Page 29 of Ridge

“I think I’d like that,” Kael said.

Ridge gestured toward the end of the street. “Is pizza okay?”

“Pizza is perfect.”

They slowly walked down the sidewalk. Ridge was trying to think of something to say, though their real conversation should probably wait until they were alone. Of course, they always seemed to find a way to avoid being alone and talking about their bond, but that would end today. Ridge was sure of that. It didn’t matter if they had to wait an hour or two longer. Kael was here, by his side. He wasn’t running. He wasn’t ignoring Ridge. He wasn’t denying that they were meant for each other. He just wanted some time, and Ridge would give him all the time in the world if that was what he needed.

He understood the fear, and even felt it himself, at least in part. Maybe he should tell Kael that. Maybe knowing he wasn’t the only one terrified by their bond would help. Even if it didn’t, it would feel right to tell him. Kael was his mate. Ridge should tell him how he felt. He should be honest with his mate, the way he hoped his mate would be honest with him.

But for now, the first step was pizza, maybe some conversation about the work they’d done over the past few days, and rest. Hopefully, everything else would come more easily once they had full stomachs and had relaxed a little.

Ridge hoped that over the past few days, he’d shown Kael the kind of person he was. He hoped he’d shown him that he would be a good mate. If he hadn’t, he would have to work harder to make sure Kael knew it. One way or another, the two of them would work things out. They had to.

Fate had chosen them to belong together, after all.

* * * *

KAEL WAS GRATEFUL FOR the extra time, even though he knew he shouldn’t need it. He’d made this situation complicated, but it really wasn’t, was it? He and Ridge were mates, or rather, he was Ridge’s mate, but those were semantics. The only thing that mattered was that somewhere, someone had decided that Kael would be the perfect person for Ridge to spend the rest of his life with, and Ridge wasn’t going to let that go.

Did Kael want him to let it go? No. He couldn’t say he was in love with Ridge, but he could see how easy it would be to fall for the man. They’d spent the past week together, working and sharing living spaces. Even though he’d been wary of Ridge initially, he wasn’t anymore.

He couldn’t say he felt entirely comfortable with the situation, but he realized it was mostly because of himself and not because of Ridge. It had nothing to do with Ridge himself. Kael just didn’t know what to do with the bond between them or what to say, and that was what made it awkward. Once they got to know each other better, he was sure everything would feel smoother, and what would help most was having a conversation where they were both honest with each other.

That was what they should’ve done the day they’d had sex. Instead of being awkward with each other that evening, then focusing entirely on work the following days, they should have sat down and talked things out. Kael should’ve told Ridge that he wasn’t against bonding with him, but that he needed more time. Hopefully, Ridge would have understood.

Hopefully, he still would.

They got a table near the back. Kael had never been here, and he looked around, curious. Ridge was talking to the waiter, and since he already knew what Kael liked to drink, Kael didn’t bother paying attention to the order. Instead, he took in the decor, which seemed meant to evoke Italy. They were in a pizzeria, after all. The air smelled of garlic and tomato sauce, and his stomach rumbled, making him blush.

“I don’t know why some people are allowed in here,” he heard a woman say.

The voice came from their left. Kael knew he would regret it, but he looked anyway, unsurprised when his gaze met that of a blonde woman. She quickly looked away and sniffed, but it was too late. Kael knew she’d been the one talking, and he knew she was talking about him.

“Please,” the man sitting across from her said. Kael couldn’t see his face, but he already liked him better. At least the man wasn’t talking about Kael as if he wasn’t sitting right there. Even if he agreed with what the woman was saying, he wasn’t being open about it in a place where anyone could hear. He seemed to have a little bit of decorum, which the woman sorely needed.

“You know I’m right,” the woman insisted. “Look around. He’s the only one who looks different.”

“You don’t know what the people around us are,” the man hissed back.

“At least shifters have the decency of looking like us.”

Ridge was done talking to the waiter. From the tightness of his jaw and his stormy expression, Kael could tell that he’d heard what the two were saying. It would’ve been hard for him or anyone else in the room not to. The music was playing, but not loud enough to cover nearby conversations.

Kael swallowed and looked down. Maybe they should leave. He didn’t want to create problems, and apparently, just sitting here had started some.

“I just think they should stay in their villages,” the woman continued. “They’ve been hidden away for so long. They should know they don’t belong with us.”

Ridge put his hands on the table and started to get to his feet. Kael grabbed his arm, squeezing it and realizing what he’d done only when Ridge blinked at him. He shook his head, pulling Ridge back down. The woman was rude, but he didn’t want Ridge to start a fight, even though he would easily win it.

But Kael was done. He’d been told time and time again, in one way or another, that he didn’t belong—though never quite so openly to his face. People usually murmured it behind his back, or sometimes they didn’t even say anything. Just the way they looked at him made it obvious that they thought he wasn’t supposed to be there.

But why not? What had he done that was so horrible that he couldn’t sit here eating pizza with his mate?

Nothing. He had just as much right to be here as that woman. She might have the right to say rude things, but he had the right to say that to her face.

He turned to fully face her. She’d been watching him, and she paled slightly, but she also lifted her chin, making it obvious she wouldn’t back down if he said something. He didn’t expect her to apologize or even change her mind. That didn’t mean he was going to stay quiet. “I have as much right to be here as you do,” he told her. “The way I look or what I am doesn’t change that.”

She looked almost surprised that he had the nerve to confront her. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”