32
Patrena
A few weeks later…
A slow rhythmic sway kept me moving to Anthony Hamilton’s “The Point of It All.” The volume was set low enough to make you chase his soulful voice that flowed warmly and smoothly over the audio sensory system before it sank in. Mecca and Arjen had planned a dinner party and had invited everyone over to get together and mingle.
I had practically moved into Tywin’s family home. His father, son, and the rest of the staff still ignored all my protests of being the new lady of their house. I also sensed that they would have a fit when the time came for me to return to my own place. We had never discussed if we were a couple or a temporary indulgence for each other, but I was enjoying the hell out of “it”while whatever “it” was called was still in progress.
Tywin had met with his cousins earlier in the day to discuss business, so we hadn’t arrived together. My armed escorts had driven me to Mecca’s, and I had arrived twenty minutes before we were set to sit down for dinner at six. The maid greeted me at the door and announced my arrival to the rest of the house like we were at some fancy-schmancy high-society function.
I stepped into a large dining area and found Khane and Desiree, Arjen and Mecca, and a number of their guards among the crowd, sipping wine and snacking on hors d’oeuvres. It didn’t surprise me to see members of the LoC, Lady A and E, in attendance.
Tywin’s prediction that Mecca and Arjen as well as Desiree and Khane were in love enough not to keep anything from each other was spot on. I suppose there was no need for the LoC to keep hiding from the Vallins since we were so closely embedded with each other now.
A man dressed in a tux walked up with glasses of sparkling champagne on a shiny tray. I picked up one and thanked him before stepping away to join the rest of the group and to start mingling.
Mecca was still recovering from the gunshot wound to her back. Every once in a while, she would release a subtle wince or take a seat when she became winded. I smiled at the notion that Arjen’s eyes were never too far away from wherever she was.
Minutes later, when Tywin strolled in, it took great effort not to run and jump him even though I had been tied up in his bed earlier that morning. His eyes brushed everyone present before stopping and lingering on me.
He was sexier than hell-dripping sin in all-black slacks that had been cut to fit him to perfection and a jet black button-up that made his complexion sparkle. A flash of heat hit me the longer I stared and it took nine chants of “Lord, help me”to cool me down enough to keep from fanning myself. I had a heat sickness for the man so bad my teal halter-neck dress felt like it had melted onto my skin.
We stood in place smiling at each other from across the room, but neither of us made a move to get any closer. He reached out and picked up a glass of champagne from a nearby roaming tray and finally stepped away to join the rest of us. The sounds of voices and laughter from the other attendees started to seep back in when I got a hold of myself.
“Tywin and Patrena, are you two a couple or what? We’re tired of waiting around to find out. Why do you think we’re having this party?” Arjen was the bold one who had posed the direct question with a waiting gaze that dared us to feed him a lie.
His words sparked the desired effect as eyes from every corner of the room zoomed in on Tywin and me. Without even trying, we had ended up standing next to each other.
The core of this group knew I was staying with Tywin and his family, but we had never confirmed or denied that we were a couple. I didn’t think they had ever seen him do anything other than comfort me after some sort of drama had gone down.
“Ouch,” Arjen recoiled when Mecca playfully tapped him across the arm for his rude prying.
“Although I’d love to know the answer to that question, it’s not the reason we are having this dinner party,” she corrected. The firm curiosity in her gaze caused me to speculate if the status of my relationship with Tywin wasn’t at least one reason for the gathering.
“Who in here wants to know the answer to the ten-million dollar question?” Arjen polled the entire room.
My gaze circled the room a couple of times when every hand flew up in the air. Even the members of the LoC had their hands lifted high. Had Tywin and I done that good a job of keeping our fling under wraps? It appeared that everyone who knew us well enough had no idea we had been sexually active since the day we had met face to face.
“Patrena is not old enough,” Cass, one of their most trusted guards, spoke up.
The comment made Arjen and Khane laugh although they were still eyeing Tywin with pensive gazes. Those smiles dropped before they cast inquiring eyes on me. I knew they were teasing, but what the hell was Cass talking about?
“Are you over thirty?” Arjen asked although I was sure he already knew my age.
“No, I’m twenty-eight. Why?” I glanced at Tywin for an explanation.
“They constantly tease me because I have always dated older women,” he explained, shoving Arjen’s hand off his shoulder.
Older women?
My face pulled into a tight squint. How much older were these women he’d been dating?
He shrugged like it wasn’t a big deal, but my curiosity was piqued. The subject of our ages had never come up because I had assumed we were the same age or somewhere close in range.
“Your birthday is coming up next month,” Arjen announced, patting Tywin on the back. “Got anything special planned for your twenty-third?”
Champagne flew out of my mouth and into the air, making one of the guards jump away from my blast zone and nearly drop the beer he’d been dangling between his fingertips. A maid hurried over with a clean white linen cloth, but my dark teal dress would easily absorb any sprinkles of the champagne that may have dotted it.