AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“So? Why go to a noisy restaurant when we could eat egg rolls naked and cuddle?”
A deep growl rumbled from his chest, his fingers clenching and releasing as if he were fighting himself.
When our eyes met, I realized it wasn’t just him there.
It was his wolf. The bright eyes shone, flickering as if both he and his beast wanted a say.
“I don’t mind him,” I said, my voice low, the discussion of his other side always a tricky one.
“I know,” Troy answered, his voice harsher than usual.
Which drew a flinch from me.
He blew out a slow breath, the kind he did when trying to regain his control. After a moment, when his eyes had returned to their normal silver, he spoke again. “Please, can we go to dinner? I want to take my mate out, to be…” He paused, as if searching for the word. “I want to do this right.”
I would much rather have spent the night stripping him of out his sexy suit and enjoying the benefits of having a mate, but I nodded.
The things I do for those I love…
* * * *
The restaurant was fancy. Not like, ‘I should have covered my cleavage a bit more’ fancy, but ‘they might not let me in because my boobs are real’ fancy. It sat in an out-of-the-way area of town, in a lot filled with pine trees and with no sign at the street.
It seemed like poor planning for a place that served the public, at least until I walked in and realized why.
The place was full of supernaturals.
It felt like when I went into the party in hell, that moment of realization that things weren’t as simple as they appeared on the outside. Wasn’t that what I’d kept learning? That life refused to be as straightforward, that it hated being nicely fit into boxes? Life was a kid with ADHD who got bored easily.
I didn’t mention it when the hostess seated us, when she left me with a menu and more than a few questions.
Troyhatedthe supernatural. He hated what he was, hated tangling himself up with anything that wasn’t human. When he’d mentioned a date, I’d expected the Italian place in town that did the unlimited breadsticks—nice enough to be a date destination but down-home enough that all the food was listed in English and neither of us would have to search on our phones for what the entrées were.
So a supernatural restaurant with linen napkins and a few hulking security guards with horns hadn’t appeared on my list of expectations.
Worse? As I glanced over the menu, it became obvious they didn’t serve mortals.
I spotted the delicacy on page six—roasted Swedish virgin—and had to amend that statement.
They did serve mortals, just not the way I wanted.
I lifted my gaze, ready to ask Troy what the hell he’d been thinking, when I found his eyebrows furrowed.
He looked no happier than I was.
After a moment, he put the menu down with an exasperated huff and met my gaze.
I didn’t even need to say it. I didn’t need to ask what he’d been thinking, why he’d picked it, because it wasobvious.
“Kase?” I asked.
He snorted. “And Grant.”
“Hunter didn’t have a hand in this?”
“Of course not. If Hunter knew about a date, he wouldn’t be suggesting restaurants and adding security—he’d simply make a joke about eating in that would make me want to wring his neck.”
I chuckled at the truth of that until the rest hit me. I’d assumed the security was there for the restaurant, but after a closer look, I realized their attention was solely placed onourtable.
