The Mate Inside Me

Chapter 30

Anyone noticed how Thea has learned to somehow think less in front of Marchosias? She's learning to control her thoughts!

My eyes traced the gilded nib of a fountain pen as it glided on a white paper creating small scribbling sounds. The muscular hand wrapped around the pen's body first rolled its tip up before sliding it down and then marking three horizontal lines with it.

E.

It was followed by two more haphazard strokes.

RE.

Its sharp end once again went up for a slight moment and then distributed a few curvy swatches on the paper.

BUS.

"Erebus."

My patience finally broke lose as I let out his name through my gritted teeth.

My chest heaved up and down in anger as I glared at the man slouched in the chair facing me. His long legs were resting on a mahogany table, similar but a bit smaller to the one I had seen in Beta Lucas' office. He was looking down at the few scattered documents sprawled in his lap.

My vision zeroed in on the hand playing with the fountain pen before following the veins travelling up his forearm. The sleeves of his ink blue shirt were rolled up to his elbows, providing a fair view of the vessels running under his skin. He had unbuttoned his shirt up to the mid of his chest and somehow the collar had dipped down his right shoulder revealing a small bite mark nestled under the root of his neck.

My Mark.

He was my mate yet he had refused to even acknowledge my presence since the moment I had stepped inside his house. I had been calling his name for God knows how long while watching him sign papers in his study and he was yet to look my way.

"Erebus."

I called that name again.

"Yes, that's what I just signed on the paper."

He didn't lift his head to look my way as he said this out loud while continuing to examine the documents he was signing.

My eyebrows furrowed as I realized what he was trying to do. He wasn't looking my way because I wasn't addressing him by his name. I was using someone else' name to call him and it was bothering him.

"What are you, four?"

"Try adding a couple zeroes at the end of that, baby and you'll have it."

The sound of crinkling pages was echoing through the whole study. The man sitting in front of me still hadn't looked up.

"Erebus."

If he was hell-bent on pushing my buttons, I was going to return the favor diligently.

"Not available."

"Erebus!"

"Declared dead."

"EREBUS!"

The annoyed expression on my face evaporated quickly as I saw his fingers, that had been previously turning pages of the pack documents, pause midway. Slowly he lifted his head, allowing the sunrays penetrating through the glass window behind him to hit the side of his face. One side of his face was drenched in darkness while the other was bathing in sunlight that illuminated each and every sharp cut of his bone structure.

As the light slid down the curve of his lashes, it made their ends glimmer. It almost looked like someone had scattered crushed gold leaf on his eyelashes.

On the other hand, one half of his face, facing away from the window, was completely immersed in darkness causing his crimson iris on that side to pop out more in stark contrast to his hidden features.