Tundra Book Two: Leonis

Chapter Six

Maia stirs in her sleep. She turns onto her stomach and stretches both her fingers. She extends her fingers across the bed. The sheet is cool under her palm. Maia reaches out her hand again with a frown. She cracks an eye open then sits up wide eyed. She's not in her room and Atlas is not on the bed beside her.

Maia throws herself off the bed and rushes round the bed. Atlas has not fallen off the bed. His bag is gone but his car seat is still here. Maia shuts her eyes with a few deep inhales and exhales. She stands up again and walks to the window peering out of it. The pool area is now completely vacant.

Maia's panic pounds in her chest and fear kicks her into overdrive. She doesn't bother putting her shoes back on nor does she collect her things before she flings the door and rushes out the room. There is chatter coming from somewhere inside the house. Maia follows the noise past the foyer and to what seems to be a lounge like setting, with dated furniture and a persian rug.

There is a single long seater couch that Leonis is sitting on. Beside him is Atlas' bag and a young looking boy that she has not met. The boy is sitting on the carpet, resting his back against the couch. To the left of the couch is another person Maia does not know. He is older than the boy but he seems boyish. He is shirtless, wearing sunglasses and is tapping at his phone.

To the right of the couch, Faye is sitting down with Atlas in her arms. Archer is sitting on the arm rest of the chair alongside her and the two are playing a game of peek-a-boo. Atlas is squirming in Faye's arms and he is laughing gleefully. Maia drops against the door frame. Griffin comes to a halt beside her, holding a freshly made bottle for Atlas.

"You okay?" he asks in a hushed whisper. He glances at her with a soft smile.

Maia bites down hard on her teeth to stop herself from crying and she nods her head in response. Griffin holds an arm open and Maia steps against him, leaning her head on his shoulder. Griffin rubs her with his cheek against the top of her head.

"I'm sorry we must have scared you taking Atlas without saying anything. But as you can see he's okay. We're about to watch a movie and feed the little man. Faye would like to try and put him down for a nap if that's okay with you?"

Maia straightens, stepping away from Griffin with a sniffle. "I don't know why I'm hugging you, I don't know you."

Griffin nods his head muttering "fair enough. Why don't you come sit down?" Griffin walks into the room before she can respond and Maia watches on then wipes at her eyes. Griffin hands Faye the bottle and he sits down beside Leonis tapping his leg as he does.

Leonis glances over his shoulder then he stands up and walks to where Maia is standing. Maia is instantly aware that she has just woken up. Her hair must be a mess, her jersey twisted too. She smoothes a hand over her jersey as Leonis stands in front of her. He towers over her and he crosses his arms, leaning forward.

"Hey there," he says softly "did you have a good sleep?"

Maia nods her head but remains silent. Leonis nods once. The two stand in silence for a moment.

"I should have left a note or something. I shouldn't have just taken him but you were resting and I didn't want to wake you. I assure he's safe here. You both are."

Maia nods her head again, folding her arms over her chest. She leans against the door frame again watching the scene playing out in front of her. Faye is feeding Atlas and Archer is watching her with an impressed smile. Griffin is flicking through the channels on the T.V and the boy beside him is slowly sliding off the couch and onto the carpet. Griffin drops a pillow onto the carpet beside the boy, as if being able to predict where he will land.

The other guy is still tapping away at the screen on his phone and he is grinning broadly. He shows the boy something on his phone and Griffin covers the boy's eyes expressing his disappointment vocally and with a frown and an eye roll.

"Atlas has never been around so many people," Maia admits. "He looks happy. And everyone seems very nice. It almost feels like there's a catch and I'm just waiting for the other shoe to drop."

"I get that. It took me some time to adjust when I first moved in here. We're a family, we're not perfect but we're good. Do you want to freshen up? I'll make you a cup of tea. Ginger okay?"

Maia nods her head. She walks back to the hallway and back into Leonis' room. Her shoes are on the floor beside the bed, Leonis must have taken them off for her. Simple cream moccasins. Comfortable and perfect for a mom. Maia sits on the edge of the bed and she slips her shoes on with a chuckle. Once her shoes are on she walks into the bathroom.

She flicks the light on and looks around. There's a large oval shaped bathtub to the left of the room with a mat in front of it. To the right there is a sink with a circle shaped mirror above it. There are neat cabinets on either side of the sink with small cacti on the tops of it.

Maia stands in front of the mirror. Her hair tie is on the left of her head and her hair is half undone and messy. Maia clicks her tongue as she unties her hair. She runs a hand through her hair, remembering how Leonis peered down at her, his green eyes gleaming with every word he said. He is beautiful, there's no denying it. Maia fluffs at her hair wanting to look attractive too.

She decides it's a useless effort but tries nonetheless. She parts her hair from the right to the left and runs her fingers through it. It's curly and unruly but it's better than leaving it half tied, she tells herself. Maia washes her face with cool water and she swirls water in her mouth after smearing toothpaste on the top and bottom row of her teeth.

She pulls her jersey straight again and examines her outfit. Not her best look, she confirms, but certainly not her worst. Maia walks out the bathroom and down the passageway. She peeks into the lounge and when seeing that Leonis is not there she turns around and looks around her.

Across the foyer from the lounge there is a large kitchen. Maia walks into the kitchen and finds Leonis opening a box of microwave popcorn. There is a cup of tea with a ginger tea bag on the counter beside him. Maia lifts the tea cup and she stands beside him, resting her waist against her counter. Leonis glances at her with a soft smile.

Maia blows at her tea and she sips it. It's strong and catches in her throat but it's warm and delicious. Leonis has added in some honey adding a level of welcomed sweetness.

"Thank you for the tea, Leonis."

"You're welcome, Maia."

Maia smiles up at him, tugging her hair behind her ear.

"Popcorn?"

"Yes please."

Leonis nods and he puts a pack of microwave popcorn in the microwave. It's butter flavoured, they all are. Once it's popped he turns around to an island behind them and there is a rectangle shaped basket that is filled with an array of sweets and chocolate bars. Leonis drops a popcorn bag into the basket and then sets another in the microwave.

Maia does a quick count of the loot and there is enough for everyone including her. She smiles again. She watches on in silence as Leonis continues popping the popcorn. She sips her tea until it's finished and as she does Leonis finishes his task. He sets the last popcorn bag into the basket and pics it up.

"You ready?" he asks her in a soft, gentle voice.

Maia nods and she follows Leonis from the kitchen to the lounge.