by Leilani Love
Damien smiled. “Those better be happy pregnant woman tears I see.”
Alyssa nodded before walking over and hugging him as tightly as she could. “It’s beautiful,” she whispered in his ear before kissing his cheek. Pulling back, she walked around the crib, gently touching some of the carvings.
Damien could see Kassandra watching him. Her face had softened, and the way she was looking at him made his chest swell with pride. As much as he enjoyed that look she was giving him, he had a funny feeling that the sexy angry glare she gave him earlier would be the one he saw most often.
“Damien, do you guys have time to stay for dinner?” Alyssa asked, forcing his attention back to them.
“No, we were just dropping this off on our way to the park before heading back to the house for dinner,” Damien said, reaching out to take Kassandra’s hand. He was surprised when she let him pull her to his side.
Alyssa looked up at Robert and the two of them exchanged knowing glances. Robert leaned down and gently kissed his mate on the forehead. “All right, enough drooling over Damien’s handiwork. Let’s get you back in the living room. The doctor said you need to be off your feet as much as possible.”
Alyssa pouted and grumbled, and Damien fought a smile. He looked down at Kassandra who was also smiling. He could imagine her big with his child, but knew if he tried to make her sit while pregnant she would kick his ass.
“Alyssa, make sure you give Robert a hard time. He gets away with murder at work. Give him hell,” Damien said as he kissed her cheek.
Alyssa took Kat’s hand. “I really enjoyed meeting you and hope to see you again really soon.”
Kassandra’s reply was polite but noncommittal. Damien put his hand on her back, telling them both good-bye again, and to call him if they needed anything, before leading Kassandra out the door.
CHAPTER 13
When Damien got in the truck, he turned on a classic rock station, playing it softly in the background. Kassandra used the silence between them to think back on the past few hours. Damien was definitely chivalrous and humble. She liked the fact he didn’t feel the need to brag about himself.
“So where’s this park we’re going to?” she asked, breaking the silence.
“It’s just on the outside of town. There’s a small trail that leads to a lake. It’s usually pretty quiet this time of year,” he said. He reached out for her hand and brought it to his lips. “You still owe me three kisses.”
Raising an eyebrow, she tried not to laugh as she shook her head. “Two, actually—you collected one earlier.”
“Fine,” he grumbled. Kassandra couldn’t help but laugh at the definite sound of a pout in his voice.
“I could count the one you just gave me.” She said teasing him.
His mock growl let her know he didn’t approve. “You are not getting off that easy, Kitty Kat.”
Kassandra grinned and shrugged before letting out a big sigh. “Can’t blame a girl for trying.”
Damien laughed as he turned onto a narrow road that took them into a side entrance of the park. Before getting to the end, Damien made a U-turn and parked on the far side of the street.
Damien jumped out of the truck and walked around, opening the door for her. When she got out he grabbed her hand, leading her to the end of the road where a small trail opened, a trail just wide enough where they could stand side by side.
Kassandra took a deep breath as Damien laced his fingers through hers. Damien was correct, there hadn’t been anyone on the trail for at least an hour. Damien adjusted his hand in hers by lacing their fingers together. She wasn’t used to the light touches. Most of the men she dated knew she worked for Viktor, the Dragon King, and treated her like one of the guys.
“Do you believe in magic?” Damien asked breaking the silence.
Startled, Kassandra stopped. He smiled at her, gently giving her hand a tug encouraging her to keep walking. “Magic?” she said. “Are we talking magicians?”
Damien laughed and shook his head, rubbing the back of his neck with his free hand. He seemed to be struggling to find the right words. “I was thinking more along the lines of true love and things in nature you cannot explain…maybe things you didn’t even know existed.”
Kassandra looked down at the ground. She could tell her answer for some reason meant a lot to him. Everything that had happened since she broke into his house had been a surprise and she found the urge to resist him was getting harder. “A few years ago, I would have said no about true love and faith, but I’ve recently been shown that it can still exist.”
Damien looked at her, his eyes narrowed. “In your own life or someone close to you?”
Kassandra found herself liking the small display of jealousy. “If I said my own life, what would you say?”
Kassandra noticed him watching her. Since she asked him a question she knew it wouldn’t be picked up as a lie, exactly, but depending on how strong his wolf was, he might be able to detect that something wasn’t totally true either.
The smile he shot her was nothing predatory, and if she ran right now, she knew he’d chase her until he caught her. “I would tell you that you should call him and let him know you’ve made a mistake.”
Kassandra couldn’t help but laugh at his cockiness. “What if I told you it was you that was mistaken? In about thirty hours I’ll be gone, and you can go back to sleeping with every girl you meet at the bar.”
The second the words came out of her mouth, she regretted them. Damien dropped her hand, and the look that crossed his face made her feel like she just got caught kicking his puppy. They continued to walk in silence until they got to the top of the hill. Damien stopped and she looked down to see a large lake on the other side of the hill. She looked up to see Damien’s amber eyes searching her face.
“What?” She asked, feeling suddenly self-conscious.
He brushed a strand of hair from her face and tucked it behind her ear. “What if I asked you to stay?”
The look on his face startled her. For the first time, he looked truly vulnerable and Kassandra closed her eyes and tilted her face so his hand stroked against her cheek. She couldn’t bring herself to say no. When she opened her eyes, he was still watching her and he looked hurt as if he could read her mind and new what she was going to say.
Without thinking, she took the half step to him and kissed him. At first he didn’t kiss her back, and she slid her hands up around his neck, pulling him closer to her as she nibbled on his lower lip, trying to coax a response. She heard a low growl before his lips finally parted and he grabbed her hips, pulling her harder against him.
Kassandra, this time, was the aggressor. Damien let her take the lead with the kiss, and his hand cupped her ass, squeezing. Kassandra slid her fingers into his hair. Pulling hard, she made him break the kiss and smiled at him. The hurt look was gone, replaced by one of intense hunger that made her shudder.
“That doesn’t count as one of the two you owe me,” Damien said as he smacked her on the ass before taking a step back.
Despite herself, she laughed, and he took her hand, leading her down the trail to the lake. Once there, they sat down at the end of a wooden pier.
“Are you going to tell me about the meeting you’re taking me to tonight?” Kassandra finally asked after a few minutes.
Damien let out a deep breath and watched the indecision on his face. “It’s nothing, really. I think you should just stay at the house and wait for me.”
“What if I want to go? What would the price be?” Kassandra asked. The way he was acting made her wonder if it was a meeting between him and Dmitri.
Damien’s eyebrow arched and he leaned closer, his breath on her lips. “Are you saying you’d sleep with me tonight in order to see where I’m going?”
Kassandra’s heart sped up. She felt Damien’s body tense and saw his eyes darken. “If I said I would, would you let me go with you?” she whispered as she continued to study his face.
Damien didn�
�t respond right away. Instead he searched her face, as if looking for something. When he smiled at her, his eyes narrowed. “When I finally bury myself deep inside your lovely body, my Kitty Kat, it will be because you want me. You won’t lie to yourself, saying you just seduced me to get your way. When the truth is, you want me as bad as I want you.”
With that he leaned away from her, dismissing her as he looked longingly over the lake. What Damien had said made Kassandra pause. The silence that had been so comfortable before now left her feeling lost. She’d be lying to herself if she claimed she wasn’t attracted to him. She was an adult, and it wasn’t like she was a virgin, so why not sleep with him? Besides her pride, what was stopping her?
Lost in her thoughts, she was surprised when she felt Damien touch her arm. Blushing, she let him pull her up, the spark from his touch sending a wave of pleasure down her body. Kassandra knew she’d have to make a decision soon. The way her body responded to his made her wonder if she had already made it.
CHAPTER 14
Damien and Kassandra drove back to his place in silence. Her silence made him nervous. Was she thinking about what he’d said? Was she thinking about seducing him? Or was she still just trying to figure out how to go with him tonight? He had the nagging feeling that the exchange was just an excuse for the Dragon Prince Dmitri to meet up with him. Bringing a human female to a meeting with a dragon who was on a mission seemed like a great way to get her killed.
When he pulled up, he noticed Hope’s car was nowhere in sight. They would be alone for several hours before he had to leave to meet up with Dmitri. Could he talk her into staying? Would she try to seduce him to get her way? Would he be able to tell her no if she did?
When they got to the house Damien paused at the door and brushed a stray hair from Kassandra’s face. “I’d say a penny for your thoughts, but I feel like your thoughts will cost me a whole lot more. What has you looking so troubled, my beautiful Kat?”
Her face softened, and her sea-green eyes that looked so troubled a moment before sparkled. “I just needed a moment to come to a decision.” She reached up and brushed her lips against his. “Are we going to stand on your porch all night, or are you going to let us in?”
He laughed before unlocking the door, enjoying her quick wit. He watched as Kassandra moved deeper into the house. She was naturally graceful. The way her hips swayed as she walked made it hard for him to look at anything but her. It was her eyes though that held him captive. When they kissed, they darkened and turned more green than blue and he could easily read her pleasure. He wanted nothing more than to watch her as he made her come.
“Are you going to stand there all night staring at my ass, or are we going to eat?” Kassandra asked, snapping him out of his thoughts. They could both smell Italian food when they’d walked in.
“Can’t blame a guy for admiring the view,” he mumbled, smacking her ass as he walked past her.
Kassandra let out a surprised yelp when his hand connected and he couldn’t help but smirk thinking he would have to see if she jumped when he smacked her ass in bed. Walking into the kitchen he saw that his sister had left a note saying that she had wine for them outside and that the lasagna was being kept warm in the oven.
He heard Kassandra go upstairs and into his room. When he entered the room, he noticed she was in the bathroom. He grabbed a clean pair of jeans and a nicer shirt before heading to the guest bathroom. Splashing water on his face, he freshened up. After he changed his clothes, he walked out in time to see Kassandra stepping from his room.
In those few minutes she had been in his room she changed into a skirt and a tight red blouse. Kassandra had finally let her hair down and he noticed the slight wave that framed her face. Her stride was confident and her smile took him by surprise as she walked up to him.
“Great minds think alike,” Kassandra stated as her eyes slid up and down his body.
There was a definite change of attitude from earlier and Damien wasn’t sure what she’d decided, but he found himself curious how the night would go. Offering her his arm, he led her down the stairs. “I hope you enjoy lasagna.”
He noticed Kassandra watching him out of the corner of her eye, a teasing grin playing on her lips. “Does your sister do this for every girl you bring home?”
At the bottom of the stairs, Damien pulled her close. “I meant it when I said I’ve never brought a girl home before.” He brushed his knuckles along her cheek before kissing her gently. “Why don’t you go out on the patio and wait for me?” he whispered against her lips. “I’ll bring the food out for us.”
He could feel her lips curve under his as she smiled. Kassandra took a step back and he watched her walk toward the sliding glass doors. Damien grinned to himself as he walked to the kitchen to make their plates. The food looked and smelled delicious. Hope was a marvelous cook who only cooked for what she deemed special occasions. Apparently she had decided him seducing his mate was an occasion worth cooking for.
Damien picked up the plates and went to join Kassandra outside. She’d left the sliding door open for him. He noticed that Kassandra had found the bottle of red wine and had already opened it, letting it breath. Placing one of the plates in front of her, he set his down. Pouring her a glass of wine, he looked down at her. “I hope you like red wine.”
As she reached for her glass he couldn’t help but notice how her tongue came out and licked her lower lip. Damien bit back a moan as he poured himself a glass and sat across from her.
“Your sister really knows her wine.” Kassandra commented as she put her glass down. He smiled at her, watching as she leaned forward to take a bite. He watched her take her first bite, her eyes closed and heard her soft moan of pleasure.
That sound went straight to his cock, causing it to harden. As much as he enjoyed her soft sounds of controlled pleasure he wanted to hear her loud cries when she was lost to it. “This is delicious,” she said. Her cheeks turning a soft shade of pink when she realized he was staring at her.
“Hope is an amazing cook. I keep trying to convince her to cook more often, but she refuses.” Damien replied before taking his first bite. She had outdone herself this time and he needed to remember to thank her the next time he saw her.
CHAPTER 15
Alone with Damien, Kassandra had to admit he was different than she’d imagined. When she’d started to research him, she was convinced he was just a player who used his bar to get laid. After spending time with him alone away from the bar, she found him to be charming and very sweet. Her debate about enjoying this last full night with him came to an end when he asked her what she was thinking. Kassandra still hated the idea of being a notch on some guy’s bedpost but didn’t want to regret not seizing the moment.
“You and your sister seem close.” Kassandra commented, thinking it was nice that his sister had come over and cooked dinner for them.
“Some days closer than I wish.” His grin letting her know he didn’t really mean what he said.
As they ate she asked him questions about where they grew up and how they managed to stay together. Damien, she noticed was intentionally vague on certain subjects. When she asked him what happened after his parents’ death, he simply shrugged and said a family friend had taken them in. Nothing else. When he lied, she noticed he looked uncomfortable and avoided eye contact. For some reason that made her like him more.
Dinner finished, Damien offered to take her plate and she poured the rest of the wine in their glasses. When he came back, she smiled at the sound of music coming from the living room. Handing him his glass as she stepped closer to him, she watched as he raised the glass to his lips, “So what time is your errand tonight?” she asked.
“In a few hours,” Damien answered, watching her intently. A smile curved her lips and she knew that he was trying to figure out if she was trying to seduce him in order to get what she wanted.
She took the last sip of her wine and put the glass down on the table. “So what are we going t
o do for the next few hours?” Kassandra asked, walking over to him.
“Are you trying to seduce me into letting you go with me, Kitty Kat?” he asked, his voice barely a whisper.
“No, you’re going to let me go with you because deep down you want me to.”
Surprise flashed in his eyes, and Damien slid his arms around her waist. “What makes you think I want you to go with me?”
She could feel his breath on her lips. “Let’s just call it women’s intuition.”
With that she tilted her head and kissed him deeply. Kassandra felt his hands on her back tighten, holding her close as he thrust his tongue into her mouth. Kassandra put her hands on his chest, gripping his shirt, holding him to her as their tongues dueled for dominance.
Kassandra felt like she might burst into flames as they continued to kiss. Unlike the previous kisses, she wasn’t holding anything back, and Damien seemed equally determined to devour her. He broke the kiss and his mouth slid across her cheek to nibble on her earlobe. One of his hands slid up her breast, his talented fingers teasing her hard nipple over her shirt. His hands slid under it, feather light, and her stomach muscles quivered under his seeking fingers. When his mouth latched onto the base of her neck, his hand found her lace clad breast and began to roll her hard nipple.
Kassandra let out a whimper when Damien pulled back as her eyes fluttered open. His breath was coming in short little pants matching hers. His eyes so dark she felt like she could get lost in them. Damien was watching her intently and she had a feeling he was giving her a moment to change her mind, or to make sure she hadn’t drugged him again.
Kassandra pressed against his chest and nipped at his bottom lip. “Catch me if you can.”
She pushed back and bolted for the door. For a long second, Damien didn’t move; her words must have caught him completely by surprise. With the head start, he didn’t catch her until she got to the bottom of the stairs.