Page 29 of Dreaming of Darkness

“Message received, man, loud and clear,” Alex nodded at Bailey, “See you later.”

And in a flash, he was gone. When Bailey looked up at me, her mouth hanging open, I couldn’t stop the devilish smirk. “What?”

“You are in so much trouble,” she said, quickly beginning to fill her plate. I moved to stand behind her, and when she finally slowed her pace, I leaned against her, letting her feel all of me.

“Then why, little dream, do you smell like you loved that?”

Bailey turned, just enough to glare at me with one eye. I pressed a kiss against her temple and then reached over to grab a small slice of pear from her plate. Then with a quick jerk of my fingers, I ripped my name tag from my chest. Another movement and I had replaced hers with my own, essentially swapping our tags.

I now wore Bailey’s name on my chest, and mine was on hers. “There, more accurate now.”

“You’re ridiculous,” she breathed out, but she reached out and smoothed a hand over her name on my chest.

“You enjoy it. Now, hurry and eat, I can’t wait to dance with you.”

The rest of the night we were whisked into the crowd, and after I made sure that she’d eaten everything she needed, we found our way to the dance floor.

And I could get used to this. While Bailey appeared quiet, she obviously enjoyed the music, her body moving to the beat with ease. I loved every excuse to put my hands on her and let her rub that velvet wrapped body against me. Plus, it gave me an excuse to frown at every other male who ever came close to her.

I had asked my brother before I left if the urge to mark my mate might ease at some point. To which he’d confessed to snarling at a neighbor only that morning who had helped his mate stand up from her garden.

I guessed not.

I didn’t think Bailey minded much. She’d had a few glasses of a sparkling beverage, and her hands were just as clinging as mine were, if not as bold. During one of the quiet songs, I leaned close. “Are you having fun?”

“I am,” Bailey looked up at me, her dark blonde hair was slipping from its pins, and I loved the little pieces that framed the eyes she’d made up with dark lines. “I didn’t think I would, I was so worried about you and me just…”

“Worried about me?”

Bailey lifted a shoulder, “This is all very, I don’t know, basic and human.”

I cocked my head, “But it is important to you, and therefore important to me.” I smoothed a hand down her spine. “Besides, the chance to hold you, to feel her against me. I will never give up a chance for that.”

“What do you celebrate in the Underworld?”

I could feel the smile, “There will be a rather large event when my niece or nephew is born. And as strange as it might seem, we also celebrate when our kind pass on the great sleep.”

“You celebrate death?”

I hummed, trying to think of the right words. “We celebrate a life well lived. We are sad to no longer have the companionship of those individuals, but going to rest after a long life? What better action would you think of?”

Bailey nodded; her brows pulled together in an adorable little frown. “You celebrate life and death. I guess that makes sense. Anything else?”

I cleared my throat, my throat suddenly feeling a little thick. “We celebrate matings as well.”

Her hands tightened on my shoulders, “Like weddings?

“Similar, I guess, from what I’ve seen through dreams. There is a ceremony in both, but the party afterwards,” I mouth actually watered at the thought, “It is more…primal. No fancy tableclothsor cakes cut.”

“You don’t eat?”

I let my eyes flicker down to her cleavage and back up to meet her eyes. “Oh, we eat, little dream. But not in the way that you’re thinking.”

“Oh,” Bailey’s mouth snapped shut and I actually felt the shiver of interest ghost down her spine. I pulled her closer, letting her feel the thickness of my cock as I pictured her at one of our events.

“Any other questions?”

“Hundreds,” she muttered, “But definitely too afraid to ask them here.”

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