Chapter 5
CAIDEN
S elene’s red eyes are wide as her antennae quiver. She looks positively terrified, and I hate it. Since the moment I laid eyes on her, I wanted nothing more than to make her smile. There’s something about her that draws me in, like a moth to the flame.
I reach across the table and take her hands in mine. “What’s going on?”
She takes her bottom lip between her teeth but doesn’t respond to my question.
“You can tell me.” I squeeze her hands, doing my best to reassure her.
“Well,” Selene begins, her shoulders tensing, “I downloaded the app to find my fated mate.”
“It’s like your one true love or something, right? I have a few buddies who have fated mates.”
She nods, chewing on her bottom lip again. “That’s probably the easiest way to describe it.”
A flare of jealously burns in my chest. I despise the idea of Selene being with anyone else. But I take a deep breath in through my nose and out through my mouth. I’m too grown to be getting envious of something I can’t control. If she’s not meant to be with me, then there’s nothing I can do about it.
“That’s really cool!” I give her hands another comforting squeeze. “Putting yourself out there to find your mate is really brave.”
Selene’s cheeks turn a very adorable dark pink. “Um ... well ...”
“It’s okay,” I say, stroking her thumb with my own, partly to soothe her and partly to ease my own anxiety. Is she about to tell me she already found her fated mate? Is this her about to reject me? I was hoping for more time with her.
“If we matched”—she looks down at the table—“it means we are fated mates.”
My jaw drops. Did I hear that correctly? I stare at her for a few moments, trying to process what she just dropped on me.
Selene pulls her hands from mine. “I’m sorry. I’m such an idiot. We don’t have t?—”
I hold a hand. “Wait. I just need a few moments. I thought you were about to reject me.”
Her eyes widen. “Really?”
I nod. “Also, I feel a bit like an idiot for not paying better attention to the app. I apologize for putting you in this position.”
She shrugs, a small smile on her lips. “It’s okay.” Her throat bobs as she swallows. “So ... how do you feel about all this?”
I rub my chin, my beard catching on my callouses. The first thing I feel is relief that she isn’t rejecting me. This means we get to spend more time together.
The idea of being someone’s mate should shock me. It’s not that I don’t believe it’s possible. Hell, Larry and Gary found each other. It’s just ... why would fate put someone as perfect as Selene with a stubborn, middle-aged man such as myself? If Victoria couldn’t love me, how could Selene?
But the question was how I feel about the fated mates thing, not how I feel about myself. I can delve into my own insecurities later. It’s time to focus on being honest with Selene. Here’s to hoping my answer doesn’t scare her off.
“When I first saw you, I felt like we were drawn together,” I explain. “Something clicked into place. Like snapping in the last piece of the puzzle, if that makes sense.”
Selene nods. “It does.”
“Is that because we’re mates?”
“Very likely,” she answers softly, her red eyes twinkling. “I’m not one hundred percent sure how it all works, but that sounds like what I’ve heard other people experience. And ... I felt the same thing.”
My heart soars, thrilled she feels the same way I do. I told Callie I wasn’t ready to date again until I found The One. And here I am, sitting across from the most beautiful creature I’ve ever laid eyes on, and she’s telling me we’re fated mates. It’s literally what I wanted.
I take a moment to allow my pragmaticism to take over. Even if Selene could love me when Victoria couldn’t, should I really be jumping into this? These intense feelings are new and unlike anything I felt with anyone, including my ex-wife. Maybe I should slow down, take some time to process them, and make sure committing myself to Selene is something that I really want.
But I have been waiting for this my whole life and I’m not getting any younger. I always felt like something was missing with Victoria, and I followed all the ‘rules’ for dating. Selene is right here, determined by fate to be the perfect partner for me.
Besides, the fact she’s a Cecropia Silk Moth has to mean something, right?
I smile and reach across the table for her hands. “Is there anything we have to do to make this official?”
Her face brightens. “You aren’t freaking out?”
“No way,” I say with a shake of my head. “I just told my sister I didn’t want to date again unless I met The One. And here you are.”
Selene squeezes my hand as another blush creeps up her neck and face. “Sealing the mating bond is quite an adventure.”
“Don’t leave me hanging.” I lean over the table. “Tell me!”
Angling herself so her lips rest against the shell of my ear, she whispers, “It involves an all-day mating ritual.”
Now it’s my turn to blush. “Mating ceremony?” I ask in a hushed voice.
She sits back in her seat and nods. “We can get into the nitty gritty when we’re alone.”
Blood rushes to my cock. Alone with Selene? I want nothing more than to have her all to myself.
She giggles. “Are you still hungry?”
“For food, no.” I chuckle. “But now I’m hungry for something else.”
Waving her hand in the air, she flags down our server. “Can we get the check, please?”
When the server returns with our check, I pluck it off the table before Selene can reach for it. “I got this.”
Her eyes narrow. “But I can pay for my own food.”
“I understand that you are capable but allow this stubborn old man to be a gentleman and pay. I want to take care of you.
“Thank you,” she murmurs, a small smile curving her lips. “And you’re not old.”
“Debatable.”
I quickly pay at the counter and Selene walks me with to the parking lot.
“What now?” she asks, her red eyes glowing in the early dawn light.
“I keep up with my gentlemanly visage and walk you to your car.” I hold out my elbow for her to take.
She slips her arm through mine and leads me to her car, a small pink hatchback covered in witty decals. I laugh when I read one that says, “ONLY UGLY PEOPLE HONK AT ME!”
“I love that I get to see little glimpses of your personality in things like your bumper stickers,” I tease.
“What can I say?” She shrugs. “I love to express myself.”
I place my hands on her hips, loving how soft and voluptuous they feel under my fingers. “I look forward to learning all the ways you express yourself. I can’t wait to get to know you .”
She steps closer to me pressing her chest against mine. Heat surges to my cock. Fuck. Just having her pressed against me is too much to handle. I want nothing more than to feel her under me, but it would probably be frowned upon to take her in this Waffle House parking lot.
“And I can’t wait to get to kno—” But her statement is cut off by a long yawn. Tears pool at the outer corners of her eyes.
“You’re exhausted, huh?”
Selene rubs at her eyes. “I am.”
“As much as I would like to have you alone and learn more about the mating ceremony, we should probably call it a day. You need some rest.”
“But I want to spend more time with you,” she pouts.
I chuckle. “From my understanding of fated mates, we have the rest of our lives for that.”
“We do,” she says with a smile, “but it doesn’t stop me from being a little disappointed.”
“I’ll make it up to you.” I bring my hand to her cheek and stroke my thumb over her soft skin. It feels like fine velvet. This close, I can easily inhale her sweet scent of almond and vanilla. It’s heavenly, and I suppress the urge to bury my face in her hair and sniff.
Selene leans into my touch, her eyes fluttering closed.
“Can I kiss you?” My question is a whisper, low and hopeful.
“Please,” she murmurs as she surges to her toes.
I bend to meet her halfway. She’s at least a foot shorter than me, but the distance is worth it when her lips press into mine. Our kiss takes my breath away. It’s soft and tender as if we both fear that moving too fast will make the other disappear. A tingling heat starts at my lips and spreads throughout my body.
When she sighs against my mouth, I tentatively swipe my tongue over her lips, tasting the remnants of overly sweet coffee. Selene’s fingers dig into my biceps as she parts her mouth to allow her tongue to dance against mine.
The heat in my body rages like a fire. I’m engulfed in passion and something else. Something calls me to the blaze, wanting me to jump in and dance among the flames. Each caress of her tongue—every press of her lips—sizzles and pops.
I break the kiss with a desperate gasp. “What is happening?”
Her red eyes glow like taillights on a dark and rainy night. “It’s the bond.”
“I’ve never felt anything like it,” I admit, completely in awe. “It was …”
“Divine,” she completes for me, breathless.
“Divine,” I agree.
Selene brings her hand to her mouth to stifle yet another yawn. The glow in her eyes dims and her antennae droop. “I wish I wasn’t so tired.”
I press a kiss to her forehead. “We’ll see each other soon.”
Tossing my keys onto the kitchen counter, I let out a long sigh. While I’m disappointed that I just found The One and we had to part ways before we were ready, I’m utterly exhausted and thankful to be home so I can crawl into my bed.
As soon as I enter my bedroom, I’m shedding my shirt, not even paying attention as I toss the garment into my hamper. Did they make it? I don’t know and I don’t care. I stumble into the bathroom to brush my teeth. I’m about to pop the toothbrush in my mouth when I remember my phone.
I’ve been so caught up in processing the fact that I met Selene and she’s everything I’ve ever wanted, that I forgot I should probably check my messages and make sure she got home safely.
Oh shit.
I never got her number and she never asked for mine. How the hell did I forget to get her number? I must have been so distracted by our connection, that it slipped my mind.
Oh! I perk up.
Kismeet! I’ll just message her on the app and ask for her number.
Clamping my toothbrush between my teeth, I dig around in my pants pockets, looking for my phone. I find it and unlock the screen. It’s still on Do Not Disturb, so I switch that off. But as soon as I do, my phone begins to vibrate with multiple notifications.
It startles me and right before the device slips from my fingers, I see a notification for Kismeet pop up on the screen.
“Fuck!” I exclaim, my teeth still biting into the handle of my toothbrush.
With a horrifying plunk and small splash, my phone lands in my toilet.
Fuck me sideways. Did that really just happen?
I groan and dive for the phone, not hesitating to fish my phone out of the bowl. Thank goodness I just cleaned my toilet before Callie and Artie came over, and I have one of those pucks that rinses every time it flushes.
“Ugh!”
Shaking the water off my phone, I silently plead with the goddess that my phone will be okay. Most phones are waterproof nowadays. It should be fine, right? I desperately tap at the screen but get no response.
You’ve gotta be fucking kidding me! Is this because my phone is way past needing an upgrade? It was working just fine. Sure, it was lagging at times, but I didn’t want to give in to big cellular and upgrade my phone before I felt ready.
It’s cool. I’ll just do the old bag of rice trick. After I wash my hands, I rush to the kitchen, prepare a Ziploc bag full of dry rice and bury my soggy phone in it. That should do it.
What sucks is that I’ll have to wait. And I didn’t even get to plan the next time I’ll see Selene, or even tell her what a great morning I had with her. I hope she doesn’t think I’m ghosting her. But there’s nothing I can do other than go to bed and try again when I wake up this evening before work.