t you with him right now instead of talking to me on the phone?”

“It’s been difficult.”

“You mean you are making it difficult. I love you, but I also know you. Sometimes, you can be a stubborn shit.”

Liam spluttered. “Mom.”

“What? You’re my son. I can say that you’re a stubborn shit, especially when you are. You just told me you wanted to bond with your mate, but you won’t talk to him? Do you realize how all of this sounds?”

Liam sighed.

“Fine. I’ll talk to him.”

It wouldn’t be a hardship. He wanted to talk to Orlando. He just wasn’t sure where to start.

The easiest way would be to finally leave this bedroom. He wasn’t the only one stuck in this apartment, after all. Orlando was there, too. He left every so often to go to the store, but he was always fast. The rest of the time, he was in the living room. He’d given Liam the space he needed even though Liam had told him he didn’t have to. He was being considerate, and the least Liam could do was to do the same for him.

“I have to go,”

he told his mother.

“Oh? What are you planning?”

“Nothing.”

“Nothing I want to know, I’m sure. But, Liam, if you really think that bonding with Orlando is the right thing to do, then it is. I want you to be happy. Do you think Orlando can make you happy?”

Liam thought about how much Orlando was doing for him. They were mates, but he didn’t have to put his life on pause the way he had. He could be out there, spending time with his friends and trying to convince the council to stop coming after Liam. Instead, he’d locked himself in the apartment so that Liam wouldn’t be alone. He was taking care of him, even though Liam had been basically ignoring him.

“I think he can.”

WHEN ORLANDO KNOCKED on the bedroom door, he was nervous. In fact, he couldn’t remember the last time he’d been so nervous, which was ridiculous. He’d trained to be a council assassin. He should be used to stress and pressure, but here he was, freaking out over his mate.

The door swung open, revealing Liam. For a second, Orlando’s breath was taken away. The only thing he could do was stare, which he was pretty sure was weird. “Orlando?”

Liam asked.

Orlando blinked.

“Sorry to bother you.”

“You’re not bothering me. What’s wrong?”

“Nothing’s wrong. I just need to talk to you for a second.”

Orlando expected Liam to brush him off, but he didn’t. He stared at Orlando for a moment before nodding, and, to Orlando’s surprise, stepping out of the bedroom.

Orlando wasn’t surprised that the bedroom was where his mate felt more comfortable. There, he was on his own and didn’t have to be careful, but he also knew that he was safe because Orlando was close by. It made sense that he’d been hiding out in there.

Yet here he was, sitting on the couch as if it was perfectly normal for him. Orlando wished it was. This was good, though.

Liam looked around as if he’d never seen the apartment, or maybe as if he expected something to have changed since the last time he’d been there this morning for breakfast. His knee was bouncing, and Orlando wondered what was going on. It was clear something was, and maybe he should wait for Liam to come out with it, but Orlando had plans.

“So,”

Liam said.

Right. Orlando had told him that he needed to talk to him.

“I know things haven’t been easy,”

he said, sitting on the edge of the coffee table. He kept as much space as he could between himself and Liam so he wouldn’t make his mate uncomfortable. For some reason, that made Liam frown, and he slid forward, bumping their knees together.

Orlando swallowed. He shouldn’t get ahead of himself. He didn’t know what Liam was thinking, and he needed to be careful. He wanted his mate, but he knew it would take some time.

Time he hoped they both had.

“I know all of this has been overwhelming for you. I’m not saying you had enough time to think things through already, but maybe we should do something together.”

Liam frowned.

“Something like what? We’re stuck in this apartment.”

“Like a date.”

“That sounds good, but again, we’re stuck in this apartment. How is that going to work?”

“We can’t go out on a date, but the date can come to us.”

“What did you have in mind?”

Orlando would always be grateful to Seymour. He’d agreed to help right away when Orlando had explained what he needed, and he’d promised he would be there soon. That was why Orlando had needed Liam out of the bedroom.

“It’s a surprise.”

Liam blinked.

“A surprise?”

Orlando wanted to crawl into Liam’s lap and lean his head against Liam’s shoulder. His jaguar was thrilled at the possibility, but Orlando kept him at bay. This was about Liam. It was about making him feel cherished and cared for. He’d been running on fumes since he’d arrived here, and he needed someone to take the weight off his shoulders for a little while. Orlando was his mate. It was his duty and pleasure to be that someone.

“A friend is going to come by with some things I need. Do you think you can stay in the living room while I set up?”

“I could help.”

“It’s my date. I’ll set everything up.”

“You don’t have to.”

“I don’t, but I want to do it.”

Liam huffed, but he was smiling.

“I guess I’m so bored I wish I could help you with this, but fine. If you want to be all mysterious, I’ll wait.”

Orlando grinned.

“Thank you. Also, please ignore anything my friend is going to say.”

“For some reason, that doesn’t reassure me.”

“It wasn’t meant to. Seymour is my best friend, and he’s been very curious about you.”

Liam stared at Orlando for so long that Orlando thought he’d said something wrong. He was ready to apologize, even though he didn’t understand what for.

“You know, I just realized I don’t really know you,”

Liam said.

“That’s probably because you haven’t been talking to me.”

“I’m sorry about that.”

“You have nothing to be sorry about. I already told you that I understand, and I wasn’t lying. Take all the time you need.”

“I have.”

Orlando’s heart raced. Was Liam saying what Orlando thought he was saying? He could only hope, but he was a little afraid to.

Thankfully, a knock on the door interrupted them. He jumped to his feet, eager to get started and even more eager to get Liam alone on their date. He should’ve known it wouldn’t be that easy, though.