22
Raven
I wokeup in Ben's arms, still not believing that last night had been real. I got my magic back and I Ben and I made up. Twice.
I turned so I was facing him. His dark hair hung over his eyes and he was breathing slow and steady. In the time I'd known him, I'd never seen him look this peaceful.
As I watched him, his eyes fluttered open and a lazy smile spread on his lips. "I wondered if I was dreaming."
"I thought the same thing," I said.
He tugged me closer and I breathed him in, memorizing the feel of his strong arms around me. We had a bond, that was clear. And apparently, he'd been feeling it for a while, but I still didn't know exactly what that meant for me. Ben wasn't the only one I'd felt a pull to.
Plus, there was that whole avoiding me thing and the veiled warnings about his father. "Ben, how long have you known?"
"That you were my mate?" he asked.
I nodded.
"Almost since the day we met," he said.
"Why didn't you tell me?" I asked.
"Would you have believed me? You just found out magic was real," he said.
That was true. "You have a point. But why did you wait? After poker that night..."
"I was trying to have you come to me," he said. "You can see how well that worked."
This was the most open I'd ever seen him. Hell, it was the most open anyone had really been with me since I got here. I had to take advantage of it. "What about your dad?"
He frowned and I could feel his muscles tense. "He's bad news, Raven. We're going to have to keep this between us."
"Everyone saw us walk through the party toward my room last night," I said.
"Everyone saw us walk towardourrooms," he said. "We are right next door."
"True, but how are you going to get out of here?" I asked.
"One at a time," he said.
I shook my head. "We're both adults. How bad can it really be?"
He laughed. "You've seenThe Godfather?"
"Yeah," I said.
"You won't get a horse head as a warning. He'd just kill you and probably me. Give me some time to figure this out before we go public, okay?"
"Okay," I said. For once, I found myself fully trusting a man who asked me to do something for him. There were no warning bells, no intuition screaming at me. Things with Ben felt right.
I wasn't looking forward to going back to not speaking to each other, but it helped knowing that I had him in my corner. I sat up, my body instantly protesting against leaving his warm embrace. I knew we couldn't stay here all day.
"You in a hurry?" he asked, sitting up next to me.
"My magic came back last night, I'm officially obligated to inform Dr. Green when that happens. I have no intention of giving my PO anything else against me."
"Go figure that the son of the biggest mob boss in the supernatural world tries to go legit and ends up mated with a criminal," he said.
"You know it turns you on," I said, giving him a wink.
He lunged toward me, knocking me back onto the bed. I squealed in surprise but he quickly silenced me with a kiss.
Dr. Green could wait.