Chapter Seven

Merihem

The flower… his demon was having way too much fun. He’d materialized the rose without allowing Merihem to have a say. He hadn’t missed how Peni had stroked the petals or sniffed the bud.

Okay, you win, it worked, so stop gloating.

You’re welcome.

When he’d watched those little fingers stroke a petal, Merihem had gotten all sorts of ideas about what Peni might like to stroke instead. His usual go-to was sexy talk. His demon had gagged him, literally, when he was about to make a suggestive comment.

He doesn’t want that type of talk. He reads. None of your other bed partners read!

Merihem wanted to argue, but it was pointless when all his other instincts said Peni was special, whether that was because he was a blissful one or not, didn’t seem to matter. One touch of the roughened palm against his and Merihem was ready to beg for Peni to be his. Strange, but true.

So here he was taking the pocket-sized rocket out for lunch after seeing that suggesting dinner had been a mistake when it could have given Peni time to rethink the situation. Lunch seemed like the best idea. They could most definitely extend that to dinner.

My idea.

Shut up. Merihem grumbled.

“Erm… have you changed your mind? If you have, that’s fine, a sandwich will work for me.” The hand holding his, the fingers released.

Fix it. Fix it now.

“Not at all, my demon half is being a little tricky,” he explained, happy to cast the blame in that direction.

Peni gave a mournful sigh. “I know what you mean. My goat is also being difficult. He also isn’t shutting up, and the suggestions he’s making…”

Merihem glanced sideways at Peni while they strolled down the street towards a little Italian restaurant he’d eaten at with Dakata that was good, seeing his cheeks go deep pink. “Suggestions,” he asked, offering a big encouraging smile.

“You don’t want to know,” Peni replied, the sun highlighting strands of hair that looked like spun gold.

“Oh, but I do, I want to know everything.” He added enough of a sexy growl to his words to make his point.

The blush deepened, and Peni looked anywhere but at him. “It’s just silliness.” He brushed a hand through his hair, glancing about nervously, chewing his lower lip between his teeth.

“I like silly,” he replied, becoming more intrigued by what the little goat was saying. “But, anyway, we’re here.” Merihem stopped at one of the outdoor tables by the main doors into the restaurant. “Do you prefer to eat inside or out?”

“You’re letting me choose?” Peni’s wide-eyed look of amazement gave Merihem a swift kick to his balls, much like Peni’s goat had done.

He couldn’t resist and ran a finger down the warm, silky skin of Peni’s cheek. “Of course, it’s a date.”

“Ohhh… like a real date? Where there’s an expectation for kissing?” Peni slapped his forehead, and Merihem’s lips quivered as he resisted chuckling, getting the impression Peni had not meant to say that.

“Yes,” Merihem leaned forward as a server approached, and he bent to whisper in Peni’s ear, “I was hoping for a kiss this time, but to my lips, not my balls.”

Back was the adorable blush as Peni coughed and turned his attention to the server, who asked, “Table for two?”

“Please, and could we have that one there tucked in the corner?” Merihem wasn’t a romantic, but he could see that was the best table.

It had a canopy over their heads if it should rain. The sky was bright, and it was warm, but one never knew in the human realm. It also had flowers creeping up the trellis that enclosed the small seating area so it would smell pleasant and not of car fumes. All these things mattered… didn’t they?

“Of course,” the server replied, moving towards the table and pulling out a seat for Peni.

Merihem gave the dude a hard stare, wanting to bash the guy for doing what he wanted to do for Peni. What’s wrong with me?

Blissful one.

“Can I get you some drinks first?”

“I don’t know what there is?” Peni gave the server a lost look.

“What do you like?” Merihem asked Peni, giving the server a steely-eyed glare.

“Juice.”

“We’ll have two orange juices, please.” Merihem waited until the server scurried off before placing a hand over the back of Peni’s chair in a protective move as he scanned the area.

Being outside and on display made him cautious for reasons he suspected had everything to do with Peni. Dakata had gotten all protective over Silas, his blissful one, so he figured it was that making him feel… off.

Merihem picked up the menu that was sitting on the table and offered it to Peni. “I know you like pizza, but the pasta here is wonderful.” He was killing this dating lark.

Peni took the menu and eyed it, as a frown tugged at his brows.

“What’s wrong?” Merihem asked, his stomach sinking.

Peni cast him a shy look. “Everything is so expensive.”

His suspicions about what was happening with Dakata’s housekeeper had driven Merihem to the office this morning. He wanted to snoop when no one was there and he’d found the household accounts, which displayed the name of the very female housekeeper and the extortionate amount she got paid. The clothes Peni wore were threadbare in places, something Merihem noted without it sinking in until last night when he’d had time to think about all things Peni. His mention of how little he had to spend added to the picture he was being taken advantage of.

Merihem plucked the menu from Peni’s hand, giving him an encouraging smile. “Are you vegetarian?” The lack of meat on the pizza suggested he could be.

“Yes.”

Merihem eyed the menu. Was it romantic to order food on a date? “Are you a picky eater?” He glanced over the top of the menu.

“No. I can’t afford to be picky,” Peni said quietly, squirming a little in his seat.

Using the arm that remained on the back of Peni’s seat to give his blissful one a gentle squeeze of his shoulder, Merihem went back to looking at the menu. “Let’s start with a tomato salad, followed by a mushroom risotto, and then we can see if we have room for dessert.”

Merihem, once Peni nodded, albeit reluctantly, waited for the server who was coming with their drinks and ordered the meal.

Are you sure you made the right choices?

It’s all vegetarian. Merihem started to doubt himself as the server walked off. “You do like those things, don’t you?”

“Why wouldn’t I?” Peni asked, the frown back. “I’m sure they’ll be delicious.” His cute button nose wrinkled. “The smells coming from inside are wonderful.”

See, he was killing this dating thing. And if Merihem wanted meatballs, well, he’d make the sacrifice until he knew if eating meat would offend his blissful one.

Soft music filled the silence between them. Merihem ignored the traffic noise. Peni looked around, taking an interest in everything nearby.

Merihem’s attention was all on the tiny man next to him. “When did Mrs. Danials get you to start doing her work for her?”

Peni, who’d reached for his glass of orange juice, jerked, and it splashed him and the table.

Why did you do that? Help him.

Merihem resisted—just—shrinking under the reprimand, feeling like a tool for blurting it out like that. He grabbed the serviettes and helped Peni wipe up the spillage. “Sorry, I burst out that out like that.”

“I… you… oh, dear…”

Merihem took the soggy serviettes and plonked them at the edge of the table, hating Peni’s forlorn look. “It’s okay,” he reassured. When that didn’t remove the look, his demon started fussing.

Before the demon could decide to take matters into its own hands, Merihem plucked Peni off the seat. He weighed nothing. That was how it seemed to Merihem. He carefully arranged the gawping man on his lap, patting his back.

Be careful. You might hurt him.

How? I’m being gentle.

He was, wasn’t he? Doing his best to use none of his strength, he stopped patting and opted for stroking just in case. That wouldn’t hurt, would it?

He didn’t want to hurt Peni. “I’m not hurting you, am I?” he asked like a complete ass, but Peni was still staring with those enormous eyes at him.

He wasn’t moving, that couldn’t be good.

“I…” he scratched at his head. “No one…” More scratching. “I’ve never sat on someone's lap before.” He seemed so pleased to have gotten all his words out based on the smile he gave Merihem.

Only Merihem was too busy bristling at thoughts of Peni sitting on anyone but him. He said he’s never sat on someone. Give over, talk to him.

“Do you like it?” Merihem asked, because he was stupid and hadn’t allowed his brain to catch up with his stupid self.

“Well…” Peni gave him a thoughtful look, his cheeks were getting back to the adorable pink from before. “Yes… it’s nice. You’re comfortable.”

Comfortable?

What the ever-loving fuck does that mean? Comfortable!

The server came and didn’t bat an eye at them as he placed the salads down on the table. Merihem inhaled the scent of fresh herbs and balsamic vinegar.

“That looks yummy.” Peni glanced from Merihem to his seat. “Wouldn’t it be easier if I sat on that seat?”

The idea of letting go didn’t sit well with Merihem, who was back to feeling… threatened. “We’ll manage,” he murmured, looking about surreptitiously, trying to figure out what was giving him the tingling bad vibes. He couldn’t see anything out of the ordinary, but something was decidedly off.

He moved Peni so his legs dangled over Merihem’s thighs and tucked him closer to his body to free up his arms. His next inhalation was a mix of the herbs and Peni’s scent which was a little fruity. Desire tightened his groin, and he did his best to ignore it.

It was going to be a long lunch…

He reached for the cutlery and cut a decent-sized mouthful of tomato and salad, dipping it in the vinaigrette dressing. He offered the first bite to Peni. His lips parted and Merihem and his demon half both groaned.

A very long lunch.

Needing a distraction, Merihem went back to the conversation he’d started. “You work for Mrs. Danials, don’t you?”

Peni sighed. “You’re gonna sack me, aren’t you?”

“What… why would I do that? Although being my blissful one, you really don’t need to worry about working, I’m more than capable of taking care of you.”

“Blissful one,” he bleated.