Chapter 15 #2
I grin despite everything and grab a bag, throwing in clothes and essentials. On impulse, I also take the box of cookies I made yesterday and some of the food from the fridge, all the stuff I’d prepared thinking Mother would come to my place.
“Can’t let it go to waste,” I explain.
Soon we’re back in the truck, bags in the back, General Flufferton in my lap trying his best to migrate to Luke’s lap despite the fact that he’s driving.
“I could calm you down again,” Luke says with a wicked grin. “Like before.”
But I’m laughing. “You wish.”
“What? I was having fantasies about it during dinner. Devouring you right there on that fancy table.”
I gasp, heat flooding through me. “You were not!”
“Was too. You in that dress, looking all elegant and untouchable? Made me want to touch everything.”
General Flufferton chooses that moment to balance on the center console with his front paws on Luke’s shoulder, sniffing his hair.
“I think someone approves of you,” I say.
“Goddamn, this cat is huge. It’s like a panther. Is it going to maul me?”
“Only if you stop petting him.”
Luke manages to drive one-handed while scratching behind General Flufferton’s ears, and my traitorous cat purrs loud enough to rival the engine.
Then we turn into a driveway, and my mouth drops open.
There’s a security gate with a keypad and cameras. Luke punches in a code, and the gates swing open to reveal a driveway that seems to go on forever, winding up toward the mountains.
“What the?—”
And then I see it.
The house, no, the mansion, which sits at the base of the mountains like something out of a magazine.
It’s enormous, all stone and wood and huge windows that probably have million- dollar views.
The grounds are manicured but not fussy, with huge old trees and a pool house off to one side.
There’s a six-car garage, outdoor lighting that gives everything a warm glow, and is that a fucking fountain?
“You live here?” My voice comes out squeaky.
“All three of us, yeah.”
The house itself is a mix of modern and rustic, with dark wood beams and stone accents.
“Are you three secret billionaires?” I breathe. “My mom might faint at seeing this. She’d probably try to marry you herself.”
Luke fake gags and we both laugh, the sound slightly hysterical. General Flufferton nudges his head against Luke’s arm until he gets more pets.
“Told you he likes you,” I say.
We climb out, me holding the cat while Luke manages all my bags, and head to the huge front double doors. When he opens one and switches on the lights, my eyes bulge out.
The entryway is two stories high with a grand staircase that curves up.
The hardwood floors gleam, dark and rich, leading to rooms that branch off in multiple directions.
There’s art on the walls and a chandelier that’s modern but elegant, all crystal and clean lines.
To the left, I glimpse what must be a living room with leather furniture and a fireplace big enough to roast a whole pig.
To the right, a dining room with a table for twelve.
“You definitely did well in your previous jobs,” I say with a wink.
He chuckles. “Come on, let me show you around.”
I set General Flufferton down, and he immediately starts exploring, tail high with confidence.
We follow at a more sedate pace, Luke’s hand on my lower back guiding me.
Every room is gorgeous and masculine but warm, expensive but lived-in.
There’s a large, modern kitchen with everything you need, a media room with a screen that takes up an entire wall, and even a library that smells of leather and old books.
Because of course the broody Beasts have a fairy-tale library. What’s next, enchanted furniture?
His hand keeps finding reasons to touch me, guiding me through doorways, steadying me on the stairs, brushing hair from my face. Each touch sends electricity through me, and I’m hyperaware of how alone we are in this huge house.
“And this,” he says, opening a door on the second floor, “is something that came with the house, but we enhanced it.”
I step inside and freeze. “Is this… is this an Omega heat room?”
“Yeah. We kept it, thinking someday we’d settle down, find someone who’d need it.”
The room is incredible. Soft lighting, temperature controls on the wall, soundproofing evident in the thick door.
The bed, or more like nest area, really is massive and sunken slightly into the floor, surrounded by built-in shelving filled with blankets, pillows, and throws in every texture imaginable.
There’s a walk-in bathroom with a shower big enough for six people and a tub that’s basically a small pool.
“We stocked it with supplies,” Luke explains, opening some drawers. “Still need to add food, snacks, hydration stations, our clothes…”
I peek into one drawer and immediately slam it shut, face burning. The assortment of… items… in there is extensive. Lubricants in every variety, toys I’ve only seen in online stores that I’d never admit to browsing, massage oils, things I don’t even recognize.
“Wow, you were thorough,” I manage.
“Only the best for Omega needs.”
I walk around the room, trailing my fingers over the soft fabrics, the little details that show thought and care. It’s so comfortable, so perfectly designed, that part of me wants to curl up in that nest right now and never leave.
“This is dangerous,” I say without thinking.
“What?”
“This room. It’s too perfect. Makes me want things I shouldn’t want.”
Luke strolls closer, and suddenly the room feels much smaller. “Like what?”
I swallow hard. “Like staying.”
The word hangs between us, heavy with implication.
“I’d love that. Let me make you hot chocolate,” he says. “We can relax because meeting your family was damn tense and exhausting.”
“Tell me about it.”
We head back downstairs, General Flufferton racing ahead of us like he already owns the place.
“I need to put some of the food in the fridge,” I say, grateful for something normal to focus on.
In the kitchen, we work side by side, me finding space in their large, double-door refrigerator, him making hot chocolate from actual chocolate, not powder. General Flufferton supervises from his perch on the counter, occasionally batting at Luke’s hand for attention.
Part of me can’t help imagining what it would be like living in a place like this. Waking up to mountain views, cooking in this dream kitchen, curling up in that library with a book. Having these men around, their laughter filling the empty spaces, their presence making it feel like home.
But guilt crashes through the fantasy. These men have been nothing but kind to me, and I’m dragging them into my family’s insanity. What if there’s only so much of that they can take? What if Mother’s manipulation drives them away? What if?—
“Stop overthinking,” Luke says, handing me a mug of the richest hot chocolate I’ve ever seen. “You get this concentrated expression on your face. Like you’re arguing with yourself.” He touches my cheek gently. “We’re in this because we want to be.”
“You barely know me.”
“I know enough.”
“My family is insane.”
“So are ours, just differently.”
“My mother will make your life hell.”
“She can try.” He grins. “I’ve faced down worse than one controlling mother.”
“Have you?”
“How hard can it be?”
I laugh despite myself. “Famous last words.”
“Worth it, though.” He’s looking at me with that hypnotic stare again, the one that leaves me forgetting why this is supposed to be fake. “You’re worth it.”
And for a moment, in this too-perfect kitchen with the best hot chocolate I’ve ever had and a man who makes me feel things I shouldn’t, I almost believe him.
Luke shows me to the guest room with warm lighting, soft bedding, and lots of space. I take my time getting changed, letting the quiet settle around me for a minute, giving myself moment to breathe.
Now I’m back in the living room, wearing comfortable clothes, the ones I grabbed during my hasty packing. Worn jeans that feel like pajamas, and an oversized burgundy sweater. My feet are bare, toes digging into the plush rug.
The living room is huge, with the stone fireplace taking up most of one wall.
The TV is mounted above the mantel, one of those ridiculous sizes that make you feel like you’re in a movie theater.
The L-shaped couch faces both the fire and the screen, dark leather that’s butter-soft and deep enough to get lost in.
I’m curled into one corner with General Flufferton sprawled across my lap, purring like he’s having a conversation with himself.
Luke made me a grilled cheese because he insisted that I’d barely touched my dinner with all that chaos, and it’s perfect.
Golden brown, cheese oozing, cut diagonally because apparently that’s the only proper way.
Luke is sitting on the adjacent section of the couch, and I keep stealing glances at him.
He’s changed into worn jeans and a black T-shirt that stretches across his chest when he moves.
His bare feet are propped on the coffee table, and he keeps running his hand through his short hair as though he’s still not used to the length.
Or maybe he’s restless. His fingers drum against his thigh, then still, then start again.
The space between us feels electric. I want to move closer, to curl into his side as if I belong there.
My body keeps betraying me, leaning toward him, tracking every movement of his hands, noticing how his throat moves when he takes a drink.
The heat from the fire has nothing on the heat building under my skin every time our eyes meet.
On the TV, Bon Appétit, Your Majesty is playing. It’s about a modern pastry chef who’s mysteriously transported to the Joseon era in Korea and has to convince the palace she’s not a lunatic.
“She’s arguing with the prince right now,” Luke says. “She doesn’t believe he’s actually royalty but thinks it’s cosplay or a prank.”