Page 63 of Mystique of the Fallen
“Anyway,” Drystan remarked. “Grant, this project is totally in your hands. But we’re all at your disposal for whatever you need. We can call in fallen knights from other cities to handle the parade route. And if we can be of any assistance, don’t hesitate to ask.”
Grant smiled. “Thanks for trusting me with this, I’m looking forward to it.”
“You earned the right to handle a project like this and trained hard to be a VK,” Conley assured him. “You’ll kick ass. We believe in you.”
Once again, heat rushed to Grant’s face. He was delighted to know they supported him and thought him worthy of his title. And now Grant finally had an opportunity to prove to himself that he was right where he belonged.
Chapter 23
Roman tugged the door of the restaurant open and waited for Grant to go ahead of him. Unconsciously, he licked his lips as Grant sauntered past him in a plaid button-down and dark jeans. The overhead lights bounced off Grant’s shiny brown locks, and Roman’s hands twitched. He wanted to touch him. To tear his clothes off and drag his mouth over every gorgeous inch of him.
Since Roman didn’t want to piss off Drystan by getting himself arrested for public indecency, he just stretched his arm out toward his other half. Grant turned his head and grinned as he snagged Roman’s hand and intertwined their fingers. They stopped in the short line to wait for a table, and Roman cupped Grant’s cheek. Their eyes met.
A mixture of affection and banked lust stirred in the bright green depths of Grant’s beautiful eyes. Roman shifted, and Grant met him halfway for a soft kiss.
“I’m surprised you wanted to go out to dinner tonight,” Grant said.
The couple ahead of them was led away to their table, so Roman had to wait to reply to his mate so they could secure seats for themselves. They were led to a booth, and Roman caressed Grant’s waist briefly before his other half slid onto his side of the table.
Roman sat across from him and smiled.
“Of course we had to go out tonight,” Roman said after the host melted into the crowd. “You were assigned your first big project.”
“And here I was thinking you finally decided I needed to be wooed,” Grant teased.
Immediately contrite for not wining and dining Grant, Roman grimaced. “Shit.”
Grant laughed. “Hey, unless you count sucking you off on the couch, I haven’t wooed you either.”
“Believe it or not, knowing we’re both bad at this isn’t making me feel any better.”
“It should. We’re equal in everything…including our jobs now.”
“Sorry.”
Grant’s gaze hardened. “I know you want to protect me. I appreciate the sentiment. If I was in a position where I could protect you, I’d probably do the same. But I have to prove myself. This is what I was resurrected for. What I trained for. I can do this. I promise.”
“Hey, I know you can do this. I have no doubt you’ll be the best damn VK among us.”
The furrow of Grant’s eyebrows spoke to his disbelief of Roman’s words, but they were momentarily distracted by their server showing up. Neither of them had glanced at the menu yet, but at least it was easy to order their beers.
“I didn’t realize that by denying you the chance to wade into the thick of things, you’d begin doubting your abilities.”
Grant laughed, but it was strained. “That didn’t start it. I’ve felt that way since before you even placed that VK patch on my uniform. The keeping me from doing shit like being on call just made it worse. But now, I can build my confidence. I need a chance to prove to myself more than anything that I can do this.”
“I’m here to help, you know.”
“Yeah, I know,” Grant said. “I’ll be using your expertise. Don’t worry.”
“Like in bed or work-related?”
As Roman had wished, Grant chuckled. “Yeah, both. Now, focus. I don’t want to irritate our server. What are we ordering?”
“You’re having pizza because Andra’s is the best. I’ll have pasta because, thanks to Chand, I can’t eat pizza without wanting to swear.”
“Okay?”
“Trust me, you won’t be disappointed.”
