Page 173 of The Alpha

He nodded. “That’s what best friends do.” Melvale took another step closer. “I’d like to think of myself as your friend.” He took the last few steps and rested his arms on her shoulders. “Then perhaps, something more?”

Her eyes went wide. Something between a delicious tingle and a fear-filled chill went up her spine. “Let’s… let’s stick to friends. I mean… we only had one date…”

He lowered his face to hers. “We could have another.”

Another dratted tingle went up her spine. Did he have to be so close? And did he have to… Pari took as discreet a sniff as she could. Yep. This gorgeous hunk of man smelled like cookies. Not chocolate chip. Not any particular kind really. Just, cookies.

“My lovely Pari,” he whispered. “Will you go out with me again? Will you let me take you shopping and buy you lunch?”

Her head came up. She hadn’t realized she’d been looking at the floor while contemplating how he could make the smell of cookies sexy. “Date?”

He rubbed her nose with his. “Yes, little one. Another date.”

“Wh-when?” she stammered. Whenever he got close like this, she got more than a little flustered.

“Tomorrow. Remember, our party is in two days.”

“Oh, yeah, but…” she swallowed, her throat suddenly dry. She looked away. “I don’t have any money right now.”Yeah, because you just spent it all on him!

He tucked a finger under her chin and brought her face up to his. “I have plenty of money. I’ll give you some, and you don’t have to pay me back.”

“I can’t let you do that…”

“Yes, you can. Think of it as part of my Christmas gift to you. Besides, what’s a shopping date if I don’t take care of you?”

Her breathing had picked up. Really, if he didn’t move away from her, she was liable to hyperventilate. “But it’s notChristmas, n-not really.” Oh, for crying out loud, why was she whispering? Not to mention stuttering!

“Itisfor our party,” he whispered back, then ever so gently, kissed her cheek. He straightened slowly, never taking his eyes from hers, and took her hand. “Let’s get upstairs before Dallan eats all the cookies.”

Unable to stop herself, she snorted. Thank goodness she did. She needed something to break out of his spell. “The man does like his cookies.”

Melvale arched an eyebrow. “You have no idea, Kitten.”

And he had no idea how he’d just sent her growing feelings up another notch.

54

Pari once again slept in the room Raina had used. She wondered if she’d be able to see Halden and Raina, and had asked Shona about it. She said Pari would have to wait until they returned to the palace. Her father, the king, had ordered Halden and Raina to enjoy some much-needed privacy, whatever that meant.

Melvale slept on a cot in the spare room between the room she was using and her bedroom, where Kwaku and Zara slept. Dallan and Shona were camping out in the living room. The two couples took turns standing guard, but at this point, she stopped questioning and wondering why. After her reaction to hearing that the doctor’s men were close by, they could do what they wanted. She still couldn’t get over her uncontrollable shaking and being on the verge of tears the other day. Just the thought unnerved her.

“Are you ready to go shopping?” Kitty asked when she entered the apartment.

Pari smiled. She had no idea where Kitty and the man called Archer were staying. “Sure, I guess.”

“You don’t sound very enthusiastic about it,” Kitty pointed out.

Pari rolled her eyes. “That’s because I don’t have any money, and I feel bad about letting Melvale, um, buy stuff.”

Kitty leaned against the kitchen counter as Pari fixed herself a bowl of cereal. “He wants to take care of you. Why not let him?”

A chill went up her spine. Maybe because he’s a freakin’ alien?She shrugged. “It isn’t right…”

“Why not, you’re dating, aren’t you?” Kitty grabbed a bowl from the cupboard and reached for the cereal box. “If I was dating, I’d let my boyfriend buy me stuff.”

“He’s not my boyfriend. We hadonedate!” She took a huge bite of cereal and tried not to choke. “People date to see if they want to be boyfriend and girlfriend,” she said between bites.

Kitty nodded as she poured milk over her cereal. “Okay, that much is true. But don’t you think you’ll know after a few dates with him?”

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