章 185: 25. Audition.
Mariella sat beside Damon wearing a forced, polite smile on her face. She felt irritated, but she kept up her role. She had no idea that being the heroine of this rescue operation would be like this. One interview after another, and she had to sit next to Damon, saying what he telepathically told her to say, and playing the perfect wife. She wanted these reports to be done with, and maybe have some passionately excellent shower or kitchen sex with Damon, maybe include numbers two, four, and five, but no, it was time for another interview and for her to do her part. No wonder Mimi had done what she did to them.
Mariella refrained from rolling her eyes as the reporter asked Damon about his relationship with Mimi. Damon's answer was polite, referring to her as his mate and his future wife, but he couldn't say where the wedding would be or when it would happen. He smirked and mentioned that he hadn't even proposed yet, but he was determined to have the American sweetheart as his wife once again. When they asked about Mimi and what she was doing, Damon simply stated that she was saving others as usual, giving them time to recover from the extremely traumatic experience.
Mariella had to play the role of the freaking perfect wife, talking about their perfect family time, how wonderful Damon was, and how lucky she was to have him as her husband. They discussed their relationship and what they meant to each other. Magnum and Wulfe stood nearby, with Wulfe smirking as he listened to Mariella play her role. He gave Damon a few ideas for Mariella to say, and Damon smiled in his mind.
This was all part of the harsh lesson for Mariella. Hopefully, the next time she thought about being part of a rescue operation and wanting it to be public, she would think twice, especially if she ever found herself captured and in need of being saved.
Damon was prepared to give her a few more lessons when the time was right. He had no intention of interfering with her at the wedding. That was reserved for Mimi. Their perfectly controlled wedding and with flanks, not just with organs but injections in her lungs. Just perfect. The wedding nights and the entire wedding festivities would be taken care of by the other Salvatores, ensuring that someone would be there to look after Mariella while Damon focused on Mimi.
As for their work as NSA agents, everything would fall into place in due time. Damon hadn't even attempted to contact Mimi yet, as they weren't really in that state yet. There was no need for Mimi to barge in and witness Damon and Mariella fucking all day long and everywhere, as they tend to be quite raucous and wild with their need for sex or seeing them be interviewed. Damon didn't want Mimi to interfere with Magnum, Charles, or Adam either. It was best for her to be on her sniper tour, and he wasn't really worried about her.
Their lives had been improving lately, thanks to their improved physical fitness and their active sex life. While not everyone was as passionate as Damon and Mariella, the main thing was that everyone was getting better, and the past seemed to be fading away, or at least becoming less horrible. Damon was grateful for his health, or what he had of it. They had been almost depressed by all of it, but now, sex had healed them more or less.
One humiliating experience was going to the gym with Magnum and being completely defeated by him, but it gave Damon the motivation to do better. On the other hand, it also gave him a reason to spend a few days in bed with Mariella to release his frustrations. He hated to be that weak but in bed; he won always Mariella and it helped again.
The other Salvatores weren't as easily provoked. Numbers four, five, and eight had taken lessons and were putting in the work, exercising, and getting in better shape. So Magnum and Wulfe had their hands full with training the Salvatores, Adam, and Charles in the gym. And then there was a surprise when Mimosa and Shadow walked into the gym, full of anger.
Once again, Wulfe and Magnum had two more students to train, but it wasn't too much for them. It kept them busy and gave everyone a chance to release their emotions and improve. The rigorous exercise in the gym also increased everyone's appetite, and the food was taken care of by those who weren't always in the gym.
They had not yet focused on solving the issue of who was whose protector, and not all pack members were around all the time. However, the time for that would come at some point. They had time, as they were immortals and they were still in the middle of healing.
Charles was sitting at the table, despite what he had done. This nagging feeling persisted, although it had subsided somewhat before. Now it was stronger. He was pretty certain that it might have something to do with Mariella. Even though his radar was not clear about what could be wrong with her, since none of the Salvatores were affected, it probably wasn't Mimi.
But Charles was Mariella's protector, and she still had some issues. Over time, he had become more sensitive to them, and now he was reacting more strongly. It was irritating, but then again, he knew how good it felt when he followed his instincts. Maybe someday he would act on it. He didn't want to disturb Damon and Mariella, so he suppressed the feeling deeper, as hard as he could, in order to focus on going back to the gym and fighting against Lepard, who had real issues. Magnum knew how to unload his rage, too.
Adam had a similar nagging feeling, but they were still recovering, and it hadn't been that long. Physical recovery was fast once they got the hang of it, but mental recovery would take time, a good amount of it. There were so many aspects for them to deal with. First, Charles and Adam had feelings of being used, tortured, and weak. Then there was anger towards Mariella, whose idea it had been to just wait around and rely on public rescue.
They also longed for Mimi. They had had so little time with her for a long time, and both of them wanted to have some serious fun time with her. But since they weren't there yet, it wasn't an option. Besides Damon, the other Salvatores, Wulfe, and Magnum, all wanted a piece of Mimi. Charles and Adam weren't sure when they would get their chance to have her just for themselves. They also suffered because she wasn't their wife. It had been one thing for both of them to be immensely proud, as they weren't married to anyone at this time. Only the Salvatores were married, not even the boys were married.
Charles was uncertain about Damon's position on their marriage to Mariella. He didn't want to rush into things because he still believed that Mariella preferred the Salvatores, especially number one, and wasn't concerned about being married to them. Charles wasn't even sure if he wanted to marry her at all. It would be a small victory over the Salvatores if they, he and Adam, and the boys were able to have their own wedding, even if it was a secret ceremony at a registry office or something similar, but not just yet.
Adam and Charles were feeling quite restless, and they sometimes experienced real mood swings. However, they didn't talk about their feelings with anyone. Since Colin was busy and Salvatore was preoccupied with their lustful lives, Mariella and Damon focused on the press and publicity. Magnum and Wulfe helped out with whatever was needed, but no one asked about Adam and Charles.
The days went by, and one day Adam felt an incredible euphoria after a tough workout at the gym. He ended up spending 12 hours in bed, not really understanding why, but he brushed it off, thinking that it must have been some kind of release for him.
On the other hand, Charles suddenly felt a powerful urge to go hunting. He headed into the forest and brought down a fully grown bear, which was quite a straightforward task since it was hibernating. Bear meat was a rare treat for them, and Charles hadn't felt such a strong need to hunt before.
Mariella sighed and got up to go to the kitchen. She needed some coffee, so she went to her own coffee maker. She felt annoyed by the number of coffee makers in the kitchen, even though she understood everyone needed their own due to the amount of coffee they consumed daily. Still, her frustration sometimes caused her to curse under her breath.
She poured fresh water and prepared the filter paper for her coffee maker. She opened the lower cabinet and took a deep breath to decide which coffee was right for her. It took a little time because she was so irritated, but she finally settled on number 35 and measured enough aromatic beans from the rough burlap sack where they were stored. She knew they also had some beans in the fridge, but she was too tired and frustrated to go in there. Besides, it was easier to identify the correct bean type when they were at room temperature, even if they lost some of their aroma. It wasn't a big deal since they drank such strong coffee.
She pressed the button and watched as the light turned on, indicating that her coffee maker was warming up the water and grinding the beans to make a perfect pot of coffee. She walked to the fridge and took out some cream, along with the sugar solutions, on one of the kitchen shelves. That was another thing. They couldn't just use regular glucose or processed white sugar all the time.
It had to be the correct type, so she had to smell which one it was for the day. Today, it was fruit sugar, and she knew she would need less of it compared to regular sugar. Even though she was incredibly irritated, she acknowledged their lives were easier than Mimi's. Mimi had to keep her sugars in a different place because she was so sensitive, and they had to be carefully approved by the Salvatores. Each time a packet was opened, it had to be checked out.
Mariella noticed a slight smile on her face as she realized the challenges that Mimi faced in her life. She considered Mimi to be a saint. It was rare for Mimi to get frustrated or throw a tantrum, unlike Mariella, who would sometimes get upset with Damon for small reasons. Mariella recalled an incident in which Damon had changed the bedsheets in their bedroom in Ireland. She had taken it personally and accused Damon of implying that she smelled.
Damon calmly explained the importance of basic hygiene, especially since they were fucking long times in that bed. He even got a new mattress to eliminate any lingering smells. Mariella realized how oblivious she had been to the situation and felt frustrated with herself. However, Damon handled her outburst with grace, allowing her to vent without taking it personally.
Mariella sometimes wished that Mimi would express her frustrations in the same way. Damon had told Mariella how Mimi would yell at him when he put her semi-used clothes in the laundry, but now that the pack did it together, Mimi didn't get as easily upset. Once they had fully recovered and the public attention had subsided, Mariella believed it would be a good time to embrace pack life.
She understood why Mimi didn't want to be in the limelight and have her face plastered in magazines again. However, Damon had a plan to remind the press about Mimi being the American sweetheart during their wedding, which would force her to lie low. This would provide an opportunity for a calm and happy family life, focusing on having babies and raising cubs.
Damon sat in the kitchen, watching Mariella as she made her coffee.
"Darling, do you have some coffee for me too?" he asked with a smile.
He was smirking smugly, believing that, of course, Mariella would share with him as he was feeling lazy.
Mariella grunted in response, "Nope, make your own. Besides, that's not what you should be having. Go smell the coffee you should be drinking and make a pot. You haven't had enough coffee or eaten enough fat. And for God's sake, it can't be that hard to take a dump. I know it smells, but it's necessary to expel from your body. Do you really want me to operate on your guts again?" Her voice was irritated and snarky.
It was rare for Mariella to lose her composure like this with him. Damon frowned, realizing that Mariella was once again acting as his protector. With his bonds to Mimi closed off, maybe this was meant to be.
He responded calmly, "Relax, darling. I haven't eaten that much. Besides, when I don't need to go, I don't need to go."
Mariella rolled her eyes as she stepped out of the fridge, carrying a few cakes. "That's because your intestines are enlarged, and I have to take them out and make you grow a new set at some point," she snapped.
Damon rolled his eyes and said, "I can try to heal them. No need for an operation."
Mariella sneered, "And has that helped in the past?"
Damon had to admit that his healing abilities didn't really work on himself. Well, this was just their life, and the operation wasn't a big deal for him. But then he remembered the reports about their intestinal flora and realized that his laziness could put Mariella in danger, exposing her to his nasty bugs. He really should have thought about this before being so lazy. This was just how their lives were - not always easy. Despite the ease of the operation and their resilience to harm, it was an unnecessary risk. Damon realized it was time for him to grow up, take responsibility for his own health, and set a good example.
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