Page 66 of Vampire Pack

With a mate bond that was already sealed, everyone would be on their best behavior. We were far past the point of deciding whether we were going to be together; now, it was just a matter of figuring out how to make it work.

She wasn't close with them, so as long as things stayed civil, everything would be fine.

"We can plan something after your heat," I said.

"Yeah. I already warned them about that. Knew it had to be coming soon."

I pulled into the lot of a burger place that was known for their fries and massive, greasy burgers.

"Oh god, I think I love you," Carmen basically moaned. "Don't tell our performance chef. Or our coach."

"I can keep a secret."

A few minutes later, she was tucked against my side, sucking down the shake she'd ordered and already eyeing mine. I'd picked one of the flavors she had considered, just so she'd have a second one.

She'd need the calories, with heat on the horizon.

Honestly? I would've done a hell of a lot more, just to see her smile.

Carmen fell asleep slumped against the window on the way back to my house.

She only woke up for a few seconds after I parked the car and lifted her out of her seat, and she slept soundly against my shoulder as I carried her to our room.

I grabbed a book on my way to the bed, and tucked Carmen beneath the blankets when we reached the mattress. She immediately curled up against my chest. The scent that surrounded us settled me, in a way very few things had ever managed to.

Hours passed.

Carmen slowly grew hotter, and less comfortable.

My phone buzzed halfway through the afternoon, with a message in the pack group chat that Carmen and her friends had added me to.

Paige

Is Carmen with either of you? I haven't seen her

Mallory

I'm sure she's with King

They'd finally stopped calling me by my given name. The only people who ever used that were my parents.

Me

Yeah, she's with me

Probably going into heat tomorrow night

Paige

She's going to try to convince you to take her to the game

Me

She already did

We're going to see how she's doing in the morning

Mallory