Total pages in book: 43
Estimated words: 39991 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 200(@200wpm)___ 160(@250wpm)___ 133(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 39991 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 200(@200wpm)___ 160(@250wpm)___ 133(@300wpm)
“I don’t even need time to mull that over, Ivor. I want you pretty fucking badly.”
“Then I think you should look into opening that bakery you want. I could help you fund it.”
Rowan frowned. “I don’t want you doing that. That’s too much. There is something I’ve been thinking of doing. Talking to my mother. I know she’s gone along with my father in disowning me, but I don’t think she truly feels the same way he does. She would probably help me. The family has a lot of money, and if I hadn’t been disowned, I would have come into a huge trust. Asking for enough to start a business shouldn’t be hard.”
“You think she would?”
“Yeah, I do. She’s the reason I knew to call Protective Solutions. She actually called to check in on me. Maybe she’s changing her mind. Maybe she’d give me access to money that was supposed to be mine. If not, there are other ways. I just need to do some research to see what options I’d have.”
“My offer still stands. I tasted a lot of your desserts, so I have no doubt a bakery would be a success. Especially here in the city with access to so many more people. Not to mention the huge concentration of preternaturals, a lot of whom have a sweet tooth like mine.” Ivor reached down and wrapped his fingers around Rowan’s cock. “Now, speaking of my sweet tooth…”
Rowan placed his hand on top of Ivor’s to keep it still for one more question. “Can you, as an incubus, really be satisfied with just one person for that long?”
Ivor let go of his cock and cupped his cheeks. “I love you, Rowan. Truly love you. And I feel in my heart that this is for life. I will want no others from here on out. This is a promise I can make to you with complete confidence.”
“You’re saying all the right things. It’s definitely like one of my books happening for real.”
“This is very, very real. You and me, Rowan. For life.”
Rowan searched his gaze, finding nothing but love and desire shining back at him. Absolute and stunning joy filled his entire body, flushing him with warmth. He wrapped his arms around Ivor and buried his face in his neck, loving the silky slide of all that black hair on his skin. He held tight, with Ivor hugging him back just as strongly. He was about to start a new future, one straight out of his fantasies.
And he couldn’t be happier.
Epilogue
Rowan
His mother had come through with a final gift, and managed to get some of the money from Rowan’s trust fund. It had been plenty to keep him comfortable and pay for everything he needed to get his own bakery up and running. He’d found the perfect location not too far from the bay that was still in a heavily populated area. He already had regulars who came in daily for coffee and whatever specials he posted, and he’d only been open for six months.
Rowan stood in front of the display case, looking over today’s selections. Everything in there had been taste-tested by his husband, who had the biggest sweet tooth Rowan had ever seen. All had gotten his thumbs-up approval. Rowan liked nothing better than seeing Ivor’s happy smile when Rowan surprised him with a new dessert.
Well, there were a few things he liked better, one of which they’d done early that morning—which had made him late. He was normally in the bakery by six a.m. but he’d awakened with Ivor kissing the back of his neck and rolled over for some pretty spectacular sex.
Ivor had been right all along—they were fire together.
They’d bonded in a small ceremony in Xavier’s office, and though they hadn’t legally married, he still referred to Ivor as his husband. It made more sense to people rather than mate. He still marveled that he had a mate. A soulmate. Something he’d always loved reading about but hadn’t thought was real. His relationship with Ivor was living proof that the bond was real because he sometimes felt Ivor’s emotions. Ivor had explained that with some preternaturals, the bond worked that way. It was wild, but he loved it.
He walked back into the kitchen that he’d designed himself. It was compact but he’d kept plenty of space for paths. It had the perfect flow of storage, preparation, mixing, baking and beyond. All the equipment was state of the art.
If things kept going as well as they were now, he’d soon be able to afford another chef to help out. Right now, he had two employees. Rachel, who worked the counter, and Jimmy, the barista who took care of the coffees and teas. Often, Rowan helped out behind the counter because he loved greeting the customers. But mostly, he worked in the kitchen, which made him happy. He had carte blanche here, everything that went to the customers his own creations. He got to experiment to his heart’s content.