Page 7 of Fated Mates and How to Seduce Them (Fated Mates #4)

André had this sudden feeling he was in trouble. The way Ian stared down at him with suspicion was a good indication. He could guess why, but he was sure Ian would tell him soon enough. As he’d recently learned, the man could be brutally direct.

“André,” Ian said, voice like a drill sergeant’s with a particularly dumb recruit. He managed to keep his voice level, but just barely. “Outside. I want to talk to you.”

The kids apparently knew this tone of Ian’s, as they all made a loaded Ooooh sound. Which wasn’t reassuring.

“Sure. Ava, can you grab everyone’s lists when they’re done and put them into this bag for me? Thanks, princess. I’ll be right back.”

Mary caught his eye as he stood and asked sotto voce, “Did you not tell him you were coming?”

“Nope.” André shrugged, gave her a reassuring smile, and followed in Ian’s wake. No need to worry them. No matter how Ian felt about this, André wasn’t going to rescind his sponsorship. He’d feel like an absolute villain taking away such joy from the kids.

Ian waited until they were in the hallway before grabbing him by the arm and hauling him out a back door, then even farther, down a narrow dirt trail into the woods, well out of sight of the house.

He wasn’t going to whack him and bury him under a bush, was he?

A few paces past the tree line, Ian rounded on him, and wow, he had the most calmly furious expression André had ever seen on a human’s face. It was rather impressive. He held his chin high, legs planted in a wide stance, and steam almost visibly rolling off him in waves.

“If you think for one second that you can buy me by coming here—” Ian had a clenched fist in the air, as if ready to use it. He smelled mad, which wasn’t good for André.

André threw up both hands in a staying motion. “Whoa, whoa, whoa! No way in hell do I think that. Ian, if you were the type of man who could be bought, I wouldn’t be pursuing you in the first place.”

Ian mentally ground to a halt, brows beetled together. Now he looked confused. “Then what are you doing here?”

“It’s kinda two-fold.” André paused to think of how best to phrase this.

“See, my parents encourage both my brother and me to support different charities. I’ve been looking for one ever since I returned to America three years ago, but it wasn’t until I saw your posts on Facebook that I found something.

This group home. It needs the help, right? My money would be well spent here.”

Ian’s fury had dropped by half, expression conflicted, but at least he was listening now. “You looked at my Facebook?”

“I’m interested in you. Of course I checked out your social media accounts. You really ignore Insta, don’t you?”

“I don’t have the time to post on it much—” Ian groaned. “Not the point. Do not distract me. Okay, so you were looking for a charity, you saw the group home because of my posts, and you just…what? Drove out here blindly?”

“Kinda had to. They don’t have a website. I looked. Figured I’d get a better grasp of the situation in person anyway. Glad I did, now. Damn, man, this building is falling apart around their ears.” Something André would quickly correct.

Ian passed a hand over his face. He seemed torn now—still stressed but giving ground under André’s sincerity. “Yeah. It has been for years. I fix what I can, but I don’t have the expertise or the tools to handle all of it.”

“I’d be surprised if you did. You major in social work, not plumbing.”

“Just how much of my Facebook did you snoop?” Ian demanded suspiciously.

André smiled as he admitted cheerfully, “All of it. Casper was damn cute when you first found her, by the way.”

Ian shot him an unamused frown. “You’re not distracting me with my favorite subject.”

Damn. It’d been worth a shot.

For a few moments, they simply stared at each other, the tension building before Ian let out a harsh breath. “Fine, I must admit Second Sun could desperately use whatever you can donate. But you said your reason for being here was two-fold. What’s the other reason?”

André stepped in a little closer past some dry brush, into the range of something a little more intimate, which meant Ian’s scent grew even stronger.

Why did this man smell so fucking delicious?

André had to give himself a mental slap before he nuzzled in and started nibbling on sheer instinct.

Instead, he locked eyes with Ian, dropping his voice to more of a purr.

“You. I know you don’t trust me right now.

You don’t think I mean it when I say I like you.

This place will be my proving ground. I’ll protect what you protect.

I’ll care for what you care about. I’ll earn your trust, even if I have to do it a step at a time. ”

There was his damn confusion again, like Ian was trying to do high-level calculus with André’s words, only nothing computed into a sensible answer.

André mentally sighed. Patience. This would take patience. “What part of my answer did not make sense to you?”

“All of it,” Ian admitted readily, his hazel eyes searching André’s. “You can have anyone. Literally anyone. You’ve proven this since your freshman year, hooking up with anyone who looked your way. So why the hell would you pursue me?”

Ouch, but not like he was wrong. “You are both reliable and trustworthy, an incredibly rare combination in my life. I would be a damn fool to let you slip through my hands. I try to not be an idiot; it’s generally a painful experience.” He gave a wink. “Plus, you’re cute as hell.”

“André, I’m being serious.”

“So am I. It hurts that you don’t believe me.”

Ian’s head dropped back as he gazed up at the thinning canopy. He pulled in a deep breath, then let it out again, before looking at him. He seemed calmer now. On the surface. “André.”

He just loved hearing his name out of Ian’s lush mouth. Focus, dammit, focus. “I’m all ears, love.”

Ian had a look of pain and a sort of cynicism in his eyes.

He was grave saying all of this, but matter of fact at the same time.

“I’m sure you learned today about how I’m an orphan.

I have no money, no connections, and I’m certainly not on your social level.

On top of all this, I’m a man. Yes, yes, I know you’ll happily bed all genders, but a fuck toy and an actual partner are two different things and you know it.

You’re telling me you think your family would accept someone like me as your romantic partner? ”

How dare a man so fascinating sell himself short. It was a fucking travesty, and André wouldn’t let it stand. He caught Ian’s hand and drew it up to his mouth so he could gently kiss the back of his knuckles. Ian was just surprised enough to allow this.

“I cannot wait to prove to you how little all of that matters.”

Ian quickly retracted his hand, shaking his head in a minute manner. He was back to being utterly confused. “I don’t understand you. You have it all.”

“Not yet,” André murmured ruefully. “But I’m working on it.”