Page 38 of Protected By Her Mate

I shrug, she’s not wrong. “Only if I pull the prince card, which I don’t do often.”

She laughs as we pull up to the restaurant. “Ah, the prince card. If we get married, do you think I’ll get a princess card?”

I’m left speechless as she shoves the door open and climbs out onto the sidewalk.

“Where are we?” she asks, shading her eyes against the glare of the sun. “Is this Hell’s Kitchen?”

From her tone, I’m guessing she doesn’t come to this part of the island often. “Hell’s Kitchen has the best Greek food this city has to offer,” I say, opening the door to the tiny restaurant for her.

She looks curiously around at the brightly coloured menu posters and walls painted with images of the Mediterranean. “Most of the tables are full,” she muses, nodding her approval. “A good sign for any food joint.”

She doesn’t mind that I brought her here, to a small unknown place rather than an upscale restaurant with a waitlist a mile long. I didn’t realize I was holding my breath, waiting for her judgement, until I release it.

Picking up on my thoughts, she says, “Of course, I don’t mind. I’m cool, Lennox, and I love trying new things.”

Before I can respond, a voice rings out, commanding the attention of everyone in the restaurant. “Is this my Prince Lennox Wolven-North come to grace my illustrious establishment? What’s the big idea?” A tall, wiry woman with grey-streaked black hair piled in a messy bun on top of her head rushes toward us, her hands outstretched. Charlie is gently pushed aside as Sophia Gataki grips my face before forcing me to bend over for a kiss on each cheek. “You promise to come, but you never come. It is beastly of you. What would my dear departed propappoús say? Ay, I don’t even know what to do with you. Come, come, you are lucky that your special table is available this evening.” Clucking her tongue, she adds, “You should have called ahead, Lennox.”

Charlie elbows me. “See, you should’ve used the prince card.”

Sophia pulls me past gawking patrons toward the back of the narrow restaurant. Charlie follows, her tinkling laughter telling me she’s enjoying the spectacle. We stop at a small two-person table tucked into the corner next to the kitchen.

Sophia turns to inspect Charlie, her faded gaze taking in the dress, the shoes, the blue hair. Charlie’s laughter dies and some of the fear only Sophia Gataki can instill in a person starts to rise in her gaze, but Sophia’s thin lips split into a smile. “Finally, he brings us a woman to inspect.” She turns toward the kitchen, shouting, “Andrea! Get out here! The prince has brought us a potential princess.”

“Oh shit.” Charlie takes a step back, as though preparing to flee, but I stop her with a hand at her elbow.

A large Greek man lumbers toward us from the kitchen, towering over Charlie as he takes her hand, kissing it. “A true pleasure it is to finally meet one of the Prince’s friends!”

Charlie relaxes, smiles and accepts as Andrea pulls a chair out for her. Andrea fishes a lighter from his apron pocket and lights the candle in the center of the table. “Sit, sit, Prince, and I will make something special for you both.” He winks before heading back into the kitchen, the door swinging behind him.

Charlie is smiling as she watches Sophia and Andrea go back to work. “You’ve known them a long time?”

“I’ve known seven generations of the Gataki family. We met in the 1920’s and they captured my heart with their incredible dishes. Lamb, beef, chicken, it’s all unparalleled. Much in New York has changed in the past century, but not this place and not the food.”

Sophia pours ice water into the glasses in front of us and Charlie thanks her, picking up her glass and sipping. I watch each expression as it flits across her face, searching for meaning in the tiniest of shifts. I can feel her delight in my choice of restaurant and I expect her to say as much when her gaze finally meets mine. But she surprises me with a different topic entirely. “How much money do you make, Lennox? My parents will want to know.”

Even if we weren’t mates, I think Charlie would be it for me. She’s honest, fun, funny, and unexpected in every way.

Again, my unused muscles stretch as I grin at her. “My detective salary doesn’t even cover the rent in my studio apartment.”

“I was wondering how you managed to have such a sweet place on 57th. I assumed it was rent controlled.”

“Nope, it’s income from Wolf-Haven. My dues for being a prince.”

“That’s not very democratic. You get money just for being a prince?”

“There are duties associated with it,” I say, somewhat more defensively than I intended.

“What duties?” Charlie asks, her eyes glowing with pleasure as Sophia places a basket of warm bread rolls with a plate of balsamic vinegar and olive oil for dipping.

“My main job is to liaise with the humans since I have the most experience of anyone in the royal family.”

“What does liaising with the humans look like? Police work?” Her nimble fingers tear pieces of bread that she dips in the oil and vinegar before popping into her mouth, her eyes closing in pleasure at each bite.

I’m happy that she wants to get to know her mate better, but I’m not used to having to answer so many questions about myself. This interrogation is high stakes. What I say to her matters, could make or break our future. I’m sweating bullets.

“Yes, police work, but there’s more to it than that. I’m frequently asked to speak at world events, general assemblies, the UN. The wolf shifters seek a lasting peace with the humans and other beings that inhabit our planet and I act as a sort of spokesperson for our kind.”

Her eyes are large and luminous as she watches me, pride in her gaze. “I think you just moved out of my league.”

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