Chapter 49

"Obrigada," I thank the lady as I take the sweetest puff-puff beignets I've ever eaten.

Xavier has been the perfect tour guide, showing me the good, and the ugly side of his hometown. By far my favorite place is the shopping mall. There's nothing special about it, but seeing people talk in a different language and going on with their day makes me giddy.

Now, we're walking down the sidewalk. There's the beach on a side and the road on the other. Clear blue waves crash into the shore, washing over the sand. "Don't you have any friends here?" I ask as I eat the puff-puffs.

Xavier shakes his head. "Not anymore. I went to a private school, so all of them were foreigners."

I pout. "That's sad. Are you still keeping in touch with them?"

"Nope. I can follow them on their socials, but it's not the same thing anymore. If I could, I would redo my childhood all over again just for them."

When I glance up at him, I find him with a nostalgic smile on his face. It's sad how friendship changes over the years. The older we get, the harder it becomes to maintain them.

We spend the rest of our day walking around town and going back home through a candongueiro. Xavier was hesitant about the vehicle, but after a bit of convincing, he gave in, sending his driver back home.

Candongueiro is similar to a bus, but a lot smaller and crowded as hell. I love it. Although it feels weird being the only white woman in the car.

Xavier talks over the chaos toward the driver, probably telling him where to get us. I observe the men loudly interact with each other and can't stop smiling throughout all the drive.

Xavier releases an exaggerated exhale when we hop out of the white and blue vehicle. "I can still feel their sweat on me," he says as he fans himself.

I laugh, pushing my hair back. "You're such a drama queen."

"And you love it," he confidently says as he knocks on the wooden door of his house.

It doesn't take long for them to open enough to let us in. The sun has long left its place to the beautiful full moon. Anxiety builds up as I realize that dinner with his family is about to happen. I'm scared.

When we're behind closed doors of his bedroom, Xavier tells me to dress informally elegant.

What the hell does informally elegant even mean?!

He slides open the glass doors that lead to his walk-in closet. Our suitcases are in the middle, open, and with our clothes scattered on the ground.

He crouches down in front of my white suitcase, making the mess worse but finding a suitable dress for the occasion. He lifts it up, eyeing the material. I put a black off-shoulder cocktail skater A-line dress in my bag, just in case something like this happened.

It's the only formal dress I have, so if he rejects it, I'm doomed. Luckily, he doesn't.

He nods and turns toward me, handing me the dress before focusing on himself. I take my time to get ready, and by the time we're both done, his mom is calling us from downstairs.

Sweat quickly builds up in the palms of my hands as I quietly follow the elegant version of Xavier. He's wearing a soft brown button-up shirt, striped, smart trousers, and white sneakers.

The dining room is in-between the living room and kitchen with only a glass table for six people with beautiful cream-colored leather chairs. Xavier's parents are already sitting at the head of the table.

The lion surprises me by moving the chair backward for me to sit. Xavier has never done that before. Nevertheless, I sit down, giving him a shy smile.

He takes the seat beside me as two maids come out of the kitchen with filled plates in hand.

I look down at something yellowish with beans and meat. How the hell am I supposed to eat this?

"Please, don't hold yourself back," Xavier's mom says with a smile that makes me shiver, and not in a positive way.

I reluctantly nod as my eyes move between the food and the cutlery. With a fork or no fork? It looks like it's supposed to be without it. What's the worst between the two? If I take it, I'll look snobbish. But if I don't, I might give the 'poor girl' type of vibe.

I lift my eyes, seeing his parents still staring at me. Xavier definitely took his penetrative gaze from his father. Ugh, screw this. I grab the fork and stab the yellowish food that doesn't easily break when I pull.

I knew I had to go without a fork.

"Well, how have you been, Xavier?" his father asks, digging into the food with no fork. An embarrassed blush appears on my face.

Xavier replies with ease, mixing some Portuguese with English as if he knew which words his parents won't understand. I can't find my voice to enter the conversation, so I quietly eat the dinner until I hear my name being called.

I look toward his mom, who's intensely staring at me. "What do you do at the Clowder?"

"I'm the left hand, so my main role is to keep being updated on what's happening in the United States and report to the leader if something is wrong," I explain.

She frowns at me. "For how long have you known Xavier?" she asks, but this time I notice the way her tone has softened.

I swallow a nervous lump. "We met five years ago thanks to the leader, but before that, we used to go to the same high school."

Her black eyes pop out. Her gaze falls on her son, who's eating without a care in the world. I look at his father, passing a hand along his bearded jaw. "So it's her," his father says, looking at the mom receiving a slow nod from her.

Out of nowhere, Mrs. Lyon slaps Xavier's arm, startling him. "What was that for?" Xavier asks, glaring at her.

She glares right back. "Remember the woman who gave birth to you and drop that glare right now," she orders, and he sighs, closing his eyes.

"Why didn't you tell me she's the girl you always talk about?" she asks before looking at me and add, "I'm sorry about before. I knew Xavier liked a girl, so for him to bring another one after spending so much time talking about Red made me angry because I thought I failed to raise him."

Xavier laughs. "Just because I like another girl doesn't mean you did something wrong while raising me," he says.

She shakes her head. "It is because I didn't raise a Casanova."

"I'm definitely not one since I'm about to be married as a dad," he reveals with clear annoyance in his tone.

Mrs. Lyon quickly blinks. "Dad?"

"Marry?" Mr. Lyon repeats with his jaw slightly hanging.

Xavier intertwines our fingers, lifting our clasped hands for them to see the two rings on my fingers. One on my middle finger and the other on the ring one. "Surprise," he says as I feel my heart about to explode from the tense silence that follows.

"What do you mean by having a son?" Mrs. Lyon asks after a while.

Her son smirks, probably loving the fact that he shut her up. "His name is Benjamin, and he's almost three months old now. You're an old grandma," he says.

Both parents start shouting in their mother tongue, leaving me in complete darkness. I focus on Xavier's reaction, and from the way he's laughing at them, it doesn't look like his parents are insulting him. Mrs. Lyon gets teary-eyed before she stands up from her chair to hug her son, bringing his face against her chest.

"She thought he was going to end up alone and miserable after living a Casanova life," his father speaks up, grabbing my attention.

I chuckle. "I wouldn't have let that happen. Hell, I would have been the one planning blind dates for Xavier if he had gotten to that point," I say, succeeding to make both his parents laugh as Xavier groans, clearly annoyed.

"Thank you for trusting me with my future guys," he says as he tries to break away from the tight hug.

It feels too good to be true.

I've never imagined myself with Xavier as my mate out of all the fantasies I had in mind for my future. A part of me was convinced that Dante and I would have met and fallen in love once again. The darker part of me was convinced that I would have been mateless for life, unable to find my soulmate. Turns out, twin flames are also an option when you're under the spell of a lion.

I can't ask for more, especially with Benjamin in my life now. That's going to be fun as hell since he's a hybrid.

But all I know is that I'm in a moment of my life where everything is going great. I'll be holding onto it as much as I can.

I won't allow anyone to take my happiness away.

AAH tomorrow the last chapter comes out and I'm getting emotional alreadyyyyy

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