Chapter Thirty-five

Spoon Me All Night Long

RILEY

Seated at his kitchen table, Riley watched Mila scarf down the homemade pizza he’d prepared for dinner like she hadn’t eaten in days, and found he couldn’t stop smiling.

He hadn’t felt this happy since, well, if he had to be honest, since before his father had died. And it was all because of her. This beautiful witch who currently had tomato sauce dripping down her chin from the corner of her mouth.

Riley couldn’t resist. He reached out, wiped the smudge with his thumb, and then sucked it.

Mila stared at him, half-captivated, half-mock-outraged. “You have to stop eating food off my face.”

“Why?”

“It’s gross.”

“It’s not.”

“It’s the grossest.”

Riley rolled his eyes. “I already see you’re going to be a difficult soulmate.”

Mila all-out laughed at that. “That we might agree on.”

Riley grabbed a napkin to wipe the rest of Mila’s face. “But I already know I’m going to enjoy every minute of it.”

She flung her arms around his shoulders and side-hugged him. “Me, too. Especially if you keep making homemade pizza. I would’ve never pegged you down as a chef. What else can you make?”

“I’m a thirty-five-year-old wizard who’s been living alone for almost twenty years. I can cook most things.”

Now Mila shifted fully onto his lap. “First, you’re so old.”

“Hey.” He playfully pinched her butt.

Mila squealed and laughed. “And second, you have a spell-oven, don’t you?”

He narrowed his eyes in mock severity. “I. Do. Not.”

Mila jumped off of him and rushed to the stove. “So, if I open this door now.” She pointed at the oven. “I will find a simple, human oven.”

Riley crossed his arms over his chest. “Go ahead.”

Mila did and squealed even harder when she confirmed it was no magic appliance that had made dinner. “Oh, sparkling gargoyles.” She turned around to face him and circled a hand toward him. “You look like that and you can even cook? I think my swoon rate just increased by sixty-four percent from that fact alone.” Mila’s eyebrow raised suggestively. “So… what’s on the menu for dessert?”

Riley closed the space between them and pressed her back against the kitchen counter. “What would you want? I have a pretty wide range of specialties …”

Mila pressed her palms flat on his chest, but without pushing him away. “Riley, I’m already swooning. You don’t need to seduce me further.”

Riley smiled at that, wickedly, and he snapped his fingers, causing all the kitchen lights to dim considerably, leaving them in a cozy, suffused atmosphere. Her eyes glittered with amusement under the new light as Riley trailed lazy kisses up her collarbone.

“Are you sure about that? Because I love seducing you. I love you.”

Mila whimpered. She wrapped her arms tightly around his neck and pulled him closer, their bodies fitting together perfectly. “If you seduce me any harder, I might blow up and become stardust,” she breathed against his lips. “Nice trick the lights, by the way.”

She bit his lower lip in a way that drove him insane. In response, Riley’s lips met hers in a fiery kiss.

Their bodies molded together, and the heat between them intensified with each passing second. Mila let out a moan as Riley’s hands traveled down to her waist, pulling her closer to him.

As their lips continued their sweet torture, Riley’s magic swirled around them, wrapping them in a warm cocoon of energy. Then their kisses grew more passionate, skin searing as their hands roamed over each other’s bodies. Riley lifted Mila onto the kitchen counter, pulling away only to shed their clothes as quickly as possible. The lights flickered over their naked skin as they surrendered to each other, desire and love mingling in a heady mix until they were both truly spent. So much so, that when Riley carried Mila baby-koala-style to bed, she fell asleep in his arms halfway down the hall. He lovingly dropped her onto the mattress and kissed the top of her head as he pulled the covers snugly over her. “Sweet dreams, my love.”

Then he climbed into bed next to her and spooned her all night.