Chapter 7 #2
But yeah, I felt like I was spilling my guts—my heart—to her, and I couldn’t seem to help myself.
She’d ask me about my mother, and off I’d go, telling her about grilled harveet, or spit-roasted mellak, or the way to get t’kaar berries crispy.
Lila could say one thing about my family, and I’d end up bragging for fifteen minutes about how I’d taught little Jay to skate when he was two, and now he was the captain of his peewee hockey team.
And when Lila asked me what I wanted out of life—really wanted…well, I couldn’t seem to distract her.
The kisses helped, of course, and before long, she was sitting sideways in the booth, both legs across my lap so I could reach her better. In between the kisses, we would drink, laugh, and I would rub her calves… And she wouldn’t let me be distracted.
What would make you happy?
I don’t think anyone had ever asked me that, not even Korrad, who had held our family together more often than not. It had taken her asking a few more times before I blurted out something I realized was the truth:
“To be useful.”
And the smile she’d given me? It had been brilliant.
My Kteer preened as if I’d been given a reward, and her kisses had made it taste twice as sweet. To be useful.
Soon she had me talking about my attempts at coaching the youth league, and how much good the gala was going to do, and I confessed I’d be willing to fall on my ass again and again in public, if it meant getting those kids and kitlings the money they’d needed.
She’d surged up, one palm against my cheek, and claimed my lips with hers. “You won’t fall, Kardok. I won’t let you.”
I grinned crookedly and scraped one of my tusks along her jaw, making both of us shiver. “You can’t promise that, Princess. It’s my job to go all in, out of control. Full commit, remember. That means I’m going to end up on my ass a time or two.”
“You won’t,” she said too seriously to be completely sober. “I’ll catch you.”
Well that was adorable and sweet and completely preposterous, so I kissed her again.
Soon, we were both wrapped in the sweet scent of her arousal, and my cock was so hard it was aching. My Kteer wasn’t satisfied with the kissing, and I was going nuts, imagining what her pussy would taste like. The scent itself was the most delicious thing I could imagine, what would she taste like?
“You two want anything else?”
The server’s annoyed tone broke through the haze of need surrounding Lila and me, and I looked up to see the male’s brow raised in amusement. I guess it was obvious we were done drinking, huh?
I reached for my wallet. “Just close us out,” I told him with a grin. “I have to get my princess home.”
Lila had turned pink in that way of hers, and I supposed it was because the server had seen us.
“You don’t have to do that,” she whispered as I signed the check—and left a 100% tip to make up for not ordering much. “I can pay for half.”
I snorted and dropped a kiss to her forehead as I helped her out of the booth. “This was my date, remember? When you choose, you can pay. I assume there’s an art exhibit or a derby or a fox hunt you can take me on next time.”
Giggling, she fell against my side, her body language relaxed and loose. “You have a poor opinion of me, don’t you?”
“I have a poor opinion of hoity-toity people, Princess. I’m just teasing you.”
“Good.” Her finger dug into my side as we reached the door. “Because axe-throwing was my favorite date night ever, and I would probably take you back there.”
“Deal. Where did your past boyfriends take you?”
I’m not sure why I asked her—it’s not like my Kteer was pleased to think about her with another male. But I felt like I’d shared so much of myself tonight…
Lila had whirled to send me a shocked look just as I pulled open the outer door, and we were hit by a gust of wet air. I eyed the awning above us warily—the only thing protecting us from the downpour—as we stepped out and looked up and down the empty street.
To my surprise, Lila wrapped her arms around herself and answered my question, even though she wouldn’t look at me.
“My boyfriends took me places you wouldn’t like.”
I put my arm around her. “Fox hunting and derbies?”
She snorted but burrowed a little closer. “We’d go to dinner at their country clubs or to art galas or someplace to be seen.”
Ah. “Like the ballet?”
Blue eyes darted up to mine, then away. “The ballet was for me.”
It was something she liked, someplace she’d chosen. I squeezed her. “And me.”
“Yes. I never—” Lila bit down on the words, then seemed to reconsider. “I really enjoyed the ballet with you, Kardok. I’ve seen that troupe perform before, and I’ve seen that show. But seeing it with you felt…”
I remembered why we’d gone to see them in the first place; to experience the emotion of the dance. “Felt,” I murmured.
“Yes,” she sighed, tipping her head against me and watching the rain fall off the awning. “And despite this date ending in a storm, it’s been the most fun I’ve had in a long time.”
“Doesn’t have to end, Princess,” I rumbled. “There’s plenty of other places we could go—”
“No.” To my surprise, Lila pulled away from me, a big smile on her face as she stepped out of my hold, out from under the awning…
Into the warm summer rain.
Wearing a big smile, my princess tipped her head back and threw her arms out. She spun in a circle there on the empty sidewalk, the water quickly soaking through that black silk blouse, her head thrown back, her face to the elements…
A look of pure joy on her face.
Wild.
Wicked.
Primal.
With a growl I felt rather than heard, I stepped out from under the awning as well, joining her in the deluge.
She was spinning like she was on the ice, and I reached out and caught her, like she’d been teaching me to do.
I lifted her, and my princess didn’t hesitate; she arched her back, spread her arms, and allowed me to spin her.
The rain danced on her eyelashes, caressed her cheeks, and outlined the expensive bra beneath the silk blouse. We were both soaked, the chill beginning to seep through, and I didn’t give a fuck.
Because right then?
In this moment, this untamed and primitive moment, alone in nature, a moment that reminded me so much of the world of my birth that I ached?
Something inside me shifted.
My Kteer knew this female, knew her scent, knew her heartbeat, and I would make her mine.
Mine.
Lila was laughing when she slid her arms around my shoulders and beamed down at me, sodden hair making a curtain around us. All I could do was stare hungrily at her.
“Thank you for tonight, Kardok.”
My, “Not over yet,” was a growl ripped from my throat. Half a promise, half a plea to give me a sign.
She did.
Still grinning, Lila cupped my face. “We’re too wet to sit in your car, Kardok,” she murmured. “Take me to your apartment.”
And as I squeezed her to me, my Kteer howled in my chest.
Take claim love fuck taste taste TASTE CLAIM.