Chapter 79 - wait a little

Less than an hour later they were both in bed, limbs entangled with each other. Faun had his face tucked into Declan's chest, furry red-brown ears peeking out of his mop of curls.

It was late in the morning, sunlight streaming in; it was so soothing and achingly familiar to be in bed with Declan at this time.

It didn't take very long for Declan to fall asleep, the werewolf instantly falling unconscious as soon his head touched the pillows. His arms around Faun went lax as well but Faun made up for it by holding onto him tighter, a faint smile on his face.

He didn't plan to sleep as well but he wasn't surprised that he did, it would have been stranger if he didn't. Sleeping beside Declan was like melatonin.

Declan woke up first and when he tried to disentangle himself from Faun, the other woke up too.

Faun rubbed his eyes while bunching Declan's shirt in his other hand, mostly an unconscious action. "What's wrong?" He mumbled, expecting Declan to sleep for longer. It had just been a couple of hours since they slept, it wasn't at all enough.

Declan pushed Faun's wild red-gold hair out of his face, "Do you trust me?"

Faun instantly became alert at Declan's odd tone, "Yes," He said firmly, not even making a witty quip.

"I have to leave," Declan started somberly, sitting up, "I'll come back soon!" He quickly added when Faun's expression fell at his words. "I'm King now so I can't just disappear, I won't be gone for long though. I want to dissolve royalty…" He started to ramble, nervously pushing a hand through his hair. "We're more of figureheads now and Pack Houses are far better for werewolves than a city the size of a small country."

"How long will you stay away?" Faun asked quietly, looking up at him with glistening eyes.

"I don't know yet but I'll come back every-"

"Don't," Faun cut him off, moving closer so that he could climb into Declan's lap. "I don't think I could stand to see you leave so many times." He said softly, tenderly pushing Declan's hair out of his eyes. "Come back when you're all done."

Declan placed his arms around his mate's slender waist to pull him closer, "I hate to leave," He murmured, leaning close enough for the tips of their noses to touch.

"I know," Faun replied, closing the distance to join their lips in a kiss.

Declan slanted his head to bring them even closer, his hands finding their way under Faun's shirt to caress his warm skin.

Faun let out a stifled moan when Declan's tongue slipped into his mouth, their kiss tasted like a warm drink on a cool morning. If he could, he would meld into Declan, fusing into him, that's how much closer he wished they could be.

Declan's phone buzzed on a side table, shattering the sultry magic that was being woven around the both of them. He cursed when Faun broke off the kiss, shooting a glare at his device.

He had wanted to put it off and chuck it into the woods but he knew better than to do that, he had a responsibility… Well, Declan never cared much about responsibilities but he saw this as his payback for freeing Faun.

"You have to go," Faun said quietly, it was neither a statement nor a question.

Declan pulled him close again, breathing in his scent, his chin resting on his soft curls. "Yeah."

Although he said that, they didn't move from that position, breathing in each other's scents and saying nothing.

Declan's phone broke the solitude again, making Faun grudgingly leave his personal space.

"Call me as often as you can," Faun forced himself to say brightly although his eyes were glassed over. "And send my stuff back," He added, feigning upset.

Declan walked up to him with purpose, ignoring his ringing phone, "Don't want to sleep in my room?" 

Faun took a step back for each step his mate took knowing that it would end terribly if Declan held him again, "I-" His response was cut off by loud knocking from the front door.

"Fuck," Declan cursed under his breath, quickly closing the distance between them to snag Faun's waist and pull him up against him.

Although Faun now knew that he was no longer hunted, it was difficult to wipe decades off the slate. "Who's that?" He asked Declan, looking up at him with wide terrified eyes.

"Probably Ash and Cade, those idiots." He grumbled, going to grab his phone before leading the way out of his room.

Faun relaxed at this, letting Declan hold his hand as they made their way to the living room.

Declan opened the door with a scowl, "What?"

Ash was unfazed by this, his searching eyes settling on Faun. "You're okay, thank fuck," He breathed, walking up to Faun.

Declan deflected his plans by pulling the hybrid behind him, "Fuck off," He tossed at Ash who responded with puppy eyes, "And you," He added to Cade who had an exasperated expression on his face. "Wait for me at the entrance to the woods, I'll be there in a bit."

Cade didn't hesitate, grabbing his partner's wrist to practically pull him away while Ash loudly protested. He was just as relieved to see that their King was able to fix things with his mate but they really needed to head back. No one was happy to hear that their newly crowned King was MIA.

Back in the cottage, Declan pulled Faun into one last hug, so tight that the fox hybrid found it difficult to draw in a deep breath. 

"I'll be fine," He placed a small hand on Declan's cheek when he eased up on the hug. "Knowing Isla, she'll camp out here until you return."

Declan was actually really grateful for his troublesome editor, he owed her several favors.

"I love you," He said, grey eyes intense.

Faun's smile bloomed at the same time that his tears spilled out, "You really don't want to leave," He half- threatened with a chuckle, hiding his face in Declan's chest. "I love you just as much," He leaned back to say, stepping back.

The hardest thing Declan had ever done in his life was turning around and walking out the door. So much had happened in such a short span of time; eternity wouldn't be enough to spend with Faun.

Faun watched Declan's back disappear down the rocky path, standing in the doorway until he could no longer see him, silent tears spilling down his face. He wiped his eyes with a smile as he went back in and closed the door, why was he acting like Declan was going off to war? His mate would be back in no time now, he just had to wait a little.