Hunting Ember (Pride of Alphas #1) - Milly Taiden Page 0,27

he wanted to take her out on a real date. He wanted to show her just how good it could be with him. And not just in the sheets, but out in the world too.

Because when he did take her to bed? Well, then there would be no going back. He needed Ember to be sure of him.

“We should go,” he said against her bruised lips.

“Okay.” Her voice was a needy whisper, her hands still tied to his neck.

Kai could have sworn that he could feel her nipples pressing into his chest. Good god, he wanted his mate.

Taking her hand in his, he led her to the car, where he opened the door for her. He went so far as to buckle her in because he could — because he wanted to. Any chance to touch her, he would take it.

“Where are we going?” she asked as he drove, her hand tucked into his lap.

“You’ll see,” he said, aiming a smirk in her direction.

“Should I be scared?”

“That depends. Are you afraid of water?”

Ember giggled. “Water? No. Jeez, what did you plan? You told me to dress up. I’m not prepared to go for a swim.”

“No need to swim, love.”

After a short drive, Ember gasped. “You’re taking me to the pier.”

Kai smiled at her. “I am, yes.”

“But—” she arched a brow in confusion. “There’s no restaurant at the pier.”

“Nope,” he answered, pleased that she was trying to decipher his plans but even more satisfied that she would never figure them out. He had planned quite the surprise.

He parked his car in the marina’s lot before rushing around to open her door. He tucked her hand in his as they walked the length of the docks. The moon was high up in the sky, a sliver of glowing silver in the black, starry sky. The pale light was reflecting on the dark water, a small amount of fog was rolling on the surface of the minuscule waves.

The boat, a small yacht named My Toy, Get Your Own, was illuminated with fairy lights. Kai would have liked to take credit for the lights, but that wasn’t his doing. His client, a wealthy businessman who contracted Mason Security to guard his properties, liked to have the lights on his boat when he hung out on the deck.

The man, Tobias Huff, had been kind enough to lend Kai his boat for the night. Kai knew that it was a gamble, perhaps a bit pretentious to bring Ember on a yacht that wasn’t his, but a regular restaurant date hadn’t seemed like enough.

He wanted his first official date with his mate to be something memorable. Something that they could look back on one day when they were old and gray and surrounded by their grandchildren.

“What is this?” Ember asked as he helped her onto the deck of the ship.

He explained his ties to Tobias, even giving her a brief rundown of what his family’s company had done to protect Tobias from corporate espionage a few years prior.

“So, he just lent you this boat? Wow, that is trust.” Her features were illuminated by the moon and the soft glow of the fairy lights above. On the deck of the ship, a small table was waiting for them. Kai quickly lit the candles before helping Ember to her seat. He poured her a glass of wine, allowing himself to kiss her forehead as he pulled away.

He had a few more tricks up his sleeve.

“I have to say, it’s not easy planning a date for a baker. You spend so much time in the kitchen, I didn’t know which restaurant would be good enough. This was the alternative.” He motioned toward the small grill a few feet away. “I’m not much of a baker, but I can grill stuff like a pro.”

“You’re cooking dinner for us on a boat?”

He winked at her. “Yup. Hope that’s okay.”

“No one ever cooks for the cooks, you know. Everyone is always too intimidated. It doesn’t matter that my specialty is baking. People are always nervous about making a meal for me. The only person who doesn’t give a crap is my mom, and that’s because it’s her job too.”

Kai listened to her while he started up the grill. Once it was hot enough, he placed two salmon steaks, a couple of sweet potatoes, and a folded bundle of aluminum foil containing green beans, broccoli, and red peppers drenched in garlic butter, on it. It was simple fare but delicious. He was confident that