Heart of Stone (Part III)

III. Chapter 29 | Part 1 - Stone

The incessant buzzing of a bedside alarm clock woke Stone from a dream of him and Aubree cuddling at the top of the Crest and watching the sunrise.

Various other sounds began to drift into his waking senses: birdsong, traffic, and Aubree's mother stirring from her bed on the other side of the house.

He despised the idea of waking his mate and pushing her out of his bed, but if Sandy discovered Aubree out of her own, she'd come after them for sure.

"Röslein," he whispered into her hair, nuzzling the silky, tangled mess with his nose. "Your parents are waking up."

He had been holding her, her back against his chest, but now she rolled over and snuggled up against him, her nose pressed against his collarbone.

"Mhm-kay."

"Should you return to your own bed?"

"No."

A grin tugged on his lips. "Aren't you afraid of your mother finding us?"

"No. Let her."

His grin widened. "She might bite."

"Stop talking and go back to sleep. I'll handle her."

He nuzzled her hair again and placed a kiss on her forehead. "That's my Luna. I love when you get feisty."

"Keep it in your pants."

"I'm not wearing any."

Her lips pulled back against his skin. "I know."

He heard her mother get off the bed and walk across the room to the master ensuite.

Closing his eyes, he tried to tune out the sounds around him and fall back asleep, but the walls seemed paper-thin and every little noise caught his attention.

The chattering of a squirrel somewhere outside had his stomach growling about ten minutes later when Sandy left the master bedroom across the hall and began to make her way toward the staircase when she stopped.

Had Aubree left her door open, or closed?

Regardless, Sandy's pause only lasted a moment before she continued on her way to the stairs and headed down.

In an effort not to wake Aubree, he slowly filled his lungs with air to try and pick up Sandra's emotional scent, but it was too weak among the smells of his room and those coming in through the window. Her emotional state would have to remain a mystery for now.

Until he heard her grumbling to herself once she was in the kitchen.

As he suspected, she figured it out and was none too pleased about it.

"...Too soon to be sleeping together... better not find any presents in those sheets... or condoms in the trash..."

She let the dog out to the backyard.

Stone thought about leaving an empty condom wrapper in the trash can and hide the actual condom. How long would she hunt for the damn thing?

Too bad he couldn't stick around to watch her come apart at the seams.

Aubree's father started stirring now, getting up to use the bathroom, shower, and get dressed before going downstairs.

He didn't hesitate in the hallway.

While her father had been getting ready, Sandy was prepping breakfast. The oven was turned on. Ingredients poured into a glass bowl and blended together. Fifteen minutes after she popped them into the oven, he could smell the muffins baking. Blueberry.