Pottery crunched across the room, then Sin’s voice grumbled, “Ow, dammit.”
“Excuse me a moment,” I murmured to the Elders. I jerked sideways, glancing back to see Sin had just turned the corner to the foyer. He wore only a pair of damp, black swim trunks, holding a sandwich in one hand and a sleeping Isolde in the other. I looked down to his feet where he was glaring. I instantly scowled, carefully walking in my flip-flops to him, and I snapped my finger in a jerking upward motion as I squatted. When he lifted his bare foot for me, I yanked the piece of pottery out of it. “Go the other way. There’s too much shit you’ll step on in here.”
As I stood, he stated dryly, “I think I can manage now I know it’s there.” His gaze was quickly assessing the newcomers and the broken bits of the pot and plant…and my dirty attire compared to their clean attire. His lips twitched. “And she enters with a bang.”
“Shut up,” I mumbled, stealing his sandwich since he was using his mouth for making fun of me. I grinned when he instantly scowled, but I cut off his forthcoming comments by quickly telling him who the Elders were. Then I motioned to the man trying to covertly steal his sandwich back. “Elders, this is Sin.” I took a huge bite of his sandwich before holding it away from another flick of his hand.
Elder Nelson asked, “Sin?” He paused. “Is that it?”
“For now,” Sin stated easily. “Besides, I’m sure one of the Rulers will inform you of my more humiliating legal name.” Sin glanced at me as I wolfed down another bite, muttering quietly, “Didn’t you eat enough at lunch?”
“Didn’t you?” I asked around a mouthful.
Elder Venclaire questioned, “Is that…her Vizoac you’re holding?”
“Yes.” His brows raised in fake amazement. “It’s truly amazing, isn’t it?”
“Actually, no. We’ve seen the previous Vizoacs do that with the current Rulers.” Elder Kincaid blinked slowly. “What do you do here, Sin?”
Sin stared back at him with what I knew to be forced patience. “I’m with Caro.” Green eyes to me, with a falsely thoughtful expression. “Maybe I should start saying something else. It sounds similar to saying I’m your luggage.”
My grin was original. “Aw…but you’re luggage that makes a great snack.”
Sin grinned, leaning down to kiss my cheek, but he covertly whispered at my ear, “I don’t believe that Elder Fergus—the man currently staring at you like you’re his long-lost best friend—likes me very much.” I choked on my mouthful as he lifted away, and I pounded on my chest, not glancing in that specific Elder’s direction. I barely hung on to my sandwich when Sin slapped my ass, his hand lingering a moment on the curve of my derrière. “I’ll see you later, love.” I nodded, trying not to be flustered with him leaving me. He nodded to the Elders in a cordial manner while picking his way through the debris, Isolde still sleeping in his hand. “Elders, it was a pleasure meeting you.”
“Likewise.” Elder Fergus watched Sin as he moved, his head of green curly hair turning to following him. I would have to agree with Sin’s assessment. The gleam in his amber eyes wasn’t friendly, for whatever reason. Maybe because both Sin and Elder Fergus were earth Elementals.
Quickly downing my last bite, I brought everyone’s attention back to me. “Would anyone prefer to go to their room, or would you care to go straight to the meeting?”
All four Elders agreed to go to the meeting. Easy enough.
I gestured to my left. “It’s this way if the four of you will follow me.” I didn’t really wait for a response, turning on my heel. I strolled safely but swiftly through the debris, hearing their dress shoes crunch on the pottery as they followed behind me. Not really wanting to, I flagged down a staff member cleaning one of the rooms and asked her as nicely as I could to clean up the mess in the foyer and to make sure the Elders’ luggage arrived in the appropriate rooms. This earned me a long stare from the staff member before she muttered something under her breath as she marched away to do as I bid.
Elder Venclaire chuckled quietly behind me. “The staff really aren’t fans of yours, are they?”
“Nope.” I trekked in the direction of the conference room, leading them along the twisting hallways. “I’m too much trouble for most of them.”
“Trouble?” Elder Fergus asked directly behind my left shoulder.
Well, introductions were over so why the hell not tell them?
“For the really interesting fumbles I’ve made so far, look it up on the internet. If you want to hear the rest, just stand behind a corner and listen to the staff gossip,” I muttered, nervously brushing hair behind my right ear. “It’s safe to say, it has taken some adjusting for me to take on this role from the previous Prodigy.”
Elder Fergus hummed quietly, his voice reassuring. “I’m sure it’s not as bad as what you’re saying.”