Page 140 of Consume Me

A party sounds nice; dancing and having a good time with my boyfriend and friends.

I have a plan, and that is to have fun tonight, but afterward, I’m going to ask Blake to take me to the lodge. That’s our place, the one where he seems at ease telling me everything.

With Celine moving in with Kaden, we turned her room into a girls’ space. That’s where we usually hang out—just us girls.

A bottle of champagne chills on the table. Abigail applies red lipstick, looking amazing in a short, fringe, red dress. Celine is in a green velvet surplice-neck dress, and Bailey dazzles in a golden low-back mini dress.

I am in a silver, one-shoulder, full-sleeve sequined dress, fitting the theme of the party: sparkly holidays. My hair falls in waves, the tips reaching my shoulder blades. I attach a snowflake hair clip, then dab on a bit of kiss-proof lipstick.

Abi waves us over, and we all grin when she takes a selfie of us.

I can’t wait to see Blake’s reaction.

A knock on the door sounds, and when Abi says, “Enter,” Dane sweeps his eyes over her. “Fuck, princess.”

He pulls her to him, and Kaden swallows when he sees Celine.

“Sky, you look stunning.”

Blake pushes them out of his way, eliciting a small giggle from me, and then he comes to an abrupt halt.

“You’re killing me, Silver.” He takes my hand and whispers, “I can’t wait to undress you later, but until then, I will savor looking at you being the embodiment of my wet dream.”

“You don’t look so bad yourself,” I smile, my smitten expression reflected in his eyes. He looks incredible in a black button-down shirt and fitted slacks.

As we descend the stairs, I spot my brother in the living room. When he sees Bailey, he tosses back his glass of whiskey.

Blake places a coat on my shoulders, brushing my hair out of the way and inhaling me. The gesture is so carnal that my body temperature spikes, but that’s nothing new in his presence.

The walk to The Cave is tense, with the guys scanning our surroundings. We do that as well, but more stealthily. I can pretend to forget about the danger, but the truth is, it’s always there, looming over our heads, ready to strike us at any moment.

“It’s in vain, isn’t it?” I ask Blake.

“I’m sorry, Mia, but I promise one day soon you won’t have to worry about that and we can simply enjoy our lives.”

I believe him. We have grown so much in our relationship in the past month, and he’s a man of his word, driven by action.I find that so damn appealing. With him, I don’t have to ask myself if he’s serious, or if I am a phase, and I can be myself with him. I like how we openly communicate, even though there’s one more thing he hasn’t shared, but he told me that to begin with. I am not afraid of his confession but terrified I won’t be enough for him in the long run. My doubts seem like such a contradiction, but when you’re in love with someone, the fear of losing that person is never rational.

When we reach The Cave, the inside is decorated in a snow and ice theme, illuminated by glacial blue lighting. Tyson sees us from the bar and waves us over.

Blake groans the moment Tyson embraces me.

“Come on, man. We’ve moved past that. She’s yours.”

“And you better not forget it.” Blake drags me to him while I caress the side of his face.

“You have no reason to be jealous.”

“I never knew I could be until you. I’m so fucking territorial I want to mark you, so every fucker on this planet knows you’re taken.”

He won’t hear me complaining.

When Xander sees Bailey, he does a double take.

“I just met my dream woman.”

“This guy is fucking unbelievable,” Hunter mumbles.

Bailey rolls her eyes at him playfully. Xander takes her hand and kisses it. The vein in Hunter’s neck might pop at any moment.

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