he wished he were the one asking about his mate.
Another moment of silence, and Logan blew out a breath.
“I’m—okay, just a little sleepy. I’ll be back at the pride house soon,” Logan said.
Indigo felt no relief from Logan’s words. If anything, he wanted to argue that Logan needed to come back now, and not later. Dezi glanced Indigo’s way, and as much as Indigo wanted to demand it, he didn’t want to push Logan even further away. His nails bit into the palms of his hand, and he let out a measured breath, calming his panther down. He gave Dezi a curt nod, knowing because he and Logan weren’t fully mated yet he really had no say; it was Dezi just being nice and optimistic.
“Okay, but if I don’t see you here, let’s say, tomorrow for dinner, I will send Clyde and Cole to drag you out of your apartment. And you know how those two are whenever they do a job together—they create more of a mess than the kids,” Dezi said.
There was no laughter or one snarky remark. “Okay” was all they got before the call ended.
Indigo stared at the phone in Dillan’s hand until he put it away, but still Indigo waited for Logan to keep talking although knowing he wasn’t on the line anymore. A firm hand landed on his shoulder and squeezed.
“How are you holding up?” Dezi asked.
Indigo was caught off guard. How was he doing? Shit, he was going batshit crazy without his mate. He was right there, and there was nothing he could do because he’d been a fucking grieving idiot five years ago and pushed away from the one man who was meant for him. None of those words came out; instead, his shoulders slackened, and he hung his head.
Indigo took in a ragged breath. “I’ve had better days. I just don’t want him to feel like he can’t be here because of me. This was his home first,” Indigo said.
Dezi tightened his hold, and Dillan shifted into a black cat with ease, slipping from the pile of clothes and jumping onto Indigo’s lap. Kash scooted closer and placed an arm around Indigo. Shifters were both human and animal, and because of this mixture, the need for touch was greater. It’s why shifters stayed in groups—some said it grounded their animal side, and some said it grounded their human side. Indigo believed it grounded them as a whole.
As if Gabriella knew Indigo wasn’t feeling all that well, she came up to him and hugged his leg. Indigo placed his hand in her soft curls. His beautiful angel. Ava came over holding Samantha in her arms, and Ava leaned in too. She was feeling her wolf more and more the past few days. Her bright blue hair was done up in two buns with glitter. Indigo was pretty sure the glitter was going to get all over his pants, as it clung to everything and was impossible to get off. Indigo smiled down at her. He didn’t want to leave the pride, but he didn’t want to take anything away from Logan.
“It will work out,” Dezi said with a surety that Indigo didn’t really feel anymore.
Waking up was getting harder, and if Logan didn’t have an annoying bladder, he’d probably stay asleep. The heavy, unbearable feeling that lay on top of Logan was impossible to move from under. Logan lay in bed, and he felt as if his body was too heavy. He moved sluggishly, curling his body around a pillow. Why did he wake up again?
Bathroom. He groaned into the pillow and ever so slowly peeled himself away. He opened his door and hissed, shielding his eyes from the sunlight that came in through the living room. He rested against the bedroom door, covering his eyes. Fuck, it isn’t worth it.
Logan knew his apartment like the back of his hand and attempted to make it to the restroom without uncovering his eyes. He probably spent too much time at the pride house. He walked straight into a wall and crashed down onto the floor. He sat there on the carpet. The entire apartment felt so wrong to him. Stale and unwelcoming.
“This is so fucking stupid,” he muttered to no one because he was alone.
These last few years, being alone hadn’t been a problem for him. He knew he could just call one of his pride mates or go to the pride house and be a part of something—he wasn’t so lonely now