Emmy disconnected the call and flew through the rest of her tasks, feeling better about the outing than she had before speaking to Gerri.
* * *
Gerri hungup the phone with a sassy smirk on her face.
“What are you up to now?” Kala asked.
“Oh, just a little of this and a lot of that,” Gerri said with a wink, knowing that Emmy’s life was about to be upended. Gerri knew exactly who Kingston was and what he was. She just hoped that Emmy didn’t run the second she found out.
“So, you mean you’re about to jack someone’s life again with them finding their mate in the most unexpected place.” Kala rolled her eyes.
“What! Why would you say that?” Gerri feigned surprise.
“Don’t give me that crap. That’s exactly what you do. Everyone who knows you knows that. I just can’t believe Emmy hasn’t realized what you are up to yet.”
“I’m sure she will … eventually. Or not. Either way, it really doesn’t matter. What’s been put in motion must continue. There’s no stopping any of it.” Gerri smiled.
“Oh, geez. That poor girl. I almost feel bad for her.” Kala laughed
“Don’t. Her mate is one fine-ass motherfucker.”
CHAPTERTEN
Kingston paced back and forth in the hotel lobby, waiting for Emmy to make her appearance. He had arrived about fifteen minutes earlier than they agreed upon. Not able to stop himself when his alarm went off, he jumped out of bed and immediately hopped in the shower. He wanted nothing more than to see her again. Leaving her last night and returning to his house was one of the hardest things he had ever done. Walking away from his mate, no matter what the reason, was nothing short of hell on earth.
He only imagined that each parting would get harder and harder with the more time that he spent in her presence. It was hard to explain what he felt when he was around her, but it was like nothing he had ever felt. Nor had his dragon. All he wanted was to be with her. To be in her presence. To be around her. He didn’t know why, but his instinct was demanding it.
“Hey, you.”
He turned to face her as her words calmed his mind and heart. He felt the smile spread across his face the second his eyes landed on her. Last night after dinner, she had been all dressed up with a face full of makeup. Today, she had opted for a more natural touch, and hell if he didn’t love it. She was a natural beauty as far as he was concerned. His beauty. No woman could ever compare to her.
“Hi. You look great,” he said, picking up the two large coffees he had stopped to grab this morning and handing her one.
“You remembered. Thanks! I really need this.” She took a small sip of her coffee and moaned.
Damn. His cock twitched beneath his cargo shorts. Hearing her moan was something he wanted a hell of a lot more of. And soon!
“I did. Does that earn me brownie points or anything?”
“It does. So where are we off to at this god-awful hour?”
“Sorry. I’m still not divulging that information. You’re just going to have to wait and find out. Are you ready?”
“As ready as I’ll ever be.” She smiled up at him.
He led her out to his Jeep Wrangler parked just outside the entrance. He opened the passenger side door and helped her up into his lifted 4x4.
“I would have brought my other SUV, but we need the clearance the Jeep has to get to where we are going this morning,” he explained.
“Great. So, I’m going to assume this is going to be a bumpy ride?” She laughed.
“A bit. Buckle up.” He closed the door and made his way around to the driver’s side, wondering the whole way how long he had to wait until he pulled her into his arms and kissed her.
Hopping up into the Jeep, he set his coffee in the cup holder and tossed his seat belt across his chest. The engine roared to life, and they were soon cruising down the highway.
“How did you sleep?” he asked as he turned off of the blacktop and onto an unpaved scenic road.
“Honestly, better than I thought I would. I thought for sure I'd be up half the night, but thankfully that didn't happen. It was weird. As soon as my head hit the pillow, I was out cold. That almost never happens for me. How about you?” she asked.