“I can't believe you've left your camp to go walking through Fellbrook with me,” I said to get us off the subject.
“I can take a day off,” he said defensively. “When we go to Varalorre, I'll have to take weeks off. General Gravenne will watch over things for me.”
“I'm just a foregone conclusion to you, aren't I?” I narrowed my eyes at him.
Taeven snorted. “Do you think I'd bring you out here on this elaborate date if I thought you were a foregone conclusion? I've never worked so hard to get a lover in my entire life, and it's only been a day.”
Slightly mollified, my glare softened. “And yet you talk as if I'm already your valorian.”
“My father taught me to focus on the result I want and act as if it has already occurred.” He slid me a lusty look. “But you won't let me hold your hand so I have to resort to words.”
“Act as if it has already occurred,” I murmured. “That works?”
“You'd be surprised.” Taeven grinned broadly, and it was so damn beautiful that I stumbled.
The Falcon Lord steadied me, his hand lingering on my back. “Are you all right?”
“Yeah, just warn me next time,” I grumbled.
“Warn you about what?”
“About all that.” I waved at his face. “You can't just drop a smile like that on people like that. You gotta prepare them.”
“Prepare them?” Taeven asked, amusement tinging his tone. “How so?”
“You know, be like, 'Hey, Shane, I'm about to smile and it will make me so fucking handsome that you're going to lose your shit. So, prepare yourself to be amazed.'”
Taeven laughed so loud that people passing by stopped to stare. It could have been because he's just as breathtaking when he laughs, but I was guessing it was more about the volume and abruptness.
“Shh,” I hushed him as I smiled politely at the gawking people. “Tone it down, Tae, everyone's looking.”
Taeven stopped laughing to smile at me affectionately. “What did you call me?”
“I . . . uh,” I stammered.
“Only my family and closest friends call me Tae.”
“I'm sorry, I won't—”
“I like hearing you say it,” his voice dropped to a low rumble. “Feel free to keep doing so. Especially in bed.”
“Oh. Uh.” I swallowed past the dryness in my throat. “All right.”
“Ah, here we are!” Tae exclaimed and turned toward a bright red door.
We were in the shopping district, where the buildings were only one to two stories tall, as opposed to those in the residential areas that went all the way up to six or even a phenomenal seven stories. I would never want to live in one of those tiny boxes they call apartments, but I could appreciate the innovation of their construction. Anyway, the shop we stepped into sold food. Not just any food, but desserts. I stopped just inside the door and gaped at the glass displays of delicate pastries decorated so beautifully that they'd be a shame to eat.
“Great balls of fuck,” I whispered.
“This is the best pastry shop in the city.” Taeven grinned. “What would you like?”
“Uh.” I stepped closer to a glass display and peered at the rows of desserts. “I can have one?”
“You can have as many as you want,” he whispered in my ear. “Take your time. I want you to be sure you get the ones youtruly hunger for.”
I shivered and would have given him an annoyed look if my eyes hadn't been glued to the pastries.
“My lord! How may I assist you?” A large man in a white uniform hurried over to us, breaking away from a team of salespeople even though the shop was busy and there were lots of people who hadn't been helped yet.
