Page 45 of Kiss of a Hellish Prince

He kissed me again, this time harder. His kiss felt more possessive as his hands dropped down my back and rested just above my ass. I raised myself to my tiptoes, pressing into him harder, sliding my body so his hands were now grabbing my ass. He moaned into the kiss before breaking it.

“You ready to get out of here and go get dinner before I get carried away and we get kicked out and banned for life?” His breath heaved.

“Yeah, let’s go,” I said, laughing.

Rune laced his fingers in mine and led me out on the other side of the room. We walked back to the car holding hands, sneaking little kisses every few minutes, giggling like teenagers.

Rune took me to a restaurant in a brick building that looked like it used to be someone’s home. It had a large porch for dining outside. The inside was spacious, with maybe a dozen tables and a large bar in the middle of the room separating the kitchen from the dining area. The entire place smelled like freshly baked bread and roasting meat.

If I didn’t know better, I would have thought I had died and gone to Heaven, although I guess now Heaven was an actual place. If it didn’t smell like this, then pop culture is responsible for some serious false advertising.

A large woman wearing an apron came out from the kitchen. “Your Highness, wonderful to see you again!” She wrapped Rune in a big hug, which he gladly returned.

“Gladys, this is Tori, my date for this evening. I hope that’s okay?”

“Of course. You know you are always welcome here. Your table in the back is free. I’ll send Sally over in a few minutes with menus.”

“Great, thank you so much. I am sure it will all be amazing, as always. Rune led me to a table in the back that was tucked away in a corner.

“So, come here often?” I asked.

“Every chance I get,” Rune admitted. “Gladys is an old friend, and she is one of the first demons who moved to Phoenix, but her cooking drew a lot more here pretty quickly.”

“Ah, so is this the place you take all your dates?”

“No. Honestly, I don’t know if you could call what I was doing before I met you dating. I did take Sif here once or twice when we were together, but usually it would be Murmur and me, or I’d come alone. I brought my mother with me when she was here. She came to visit Gladys more than me.”

I laughed. “I’m sure that’s not true.”

“I think it might be, and that’s okay. I get it.”

When I got the chance to look at the menu, I was overwhelmed by the choices.

“Is it bad to admit I have never tried most of this? Like I have never tried duck or even a fig.” I laughed, trying to hide my embarrassment and discomfort.

“Can I order for you?”

“Please do,” I said, putting the menu down.

When the waitress came back, Rune rattled off a bunch of things without even looking at the menu. I wasn’t sure, but I was confident half of what he ordered wasn’t on the overly fancy menu. And I was positive he ordered enough food for seven or eight people. The waitress wrote everything down without blinking an eye. She said something about starters being out soon and left.

Rune winced. “I probably should have made sure you aren’t allergic to anything, huh?”

“Probably, but I’m not, so we’re good. And I am open to try almost anything once,” I said, trying to ignore the butterflies that were back with a vengeance.

He winked. “Good to know.”

“That is not what I mean, and you know it.” I laughed, then took a sip of my water to cool down a little.

“I don’t know that at all,” he teased.

A moment later, the waitress dropped off a few boards that each had stacks of fresh cheeses and meats, a plate of roasted fingerling potatoes, more plates of other foods, and a basket of rolls.

“You should try those potatoes. They cook them in duck fat; they are amazing,” Rune said.

The small crispy potatoes that were sprinkled with salt smelled divine. I grabbed one with my fork and popped it into my mouth. The salty, smoky flavor of the duck fat exploded in my mouth. I let out a moan. It was so good. How had I never had this before?

I was going to have to take Sarah and Vivi here just for the potatoes.

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