When Hunter returned, the magnificence of his washboard abs was hidden, but the muscles weren’t held back by the garment as they pushed through the seams and teased Camilla as if he hadn’t shielded himself at all. The swagger in his long stride held her in rapture, and an avalanche of heat swept down her spine.

“How’s this,” he asked.

Camilla nodded, not trusting her voice.

“Good, I aim to please.”

Camilla smirked. Sure, he did.

Hunter disappeared around another corner and returned with champagne flutes and a corkscrew. Placing one flute in front of her, Hunter lifted the bottle and popped the cork then poured her glass halfway. She admired his thoughtfulness. He could have filled it to the top to get her drunk. But so far, Hunter had only shown sincerity, and Camilla could appreciate a man like that. He grabbed a utensil and added food to Camilla’s plate than his own and took his seat while filling his own glass.

“Do you pray?” He asked.

“Yes.”

“What are your religious preferences?”

Camilla smile again. Thoughtful.

“I’m a Christian.”

“Shall we?”

Hunter reached for her hands, and they bowed their heads.

“Father God…”

As Hunter prayed for a blessing and the nourishment of their bodies and soul, Camilla found herself praying for forgiveness of having naughty thoughts as Hunter spoke at the throne.

Please Lord, forgive me, for I have sinned and can’t seem to stop.

The depth in his vocals and the way Camilla’s body vibrated slightly from the bass of it caused her to shift and cross her legs then repent more. She was so busy begging for forgiveness that she almost missed it when the prayer ended.

“Amen,” Hunter said.

His perfectly curled lashes fluttered as he looked over at her.

“Amen,” Camilla responded.

Hunter gave her hand a squeeze before releasing it and reaching for a knife and fork.

“This dish is best served if you eat it like this.”

He took the knife through her chicken, cutting a corner of it just right to fit the spear of the fork. When he had enough, Hunter dipped the food into the Beurre Blanc sauce then lifted the dish to her lips. Without dissuasion, Camilla settled her mouth over the food, and her lids fluttered at the attack on her palate.

“Good, right?”

Camilla nodded as her mind processed the flavor.

“Wow,” she said finally. “That is incredible.”

Retrieving her own utensils, Camilla cut into her chicken and followed his lead, dipping then taking another bite. Her eyes rolled back to a close then fluttered open and rounded to him.

“Mmmm,” she moaned with a soft shake of her head. “Heavenly.”

Hunter’s dick bucked against his zipper, and inwardly, he told himself to calm.

“Are you going to eat?” Camilla asked, watching him stare at her mouth unflinchingly.

Hunter cut into his chicken while keeping his eyes on her.

“How was your first day on the job,” he queried, dipping his chicken and taking a bite of his own.

Camilla lifted the glass of wine to her mouth and took a sip. The sweet liquor mixed with the meal so enticingly she thought about having the cuisine again tomorrow.

“It was good. The staff is great and very enthusiastic. The atmosphere is light and non-pervasive.” She licked the corner of her lips, and Hunter’s gaze followed her tongue. “But, I think my co-anchor has a thing for black women.”

That didn’t seem to surprise Hunter. Any man worth his salt would be attracted to Camilla.

“Actually, I know he does since the coworker I owe money to said as much.”

Camilla made sure to put that out in the air again. Since Hunter, still, had yet to hand over her card.

“What would make your coworker tell you that?”

Camilla smiled softly. “He’s a flirt. It was minor, but I can spot a flirt a mile away.”

“Because you have superpowers?”

Camilla laughed an ambrosial sound that heated Hunter’s skin, sending a flare to his groin.

“No, but the tell-tale signs are there.”

“Hmm,” Hunter’s intoxicating voice grooved. “What is your coworker’s name if you don’t mind me asking?”

“Allison. She reminds me of my friend back in Florida, Corinne.”

“Florida,” he said. “The Sunshine State.”

Camilla nodded. “Born and raised. Gators all day, skee-wee!” Camilla called, and a beautiful smile covered her face as she tossed up her fingers in her signature sorority hand gesture.

Hunter’s eyes lit up. “You’re Alpha Kappa Alpha,” he pointed out.

Camilla’s smile held steady. “Yeaaaah baby,” she crooned, going in for another bite of her chicken Beurre blanc.

“A-Phi!” Hunter shouted, and Camilla almost choked on her food. She swallowed quickly then dabbed her mouth with a napkin.

“No way,” she said, sitting forward astonished. It couldn’t be possible that he was a part of the brother fraternity to her sorority.

The gorgeous smile that ran across Hunter’s face was proof in the pudding.

“Yeaaaah, baby…” his thick voice drummed, repeating what she’d said in the sexiest manner Camilla had ever heard it.

“You’re Alpha Phi Alpha…” she gushed.

Camilla sat back against her seat, and Hunter reached out and stroked her chin.

“I pledged because I wanted to offer positive change not only in the brotherhood, but in the Black community. I was already popular in society because of my family’s reputation, so spreading positivity on a greater scale was my goal. Once I became a sophomore, I was elected Pledge Class Vice President. I held that position for another semester before I elevated to General President.”

“Wow, what an advancement,” Camilla said.

The corners of Hunter’s succulent lips lifted, and he nodded. “True that. It was a ton of responsibility, but I was up for the challenge.” His gaze lingered on her. “I’ve got the feeling we were destined to meet, Angel.”

Camilla smirked outwardly. Inwardly, she shivered. “You think?”

“I do.”

They watched each other for another long moment, Camilla taking in the sudden coincidence and Hunter wondering what else fate had in store when it came to his Angel.

Camilla took a sip of her wine, needing to calm herself, but it only seemed to make her even more comfortable with Hunter.

“Tell me, why did you pledge AKA?” he asked.

Camilla crossed her legs, and Hunter wanted to pat himself on the back for not looking.

“Initially, I’d watched as the sorority groomed young women to be outstanding leaders of the community. It not only sparked my interest, but it made me want to recruit more women for the sorority. But I needed to be a part of it first. Instead of jumping the gun, I did a little research. There are a lot of great ones, but Alpha Kappa Alpha stood out the most. I created a lot of friendships from being a part of it. And now that I’m long gone from college, I still recognize my sisters when I see our colors or hear our call. It’s amazing that even though I may not know the individual personally, being a member connects us instantly. There have been many times when I have been in public and walked past a sister wearing our logo, and I’ll shout skee-wee!” Camilla laughed, and Hunter enjoyed the serenaded sound of her voice. “We’d stopped instantly and take a selfie with each other. It’s a bond like I’ve never experienced.”

Camilla reached out and lifted the wine glass to her lips, taking a sip of the last contents. Hunter stood from his seat and poured her a little more. At her inquisitive look, he paused.

“Enough?” He asked.

Camilla mulled it over. “This should be good. I’m not a big drinker, so I can already feel it working me out.” Her eyes swept over him before meeting his stare again.

“You said it’s a bond like you’ve never experienced before,” Hunter said, sitting the bottle back down and reclaiming his seat. “Are you an only child?”

Camilla didn’t have a problem answering his question, but she couldn’t help but remember how Hunter had instantly shifted the conversation when she inquired about Trevor.

“I’ll make a deal with you. If you get to ask me about my family, I can ask you about yours.”

Hunter didn’t jump at her proposal right away. Instead, he let it linger there, and Camilla could tell he wasn’t up for it.

“One question,” he said finally.

Camilla looked him over completely. The warmness in his eyes had paused, and his jaw seemingly locked tightly.

“Yes,” Camilla answered. “I’m an only child.” Instead of asking the question she really wanted to know, she decided to save it for another time, if ever a time came. “The men on the mural playing basketball. Are they your friends? Brothers?”

The question seemed to make Hunter relax, and the warmness she’d gotten used to returned along with his relaxed jaw.

“They’re my brothers.”

“It must be nice to have siblings.”

“Sometimes,” he joked.

Camilla smiled. “Are you the oldest?”

Hunter smirked. “You could say that.” He chuckled at her quizzical look. “We were born together. Me first by one and a half a minutes. So, I guess you can call me the oldest.”

Camilla thought she’d heard wrong. “Wait, all of you!?”

“Yes. We’re septuplets. Not identical. My mom is a warrior.” His smile was easy.

“Oh my God, how amazing! When I first heard of the famous Octomom who had eight babies at once, I thought surely that was a rare occurrence, but seven is still… wow.” Camilla thought back to the mural. There were only six of them in each drawing. “Wait,” she said, going over it again in her head. Trevor. Camilla wanted to pry more, but she held on to it. She lifted the flute to her lips and drained the remaining contents.

“You don’t mind if I have a bit more, do you,” she asked. “I swear this is my last round.”

“Of course. It is yours after all.”

She gave him a gracious smile. Oddly, Camilla also wondered what it would be like for Hunter to be hers, too.