Page 50 of Dante
“You should come over and meet the twins. And Maggie. You’ve met John, but you haven’t met Maggie yet. She’s home with Briggs. She absolutely adores him.” Todd’s face made a look. “Although she’s probably about to go down for her afternoon nap since he’s home.”
I pulled Todd back inside. He was dressed for the walk from his place to mine, but I was in one of Dante’s long-sleeve T-shirtsand sweatpants. That was it, and the stone walkway beneath my bare feet, although clear from snow, was cold.
“What do you mean?”
“She’ll cuddle with him, and in minutes, she’ll be out like a light.”
I smiled. “How are you doing? How are the twins?”
Todd’s smile grew. “Seriously, you should come meet them. And Briggs. He knows Dante from work, but you haven’t met him.” Todd tugged on my arm.
“What, now?” I asked.
“Are you doing anything?”
I looked up at the stairs and shook my head. “No.” I held out the bag of corn chips and sighed. “I wanted nacho cheese ones, but I only had these.”
Todd snorted. “You have a hellhound for a mate. You could ask him to get you some? He has magic, right?”
I nodded. “Yes, but he’s in a meeting and I didn’t want to bother him. He’s there, just barely out of reach, but I know if I reached out, he’d be completely attentive. But I promised myself I wouldn’t interrupt him at work unless it was really important. My pregnancy cravings aren’t that important.”
“Eh…that depends on if they go away or not.”
I nodded, looked down at the bag of chips, and sighed. “Yeah, I get that. I’ll ask him later.” I rolled the top of the bag to close it. “Let me go get my shoes, at least, and I’ll need my coat even if it doesn’t close. But I wouldn’t mind coming over and meeting your mate and twins.”
I was jumping inside. I had missed my friend. I’d not heard from Felix since before Dante and I had claimed each other. Well, other than the congratulations he’d given me. Todd had texted something similar, and he and I had messaged a few times since, but he was busy with twins, and I was always sleeping, apparently.
I went to the kitchen, and after finding a clip, I closed the bag and placed it on the center island. They weren’t bad and would definitely be better with some chili and cheese sauce on them, but they just weren’t what I was craving.
I found Todd just a bit farther into the house but still close to the front door. “You don’t have to hover near the door,” I told him. “But if Dante finds out I went to your house without shoes or a coat, I’m going to be in trouble.”
Todd snorted. “Trust me, I get that. I’ll wait here while you get your socks and whatever else you need.”
I nodded before I hurried up the stairs. I quickly pulled on a pair of socks and then went back down and grabbed my boots. They absolutely did not go with the sweats and the shirt, but the pants couldn’t be helped. They were literally all that fit, and some of my sweats had become too snug in the waist, and I had to put them in the bottom drawer. I grabbed my coat, and as I twirled it around me, I nodded to Todd. “All right, I’m ready.”
Todd laughed a little. “Are you sure?”
I looked down at myself. “Dude. I am not after trying to make a huge impression on your mate. I am pregnant, due in three weeks, want chips I don’t have, and I can’t figure out what nursery theme I want. I’m going to meet your babies and spend a little time visiting with you.”
Todd shook his head. “Not what I meant, but that’s all right. Are you ready? Did you let your mate know?”
“I’m ready, but Dante is still in his meeting. He will reach out to me when he’s done.”
Todd nodded, and then we went out the door. I pulled it closed behind me and tried to close my coat around my stomach. It really wasn’t happening, so I just held it as closed as I could get it.
“I’m just there,” Todd said. “That’s my backyard, and I can’t wait until it warms up and we can spend time on our deck.”
“Oh, yeah,” I said. “The decks here are definitely nice. Ours has heaters, and I guess it’s probably Dante’s doing, but we are already enjoying ours every so often. We go out, and it’s just warm.”
Todd looked at me like he wanted to pout. “That’s so not fair.” He smiled. “Don’t get me wrong, I love Briggs, and I love the fact that he’s a wolf shifter. But I would also really like to be enjoying my patio and deck area.”
“Dante grills on ours. He will use magic like five times a week for food, and then he’ll feel like cooking and actually grill for one of them, and I’ll usually throw something together in the slow cooker another day. But honestly, Dante does most of the food stuff.”
Todd shook his head. “That’s awesome.”
We rounded the corner and turned to head toward Todd’s front door. “I’ll talk to Dante. We’ll have to have the two of you and the kids over for steaks.”
Todd gave me a huge smile. “I know I won’t say no, and Briggs will probably be all for it too,” he said just before he opened the front door. We entered to silence. I didn’t know what I expected, but it wasn’t for the house to be completely silent.
