The photo was almost enough to prove Joselynn was his mate. He was drawn to her expressive face, and he could feel the warmth radiating through the screen of his phone. Kai would have his answer that night when he went to her home.
Voices halted their conversation, as Presley walked out of the gym with two of her friends. The woman told Kai she was still putting his name on the list, just in case. As she winked and flirted, her two friends were focused on Lorenzo. Lor crossed his beefy arms over his chest and grinned at the attention. When the three were out the door, Kai arched an eyebrow at the male.
“What? I’m not mated. Besides, that Elise is fine,” Lor said, rubbing his hands together.
“Well, she’s going to be at Bishop’s tonight with Presley. My name will be at the door, so if you want to go play, just use my name.”
At the mention of Bishop’s, Lorenzo curled his lip. “Yeah, no thanks. Not my kind of place.”
“Mine either. I’m going to wash some towels.”
“I got that, Brother. You hang out here and look at the picture of your mate some more.” Kai swung lazily at the male, but Lor ducked out of the way, laughing. Kai thought he’d been stealthy looking at his phone. Guess not.
Kai sighed and did a walk-through. It was a little past six on a Friday night, but the gym was still busy. Lorenzo left at eight, and by the time Law walked through the doors for his shift at nine, Kai was ready to phase. His beast knew they were close to finding their mate, but Kai still didn’t know what to do or how to approach Joselynn if she was the one.
First things first.
Joselynn’s home was an apartment not far from where her family’s law firm was located. Like her sister’s condo, it was close to downtown. Unlike Presley’s place, it was in a less secure area than Kai liked. He didn’t see the appeal of living in a building shared by hundreds of others. Kai preferred the openness of Sixx’s property. Growing up on an island, his family’s home had been nice-sized, but they didn’t flaunt their wealth. Considering they didn’t have someone like Sixx investing their money, they weren’t nearly as well-off as most of the Clan in New Atlanta, but they weren’t hurting for money either. At forty, Kai had moved out into a small, one-bedroom house not far from his parents. He remained on the island until he began to get restless. Not only that, but all his brothers had found their mates in other Gargoyles while Malakai continued to remain alone.
Kai left his Jeep in the parking lot of the gym. It was a few miles away from where Josie lived, but the night was a cooler one for August in Georgia. He didn’t shift because the cloudless sky was too bright with the streetlights illuminating the area. Instead, he used the thirty minutes to think about meeting Joselynn. The closer he got, the more his beast pushed to be let out. When a soft wind blew his direction, he understood why. That sweet smell that clung faintly to Presley was strong. His shifter hearing caught female cursing on the wind, and he instinctively knew it was Joselynn. He took off running toward the female, and when he got close, he understood the problem. His mate had a flat tire.
Slowing his steps, Kai approached. “Is everything okay?” he asked.
When the pretty female turned around, it was all Malakai could do to remain standing. Joselynn Pierson smelled like coconuts and sunshine. She smelled like home.
Josie kicked the flat and howled. “Damnit! Stupid sandals. Stupid tire! Aaaagh.” She was rubbing her toes when she heard the distinct sounds of flip-flops. Josie looked over her shoulder and froze, her foot in her hand, mouth hanging open.
“Is everything okay?” the flip-flop-wearing man asked. Josie couldn’t remember the last time she’d seen a grown man wearing a pair when he wasn’t on the beach. If anyone belonged on the sand, it was the stunning stranger standing mere feet away from her. No, everything was not okay because in what world did fate throw someone like him in the path of someone like her?
Josie continued to stare. Not only was the stranger gorgeous, but he held his hands out to the side as if he were approaching a skittish dog. Maybe he was. He had to have heard her cursing a blue streak. Mister sex-on-two-long-legs had tanned skin like he was Hawaiian or Samoan. His hair was cropped close on the sides, and his eyes were dark. If he hadn’t been wearing flip-flops, she’d have thought he was a biker. Ripped jeans rode low on his hips, and his white T-shirt stretched across a firm chest. Josie knew because she was checking him out. That might not be the smartest thing to do under the circumstances, but Holy Mother of God, the man had Josie wanting to lick him. All over.
“Ma’am? Would you like some help with your tire?”
“Oh, that.” When she realized she was still holding her foot, she dropped it, forgetting about the pain in her toes. “Uh, I can just call the car service.” Josie looked around, finally coming to her senses. There were cars passing by, so she didn’t think he would harm her with others around to witness a crime. She really hoped he was a nice man and not some hot-as-sin creature with a black soul.
Lucifer was beautiful, and look how he turned out.
“Or I could change it now so you don’t have to wait
