Chapter Seventeen
Quill
“Let’s all go out for dinner tonight,” Rafe suggested.
“Sounds great.” I had the night off and was puttering around the loft like a lost porcupette.
Pierce lay on the couch, TV on mute. His eyes were closed, but through the bond, I could tell he wasn’t asleep. He didn’t reply.
I walked over to him and sat on a cushion by his head. I ran my fingers through his hair. “Are you feeling okay?”
“Mmm. Okay,” he mumbled.
“Hungry?”
“No.”
Rafe came up behind the couch and looked down at us. “No to dinner, then?”
Pierce sat up, blinking. “I think you two should go. Have a night out together. You’ve each had date nights with me. Now it’s your turn.”
“You don’t want to go?” I put my arms around him and pulled him to my chest.
“I was out all day doing stupid interviews with still no prospects. I’m tired.”
“You deserve to do whatever you want,” Rafe said.
“I think you two should go. I’m going to make a sandwich and watch a movie.”
“Are you sure?” I hugged him harder.
“Seriously, go somewhere nice.”
Rafe looked at me with a raised eyebrow. I could feel his hesitation.
Pierce pushed at my arms. “Go on, you two. Get dressed to the nines. I know you both love it.”
I did. He was right. I loved suits and ties and slick hair. I loved nice colognes and walking into sexy, candlelit places with my mates, feeling like a million bucks. I hadn’t done much of that in my life before meeting Rafe and Pierce, but now I loved it.
“If you’re sure?”
Pierce patted me on the back of my hand. “I am. But before you go, you both have to come by me for approval. I want to see you together looking your best.”
Rafe and I laughed. Rafe promptly made reservations.
In the shower, which we shared, Rafe said to me, “Are you sure our little omega is all right?”
“Through the bond he’s pretty vibrant. Not sick.”
“Right, but I worry.”
“I really think he’s just tired. And that’s okay.”
“Of course. I’m glad you want to go out,” Rafe said. “I’m restless for some reason.”
“Tomorrow we can sleep in. You’re not going to work on a Saturday, are you?”
Rafe smirked. “Not this Saturday.”
We helped each other dry off, exchanging a nice kiss but not too nice because we didn’t need that sort of distraction right now. His body was so tight and strong and big. One touch, and I’d be dragging him to bed. We had plans for that later on.
I wore a black suit with a ruby-red vest underneath, and a diamond tie tack. Rafe matched me in every way, except his vest was emerald. With his high cheekbones, strong jaw, and liquid dark eyes, he was everything.
“You almost piss me off, you look so good.”
“Why does that piss you off?”
“Because damn. You’re hurting my eyes.”
We paraded past Pierce, who’d made a nest on the couch with a food tray next to him, looking as content as could be. His face lit up when he saw us.
“Well?” I asked, reaching out and grasping Rafe’s hand. Our sleeves rode up a bit, exposing our matching silver bracelets beneath crisp white shirt cuffs.
Pierce opened his mouth, looked like he was going to choke a little, then closed it. He waved his hand and rolled his eyes. “Approved. So approved. More than approved.”
“Sure you don’t want to change your mind?” I asked.
“Go out and be together,” Pierce said. “This is your date. But you have to tell me every detail when you get back.”
“Deal.”
As we turned to leave, Pierce let out a long, groaning sigh.
Rafe and I laughed.
At the restaurant, candles adorned every table, just as I’d imagined. Rafe ordered the best wine without ever asking the price. We had food that melted in our mouths. A flaming dessert. And the best company. Each other.
We talked about our lives, our feelings, and the future.
“I never thought I’d have a family after what happened with my first mate,” Rafe said. “I gave up on that. But now I want it all.”
“I felt the same, but for different reasons. Even at twenty-eight, with a good income, I thought it wasn’t enough. I told myself I had to wait. So I never searched. Porcupine culture teaches a high work ethic. It left me focused only on that. Family was not even a side thought. I didn’t own a house. I wasn’t particularly social enough to go out and meet people. I taught myself not to care about that.”
“But when you feel it…” Rafe tapped his chest. “When that fated mate crosses your path, everything changes.”
“Right, but how could I know?”
“You can’t. Not really. Not until it happens.”
“It’s wonderful,” I said. “My life changed the moment I lost my job. As if Fate knew that was what it would take to wake me up and get me outside my programmed zone. I was lost. I liked working, but it was such a narrow tunnel. I see that now. How I was trapped into thinking that was all there was. Making the best of the tight space I’d put myself in.”
“There’s no right or wrong way,” Rafe said. “We all find our path through the jungle differently.”
“Agreed.” I leaned back, sipping the last of my wine, feeling full and content.
When we left the restaurant, it was not late. Rafe turned to me. “Feel like something more?”
“What do you have in mind?”
***
At first, I was overwhelmed. I’d never done anything like this before.
The casino din was loud, almost overwhelming, like Animals when it was at the height of the evening, but the space was open, the ceilings high. And wow. The energy.
“Follow me, and I’ll show you around,” Rafe said.
We walked past rows of slot machines, then a bar, then the tables. Rafe went right up to a roulette table and plunked down a wad of cash. I didn’t even know he carried cash like that around.
After a few large bets that had me reeling, I blinked. Then blinked again.
Rafe looked at me with a huge smile.
I pointed at the table, speechless. Finally, I found my voice. “Did you just win twenty grand?”
“I did.”
He cashed in and gave me a thick folded wad of his winnings without even counting them. “That’s for you. What do you like?”
“I play poker on my computer sometimes.”
“Perfect.”
He led me to a bank of high-end machines, dollars and up.
“I thought maybe not so expensive?”
“You’ve got the money,” he said. “Loosen up for now. It’s fun. Bet high. See what happens. And don’t worry so much. I’ve got your back.”
If what Pierce had told me was true about Rafe’s income, I truly didn’t have to worry. But it felt weird. At first.
It didn’t take me long to get used to the thrill of just tossing money into a machine. Back home, my prickle would be appalled. Money was to be saved and invested, not gambled. Not wasted.
By the time we left, Rafe was up in winnings, and I was down. But it didn’t matter. We’d had fun. Rafe had taught me something else, too. If you didn’t let go a little and embrace new things, life could pass you by.
We got home late, but Pierce was still up. He started to ask us how things went, but we grabbed him instead and led him to bed where we took turns making love to him and each other until the early hours of morning.