I figured blunt would be the best route for this particular conversation. "If you aren't happy here..."
"Whoa." He lifted both hands in the air. "Is that the impression I’ve been giving off?"
"Well, you did allude to how different it is here." I wasn't sure how else I could have taken it.
"It's true, I did. But that doesn't mean it's a bad thing." He leaned into me and took my hands in his. "I want to be wherever you are. I'm sorry if I'm doing this all wrong. It's a huge adjustment for me."
Now that I understood all too well. "For me too, but your happiness is important to me." It appeared that both of us were struggling to find our new type of normal. "Maybe we should look for a new place? Or perhaps I should walk away from the crown." I'd honestly been thinking about both options for a while. Being the queen didn’t feel right to me. I wasn’t a natural leader even if I was born to be one, and if my mate was miserable, that was enough for me.
"I don’t want you to walk away from the crown. Whether you realize it or not, you were made for this, and we don't have to look for a new place. I didn’t mean to upset you earlier. There is nowhere else I’d rather be than right here beside you." He sighed and ran his finger along my waist. "I need a little time to settle in. That’s all."
For some reason, I was relieved that he said no to me walking away from the throne. "No, a new place wouldn’t be just for you." The more I thought about it, the better it sounded. "I mean, it'd still have to be in the city, but honestly, this place doesn't feel like home to me either."
"But your parents ..."
"We stayed in the Hamptons more often than here." That was a place that I'd never be willing to part with even if I was afraid to go there and face all the memories. "We stayed here half the time, but both Dad and Mom hated the city. Dad changed some while we stayed here. It was more stressful for him. I'd even overheard him tell Mom it was like he couldn't turn off here. I understand what he meant now."
"Are you sure that's what you want to do?" He leaned over and kissed my forehead. "I don't want to influence this decision and make you do something that you will regret."
"Honestly, if you feel the same way, I think it's the right call for us." I smiled at him and sighed. "We can pick a place out together. Somewhere we both can be content while we're here in the city and a place where we can make a home together."
"Okay." He nodded his head and grinned. "That does sound perfect."
"I'll get Tommy to start browsing the listings. He'll want to make sure it's easy to protect and ensure there aren't any huge security flaws." Being the queen, eventually there would be several attempts on my life. It came with the territory. Hell, I had learned that at the age of six. You weren't even safe from your own family. At least Richard and his mom were locked up in a supernatural prison.
"Do you think it'll be hard to sell this place?" He glanced around and then chuckled. "That's a very stupid question. It's so nice I'm sure someone will buy it in a heartbeat."
"Especially considering how hard real estate is to find in this area." I stood and leaned over to press my lips against his. "I'm going to talk to Tommy and begin getting ready for dinner." I had to be careful with my choice of attire for the evening. All the wolves there would be paying close attention.
Familiar footsteps entered my bedroom. Ones that I had been waiting for.
"So, Tommy informed us of a little decision you made." Kassie arched an eyebrow as she made her way over to me. "You want to buy a new place?"
"I thought we were going to be understanding instead of confronting her," Mona huffed as she walked behind me, running her fingers through my hair. Damn, the small gesture brought so much comfort to my aching heart.
The fact that they weren't acting strange and distant anymore eased some of the tension in my shoulders too. "Yeah, just here in the city. This place doesn't feel like home."
"Your parents had said the same thing so many times." A sad smile spread across Mona's face. "I think it's a wise decision."
After the way Kassie charged in here, this took me by surprise. "Then, why are you upset?" I turned toward Kassie.
"We had an idea we wanted to run past you." Kassie lifted a hand in the air. "What if you don't sell it?"
"No, I don't want to live here." Didn't we already go over this?
"Hear me out." Kassie snorted and shook her head. "What if you buy another place like you want but we also keep this house? Everyone will still think that you live here. You can come here and do all your meetings and whatever. It might even help throw off that vampire who threatened you."
"I hadn't considered that." Her plan did have merit, and it would make it easier for us to have some privacy. "Okay."
"What?" Mona's brows furrowed and she pursed her lips. "Did you agree that easily? Are you feeling okay?" She touched my forehead.
"Here I was, ready to fight her." Kassie shook her head and laughed. "Well, okay then. Are you all ready to head out for dinner?"
"Yeah, here in the next ten minutes."Are you about ready to go?
"Yup, I'm here." Mason's voice sounded from behind me. He entered the room and stared at the two women surrounding me. He cleared his throat. "I'm thinking I'll go change in the walk-in closet."
"Oh, you don’t have to for our sakes. We don’t mind watching some eye candy strip." Kassie snorted as she winked at him.
“Behave.” Mona laughed and headed straight for Kassie, grabbing her arm. "All right, before we get a show before dinner, let's head down." She strolled over to the door, dragging Kassie behind her. "We'll be in the foyer, waiting for you."
“They really know how to make me feel uncomfortable.” Mason walked over to the door and locked it. “She was kidding, right?”
“Of course, babe.” I closed the distance between us, kissing his lips.
He responded by pulling me into his chest, “You taste so sweet,” deepening our kiss.
You’re not so bad yourself. My body was already buzzing from his touch and our bond. I pressed my body against him, wrapping my hands around his neck.
This is not making me want to leave this room. His hands rubbed down my waist, pulling our bodies flush together.
After a few moments, right when I didn’t give a damn that we had somewhere else to be, he pulled away. “Let me go change. I know we can’t be late. We need to make a good impression.”
I wanted to argue, but he was right. I couldn’t help my heart skipping a beat that he was worried about our impression.
As the six of us walked outside, the chill of the November air wracked through my body.
"It would be safer if we took a vehicle," Kassie grumbled as she zipped up her jacket.
"And it would take an hour to get there when it'll take us fifteen minutes on foot." It made sense, and I had two of the best guards with me. I doubted anything could go wrong.