Before I can, Devlin plucks out the piece of paper, frowning as he shakes it out and reads it. “I’ll be right back.”
My stomach flips with nerves. “It’s not that big a deal, I’m sure it was just an order ticket that got stuck to-”
He cuts off my nervous protest with a disarming smile and tops off my glass of wine. “Don’t worry, sweet thing, I’m not going to bite the poor bastard’s head off. Just let him know so that he can be more careful in the future. Stay here, I’ll be right back.”
My racing heart starts to settle. “Sounds good.” If he’s friends with the owner, better it happened to us who wouldn’t really care instead of some customers on a busy night that would flip their lids.
I blow out a heavy breath as relief settles into my bones, watching him go. I was worried that getting my hopes up would bite me in the ass, but I need to stop expecting the worst from everyone. Devlin’s not Havoc. He isn’t going to reject me, doesn’t care that we aren’t fated mates. Hechose me, like it wasn’t even something to discuss. He simply expected me to get on board and accept that we belong together. And I’m starting to think he might be right.
The Fates may have fucked up with my first mate, but maybe this is their form of apology, pushing the two of us to cross paths. Because Devlin?
Clearly, he’s one of the good ones.
Chapter 13
Devlin
The kitchen door swings shut behind me and it only takes me a second to find the chef right where I left him in the corner. Crouching down to his level, I open up the note and read, “Run, your date’s a psycho.” I cluck my tongue, shaking my head in disappointment. “That’s not very nice, Henry.” I turn to one of the stove burners, holding his gaze as the slip of paper goes up in smoke. “But lucky for you, I’m on my best behavior tonight.”
Henry grunts behind his gag and squirms, but it’s pointless. I tied those restraints myself on my trip to the ‘bathroom’ earlier. I’dplannedto let him have free reign of the kitchen all night, but after I found him trying to saw off the ankle shackle I generously bolted to the center of the floor so he could move around easier to cook for us, he lost the privilege.
People these days. So ungrateful.
“Hey, do you have any more of those rolls and cinnamon honey butter? Those things are fuckingdelicious.”I tug the gag out of his mouth.
“Th-the warming station.” A rough swallow. “Over there.” He jerks his chin in the direction. “Butter’s in the fridge, bottom shelf.”
“Quality service, ten outta ten. You run a nice place here, Henry, I’ll be sure to tell all my friends.” Not that I have any, but that’s neither here nor there. Replacing his gag, I grab a basket, gathering a mountain of rolls and balancing several little plastic containers of butter on the edges.
“For my first date, I’d say it’s going swimmingly, don’t you? Think she’s ready to move in with me?” He offers a muffled response as I sift through the wine options, but it quickly becomes apparent that I don’t know shit about wine. Plucking an expensive-looking bottle at random, I tuck it under my arm. “Oh shit, you’re right! Women need a sign of commitment before they take the leap.”
Carefully balancing my haul, I crouch down and slide the silver band off Henry’s ring finger. “Wish me luck! If all goes well, we’ll see you for our anniversary next year.”
His eyes flare wide, obviously honored to be such an important part of my engagement story.
Returning to the table, I find Kiara right where I left her, my chest warming as she smiles up at me.Smiles.Atme.
Nobody has ever been happy to see me before her, and I vow here and now that I’ll do whatever it takes to keep her happy.
Over the next hour I discreetly type notes on my phone single-handedly under the table, because I know how forgetful and easily distracted I can get. I’m determined to do right by her, to prove that I’m a better mate than the moron that let her go, but I don’t know shit about women. I’m good at killing people, not keeping themalive.
Thank god for Google.
I roll the ring between my fingers, debating the best way to propose when my phone spazzes the fuck out. Mentally cursing up a storm, I check it with an annoyed scowl, but already know what I’m going to find. It’s the early warning system I have in place for when the perpetual thorn in my side is closing in.Usually, I get a huge kick out of fucking with the wraith that’s been trying to kill me for the last decade, but I’m going to have to end our little game soon.
I’m a mated man now. So as fun as this has been, it’s time to finally declare a winner.
“Put your coat on, I’ll take you home.”
Kiara frowns, but follows my lead. She’s quiet the whole ride home, but it gives me time to mull over the best way to catch a wraith. I’ve spent years toying with the man, like a twisted game of cat and mouse. One where I murdered his targets before he could, to prove that the almighty guild master of the Shadow Knight Assassins isn’t the fearsome dark god the rumors make him out to be. Killing him, though? That’ll be a fun, new challenge.
When we pull up outside her house, my mate gets out before I can get her door, but I catch up to her a few steps later, taking her hand and tucking it into the crook of my arm as I scowl at her sidewalk and murmur to myself, “Gotta handle this first before I get lost down that rabbit hole.” I quickly set two reminders on my phone. One to go pick up salt as soon as I leave so I won’t have to break into a store in the middle of the night, and another for five-thirty a.m. to come salt her path to work.
She gives me a strange look I can’t interpret. “Are you setting reminders on your phone? Over salting my sidewalk?”
I blink at her, sifting through my distracted thoughts. “Well, yeah. If I don’t, I might forget once I get caught up working, and I don’t want you to get hurt.”
Her fingers flex on my arm, squeezing gently. “That might be the sweetest thing anyone’s ever said to me.”
