When Darius returned to the estate, he was nothing but tired. He didn't even come to sleep in Nicholai's room that night. He had been gone for more than three days, and he still had a lot of things to do. Also, the Thanksgiving Banquet was in four more days. Darius just wanted to shut down to recharge, so Cleo did was what asked.
Darius's sleep was dreamless, but he could feel Nicholai holding him. He wondered if the mate went to his room and slept next to him that night. However, as the morning was ushered in with Dylan's morning greeting, Darius knew that he had to rise by then.
["Oh, hi, Darius, good morning!"] Rica's cheerful voice echoed from the handset that Darius had on the table. He answered Rica's call while he was doing his modules, with Ansel helping him with the more complicated ones. ["I was hoping you're free… like until… the wee hours?"]
