Nick’s delicious assault on her mouth didn’t let up as Fred be-bopped into the kitchen and helped himself to a plate before leaving.
She liked him. More than liked him.
Nick Santiago had no idea, but she was in love with him. She’d get around to telling him. When she was sure the information wouldn’t send him into anaphylactic shock.
His hands were at her waist now, skimming under the hem of her shirt. When his fingers found her skin, every hormone receptor in her body lit up like a Christmas tree.
“I’m so into you, Thorn,” he said, continuing to ravish her mouth with his expert-level talent.
“Yeah. Me like you too.”
His mouth curved against hers in smug satisfaction.
“Me like you too?”
“Shut up and keep kissing all the grammar out of my head,” she said, fisting her hands in his t-shirt.
It lasted for all of thirty seconds, until her nose twitched and a chill descended on the room. Nick didn’t notice it. His libido was in overdrive, and in general, the man pumped off more heat than a five-alarm fire. But Riley knew what it meant.
There was an imperious knock at the door.
“Go the hell away,” he snarled.
Before his hands could continue their pilgrimage to her breasts, the knock came again.
Riley tensed under his touch. “Yeah. We have to get that.”
“Nicholas, get your hands off my granddaughter’s breasts and open this door,” Elanora called from the hallway.
With extreme reluctance, he took a step back. “Shit. Fuck. Dammit.”
He abandoned her on the table and flung the door open. “Can I help you, Elanora?”
She was still dressed in head-to-toe black, but she’d swapped the bird feathers in her hair for a somber black scarf.
“I doubt that very much,” Elanora said. “I’m here to extend an invitation to you both.”
“Oh, goodie,” Nick said. “You couldn’t do that by text?”
Riley finally regained the use of her legs and slid off the table. People didn’t talk to her grandmother that way. She stepped between them just in case Elanora had mastered any interesting magical combat powers.
“You two will join the rest of us for a family meal tomorrow. Bring Gabriel,” her grandmother announced.
Burt wandered in through the open door, giving Elanora a wide berth. He sat down on the other side of the couch and peered over it with suspicion. His tongue peeked out of his gigantic mouth.
“You may also bring your very large dog.”
“Gee, thanks, Grandma. But Nick and I have a lot of work—” Riley began.
“You will both be there. It’s long past time that this family remembers its roots. There will be no more lollygagging.”
“I never liked lollipops,” Nick cut in.
Elanora shot him a withering look that would have had a lesser man quaking at the knees.
“Not a fan of the sense of humor, are you?” he asked, rubbing a hand over his stubbled jaw.
“A sense of humor is a waste of energy. This world is not a humorous place. People live. People die. People commit to their responsibilities and hone their gifts. There is no room for humor or fun.” She spat out the word as if it was a different kind of f-word.
