“Or not in Savannah,” Baer added.
Gio climbed to his feet and grabbed his cell phone from his back pocket. He was pulling up Marcello’s number as he paced toward the room he was sharing with Lucien and Calder. They didn’t need to hear the crazy story he was going to spin for Marcello. His family definitely didn’t need to know about this weird world he’d fallen into.
Chapter Sixteen
Lucien sat back in his chair, one hand half covering his face as Baer regaled their group with his rendition of how to play tag with a tiger. Long story short, the tiger wins until his tail is set on fire.
Luckily, the restaurant Gio had chosen was loud with friendly, boisterous conversation. It was unlikely anyone could overhear Baer boasting about shifting from a tiger to a bull elephant with the intent of squashing Lucien.
Both Gio and Calder were laughing so hard, they were wiping tears from the corners of their eyes. Baer really was the best storyteller among them. Well, Grey was the best written storyteller. Baer merely had a knack for getting everyone laughing over the most mundane events.
“Wait, where were you when this was happening?” Gio demanded, poking Calder in the arm.
Calder shook his head. “Happened before I arrived.”
“Not like you would have helped.” Lucien reached for his iced tea, flashing the Water Weaver a playful grin.
“True. There’s no way I’m getting between you and Baer.”
“Besides, you would have been too busy laughing with me,” Wiley added.
Calder stared at Lucien, a broad smile on his lips that sent Lucien’s heart skipping. Calder smiled so easily at him now. He didn’t know precisely what had changed between them. Was it simply the presence of Gio smoothing things over? Or was it that they were united in a single cause—keep Gio?
Maybe it was that they’d both stopped fighting this attraction between them. He was drawn to Calder’s beauty in addition to his overwhelming kindness and gentle heart. He’d never met anyone that he’d instantly wanted to protect.
Technically, Gio came in a close second in that race. First, he’d wanted to fuck the man senseless. It had taken talking to him just a couple of times for his heart to decide that he not only wanted to keep Gio as well but needed to keep him safe with Calder.
Tonight, though, they’d managed to forget about the pestilents and the end of the world for a little while. They were still concerned about the safety of the Air Weaver, but they couldn’t go rushing in to save them. Rash, impulsive acts were the fast track to getting killed, and right now, they were only one Weaver away from getting rid of the pestilents permanently.
Correction—one Weaver and one adorable mate who didn’t realize he was fighting a battle he could not win.
After the initial shock of rejection, Lucien had to agree with Cort. They needed to win Gio over carefully. The man had no reason to trust them, no reason to believe they’d actually care for him how he deserved. They all needed time to get to know each other. Sexual attraction wasn’t a problem.
And judging by the way Gio was smiling and laughing at them both now, Lucien was inclined to believe that Gio was coming around to them on a more emotional level whether he realized it or not.
Their server swept in, clearing away empty plates and tempting them with desserts. Despite complaints a minute earlier that he was full enough to pop, Wiley immediately piped up with a request for raspberry cheesecake and two forks for him and Baer.
Lucien leaned forward to look at Calder and Gio. “Would you be up for splitting something sweet? I only need a bite or two.”
Gio’s eyes lit up for a second, and then he quickly tore his eyes away and shrugged. It was as if he’d initially loved the idea, but something had him backing away almost immediately. “I think I’m good, but you and Calder can split something.”
Calder immediately stepped in, his hand covering Gio’s wrist. “Please. Share something with us. Just a small bite.” As if to tug on Gio a little more, Calder jutted out his bottom lip in an adorable pout while fluttering his eyelashes.
A strangled laugh erupted from Gio. “If you keep poking that lip out in a pout, it’s going to get stuck like that.”
“I’m going to continue to do it until it stops working,” Calder replied firmly and blinked at him. “It is still working, right?”
“Yeah, it’s still working.” Gio leaned forward and kissed the bottom lip in question, then jerked away, a stunned look on his face, as if he couldn’t believe what he’d just done. His eyes darted up to Lucien in surprise.
“Don’t worry. I’ll steal mine after dessert,” Lucien reassured him, which put the prettiest flush in Gio’s cheeks.