Page 20 of Secretary's Obsession

Following the cute butt down the hallway, George could see the room before Scott walked into it. Again, it had wide, high windows, the same dark wood floor, and an enormous bed that took up most of the space. It was covered in a white bedspread. Perched up were pillows, four of them wrapped in white pillowslips. There were another two pillows, round ones. Both were yellow, and neither one of them was much bigger than George’s palm.

“I don’t have room for anything else.” Going over to the bed, Scott picked up one of the pillows and moved it about an inch closer to the other one. Then he stood back, frowning. A moment later, he went around to the other side of the bed and moved the other cushion an inch closer to the one he’d just moved. But it was clear he still wasn’t happy with the arrangement.

“Scott, hon, leave the cushions alone.” George went around the bed, pulling his mate into his arms. “I’m happy you tried to make me comfortable, but you don’t like these things, and that’s not the way mating works.”

“But I have all those boxes, and I’ve still got to take out the trash, and…” Scott was clearly overwhelmed.

“Go and fix your hair and your face,” George suggested. “Change your clothes into something more comfortable. While you’re doing that, I’ll break down the empty boxes and tape up the other ones that are still full, if you’ve got any tape. You can return all the items we’re not going to use. All right?”

“I just want you to be safe and comfortable.” Scott slumped against him.

“I know, hon.” George gave Scott an extra squeeze. “I’ll tidy up the hallway, and you can tidy yourself. Then we’ll go out for a meal, I got my new cab today. We won’t be going anywherefancy, just burgers from a food cart, so you don’t need to dress up. And when we’ve eaten, and you’ve relaxed a bit, you can tell me what you found out about the paramedic you investigated for me.”

“There was nothing to find. I went and talked to him personally to make sure,” Scott said, sounding glum. “The paramedic was just following what he’d been taught to do. He’d only been on the job three weeks, and the department had a meeting just two days ago saying all shifters needed to be medicated if they were injured and traveling in an ambulance for the safety of the driver and staff.”

That doesn’t explain how the paramedic knew I was a shifter in the first place,but George didn’t see the point in pushing his overwhelmed mate into finding out anything else. He could do that himself in his own time. “Well, let’s go and get some burgers. I think you need a chance to get out of the apartment for a while and destress.”

“We can’t do that either.” Scott’s frown deepened. “The boxes are going to have to wait, and you’re going to need a suit.” He clicked his fingers and suddenly George was wearing a very smart, and definitely not him, tuxedo. “My mom called. We’re expected there for dinner tonight. It’s my brother’s birthday.”

“Where’s there?” George had a sinking feeling in his gut. “Do they live locally?”

“No, they live in the demon realm.” Scott ran his hands through his hair, and suddenly he was wearing a tuxedo that matchedGeorge’s, and his hair was immaculate again. “It’s a family event. That makes it a perfect time to introduce my blissful one to the whole family all at the same time, don’t you think?”

“If you say so, hon.” George wasn’t sure who was trying to convince who.

Chapter Eleven

Scott

What did George mean by‘If you say so, hon’?Did he sound unconvinced about the meeting with his family? Was he passing along his own nerves about such an occasion?

“You do know I want you to meet my family? If you are picking up I’m nervous… it’s just… they can be a little… stuffy.” That word did not cover just how snobby his family was. Oh, to the demon gods, what was he playing at? This was going to be a disaster.

The meltdown over the things he’d bought and couldn’t quite figure out their placement didn’t appear to have fazed his bear, which was good. His demon was laughing its damn ass off over the pillow placements. Scott really couldn’t see what was so funny!

Now he was having another meltdown, like some kind of drama llama, only in demon form. What was George to think of him?

Large hands cupped his cheeks, and then all that he could do was feel. Heat and passion from George’s kiss didn’t allow anything else to filter past. He moaned low in his throat, and it rumbled out when George let go.

His gaze held Scott’s. “It’s gonna be alright. We go, we eat, you introduce me, then we leave.”

Was it really that simple? Scott had no evidence to suggest anything with his family was that simple, he just didn’t want to contradict his blissful one.

He reached for George’s hand and intertwined their fingers. “Let’s believe that.” He took a deep, George-scented breath, filling his lungs, and focused on what was important. “Have you ever translocated before?”

George gave him an intrigued look. “Nah, that’s not part of a shifter’s skill set.”

Squeezing the fingers, offering reassurance. “I tend not to do it often, but it’s the only way for us both to get to the demon realm. So just hold on to me, and maybe shut your eyes. Some have said the first time can be a little disorientating.”

“Good to know,” he muttered, shutting his eyes, looking sexy, though Scott had to agree with his demon, they much preferred their bear out of formal clothes—as in naked.

He took another breath and focused on where he wanted to go and a moment later, he was in his parent’s home, in his old bedroom, holding the gift he’d bought for his brother months ago.

“Is it safe to open my eyes?” George questioned.

Scott glanced around the dusty, box-ridden bedroom that his family used to store their junk in. That spoke volumes about how they thought of him. His brothers' rooms remained maintained for visits. “Yes,” he replied in a neutral tone. One that he’d become forced to use while in this house.

“Hardly felt a thing. A little zappy feeling over my body, but nothing bad. My bear wants to know can we do that to the forest if he’s in a rush?” A cheeky grin added to George’s attractiveness and gave Scott a little boost his demon was all for.

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