“Would you umm, would you like to dance with me?” Duncan asks as the music comes to a finish, a new song beginning to play. This one is somber and soft. A love song meant for slow dancing.
I take the paper cup from him and toss our trash into the can. “I would be delighted,” I say with a little bow, weirdly proud of him for putting himself out there and asking me. I hold out my hand for him, my belly a mixture of anticipation and excitement. He takes it with a grin and leads me to the dance floor.
Chapter Seven
Duncan
My heart is up in my throat as I take Viktor’s hand in my own. His skin is warm and soft, tingles running up and down my arm.
The smile he sends me leaves me breathless and lightheaded. This all feels so overwhelming and terrifying and wonderful all at once. It’s hard to wrap my head around any of it, so I stop thinking for once in my life and do my best to stay in the moment.
“I love this song,” Viktor says once we’re on the dance floor. He places a hand on my shoulder, the other still folded in mine. My free hand goes to his waist.
I swallow thickly as we begin to sway. We’re so close together. I can smell him, that wonderful lavender scent hitting my nose and sinking into my chest. Lavender might be my new favorite scent.
Viktor leaves my brain feeling scrambled but at the same time, peace settles into the very marrow of my bones. How can one person make me feel so many things? Especially someone I only met a few hours ago?
Viktor leads us through the dance. Even just that settles something inside of me. I don’t have to put on a show for him. I don’t have to try to be some assertive alpha. I can just be me and he’s okay with that. If anything, I think he enjoys that I’m a flustered mess of a man.
As the song continues on, Viktor shifts his hands, pulling one away from my hand and instead wrapping it around the back of my neck. I move both of my hands to his lower back. We merge together, our bodies resting against each other as we move to the music.
This is nice. This is more than nice; this is perfect.
“After my magic manifested, I wasn’t sure I would get to have this again.”
“This?”
“Yeah, this type of closeness. Sure, everyone in my pack explained mates and stuff to me, but part of me always assumed that wouldn’t be for me. Like somehow coming into my powers so late meant my hypothetical mate wasn’t real. I was worried that stepping into this new world all by myself meant I needed to stay by myself forever.”
My heart hammers in my chest. “Do you still think that?”
Viktor pulls back, just enough for our eyes to meet. “No.”
I swallow around the lump in my throat. “I feel the same,” I say, my voice timid and nervous. “I assumed a mate wasn’t in the cards for me. It’s hard to meet people when people scare you,” I say with a little bit of a snort.
“But you took a chance,” Viktor says with a soft smile. “Maybe it’s weird for me to say, but I’m really proud of you, Duncan. You took a chance and look what happened.”
The praise warms me from the inside out. I can’t stop thinking about the fortune teller and what he said. Pushing myself outside of what’s comfortable for me is terrifying but when Viktor looks at me with those soft eyes and warm words, I know I can keep on doing it. He makes this so much easier.
“Thank you,” I say, almost shyly. “I know this is too soon to be admitting but I can already tell this is really special, you know?”
“I know exactly what you mean.”
Viktor rests his head against my shoulder as we sway with the music. My stomach is a mess of butterflies, flitting around inside of me. My hands grip the back of his suit, holding on probably too tight but Viktor doesn’t seem to mind.
Viktor lets out a breathy sigh, his body soft and relaxed. “I feel like I could stay like this forever.”
“Me too,” I whisper into his hair. I breathe him in greedily, never wanting this moment to end. The DJ apparently has different ideas.
The music shifts from the soft song into something more upbeat. We pull apart and I immediately miss the feeling of Viktor’s body against my own. He feels so far away despite being right in front of me.
Viktor takes this all in stride. He places a hand on my hip and tugs me forward, still swaying to the music. His other hand goes up in the air as he moves with the beat around us.
Okay. I suddenly see the appeal to this type of dancing. My chest feels brighter than the sun as I watch him dance.
It takes me a song and a half but eventually, the nerves fall away and I find myself having fun, dancing across from Viktor. He shows me the sprinkler and the shopping cart and the lawnmower. I copy his moves and he giggles with delight. Seeing him smile makes acting like a fool kind of fun. Why should I be worried when his smile is so bright?
“That’s it! Yes, Duncan! Look at you go!”
