AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Eatingbreakfast with his family was surprisingly nice. I already knew his brothers were friendly, and they included me in the conversations like I already belonged. Rafael kept touching my hand and leg, and putting his arm over my shoulders, which I liked. It sold the picture we were putting on, but honestly, it didn’t feel like a lie.
It just felt like we were at our beginning, the way he had said.
Anastasia sat on my other side throughout the meal, which surprised me, but I wasn’t uncomfortable with it. I showed her pictures of my party dresses before we ate, and she oohed and ahhed over them with me. It felt easier to call them party dresses than wedding dresses, and only one of them was white, so it seemed fitting.
She didn’t judge me for it, either.
As the meal came to an end, she entertained all of us with stories about the weeks she’d spent with her sons over the years. She’d refuse to leave their sides in hopes that they’d spill the beans about where their potential mates were located—either accidentally, or because they got tired of her pestering. It had yet to work, but she hadn’t given up hope yet.
“How would you know if someone was their potential mate, if they didn’t tell you?” I asked, curiosity taking ahold of me.
She flashed me a smile. “It’s impossible for a demon to truly ignore his or her fated mate, Tatum. If she speaks, he listens. If he moves, her eyes follow him. When you know what you’re looking for, it’s easy enough to spot.”
“And she’s really,reallynosy,” Eldrich added, his arm going around her waist.
She laughed loudly, and leaned a little closer to him. “You’re not wrong, honey.”
They were adorable together.
He was the quiet one, she was the loud one, and from what I had seen, they justworked.
After the meal, everyone went back to Rafael’s apartment. The guys sat on the couch, chatting about vampires. I had to make a few batches of different types of candies for the shop, so I chatted with Anastasia while I baked. She tied an apron around her waist and joined me, and we talked while we worked.
Despite what I would’ve expected, it was actually a lot of fun.
And when I watched her feed Eldrich one of my truffles, I couldn’t hide my smile.
They were too damn sweet.
It waslate in the evening when everyone finally cleared out. Rafael’s eyes weren’t glowing, but I noticed the color in them was muddled when he sat on one of the stools after locking the door behind his family.
I hadn’t stepped away to feed him at all that day, and he hadn’t asked me to, so it didn’t really cross my mind. The dynamic between us felt a little weirder with his haircut and change of clothing.
I finished boxing up the last of my treats to take to the shops—thankfully, they lasted longer than baked goods or hot meals, so I had more freedom with the frequency I had to make them—and then leaned over the counter on my forearms. My hair fell onto the countertop with me, and my face was only a few feet from Rafael’s when it did.
“You are really damn good with my family,” he told me simply, moving in closer too. His hand lifted to cradle my cheek, and I closed my eyes for a moment, enjoying the soft touch.
“They’re not difficult to be good with. I like them.”
“They like you too.” He leaned in further and brushed his lips to mine. The kiss was slow and soft, until he pulled away.
A moment later, he took me into his arms and kissed me again.
The second kiss was like the first, but better.
So much better.
Still slow, and still soft, but so damn much more intimate. His hands found my hips and he turned me until my ass was pressed against the cabinets while we kissed.
Without pulling away, he lifted me onto the counter.
“Tell me I can touch you,” he murmured against my lips.
“You can touch me,” I said, before he stole my mouth again.
His hands worked my jeans and panties down to my knees as he continued kissing me, and we both groaned when his fingers slipped between my thighs and worked my clit.
The kiss ended, but my fingers dug into the thick, ropy muscles of his arms as I struggled to catch my breath. He brought me to orgasm quickly—so damn quickly—drinking in my lust as he did.
