Fae-ted to the Bear - Harmony Raines Page 0,6
voice and held up four fingers.
“And the point of this is?” Karros asked.
She sighed and looked down at the menu.
“No. Oh, no.” He leaned back in his seat and studied her for a long moment. “Not you, too? What is it with those bear shifters? It’s bad enough that I have to live with the knowledge that one of them is going to spend the rest of their life with the woman I love. But now my sister, too?”
“It isn’t my choice.”
Karros ran his hand through his hair and blew the air out of his cheeks. “Did I do something to deserve this?”
“No.”
“Then why is fate torturing me?” He leaned forward and rested his elbows on the table. “Are you sure?”
“Yes.”
“Do you feel it?” He placed his hand on his heart.
“Oh, Karros.” She reached for his other hand and held it in his. “You want to know if Flora feels a connection with Aiden.”
“Yes,” he croaked hoarsely.
She nodded. “I do. It’s like there’s a part of me that’s connected to him. It took me a moment to realize because I was so focused on Ivan and persuading him to take me on as a trainee chef. But then I felt it.”
“So, it’s real. Undeniable?”
“Undeniable.” She brushed her hand over her eyes. “I wish I could deny it. I wish I could just walk away and forget all about him.”
“We could. We could get in the car now and drive back to our world. The connection would fade.”
“Can you be sure?” Elise wasn’t sure she wanted to find out. She kind of liked the sense of being a part of another person.
Oh, goodness, she was doomed.
“We can try.” He shuffled his feet and was about to stand up, but the server approached with coffee, expecting to take their order.
Karros settled back in his chair and gave his order, then tapped the table with his fingertips as Elise did the same.
“You’re being rude,” Elise hissed when the server left them alone.
“Sorry.” He sighed. “Are we going to leave? After we’ve eaten, are we going to go back to our world and forget all about the bear shifter twins?”
Elise clasped her hands together and stared down at the table. “No.”
“I didn’t think so, but you can’t blame me for trying.”
“Karros, why don’t you go back? I’ll be okay here,” she insisted. “I know it must be torture seeing Flora with her mate.”
“No. I said I’d help you and that’s what I intend to do.” He picked up his coffee cup and took a sip. “I think you need me now more than ever.”
“Thank you.” She smiled at him, her sympathy overwhelming. “You’ll find someone.”
“Maybe.” His mouth twitched at the corners. “Are you going to tell Mom and Dad?”
“No.” She held up her hand. “Not yet.”
“Normally, I’d say it was a bad idea to keep something like this from them but under the circumstances, I think you’re right. Let’s give them a few days at least to get over me breaking up with Flora and you wanting to carve a career for yourself before we drop this bombshell.”
“They’re not going to be happy, are they?”
“No.” Karros winked at her. “But they’ll get over it.”
She giggled nervously. “No, they won’t.” She glanced up at him. “Unless you find yourself the perfect fae bride. Then they’ll just forget about little old me.”
“If only it was that easy.” Karros moved his elbows off the table as their food arrived. “Thank you.”
“You’re welcome.” The server smiled at him, her eyes lingering on his face a little longer than was polite.
“Why do people stare?” Elise asked.
“I thought it was my good looks.” Karros turned his face to the right and cupped his chin in his hand so she could see his perfect profile.
Elise giggled. “You’re probably right, you are the best-looking guy in the diner.”
Karros scanned the other diners. “I’m the only male in here. Unless you count the cute kid over there.”
She picked up her fork and dug into her salad. “I didn’t see him. That makes you the second-best-looking male in the diner.”
“Hey, I’m way cuter.” He chuckled as he ate.
“You used to be cute, but that was twenty years ago.”
“Ouch, that hurts.” He sucked in his breath.
“You know I don’t mean it. Any woman, fae, shifter or witch, or any non-magical person, would be lucky to have you as their mate...husband. Significant other.”
“I appreciate your effort at making me feel better.” He glanced up at her as he forked spaghetti into his mouth. “Caleb is lucky,