He felt heat on his face and his attention was pulled from the war waging inside of him.He stared down into her green eyes that always seemed to sparkle with mischief.Lola stole all of his attention and held him captive.How could that be good for his people?But how could a life without her be good for him?
Chapter 14
The Best Threat She’d Ever Received.
“For the first time in a long time I had no desire to rush home and submerge myself into the fantasy world of a book.I didn’t have to.I was actually living out my own story.Excited didn’t begin to explain what I was feeling.And yes, a little terrified.A little.Okay, that’s a lie, I’m hella scared.”~ Lola
Lola rose up on her tiptoes, her lips brushing his as she spoke quietly.She hadn’t forgotten that a woman had spoken which meant they weren’t alone.“If you’re mean to my friends, I’ll cut you.”He’d been lost in thought for a moment, but her words appeared to have brought him out of whatever had held his attention.
“For someone with no claws, you sure threaten to use them a lot,” he said, his lips also intimately rubbing hers.“I should warn you, our kind find a strong female, very, very appealing.”
Lola swallowed as she looked into his golden eyes.Their lips barely touched and everything inside of her screamed to get closer.
“If you keep looking at me like that, I’m going to kiss you,” he threatened.
It was the best threat she’d ever received.
A throat clearing had her pulling back so quickly that she bumped her head against the door behind her.Her eyes snapped closed at the bite of pain.“Ouch,” she muttered.Before she could reach up and rub the back of her head, Callon’s hand was there gently caressing her hair.
“You okay?”he asked, his mouth now next to her ear.
“I’m fine,” she said, her face heating.“Could you step back?You’re making me claustrophobic and I don’t like it.”
He pulled back and looked down at her.His lips formed a crooked smile.“Liar.You like me making you claustrophobic.”When he took a step away, he tapped his nose.“I can smell it.”
“Son of a biscuit,” she snapped, trying not to turn any brighter than the shade of red that was all over her skin.Lola quickly glanced around, and tried not to be surprised it didn’t look like any kind of office she’d seen.Earth tones and textured wallpaper ran down the wall to the floor that looked like stone.the rugs seemed to look like dirt and dry grass.Somehow it all worked.
“Callon,” a deep, male voice spoke.“Step aside and quit teasing your female.Introduce us.”
Her eyes widened as their bubble popped and reality came rushing in.Lola’s stomach dropped to the tips of her toes as the powerful voice filled the room though the owner of the voice hadn’t even spoken all that loud.It was one of those voices that commanded attention.Kind of like Callon’s.
“It’s going to be fine,” Callon said gently as he ran a finger across her cheek.
Lola slapped it away and glared at him, which only made him grin and wink at her.“I don’t like you right now.”
He tapped his nose again as he stepped to the side.He tugged her up beside him, then rested his arm around her waist.
“Father, Mother, this is Lola Katz, my mate.”Lola couldn’t see his face.Her eyes were closed, but she could hear the pride in his voice.
He nudged her and whispered.“Open your eyes.”
“I’m good,” she whispered back.
“Lola,” a kind, warm voice said just before she was pulled into a tight hug.“It’s so wonderful to meet you.”
“It is?”Lola squeaked out.Her arms were trapped at her sides as Callon’s mother, at least, that’s who she assumed hugged her, pulled her in even tighter.
“Of course, it is,” the woman practically sang.A moment later, she released Lola to grab onto her shoulders, as if she needed to keep Lola from running away.Which to be fair, she might.She didn’t know how to talk to a Prima.She’d never met someone’s mother, not that she’d ever been in a relationship long enough to reach that stage.Then again, she’d known Callon less than twenty-four hours and here she was, meeting his parents.How’s that for speed dating?
“Let me look at you.”
“Lola, this is my mother, Lyra,” Callon said, his arm still wrapped around her waist, holding her snugly as if, he too, was afraid she’d make a break for it.
“That’s good, because it would be really awkward if some strange woman was hugging me that you didn’t know,” Lola said as she took in Lyra, the Prima of the Kingdom of Claws.“Not to mention it would bring up a lot of questions as to why your father had some strange woman in his office and not your mom.”You can shut up at any moment, Lo,she told herself as she watched Lyra smile.The Queen of Claws, as Lola had just then dubbed her, was incredibly beautiful.Her eyes were the same bright-gold as Callon’s and had the same shape, like that of a cat.The outside tipped up giving her a very exotic look.Her hair was long, reaching her waist and was twisted into a braid that ran over one shoulder.As Lyra tilted her head, her facial features shifted, and Lola was staring at a stunning lioness.She sucked in a breath and blinked, then it was the woman she was looking at in the next breath.
“You do see us,” Lyra said with a kind smile.“I know this all must be very overwhelming for you.I talk to the otheranimi, though many of them aren’t ma–”
“Mother,” Callon said, his voice sharp.“I’m still explaining our world to Lola.We’ve only spent a handful of hours together.”
