Finding His Mate Ch. 02

"Maddy. What happened to your face?"

"Nothing you need to be worried about."

Tiffany and Ryan never liked each other. Madison's convinced that if she ever left them alone in a room together for longer than ten minutes, someone would end up dead.

"It's just a little cut, Ryan. Nothing crazy."

Ryan watches as she heads to her apartment door. He knows she's lying to him. Madison can't lie even if she tries. But, he isn't going to push for further information. If there's one thing he knows about Madison, she doesn't like it when people press her for the information she isn't ready to share.

"Well, if you need anything, you know where to find me."

Madison smiles warily at Ryan before entering her apartment. She's not used to being home in the afternoons. The overcast over the city earlier had passed, leaving behind a fully exposed sun, which was shining brightly into her apartment. Walking to her couch, she plops down and rests her head on the back panel.

"What a day, huh?" Madison looks at Tiffany, whose attention is on her phone. "So, you're not gonna tell me why you lied?"

Tiffany stops what she's doing on her phone and looks at Madison.

"Don't even try to lie or deflect. Spill it."

"Honestly, there's not much to spill. I just know Azeil's sister. Alexandra. That's it." Madison watches her facial expression to see if it changes.

"Then why when I said his name, you go all weird on me?"

"I didn't get weird... I was just....surprised, if you will. It's not every day that people run into him. Literally."

She looks back down at her phone. Yes. She's lying. But, Madison doesn't have the energy to go back and forth with her in hopes of pulling out the truth. Sooner or later, she'll crack.

"Hmm... well, good thing he spotted the bill. I wasn't looking forward to dropping that kind of money right now." Pain shoots through her face, causing her a groan. "At that, I'm gonna lay down. These stitches are starting to hurt, I have a headache, and this day has been exhausting, quite frankly. Are you gonna be here when I wake up?"

Tiffany shakes her head. "Nope. I gotta get back to work."

Madison has no clue what Tiffany does for a living. She's one of those people who always say they have a job but never tells you what exactly it is they do. The last time she asked, Tiffany just said, 'she's a social media genius,' and she never asked again based on that answer alone.

"Welp. I'll see you tomorrow or later then. Just make sure you lock the door on your way out." She doesn't wait for Tiffany's answer as she turns the corner into her bedroom. Taking off her clothes, she slides under her covers and sighs. It's days like the one today when she wishes her mom or dad were still alive, especially her mother. She would know what to say to soothe her.

She closes her eyes and thinks of her. She was so beautiful. She doesn't remember much past a few characteristics but continues to hold onto her memories. Madison's biggest fear is not remembering her at all, a day she hopes will never come. Her body starts to relax, the pain on her cheek dimming in comparison to earlier. As she sinks deeper into her bed, she finds herself thinking about what her co-worker said to her back at the restaurant.

What did she mean by 'I've never seen him like that before'? By the tone of her voice, it felt as if she was implying something, which is hard for Madison to believe, considering she just met the man today. It wasn't the friendliest exchange she's ever had with a stranger. Maybe she just meant he felt terrible? It seems Moe was working under him, which means he must've known about how sleazy the guy is and turned a blind eye. Or, maybe he did show her some kindness that's out of his character?

"Ugh."

Here she is thinking about the what-ifs, as if someone like him, who has some kind of power, would be interested in her. She still has many more questions for Tiffany, especially surrounding her relationship with Azeil, but that's for another day. Right now, she needs to relax and get some rest. She feels her body sink even deeper into her bed, and her eyelids get heavier. After a hearty yawn, she finally succumbs to rest.

***

Madison wakes to a dark bedroom and reaches over to her end table to grab her phone. After realizing she left it in her bag, which is in the living room, she gets off the bed and walks into her bathroom to examine her face. A bit of blood had seeped through the wrapping. She peels it off slowly, wincing as the tape separates from her skin, and looks at the cut in the mirror.

He got her good, but the doctor did a good job stitching her up. She sees a few smaller cuts on her face and tilts her head to the side quizzically. Although she thought the doctor was loopy when he brought it up, it does look like a bear scratched the shit out of her. She initially thought Moe had sliced her with a razor, but that wouldn't explain the smaller cuts.

After applying ointment and a new dressing, she makes her way to her living room and finds her phone in her bag. As she's scrolling through her notifications, someone knocks on her door.

"Who is it?" She already knows who it is and wonders why he won't use the key she gave him.

"Maddy, you know it's me."

"Then come in, Ryan." She doesn't bother looking up from her phone as he unlocks her door. Ryan could be so odd at times. Some days he bursts through her door without any kind of announcement, and others he requests entrance. Just strange. She watches out the corner of her eye as he scans the room, probably looking for Tiffany.

"She's not here. I think she left a few hours ago."

He releases a sigh of relief and sits down next to her. She's busy on her phone, which allows him the time to examine her face closely. He can smell her blood through the bandage on her face, and based upon the size of it, her cut isn't just a 'scratch.' He quickly averts his gaze when she looks up, focusing on the television in from of them.

"So, you're not going to tell me what happened?" Madison looks into his eyes and sighs.

"He sliced me with a razor... I believe." She adds the last part, as, at this point, she's not exactly sure if it was a razor based upon the damage left. His eyes flash again, this time staying emerald green.

Ryan can feel his fangs elongate. While he knew what had occurred, hearing the words come out of Madison's mouth made it all too real. He needed to find that beast and cut him open.

"Ryan, I'm fine. I'll have a little scar, but nothing crazy." Madison can feel Ryan's energy shift, which is odd for him. He's usually calm, cool, and collected, rarely showing any emotion. She watches as he forces a smile on his face, his bright white teeth a complete contrast to his rich, brown skin.

"Well... I'm happy you're good and safe. Upset that I wasn't there to help you, but happy that someone was there who was."

Madison scuffs lowly. "Yea, I guess. If it weren't for Azeil, I probably would be in a much worst state. Hell, the guy was about to punch me, I think." She notices his body tense at Azeil's name and wonders if he knows him as well. Why is it that everyone knows this guy, but she doesn't? She hasn't even heard his name before today.

"You know him?"

Ryan shakes his head. There's no reason bringing up his name, nor did he want to alarm Madison in any way. It seems she's not too fond of him, which is good. He clears his throat and changes the topic.

"What do you want to eat. You've been sleeping all day, so I suspect you're a bit hungry." Just as he finished, a loud growl erupts from her stomach, causing them both to laugh.

"You're always right on time with the food, Ry." She looks at the time." Let's get pizza. We can go to that new spot around everyone's talking about. I heard their slices are as big as your big head."

She hops off the couch and grabs her shoes and coat. "You're not going to grab a coat, Ry?"

He shakes his head, "Nope. You know I'm cold-blooded."

Madison laughs. She always jokes with him about that. He's never affected by cold weather, damn near embracing it in some instances. "You're so strange sometimes, Ry. Honestly."

They exit her apartment and make their way to the pizza shop. The smell of freshly made pizza hits her as they turn the corner on the street the shop is seated. 'Devils Alley.' The bright red signage shines brightly, a contrast from the night. The pizza shop isn't large, only fitting a few people inside at a time. A small line has already formed outside of the shop, which she expected.

"I'm so hungry, I can eat a whole pig. Like a whole one. Un-roasted, bloody, the whole thing." Madison notices Ryan becomes uneasy as the line moves closer to the store and wonders what's up with him. He was just pleasant a few minutes ago.

"What's up, Ryan? You seem... uneasy a bit. Do you wanna go?"

Ryan looks down into Madison's brown eyes and shakes his head. "No. I'm fine. Just thought I saw someone is all." Ryan watches as she brushes his comment off. He knows she knows he's lying. Truth be told, Ryan caught the scent of something unfamiliar and is on guard. Ryan has been around for hundreds of years, so for him to not recognize a species isn't something he takes lightly. The last thing he wants is for something else to happen to Madison, especially in his care.

As they get closer to the pizza shop, the scent becomes more robust. Ryan scans the faces of the waiting patrons to see if it's coming from one of them. However, they all seem human. It has to be someone inside. He knew something was off about this place since he heard of its opening and would've declined coming here with anyone else besides Madison. They're next in line, which Madison is excited about.

"Next!" She zips to the counter and examines the pizza eagerly. "What can I get for you, doll?"

Madison looks at the employee to answer, who catches her off guard when she sees he's looking at Ryan menacingly. She feels Ryan step closer to her and wonders what she missed. The employee must've felt her discomfort or finished his macho man showdown with Ryan, and returns his attention to her.

"What can I get for you?"

"I'll have a slice of 'heaven's love' and a slice of 'damned,'" she looks back at Ryan, "Do you want anything, Ry?"

He shakes his head, which she finds odd. Why walk all the way here, just not to eat? Typical Ryan being strange again.

"Then, I guess that's it!" She watches as he warms up her slices of pizza and turns around to Ryan. "You're not hungry?"

"No. I suddenly became nauseous, so I'm going to take it easy." His eyes drift back to the employee, who he's watching closely. He knew it! If he has detected correctly, the employee, whose name appears to be 'Dan' per his name tag, is a Were and something else he can't quite pinpoint. He wants to say Angel, but they've been extinct for centuries now. He stops Madison as she attempts to pay for her food and hands his card over. If he can just get some form of DNA from him, he can extract the information he needs.

"Insert it in the slot." Ryan looks at the white, square, POS system in front of him and grinds his teeth. Fucking twenty-first century. After paying for the food, Ryan escorts Madison out of the shop. He looks back at the hybrid one last time before turning his attention to Madison, who's already on her second slice.

"What was that all about back there?" They were a bit of a distance away from the pizza shop, and Madison isn't going to let him slide. It's odd seeing Ryan act out of character like that.

"Nothing. I just smelled something foul that turned my stomach."

"Ryan, don't play dumb with me. I'm talking about your little exchange with my man Dan. What was that about?"

Ryan thinks about what to say that wouldn't be alarming. He has to straddle the fence here. He doesn't want Madison thinking he's some over masculine prick who was 'claiming' a woman, but at the same time, he can't reveal everything to her.

"I know him somewhere but can't pinpoint where." Madison throws her plate away in a garbage can and wipes her hands on her jeans.

"You know? While I want to believe you, I don't. If I see someone who I think I know, you know what I do?" she stops and stares at him for a brief moment, "I say 'hey, do I know you?', not stare them down like I'm in some old western stand-off. And I'm not going to chalk it up to being some guy thing because it wasn't. But, I'll let you slide."

Ryan watches as she walks in front of him and smiles. This is the Madison he likes.

It's a little after one in the morning when they arrive at their apartment complex, which is perfect for him. He still has to go on his hunt. As they walk up the stairs, he notices Madison's eyes are heavy, a clear indication that she's tired, which she's going to deny.

"You should get some rest, Maddy. I'll see you tomorrow." About to object, Madison only nods her head and agrees. She is feeling a bit tired, even though she hasn't been up that long. I guess she is exhausted.

"Cool. I'll see you tomorrow Ry." As she walks into her apartment, she turns around. "And thanks for the midnight pizza. I really do appreciate it."

Ryan feels his heart flutter just a bit as she says this. Making Madison happy is something he doesn't get tired of. The sound of her door closing snaps his mind back to the task at hand. He stands outside her door until he hears her walk into her bedroom and makes his way down the stairs. Once outside, he smells the air for his target. The one good thing about that vile species hitting her is the DNA he left, which he got from her clothing while he was in her apartment earlier.

He locks onto the faint smell and smiles. Finding him is going to be easy.

Madison strips off her clothes, throwing each piece in the laundry bean as it leaves her body. Today was exhausting. However, she's happy it ended well. That's the thing she loves about Ryan. He always finds a way to cheer her up when she's down.

As she slides in her bed, her soft sheets caress her body, causing a moan to escape her throat.

"Home sweet home."

She brings the cover-up to her neck and looks at the ceiling. She hopes her 'mystery man' visits her tonight because she can use a little release. Her hand trails down her body as she thinks of him... Azeil. As she closes her eyes, his piercing blue ones appear behind her lids. They are the clearest blue eyes she's ever seen. It's like when he stares at her, she can't think of what to say. She can feel his gaze with her body.

During his examination of her after Moe's incident, she could feel the heat emanating from his body engulf her. That's the main reason why she had trouble recalling what occurred. His very presence is distracting. Plus, he smelled so good, and there's nothing like a man whose cologne makes your pussy throb.

A moan leaves her body as her fingers come in contact with her clit. Her hips automatically react to the touch, joining in the circular dance her fingers and clit are performing. She rubs her outer lips with her essence as she becomes wetter. Her body heat rises as she gradually increases the speed of her fingers. The feeling of a small ball tightening begins forming within her. She can feel her walls flex, begging for penetration. It's been so long since something other than her fingers and dildo has entered her. Keeping her index finger on her now hard bullet, she slides her middle finger within herself, curling it up against her top wall.

"Shit...".

She licks her lips as she thinks about Azeil's, imagining how they would feel against her skin. If they feel as soft as they look, Madison can only imagine what they would feel like wrapped around and sucking her clit. The feeling of a waterfall replaces the pressure. She opens her legs wider, in turn providing more room for her second finger to enter her. Her palm replaces her index finger, providing a level of pressure her finger couldn't. The sound of her juices squishing around fills the quiet room, intensifying the feelings of pleasure. She vigorously pumps her fingers inside of herself, her mouth forming an 'o' as she reaches her climax.

"Oh..."

Her breath catches in her throat, and hips jerk up. She closes her eyes so hard, it takes them a while to adjust once she opens them.

"Damn."

Sliding her finger out of herself, she lets the weight of her legs take over as they go limp. That was better than she expected. She rubs her hands on her sheets and sighs. Who is she kidding? She just fantasized about her boss while masturbating. But, she would be lying if she said she didn't enjoy it. A small smile creeps across her face as she drifts to sleep, with hopes of dreaming of her' mystery man'.