Afflicted (8 page)

“I knew it,” David said with a smug expression on his face. “Pay up Tristan.”

“You guys placed a bet on me,” Kaden said as he frowned at the two men.

“Hey I called it when word got around about the way you busted up those knuckleheads for what they’d been doing to her. Come on it was obvious. You could have just said your peace and walked away. Considering you are the alpha and your word is law,” David said as he walked over to collect his money from Tristan.

“On that note here is to change,” Kaden said as he held up his beer bottle.

Later on in the day Kaden pulled Adam to the side to learn more about his experience. How did he handle finding out his mate was human? What was his reaction? How much did she know about their world? Kaden asked a seemingly endless array of questions. More than anything he worked up the nerve to ask for advice. In taking this risk to pursue Victoria there was going to be a point in time he would have to reveal he was more than just a man.

Chapter Eight

V
ictoria unzipped the third dress she’d tried on. She tossed it into a corner as she picked up another dress to try on. She spent another ten minutes digging through her closet for something to wear before she settled on a black baby doll dress with lace long sleeves, black peep toed pumps, a diamond heart long chained gold necklace, and gold hoop earrings. Victoria placed her hair in a quick updo, spayed perfume on her wrists, neck, and grabbed a black with gold stripes clutch before finally making her way out the house.

The Redbird was the only restaurant in town that seemed to give some type of essence of fine dining. It was a little gem in the small town and the food was delicious. Victoria walked into the restaurant that was littered with only a few patrons. The Redbird had regency type paintings on the walls, dark wooden floors that contrasted with the elegant tablecloths, and a red and gold color theme throughout the inside. She wasn’t surprised to learn Kaden was already at a table waiting for her. A male waiter directed her to the table Kaden was seated. Victoria followed the waiter to a booth in the back of the restaurant where it was dimly lit illumining the perfect ambiance of pure romance for a couple. He was standing up and waiting for her when he saw she was being led to the table.

This is not a date. Oh it’s so not. Damn he shaved.

Victoria noticed his hair was slicked back in a ponytail at the nape of his neck. She liked the wild look of him better but he still looked sexy.

“Hi,” she said while hurrying to take her seat.

“Hello.”

“So did you run your eyes over the menu yet?”

“No.”

“Okay well I am ready to order. I already know what I want.”

              She examined her nails as a distraction. Kaden had that look on his face again. That made the fourth time she’d been given that look. First time was in her office, the second time was on her doorstep, and then yesterday. She liked the look on his face and was doing everything to prevent him from knowing it. Victoria wasn’t going to spend the evening with her cheeks flushed.

“Victoria?”

“Yes,” she said as she slowly lifted her eyes in his direction.

“You look beautiful.”

Victoria bit the inside of cheek to prevent from smiling and gave a hurried reply of thanks.

I have to be honest. Kaden seems rough around the edges but sweet and I kind of like him.

So, what’s even good?”

Kaden had his head buried behind a menu. Victoria reached for the glass of water the waiter placed in front of her and took a sip. She hadn’t taken him seriously when he claimed he’d never been here before. The only reason she even agreed to come to dinner was because of her guilt. Victoria felt she could have reacted differently that night. Plus the fact that he even managed to get her a rose from God only knew where from in this town. Besides deep down she was happy he asked her to go to dinner.

“For starters you should try the bacon stuffed mushrooms with sweet corn and go from there. Take your pick everything tastes delicious,” she said in a flat tone.

Kaden made his choices off of the menu including Victoria’s recommendation. Time ticked away with Victoria trading her water for wine. She sipped on the glass of wine, keeping her responses to Kaden’s questions short, and simple. Not one for doing much drinking and a light weight Victoria’s tongue seemed to have a mind of its own by the end of the main course of their meal.

“Why do you always look at me like that, like you want to devour me sexually or something,” Victoria blurted out.

Slowly her eyes went wide at the realization at what she’d just said. She couldn’t believe it came from her lips. Kaden sat across from her with a wolfish grin on his face.

Water Vic. Get your hands on some water.

“I do Victoria. You have no damned clue how much.”

“So you are looking to get in my pants,” Victoria said as she glared at him through glossy eyes.

Kaden used the napkin to wipe his lips. Tossing the napkin down on the table Kaden moved to the middle of the booth and inched his way over to her side. Propping an arm behind her Kaden leaned in close. Victoria attempted to ignore the heat radiating from his body.

“Don’t get me wrong I really want to fuck you but that’s not the only thing I want,” Kaden said huskily just above her ear. Victoria fought the urge to rub her ear and shiver at the warm tickling heat from his winded words.

Whoa….oohh did Kaden really have to say that. Did he just say that? Don’t smile Vic!

“Right and what else do you want besides fucking me,” Victoria asked with the roll of her eyes.

“I want to get to know you, love you, cherish you, make love to you, and never fucking let you go. Honestly it’s the all I want and for you to love me all of me.”

“Saying that must work with other women but sorry it’s not working for me.”

“I don’t say that to other women. It’s kind of one-time thing. You belong with me. Somewhere deep down you know it. You know there is a connection between us. An invisible magnetic is pulling us together and I’ve already stop fighting it.”

Maybe there is.

“Whoa, I am not looking to date anyone and I am definitely not looking for a long distance relationship. Did you forget that I am not going to be staying here anymore?”

“No. I haven’t forgotten. In fact I’m going to do whatever it takes to keep you by my side. I’m not going to try while you are tipsy.”

“No I’m not,” Victoria argued, her words coming out in a slur.  She reached for her refilled glass of wine.

“I’m going to have to break that habit. How much do you drink a day?”

Victoria gasped and snapped her head in his direction.

Damn it. He is just too sexy for his own good. Oh and now he thinks I am a drunk.

“I don’t drink often. Can’t you tell I am a lightweight this is only my second glass. I don’t drink much.”

“Good you are telling me the truth.”

“What are you like some human lie detector?”

“Something like that I guess you could say,” Kaden said as he chuckled.

Oh he has dimples. I could just kiss them.

Biting her bottom lip Victoria reached up to touch the side of his face. She wanted his hair back but then she wouldn’t have known when he smiled he had dimples.

“I liked the unshaven look on you better. It gave you one hell of a predatory look but it was sexy. You still ar-”

She stopped speaking as Kaden delivered butterfly kisses to her wrist.

“Hmmm, you are killing me,” Kaden mumbled though kisses. When his tongue glided across her sensitive skin Victoria yanked her wrist from his grip. Victoria breathed in a shaky breath. It had been too long since she had skin to skin contact from the opposite sex.

Drink some freaking water. Come on sober the hell up.

Victoria picked up the glass with water that had tiny melted ice cubes floating around. She took a long gulp. She glanced over in his direction and that expression was back on his face.

Oh if he keeps giving me that I can give you the best fuck you ever had look…wait a min. No I am just going to put my vibrator to good use.

“I’m going to go to the restroom,” Victoria said as she scooted out of her seat. Hurrying to stand on her feet, Victoria only managed to feel as if the room was starting to spin before her eyes. She took a step back only to fall gracelessly flat on her behind. A yelp almost fell past her lips as she felt her bottom land on something hard that she felt twitch as she moved slightly. Victoria had fallen into his lap and was sitting on very noticeable rock hard cock.  She found herself calculating the size of his manhood. Biting down on the bottom of her lip, Victoria resisted moving her hips to grind against the hardness.

“Need help,” he breathed against her neck.

***

Kaden watched as she disappeared off around a corner towards the restroom. He groaned as he looked down at the budge between his legs.

Now it seems pointless that I even rubbed one out before I walked out the damned house!

He’d abandoned his well thought out plan the moment he saw Victoria being led over to the table. So far the night wasn’t going bad or good somewhere in between. Kaden asked the waiter to take away the bottle of wine. He didn’t think Victoria was a drunk and wasn’t going to allow her to spend the rest of the night consuming glass after glass of wine. Kaden wanted, needed Victoria to be sober, as he made his attempt to win her over. If he was successive by all means there would be the issue of telling her about him and his kind. The last thing he wanted was for Victoria to run away from him. There was that possibility she would. Adam told Kaden how his human mate refused to see him after revealing his true self. In the end Adam managed to fight for her love. Now Adam and his mate were together. Melody came to terms with the fact he was more than human. The thought of Victoria disregarding him based on who he was scared him and he wasn’t the type to be afraid of much.  Love was completely foreign to him but he was willing to learn.

What am I going to do if she refuses me?

“Excuse me are you and your date ready to move on to dessert?”

Kaden gave a lazily nod to the waiter. Right now he didn’t care about eating dessert, he’d much rather have his head between Victoria’s thighs instead.

Shit! Think about baseball…mmm third base with Victoria sounds good…bowling…think about freaking bowling. Damn that is boring.

Kaden downed the rest of the wine in his glass. By the time Victoria made her way back to the table Kaden wasn’t even close to getting rid of the bulge in the front of his Levi jeans.

“Ooo, desert is on the way,” Victoria said as she slid into her seat.

Kaden noticed her eyes were still a little glossy. He needed to get her sober quick and out of this restaurant. The walls were closing in on him and her scent was doing nothing to help his current situation. And it sure as hell didn’t help when she started licking her lips as their waiter brought over desert. She’d mentioned it to him earlier she had a sweet tooth and chocolate was her kryptonite.

Damn it if she isn’t already becoming my fucking kryptonite.

“What was it you ordered again?”

Victoria took her eyes off the waiter heading in their direction.

“Chocolate chestnut cake,” Victoria half moaned out. “It tastes so good.”

“Is it that good?”

Victoria nodded her head up and down with a smile on her face. Within seconds of her dessert being placed in front of her Victoria had a fork in hand and was attacking the tiny square on her plate. Kaden looked down at his own dessert. He’d chosen a slice of a New York cheesecake drizzled in hazelnut syrup. Kaden didn’t give a damn about the scrumptious mouthwatering food before him. Explicit thoughts were consuming him to the point where he couldn’t really focus on much else.

He stared at Victoria. Watching as she savored every bite as a soft moan oozed past her red lipstick covered lips. Kaden leaned back as he turned a simple thing as dessert eating into an erotic show. A loan groan sounded from Kaden when he caught sight of Victoria licking the corner of her lips. And Victoria didn’t have a clue to the dramatic state of his arousal. Drawing in a deep breath, her scent overwhelmed him even farther, and he didn’t mind.

“You should have got this. You are missing out.”

Kaden chuckled as he picked at the dessert on his own plate.

“Maybe you should just let me taste yours.”

I’d rather taste something else.

“All you have to do is ask. I don’t mind sharing.”

Kaden’s cell vibrated. He glanced over at it and groaned as he read his beta’s name. Kaden wanted to ignore the call but he knew it might be important. With a quick apology to Victoria Kaden answered his phone.

“Yeah,” Kaden said.

“Your mom had to be physically removed from Rick’s tonight and now she is ripping her house apart. She is in a drunken rage,” Adam rushed out.

“Shit,” Kaden grumbled as rubbed his chin. “I’m on my way.”

“What’s wrong,” Victoria asked with a mouth full of cake.

“Family emergency,” Kaden said as he hung up. “I hate to leave you like this.”

Kaden stood up.

“You’re fine. You don’t mind if I eat that cheesecake do you?”

I love that she has an appetite. I hope she has that same amount of hunger between the sheets.

“It’s all yours but first I would like to get a taste of that cake that you like so damned much,” Kaden said as he walked to her side. She pushed her plate in his direction. He ignored the dessert on her plate. Kaden had wanted to taste the dessert in a different way. By the time she looked up at him Kaden was leaning down, his hand on her cheek holding her still, as he captured her lips. He didn’t stop until he’d accomplished his goal. Victoria opened her mouth to allow his tongue to slip inside. He tasted the remnants of the cake as his tongue explored her mouth. Kaden allowed her to pull away.

Victoria reached up to rub the side of his face.