Stephan just nodded and he could feel that Thomas loved him so much. “So, what shall we discuss this evening, Uncle Thomas?”
Thomas leaned up and tilted his head. “Well, I know you will not like hearing this, but…” He pursed his lips and let out a long sigh before he once again spoke up. “Stephan, I think it is time you took a new mate. It had been years since Aiyana.” Stephan blinked once and glanced down at the table. This was not a conversation he wanted to have, but Uncle Thomas continued. “You work too hard for your business, but your personal life is important too. And you should focus on keeping the elite shifter race going.”
Stephan glanced up and groaned. “I don’t have time to play. I’m the owner of a huge hotel chain.” He waved his hand around. “Haven’t you noticed?”
“Yes, theowner, which means you can delegate.”
“I don’t like to delegate. I enjoy the work,”he protested, and his eyes darted across the restaurant as he noticed a group of people walking toward a booth not too far from his and his uncle’s.
“I know you like your human form more than your dragon. Your mother was a human, but the reality is that you are a dragon shifter, and that cannot be changed.”
Immediately, his eyes found the magnetic woman he’d been worried about since the moment he’d first saw her. This time, her lovely hair was pinned up, and she was immaculately dressed like the perfect professional woman. Distracted by her, his uncle’s voice seemed to muffle, and he no longer heard a word he said as his focus entirely was on her now.
She was dressed in a fine blue dress the color of pure sky, but the most enchanting thing about her was the delightful laugh he heard bubbling from her as she spoke to one of the men in her party. She walked out in front of him as they were led to their table, but Stephan’s gaze did not go unnoticed as the woman lifted her eyes to meet with his and smiled briefly. That was it. Instantly, he felt his heart flutter and he was smitten. Suddenly, he knew his uncle was right. Aiyana was long gone and never coming back; it was time for him to find a new mate, and as fate had it, he might have just foundher.
“Instead of staring at the girl, go say hello. You haven’t been with a girl since your mate died,” Thomas suggested as he watched his nephew’s reaction. They both spotted the cat shifter.What he was doing with a woman who was human?
“Wait, maybe she is the cat, because I smelled a cat only after she entered in,” Thomas said, hiding his smile as he wanted to tease Stephan.
“A cat?” Stephan asked, perking a brow curiously, “What do you mean?”
“You know,a cat,” Thomas stated with emphasis.
“No, she’s a human,” Stephan pressed.
“How can you possibly know that, Stephan?”
“I know you what you’re trying to do, but for your kind information, I have seen her closely,” Stephan said without thinking too much, as his entire focus was on her.
“Closely?How close have you two have been?”Thomas grinned at Stephan.
“Nothing like that. A few minutes before I had called you, we bumped into each other back in Colorado. Literally. And you should stop teasing me.”
They both laughed.
“I must say, she resembles Aiyana so much,” Thomas said as the woman slid into the booth beside the cat shifter.
Stephan just nodded his head as memories of Aiyana flashed back.
“Well, they can only be friends,” Thomas said as he witnessed the sadness in Stephan’s eyes. He genuinely wanted Stephan to be with someone.
“I don’t know, Uncle, they look pretty cozy,” Stephan stated as he watched the cat shifter inching closer to the woman and showing her something on his phone.
The two of them were both merrily laughing at whatever it was. The sight of it made his blood start to boil slightly. He didn’t like the thought of her with another man, but he didn’t even so much as know her name. He had to stay calm, but seeing her with him as she was, it ripped his smile away and left him in a foul mood instantly. Stephan only hoped it wouldn’t last the rest of the evening.It was just like having his balloon popped the moment after he’d gotten it.
Stephan was restless and anger was taking over him every time he saw the couple laughing together. As soon as he finished his dinner, he told his uncle that he had to check some emails, and he would see him next day. Then he left to return to his room.
The next morning, it was time for him to go meet with the Petals to the Metal team. He now stood in the conference room waiting for them to arrive and raised his eyebrow when the cat shifter from the restaurant came in with his team members.
He approached Stephan and tilted his head. “Hi, I’m David.”
“Hi, David. I’m Stephan. Nice to meet you.”
“Pleasure is all mine,” David smiled as they shook hands. “I apologize, but our team leader, Mickey, she isn’t feeling well and thinks she may have caught a cold. So, she is going to try to recuperate this morning and will be joining us later for the evening meeting. She extends her apologies.”
So, the attractive woman now had a name. Mickey, it seemed. Amazing, he thought as the song slithered through his head. Curiously, Stephan blurted, “So, you are the owner of Petals to the Metal?”
David laughed and shook his head,“No, I’m actually the marketing guy. Our owner, Sarai, broke her leg, and Mickey needed an extra pair of hands. And I joined her.” Stephan could sense David’s heartbeat increase while he talked about Mickey, which meant he feels something for her.
