The Cat Retreats to the Birdhouse
DELILAH
G rabbing my phone, I hit the button and pop into our room. I smile when I see him. He’s snoozing, sprawled on the couch with the stuffed panther tucked in the crook of his arm. His hand is resting on the bird on his bare tummy, and he looks deliciously comfortable.
My lips curl and I pounce on him, nipping his jaw. “Why, hello there, handsome. How are you?”
He opens his eyes, grinning slyly. “Not bad.”
I arch a brow, crossing my arms over my chest as I sit on his hips. “That expression makes me suspicious.”
“I always said you were a bright one.”
“What mischief have you been up to?”
“I was seeing a lady about a twig.”
“Oh, shit.” I blink, something clicking inside. “ That’s why she’s been quiet. You were her visitor.” I try not to let the instant panic rippling through my chest make it hard to breathe. What did she tell him? Doesn’t he know that any contact with her is asking to be drawn into her web of pain? She’ll be after him like the coyote she is now.
Damn, damn, damn. I can’t let him see me panic. He looks proud of himself, so he doesn’t know about any of the bad stuff. She kept her fucking mouth shut for once .
“Moi?” he asks, trying to look innocent.
He must think that going to Sari to build a bridge will make me happy. That’s a fair assumption, but only because I haven’t told him the depth of our issues. I can’t crush his insanely stupid surprise. “I’m very pleased,” I manage, trying to smile despite the fear of her meddling welling in my chest.
His eyes glow with emotion. “That’s why I did it.”
Oh, Goddess. You jumped straight into hell and dragged the demon out, that’s what you did. I hug him tightly, because I know what it cost him to do it. Dropping a kiss on his jaw, I murmur hoarsely, “Thank you.”
“There’s not much I wouldn’t do for you, love of mine. I suppose she filled you in on what went down. What did she do, tackle you before you got here?”
I shake my head. “No, she didn’t. She mentioned a visitor in passing when she texted to cancel our weekly dinner. You probably rocked her world view, and she needs time to deal with that. I’m sure I’ll be told tomorrow all about the meeting of the two titans.”
“I would have laid money that she wouldn’t keep her yap shut. Huh,” he muses.
“Only one person tackled me today—which is significantly less than usual when I get home.” My face darkens briefly at the memory, but I pull it back, schooling myself before he catches it.
“You’re a loved woman, heart of mine.”
“Sari’s… well, Sari. She’ll fret and analyze and worry wort as if some major smack down will happen because you tried to offer an olive branch.”
He rolls his eyes, huffing. “Speaking of paranoid loonies, Blondie tapped me today. She wanted to tell me that she’s never hanging around the gnome again. I suppose she blames her for falling out with you and yours?”
“Probably, but it won’t last. Rhea slipped her gears long ago. Sari didn’t make it worse; she only went along for the jalopy ride.”
“Let’s leave the loonies to each other then, shall we?” He pulls me down on him, rubbing his cheek on my shoulder.
I kick up a purr, but something is niggling at me. I don’t know what it is, but I’m worried. “Are you okay, baby?” He squeezes me tighter, nodding against my skin but not speaking. “I missed you.”
Pulling back to look into my eyes, he softens that admission with a smile. “I missed you more than you will ever know.” His hands flex on my hips and he whispers, “I almost told Sari that I’m in love with you.”
I run my fingers along his jaw, my eyes dropping when I can’t look at him. I swallow hard and ask, “Yeah?
“Yeah. I wasn’t intending to do it, but I…” His voice is soft as he finishes. “I’ll always try for you.”
Oh, sweet baby Jesus, I hope I didn’t break him.
I don’t want him to do things that violate his code for me. I have lots of people in my life that violate my lines hoping to make someone—including themselves—happy. Hell, I do it all the time and I do not recommend it. Most of the time, the reward is fleeting and you feel awful about yourself for much longer than it lasts.
“I appreciate your effort. I hope you realize, though, that she’ll expect you and Talia out in the community more.”
“That is not gonna happen.” His brow furrows, and he shrugs. “Though, more than a few rules like that have changed lately, I suppose.”
“I’ll relay that you’re not ready for that yet when she mentions it.”
He grins. “Oh, sure. You’re only saying that because you don’t want anyone else to get their hands on me. Tsk, tsk, tsk, greedy minx.”
I give him a huffy look. “I said that because you looked like you wanted to hurl at the idea.”
“So you don’t mind others getting their hands on me? Good to know,” Taurus taunts, whistling low.
This time the look I give him is filthy, and I know it. “I didn’t say that, either, did I?”
“Is it so hard for you to tell me that you don’t want others getting their mitts on me, baby?”
I blink, my expression changing to one of incredulity. “Yes.”
“Why?”
“My human brain and my animal brain don’t agree on the subject. Even the concept of that emotion makes me struggle. It’s not fair for me to feel that way. I can’t ask you what I can’t reciprocate. I get mad, frustrated, and confused, then I feel guilty. It’s a big ass jumble of mismatched emotions that I don’t know how to resolve.”
“Sometimes I need to hear it, baby.” His lips quirk and he jerks my chin up to look into his eyes. “I’m a relatively simple clone. I know two things: I love you and you love me. I know in my head that you would never stand in my way if you thought something would make me happy, but my heart needs to hear that you want me all to yourself. The demon wants to hear that you would seriously debate maiming someone that tried to make a move on me. Understand?”
To him, this is the simplest thing in the world.
He wants me to know that I can be selfish without thinking about the consequences or how it will affect our entire world if I am. I don’t know how to tell him I’ve been down this road a little way before. The path it led us down—Rafe and I—did not pay off. In fact, it blew up in our faces. But he needs to hear this and I’ve never been one to deny those I love what they need, even if it costs me to do so.
So I shrug and give him a smirk. “I’m not saying for sure or anything, but I might consider putting a few holes in the stupid bint if she even looked at you sideways. Maybe. You know, if I was in that kind of mood.”
The irony is that I’m not lying. My beast would happily put more than a few holes in anyone that came near him. I can’t reconcile that with my belief system, but she is unconcerned with my philosophical dilemma. She lets me know that I won’t have a choice in the matter. Given her vehemence, perhaps I don’t.
“Thanks for that, love,” he says, squeezing my hips. “Though, I’m fairly certain that you’d do more than CONSIDER putting a few holes in someone. Seeing some bint slither up to me, ready for a shag, would DEFINITELY put you in the mood, regardless of what else you felt.” He winks, looking pleased with me. “Now that I’ve got the neurotic, chest thumping neediness out of the way, how was your day?”
“Nothing much to report. I dealt with one needy droid, one hungry tiger, one weird message in re: you, and one clone locked in his studio all day. No explosions.” Constantine was a much bigger issue than I’m letting on, but I’m not getting into my neurosis. There’s enough family bullshit on my plate as it is.
His eyes narrow and he studies me for a moment. “I think you LIKE me all unsure and neurotic. That’s why you’re downplaying your day. I’m onto you, hussy.”
I shake my head, looking amused. “I’m only yanking your chain, baby.”
Suddenly, his phone vibrates in his pocket and he jumps up. The movement dumps me off the couch, making me shriek. His eyes have almost rolled into the back of head and he curses. “Bugger!”
Rubbing my bum, I try to untangle my limbs as I look up at him from the floor. What in the actual fuck?
“Ahem. Tattoo,” he clarifies as he looks at the screen. “Be right back.” He walks over to the wall by the bathroom door and pushes a spot on the panel to reveal a doorway as he talks into the phone quietly.
I get up and plop on the couch to wait, studying the ceiling absently. Where in the hell does that door go? Do all of them open with a touch panel? How does he keep adding to this place in such a short time? What even IS this place? I’m so caught up in my thoughts that I miss him returning until he pounces on me like a cat.
“Quid pro quo, love!” he yells, laughing as I grumble. His hand groping everywhere as he pretends to right himself.
I burst out laughing, pinching his bum. “You ninny!”
“How dare you take liberties with my fair self! I’m a mated clone!”
I goose him again. “Uh-oh. I better beware.”
“You know, I decided not to shag you today.”
I sniff. “Maybe I wasn’t going to shag you, ego man.”
He chuckles darkly. “I won’t then.”
I grin as his hands roam over me, making his declaration a lie. “Definitely not.”
We’re both full of it.