Who: Karl and Hope What: Romantic Valentine’s Day Date When: Feb 12-14 Where: New York City (Transportation portal) Rating: low
Being on a short vacation with Karl was nice, even if there were many moments Hope missed their daughter. She wondered if it would always be that way - that strange tug and pull where on the one hand you were thankful and happy to have some grown-up time, but also where you just wanted to be around your child. Maybe when they were twenty or something.
For now, Hope was able to enjoy the evening. Yesterday had been fun exploring New York again. It wasn’t their Earth, but that was okay. New York was New York no matter what and they’d decided to go full out with all the high end stuff and honestly? Hope was enjoying it this time. She didn’t always like to lean into the whole rich lifestyle, but for three days feeling like they were high society was a bit exciting and it was definitely keeping them in bed more than sightseeing - something that Hope was completely fine with.
Tonight she was dressed up in a full-length black sparkling dress that had a plunging back to it with black pumps and a small clutch. She got out of the limo they had rented and walked on Karl’s arm into the exclusive evening party hosted by a gallery that had art and jewelry on display. She was already looking forward to the feeling she’d get later when Karl slipped out for a bit and came back having retrieved some of these jewels.
“It’d be completely inappropriate to whisk you away to the coatroom wouldn’t it.” It was mostly a joke, though it reminded her of when they first met.
Karl tried to live a fairly typical middle class life with his wife and child, even if Hope came from money and the werewolf liked the life a jewel thief offered her. He wanted to ensure money didn’t run out and his wife could decide whether or not she worked. The werewolf wanted whatever Hope desired.
But that didn’t mean Karl didn’t want to splurge on a short romantic trip with his beautiful wife. The werewolf missed his daughter entirely, and looked forward to returning to their little life, but he was enjoying every moment of his trip. Karl assumed the feelings of wanting both would be a continuous tug-of-war for the foreseeable future.
“Have I mentioned how utterly beautiful you look?” Karl commented with a growl, wearing a perfectly tailored tux. His hand covered his wife’s and he glowered at some man who dared to stare at Hope a heartbeat too long.
He laughed and looked at his wife, before pressing a gentle kiss to her oh so soft lips. “Maybe. Let’s try and last a half hour at least.” The werewolf would definitely be stealing items, both for the thrill and for the jewel shop back home.
“You have, but I like hearing it.” She replied with a smile and the nodded at someone who nodded that them like she knew them. Who that person thought they were was beyond her, but she knew how to blend in with people whose hobby was knowing people.
Taking one of the offered champagne from a tray being carried by a waitstaff, she took a sip and looked around while still having one of her arms around Karl's arm for now. “Want to take a look at the exhibits before they ask us to take our seats?”
Karl nodded like they knew the person. Best to pretend you belonged if you planned on casing the place. Could just be a person who acknowledged anyone at this type of event, since they definitely existed. In about thirty seconds he’d forget about the encounter anyway.
He helped himself to one of the flutes as well, with a nod to the server. No reason to be rude. “I thought you’d never ask.” Karl leaned over and kissed his wife’s temple, happy to look at a few pieces. Maybe get some chaos vibes for his wife for later.
Hope actually didn’t mind museums. She thought old art and artifacts were interesting. That it lined up with what her husband liked to do with a living was even better.
They entered one of the rooms on display for the event. “Imagine a museum with only artifacts from the country the museum is from.” Hope said quietly, joking as they walked around some pretty paintings. They came to a set of jewelry donated by some rich patron, though Hope stopped just before it to admire a painting with a dog in a clown collar who was standing on a ball. “This one is interesting.” She was double-speaking though about the jewels, not the actually painting which was kind of ridiculous.
Karl loved museums to an extent. You couldn’t be in the same Pack as Clay Danvers and not develop an appreciation for museums (except maybe Nick, but Karl thought that might have to do more with Clay forcing his appreciation on Nick from a very early age), even if Karl still stole jewels. Even without Clay, Karl would follow the deal he made with Clay, even if he sometimes cheated on the spirit, even if technically still following the agreement.
He actually chuckled at the picture. “That’s…not what I’d expect in this gallery,” the werewolf commented, definitely meaning the painting. His gaze roved past the jewelry like he hadn’t seen them, instead noticing a painting far away. “Nor did I expect the painting of Lady Jane Grey at her execution,” Karl commented. Yes, he definitely was casing the place as he looked around and finally eyed the jewelry. The one piece would fetch a wonderful price at the store. And the other would look lovely on Hope. After appraising the third, Karl noted he might be able to fence it tomorrow before the pair got sent back home.
“So beautiful wife,” he murmured in her ear, “Feel like staying after hours? I already know how to pilfer the items.” Partly because Karl had stolen from them previously and their increase in security wasn’t anything Karl hadn’t done before.
Hope leaned in. To any camera it would look like a couple who was getting maybe a little too cozy for a public place. While that was definitely an added benefit, Hope was using it as a way to talk to her husband discreetly. She took the opportunity to brush her lips along his jawline because she couldn’t help herself. She’d blame it on the little dose of chaos she felt that ran through her at the question, but his jawline was pretty seductive on a normal day. “I would really like that.” She murmured back. Hope let one of her hands run down his back to cup his ass. She’d say it was for the cameras, but really it was for her.
Karl didn’t mind if they got a little cozy in public, though he knew that right now Hope was doing it for both their benefits and the little bit of chaos she from which she could feed. The brush against his jaw brought forth a growl from Karl. And really, he knew what an excellent jaw he possessed.
He looked at her and shook his head, already looking forward to the fun they’d have later. Unfortunately, as much as Karl wanted to find an empty hallway to pin his wife, right now they needed to be on their best behaviour, at least until after the event began.
His mouth found the shell of his wife’s ear, hand resting on her bare back. “What do you think of the ring for yourself? The other pieces will fetch a good price, but I think it would look beautiful on you.”
Her smile was warm with his words. “You flatter me.” Which was her saying yes to the ring. She liked jewelry and Karl had good taste. If he thought she’d look good in it, then she’d trust him. Plus it always gave her a little thrill to wear something that she knew had been stolen by her husband.
“Maybe I’ll even wear it out when we leave.” She was being cheeky, of course, but that’d be a thrill in and of itself.
“You should definitely wear it when we leave.” Karl liked if his wife got some chaos vibes that were mostly innocent. “Come on, I think the event is about to begin and there’s one other piece I want to check before we take our seats.” This time he meant actual art and not jewels, though the second display case might prove beneficial as well, with more jewelry.