Chapter 6
Soleil
I tugged at the dress he had purchased for me. All the new things he was shoving on me were annoying on my skin, but I could see why humans put clothes on. It made me less cold, and my skin wasn’t too exposed.
“One day,” he repeated. He kept talking about time and how only a day had passed in his world.
It was something I had to get used to because I was never returning to my life from before.
I wouldn’t leave Mate. As he guided me down the walkway between the hotel structures, he explained everything around us in explicit detail.
I absorbed the information, pleased that he wanted me to know.
My only issue lay in becoming distracted by his intense eyes that seemed to look inside me.
Currently, I was riveted by his explanation of a buffet. “And I can grab as much as I want?”
He smiled that heart-stuttering smile again and squeezed my side. “Yes, kitten.”
I followed him inside the restaurant, another thing he described. Humans ate inside and on tables. It was such an odd way of life.
My mouth watered at the crisp smell of a meal, but this scent was different. It held an odd edge . . . almost like when those humans created what they called a fire. We entered through a perfectly arched entryway, and the sound of human chatter echoed off the walls.
“Welcome to Al’s,” a woman chirped. A flush spread across her face, and the pulse thudding at the side of her neck thrummed. Then her pupils expanded as she looked at Mate.
I hissed at her. “He’s mine.”
She flinched, and it brought me pure joy. If I had my claws, I would rake them across her face.
Mate wrapped his arm around my belly and pulled me back while lifting me at the same time.
He didn’t say anything, but kept making this sound; a low rumble that made me want to turn on him and swat at him.
My feet kicked out, searching for purchase as he strode toward an unoccupied table.
Humans watched us with varying levels of curiosity, but I quickly lost interest in trying to figure out what they were feeling.
Griffin toted me to the seat and sat me down. I bristled, narrowing my eyes at him as he lowered into a crouch and captured my hand.
“Sol,” he murmured, still smiling too wide. I clenched my teeth with an audible gnash and dropped my eyes to his shoulder. “Look at me, kitten.” He reached up, caught my chin, and forced me to face him. “No one is taking me from you.”
I humphed. “She wants you.”
“Kitten,” he murmured, more insistently. “You’ve said it plenty of times. I’m yours, right?” I grunted. “Good, so sit right here and I’ll bring you food.”
He made to get up. I growled and gripped his arm tighter. Griffin kept smiling that frustrating smile.
As he got up, he leaned and kissed me. The sweep of his tongue was brief and claiming.
Just as quickly, he strode away to the buffet.
He moved with swift, efficient movements, piling items on the platter he held.
Every time he neared another human, my shoulders hiked, but I resolved to stay put, clenching the edge of the table.
It didn’t take him long to return with two plates piled with food. My mouth watered, and I sniffed. “I can eat anything?” All I needed was a nod and I plucked a familiar chicken leg. The meat a pale color as opposed to pink and bloody.
I sank my teeth into the thick meat.
Flavors exploded on my tongue, and I moaned. It was better than I had expected. I kept eating while he watched, his smile never leaving.
I believed vehicles were the worst . . .
but that was before the jet. I clamped my fingers on the front of Griffin’s jacket, holding on for dear life as I remained curled on his lap.
Just like at the restaurant, he smiled, but if I were in my panther form, which he’d vehemently told me not to shift into, the fur on the back of my neck would have been raised.
“Ma’am, please sit in your seat and buckle up. We’re about to take off,” the woman repeated herself.
Mate curled his arm around my waist and tucked me even closer. I sucked in my hiss, glaring at her.
“She’s fine right here,” Mate told her, and I softened against him.
“Yes, sir,” she inclined her head and retreated to the front of the plane.
The one that had just begun to move. I stiffened, my entire body jostling against him. He said this was safe. I kept repeating it to myself, but it was difficult to believe that humans got on these contraptions so much.
“I have an idea,” he murmured, then reached for something round and long. He angled it up, and light came on from inside, showing pictures. I gasped, flinching back against him. He pressed some more buttons, then there were humans in the little box.
“How do they fit?” I gasped. There had been a box like this in the hotel, but I hadn’t seen the humans living inside.
“It’s a television. Humans aren’t inside. It’s a recording.”
I sat up, watching the humans interact on the screen. The vibration of the plane intensified, but with Griffin’s arm around my waist, I settled against him, knowing he would protect me.
I watched the show, studying every facet of the backdrop and their words and odd phrases. I made sure to ask Griffin questions when I had them . . . which was often.