"Starving."

They'd barely eaten or slept since they'd returned from Tennessee. They'd been working nonstop on a way to extract the elium. Too bad the end result sucked so bad.

On their way to his apartment, they stopped in the kitchen and picked up some sliced apples, grapes, cheese, and other various goodies, along with some wine and a couple glasses. Adam tucked it all in a basket he found in one of the cabinets.

They could have cooked a real, hot meal there in the kitchen, but they both were in agreement—they wanted to be alone for a while.

Once they reached his place, he set the basket on the nightstand in his bedroom. A picnic with Claire in bed sounded good to him, never mind the crumbs.

"My last meal?" Claire asked, sliding her shirt over her head.

He turned to her. "Please don't say that."

She finished undressing and slipped a short cotton nightgown over her head. They got into bed together and Adam pulled her close.

They didn't know when the demons would show up, which meant they needed to savor every single moment together.

"I love you, Claire."

She stiffened in his arms and then relaxed. Kissing his chest, she mumbled. "I think I knew that when you came charging after the Atrika all on your own, armed with nothing but aeamon fire magick… through demon wards, no less." She laughed softly. "But it's nice to hear."

He rolled her beneath him and kissed her. "Then I'll say it again. I love you, Claire."

"I love you, too."

Adam closed his eyes and let the words wash over him, through him. They lightened him. He accepted those words as he accepted the love he felt for her and they lifted something heavy from him.

After a few moments of holding her, enjoying the scent of her skin and the weight of her against him, he pulled the basket onto the bed. "Want something to eat?"

She nodded and they made a meal of bread with butter and fruit. For dessert, he laid a napkin on the bed and spread a few apple slices and some cheese on it. Then he picked up a slice of cheese, laid it on the apple and brought it to her mouth.

Her soft red lips closed over the end and she bit. Adam's couldn't help it, his cock hardened at the sight.

Claire chewed a bit, closed her eyes for a moment, then chewed some more. "Oh, that's good," she whispered after she'd swallowed. "Tart and sweet, creamy and crunchy. Yum."

Yum. That's for sure.

"I have something to make it even better." He reached over, took a bottle of wine from the basket and poured it into a glass for them to share.

"Wine?" she asked as she took the glass. "I've heard about this."

"Take a sip."

She did. "It's interesting. Not Coca-Cola."