Page 23 of House of Kallan
He smiled at me, but before either of us could say anything, Toby came sliding around the corner, beaming at me with a smile so bright, I could feel his angelic glow.
“Tatum!” he said, coming up behind the man in front of me. He rested his chin on the man’s shoulder and continued to smile at me.
“Tobiael,” I heard Hadrian call from somewhere within the house. “Get your glowing ass in here.”
Toby sighed, but his smile didn’t fade as he gave me a wave and disappeared into the house. The man I was left standing in front of gave me a bemused smile. “I’m Aden,” he said, offering me his hand.
“Tatum,” I said, though I guessed he already knew that. I took his hand and felt the buzz under his skin. The one that saidhe belonged to all the men in this house. A buzz that crept into my bones and took hold.
Now that I was here, I realized I had no idea how big this family was. Way to get to what’s important, Tatum!
“Come in,” Aden said, and I stepped inside.
The foyer was huge and impressive. Completely beautiful with a mixture of dark wood and light stone.
“So, dinner isn’t quite ready, which was totally planned, by the way. While we wait, there’s conveniently just enough time for me to give you a tour of the house while we get to know each other.” His amusement didn’t drop as he told me this.
I smiled, chuckling. “Okay.”
“This is the foyer,” he said, looking around and then back at me with a wry smile. “Please take in the architecture and the detailed carving on the new banister that’s made to look 200 years old.”
“Aden,” a different voice called from somewhere closer.
Aden grinned, amusement making his dark brown eyes sparkle. His features were much like Hadrian’s, with his very light skin but black hair and dark eyes. He was a little shorter and definitely less defined. But he was cute. Adorably cute. Was that a thing?
He sighed and offered me his hand. When I set mine in his, he laced our fingers and pointed us toward the stairs. “Let’s start at the top, yeah?”
I nodded and we climbed in silence. Once we hit the third floor, he pushed open a door for me to peer into a bedroom. “The third floor and most of the second are primarily bedrooms. Not a whole lot to see.”
The second door was much the same, though the bedroom was very different in style. “I see.”
“I’m demisexual,” he said, glancing at me from the corner of his eye as we slowly moved down the hall. “It takes me longer to create a bond with someone enough to become attracted to them. So they’re going to be pushing you and I togetherfrequently, which means they’ll be a little distant for a while too. Just so you know that’s what’s going on.”
“Ah,” I said as we stepped into another bedroom. “I understand your amused sarcasm a little more clearly.”
Aden grinned. “I know why they’ve decided this, but I think it might make things awkward. You know?”
“Yep, I get that. But we can avoid the awkwardness, right?”
He looked at me. “I’d really love to, but I tend to be awkward around women, anyway.”
I laughed and squeezed his hand. “Trust me, you’re doing fine.”
Aden grinned again as we stopped at the end of the hall to a huge porthole window that overlooked the backyard garden that spread out for ages.
“So, Tatum,” he said, giving me another bemused smile. “What do you do at The Harem Project? If Toby had known, it wouldn’t have taken him so long to find you again.”
Chuckling, I bowed my head a little. “I admit to becoming a little obsessively focused when there’s a crisis happening. The woman he placed in my arms was… horrific, to say the least.”
“I really don’t want to know,” he said, shaking his head.
“I don’t even want to know,” I said, sighing. “But to answer your question, I’m the director of Haven and have been from its inception. I will also admit to being pretty consumed with my work.”
Aden nodded and turned us around to peek into bedrooms on the opposite side of the hall. “Some of our friends are involved with Haven,” he said. “I hear that Tyrus has basically moved in.”
I laughed. “You have no idea.”
“I’m really looking forward to seeing how Iker handles an infant.” When he saw my wary look, he laughed. “No, I don’t mean that badly. He’s a good guy and that would be a great home for anyone, baby or otherwise. It’s just that Iker is a little… Well, I call him old-school. Fiercely protective of his family and his friends. While he likes to present as a hard-ass, he’s actually a big fucking softie.”
