Dre chuckled, delighted by Sammy’s wit. “What gave her away?”
“She knows your name.” Sammy lifted his thumb. “She knew who I was. No, don’t try to deny it. I know the signs.” He lifted his index finger. “You heard what she said to me.” His middle finger came up. “And lastly, she gives this crazy vibe I have come to associate with non-human beings.” Four fingers waggled in front of Dre and he had to suppress the urge to grab Sammy’s hand and kiss them, one after the other.
“Wow, I forgot I’m with an expert.” Dre laughed. “You’re right, of course. Zenobia comes from a long line of priestesses. She’s human, but one with some very special talents.”
“A witch?” Sammy looked suspicious. Since he was used to the company of witches, Dre could understand his reaction. Witches weren’t always good news. They could be downright nasty if they wanted to, so he hastened to reassure Sammy.
“No, although it’s similar. She’s a high priestess to the mother goddess, who goes by many names—Gaia, Hecate, Morrigan, Danu, Isis. The list is long, as you know. Zenobia and her family have served the goddess in an unbroken line since before the first pyramids were built.”
Dre couldn’t help it. He loved how Sammy hung on his every word.
“If this is the kind of knowledge you’re going to share tonight, then you’ve already won our challenge. This is fascinating. How long have you known them?”
“Zenobia’s family? For about four hundred years. I met her ancestor Paxe when I first came to Rome. She already had the restaurant then, and the food was just as good.”
Sammy raised a brow. “You’re kind of an uber-regular, aren’t you?”
Dre chuckled. “You could say that.”
Before Sammy could open his mouth again, a younger version of Zenobia approached their table with a carafe of wine and a jug of water. She smiled broadly at them.
“Good evening, Dresalantion, Sammy. I hope you enjoy your meal here.”
The young woman put two clay mugs in front of each of them, filled two with water and two with the dark red wine before she bent slightly forward to ignite the thin white candle between them by blowing on it.
“Thank you, Aulina.”
“My pleasure.” She winked at them and left.
“That was Aulina, Zenobia’s granddaughter.”
“Beauty seems to run in that family.”
“Not only beauty, as you’ve seen.”
Dre picked up his clay mug with the wine. “To a wonderful date in the eternal city.”
Sammy clinked his mug against Dre’s. “Cheers.”
They took a sip of their wine and Sammy’s eyes widened. “This is good.”
“Oh yeah. They know how to make good wine.” Dre looked around before he leaned over the table, closer to Sammy, who had a curious glint in his eyes. “Rumor has it that the wine the Pope drinks during mass on Easter and Christmas comes from here as well.”
Sammy’s grin was so wide that Dre feared it would split his face in half.
“Stop giving the boy weird ideas.” Zenobia had approached the table without them noticing her. She put plates in front of them, a basket with bruschetta slices and a small pot with a greenish spread. “All wine consumed during service is the wine. Everybody knows that.” She patted Sammy’s hand. “Enjoy your meal.”
Dre and Sammy each got a slice of bread, which was still warm, covered it with the spread and took a bite. Sammy moaned.
“Mm-m. So good. What’s in it?”
Dre licked his lips. The food was good, but Sammy’s groans were even better.
“It’s a mixture of ricotta cheese, olive oil, basil and garlic. One of my favorites.”
“I can see why. I could bathe in this stuff.” Sammy took another bite, making appreciative noises in the back of his throat that had Dre’s libido burning. It got worse when Zenobia brought them the next course, linguine with artichokes and a lemon sauce that had Sammy moaning like somebody was licking his body from head to toe. Apparently, Sammy loved food. His reaction to the main course, saltimbocca romana with young potatoes, had Dre’s cock straining against the zipper of his jeans, and after dessert, a panna cotta with strawberry and raspberry sauce, Dre knew he had made the right decision by bringing Sammy there. When they rose to leave, Zenobia took their hands again, murmuring something in a language they didn’t understand. Once they were out of the door, Sammy looked at him.
“What was that?”
“A blessing. Zenobia likes you a lot. You’re the first date I’ve brought here that she served personally.”
Sammy halted so abruptly that it took Dre several steps before he realized his date was no longer at his side. With a questioning look, he turned around.
“You’ve brought others here?”
The drama in Sammy’s voice might have alarmed Dre if it hadn’t been for the mischievous glint in his eyes. He approached Sammy, slung his arms around his waist and pulled him close. “I hate to tell you that, mo grah thu, but you’re the worst actor I’ve ever met.”
Sammy leaned his upper body back to look into Dre’s eyes. A faint blush tinged his cheeks, making Dre want to devour him right there on the street.
“I’m sorry. It’s just— You’re making me so nervous and I’m trying hard not to start with the verbal diarrhea, which isn’t working so well, considering how you’re looking at me right now. I want this to work so bad, because this is my first date ever and I’m wildly attracted to you and you probably don’t want to go out with me ever again.”
There was a wet sheen to Sammy’s eyes now, a sheen Dre wanted gone. Slowly, he lifted his right hand and caressed Sammy’s cheek. Sammy closed his eyes at the contact, whimpering softly. “Sammy, I don’t want you to censor yourself. I already told you I’m a sucker for all kinds of knowledge myself, the geekier, the better. And I’m nervous, too. This is my first date in over a hundred years. My last relationship was terrible and ended in serious heartbreak on my side. So, as you can see, I carry my own baggage. And just for the record, I’m wildly attracted to you as well.”
A tentative smile rose on Sammy’s face. “You think we could work?”
The longing in Sammy’s voice tore at Dre’s heart, because it was so similar to his own. “Yes, mo grah thu, I think we could definitely work.”
“What does ‘mo grah thu’ mean?”
Dre smiled down at Sammy. “It’s an endearment, meaning ‘my love’.”
“Oh.” The blush on Sammy’s cheeks deepened, then he grinned. “Mavis and Maribell are probably going to kill me, but I’m really enjoying my date with a demon.”
Dre chuckled. “And it has just started.”
He slung his arm around Sammy’s shoulder and led him down the Monti toward the Roman Forum.
Chapter Five
Sammy couldn’t believe it. He was on a date…in Rome…with a demon. No, not just with a demon, with the most gorgeous demon he could imagine. The food had been beyond delicious and Dre hadn’t gotten fed up with his nervous ass, something Sammy had feared from the moment he’d dropped the glass with the marmalade. He knew Mavis and Maribell wouldn’t have approved of this date, which was one of the reasons why he hadn’t told them. The second reason was that this date was the first happy thing in a long time that belonged solely to him. After the death of his parents, all his happiness—with the exception of the bookstore—had been shared, because he just couldn’t be happy on his own anymore. This thing between him and Dre, though… It made him giddy with joy and tremble in fear at the same time. Sammy just didn’t know if he was strong enough to experience loss again, and with every second he spent in Dre’s company, his conviction grew that losing the handsome demon would be devastating. There was also the fact of Dre’s immortality, which doomed their relationship from the start. Sammy knew they weren’t meant to be forever, but he sure wished for it. His rational mind told him to end it now, before he got too invested, but his heart—and his libido—voted against that. Sammy took a deep breath, decided to give his rational thought a holiday for the time being and concentrated on the gorgeous man next to him. The streets of Rome were bustling with a first onslaught of tourists and the natives going on the prowl for the evening. Many people looked at Dre with admiration and open hunger in their eyes. Sammy could relate. His date was fine, with his red skin, the silver tattoos that licked up his neck and the backs of his hands, his long, silver hair… Sammy frowned.