Page 59 of Her Arranged Alpha
"But you're not," he said softly, giving me a smile. "And I think you could use some company." He reached out, moving some free hair behind my ear. "It will be good for you."
I knew he had a point. I threw the covers off and crawled out from under the bed. He reached out, taking my hand. "You know I'm proud of you, right? For handling all of this."
I softly smiled, knowing that he meant it. "And just a few months ago, you wanted nothing to do with me."
He rolled his eyes, pulling me closer, pressing a kiss on my forehead. "Well, a lot can change in that time."
He let go of me and slipped out of the room. I got up and changed, running a brush through my hair before I left the room and headed down the stairs. I found Hope and Sam both sitting at the island, working on coffee. Maddox placed a mug down next to them, and I knew it was for me.
"Jillian, you are up," Hope said, giving me a smile. "After yesterday, I thought you'd never want to get out of bed."
"I didn't. But I'm awake. What brings you in?"
"Well, we didn't want you to sit around all alone all day, so we figured we could come and spend time with you."
"That and I imagine you have a ton of questions," Sam added as she took a sip of her coffee.
I wanted to say that I was fine being alone and that I could handle things, but I'd be lying. I had so many questions filling my head. I had concerns, and I knew that Sam would understand, because she was in the same shoes I was in.
"That's nice," I said, taking my seat.
"As much as I would love to stay for this, I have a meeting to head to." Maddox placed a kiss on my forehead. "Call me if you need anything."
I nodded and watched him walk out of the house, shutting the door behind him. I looked back at Hope and Sam, who smiled at me.
"How are you feeling?" Sam asked, giving a sympathetic expression now.
I shrugged. "I could feel better. I have so many questions. I just feel like this is all so much."
"Magic can be," Hope said, nodding her head. "But any questions you have, we can certainly answer."
I nodded, knowing they meant that. "Was the Council right in being concerned?"
Sam shrugged. "I mean, they have reason to be concerned, but that's because it's not something they entirely understand. None of them have visions, so they don't know the depth of how it goes."
"Is he able to see through me without me knowing?"
Hope shook her head. "No, you would know if someone was seeing through you. Having a vision is different than possessing someone."
"A vision is magic, and while we understand that they are afraid this man might be able to see through you, he could easily do the same to me. But we can't live in fear of it. Do not let the Council make you afraid of the gift you've been given."
I took their words in, knowing that they had a point. After many more questions, I felt a little better. Had a better understanding of what they were saying to me.
The next few days were all moving in a blur. Someone stopped by each day, spending their time with me. We watched TV or spent the entire day talking. Even Maddox was extra caring with me. He left me notes around the house and messaged me throughout the day, asking what I was up to.
I expected to feel stir crazy with being stuck inside the house, but I wasn't. There was always someone around, something that I could do, so it wasn't terrible.
I sat outside putting a shrub into the ground and smiled. I pulled myself up and looked through the entire yard. I was so happy with how it all turned out.
"This looks wonderful."
I turned and found Maddox standing on the deck, taking it all in. I couldn't help but feel proud as I saw the excitement in his eyes. He looked stunned as he took the yard in. "Jesus, you did an amazing job, Jillian."
I blushed as I wiped my hands on my pants. "You've seen the yard, you've watched the progress."
He nodded. "I know I have but to see the final result. It's amazing, Jillian. This backyard used to be bare, and now I havea stunning space. I have trees and a rock wall in the back that is full of flowers. I had a deck with a patio set and strung up lights. We will have to have some people over to use this space."
"The plants will look better after a few years. It will fill in. And the trees will look better once they are bigger."
