Sometimes, Natalie had more of the wolf in her than Theo did.

"How's Theo picking up Rum'kurr?" I asked before Khell and Natalie could poke at each any further.

"Losing!" Theo called.

"But respectfully," Khell said, before flashing me a smile. "He doesn't have your skill."

Khell still beat me at Rum'kurr nine times out of ten, but he always looked especially giddy whenever I did manage to best him.

"Here, take these." I passed Khell two plates of dessert, and he took his cue to leave after leaning in for a quick kiss.

Natalie watched it all with an eager stare, but her smile was calm as we were left alone again. "I am happy for you," she repeated, thankfully this time without a punch.

"Me too," I said, nodding and passing her a plate of her own. "Thank you for all the advice."

Natalie's eyebrows ticked up. "That's right. This was all my idea, wasn't it? Ooohhh, Khell, you should be very grateful," she said, turning on her heel and weaving back to the dining room table, sliding into her seat next to Theo.

Khell had made me a new set of dining room chairs—probably because the ones I'd had before seemed a little flimsy for his frame—and I walked in to find that one of the four had been pushed into the far corner of the room. Khell watched my approach with a wicked tilt on his lips.

I could, of course, retrieve the banished chair and have a seat for myself. I didn't.

Khell purred as I approached his left thigh. His arm circled my waist to offer me support as I settled on his lap. With the first brush of my ass on his thigh—muffled through our clothes—my cheeks went up in flames at the reminder. Heat rushed in, along with a deep but not unpleasant soreness. Natalie and Theo were both humming over the cake Khell had made, offering their compliments, and Khell was calmly nodding and thanking them. But I knew what he was thinking about as his hand slid down to my hip, squeezing just around the swell of my ass. I hid my moan around a bite of cake—which deserved the sound anyway.

"Do you like it, petal?" Khell purred, leaning in so his lips were near my ear.

Sneaky bastard. "The cake is wonderful," I said, turning my head away from our guests to glare up into his eyes. "Beast," I added in a whisper.

He grinned and scratched my tender flesh with his claws through the fabric of my skirt.