A few of our friends waved their goodbyes as we passed them, but no one tried to stop us. They all knew we were tired and needed sleep, so I was happy no one was angry we were leaving our own party early.
We made it to the personal elevator for the royal family—which included me and everyone at the party. Once inside, I hit the button for Oakley’s floor.
“Not going to yours, huh?”
I blinked in confusion. “What?” Why would I take them to mine?
They waved me off. “Never mind.”
I had no idea what they were talking about. Did they really think I was going to walk to my own condo and just send them on their way when they were acting like they couldn’t stand up straight?
“You’re not drunk, are you?” I asked before the elevator dinged, telling us we arrived at their floor.
Oak rolled their eyes. “Nope. Did they even have dwarf beer there? I didn’t see any.”
“I didn’t either.” I frowned. If they weren’t drunk, why were they leaning on me so much? They weren’t hurt, were they? “Are you injured?”
They snorted. “What? When would I have been injured?”
“I don’t know.”
With a sigh, I helped them down the hallway to their door and waited while they fumbled with their keys. Finally, they got their door open, and I debated for half a second whether I should leave them here or go inside and tuck them in, but they kind of pulled me in, making the decision for me.
Once inside, Oak toed off their shoes without letting go of me, then tugged me down their hallway to their bedroom.
I deposited them on their bed so they were sitting on the edge, and they grinned up at me before quickly whipping off their shirt, making me suck in a breath.
“Oak?”
They were still smiling up at me. “Rome?”
“I…” Shaking my head, I stepped back. “I’ll see you tomorrow, okay? We’re gonna meet with your dad, have a chat with a few of the victims, and then go from there, okay?”
Their head tilted to the side. “Okaaaaay.” They elongated the word, like they were unsure. “Why are we talking about work right now?” They unbuttoned their pants, and I knew I needed to get out of there before I offered to undress them myself.
But first, I… I needed to…
Licking my lips, I stepped closer to them. Gently, I ran my hand down their arm, feeling their soft skin and watching goosebumps pop up along their flesh. They sucked in a breath, their gorgeous green eyes staring up at me with something that looked like want and hope. But I… didn’t know what to do with that. Not right now. Not when I didn’t know if they actually felt the viramore pull the way I did.
So carefully, I leaned in and brushed a kiss across their forehead and whispered, “I’ll see you in the morning… don’t cook. I’ll bring you something.”
Then I stepped back and got the hell out of there before I made a huge mistake that could cost me everything.
I wanted Oakley. More than I’d ever wanted anyone in my life.
But I needed to do this the right way. We needed to talk first. I needed to make sure we were on the same page.
And then… and then I could take them to bed the way I dreamed of… often.
Chapter Fifteen
Roman
With my hands full, I couldn’t knock, so I kicked Oakley’s door a few times, hoping they’d come answer it. I had a key to their place, but I didn’t want to risk dropping the tray of food.
After a minute, the door opened, and I couldn’t help but grin. Oakley stood there with their very short hair that’d been growing back, sticking up all over the place. They had a pillow crease on their cheek, and their eyes were only half open.
“Good morning, sunshine.”
