Oh. “Alright. I can do that.” My lips twitched. “Can you?”
He blinked slowly, and navy blue eyes turned to me with a careful expression, stopping his cleaning. “That…I hope was a joke?”
I grinned. “Yes, it was joke.” I waved a hand. “Shifter, naked, normal. It goes hand-in-hand.”
He hummed, his shoulders instantly relaxing, resting a hip against the counter. “What is this shredded business you two keep speaking of?”
I shrugged, stepping out of the shower. “He shredded a Shifter who abused us, and used his bits for fertilizer in our garden one year.” I waved a hand grandly. “Big, damn beautiful flowers came up, too.”
His brows raised a smidge. “As hard as I keep trying to hate the man who sleeps with you every night, I keep ending up liking him.”
“He has that effect on most everyone.” I dropped the towel and tried tying the top around my breasts. “You should know, King Zeller also knows about us.”
Instant. “How?” He moved behind me, and started quickly tying it for me when I couldn’t.
“He was right down the hallway with the other Rulers that evening we had sex. He hasn’t said a word, but I could tell he heard us.” I shook my head. “I don’t think he’ll say anything.”
“I don’t either.” His palms landed on my bare hips, and he bent, pressing a gentle kiss where he had bitten me earlier, making goose bumps pebble on my flesh. “But considering the risks, our Laws, it would be best to be more careful in the future. We weren’t exactly discreet that night. That shouldn’t happen again.”
“Agreed. Wholeheartedly.”
“Good.” Another gentle kiss in the same place, silken lips brushing softly, then he smacked my hip lightly, and moved toward the door, ordering gruffly, “I’ll get your bag.” And I swear, he easily, and deftly, moved out the door, but he didn’t open it very far to squeeze out…so absolutely no one could see inside, then I waited half naked for my bag, feeling damn good about the decision we had made, even in our love to hate situation.
Chapter Twenty
Smack.
“Ahh!” Leric shouted loudly, the ground and walls shaking as he rolled on the bed with the force of my powered slap to his face. “What the hell?”
“Goddammit, Leric!” I yelled, my own power shaking the ground as I rolled the other way, out of the bed, waggling a glowing finger at him. “Your hand on my breast does not constitute comfort!”
He glared, resting up on his elbows, but drawled on a purr, “Kitten, that is comforting.”
I threw my hands up in the air. “Ugh!” Whirling, I marched through the vibrating room of the airy hotel room toward the door. “You are an ass.”
Another purr. “And your ass looks perfect in those tiny shorts, so please, shake it a little more for me while you storm out of…our…room.”
I stopped for a moment. Shit. I didn’t have a goddamn room at this stop. After a moment, I shook my head, and kept moving. “I’ll sleep with my Lajaks.” I jerked the door open, glancing over my shoulder, and bared my teeth at him. “You are a damn pig.”
His lips curved slightly. “Grease me up.”
“Argh!” I shouted, then slammed the door behind me, and came face-to-face with most of said Lajaks in the hallway, all appearing to have been rushing to “our” room, halting directly in front of me, still in their dark, black attire. I shook my glowing hands in the front threes faces. “Men. Are. Shit!”
King Zeller’s brows rose. “You’re just now figuring that out?” Wide lips quirked. “Or pigs, as you put it?” Standing between King Collins and Cain, he slapped his hands down on their shoulders. “I told you she was alright.” Of course, he had. He had probably heard…“It sounded like she whacked him when he went for first base.”
My eyes narrowed on King Zeller, his eyes twinkling merrily, even as he grinned a bit sloppily…because I could feel the gentlest brush of Vampire power, the barest bit I might not have felt if I wasn’t standing so close…my glowing gaze flicked to his hands on their shoulders, realization dawning he was sending some type of emotion. King Collins didn’t appear affected, just glaring at the door behind me, like he wanted to punch the pig behind it, but from Cain’s relaxed, unmoving posture…well, that told me enough, especially when he didn’t move out from under King Zeller’s hand, letting himself be calmed with Vampire power.
Instantly, I inhaled heavily and shook my head, trying to gain control, my glow dimming a bit. “I’m more pissed at myself than him.” I waved my hands at the group behind them. “There’s no emergency, but,” I waggled my slightly illuminated pointed finger, “I do need a place to sleep tonight, so you’re all going to have to make room.” The hotel was booked with the planned arrival of the One and the Chosen, so much so, they were all sharing a large suite.
As one…every single Lajak appeared standoffish, pensive, except for Cain who was still standing relaxed. My brows slammed together at their reaction, but I inhaled slowly, still trying to calm myself…and froze. My eyes narrowed as I inhaled again, sniffing the air a bit. Leaned toward my King, and sniffed once. Leaned toward King Zeller, sniffed. Tilted toward Cain, sniffed.
My eyes found Sin over King Zeller’s shoulder. “What the hell did you rope them in to?”
“Me?” he asked innocently, even though he continued to glance over my head at the closed door, a silent calculation I knew all too well in his gaze.
I snapped my fingers above my head, drawing his attention back down to me. “Only you or I can ever put that look in someone’s eyes.” The look of someone afraid of being caught. My finger flicked to my King, but kept my gaze steady on Sin. “Vodka.” Finger flick to King Zeller. “Whiskey.” Finger jerk to Cain. “Beer.” A twirl of my finger. “And lots of cigar smoke.” Waggling of my finger at Sin. “I know you’re behind my Lajaks getting wasted.”
Elder Farrar chuckled quietly from behind King Collins, and it sounded a bit slurred. “We’re just having a little fun.” A shrugged shoulder. “We’re off duty.”
I blinked, and turned my attention back to Sin. “A boy’s night?”
And…he shuffled on his damn feet. “Um…”
Another slow blink. “Talk.” My brows lifted. “Now.”
Instant. “There may be a few spirits Elementals involved in our poker game.”
He was shoved from behind by Brann, who wobbled, grumbling, “Goddamn tattle-tale.”
I continued to hold Sin’s gaze. “How many, and who?”
“None of those Upper family snobs,” Elder Samson muttered. Then burped behind his fist. “Just a few of the elite Guardian representatives.”
I closed my eyes. “Are they as drunk as all of you?”
“Even more so,” Sin murmured, his tone vague, a touch of a pause. “They’re trying to keep up, but…well, you know.”
Yeah, I did know.
“Have none of you been listening to me?” Sighing heavily, glow firmly diminished by now, I opened my eyes, calmed. “What all of you don’t seem to understand yet, is the way life works around here. They are probably sober, only pretending to be drunk, waiting until all of you are.” Take Leric for example. He resorted to spirit long honed, cunning tricks to the point I wasn’t even sure who he was on the inside. “These people are masters of manipulation and subterfuge. Their peaceful life, also means they are bored, so they resort to games.” I grabbed King Collins’s and Cain’s arms, tilting my head toward their door, two down behind the group. “Come on. I want in on this game.” Somebody needed to take control of this situation.
“Dammit,” Sin muttered under his breath. “I knew something was wrong.”
Cain grunted, still under King Zeller’s power, and his lips lifted a bit. “I’ve only had two beers, pouring water into my bottle the rest of the time.” He chuckled quietly. “The spirits have been doing the same.”