"I have cupcakes in the car."
She perked up immediately. "How many cupcakes?"
"A box of twenty-four. The mini ones you like, and there are a bunch of flavors."
"From my favorite place?"
"Of course."
She sniffled. "You're too perfect."
"I know. We’re getting ice cream afterward, too."
"Okay, I can do this for ice cream. And for you, obviously." She breathed out slowly through her mouth as the tattoo artist glanced up at me.
I nodded for her to continue.
"Can you feed me a cupcake now?" Merrily asked a few seconds later. "Is that stupid?"
The tattoo artist coughed to hide a laugh, and I flashed her a warning look.
"It's not stupid," I said. "We'll take a break in a few minutes, and I'll go grab them."
"Thanks."
Mer would be fine. She’d been debating whether or not to get a tribal tattoo that matched mine, the way demons usually did when they took a mate, for months.
I’d tried to talk her out of it the whole time, but the woman was stubborn.
Now that she’d committed, I wasn’t letting her leave with it half-done. She’d be furious with herself if she did.
I fed her cupcakes and made her drink electrolytes as she sat through the rest of the tattoo. She stumbled a little when shefinally got off the table, but I grabbed her around the waist, holding her up.
"Take a minute to sit down, maybe?" the artist suggested, eyeing my wobbly female.
"Thanks." I carried her to a chair in the waiting area, and pulled her down on my lap immediately. She snuggled in without hesitation, and I couldn’t help but silently muse about how fucking lucky I was.
A century of pining after this woman, and now she was here. In my arms. Permanently marking her body because she cared about my culture.
Her love radiated through the bond in response to mine, and I pulled her against me a little tighter.
"Thanks for doing this,"I said into her mind, meaning the words with every fucking part of me.
"Of course," she murmured against my throat."Thanks for being mine."
"I’m lucky I get to."I ran my hand over her back, appreciating the way she melted into me.
"Some people would disagree."
"Fuck them."
"I’d rather fuck you, Darke."
I chuckled, and felt her smile against my throat."That can be arranged. I owe you ice cream first, though."
“Then I’m the lucky one.”
“You can think so, but you’re wrong.”
She laughed.
Luckybarely scratched the surface of the way I felt about her being mine… but it was a decent start.
