Because he couldn’t help it, he leaned over and kissed her cheek before he whispered, “Really.”
He stood and reached for her hand. She accepted it as “Promise” by Jagged Edge played through the space. Everyone gushed as they walked to the middle of the floor where a spot had been cleared for dancing. If Gideon knew anything about the Vicious Kings, he knew they would be up until the wee hours of the morning, partying.
“I love this song.” Glimmer gushed as they embraced and then swayed together.
Gideon smirked. One day, she would learn that he paid attention to everything she said to him. He’d learned last night that this was one of her favorite songs, so he made the request to the DJ for today.
Instead of responding, he quietly sang the song to her. She looked up at him in admiration. His voice was deep, and in another lifetime, he knew he would be a singer. Not many people knew he had pipes on him. His new wife knew now, though, and if it kept her looking at him like that, he decided he would spend a lifetime singing to her, because something told Gideon that this was only the beginning.
Lately,people had been telling Glimmer that she was glowing. It made her heart leap. Her father always told her that was why he decided to name her Glimmer. When she came out of her mother’s womb, she had a shining aura that deserved to be commemorated. Somewhere along the way, she had lost that glow. It seemed that it had finally come back.
She glanced at Gideon, who was across the room, while she wiped down the long table they used for Sunday dinners. He looked back at her and smiled that infamous smile that made her want to melt into a puddle every time she saw it. She blushed and went back to her mission of cleaning the space up before their big Sunday dinner.
It had been an entire month since she got married, and she was finally getting in the groove of living at the compound and being around the Vicious Kings. They made her get out of her shell, which exhausted her sometimes, but they also made her feel welcomed and like she belonged.
“I see you, girl,” Kyomi teased as she bumped Glimmer’s hip when she passed by with a bowl of ice.
Deja followed behind her with a case of soda in one hand and a case of beer in the other. “She was making eyes at Gideon again, wasn’t she?”
“And was,” Kyomi responded with a giggle.
“They like each other real bad,” Ivy said as she placed a platter of wings on the counter.
Glimmer rolled her eyes. The queens, as Glimmer learned they were called, loved teasing her about Gideon. Everyone in the club knew Gideon and Glimmer got married for convenience, but everyone was somehow also convinced that the newlyweds were secretly in love.
To get away from their teasing, Glimmer grabbed a beer and twisted the top off before she walked over to Gideon. Her ankle had healed nicely, which meant she was able to show off the mean ass walk that normally had heads turning her way. Gideon definitely noticed as she twisted her hips toward him and handed the beer to him with a smile.
He sat at a table playing chess with Pup, who looked down at the game in serious concentration.
Gideon took the beer with a magnetic smile. “Thanks, love. You okay?”
Anytime he spoke to her, he made sure to check her temperature. He was overly attentive like that, and she appreciated it. He’d made her transition from dealing with hell from Trick to living securely with the Vicious Kings a smooth one.
“I’m good. Ready to eat.”
“You always ready to eat.” He chuckled.
He wasn’t wrong. She had been so depressed for so long, she forgot how much she loved food. Since she’d been living at the compound, she’d been eating like crazy. Gideon definitely kept up with his vow to keep her fed, and she’d gained a couple of pounds because of it.
“We made your favorite,” she sang as she perched on the arm of his chair.
He casually leaned back and put his arm around her so his hand grazed her thigh. She bit her lip and tried to stop the heat rising to her cheeks, to no avail.
“Wings?”
She nodded. “And homemade mozzarella sticks, waffle fries with seasoned sour cream, nachos, . . . all the junk food you love.”
Really, she had made all those things. She never realized how much she liked cooking until she got there, and she especially loved making sure Gideon ate as much as he loved making sure she did.
“Hell, now I’m hungry.”
“Shit, me too,” Pup said as he hopped up and walked toward the counter where the queens had just finished setting out all the food.
Glimmer giggled. “You want me to make you a plate?”
“In a minute. I just want to sit here with you for a second.”
Glimmer leaned into him, nestling right into his side. She watched the commotion going on. There was always someone, most times multiple people, hanging around the compound. When she first got there, Glimmer found it overstimulating. Now, she found it quite comforting. The chaos meant the people she was learning to love and trust were around. What could be better than that?
