“Thanks,” Malia said as Gayle walked away before turning her attention back to Emmy.
“Oh, God. This is so damn good.” Emmy took a bite of her chicken, still thinking about how she wanted to answer Malia’s question.
“I told you they had great food. Now, what do you hope to get out of your trip here?”
“Honestly?”
“Of course,” Malia nodded before taking a bit of her own food.
“I wanted to still come for a lot of reasons.”
“Like?”
Emmy carefully lined up her thoughts before speaking. “Well, I’ve never been here before, and the trip was already fully paid for. I think that was the number one reason.”
“That is a good reason. Why else?”
“I wanted to get away from everything as a chance to clear my head and start over on my own terms. To figure out what I want to do now that I’m unexpectedly single, and I guess, to get out of my comfort zone.” Those were the main reasons for Emmy still taking the trip that would have been her honeymoon.
“That’s what I wanted to hear. I think it’s great that you are willing to put yourself out there after all you’ve been through.”
“Thanks. It’s been rough, not as bad as I thought it would be. In all honesty, I’m okay. I just don’t want to be anywhere that I’ll run into my ex or my ex-best friend. At home, I seemed to run into them every damn time I left the house. Even if it was just a quick stop at a gas station. They seemed to be everywhere. I just need somemetime. I’ve never had that before.”
And that was the hard truth. Emmy had always been so worried about taking care of everyone else that she forgot about taking care of her own needs as a person and as a woman. That was something that needed to change. Here and now.
“Then you should let the hottie be your local tour guide. That will get you out of your comfort zone,” Malia suggested.
“Do you know him or something? Are you trying to get me to go out with him?” Emmy wondered why Malia was so insistent she let the guy she met at the pool show her around.
“Umm. Maybe. What was his name?” Malia asked with a squeak in her voice.
“Kingston Conrad.” The second Emmy said his name, she knew that Malia had some sort of connection to him. She could tell by the look on her new friend’s face.
“Uh … Funny thing about that …” Malia had the good grace to look embarrassed.
“Really? Let me guess, he’s your cousin or brother or something?” Emmy snorted.
“Oh, Heavens, no. It’s nothing like that. But he is my future brother-in-law.”
“Ha. Seriously? I knew it! It was pretty easy to tell that you had some sort of connection to him. So what does he want with me?” Emmy had to ask why Kingston would want anything to do with her, of all people.
“I really don’t know. I haven’t seen him in a few days. But I will tell you that he’s a big teddy bear. He may look all rough and tough, but he’s a total softie when it comes to family and friends.”
“Well, that’s good to know, I suppose. If I planned on getting to know him, but I’m not sure that I do. I haven’t made up my mind yet. Besides, I’ve never really been into the whole one-night-stand thing. There’s nothing wrong with it. I guess I’ve just never been turned on enough by some guy that I just met that made me want to jump his bones right then and there.”
Though, she wasn’t exactly sure she wouldn’t eat those words if she spent any real time around Kingston. Not that it was something she had to worry about. There was no way a man like him would be interested in a woman like her. The world just didn’t work that way. Well … at least, not in her world.
CHAPTERSEVEN
“Would you relax already? Malia said they were going to stop by the bar for a drink after they finished with their dinner,” Jace said.
“I heard you the first time you said it. My ears work just fine,” Kingston growled. All he wanted to do was march in there, toss Emmy over his shoulder, and fly her to his lair, but he knew that would never work with a woman he barely knew. A fully human one at that. He had no idea how any of this was going to go, but he had to figure it out.
“Have a drink or three and calm the fuck down before your girl thinks you’re a psycho before she even gets to know you. I’m lucky Malia was already well schooled in the supernatural. She grew up here and was familiar with our legends and beliefs, but I’m going to assume that Emmy knows nothing about us or any paranormal species. So, you are going to have your work cut out for you.”
“I get it, brother. I need to find a way to turn on the charm.” And didn’t that just suck a pair of big furry balls … and not in a fun sort of way. Nope. Charm had never really been Kingston’s thing. Not when it came to winning over a potential mate. He was great when it came to running his club. He was made for that. Flirting and all that sappy shit had never been his thing.
“This should be funny as fuck to watch.” Jace laughed before turning serious. “Brother, do you realize the gravity of the situation? You declared yourself king. Activated the covenant.”