LAILAH
THIRTY-THREE
We spent the whole day Friday planning for what was going to happen Saturday.
It was amazing to see the guys working side by side, each of them using their strengths.
This didn’t mean that fights didn’t break out every hour or so between them, but we all managed to figure out a plan that we all agreed to.
Needing a break from all the testosterone, I went upstairs and called Cami.
“Lala, babe, I’ve missed you so much. Can we please never go a week without seeing each other ever again?” Cami yelled through the phone.
I laughed. I missed her more than I realized. “Girl, you have no idea how much I could use you right now. Have they filled you in on what's been going on here?”
“No, I’m just your personal guardian who was made to stay home for this winter break because you were supposed to be safe at the home of one of the top Elementi families.
Of course, I know. I’m more hurt by the fact that you haven’t bothered to tell me jack shit about what's been happening. You survived an avalanche; don't you think that’s a story your best friend in the whole wide world would love to hear?” Cami ranted.
I had to pull the phone away from my ear as she kept getting louder and louder the more upset she got. “You’re right, I’m sorry. I should have kept you in the loop myself. I just got overwhelmed trying to manage all the disasters as they come.”
“Humph,” Cami pouted. “I suppose that is a legit reason, but I’m still not happy with you.”
“Would you still help me pick out an outfit for the dinner party tomorrow?” I asked, knowing her answer.
“Tits on my ass, that’s right. Of course I’ll help you. Hold on, give me a sec. I'm going to turn this into a video chat,” Cami said.
I cradled the phone in my hand, and her face popped up on the screen.
“Cami… did you seriously dye your hair neon green?” I asked, my eyes wide, taking it all in.
“Hell yeah, I did! Do you like it? I’ve been wanting to do this for a while. Maggs did it for me,” Cami said with a proud grin on her face.
Shaking my head, I smiled. “It looks amazing. You’re one of the only people I know that could pull that off.”
“Now I match my car,” Cami said, rolling on her bed laughing.
I didn’t realize how much I had needed this, just to spend time talking and goofing off with my best friend.
“Okay, so remind me what dresses I made you pack,” Cami said, sobering up to the task at hand. “Where is it being held?”
“The Hotel Das Weitzer,” I said, looking at the invitation that Brayden had given me. “It says black-tie event.”
“Oh, my baby girl’s going to knock ‘em dead! Now there is only one dress that you packed that will fit this event, and it’s the one at the very bottom in the black garment bag.
I’m guessing you’re one of those people who don’t unpack their suitcase if you haven't noticed it yet. Lucky for you, it doesn’t wrinkle. ”
“I don’t see the point in pulling everything out of my suitcase when I’m only going to be here for a short time,” I muttered.
“Two weeks isn’t a short time. Lala, I don’t know about you sometimes,” Cami laughed. “Now go save your dress and hang it up so it can breathe before you have to wear it.”
Setting down the phone, I rummaged through the suitcase and pulled out the garment bag.
Unzipping it, I pulled the dress out and examined it.
Hanging before me was a stunning matte black dress that would hit me at the knee but had a mesh over-skirt that fell in a hi-low fashion.
I hooked it on the back of the bathroom door and grabbed my phone.
“Cami! Where did this dress come from?” I demanded.
Cami was now sitting next to Maggs, who waved at me. “It’s one of mine. Cami said you might need something with flair, so I donated to the cause.”
I sighed and relaxed a little. “Oh, thank God, I thought Cami went shopping behind my back again. Somehow things keep showing up in my closet that I’ve never seen before.”
Cami frowned as Maggs punched her playfully in the arm. “Baby, you can’t keep treating Lailah like she is your dress-up doll.”
“Thank you, Maggs,” I chirped.
“Not cool, you guys; I can’t have both of you ganging up on me.
Lala, for the record, you're the one who told me that you wanted to start updating your wardrobe but hated shopping. I happen to have impeccable fashion sense and love shopping. Really, you should be thanking me for all the hard work I’ve done. ”
I rolled my eyes and pulled my hair up into a messy bun, having set my phone against the window in the room. “I’m going to try this dress on and make sure that it fits. Maggs is curvier than I am.”
“Actually, that’s why I picked that dress. It flares out at the waist, so it gives you more va-va-voom,” Maggs said, leaning closer to the phone and giving me a wink.
“Don’t flirt with my best friend!” Cami said, playfully yanking her back and starting to tickle her.
I grabbed the dress and changed in the bathroom, not wanting to start any fights between the lovers.
It was nice to see Cami so carefree and real with Maggs; I hadn't seen her do that with many people.
Quickly, I slipped the dress on and zipped it up as far as I could before walking back out to look at the long mirror hung on the wall.
The dress fit perfectly, and it was a higher neck that fit around the edge of my shoulders, showing off some skin but still keeping me covered.
Like Maggs said, the dress puffed out slightly at the waist, giving the illusion of having hips that I’d never had before.
I twirled and was happy to see the back went to the floor but didn’t drag too much.
“Lailah, you look amazing,” Maggs said as Cami let out a wolf call.
My face shone, and I had a wide grin on my lips as I turned back to them. “This is awesome, thanks Maggs. Cami, what would I do without you looking after me? Now, what am I going to do with my hair?”
The three of us spent over an hour chatting and deciding the last of the details for what I was going to do for tomorrow.
I promised to take pictures so they could see the final outcome, and with that, we ended the call.
I’d already removed the dress and hid it in the closet, so I lounged on the bed in sweats and enjoyed the quiet.
I should have known it was too good to be true when seconds later, Parker ran into the room and jumped on the bed.
He quickly crawled across and pulled me in front of him like I could hide him from sight.
“Where the fuck did that cocknugget run off to?” Micah snarled from the room below. “Parker.”
I peered at him over my shoulder. “What did you do now?”
“What makes you think I did anything, Trouble?” Parker drawled as he traced a finger down my arm, trying to distract me.
I slapped his hand away and narrowed my eyes. “You better tell me so I can make a judgment if I should protect you or not.”
Parker’s eyes widened. “You wouldn’t?”
I opened my mouth to yell for Micah, but Parker stopped me by crashing his lips into mine.
I froze as he wrapped a hand around the back of my head to keep me still.
His full lips were as soft and playful as I thought they might be.
As he pulled my lower lip into his mouth and let his teeth hold it there for a second, I groaned and opened to him.
Rolling me over on my back, he caged me in his body, hovering over mine as he kissed me like we had all the time in the world.
Nothing was going to rush him. I knew that he was known as a flirt and had far more experience than I did, but I never thought I would enjoy his skill quite so much.
I arched under him, wanting to feel him everywhere, wanting him to give the rest of my body the same attention he was paying my lips.
Slowly, he drew back and peppered my face with soft kisses.
I giggled and looked up into his face, his eyes glowing with heat that I had put there.
I let my hands wander up his muscular arms and across his back till they met at his neck.
Gently, I tugged at him so I could kiss him easier, but he resisted, playing with me.
“Now, what were you saying?” he asked, giving me a toothy grin.
“Micah, he’s in here,” I yelled.
The shock on Parker’s face was priceless.
“Traitor,” he gasped as he flung himself off the bed and ran to the balcony, tossing the door open and turning to look at me. “I’m so going to punish you for that, Trouble.”
I just rolled over on my stomach and kicked my legs. “If you live long enough after Micah catches up to you.”
He barked out a laugh as he leapt out the door just as Micah zoomed into the room.
“That sneaky bastard. When I find him, I’m going to wring his neck,” Micah bellowed.
As I looked at him, something seemed to be off. His skin was tinged orange, like he had applied too much self-tanner, and it was blotchy.
“What happened to you?” I dared to ask.
Micah whipped around as if seeing me for the first time. “The fucktard put orange dye in my conditioner, and when I washed it out, it colored my skin. Asshole is gonna die when I get my hands on him.”
Biting my lip, I tried to hold my laughter in because if he heard me, I was going to get killed right alongside Parker.
“Lucky for you, I know a few tricks to get color off your skin. I once tried self-tanner and turned myself into an oompa-loompa, so I needed to get it off,” I said, sliding off the bed.
I grabbed his hand and dragged him after me down into the kitchen. Gathering the things I needed, I mixed them together in a large bowl, making a scrub out of lemon juice, baking soda, and sugar. Then I handed it to him and smiled at his confused look.
“Now you're going to take another shower, or even a bath, and scrub, scrub, scrub until you're back to your natural color. Feel free to use my shower if you're worried about other things being messed with,” I said.
Micah looked down at the bowl then back up at me. “This will work?”
“It better, because I’m not going to show up with you to a fancy party looking like that. My date better look his best,” I said, winking.
Before I lost my nerve, I walked into the living room and sat down on the couch.
OMG. Did I just outright flirt with Micah?
What has gotten into me? Since I’ve been here, I’ve had Jay walk in on Brayden and me, made out with Micah and then Parker a day later.
This is so unlike me! What if I took what Micah said the other day too literally?
He did say he didn’t want to be bonded to me, yet he did say one day he hoped to.
That doesn't make him interested in being your date! Brayden is my date; he is the one I am bonded to. I mean, if you want to get real technical about it, I’ll be bonded to all of them at some point.
“Angel, if you think any harder, your head is going to explode,” Brayden said as he sat next to me, wrapping his arm around me and pulling me against his chest. “You’re not even blocking your freak out from me. What happened?”
I felt my cheeks heat. How could I tell him what I was freaking out about?
Brayden gently gripped my chin and forced me to look up at him. The love and trust in them gave me the courage to be honest.
“I kissed both Micah and Parker, and then there is the whole thing with Jay,” I said, flicking my eyes away from him, feeling too overwhelmed. “When everything went down with the Dark Lord, Micah got asked if he would accept the Oath. He said no, he wasn’t ready.”
Brayden released my chin, cuddled me against his chest, and rested his head on top of mine and just held me.
I felt his natural calm sink into me, showing me just how much this had been building up inside of me.
This wasn’t something I could talk about with Cami, it needed to be worked out by the six of us.
“I think we need to have a family meeting,” I murmured.
“I think that’s a good idea. It might also be a good thing for you and Micah to have a conversation one-on-one,” Brayden said, kissing the top of my head.
“He is opening up to you and finally learning to deal with the others. I know it doesn’t seem like it, but he’s never been one to play by anyone else’s rules. ”
“Hmm, I hadn’t noticed that. He’s always so easygoing.” I snorted. “Not sure he and Parker are getting any better.”
Brayden laughed. “Angel, before, Parker would have never tried to prank him. If this had happened before you entered the picture, I’m not sure any of us could have stopped him from killing Parker.
Now Parker is just getting his own revenge.
This prank was retaliation from something that happened earlier in the week. ”
“Sure sounds like improvement when you put it like that,” I said, snuggling in deeper against Brayden.
Sensing that I was done talking for now, he grabbed the remote and put on a movie.