Page 12 of O Holy Spite
Felix grunts when I wrinkle my nose at him, but doesn’t relent. “They can’t get stuck in the library with us, Princess. If this is really bad, it could be for days. They don’t want to get trapped here where their significant others can’t get them anymore than I want them infecting our living room for an undetermined amount of time.”
“Whatever. You like my friends even if you pretend not to when you’re being a grump.” I stick my nose in the air and sashay past him with a sniff, ignoring the snickers of the other guys behind me. “Now we need something to do for the rest of the night.”
The quiet is deafening.
“And not just that!” I call over my shoulder as I head to my room to hang my coat up.
Once I get the snowy garb taken care of, I bend down to pick up Jinx. The soft sand cat Aubrey got me last Christmas is still small—which is normal—but she’s gotten much sassier. When she’s not hanging out in the fairy tree Rennie bought her, my cat loves to steal socks, knock over drinks, and generally annoy everyone except Aubrey. Jinx purrs softly as I stroke her fur, then huffs when I set her back down so I can pull my hair up.
“Be good, little rascal, or you’ll have to hide behind the big guy.” Jinx mews indignantly and I chuckle. She definitely does not give a fuck if she makes the much bigger cats in this house pissy. I admire her spunk. Humming softly, I run the brush through my hair, then weave twin braids on either side of my head. “This should do it.”
“It looks adorable, Angel.”
Turning on the seat of my vanity, I give Chess a bright grin. “Good. I figured we’re hunkered down for the night, so I want to be comfy and relaxed. Having my hair in my face is neither of those things.”
The cheetah nods, but doesn’t come in and I arch a brow. His cheeks flush as he walks over to me. “So… I have a proposal.”
“A… what?” I choke, feeling panic rocket through my veins.
“No, no!” He waves his hand, turning redder as he tries to calm me down. “Not that kind of proposal, Angel.”
“Thank fuck,” I let out a slow breath. “Okay, what do you have in mind?”
His eyes sparkle with mischief as he looks at me. “Fitz, Felix, and I were talking before we went over to the Shird and… we want your help.”
“Help with what?” I ask as I dig through my drawers to find Fitz’s hoodie and slip it on over my tiny PJ top. “What are you three up to now?”
Chess looks around for a moment, then leans in. “We want to prank Aubrey and Ren. You know, cause they kept shit hidden from us for so long, but always wanted us to share everything.”
I pause, thinking about that for a moment. He’s not wrong about my two ancient suitors being proponents of dealing with your crap while not dealing with their own. And they probably should have told the others once they became friends. Obviously, the Khans weren’t going to be biased; Fitz and Chess never hid their relationship.
“Okay. I’m in. What are we doing?”
“Fitz suggested we have you think of a few ideas because we tend to be more overt and less devious with our pranks. Probably because that sort of thing on Bloodstone is more about dominance than good natured fun.”
He doesn’t need to convince me of that. I imagine they’re brutal back at that island.
Walking over to him, I lean up and press a kiss to his lips. “I’ll noodle it for a bit and let you know. I think we can teach those silly boys a lesson about keeping secrets they won’t forget.”
“That’s exactly what Felix hoped you’d say.”
Snorting, I pull back. “He’s hoping I’ll follow his orders and that’s not likely to happen, Chessie.”
“I know. That’s my fun in this little project. I love watching the vein in his temple throb when you don’t let him tell you what to do.”
“You’re going to love working on this, then. The Raj needs to loosen the reins more than anyone I’ve ever met. And I’m just the bunny to teach him.”
Once I agreed to help the mini-ambush, Chessie high-tailed it to the kitchen. His eagerness to cook with Rennie tonight was adorable and despite the movie we’re watching, I found myself looking over to see his delight more than a few times. Since I met him on the Apex tour, it feels like the cheetah has blossomed and I can relate to that. The support of everyone in the room and my other friends has helped me find the version of Dolly I want to be. It’s not surprising he’s doing the same.
“Princess, you said you loved this movie, but you seem distracted.”
My eyes shoot back to Felix as he rubs my feet. I’ve never been big on people touching them, even for pedicures. I think it’s because they’re big and banged up from dancing, which makes them not traditionally pleasant to look at, so it made me embarrassed. But his strong hands working over my arches and wringing my toes feels amazing, so I didn’t say anything, and boy, am I glad. I don’t want anyone sucking them or whatever, but my King can massage me any day.
“I did and I wasn’t lying. The way he sings and dances on the bleachers to get her attention? The poem she reads when she’s sad and hurt to find out he was paid?” I put my hand on my heart and sigh. “It’s just so swoony and tragic, then swoony again.”
Rennie chuckles from the kitchen. “The Bard is always good for those moments, ma petite.”
Pushing up a little from where my head is lying in Aubrey’s lap, I ignore Fitz’s grumbles as he adjusts. “I know it’s Taming of the Shrew, but I love this spin. I’m a sucker for a good retelling of our favorite crusty old human.”