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“Exactly.” Holt chuckled. “We can walk past it, though, if you want to look in.”
“I don’t mind.” I grinned at him. Honestly, I didn’t care where we went.
Holt smiled back, then lifted our linked hands to press a kiss to my inner wrist. “You’re so handsome.”
I froze, a blush blooming on my cheeks from the unexpected compliment. Before I could respond, Holt continued.
“And sweet. And funny.” He uncurled my fingers and kissed my palm, then smirked up at me through his eyelashes. “And incredible in bed.”
“Holt,” I mumbled, squirming with pleasure and embarrassment. I wasn’t used to people just… complimenting me like that anymore. Licking my lips, I stammered, “Th-thank you. So are—I think you’re… You’re beautiful, Holt.”
His smile softened and grew wider. “Thanks.”
“I’m so glad your friend was on a cruise so he couldn’t… you know.” I gestured at my head, just in case anyone was listening in and would hear me say, ‘wipe my memory.’
“Me too.” Holt squeezed my hand before releasing it, then reached for his cup as he shrugged. “Although I probably would’ve found a way to speak to you again. Tried to casually bump into you in the lobby so I could flirt with you.”
I laughed, not believing he’d been that interested in me so quickly, during our drunken, secret-sharing night together, when he’d learned all those embarrassing things about me that, now, didn’t even seem so embarrassing anymore. “No way.”
“Yes way.” He gave me a stern look. “I put you on the list for that night’s show because I wanted to spend more time with you, even though it meant I was sweating with nerves all day, worrying you’d figure everything out. And I was already sweating like a pig thanks to the hangover, so it wasn’t pretty.”
“Well, you looked very pretty when I got there.” I smiled at him innocently.
He fluttered his eyelashes at me. “I spent a long time fixing my hair just for you.”
Chuckling, I took a sip of my coffee and glanced around the diner, trying to see if I could spot any non-human people. Not that I really knew what to look out for, but the couple a few tables over were both enormous and muscular, and their glossy black hair reminded me of Corey’s. The woman’s was cut short and spiked up, the sides shaved, while the guy’s was long and tied back in a braid. His eyes were brown, but the woman’s were bright green, like Corey’s. When she noticed me looking, she gave me a wink.
I flushed and quickly looked away, spotting our server returning with a tray and the coffee pot.
“Eggs benedict and home fries.” He set my plate down in front of me with a flourish, then did the same with Holt’s chicken and waffles. After topping up our cups, he cleared his throat and squatted down, resting his thick forearms on the table. “Hey, so, uh…”
Holt glanced at him as he stirred more cream into his coffee. The guy looked around, then leaned in and lowered his voice.
“So, my sister recognised you. Her boyfriend’s cousin’s stepdad’s brother is married to Ludo’s aunt…”
When he glanced around again, Holt looked at me with raised brows and mouthed, “See? All related.” My lips twitched as the werewolf turned back to face us. He opened his mouth to speak, then glanced at me warily. I flushed under the scrutiny, trying to look busy grabbing my knife and fork.
“Taylor’s fine,” Holt said, the touch of defensiveness in his voice making my belly flutter. “Go on.”
“Sweet. So, we were wondering if maybe we could… you know, score some tickets. To Goliaths,” he whispered, golden-brown eyes sparking with excitement. “Family connection and all that. Ludo still works for you, right?”
“He does,” Holt said easily, unwrapping the napkin around his knife and fork. “But if you want tickets, you have to call the number.”
The werewolf groaned. “I know, dude, but it’s always booked up way in advance. We were hoping you could squeeze us in sooner. Like, next weekend or something. You’d eat for free here,” he added slyly.
Holt snorted. “You don’t need to bribe me, man. I’ll see what I can do. How many tickets are you after?”
“Not many.” The werewolf cocked his head and scratched his neck. “Like ten? A dozen, maybe? My cousins will be visiting from out of town and they’ll wanna go. Yeah, better make it a dozen.”
I could see Holt resisting the strong desire to roll his eyes. “A dozen empty spots at short notice might be hard, but I’ll see what I can do. Get me the list of names before we go.”
“Fuckin’ A, man.” The werewolf rapped his knuckles on the table with a huge grin. “Shit, I have been dying to see B. Were in action. That guy is a fucking beast.”
He was actually pretty shy and quiet, but I kept that to myself. I’d seen Brian in the ring. He could certainly turn on the terrifying aggression when he needed to perform.
I gave the werewolf a slightly nervous smile when he shot me a feral, excited grin, then winked at me before straightening and ambling off.
“Fucking werewolves,” Holt muttered, cutting into his waffle. “Twelve fucking tickets.”
