Chapter 2
Ayden's POV...
(Beautiful Irina-------->)
After hours and hours in the air the plane's tires finally made contact with the ground as the pilots smoothly navigated the jumbo jet across Miami International Airport’s tarmac. Our security detail stirred and they were on instant alert. I felt a warm hand brush over mine and I looked up into the comforting gaze of my brother, and I managed to give him a wobbly smile to ease his worrying a little. I could feel it weighing on his shoulders like a physical thing. I could also feel his excitement.
I had to admit that I was excited myself, we were mere moments from seeing him again and I for one couldn't wait. I needed to see him to see if the pull was still there. I needed it to be like I needed blood to survive, the distraction from my gut wrenching grief would be most welcome.
The Captain was still speaking overhead thanking us for choosing the airline and what not when the stewardess announced that we would be disembarking now. Our bodyguards immediately got to their feet and made sure we had everything before preceding us off the plane. We made our way down another private hallway. We were led to a private lounge and the stewardess collected our passports and disappeared through the door with one of our guards on her heels.
The wait lasted for about a half an hour or so and just as I was about to start my restless fidgeting the woman finally returned and wished us a pleasant stay in sunny Miami. Ahron thanked her for all of us but right now I was just anxious to get going. We were finally within arm’s reach of Stavos and my anticipation further amped up by Ahron's was a potent mixture of anxiety fraying my already overtaxed nerves.
We were ushered out into a brightly lit area and I immediately sensed our Auntie, but I barely had time to comprehend anything before the guards parted like the Red Sea and both my brother and I were snatched into a bone crushing embrace. Aunt Irina's scent swirled around us like a warm soothing blanket. Tears almost threatened to choke me right then, she reminded me so much of our Mum, if we didn't know they was almost a 100 year gap between the two anyone could have been mistaken the sisters for twins themselves. She continued to pet and fuss over us and our empty hearts soaked up all the love an attention like dry sponges.
Our entourage made it outside to the curb where black gleaming cars waited, the sliding glass doors whooshed open and closed behind us and the warm balmy air outside slapped us in our faces as we exited the cool air conditioned building. The smell of auto exhaust and the humans assaulted our senses. Both Ahron and I looked around, and to our utmost disappointment Stavos was nowhere to be seen, so we settled into the back of the limo as the guards loaded out numerous pieces of luggage into the SUV parked in front and back of our vehicle. Finally, we set off for the mansion and we gazed out of the tinted windows and watched the palm trees and high rise buildings whirl pass us as they dotting the Miami skyline as we sped over the highway. It was late afternoon and we figured that Stavos was busy with Dimitri in one of his mega offices, so we bridled our anticipation and took in our new surroundings.
The cars pulled up and through the gates of a very posh island of massive homes. The lane was lined with lush palm trees and tropical flowers as our convoy made its way down the street past the gated homes. We came up to a huge set of gates that flowed open silently and we passed through winding our way up a cobblestone drive to a massive house. The limo came to a stop right in front of a wide set of steps leading up to an elaborate entranceway. Aunt Irina ushered us out of the car once the door was opened by a big burly vampire. She patted the man’s cheek as she gracefully swept past him and as her foot hit the first step the door opened and Uncle Gustav came outside and made his way quickly to her side. He pecked her lovingly on the lips before turning his attention to us. He gathered us into his arms and we were squashed into his ginormous chest.
“Come on guys; let me show you to your rooms so that you can freshen up. Dimitri and Stavos should be home in a little while. Fair warning though about your Uncle Dimitri, he has found his mate and he is human, they are in the courting phase so he maybe acting a little weird and occupied so don’t feel uncomfortable about it.” He explained to us and we raised our eyebrows at the word “he,” describing Dimitri’s mate. Interesting, it was uncommon for same sex mates, but it happened often enough but never since we have known Uncle Dimitri. Yes, this should be very interesting to watch.
The house wasn’t as we remembered it from the last time that we visited, but it was still gorgeous. The expensive, but subtle mix of antiques and contemporary furniture and art gave it a warm but luxuriant homey feel. You could definitely see Aunt Irina’s touch in every room that we passed, especially with the huge vases of fresh flowers complimenting the décor. The house was warm and lived in, not like most expensive homes that gave off the feel like it was a museum or something. Following behind Uncle Gustav we passed a room and we stopped in our tracks. The scent coming from behind the door was so enticing our fangs dropped and I looked to Ahron and his eyes were fully dilated showing only a slight ring of his blue irises. We breathed the mouthwatering scent deep into our lungs and shivered, this room belonged to our mate. Dare I hope? “Uncle Gustav, whose room is this,” I asked as our Uncle who was intensely studying our reactions.
A knowing smirk crossed his face before he answered. “That is Stavos’ room. Now come along.” He said and continued to usher us down the hall. I couldn’t tell you what was said or to whom because I was so high up into the deliriously happy stratosphere where I catapulted with the news that Stavos was our mate. I could feel the euphoria singing through my twin and we couldn’t wait to be alone to discuss it. Our last bag was unpacked by a bevy of maids and when the final garment was in place we thanked them and rushed them from the room. I closed the door and leaned against it almost squealing like a girl, I was so happy. I knew he was special to us. I always knew it even from our first visit here, but our mate. Oh Gosh.
Ahron came over and used his sexy body to crowd against me on the panel of the door. He leaned forward and ran his nose along the line of my neck causing a shiver to tingle up the length of my spine. I brought my hands up and ran them over his warm flesh from the small of his back to the back of his neck. “Our mate love, can you believe it?” He whispered as his lips ran over my jaw. His tongue snaked out and flicked the tip of my ear. I whimpered and shuddered underneath him. “Come on let’s shower and rest up to see what the evening brings. How are you?” He asked me as he led me to the en-suite bathroom. I had no wards to describe how I was feeling right now so I just shrugged.
We undressed and Ahron was very thorough as he watched our bodies. Afterwards we dressed in simple gym shorts and t-shirts and we pulled the plush covers down and snuggled down into the bed. I gathered Ahron close to my body and rubbed my face over his chest. “Are you going to be okay with us sharing, I mean sharing me with our mate?” I shyly asked him.
He looked down at me and ran his hand through my hair. “Baby, you are my life, always have been and always will be. We are fortunate enough to share everything and if our mate is deserving of you I won’t mind at all, I mean its more love and protection that we will have in our lives. We need that; we need him just like I need you.” He said and my heart fluttered and glowed warmer in my chest. I smiled and pecked him sweetly on his soft pink lips and snuggled in. The time change finally catching up with me, vampires didn’t need sleep but that doesn’t mean that we never felt the feeling of being exhausted; and after the roller coaster of emotions we have been riding in the last few days has left us mentally if not physically exhausted. We never had to have the need for true sleep and I wasn’t going to go there. We had to rest in order to have the mental readiness to meet and face our mate tonight.
The last few hours passed quickly and soon enough evening settled over the house. Aunt Irina knocked quietly on the door and told us that dinner would soon be ready. We jumped up totally excited and ran to the closet. We chose almost identical black slacks and button down shirts. Mine was royal blue and Ahron’s was gun metal gray. We donned some black loafers and made our way to the kitchen. Anticipation simmered under my skin with every step that brought me closer to the kitchen. Deep voices and throaty laughs reached my ears long before we got there. Ahron’s excitement mingled with mine ramping me up even more and when me came around the corner all my focus zeroed in on the towering man standing at the circular island bar. His stood there literally larger than life.
His commanding frame stood tall at 6’8, his shoulders spanned both Ahron’s and mine put together. His mane of silky black hair flowed over those spectacularly huge shoulders. His square jaw was covered with dark stubble calling out to me to just rub my sensitive lips across it to feel the delicious abrasion against my skin. Heat flashed through my veins and pooled in my now rigid dick. Ahron mewled under his breath and his desire slapped with enough force to almost bring me to my knees. I took a deep breath and elbowed Ahron in his side. In order for me to keep it together I needed him to keep it together. That was the only drawback to our bond. We came to a stop only a few feet away from where he stood. Uncle Dimitri was first to notice us and he smiled and stepped forward. “Hey guys, damn you have grown.” He said as he gave us each a comforting hug. He released us and offered us unspoken comfort with just the look in his eyes.
Stavos turned to us and he took one step towards us but then stopped mid stride, he lifted his head and inhaled deeply, his eyes flashed open and they were glowing brilliantly silver. My breath caught in my throat. The look he gave us could have molten steel it was so hot. He just stood there looking at us; you could have heard a pin drop in the room. His whole aura called to us, enticing us. Ahron made to step forward but before his foot could even hit the floor Stavos disappeared into thin air. Ahron growled and did something that I have never seen him do before, we never had the need. He dematerialized, vanishing as well leaving me there confused and a little hurt. Aunt Irina stepped up and tried to diffuse the awkward situation. “He is a complicated person baby; don’t be discouraged, this is a new experience for him. Now, chin up and let’s eat. Things look better on a full stomach.” She said as she ushered everyone to the table.
But what she didn’t know was that I could still feel my brother’s emotions. He must have caught up to Stavos to wherever he had dematerialized to and now anger and disappointment swirled in my gut like a fetid mix of emotions. I could barely manage a smile for my Aunt and Uncles as we went through the motions of dinner. I did something that I never would have even contemplated before. I silenced our bond. Ahron was really working himself up and I couldn’t take it, so I shut him off, in doing so he came rushing into the kitchen not more than a minute later. He excused himself and grabbed my hand and literally dragged me from the kitchen and down the hall towards our bedroom.
He shoved me inside and slammed the door. With wide eyes I watched as he paced the length of the room in agitation. “He is a moron.” He blurted out to my surprise. “He just stood there while I screamed at him. How dare he react like that? Then it finally dawned on me, we are his first mating. It’s not that he was rejecting us like I thought. He is scared; this is as new to him as it is to us.” He explained and I released the breath that I wasn’t even aware that I was holding.
“So he didn’t reject us?” I said and I hated how small my voice sounded at that moment, but I couldn’t help it. It was what I had thought, but now Ahron was convincing me that it was not true. Stavos just found out so abruptly that he had a mate, and not one but two, and not a female but male. In all honesty I couldn’t blame him for his reaction. We were going to have to get to know our man just like he was going to have to get to know us. But I couldn’t forget the heat in his beautiful eyes and the smell of his arousal before he had cleared out of the kitchen. The memory sent a quick lick of fire to my cock. Ahron stopped his pacing and turned and smirked at me letting me know that he knew exactly how my body was responding.
He came over to me and took my hand and led me to the bed. “Our mission right now is to find out as much as we can about our skittish man. Then we are going to take that knowledge and use it to show him that we are exactly what he needs. You, baby boy are going to use this beautiful body and those big blue eyes to catch him while I will use my charm to work its magic. Game on little brother, we have our man to catch.” He stated, his interest as well as his mischievousness reached me and I couldn’t help but smile. We sat there and plotted, the best way to find out about him was to observe.
I suggested that we talk to Aunt Irina and Uncle Gustav. If anyone knew all about our man, they would. We agreed that Uncle Dimitri was not the best choice right now he had his own issues trying to entice his own mate. I can’t wait to meet the man that brought our dynamic Uncle to heel. Maybe he could teach us a thing or two, but knowing my brother and his antics, Stavos is not going to stand a chance against us.
We changed and got comfortable in the bed. We stayed up long into the night talking and making our plans. We were going to put our plot into action first thing in the morning. Our first step was to be in every possible place that he will be. We were going to be on him like white on rice but the first thing we need to do is talk to our Aunt to find out his daily routine. The smile on my face couldn’t be contained. I laid there in the comfort and security of Ahron’s embrace as I thought about all the possible happiness that could come from having our mate realize that we belong together. We deserved some happiness and so did he. The brittle sadness of our parents passing was still pressing on me but with the task of pursuing our mate ahead of us will prove a welcome distraction. Ahron was so right, game on big man. You have no idea what is going to be unleashed on you. I smiled as I snuggled down deeper into my brother’s chest for the night.