30. Lucius
CHAPTER 30
LUCIUS
“We hope to see you again soon,” Lily gushes as she kisses my cheeks, first one, then the other.
I tolerate the display of affection, though usually, my instinct would be to pull away. In general, to my surprise, the entire dinner was quite tolerable. Maybe even nice. The warm family atmosphere, the gentle ribbing, the way they pretended to like Lily’s terrible cooking—it all made me a little wistful. True, I’ve experienced some of this with Gram, but she’s only one woman and can’t create such a festive atmosphere all by herself.
Maybe I’ll make myself a big family like that one day.
Wait, what am I thinking?
“We should leave them alone,” Lily says, nodding at me and then Juno. “Let them say ‘goodbye.’” She puts the last word in air quotes, and Juno rolls her eyes.
“I’m not giving you a ride?” I ask Juno once everyone follows Lily’s suggestion and disappears inside the house.
She shakes her head. “Mom wants me to stay overnight.”
“Ah.” I feel a pang of disappointment. We didn’t really get a chance to interact today.
Juno nods at the door and whispers, “I’d bet my cactus they’re watching us.”
My heart skips a beat. Is she saying what I think she’s saying? I decide that I’m going to assume so regardless.
“Well then.” I put my hand on her lower back and dip my head. “Should we keep up appearances?”
She rises onto her tiptoes, her honey eyes gleaming. “Afraid so.” Her warm breath whispers across my lips. “Can’t let all those rehearsals go to waste.”
My heart pounds faster. Not needing any more encouragement, I slant my lips over hers. It’s a playful kiss at first, but quickly, our tongues are dancing in earnest. Her lips are deliciously plump and damp, and my whole body goes stiff—some parts much more than others.
Fuck. Did she just brush her small hand over my cock?
Breathing raggedly, I pull away. “I thought your family was watching.”
She blinks rapidly, like she’s trying to reorient herself. Finally, she whispers, “Serves them right for being Peeping Toms.”
I’m suddenly very glad she didn’t accept my offer of a limo ride home. If we spend another second together, I’m not sure I’ll keep my sanity.
“See you at Gram’s house?” I ask hoarsely. “Unless?—”
“Yeah.” She steps back and dampens her lips. “What should I bring?”
Those plump, soft lips. Fucking hell. I do my best to sound normal. “Nothing. But definitely not any leftovers.”
She grins. “You sure? I bet Gram is a fan of paella.”
I shudder as I recall the taste. “Let’s not make my chefs feel like their jobs aren’t secure.”
“Chef s , as in plural?”
“I have three. Not counting the ones who work in my restaurants.”
She rolls her eyes. “I hope three is enough. I mean, what if all of them got sick at the same time? You’d starve.”
“Actually, Elijah’s cooking is serviceable. Same goes for all but one of my housekeepers. And in a pinch, I do know how to make mac-and-cheese or an omelet.”
“Wow. With those critical life skills, you could even survive on a deserted island.”
Why do I want to kiss her again? Probably to shut her up.
“When should I send a limo after you tomorrow?” I ask.
“I’ll text you.”
“Okay.” Why am I so reluctant to leave? “Bye?”
She hesitates for a second, then blows me an air kiss before escaping into her parents’ home.
As soon as I get home, I take care of my sexual frustration, and the session is a lot more vigorous than all the Florida post-phone-call ones.
I then take a shower, go for a run, and visit my ferrets.
The collective noun for ferrets is a ‘business,’ and I think whoever came up with that did so because there’s always some funny business going on when it comes to ferrets, especially if there’s more than one in your vicinity.
Today, for example, Caligula manages to devour the special treats I brought for everyone before Blackbeard and Malfoy so much as get a taste. I also locate the gardening gloves one or more of them managed to steal—and they’re in shreds.
As I play with the little devils, I fight the urge to call Juno. After all, we’ve only been apart for three hours. Even if our relationship were real, it would be too soon to miss her. Unless… Maybe I should?—
My phone rings.
Could this be Juno?
No.
It’s Gram.
Smiling despite my disappointment, I pick up.
“Did you enjoy meeting her parents?” she asks in lieu of a hello.
I tell her all about it, minus Lily’s atrocious cooking. I don’t want to bias Gram in case she ever tries said cooking.
Wait. Why would she try it?
“If Juno likes me tomorrow, you’re as good as married,” Gram says, beyond excited.
I suppress a groan. “Please don’t joke about that when you see her. Her family was saying the same thing.”
“Who said I’m joking?” Gram asks.
I pinch the bridge of my nose. “Oh, no.” I make my tone worried. “The ferrets are chewing through my shoes.”
“Ferrets,” Gram says the word like a curse. “You’re still cavorting with those beasts?”
Being terrified of rats, Gram has decided that she doesn’t like ferrets because “they’re similarly shaped.”
“Don’t worry. I won’t bring them with me.” I make a mental note to check my pockets before I head over to her place. The last thing I want at Gram’s house is a repeat of what happened at the fundraiser. She’d try to jump on a table and would probably hurt herself.
“Don’t bring them,” she says. “Just thinking of the things makes me want to drink some chamomile tea to calm down.”
“You go do that,” I say with a smile. “Maybe have some valerian root as well.”
“Good idea. Bye.”
I hang up and notice that the ferrets are looking at me with strange expressions on their mischievous faces.
“Sorry about that,” I say to them. “Your great-grandma didn’t mean to be mean.”
As I head to bed, I have the strongest urge to call, or at least text, Juno. I recently discovered there’s such a thing as a cactus emoji—and I bet if I used it, she’d swoon.
But no. Bad idea.
My priority is to get good sleep so I’m on my very best behavior when Juno and I finally present the fartlek to Gram.