I was five when grandma threw me a My Little Pony birthday party. It was the best birthday. Between the concept and that being the last year my parents were happy together, I believed that nothing would top that day. But Kaden Hades showed me that birthdays can be magical and sweet at twenty-eight. He brought me a kitten.

The man surprised me every time he was around. After following his career so closely, I thought I knew everything about him. But knowing his music career was nothing like knowing the real Kaden Hades.

Some facts printed in the media were right. He was famous, talented, handsome, and wealthy. But spending time with him, I learned who he really was. What he ached for, his dreams, and how his heart beat.

We kissed tentatively, passionately, and then tenderly. I felt little sparks of static electricity dancing over my skin. I wanted to fight him, his big hands and his mouth. That mouth I thought about kissing more times than I wanted to admit. His hands cupped my face as his mouth fidgeted with my lower lip. His fingers trailed down my neck, toward the small of my back. Heat radiated from his body, and I melted into his arms.

The heat of his kiss set my heart aflame, consuming me. Everything was quiet, except the crackling sound of the fire that surrounded us. Yet, his kisses were sweet. Like cotton candy or strawberries. They were succulent, sticky, and a little tangy. They tasted like love and sin.

Those hands continued caressing me with a feather-like caress. I squirmed and moaned as his tongue slid against mine. My heart dipped with his words. I trust you. At that point, I had no idea what I had done to win his trust, but my mind couldn’t think of anything as his lips came down on mine.

I wrecked them. The titanium walls I built to keep Kaden away melted with his passion. I opened myself. My heart let him through. Everything inside me changed.

My world shifted.

My heart finally understood the meaning of love.

The fear I harbored for so long disappeared as our kiss deepened. His strong arms healed my broken soul. His kisses melted the doubts in my mind.

“Sade,” he said, with a velvety voice filled with lust.

His lips strayed as he spoke, but I felt them moving against mine. “You taste like peaches, heaven, and magic. I think I have a new addiction.”

“Addiction?”

I was stunned by the kiss. My brain had a hard time understanding his words because every cell in my body wanted more of him, of his kisses. He lured me with his lips. His eyes baited me, those strong arms trapped me, and he entangled my heart with his.

“You, Little Fairy.”

“We just crossed the lines.” I rested my head on his chest.

“Do you regret it?” His voice deflated. It lost the power it had only seconds ago.

“No, I just don’t know where we go from here. And though I’m excited, I’m also afraid of what can happen.”

Where were we supposed to go from here?

He had a career, two adorable children, and a life entirely different from mine. I didn’t see myself fitting into his world. In fact, I never fit into anyone’s world.

“Come with me to New York. I have to be there for another week.”

“I’d love to accompany you, but I can’t.”

He proved my point. Kaden would be gone for another week. I’d never traveled in my life.

“Why not?” He narrowed his gaze.

“I have a flower shop to run and a new kitty.”

“The children are already slowing us down, aren’t they?”

“We have children?”

“Not yet, but we just talked about it and agreed on having two or three.”

“You have to slow down. This is too much, too soon.”

“But I can’t,” he lifted my chin with his calloused finger. “I’ve never felt the way you make me feel. Ever. I didn’t know it would be possible, but with you, I want everything. We’ll get married someday and have babies. A boy named Kieran and a girl named Aubrey.”

I blinked a couple of times as I stared at his handsome face. His eyes radiated the purest happiness I’d ever seen. But his words accelerated my breathing. We’d just met a few weeks back, and he was already naming our children. Ours.

“It’s okay, Hummingbird,” he said, cradling me in his arms.

I shivered as his lips brushed against my ear. “This isn’t a race, Precious Vixen, but a marathon where we wait and make things happen slowly. At your pace.”

“What is this?”

“Honestly, I’m not sure,” he responded, caressing my arms.

“Meow.” Our kitten purred.

I turned around. Sinatra was on top of my bed, watching his surroundings.

“But before we figure it out, I have to set up this little guy’s litter box.”

“You stay with him while I set up everything. Just guide me since this is your place.”

Despite the time we’d spent together as friends, my stomach was tied into knots at the thought of dinner with Kaden. As a couple. We’re a couple.

There wasn’t an exact definition for our relationship. Except he’d said earlier, “I’m taking my woman for dinner, to celebrate her birthday.”

My heart fluttered. I was that woman. We’re going for dinner. At Sushi Ronin. The guy snapped his fingers, made a few calls, and got us into the one restaurant I’d been dying to go to. He asked me to wear the same little black dress I wore when we had dinner with Dad and my tall boots for the occasion.

“Are you okay?”

“Yeah.”

“You’re shivering.”

“It’s the breeze,” I lied.

He didn’t need to know that it had been years since my last date. Or that I was still thinking about our kiss. His lips. The lust growing inside me, spreading like wildfires in the middle of July.

“You clean up well,” I tried to sound casual, but I sounded like a dork.

You clean up well? I needed to practice my social skills before going out with this rock god. I was rusty, unused in all possible ways. But with him, I wanted to be used, fucked hard against the wall.

My cheeks heated up. Where did that come from?

I should stop watching porn to get myself off.

He grabbed my hand, entwined our fingers and brushed my knuckles with his lips, creating a spark that that ignited my body, making me feel alive. Every glance, every kiss, and touch made me feel alive.

My thoughts couldn’t line up. Every time he was around they scattered everywhere in my head. Being close to him gave me sharp palpitations.

“I even got a jacket.” He winked at me, his gaze traveled over me, making me quiver with need.

“It’s a different look, but it fits you.”

He’d dressed in a button-down shirt, a pair of distressed jeans, and a sports coat. His longish hair was tied into a ponytail. His gray eyes were shining like the moonlight at night. He was handsome, but that’s not what had me jittery. It was the way he spoke to me, the way he cared for everyone even when he had the look of a man who didn’t give a fuck.

“You look gorgeous tonight,” he said, opening the door of the restaurant and releasing my hand. “After you, my lady.”

Inside the front door was a lobby where a hostess stood by herself behind a wooden podium.

“Our reservation is under Sadie Bell.”

“Right, you asked for our private room. Take the elevator to the second floor.”

While we walked through the tables on the main floor dining room, I admired the place. It had a Japanese vibe with soothing tones and contemporary Japanese art along the walls. There was a wraparound bar in the middle of the room, and above it, hanging sculptures that simulated a flock of cranes.

The place was beautiful, the food perfect, and the company excellent. Our conversation ran naturally. Like two friends who were sharing a meal but stole caresses and a few kisses in between bites. It didn’t take long for me to realize that I was having a good time. The best time I’d had in many years.

We talked about his first concerts. How for most of his songs, life was his inspiration. His surroundings and his demons. When it came to romantic or heartbreaking ballads, it was different. He took ideas from his friends who always had tragic stories. Or sometimes he watched romantic movies with his bandmates.

“You watch romcoms?” I couldn’t hide the laughter.

“There’s nothing wrong with getting in touch with my feminine side and getting some inspiration.”

“So, you create songs by the day.”

“You’d think, but that’s not the case. It’s easy to come up with the melody. Lyrics can take me weeks.”

“Why is that?”

“They have to be a sequence of feelings. If I’ve never fallen, how can I create a story within a song?”

“Each song is a story?”

“Yes, but once I have a solid one, the lyrics flow.”

“I need times,” I perked up with curiosity.

“Times?” He drummed his fingers against the table.

A tic he had when he was thinking. He tapped a surface, or if there was nothing close to him, he touched his leg or his chest.

“The longest took me almost a year. I had the music, a few lines, and an idea but nothing that called to me.” He leaned forward.

“Rewrite our Story.” He mentioned one of his biggest hits.

“Seriously, that one took you that long?”

He nodded once, his eyes scanned the room. “It was a hit, but man that thing was longer than a pregnancy.”

“What’s the shortest one?”

“A day,” he answered without hesitation. “Only because I couldn’t touch my guitar for twelve hours.”

“Which one is it?”

“We haven’t released it yet. I have my guitar in the car. If you want, I can play it for you when I drop you off.”

“Mr. Hades, I’m impressed. A kitten, dinner, and you’ll serenade me.”

He grabbed my hand. “I just want to make you happy. Your smile brightens my day. You’re the sun. I’m a sunflower who follows you along.”

“Lines, lines that make me fall deeper because I’ve discovered that they come from your heart. You could be a poet. If you could do something else, what would it be?”

He stared at me for several beats. Those fingers drumming on top of my hand. His lips pressed together tightly, and his eyes brightened when he had an answer.

“I love what I do. Composing, playing. I’m not a poet. I’m a musician who gives pieces of himself through lyrics and melodies.”

“You’re a passionate man.”

“You have no idea,” he mumbled, kissing the back of my hand and nipping it.

“Stop,” I said harshly, fighting the heat climbing into my cheeks.

“Somehow, I think you want me to continue.” He traced my brow. “I can tell. Let’s go home.”

He lifted his arm, snapped his fingers, and the waiter entered the room. Within minutes we received the check, and Kaden paid. I rose from my chair, and he grabbed my coat. His eyes darkened as he helped me put it on. I swallowed hard as the unmistakable glare of desire promised a night of pleasure. Scarlet heat warmed my cheeks.

One question cut through the thick fog of lust inside my head. Was I ready for him?