Page 15 of His Impossible Elf Mate
“Axel?” His eyes met mine. “Even if I win, I will not hold you to the terms of a bet if you aren’t ready.”
He took a deep breath and laughed as he exhaled it. “I was just wondering if I could fake losing without it being too obvious.”
A chuckle broke free. This man was too adorable for words.
“We could just call it quits now. Is that how the saying goes?”
“It is, and we could, but I have a movie planned for after. Call it edging.”
“Edging?”
Slowly, we gravitated towards each other. His breath washed over my face. We were so close. I wanted to lean in and capture a kiss.
“Axel!” a child’s cry broke the spell. We jumped apart.
My companion laughed. “Hey little dude. We have the bowling alley for a little longer, then you can play,okay?” Axel whispered to me. “He’s one of the kids who lives here. His mom is Cadence.”
I had not met that omega. Leaning down, I addressed the small child. Ages were difficult, particularly with shifters. Their babies grew quickly until they could walk in human form, then slowed to a more human-like rate.
“Would you like to watch us play?”
The child just stared at me open mouthed until he caught Axel laughing. “You’re an elf!”
It was my turn to laugh. “I am. We came here to help shifters. I won’t harm you. Are you a wolf shifter like Axel?”
“No, I’m a raccoon!”
“Oh, well, that is delightful. I’d like to see your alter one day.”
“I can shift now!” He began to peel himself out of his clothes.
“Riff, no!” Axel darted forward to stop the boy. “We are on a date. This is adult time. Teárlach would love to see your raccoon, but another time, okay?” Axel was adorable with the boy. Firm, but fair. I believed he would make a great parent.
“But…” Riff looked upset and needed soothing. Axel righted the boy’s clothes and smoothed his ruffled hair.
“No, Axel is quite right.” I squatted down to get on eye level with the sweet child. I hated to see him sadwhen he had been so excited. “We need someone to make sure there is no cheating on our game.”
Axel looked at me with fondness. Perhaps showing my parental side would demonstrate my ability to be a suitable partner for the wolf. What I wanted from Axel was no short-term fling. He was all I could think about.
“I’ll do it!” Riff immediately cheered, earning a smile from Axel.
“Okay, Riff. It’s important if you find the elf cheating, you say it out loud, okay?”
“And if you cheat, Axel,” Riff said in a very adult voice.
My laugh was loud, startling us all. “Yes, Riff,” I chuckled. “You tell me if Axel cheats.”
Was I imagining the heat behind Axel’s gaze as we played out the last few turns?
He brushed by me to collect his last ball. “Once I get a strike, I win.”
“And if you win?” I whispered, aware of the child watching us avidly.
“Then I’m taking you to my bed.”
Axel was smug as he hit the final strike to win the game.
A Night With Axel
