“I’m down here.” I catch his reflection in the window. Instead of going down the stairs, he jumps over the balcony, spreading his wings and gracefully gliding down.
“Show-off,” I say with a smile.
He smiles back. “Being cursed…” He trails off and shakes his head. “Having the ability to fly almost makes up for it.”
“Almost.”
“Yes. Almost.”
“I’ll try to break it.”
“I know.” He stops behind me and brushes my hair over my shoulder. His hands go to my hips, and I step back until I’m up against him. I rest my head on his firm chest and my eyes fall shut.
“You’re staying in tonight, aren’t you?”
“Probably. I’m kind of out of plans right now.”
“That’s for the best tonight.”
I spin in his arms. “How is it for the best?”
“You’re exhausted, Ace. You can’t go after vampires on a whim again. You have no stakes and no holy water. Your head injury is one blow away from becoming serious and I can tell you’re sore when you walk.”
“But the new moon—”
“Isn’t happening tonight.” He picks me up and I know there’s no point to protesting. Hasan is double my size, if not more. With a smirk, he crouches down, holds me tight, and jumps, taking flight. In just seconds, we land on the upstairs balcony.
“Whoa.” My arms are still fastened around his neck. “That was incredible.”
“Like I said, it almost makes up for the curse.” He sets me down and takes my hand, leading me into the bedroom. “You need to rest, Ace. I’m serious.”
“Yeah,” I agree, knowing that going into the bedroom with Hasan isn’t going to be restful. And I’m okay with that.
“I don’t understand the way you dress.” Hasan runs a hand through his hair, messing it up even more in a way that looks incredibly sexy on him. “What you were wearing at the bar is very different from what you are wearing now.” He sits on the foot of the bed, eyeballing me.
“Yeah, I can see how that’d be confusing.” I look down at the yoga pants, tank top, and zip-up hoodie I have on now. “This is comfortable, and what I tend to wear when I’m at home alone. Which is always, since I live alone.” I wear this when I go out, too. Well,ifI go out. “Anyone can dress however they want now. Well, here they can. Other countries still have dress codes.”
He nods, brows coming together. “And you choose to wear that?”
I cross my arms. “It’s not that bad. I might look slightly homeless, but at least I’m comfortable.”
“I liked what you had on yesterday better.”
I laugh. “At least you’re honest.” I fiddle with the zipper of my hoodie. “It did feel kind of nice to dress up a bit,” I admit. “I don’t very often.”
“You should. The tighter fit looks good on you.”
“Is that your way of saying you wish I’d put on a dress and a corset?”
He shakes his head. “Corsets take too long to take off.”
“I can imagine.”
“Come here, Ace.”
I cross the room, going right onto Hasan’s lap. He’s hardness and muscle beneath me, and I feel so small and delicate against his large frame. I wrap my arms around his neck and he places his bear-like palm on the small of my back.
“What about the vows?” I whisper, almost afraid to bring it up. I don’t want to remind him and make him have second thoughts.
