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Chapter 16 - Diana
We swayed together with my hands around Kaleem’s neck, the music wrapping us in a cozy cocoon. Another nymph had joined us, a male with a flute, and my skin dotted with goosebumps at the sheer magic in the room.
Nymphs were gifted musicians. They sang to the forest and earth to purify the world, and Kaleem and I were getting a private show.
The piano, the whistle of the flute, the candles, and the white roses, it was as if I’d escaped my reality and was pulled into a fairytale. Was this my life? Was I really here with the man I loved, or was this a dream?
Gazing up at Kaleem, I held his stare, and my eyes welled up with tears. When had I become this soft cry baby?
But I couldn’t help it. I was brimming with happiness, and it was frightening. I knew the world wasn’t this perfect, but right now, I wanted to believe it was and that all moments going forward would be like this.
Dinner was excellent, as was this date, and I’d hate for this moment to become a painful memory one day.
“I don’t want to lose this,” I told Kaleem, he crunched down and then lifted me.
It was something I’d said to him before. He knew my fears of finding happiness and losing it again. Eleven years of bad moments were still fresh in my mind, and now that my life was good, great in fact, anything less was scary.
He spun us around, and I laughed until he placed me on my feet again.
“You won’t,” he whispered by my ear. “I won’t lose you. I won’t let that happen, so you have nothing to worry about.”
He kissed my shoulder and neck up to my ears, and my body shivered. We stopped dancing and held each other, and the music continued until Kaleem pulled away but only to pinch my chin.
“Come to the pack with me tonight,” he said, and I made a face that definitely said, are you crazy. “I know you’re going to say we should wait until the announcement, but everyone will know about us in the morning. The house you’ll be sharing with Mathieu was finished yesterday, and I wanted to show it to you myself.”
“It was?” I asked excitedly, and he bobbed his head.
“It was, and I wanted to give you a tour myself. Before I make the announcement, I think it’s only fair you see what your new home and pack will be like.” He guided us back to our table, and we sat down. “Mathieu deserves to see the pack as well, so we can do that after.”
“There is no difference in visiting the pack now, with my invitation, compared to a few days from now. I don’t want our night to end here, Diana, even though we have so many more nights like this to come. So what do you say?”
How could I say no with a pitch like that?
Taking a breath, I took a sip of my wine and then nodded. Kaleem grinned and excused himself to pay the check so we could leave. The longer he took to return, the more nervous I grew.
I was going to see his pack and undoubtedly meet a few of its members.
This was a way more meaningful moment than Kaleem was making it seem. I’d been preparing myself for the day Dad, and I moved in, and while Kaleem was right that I should see the territory first, I wasn’t prepared for this.
I recalled Marian’s words, though, and sat up.
I could do this. I had to, so why stress and make this harder than it needed to be.
Just as when we’d arrived, while leaving, all attention was on Kaleem and me. It was 1 am, so there weren’t as many people around. We drove out of the plaza slowly and cruised down the empty street.
When Kaleem reached out and held my thigh, butterflies fluttered in my stomach, but I wasn’t given much time to think of what the rest of the night had in store for us because I spotted Jackson, Adronus, and the twins, Nigel and Nathan.
When I saw what they were doing, I sat up, and Kaleem, having noticed, pulled over.
Jackson had his hand around a young satyr’s throat with the frightened boy pinned against the wall. My wolf was awakened with a rush of fury, and I practically threw myself out of the car before Kaleem entirely stopped.
“Jackson!” I growled loudly, and they all turned to me, but Jackson didn’t release the satyr. “Let him go!”
“Aw, look, the savior Diana is here,” he laughed and leaned forward to whisper to the boy. “She’s here to help you.”
“Jackson, release him,” Kaleem said calmly while stepping onto the sideway beside me.
Jackson released the satyr, who fell to the ground, and I jerked my head at him to leave.
