Each moment was precious.
She’d committed to memory every little detail, every sensation he’d made her feel because their moments together could be the last.
How was she going to survive this?
If she weren’t an immortal, surely her heart would have given out already.
Emerging from the walk-in closet wearing a pair of faded jeans, a T-shirt, and no shoes, David looked sexy as sin.
“Unbelievably, I’m hungry again.” He pulled her into his arms. “Do I need to get dressed for dinner? Or can I go like this?”
She didn’t plan on sharing him with anyone tonight. “I’ll order dinner to be delivered here.” She wrapped her arms around his neck and forced a smile. “I don’t want you to change.”
He lifted a brow. “Not at all? What about turning immortal?”
Frankly, she was starting to regret that, but that was a stupid notion born out of fear. At his age, postponing the induction would not have been smart, and anyway, the longer they had waited, the harder it would have been for both for them.
Besides, it had been David’s decision, and she should respect it.
“I want you to live forever but stay exactly as you are. I wouldn’t change a single thing about you.”
Grinning, he dipped his head and kissed her.
Assume the win, she mentally chanted as she kissed him back. She needed to be strong and to believe that everything would be okay.
As he cupped her ass and squeezed, the embers of desire flared, but Sari refused to let them ignite. Pushing on his chest, she forced a smile. “We need to eat.”
He pulled her back to him. “Food is highly overrated.”
“You need your strength.” She untangled herself from the warm cocoon of his arms and went for her phone.
“Hi, Brianna. Can I bother you to prepare a tray for two? David and I missed dinner.”
“No problem. Send Ojidu down in ten minutes.”
“Thank you.”
Leaning over her, David kissed her neck. “I like eating with you alone.” He kissed another spot. “The communal meals are fine once in a while, but I enjoy having you all to myself.”
She turned in his arms. “We can order in every day.”
“If you had a proper kitchen in here, I would have cooked for you.” He waggled his brows. “Wearing nothing but an apron.”
Sari laughed. “I’m going to hold you to that promise. Monday morning, I’m bringing a crew to install a kitchen in here.”
“Are you serious? Because I’m getting excited.”
Taking his hand, she led him to the couch. “I’m serious about the kitchen, but maybe not this Monday.”
The last thing she needed was a construction crew working in her apartment while she was stressing over David’s transition.
Come to think of it, if the Fates blessed more of her people with mates, the castle would soon become unsuitable for their community.
It wasn’t built to accommodate couples.
Most of her people had single rooms with small, almost utilitarian bathrooms, and combining more rooms into suites was not possible because they were maxed out.
She would have to build a new wing, with apartments that had kitchens and decent bathrooms. In fact, if she was already thinking positively and planning for a bright future, each apartment would need to have at least two bedrooms.
With Merlin’s new fertility treatment, there was hope that many babies would be born to the clan.
David wrapped his arm around her shoulders. “Are you still worried about my transition?”
She chuckled. “I actually managed to forget about it for a few minutes. I was thinking about the housing conditions in the castle. If the Fates bless us with more mates, I will need to build a new wing with apartments suitable for couples and maybe even children.”
“The clan had kids before. Where did you house the mothers and their babies?”
“We have a few suites, and that was enough to accommodate the rare births. Most of the rooms in the castle are only suitable for a single occupant.”
“Instead of adding a wing to the castle, you could build bungalows for the couples. You have the grounds for it.”
That was not a bad idea. In the past, she’d opted to add on to the castle because of their communal way of living, but if each couple had their own kitchen, there was no need for their dwellings to be connected to the main building.
There was also a third option.
“Kian invited me to move everyone into his village. He has plenty of vacant houses that we can use, and he can build more if needed, but I don’t think that’s a good idea.”
“Why not?”
She sighed. “Because it is strategically beneficial to have two centers that are very far from each other. If Navuh somehow finds out about one location, the other one will remain safe. He won’t be able to wipe us out of existence in one swoop.”
“That’s a morbid end-of-days kind of consideration. I’m not saying that it’s not valid, but how likely is it?”
“Not very likely, but that’s not the only reason. We are a very small community, and grown children sometimes want to live away from their mothers. The two locations enable that. Besides, I love Scotland.”
His brows dipping in a frown, David fell quiet for several moments. “You could use the castle as a vacation spot for your clan members, a summer retreat. That way, you’ll get to see your beloved Scotland anytime you want, and those who need time away from their nosy mothers could come to vacation here as well.”
David’s suggestions made sense, but what she’d told him hadn’t been the only considerations entering the equation.
Sari sighed. “If I move my people into the village, I’ll become Kian’s second-in-command again, and I’m not looking forward to getting demoted. I like my independence here. On the other hand, it’s selfish of me to deny my people’s wishes because of such a petty consideration. Perhaps I need to put it to a vote and see how many are interested in moving across the pond.”
“What about the businesses that you run in Europe?”
“Nowadays, everything can be done via the internet. And if needed, I can fly over once in a while to check on things in person.” She cupped his cheek. “Would it be better for you if I moved to the States?”
“Definitely, but don’t do that on my account.” He covered her hand on his cheek and leaned into it. “I want you to be happy, and I don’t want you to make any sacrifices for me. My home is with you. I can find a way to continue my research from here.”
17
David
Sari smiled. “I don’t know much about being a couple, but I know it’s not fair to ask one partner to make all the sacrifices. I’ll give moving to California some more thought and talk it over with Kian. Perhaps we can divide duties between us, so we don’t step on each other’s toes.”
“What about your mother’s place? From what you’ve told me, she has a sanctuary in some extremely well-hidden location that not even you or your siblings know how to get to.”
Sari nodded. “Alena knows, but she lives with my mother. Other than the two of them, only Annani’s Odus know how to get there, and they operate the airplanes that shuttle people in and out of the sanctuary.”