Nathan Lancaster removed his glasses and looked up at Helen slowly, clearly expecting recognition in her eyes. He was handsome; that was certain. Everyone always made a huge deal of his intense blue eyes and olive skin and dark hair, not to mention his striking features.

She also supposed that to most people, he was intimidatingly muscular, but compared to Chromium, she didn’t think so.

He was a little leaner and a little less tall, though still big compared to most people’s standards.

And while most women probably melted for those sultry blue eyes, she felt nothing at all when she looked at them.

She much preferred an exotic pair of creamy, blue-green jade ones.

Nathan studied her face, seeming puzzled and then relieved when he didn’t get a reaction. “You’re the owner?” He looked at her nametag. “Helen?”

She nodded.

“What’s the best thing here?” He opened and looked at the menu as if he hadn’t so far.

She chewed the inside of her lip. If not food, what exactly did this guy want? “I would say our special, the lasagna. We’re pretty known for it.”

He folded the menu. “I’ll have that.” He handed it back to her and clasped his hands, eyes gleaming calmly as he looked up at her. “Anything else you’d suggest?”

“An Italian soda, if you like those. And…” She trailed off, unable to pretend things weren’t awkward when they obviously were. “Look, why did you request me as your server? I don’t know you at all, and—”

He simply stared at her calmly, and she got the feeling that nothing in the world really ruffled this tall man. “I’ve seen you around.”

She raised an eyebrow. “What?”

“You go to the salon on Third?”

She nodded.

“I do, too.”

“You go to my cousin’s salon? When?”

“After hours. I don’t go when it’s crowded, for obvious reasons.”

She shook her head. “You could go anywhere. Why—”

“She’s good,” he said frankly. “I’m allowed to go wherever I like. I’m rich, but I’m no snob.”

She relaxed slightly. “That’s good to know, but I don’t see what this has to do with me.”

“Like I said, I’ve seen you around. I asked about you, and your cousin said you owned this place. I was wondering if you wanted to go out sometime.”

She felt her mouth pull down in a frown and was surprised when he laughed, leaning back in his chair and shoving his hands in his pockets.

“That’s a reaction I’m not used to.”

“Sorry,” she said. “But… yeah. I don’t know you, and I’m sort of… seeing someone.”

“I can see that.” Nathan’s eyes rose to something behind her, and she realized her heart was pounding so hard she hadn’t even heard someone walk over.

She looked over her shoulder to see Chromium towering nearby, glaring down at Nathan like he was a pea on the ground that Chromium wanted to squish.

“Is this your bodyguard?” Nathan asked glibly, but there was intense curiosity as he settled back in his seat.

“No,” she said.

“Boyfriend?”

“No.”

“Then why can’t you go out with me?”

“Because she doesn’t want to, dipshit,” Chromium said with a snarl.

She winced at Chromium’s bluntness, but she’d never known him to mince words. “Sorry, he’s—”

“Do you always ask women out when they’re serving you? Seems kind of rude to me.” Chromium’s arms were tightly folded as he stepped out to the side of her.

“Not always,” Nathan said calmly. “Only when it’s worth it.”

“Hmph. Get out.”

Helen put a hand on Chromium’s chest. “It’s not your restaurant.”

“I ordered lasagna,” Nathan said indignantly. He and Chromium were now staring at her as though their eyes could battle with laser beams, and she didn’t think she’d ever seen this much intensity between two men in her life.

Chromium put his hand on the table, leaning in to glare into Nathan’s eyes. “It’s my lasagna.”

Except it was clear he wasn’t talking about lasagna anymore.

Nathan glared back, the first person she’d seen who wasn’t cowed by Chromium. “You can’t have all of it.”

“Oh, I intend to. Every last bite.”

“Excuse me,” Helen said, grabbing Chromium by the arm. “I need to go have a word with my… staff member.”

Chromium let out a little growl but let her pull him toward the kitchen, pouting and stiff.

“What was that?” she asked when they were in the kitchen and out of sight of the floor. “Look, he’s still a patron. Besides, I turned him down on my own.”

“I saw that.” He relaxed slightly. “I still don’t think it’s appropriate for him to ask you out.”

“Well, I don’t think it’s appropriate for you to interfere.”

“Why? Aren’t you seeing me?”

She blushed as he used her words. “I don’t know what we’re doing. Look, I like you.” She pushed him to the corner where they could talk without being seen. “But I mean, you don’t get to be possessive like that. Yes, we’re doing things, but you aren’t my boyfriend. We haven’t even been on a date.”

Chromium huffed. “How do we do that?” He let out a sigh. “Look, I’m sorry, I got jealous. I had to hear everyone talk about how awesome he is.”

She put a hand on his chest, listening to his heartbeat, shocked by how fast it was racing. She was surprised because it always seemed he was the calm one, and she was always getting caught off guard. “Look, you’re all I can think about. Do you really think I can look at another guy with you around?”

“You were looking.”

“You know what I mean. Really look.”

He took a deep breath and let it out slowly. “I’m sorry. I really am. I can apologize to the guy if you want.”

She sighed. “I don’t know if that’s necessary.” They walked back into the main area of the kitchen, and she peeked into the dining room. “Oh, he’s gone.”

They both stared at the table, and it was as if he’d never been there.

“What a weird person,” Serena said, walking up to them. “He just told me he’d changed his mind and strolled out of here.” She shook her head. “Wish I could have gotten his number first.”

Chromium cocked his head, and Helen wondered what on earth he was thinking.

“Hey. You said we haven’t gone on a date. Let’s go on one tonight.” Chromium turned his attention to Serena. “Can you manage the front tonight? Helen deserves a night off.”

“Oh, hell yeah,” Serena said. “It’s not busy. And if someone can get her out of this restaurant for once, I’m all for it.”

Steve, who must have been eavesdropping, gave a little cheer as well.

Helen smiled, untying her apron. “I guess since everyone is against me, I’ll have to leave.”

“You just have very good friends.” Chromium gave her a wink. “I’m going upstairs to get ready. I’ll meet you at your room in a half hour.”

* * *

Chromium wore a satisfied smirk as he reached his apartment and let himself inside.

His mate, who had been so reluctant so far in the relationship, had easily turned down a man most human women apparently found irresistible. He felt almost unreasonably proud as a result.

It meant he was already winning her, that on some level, she already knew that she had no need to look elsewhere.

Now he just needed to figure out what a date was so he could take Helen on one.

He dialed up Cobalt and waited for him to answer the phone.

“Oh, thank Drakkaris,” Cobalt said. “Now you’re ready to come home.”

“No,” Chromium replied. “Stop saying that every time I call.”

“It’s not easy keeping a secret from a bunch of mind-reading dragons,” Cobalt muttered. “But how is it going over there?”

“Fine. I’m supposed to take her on a date. Apparently, it’s some sort of human ritual necessary for winning a human over as a mate.”

“Ah, yes, well, maybe I’ll let Sylvie answer that one. Given that she’s a human, after all.”

Chromium heard crackling as Cobalt handed the phone over and Sylvie picked up to answer. “Hello?”

“Hi, Sylvie.” He couldn’t help smiling at hearing his cousin’s mate. He’d become close friends with Sylvie during the time she’d been at the mansion, and he couldn’t wait for her to meet his future mate.

“So you need ideas for a date?”

“I need to know what a date is exactly.”

“They don’t have dates on Drakkaris?”

“They don’t have enough women for dates on Drakkaris,” Chromium muttered.

“Got it. Well, basically, a date is just a chance to wine and dine your lady. Cobalt should know that well enough. He did it for me after all.”

Chromium smiled. “True.”

“But I mean, what does she like?”

“She owns a restaurant. From what I’ve seen, all she does is work.”

“Got it. Maybe not wine and dine, then. Maybe go out, see a movie. Get some air. Maybe ice cream after. Those all-business type ladies really need to relax. Yeah, I think that’s the best idea.”

“How many dates before I can mate her?”

“Um, you mean propose? Because if you’re doing this all human-like, that’s probably what you’ll end up doing.”

“Right, how many dates do I need?”

Sylvie snorted. “Didn’t take much for me, but I don’t know about her. Look, you’re in uncharted territory because I knew about shifters. She doesn’t. She’s probably going to freak when she finds out. You have to do your best to let her get to know you so she doesn’t run when that happens.”

Chromium let out a sigh. “I know. It’s not like I planned for it to happen this way.”

“I think it’s romantic,” Sylvie said. “But I guess just take it one moment at a time. That’s how to do life. It works for me.”

Chromium nodded. “Thanks, Sylvie. Make sure and take care of Cobalt for me.”

“Oh, I’m taking care of him all right. I’m about to go take care of him real good—”

“Bye, Sylvie,” Chromium said, then quickly hung up. He chuckled at Sylvie’s attempt to make him feel awkward, then immediately went back to thinking about his problem with his mate.

The last thing he wanted was to hide anything from her, but at the same time, he’d never want to scare her away.

But she’d already turned another man down for him. She’d shown him her body, let him inside, and been warm and caring and open with him.

Surely that had to mean something good was happening between them.

He’d take her on this so-called date and then see where they were at afterward.

Which would hopefully be his bedroom.

* * *

Helen was surprised when Chromium showed up looking slightly nervous for their date.

The big man had always seemed fairly composed, a still-waters-run-deep kind of guy, but she could see him fidgeting with something behind his back.

He pulled out a bouquet of flowers from the florist across the street and handed it to her awkwardly. “I didn’t know what you’d like.”

It was red roses and white baby’s breath, and it was romantic and utterly perfect. She couldn’t remember the last time she had flowers.

Her encounter with Nathan was all but forgotten, and she was just looking forward to having some time outside the bedroom to get to know Chromium for real.

She opened the door to her apartment and gestured for him to come in for a moment so she could put the flowers in a vase.

He walked in casually and looked around the apartment, taking everything in. His vast size made the whole place seem smaller, but at the same time, he was a welcome presence in her home.

“What do you think?” she asked, walking over to him as he checked out the living room.

“Girly,” he said, wrinkling his nose. “But nice.”

“Thanks.” She shyly put her arm through his and was relieved when he smiled down at her, seeming pleased by that. “So where are we going?”

“A movie. Is that all right?”

“Of course.” She walked out the front door with him, locked it, and then let him lead her down the stairs and onto the street. His posture was stiff as they started the few blocks’ walk to the theater. “Why do you seem so nervous about it?”

“I haven’t really… dated much before.”

She looked up at him in shock. “Really? A guy like you?”

He gave her a confused look, so handsome she wanted to melt right there on the sidewalk. She really was smitten with this man. “A guy like me?”

“Handsome. Friendly. I’m sure it’s easy to get girls to go out with you.”

He cocked his head. “You’d be surprised. But no, I was busy with work. And I hadn’t met anyone I wanted to… date. Yet.”

“Right,” she said. “And you just happened to meet an overweight restaurant owner and wanted to go out with her?”

He trapped her against the window they’d been passing, and she was glad it was vacant. “What did you say?”

She flushed. “Sorry. I told myself I would stop being harsh with myself. You don’t deserve that.”

“No, you don’t deserve it,” he said. “You’re an awesome lady. I met a sweet, kind, pretty, beautiful-inside-and-out woman and wanted her at first sight.”

She gulped. “Wow. Um, thanks. You’re not so bad yourself.”

“Done saying rude things about yourself?”

She nodded, and he released her so they could continue walking.

Damn, just being trapped like that had gotten her heart going again. He was right. He liked her. Who was she to argue?

“So, speaking of work, I don’t know much about you. Where you’re from. Where you worked before.”

“I… It’s kind of top secret.”

“You worked for the government or something? As a bodyguard?”

“No,” he said. “But I’m not allowed to talk about who my clients were.”

“How did you end up here?”

“I came with my… company. But they didn’t have much work for me, so I started going out on the evenings to blow off steam. Sightsee. Check out restaurants.”

“Kind of a foodie, huh?”

He nodded, flushing slightly.

“Nothing to be ashamed of. You wouldn’t be such a good cook if you weren’t. Have you ever thought of going to cooking school?”

He shook his head. “I just like to be able to cook for the people I love. As long as I please them, that’s enough for me.”

Well, that was oddly heartwarming.

For the rest of the walk, he asked questions about her family, and she talked about her parents and the restaurant.

It was an oddly normal date, considering the circumstances.

When they reached the theater, he asked what she wanted to watch, which was something her ex had never done.

She picked a scary movie since she liked horror, and he seemed slightly disappointed that she hadn’t picked a chick flick about food.

But she loved scary movies, and it’d been so long since she could go to one with a big, strong man.

He insisted on getting her an absurd number of snacks, and then they took their seats in special recliners that joined in the middle.

She felt her cheeks going bright red as the lights dimmed and the previews started. Even though they’d already gotten busy together, there was something oddly intimate about just sitting beside him, ready to cuddle during a movie, sharing snacks and sitting like any other couple in the darkness.

It made all of this feel that much more… real.

As the movie started, he put a bucket of popcorn on his lap, gesturing for her to take some, and she leaned over, putting her head on his arm. She smiled at the feel of his warm bicep beneath her cheek and at the fact that he looked so pleased that she would do that.

He raised his arm and pulled her in against him so she was resting on his chest, safely tucked into his side with his arm curled around her.

It felt like nothing in the world could possibly hurt her, and as she took a handful of popcorn and looked up at his handsome face as he stared avidly at the screen, she knew she would always treasure this moment.