by Marcy Jacks
“For what?”
Warren gave him another one of his cute glares. “You know what. Stop it. Had I been in your shoes, then, mating or no mating, I might have killed you just to spare you from being tortured to death later on.”
Both of Lasius’s brows shot up at that remark.
Warren sighed. “Which is why it’s lucky that you’re stronger than I am. And better. I hold nothing against you for being suspicious of me or angry with me for being stuck with me.”
“I’m not stuck with you,” Lasius said quickly.
Warren shrugged, and Lasius felt his mate sinking back into that dark place where he seemed to retreat whenever they spoke of the cruel nature of the world.
“Whatever you want to call it. I can’t blame you for it. I don’t blame the omegas for hissing at me behind my back either.”
“Your life shouldn’t have to be a cross you need to bear.”
“No?” Warren asked. “Don’t I have some sort of punishment to face for the things I did? Is it justice that I am given a warm bed to sleep in, a mate, a brother, and a child on the way when I turned my back on so many others? Worse, when I helped to end their lives.”
This was the sort of conversation he didn’t want to have. Lasius didn’t want to think that his mate had been doing such terrible things, but at the same time, it couldn’t be ignored either.
“You were following orders. It’s not even a matter of following orders. You literally would have been killed for disobeying.” Lasius was gaining his momentum, and now he couldn’t stop. “Fine. You want to atone, then you can. You can by doing what you did just now in the basement, by drawing up that map Seth wants you to make and by helping as many of those omegas, and even the guards and soldiers who maybe don’t want to be doing what they’re doing, escape.”
Lasius expected Warren to come back at him with something, to keep arguing just for the sake of arguing.
He didn’t. Lasius took that as a good sign.
“You want to whip yourself so badly for the things you’ve done? What about the things I’ve done? I’ve killed vampires before, and if you, Sorin, and even Josh and Zane are anything to go by, not all vampires, not even all the guards who protect Varrick, deserve to die. Don’t I have something to make up for?”
“Josh and Zane aren’t vampires.”
“You know what I mean.”
Warren looked away from him. He glared down at the floor, and Lasius knew he didn’t fully have him, but he’d planted the seed. That was all he wanted for now.
“You’re not going to drop this, are you?”
Lasius placed his hands on Warren’s shoulders. “Not in a million years. You’re my mate. I loved you from the second I saw you with your mask off, and I was pissed off at you because I didn’t want to love you, but I did.”
Warren’s eyes swam. “You don’t love me. It’s too soon for that.”
“I do love you.”
“Because you’re an idiot. A stupid fool who takes too many unnecessary chances, and you’re going to get yourself killed one day because of it, and it’s going to leave our child alone in the world and—”
Lasius shut his mate up with a kiss.
Once again, he felt the tension in Warren’s lips, right before the man melted against him and his arms slowly snaked around Lasius’s neck.
Was it sick that every time Warren called Lasius an idiot and harped on about his safety that Lasius just heard how much Warren loved him back?
Probably.
Maybe one day Warren would be able to say the exact words, but for now, while they both worked on atoning for past sins, Lasius was more than happy to take his mate’s special brand of love.
THE END
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