Page 86 of Savage Desires
“What is it?” I ask, half scared it might be something that’s dead… or deadly and alive.
She rolls her eyes. “A present for the present, of course. Open it. Chop chop!”
I pull the paper open carefully like I’m disassembling a bomb. God, what if it’s a bomb? Surely not. She seemed to like me earlier. Though if she is a sociopath then does she even like anyone? I open the box and breathe a sigh of relief that nothing jumps out at me. I push aside the tissue paper and gasp at what’s inside.
I look up at Hera with a huge smile. I start pulling things out and setting them on the table. There’s a pair of skintight black leather pants, a black shirt that looks like a sexier version of what Shawn’s wearing, a black bra that makes me blush to see, and a buttery soft pair of knee-high black boots.
“I love it! I have my own badass uniform now.”
Hera smirks. “Keep looking. I saved the best for last.”
I pull the rest of the tissue paper out and gasp. I reach in and pull out a Glock 43X that is black with pink on the grip. I check to see if it’s loaded—it is—I slide the clip back in and set it on the table. I pull out a matching gun with giddy excitement. I check it as well before setting it on the table. There’s a leather holster that will put a gun on each hip. The holster wraps around each thigh to stabilize the guns, so I won’t have to worry about anything flopping around while I run.
There’s also an assortment of knives that I take out and line up on the table beside the guns. Each of them has some sort of pink accent on them. They are freaking perfect. I touch each item reverently not sure what to say to this enigma of a woman. Aside from Kisten, she’s the first person to really see me and do something kind without any ulterior motive. I’m not sure how I know it, but Hera did this because she wanted to do something nice for me. I suppose this is how I found myself a sociopath for a new best friend. Buying someone guns is definitely not a causal friendship kind of gift.
Without even thinking I jump off Kisten’s lap and throw myself at Hera. She makes an oomph sound when I hug her. She stands still as a statue while I hug her like she has no idea what to do. I laugh at her awkwardness.
“It’s called a hug. You wrap your arms around another person and give a gentle squeeze. It’s a sign of affection,” I tell her.
She huffs and when I think she’s going to push me off her she wraps her arms around me instead. There’s a round of what the fucks and what the hell is happenings from the people watching. It makes me laugh again. Hera drops her arms and I step away, probably pushed her enough for one day.
“Thank you, Hera. You’re like my Fairy Godmother.”
She pats the top of my head like I’m a toddler. “You’re welcome. Grab your goodies, us girls need to get gussied up for our night on the town.”
I look at Kisten and he shakes his head with an amused look on his face. “Want me to go up with you?”
“No, no, no! No dicks allowed to this pussy party,” Hera says as she starts tossing my new things back in the box. I wince at the sound of the guns hitting the knives.
“Fuck, woman. You trying to shoot someone?” T.J. barks.
“Don’t worry, lovekins. If I wanted to shoot someone it wouldn’t be on accident.”
His jaw ticks when she calls him lovekins because everyone in the room is fighting back laughter. I can’t really tell if T.J. likes her or if they have some kind of love/hate frenemies with benefits situation going on. I’ll have to question Hera sometime. Not tonight, but soon.
I kiss Kisten and for the first time since he rescued me, I only feel a twinge of anxiety at walking away from him. Maybe more than a twinge, but with Hera, Mauve, Sissy, and Chante with me it’s a little less overwhelming. Before I have a chance to enter the code for the elevator Hera does something and it starts moving up.
“I need one of those,” Mauve says. “You always have the best toys.”
“I love to play.”
I follow Hera through the apartment and to Kisten’s bedroom. She unceremoniously dumps the box out onto the bed. She really is going to accidently shoot something or someone if she’s not more careful.
“Strip.”
I look at the women and feel self-conscious. They are all knockouts with curves in all the right places and I’m still way too skinny with small boobs and hips that are too wide for my size. It’s funny that I’ve spent more time naked over the last six years than in clothes, but being in front of four women I want to be friends with makes me cringe.
“Don’t be shy, darling. I’ve already seen the goods,” Hera says.
Good point. I try not to overthink it as I toe off my shoes and take off my clothes. I fight the urge to wrap my arms around my middle to hide the fact that you can still see my ribs. It’s not a pretty sight. I don’t know how Kisten can look past it. I’m not going to question it though because every look and every touch tells me how much he wants me. I won’t doubt that ever.
Hera looks at my plain white panties and scoffs. She goes to the drawers and starts searching through them, messing up all of Kisten’s neatly folded clothes. “Uh, my stuff is still in the guest room.”
“What an asshole. He’ll fuck you in his bed, but makes you keep your clothes in the other room?”
“Well, no… we’ve not really been home much and when we are moving my clothes is sort of the last thing on our minds,” I say.
“That makes more sense. Glad I don’t have to kill him for being a dick to you.”