The first thing Keira noticed was the warmth. Then came a faint ache – a reminder of the mating bond. Slowly opening her eyes, Keira blinked as the soft light filtered through the heavy bedroom curtains. She realized she was nestled against something solid and warm.
Keira's gaze lifted upwards. A broad shoulder filled her vision. She followed the line of it, past the strong curve of his bicep, to the powerful chest. It rose and fell with the slow, steady rhythm of sleep. Keira shifted just enough to get a better view. Donovan's skin stretched over well-defined pectoral muscles. She moved her gaze downwards, over the lean, sculpted lines of his abs.
A blush crept up her neck as she realized she was openly admiring him, but she didn't feel any shame. This was her mate. Keira reached out, her fingers tentatively tracing the warm curve of his chest, feeling the muscle beneath her touch. He stirred then, a low groan rumbling in his throat, and an arm tightened around her waist, pulling her even closer until her ear was pressed against his steady heartbeat.
"Good morning, mate," he murmured, his voice a low, husky rumble.
Keira smiled.
"Good morning," she whispered back, her voice thick with sleep.
"Go back to sleep," Donovan muttered, taking a deep breath.
Keira yawned. "I think we've been in bed for two days. I lost track of time."
"Hmmm, probably," Donovan agreed.
"Mm," Keira hummed. "I don't think I ever want to move."
"You're warm," she added.
Donovan chuckled. "While that's tempting, love, I suspect even we might need to eat something eventually."
Keira's eyelids felt impossibly heavy. Every muscle in her body hummed with exhaustion, the kind that only comes after hours of intense intercourse.
"No," Keira mumbled, burrowing deeper. "Just… five more minutes."
Donovan kissed the top of her head, his lips soft and warm. "Five more minutes, then."
Keira was just drifting back to the hazy edge of sleep, the scent of him all around her, when a most inconvenient sound echoed from the pit of her stomach.
RUMBLE.
It wasn't a delicate gurgle; it was a full-on, hungry beast's roar. Donovan stiffened, then let out a startled laugh. Keira, mortified, buried her face in his shoulder.
'What bad timing!' Keira thought, embarrassed.
"Well," he managed between chuckles, pulling back just enough to look at her, his eyes twinkling with amusement. "Someone's hungry."
"Don't look at me," Keira mumbled, her cheeks flushing. "I was perfectly fine until you started talking."
He kissed her forehead, a soft, lingering touch.
"And now," Donovan teased gently, "we should probably get something to eat."
He paused, then his grin widened. "Think we can shower and then make it to the kitchen without collapsing?"
Keira groaned, but a small smile finally tugged at her lips.
"I might need to be carried," she declared, looking up at him with mock seriousness.
Donovan's eyes softened.
"Consider it done," he murmured. "Shower first, then breakfast."
Donovan stretched and then carefully untangled himself from their embrace. "Alright, my love."
Keira watched him as he padded towards the bathroom, his silhouette outlined against the sliver of light from the window. A moment later, she heard the rush of water as the shower turned on. Then Donovan stood there, a towel wrapped low around his hips, droplets clinging to his damp hair. He looked utterly handsome.
She watched as he walked over to the bed. Without a word, Donovan scooped her up into his arms, a gasp escaping her lips.
"Donovan!" she laughed, wrapping her arms around his neck, her body molding against his warm, damp skin.
"Shower then breakfast," he said, his voice low as he carried her towards the bathroom. "And if you're too hungry to move, you're certainly too hungry to shower alone."
Keira wanted to protest; she wasn't too hungry to shower alone. Sabelina was enjoying the attention way too much, so Keira didn't argue.
Donovan set her down gently under the steaming spray. He reached for the shower gel, dispensing a generous amount onto a loofah. His hands, strong and gentle, worked their magic, washing away the residue of their passion with practiced ease. He lathered her back, her shoulders, and her arms.
Keira leaned into his embrace, her head resting against his chest, the scent of soap and Donovan filling her senses.
"You know," Keira murmured, feeling content, "this is a really good way to start the day."
He pressed a kiss to her wet hair. "I'm not against having sex every morning if that means shower time together."
Keira blushed but didn't comment. As her stomach rumbled once more, Donovan quickly grabbed the shampoo and helped wash her hair. Keira washed out the rest of the shampoo as Donovan washed himself beside her. She would have offered to help, but he didn't let her.
Once the shower was turned off, Donovan grabbed a couple of towels for them to dry themselves. Keira quickly dried herself and went back to the bedroom to grab a pair of clothes.
'We should go shopping,' Sabelina commented. 'We can't be wearing black every day.'
'There is nothing wrong with wearing black,' Keira argued, putting on her underwear and bra.
'You are Luna,' Sabelina reminded her. 'We need to look presentable at all times. That means not wearing tactical armor all the time.'
Keira pouted. 'I'll think about it.'
She got dressed and put on her shoes. Donovan was already waiting for her.
"Ready?" Donovan asked.
"Let's go," Keira said, walking out of the bedroom.
The mess hall was busy with pack members as Keira and Donovan emerged from the back of the pack house. Keira pretended not to notice how many of the pack members immediately stopped eating to look at her.
'Do I have something on my face?' Keira wondered as she headed toward the food.
Donovan grabbed a plate and handed it to her. He grabbed one for himself and started serving them both.
"Donovan," Keira began.
Keira felt embarrassed; she wasn't used to this kind of attention. She had always done everything for herself. This experience was new.
"We sit at the main table," Donovan whispered next to her as he led the way. "Come on."
Keira followed behind him and took a seat when they arrived. Marcus came to join them a few moments later.
"Marcus," Donovan and Keira greeted.
"Alpha, Luna," Marcus greeted. "Slept well?"
"Yes," Keira replied, taking a bite of her food. "The bed is extremely comfortable. Better than the bed at Headquarters."
"The houses have been furnished," Marcus began. "I left the list of families on your desk, Donovan. You can take a look and decide who gets housing first.
"The construction for the remainder of the houses is underway as well. We were able to get a contractor to come and take a look at the layout. They agreed to start building the layout for the dorm."
"Drew called," Marcus continued. "He said that the funds were sent to the new account. I went ahead and authorized a deposit to continue the construction while you were occupied."
Donovan cleared his throat and nodded.
"Luna, there are a few things that also need your attention," Marcus said. "We don't have an office for you, so I left the paperwork on Donovan's desk."
Keira was slightly surprised. She didn't think she would actually be given an office.
"I'm sure we can figure something out," Keira replied. "We can worry about that later."
Keira quickly finished her food as Dononvan got ready to leave. She hadn't realized he had already finished his food.
"Don't worry about the plate, Luna," one of the female pack members said as Keira was about to grab the plate. "We'll get it cleaned up."
Keira nodded and followed after Donovan.
"First, let me go over the layout," Donovan began. "When King Richard assigned this territory to the pack, there were a few buildings already here- the pack house, the office, a storage building, and a few house foundations.
"Instead of wasting time building a new pack house and office, we took over those and had the contractors finish the housing first. That was 6 months ago. Things have been slow due to the financial issues we've been experiencing."
"To make it more efficient, I think we need to have a new pack house built," Keira said slowly, unsure if he was open to suggestions.
The current layout of the pack was a mess. The pack house should be at the center with the medical building, training facilities, and mess hall nearby.
"You want to rearrange everything," Donovan stated.
Keira nodded. "Since there isn't a lot built, I think this is the perfect time to get everything arranged as it should."
"What about the houses that have been built?" Donovan asked.
"The houses are fine where they are," Keira hurried to explain. "Houses should stay in that area, but the current packhouse we can convert it to another housing facility for guests or something.
"I don't mind staying at a hotel if it means that the pack has a place to sleep. It's better to pay for one room than to pay for 10."
Keira waited for Donovan to make his decision. The small office building came into view.
"Alright," he eventually said as he opened the door. "We'll do it your way. Let me know if you need anything."
Keira smiled and walked inside. There was much to do, but first she needed to look at the documents that Marcus had left for her.