Talia lost track of time while sitting on Damon's lap, using his firm body as a super-luxurious chair that came with the extra service of his fingers running through her hair.
She really loved Damon's solid warmth and his addictive scent, but unfortunately, they couldn't stay like that forever.
Both of their desks were cluttered, reminding them that they have work to do.
Before returning to their duties, Talia had a few questions.
"Damon?"
"Hmm?"
"What will happen to those two women?"
Damon didn't care about Ashley or Heather. "Whatever you want. But don't let them go easily. Unless you show them you are in charge, they will see it as a weakness and try again. Even if they don't come at you directly, they will gossip and incite others."
Talia wondered, wouldn't they gossip and scheme more if she gives them a hard time?
"Do you really expect me to decide on their punishment?"
"You don't want to?", Damon responded with a question. "They approached you with bad intentions. This is your chance to teach them a lesson and set an example for others."
Others? "Should I punish every woman you slept with?"
Damon could feel Talia's irritability that was laced with sadness and a mix of emotions swelled inside him. Shame. Anger. Regret.
He rested his forehead on Talia's shoulder and tightened his hold on her.
"Fuck", Damon cursed under his breath. "If I had a time machine, I would go back in past and slap my previous self until I engrave into his mind that he needs to save himself for you."
Talia pressed her lips into a line.
Why did she bring up the point of Damon's hookup habits?
Does she have the right to admonish him?
Why was he apologizing instead of being his usually domineering Alpha?
It seemed he was really sorry and that he cared about her opinion.
The truth was that he couldn't change the past, and Talia wondered why did it bother her so much. And there was one more thing…
"If you had a time machine, I would ask you not to use it."
Damon lifted his head to look at her. "I thought that you were bothered by…" He struggled to find the right words. "…my past."
To say that she wasn't would be a lie, but Talia looked at that from a different perspective.
Talia put her hand on Damon's cheek and smiled a little. "If you are not this Damon, the Damon of right now, you wouldn't go to the Red Moon pack, and we wouldn't meet."
Damon looked at Talia in awe. "Do you always see the good side of things?"
"Not really.", she admitted. Talia always thought of herself as realistic, but the truth was that she often succumbed to negativity, except for… "When I am with you, it's different."
Damon's interest piqued. "How different?"
Talia was not really sure how to explain, and it was a bit embarrassing.
"Tell me, kitten. I really want to know.", Damon said with his best puppy-eyed look that Talia couldn't resist. He was silly and adorable and incredibly handsome, and she inhaled deeply before responding in a small voice, "You make me feel like…" Talia hesitated.
Damon's eyes widened in anticipation. "Like?"
"Like… anything is possible. Like… as long as we are together, everything will be alright."
A big smile bloomed on Damon's face as Talia's words echoed in his mind.
"I feel the same about you." He really did. "As long as we are together, everything will be alright, so, don't leave me, kitten."
Actually, he felt more, much more, but he couldn't put it into words, so he inched closer in slow motion and pecked her lips once, twice, and then Talia's arms moved around his neck, and he deepened the kiss and the whole world faded, leaving only the two of them tasting each other while their hearts beat as one.
It was late in the afternoon when Talia's phone rang.
She paused the education video about solar cells and her eyes lit up when she saw who it was. Kalina.
"Hi Lina!", Talia exclaimed enthusiastically, and then she shrunk in her chair and glanced at Damon who was working at his desk. It took him a second to shoot her a glance with a smile that made her heart skip a beat.
"Hi Lia!", Kalina greeted back. "Is this a good time to talk?"
"Sure.", Talia responded in a low voice, careful not to disturb Damon whose gaze returned to the documents in front of him.
"Guess what?", Kalina asked.
"What?"
"Today I will finally finish with Luna-to-be activities, and that means Tony and I can come to your pack starting tomorrow. Let me know when you are ready to receive us. Tony will bring four additional people, but those four are fine to stay with warriors…"
Talia's heart fluttered. It's happening! Guests are coming! And she will be the host!
"OK. Got it.", Talia responded. "So, it's you and Tony and four more people. I will talk to Damon and get back to you. What about Mindy?"
"Do you expect me to invite Mindy to stay at your place? You should do that."
Talia thought how that made sense. "Alright. I will give her a call. I will let you know once I figure out her availability."
"We are having guests?", Damon asked Talia when she ended the call.
With his werewolf hearing, Damon heard both Talia and Kalina, but he still wanted to hear from Talia.
"Kalina, Tony, and four more people. Kalina said that those four are fine to stay with warriors."
"You can tell Steph to handle the warriors so that you focus on settling people who will stay in the packhouse.", Damon suggested.
"Didn't you say that people coming with Tony should be his close associates?", Talia asked. Damon told her how Tony is at risk of becoming an Alpha without anyone reliable by his side unless he befriends capable people soon, and the fact that he was bringing people must be one of his befriending attempts.
"I did.", Damon confirmed.
"If they are close, they should all stay in the packhouse. Tony will learn from you, and those guys can learn from Caden. Besides, we have plenty of rooms here.", Talia said, and Damon had to agree with this logic.
Damon admired Talia's mind that considered the big picture, and also focused on details. She was the perfect Luna.
Talia held onto her phone and stood up. "I will call Mindy and check if she can come also."
Damon didn't like the idea that Talia was leaving the study. "You can make the call from here."
Talia refused. "I don't want to disturb you. There is a good chance we will talk about more than just her schedule." Talia gave Damon a meaningful look. "Girl talk."
Damon watched helplessly as Talia walked out of the study. It's not that he wanted to control everything, but whenever Talia was not in his visual range, Damon would become restless. And just like many times before, he had a bad feeling about this.
He was on pins and needles for the next fifteen minutes.
What is taking so long? Did Talia forget that she needs to return? Did she get lost? What if something bad happened?
Only when the door of the study opened, did Damon settle his racing thoughts. Talia was back.
She was holding onto her phone, a notepad, and a pen.
Talia saw that Damon's attention was on her, so she spoke enthusiastically, "Alright. We have eleven people coming. I told them to plan tentatively to arrive three days from now, and that I will confirm the exact timing by tomorrow morning. What do you say? Can they come in three days?"
As Damon's assistant, Talia knew his schedule and since he didn't plan any trips, it should be fine, but she still wanted to confirm with him.
Damon was stuck on one thing. "Eleven people?"
Tony, Kalina, and four more make six, and if Mindy is coming, that's seven. Who are the other four?
