Chapter 107

“Of course.” He shifted me a little until I was curled up in between him and the back of the lounger, blocking me from the wind and keeping me warm.

“How is this, princess?”

I closed my eyes and took a deep breath of his warm, musky scent.

“It’s perfect.”

I looked up at Candido as the sun began to rise and warm the air. The winter was more mild than usual. I looked up and saw the space heaters around us.

“Good morning,” Candido said and pressed a kiss to her forehead. “Care to come into town with me today?”

I nodded. “That sounds great… Like another date?”

His lips twitched. “A date unlike last night… Hedy—”

I pressed a finger to his lips and met his gaze. “It wasn’t you.”

His eyes narrowed.

“Those… Those guys… I was drugged and I had no control over my powers. I…” I shook my head. “I felt my wolf giving in to you.”

He flushed. His eyes flickered with light and he sat up stiffly.

“I didn’t know what that meant,” I said. “I panicked. I thought I was… somehow still affected by everything that’s happened lately… I’m sorry.”

He cupped my face and pressed his lips to mine. “Hush, little one… before you drive me to pick up where we stopped again.”

I frowned. “What do you mean by that?”

He licked his lips. “Your wolf was… submitting to me. It’s a sign that our bond is growing stronger.”

His gaze met mine. “That you’re… starting to understand…. Your wolf, at least, that you’ll be mine very soon.”

I dropped my gaze and my face heated.

“I’m… already yours, Candido.”

He groaned and pressed a kiss to my forehead. “Enough. Get up, come on.”

I smiled looking up at him as he got up. He pulled me onto my feet and led me back inside and up to my bedroom.

“I’ll meet you in the foyer.”

I nodded and ducked inside my room. I skipped to the bathroom, washed up in the new soap that he’d bought me and got dressed in something warm.

When I got outside, I ran into Claire who was standing in the hallway with a wry smile, still in her pajamas.

"Well, well, well," Claire said with a teasing smile. “You’re dressed so early? What happened to the Hedy who hated waking up early?”

My lips twitched. “She’s still here…”

“Clearly not,” Claire grinned. “Now there’s just this Hedy who will get up at ungodly hours just to spend a bit more time with her mate.”

I sputtered. “Leave me alone, Claire!”

She cackled. “I was going to invite you to breakfast with me and my parents and Francium, but I can see you have other plans.”

I reached out, stopping her before she could go far. “If you… need me there…”

Her eyes widened, glossed over then softened. She hugged me tightly.

“Go enjoy your date with our king, Hedy,” she said softly. “I’ll be fine.”

I squeezed her tightly. “Okay. You’ll call for back-up, won’t you?”

She laughed. “Sure thing.”

She turned and in a rush of air she was gone. I stared after her, amazed and surprised. It would take a while to wrap my head around how powerful Claire was now as a vampire and why.

I headed down the stairs, worrying my lip until I saw Candido waiting for me. There was a fur coat over his arm and he was dressed in a long black trench coat. He smirked up at me.

“I was beginning to wonder if you’d decided to stay and have breakfast with Claire.”

I walked down the stairs. “I wouldn’t miss a chance to go on a date with you.”

His lips twitched. “Allen wanted me to stay but changed his mind as he realized exactly what I had planned for the morning. I think they’ll be just fine. Claire’s not the only one nervous.”

He held the coat up. “It’s colder than you think out there.”

I nodded and stepped into the coat before letting him walk me out the door and into the awaiting, warmed SUV. It was a lot colder than I’d realized earlier. The SUV’s exhaust pipe let out huge puffs of smoke that drifted into the air.

The Team Gamma team members breathed out big puffs of vapor as they waited for us to enter and traded orders up and down the line. I climbed into the SUV, and Candido climbed in after me.

Soon after the door closed, I looked up at Candido. “Where are you taking me?”

“Somewhere with molten-centered chocolate cupcakes.”

“You really… do love me.”

He laughed and wrapped his arm around me. “How am I meant to do anything else?”

I leaned against him and smiled. Everything felt so different now. Being with Candido like this felt like a dream and I never wanted it to end.

“And… what else?”

“Black coffee.”

I wrinkled my nose. “I meant what else are we getting up to?”

“There are a few other places I want to take you, but nothing stringent. Is there something you want to do?”

I shook my head. “I just want to spend time with you.”

When the car stopped, we got out and headed into the café. It was a cute little place, but it was mostly empty. I could smell the muffins coming out of the oven and skipped up to the register. Candido laughed behind me, coming up to the register as I looked over the menu.

“I’d like two molten muffins, a cup of hot chocolate and—”

“A ham and cheese omelet,” Candido said, taking the menu from me. “Honestly, you need to eat something other than chocolate.”

I pouted at him. “I was going to eat pancakes.”

He shook his head. “You’re going to make yourself sick if I let you manage your diet.”

I pouted, but inside, I was happy listening to him order the rest of my breakfast. I liked it when he made decisions for me and took care of me, it was the best reason to act like a brat whenever it came to eating.

The clerk took his money. I took the number and darted away to get us a seat by the window, looking out into the snow-covered streets.

He sat across from me and shook his head. “This is a very public spot.”

I pouted. “Do you not want to be seen with me?”

He placed his hand on mine. “Of course, I want to be seen with you… Just be prepared for what will come from being in such an exposed place.”

I frowned at that and before I could ask what he meant, the waiter came by with my muffins and hot chocolate. She set a mug of coffee in front of Candido before leaving again. I picked up the muffin and bit into it. He pulled the other muffin out of my reach.

“You’ll get the other one after you eat something more substantial,” he said. “All that sugar on a young wolf’s stomach is bound to cause problems.”

I pouted and licked my lips. “You’re just saying that.”

He cocked an eyebrow and lifted his mug. “Have I ever lied to you, princess?”

“No, but you could start now.”

He shook his head. “I’m not. Now, enjoy your muffin.”

I munched happily, smiling across the table from him and dutifully ate every bite of the rest of the breakfast he ordered from me. His eyes flickered with amusement.

“And what are you hoping to get out of this princess?” He asked.

“More kisses.”

His lips twitched. “I’ll keep that in mind. Are you done?”

I finished my drink and got up to walk out with him. No sooner had we exited the café, a flash of light filled my eyes.

“Your Majesty, a comment about your relationship with your ward for the past four years?”

“Speculations have that you were just grooming your ward to be your mistress. Is there any truth to that?”

“How do you plan to deal with Red Moon now that you’ve embarrassed the heiress and her father?”

“Anything to say about the attacks on the borders? What’s being done to protect the citizens?”

Candido wrapped an arm around me and ushered me to the SUV as Team Gamma started to make a way for us. Once inside, I could still hear them demanding answers.

“Some people are call you a pedophile. Do you have anything to say to that?”