Page 44 of Siren in Love
Mike held Corvin tighter.“Well, we should leave.”
“Go straight to the car,” Peter whispered as Mike maneuvered Corvin toward the stairs.
Mike nodded to his boss.The corpses weren’t far out of sight then.
The building was still dark, and without humming, Mike had to mind his step just as much as Corvin did.At the bottom level, Corvin’s arm circled Mike’s waist.
“That was…quite a night.Did you do all that singing again because you heard trained dogs like it?Like with that cat?”
“Well, yes.And I was nervous.You know I like to sing when I’m nervous.”Mike felt stupid, because he was fully aware that Peter could hear them, even if they were on the bottom level.
Corvin play-punched Mike’s chest.“Mike, I swear, you and wild animals need to go your separate ways.But…you didn’t look nervous, not even a little bit.Not when you realized John was in danger, not when you started singing to bloodhounds like some kennel opera star.”There was no suspicion in Corvin’s voice, just admiration, which pleased Mike to no end.He planted a kiss on Corvin’s dusty hair.
“You know I’m good under pressure.But I’m not good when you… Hey, listen.”
Light from outside caught Corvin’s eyes when he turned to look at Mike, made them shimmer like pale jade.“Hmm?”
“Marry me.You don’t have to give me an answer now, and I have a proper proposal planned for Valentine’s Day, in case you want to wait.But marry me.I want to.I don’t ever want to be without you.”
Corvin’s face grew paler in the faint light.“What?”
“Marry me?”
“What?”
“Uh, marriage, hon.You and me, for the rest of our days.”
Corvin blinked.The next moment, his mouth was on Mike’s, the attack at least as fierce as that of a loup-garou.
“Yes.Yes, yes.Yes!”He sighed, chased Mike’s mouth for another kiss, and tried his utmost to squeeze the breath from Mike’s lungs.
“Yeah?”Mike said when he finally managed to detach.
“Hell yeah!”
“I am sorry about proposing here.”
Corvin grinned.“Don’t be.It’s memorable.Anyone could propose at some fancy restaurant, but this?Fucking unique.Except for the spiders, which are gross.Promise me, no more spiders.”
“No more spiders.”
“Memorable,” Peter whispered into the darkness from above.Judging by the way his voice rang through the building, he was leaning over the railing and watching them.Damn vampire.
“Let’s go home.Less spiders.”And less other people.
Corvin nodded, giddy and bubbly now, happiness wrapped in blond curls and gorgeous green eyes under kohl-dark lashes.
When they got to the car, the sky had lightened on the horizon.Mike was glad they hadn’t lingered, because he had no idea where precisely Peter had hidden the bodies or whether the pre-dawn light might have revealed them.He certainly didn’t want Corvin to find them.
Corvin got in the front this time, and if he noticed that the windows were still down, he didn’t say anything.Mike closed them as soon as the car was running and drove them home at a more reasonable speed than he had used to get them to the cotton mill.
By the time they closed the front door behind them, the sky was on fire with orange, pink, and golden light.
“You promised me something,” Corvin said.His hand was on the banister, one foot on the bottom stair.
“No more spiders?”
“Yes, that.But last night.You said you’d come down my throat in the morning.It’s morning, Pineapple Mike.”He grinned, his face glowing like the dawn outside.“And we’re engaged.”He started up the stairs.“Come on.We’re celebrating.By staying in bed.”
