Chapter 31
Blair
Ihang on to Forrest’s elbow, and he walks me down the corridor past the dining room to the kitchen.
It’s cheery and bright and full of the rest of the guys.
Everyone but Sterling. The refrigerator and dishwashers both hang open.
The cooks seemed to have scrubbed the kitchen down completely before they left.
All we need to do is wash the things we ate on.
It’s a lovely space with apple green tiles and bright brass pans, stainless steel counters and appliances.
It’s a cross between a caterer’s kitchen and a rustic Tuscany-inspired mansion.
It’s the kind of place where I would have loved to cook Thanksgiving dinner while watching a parade and drinking a glass of red wine.
“There you are!” Zion wraps his arm around my waist and kisses the side of my neck. “You talked them into letting you help, didn’t you?”
I spin in his arms, a smile on my face. “I did, and I’m happy to help. This is kind of fun.”
“We’re gonna need to redefine your definition of fun, Cookie.”
“Cookie?” I ask. “Where did you come up with . . .”
Zion opens a container of the cookies that were passed around at dessert. I had three. “Would you like another?”
“They are fantastic.” I take one, and while I try to savor it, I eat it in three bites. It’s soft and pliable with a crumble top. They’re too good to turn down.
“Exactly, they’re really good, just like you, Cookie.”
I’m not sure I’ve ever had a nickname before. And now I seem to have half a dozen. And when he says it, it sends sparks to my toes. “Well, thank you.”
Zion leans in and gives the tip of my nose a kiss.
“Now, how can I help?” I ask.
Zion hands me a dish towel. Delmar and Forrest take their places in front of two separate sinks.
Delmar calls me over. “Here, Blair, dry for me.” His dark hair glows in the warm light of the kitchen. He washes a large silver tray and hands it to me.
“Where should I put it?”
“Oh, give it to me.” Zion takes it.
I’m still drying a bowl when he’s back. He wraps his arms around my waist and pulls me to him. He sways us to imaginary music. I’m holding tight to the bowl. It might be metal, but I still don’t want to drop it.
“Here, Cookie, give me the bowl. Clark likes to dance.” Zion takes the bowl in one hand, and my other hand he passes to Clark.
Forrest, with his fingers full of sudsy water, turns away from the sink. “Samba.” And the room fills with a Latin rhythm.
“I don’t know how to dance the Samba, Clark. I used to know a few line dances. But that was a long time ago.”
He spins me in his arms. “There are no judges here, only us. Move your body however you want.”
Clark twirls me, and we glide across the kitchen. Well, Clark glides. I more stumble, step, glide. But it’s fun, and I laugh every time I make a mistake. Clark’s eyes shine back at me, a twinkle in them.
And when the song is over, Alexei holds out his hand. “Come on, Boss. I want a turn.”
Another nickname and another zap of electricity spirals up my body.
And I start again. Alexei’s not the same as Clark.
My steps follow him. He might call me Boss, but Alexei’s steps are firm and sure.
We’re doing it his way. And I kind of like it.
When the music swells to a crescendo, he dips me and pulls me back into his arms, giving me a deep kiss.
There’s applause around the kitchen.
“You’re a great dancer,” Forrest says.
“Thanks.” Over Forrest’s shoulder, I see all the dishes are done. “But I wasn’t much help cleaning up.”
“This was almost as much fun as I think I could have in a kitchen,” Clark says.
“This is definitely the most fun I’ve had in a kitchen,” I say.
“Oh, I don’t know. I can think of something else that would be fun.” Clark lifts me onto the counter, and I squeal.
“That’s enough,” Sterling barks from the doorway. “It’s late, and the Portsmouth pod will want their aunt home.”
“Blair’s an adult. She doesn’t have a curfew,” Grayson says. He turns his head to me. “Do you?”
“No. I don’t,” I say, but then I catch Sterling’s glare. He clearly doesn’t want me here. It’s his house. His pod, too. “But I should be going. I don’t want them to worry.”
“They won’t be worried. I’ll message Nico right now,” Forrest pulls his block out of his pocket.
“No, Sterling’s right––”
“Sterling’s rarely right about anything,” Zion says. “You can stay if you want to, Cookie.”
“I know. Thank you. But I should go home.” I slide off the counter into Zion’s arms. I didn’t think that through very well. Zion gives me a wicked smile, followed by an even more convincing kiss. “Whoa. I need to go, though.” I lay my head on his chest and give Zion a hug.
It takes a . . . a while as I give each of the guys a kiss goodbye.
This isn’t like the last time I left. These aren’t polite, nice to see you again, goodbye kisses on the cheek.
After I kiss Delmar, my sixth kiss and what I know will be my final of the evening, my knees are jelly and my skin’s completely on fire.
I have to get out of here now, with as little willpower as I have. “I’m ready.”
“I’m coming too,” Forrest says.
“I’m taking the Gorsca,” Sterling says.
“Oh, Castor has one of those. I don’t ride in it much, as we usually take the omada.” The omada’s big and roomy and makes me think of a soccer mom taking the team to practice.
Delmar laughs. “Sterling likes his vehicles.”
I nod. Holter makes fun of Castor too. A Gorsca is like a Mustang. A muscle car. A muscle sub? I’m laughing. “It only has two seats?”
“Yes,” Sterling says. “It’s faster and less identifiable to those around.”
“What Sterling is trying to say is, it has tech.” Delmar takes a towel from the counter and throws it at Sterling. He snags it out of the air and throws it back at Delmar. Delmar’s about to throw it back when Forrest steps in front of him.
“It’s safer if Sterling takes her in his Gorsca. Just don’t do anything stupid.” Forrest glares at Sterling before he turns his attention to me. “Blair, Sterling is . . . He’s not a bad male. But he thinks he knows more than he does.”
“That goes for you, too, Governor,” Sterling says.
“Indeed.” Forrest pulls me in for another hug. “You could stay.”
“I should go. I’ll . . .” I’m about to say I’ll see you soon. But I don’t know that.
“The cookies you like so much are a recipe I know how to make. Would you like me to show you?” Clark asks.
“I’d like that.”
“Then it’s a date. I have inspections at work for the next two days, but Friday? I could pick you up and show you the building I’m working on first?” Clark squeezes my hand.
“I’d like that.” I wave goodbye.
In the elevator, I’m chewing on my swollen lips again, stealing glances at Sterling.
He’s devastatingly handsome. Though something has happened to his nose at some point.
He’s broken it and not had it set properly.
Which is odd. On the sub, there were a few accidents, and they took care of things like that quickly.
The closer we get to the seabed, the more openly I find myself staring at him.
“Did you need something, Blair?” His voice vibrates my chest.
“Not really. I was just wondering what happened to your nose?”
“I don’t want to get it fixed.”
“I didn’t say you should get it fixed. And honestly, I wouldn’t normally be so blunt as to ask for something like that. Only . . .” Only what is it? Why did I ask? But then it feels like he’s judging people most of the time. Perhaps that’s why. “I didn’t mean to offend you.”
He grunts. “Broke it when I was aboard the Vega. We were having battle after battle with the Vikings. Didn’t seem important enough to get it fixed when people were dying. And I just never bothered.”
“Makes sense. It suits you anyway.”
He grunts as the elevator doors open to the docking dome.
“It does. It softens you. Otherwise . . .”
“Otherwise what?” He glances down at me.
“Otherwise you’d be too handsome to look at.”
He laughs. “This way, Little One.” Another nickname and I’m vibrating, especially since it’s from Sterling.
The Gorsca is small, but it’s luxurious.
Even not knowing the difference between a sub and solo, I can tell.
He hits a few toggles on the control panel, and we’re off.
The path home is full of decorated domes.
And when we zip by one, I’m waiting to see the reflection of the Gorsca in the glass, but it’s not there. “Are we invisible?”
“The tech. But best not to mention it to anyone, Little One.” He doesn’t take his hands off the control stick.
“Right.” I stare into the night, searching for things to say. But Sterling’s not a male for small talk. And then we’re through the Glyden airlock and he’s walking me to the elevator.
When the elevator opens and Nico unlocks it, I turn to say goodbye to Sterling, but the elevator doors are already shut.
I’m sipping the last of the tea Grayson gave me before, kicking myself for not asking him where he got it, when Marlee comes in.
“Whoa, what are you doing here?” She tightens the belt around her robe. “Better yet, where is everyone else?”
“Annabelle is up at Kai’s place. She said you should message her when you want to come up. Kai had some friends over early to see the podlet. But they’ll be gone soon.”
“Thanks.” Marlee’s not a big group kind of person. And that’s my fault. When I was growing up at the farm, it was the hub. My parents had great big parties. But once I lived there with my ex, I didn’t want people coming out.
“And everyone else?” Marlee asks.
“Holter and Eros are with her. Nico and Castor were gone when I got up.”
“So it’s just the two of us?”
“Yes.” I wrap my hands around my tea mug.
“But why are you here, Mom? I thought you went to dinner at the Masons’ apartment.”
“I did.”
Marlee raises her eyebrows at me. “Then I’ll say it again: why are you here, Mom?”
“Because dinner doesn’t mean I sleep over there.”
“That’s not how things work here. Actually, that’s not how things work in the human dating world either.”
“I can make my own rules.”
“Mom, you snuck into the bedroom where Zion was fake-healing. You ended up in the guest room bed after you had a fit about the glass elevator. So tell me what happened. Why are you here?”
“I really need to stop telling you things.” I hold the teacup up to my lips.
“Yes, you do. But since you haven’t yet, you don’t need to stop today. What happened?”
“Sterling.”
“Oh, the big cranky one.”
“Yes.”
I fill her in on how amazing the observatory was and how I really got to deepen my connections with Forrest, Delmar, and Alexei. Learning little things about them. “Sterling’s dead set against things working out. I don’t think he likes me.” But then, him calling me Little One makes me pause.
“Is it you he doesn’t like, or the idea of a new mate?” Marlee pours herself a cup of tea and takes the stool next to me. “And do you like the rest of them enough to spend the time working on getting Sterling to either like you or like the idea of having a mate again?”
“How did you get so smart?”
“You . . . well, you and a whole lot of smutty books.”
“I’ll take that as a compliment.”
“Cool, but what are you going to do?” She picks up her mug.
“I don’t know.”
“I’m going to go get ready to go see Kai. It’s really a shame to waste all this quiet, though. Maybe I’ll just stay here.”
“Marlee!”
“Okay, you’re right. I should go out into the world and see things.
Or rather, see the Portsmouth-pod-approved things.
” Marlee holds her hand up. “And before you say it, I’m good.
I know I can leave the city if I want to.
But I don’t want to. I’d just like a little bit of alone time.
But I have it. Or I almost have it.” She cocks her head at me.
And I laugh. I’ve disappointed my daughter by not sleeping with seven guys.
This really is a different world than I’m used to.
The shades are open, and two of Annabelle’s sharks swim slowly by the window.
They’re keeping an eye on me, and I no longer find it strange.
I don’t even find it strange when Annabelle takes me somewhere else and we look out the window and her third shark, Mickey, swims by.
Watching the sharks makes me think about last night.
Though everything I do today makes me think about last night.
Laughing and dancing with the guys in the kitchen.
My block buzzes. It’s nice to have one, even though this morning I accidentally hit a button and switched it over to Dorian. Holter changed it back for me before he left with AD. I look at the name on it and hesitate. But I guess I should answer.
“Hello?”
“Blair, this is Kade. Kade Driftwood.”