“Sure,” I said with a sigh. “When?”
Gratitude and longing both crossed his face, and I felt a weird pang. Like maybe going out with him wouldn’t be so bad. “Whenever you want. Tomorrow night?”
A seething presence took up real estate behind me. J.M.’s eyes widened.
Ah yes. I’d forgotten about Mr. Overprotective there for a second.
I glanced behind me, confirming that Darius stood there. His face was shut down into a hard mask, and hisbearing was clearly intended to display his size and power.
“Don’t mind him,” I said, turning back. “He’s like a stray cat.”
“Is this your—” J.M. gestured at Darius.
“Yes, I am her—”
“Nope,” I said. “I don’t know what he was going to say, but—”
“You are my—”
“Nope.” I cut my hand through the air to stop him again. “He’s a vampire who is cooking me dinner. Strange, but true. There is literally nothing else going on here, trust me. He will leave right after dinner.”
J.M.’s eyes drifted to my robe.
Dang it. Timing was never on my side.
“Anyway.” I shrugged nonchalantly. “Give me your phone and I’ll put my number in it. You can text me.” I quickly inputted my digits and name and handed it back. “Talk to you tomorrow.”
With a furrowed brow, he nodded, said goodbye, and then slowly worked his way down the steps. He glanced back before he crossed the street. His car had to be the Mustang parked on the other side. This hadn’t been a business call, though I’d already guessed as much from the lost look in his eyes.
“Well, that was weird.” I closed the door.
“Reagan, thathumancannot treat you how youneed to be treated,” Darius said.
“Number one, it isn’t a date, it’s a counseling session to help him come to grips with magical stuff. Number two, I would ask how you think I should be treated, but you’ll just—”
“Like the priceless treasure you are.”
“That’s what I thought you’d say, but while I might be priceless, my worth to you is definitely quantifiable. You know what you’ll gain by using me, which is why I suspect you are guarding me so closely. But thathumandoesn’t want anything except comfort. He can’t use me, especially since I just got fired. Or am about to be fired, one or the other. He’s looking for normalcy. So am I. Save it.”
His jaw clenched.
“Truth bomb,” I muttered, leaning against the wall. Silence descended, thick and heavy. “Let me guess,” I ventured, “are you going to trash my dinner and storm out of here?”
“Don’t be ridiculous. You’re hungry.” He stepped aside graciously and put out his hand, motioning me into the kitchen. “Or would you prefer a stand on which to eat your meal in front of the TV like a modern-day barbarian?”
I tapped my chin. “Well, when you put it like that, in front of the TV sounds great.”
Mere seconds later, my eyes widened when hebrought in a TV tray laden with a gourmet place setting. A heaping plate took up the center, with a glistening steak resting on mashed potatoes and accompanied by string beans. A small bowl of salad and a piece of baguette sat to one side, and an array of silverware spanned out on the other—two knives, one for meat and one for buttering the bread, and two forks of different sizes. A glass of red wine sat next to a sweating glass of sparkling water, and a crystal vase holding a single red rose adorned the other corner.
“I had roses in my kitchen?” I asked as my stomach growled. That snack hadn’t been nearly adequate.
“No. I had Mr. LaRay bring one while you were in the bath.”
Moss LaRay was Darius’s driver, and even though he didn’t like me very much, he’d saved me one time from a bunch of younger vampires. Darius did nothing by halves, and poor Moss had to accommodate him when it came to me. No doubt he hated me more for it.
“Thank you for this,” I said, and meant it.
He sat down beside me and flicked on the TV. “Is there anything in particular you’d like to watch?”
