Chapter 55
“Did you sit down to the entire cake?” I asked as I stepped back into the kitchen.
“...No.” Allie set down her fork and wiped her mouth. “Definitely didn’t do that instead of cutting myself a slice like a reasonable person.”
She spun in her seat and stopped short, her eyes greedily soaking me in. “Damn. You look snazzy.”
I’d chosen the sleek black pants intentionally because they hugged me just right; my black button-down had the slightest satiny pinstripe for texture; and my red satin tie popped off the dark backdrop, the same shade as her dress.
“Can’t let my girl steal all the spotlight.” I slunk towards Allie and kissed her, my tongue stealing the remnants of chocolate. “Now you’ve got me craving cake.”
Allie traced her fingers down my chest, toying with the buttons. “Let’s get you fueled up because I’m intending to tire you out after you put that ring on my finger.”
I playfully growled and nipped her bottom lip. “Let’s head out, then. Don’t want to miss our reservation.”
We walked out to the car with my arm around her waist until we were forced to part to get into the vehicle. The restaurant was downtown and took about half an hour to get there with traffic. There were only a few parking spots nearby, all of which were full, so we opted to park in the lot a couple of blocks away and walk. Allie slipped on some fold-away flats she’d kept in her purse and I carried her heels for her.
I kept my arm over her shoulders to help her retain some semblance of warmth. Downtown was lit up with neon signs and twinkling lights wrapped around tree trunks. Cheerful music burst into the air each time a door to one of the businesses we passed opened as someone entered or left.
“It’s so beautiful out tonight.” Allie hummed and tucked her hand in my back pocket.
“Don’t make me get all cliché about how you’re the most beautiful thing there is to look at here.”
“Little late for that.” Allie laughed and squeezed my butt.
We rounded the corner and into our restaurant of choice—a ritzy French bistro that looked like it had been teleported straight from Versailles. I’d been hearing rave reviews for it for years and had wanted to go forever. A surprise proposal seemed like the perfect occasion for it, though I’d initially booked it just to see her smile when we went here.
Crystal chandeliers hung from the ceiling, vibrant paintings in gold frames dotted the walls, and marble floors glinted beneath our feet. I gave our names to the ma?tre d’ and we were guided to a red velvet booth along the front window with a view of the lit-up trees.
A neatly dressed sommelier greeted us a few moments later, a bottle of wine and two glasses held upside down in the same hand. “Bienvenue. Could I tempt you with a sample of our famed vin de la maison?”
Wine and Allie had never particularly agreed, but every so often she tried it again just in case there was some variety she didn’t hate. I eyed her curiously and went along with her agreement, turning to the sommelier and accepting the minuscule portion in the wine glasses to try.
Allie took a sip, trying and failing to stop her face from scrunching up at the taste. She looked at me with wide eyes, and I covered my smile and laugh with a cough.
“It’s a lovely wine,” I told him, “but I think we’ll go with champagne for tonight.”
“Champagne is typically reserved for dessert, monsieur.”
I shrugged and grinned at him. “Then we’ll start with dessert.”
The sommelier looked as though he wanted to pass away right there at the suggestion. “Of course. Your server will be here shortly to take your order, and I’ll return with your champagne.”
When he left us alone, Allie burst into giggles and smothered them with her hands.
Heat filled my chest. “You’d better get control of your cuteness levels, or I’m going to get us kicked out for public indecency.”
That only made her giggle harder. “Don’t threaten me with a good time. Oh my god. I can’t believe I made that face. That man literally made a career out of loving wine, and I couldn’t even fake liking it. He definitely hates us.”
“I think we aged him ten years with our request.”
“Maybe fifteen.” Allie scooted around the booth toward me and let her temple rest against my shoulder. “It’s not my fault that my tongue hates wine. I want to feel fancy.”
“You can feel fancy with our champagne.”
The sommelier returned with two flutes of golden, bubbly champagne. His lips twisted into a moue of distaste as he set them down.
I nudged Allie once he’d left. “You should go to the bathroom so I can be stealthy with the server about the proposal you absolutely don’t know about.”
Allie laughed and kissed my cheek before wiggling out of the booth. She dodged servers on the way, looking like a princess as she moved through all the gold and marble decor.
I flagged one of the servers and the peppy beta swept over. “Yes, sir? Can I help you?”
“You absolutely can.” I held up Allie’s ring. “Would you be able to slip this on top of the dessert I’m about to order?”
“Oh my god, that’s beautiful! We can definitely do that for you. What dessert would you like?”
“Would it be possible to get a sampler of everything chocolate on your menu?” I’d checked out the menu in advance, and they had a few things I was certain Allie would love.
“That can certainly be arranged.”
“Great, thank you so much.” I passed her the ring and she disappeared into the kitchens.
Allie made her way back to the table slowly with a bounce in her step—but not enough bounce to flash people. I marveled at the fact that I was the luckiest person on the whole damn planet to get to be mated, and soon-to-be married, to someone like her.
“Hi!” Allie gave me a wave and slid back into the booth, leaning over to kiss me. “You look very good against red velvet. Honestly, it should be a crime. I’m going to need to see your permits because I’m pretty sure you’re too hot to be legal.”
I chuckled and slid my fingers into her hair, cutting off her giggles with another kiss.
“What did we get for dessert?” she asked when I pulled away.
“Everything chocolate.”
“Oh god, yes. I eyeballed the entire dessert menu and couldn’t decide what to pick.”
“I figured.” I smiled softly, fingers still tucked in her hair. “I want you to have every sweetness life has to offer and I’d never dream of making you choose just one.”
Allie nestled into my arms. “I love you a whole fucking lot.”
“You’re going to send the sommelier to an early grave with language like that.” I laughed and kissed the top of her head. “But I love you a whole fucking lot, too.”
The peppy server popped up, carrying our dessert. Her eyes gleamed with excitement as she set it down before slipping away to a safe distance to watch. Other servers were turned in our direction.
It took Allie only a second to spot her engagement ring nestled inside a roll of spun sugar atop the chocolate crème br?lée.
Tears sprang into her eyes instantly.
I slid out of the booth and got down on one knee A hush fell over the restaurant.
“I know it’s not a surprise,” I said softly, my thumb stroking her cheek, “but I’ve been ready to marry you for a while now. Fate may have tied us, but I choose you. I’m asking even though your ring is already on my finger. Marry me? Let me love you for a lifetime.”
Her tears had turned into full sobs as she frantically nodded her head and threw her arms around my neck, letting me hoist her up. “Yes. Yes, yes, a thousand fucking yesses.”
Cheers and applause erupted around us.
Allie sucked in teary breaths, trying to steady herself as I pulled the ring from its spun sugar nest and put it on her finger. I kissed her again and she tucked her face to my throat. My sweet, perfect omega.
I slid my hands down her back. “Want to smack the sugar topping on the crème br?lée and drink some champagne?”
“Yes, please.”
I got her tucked back into the booth with one more kiss and climbed back in on the other side. I dried her cheeks with her napkin and offered her the trio of desserts.
“What kind are they all?”
“Chocolate crème br?lée, chocolate mousse, and chocolate almond dacquoise. Our server was much more chill about us getting dessert first.” I passed Allie one of the tiny spoons that accompanied the dessert and smiled as she whacked her way through the crisp sugary top.
A scoop passed through her lips, and she made an absolutely sinful sound. “Oh my god. Can a person come just from eating dessert? I think it’s gonna happen.”
I laughed until she shoved a spoonful into my mouth, sweet cream, cocoa, and caramelized sugar bathing my tongue. “Holy shit,” I whispered.
“Right?” She sampled the other two options. “They’re all unfairly good. How am I supposed to choose a favorite?”
“I’m the only favorite you need to worry about.” I grinned. “You eat as much as you want of all three.”
“I’m not that greedy.” Allie pouted. “We’re going to split all of it.”
We meticulously alternated bites between us amid giggly sips of champagne. When my soon-to-be bride was sufficiently hopped up on sugar, we ordered dinner—a chicken confit and boeuf bourguignon so sinfully tender they bordered on indecent. Every time Allie caught sight of the ring on her finger, a flush of her scent would sneak into my nose, heat searing through me. Hopefully no one was breathing too deeply near us.
We left the restaurant fully satisfied in one way and desperately needy in others. I was half-worried that Allie was going to drag me into an alleyway on the way back to the car.
Allie leaned into me as we walked, losing control of her panting breaths when I squeezed her waist, her scent bursting around us. By the time the parking lot came into view, she was practically vibrating.
“Get into the passenger side,” she murmured, nudging me toward it. “I’m going to combust before we get home.”
Before following the instruction, I tugged Allie close and spun her to press her against the car. She squeaked at the contact of the cool metal, goosebumps rising on her skin as I dipped my face to lick the scent gland on her throat. Allie let out a low whine and hooked her fingers in the collar of my shirt.
“Too needy to play.” She pushed me away and whipped open the passenger door. “In.”
I laughed and climbed in. “You gonna fuck me in a parking lot?”
“That’s exactly my intention, yeah.”
I loved when she got bold. My blood simmered with desire, stomach clenching, my skin demanding contact. Her eyes were alight, her scent a thick cloud around her that promised satisfaction for both of us.
“Well, don’t let me stop you.” I grinned and pulled the lever on the side of the chair, whooshing back until I was as horizontal as the back seat would allow me to go.
Allie stuck her head inside the car and undid my dress pants, tugging them insistently until she could free my cock and climb inside the vehicle with me, swinging the door shut against the evening air.
She rocked her hips over me, groaning with relief as she slid her clit against my cock. The slick glide of her thighs told me my little kitten had been struggling with her desire for a while. If I’d known the rise of her scent was from her literally dripping down her thighs, we wouldn’t have even made it as far as the vehicle.
I sucked in a sharp breath and dug my fingers into her ass.
Allie grinned down at me. “Having a good night, handsome?”
“Impossible not to with my fiancée in my lap.” I slid my palms up her back and growled as she ground herself against me.
Her head brushed the top of the car and she tipped forward, bracing one hand on my chest and the other on the back seat. “We should invest in a party bus so I have more room.”
I pressed my hips up into her. “I’ll put it on the list for the wedding.”
Allie giggled, leaning in to devour my mouth with eager lips. She lifted her hips, angled my cock, and sank down on me with a desperate moan that I echoed, my fingers digging hard into her hips.
“Jesus, you’re so wet.” I bucked deeper and pulled her down.
“I get super hot when you’re all romantic.”
Her ring glinted in the streetlights and spurred a new spiral of heat through me.
“You’re gonna get laid twenty times a day at this rate.”
“Oh nooo,” I panted amid my laughter. “What a burden to carry. You can wear me down to a fucking nub, and I’ll just say thank you.”
Allie let out a sharp laugh, leaning close again to devour my mouth. She used the chair to give herself momentum, digging her fingers into the headrest for leverage. People walked down the street a short distance away. Anyone could see us if they looked over. The illicit knowledge gave me a thrill. She was all mine forever, but if she wanted to tease the populace with something they’d never have, that was more than fine by me.
I helped Allie along, meeting her hips with thrusts from below, one arm wrapped around her waist, the other cradling the back of her neck as we met over and over in a clash of hot lips and tongues. She whimpered against my mouth, her desperation getting the better of her. Allie rose up, bucking and rocking her hips as hard and fast as she could manage. I put my hand between her head and the roof of the car so she didn’t accidentally concuss herself in her frenzy. I dipped my fingers between us and stroked her clit with frantic touches that had her cunt squeezing my cock so tightly I cursed.
Allie spilled over the edge with a sobbing gasp. Her hips still worked briskly, dragging me up and over the peak of pleasure with her as she pulsed around me. I took us down slowly with a smooth ride, keeping hold of her waist to temper her movements, the sensations ebbing with each breath. I sucked in a deep breath to settle myself.
“You look like pure bliss.”
“That’s ’cause I feel like it.” Allie laughed and tugged my face up to kiss me.
She sighed happily and accepted the dozen kisses I peppered against her mouth and face.
“We’re definitely going to have to have car sex more often.” I laughed quietly. “Holy fuck.”
Allie giggled and tucked her face against my throat. “I might be stuck. My foot got wedged in the chair.”
“In a rush to leave?” I nuzzled her, my hands trailing down her leg to free her captive limb.
“Never ever. I just wanna get home so you can fuck me on a flat surface and then I can text everyone I know that we’re engaged now.”
“And start planning the wedding.” I purred beneath her, the sound of contentment filling the vehicle. “Fair warning, I’ll probably cry when we’re up at the altar.”
Allie giggled again. “Balancing things out for how much I cried on you today.”
“I guess we have one important question left to answer.”
“Yeah?” she asked.
“Mhmm.” I kissed her cheek. “My last name or yours?”