Page 14 of Frederick
I reached out and touched Frederick’s shoulder with my free hand, giving it a gentle squeeze. “Why don’t we have some dinner, and then we can put any questions we have to rest by going back to yours and seeing just who is going to fill which role in our relationship? There’s no reason to worry, is there? Not when we can easily have answers in just a couple of hours.”
“You’re right, of course. I just don’t want you to think that I’m rushing you. I can wait, no matter how things turn out for us.”
I could as well, but didn’t see too much of a reason for either of us to continue to wait. If we claimed each other now, we could start our lives together. If we took things slow and spent weeks or months dating one another, the end result was going to be the same. We were still going to end up together. Did we honestly need to wait?
“If waiting is what you truly desire, I am in agreement with that,” I told him. “Please don’t choose something because you feel as if it is what I need or what I deserve.”
Frederick and I shared a moment where we both simply stared at one another before he slowly nodded. “I want say that I don’t feel as if you deserve romance. Everyone does.” “Romance can come after we claim one another. If you think about how things were in times past, alphas and omega, cleaned one another almost immediately. Already you and I have spent time together and have gotten to know one another. That wasn’t something that used to happen. I see no reason to continue to wait unless it’s something you really desire.”
“I desire you,” Frederick said.
I grinned. “Well then, I suggest we head off to dinner.” As I took a step away, I gently tugged on Frederick’s hand once more.“Besides, if we wait too long, we won’t be able to get a seat.” I took a couple steps before I was at the end of my reach while still being able to hold onto Frederick’s hand. “I did tell you that this was a tiny little place, right?”
Frederick started walking and in two long strides he was beside me. “You did mention that.” Frederick smiled at me, and I couldn’t help it, I grinned at him.
He didn’t realize, but we were only half a block from our destination. When I stopped at the door to the restaurant, Frederick looked confused.
“I said it would be easy for you to miss it if you didn’t know what you were looking for.” I pushed open the door, and immediately was overwhelmed with all of the amazing scents that were associated with Remy’s. I turned to Frederick and grinned. “Welcome to Remy’s,” I told him before I stepped inside, pulling him with me.
We were sat at a tiny bistro table moments later. Dinner was a whirlwind of wine, antipasto, and our main entrées. I had chosen to go with the seafood ravioli while Frederick picked the fettuccine. The smiles, looks, and moans throughout the meal had an effect on me, despite them not being directed at me. No, Frederick thoroughly enjoyed his meal. I was a bundle of nerves and desire by the time we finally left the restaurant.
“You were quiet throughout the meal. I thought this was one of your favorite places?” Frederick asked as we walked away from the restaurant.
“Oh, it is,” I said. I took a deep breath, suddenly somewhat nervous. Or perhaps it wasn’t nerves at all, but anticipation instead? I looked up into the night sky and thought about how it was so much different here than it was in Amherst. I could see all of the stars twinkling in the sky here, and the weather was amazing. But in Amherst, the stars were often hidden behind unseeable clouds, and the weather was bitterly cold.
“Is there something else that is wrong then?” Frederick stopped me with a gentle pull on my hand that he was once more holding.
I glanced around, and when I didn’t see anyone nearby, I placed my hand on his chest and pushed him toward the alleyway.
“Nothing wrong. But I don’t know where we’re going,” I told him. “I can get us back to Amherst, but I thought we were going to Montana?”
Frederick glanced over my shoulder before I felt a familiar tickle in my stomach. Immediately we were elsewhere, and although I had expected to be thrust into the cold that I knew Montana had this time of year, we weren’t. I looked around; taking a step away from Frederick to peek around a wall. We were inside somewhere—I had to assume it was Frederick’s place.
“Is this where you live?”
“It is. This is my place in single enforcer housing. They are a lot like townhouses. There are four in a building, and I live in one of the middle units. I have neighbors on both sides. Actually, most of the single enforcer housing is filled, which is something that is somewhat new.”
“Why is it new?” I asked.
“Because for a long time, the council didn’t have a whole lot of enforcers. We just recently acquired eight fae, and half a dozen applications for other species went through.”
I had a feeling the number of enforcers were many more than I thought. “So, you’re telling me that you have neighbors on either side so I need to be quiet. Is that it?” I asked, trying to lighten the situation.
“Only if it bothers you that they might hear. But I think you’d have to scream fairly loudly because Master Edison made sure every one of our places was soundproof. I know for a fact that atleast Spencer on my left has had more than one visitor and I’ve never heard a peep.”
I guess that was good to know. I wasn’t exactly shy. But I didn’t need for everyone to know that I was having sex with Frederick and when.
“Wait. You said this was unmated enforcer housing.”
Frederick nodded. “It is. All of the mated in enforcers live in single houses in a different neighborhood. We are actually directly behind the council building. All of the mated enforcers live about ten to fifteen minutes away. It’s not a long walk, and being a warlock makes commuting no issue at all, no matter where we have to live. Why do you bring it up?”
“Well, because although you and I are currently not mated, I assume that’s going to change soon?” At least, I hoped that was where this was going. There were things we would have to sort out, and I was definitely going to have to work on moving past what he’d said. But Frederick had seemed genuinely remorseful about what he’d said. I knew that once we claimed one another, he and I would have our bond and that would hopefully help with a lot of the issues. I understood they were all on my end, but they still needed to be sorted.
Frederick moved closer and when he reached for my waist, I didn’t even consider moving back. This was the closest he’d gotten to me yet, and I found I was more than ready for it.
“May I kiss you?” Frederick asked.
How? How was it that this man made me feel like a teenager experiencing my first-time exploring things with someone?
