43. Lyra
Lyra
I knew that Evanee only told me to get snacks for the animals because she didn’t want me working too hard or fussing over anyone. Ha! Didn’t she know that Mama and I did nothing but work for everyone else?
On a boat this big, I didn’t expect to find such a small, inadequate kitchen.
That Thaddeus fella certainly didn’t go out of his way to give us anything as fine as the fancy toilet on this thing.
Nope—just buckets. How am I supposed to hike up these skirts for a bucket?
Sure, I did it without a hitch back at the Fae bitch’s Castle.
But we’re not there anymore, are we? And what if these sailors got buckets mixed up, and some of the buckets in here for the dishes have been used… elsewhere?
That’s it. I’m gonna lodge a complaint with Captain Gideon and make sure he tells Thaddeus that this is unacceptable.
My other issue was the stingy Cook. He started fussing at me in some weird accent when I was rummaging through the cabinets to see what he had.
Rude. I assured the wimpy fella that I knew my way around a kitchen and was even nice enough to give him one of my leftover muffins.
Just to prove how good I could bake. Admittedly, I forgot they were laced.
That poor bastard’s been missing for ten minutes now…
Oh well! I didn’t need his help anyway. I’ll just get started. He won’t mind.
Let’s see—pots, pans, silverware, more pans. Where the hell was the food?
Ah ha!
I did a giddy dance as I found his hidden stash—potatoes, carrots, a medley of dried herbs—
“What are you doing down here?”
I scowled at the pup standing in the doorway.
“What do you think I’m doing?” I shook my head, not even deigning to turn and look at him.
“Yeah, but I thought Evanee just wanted you to grab snacks for the animals? The carrots are right there.” He pointed behind me.
“Aren’t you an animal?”
“No,” he scoffed before scratching his head. “Well, I mean sometimes I guess—”
I whipped around, throwing a carrot at him. It smacked him square in the eye.
“Ow. What the hell, Lyra?” he whined, clamping a hand over his face.
“Problem solved. One animal’s been fed.” I smiled triumphantly, ignoring the tick in his jaw as I went back to my task.
“Can I at least help?”
“Fine. But if you get in my way, a carrot in the eye will be the least of your problems.”
He dropped his hand to grab a pan, his eye a nasty, bright pink. But the idiot was grinning ear to ear. I shoved a bowl of onions toward him to chop. I’d bet if he were in his other form, that dumb tail of his would be wagging.
With my hands on my hips, I stared at what we’d prepped so far.
Still no sign of the cook, though. Poor, stingy bastard probably ate two muffins.
“We’ll have to do this ourselves,” I declared.
“You know how to cook?” Brax asked as he eyed the myriad of ingredients before us.
“I know how to bake muffins. That’s all Mama was able to teach me before… Well, just before.” I cleared my throat. “Cooking can’t be much different. Hand me that—that thing over there.”
He raised a brow. “The spatula?”
“If you know so much, then you make something!”
He raised his hands defensively.
“I don’t know anything about cooking! I mostly eat things raw in my wolf form. I love a good hunt.” He smiled wolfishly. I scrunched my nose. “Rabbit, deer, bear… anything raw and steaming—”
“Brax. That kind of talk is just uncivilized. I don’t wanna hear about your raw anything,” I tsked.
The sack of flour weighed a ton as I picked it up to carefully pour into my bowl, but the irresponsible bastard who works down here must’ve opened it weirdly, because half the contents spilled onto the counter and the floor. I shifted at the last second, getting the perfect amount into the bowl.
Satisfied, I dropped the sack to the floor, turned—
“Oof.” I bumped right into the pup. “Watch it! What did I say about getting in my way?”
“That’s the first time you’ve said my name.”
I scoffed, shoving him away, dumping some water I found into the flour. Smelled fresh enough. Now some salt.
“Is not. I’ve said your name plenty.”
I pushed past him again, some of the mushy contents sloshing over the side. I stepped over the mess and decided the cook wouldn’t mind it once he tasted my masterpiece.
The mutt grabbed my arm, and more of my mixture flew. I frowned at the empty bowl.
“Ugh—look what you made me do! Now I have to start over,” I growled.
“Say it again,” he breathed, his hazel eyes bearing down on me.
“You made me drop my ingredients and now—”
He lunged forward, and I dropped the bowl. Clang, clang, clang, it went as it bounced, specs of goop hitting everything.
He grabbed my face, leaning in, lips puckered—
I shoved his chest hard enough that he fell on his rear.
“What the hell!” I shouted, folding my arms as I looked down at him.
He snarled. “You’ve kissed me before!” He scrambled up, trying to scrape the mess off, only making it worse.
“So?”
“So? You drive me crazy! I thought—” He raked his hands through his hair, making him look like a lunatic with the mush making his golden strands stand on end.
“What?”
“That you wanted me too! Wanted to be with me.” He hung his head.
I gripped the counter, frozen.
He dragged his gaze up, his red eye watering.
For once, I was stumped. My mouth gaped like a fish.
“I’m just a human.” My voice sounded small. I hated that—but why would I let myself think of a life together when I knew someday he’d just leave?
“I know. But on that journey, we got to know each other, and yeah, we only kissed, but—I just thought—I mean—I left my pack, Lyra.” His voice dropped, and it was the most serious I’d ever heard him.
“Do you understand what that means? It means I can’t go back.
I’m a Werewolf with no pack. But I’d do it again. For you. Even if you don’t want me.”
“I didn’t ask you to do that.” My mouth pressed in a line as I inched away from him, snatching another carrot in case he got another stupid idea.
I turned my back on him, grabbed a new bowl, and poured more flour and water into it, mixing it vigorously. Then added a dash of herbs—not really sure what they were, but they smelled nice enough. Maybe he’ll go away once he sees how busy I am.
After a moment of blissful silence, he sighed.
“You’re right. You didn’t. But I did it anyway.”
I turned, catching a smile spreading on his face. My lip curled as I pointed the carrot at his good eye.
“Why?”
“Because I love you, Lyra.”
I launched the carrot at him, the pointy end hitting my target.
“Owwwwwoooh!” he howled. “Why do you keep throwing things?”
“Because you say things that’ll make my lady bits get tighter than a Fae’s butthole. But then you say dumb shit like that, and they go loose. Just like sails with no wind.” I clucked my tongue. “Tragic.”
“I do mean it!”
He dropped his hands, tears streaming from his reddened eyes. Though that’s probably from my badass aim.
I folded my arms.
“Lyra, I’ve met so many females that are only after an alpha or pretend to be something they’re not for a male’s attention. But not you.”
He approached me, cautiously, glancing at my hands for more vegetable weapons, presumably. He didn’t notice the banana stashed in my skirt pocket. But I let him approach—for now.
“Since I’ve met you, you’ve been brazen, uncouth, foulmouthed—”
“What the hell, Pup—if this is you professing your love—”
He pressed his finger to my mouth, hitting my teeth instead.
“And stubborn—everything I could ask for. You’re not afraid of what anyone thinks. You speak your mind. And you’re the most beautiful, mesmerizing creature I’ve ever lay eyes on.”
I snorted, even as he reached out and caressed my cheek.
“Not so bad yourself, Pup.”
“Does that mean you want to be with me too?” His look was hopeful.
My mouth quirked to the side as I contemplated.
“I guess.” I didn’t try to hide my smile this time. Throw him a bone, so to speak. Does he actually gnaw on bones? Mama wouldn’t approve of that—
He lurched forward, slamming his mouth against mine.
“Lyra…” he murmured against me.
“Hmm?”
“Will you pull away from me again? Just a little?”
I froze, my eyes popping open as I pulled back. “I ain’t doing no kinky Werewolf shit with you—”
“No! Nothing like that. It’s just the tease of the hunt,” he sulked, caressing my arm.
“I haven’t had a good hunt in three days.
And Captain Gideon said I can’t shift on the ship.
” He frowned, the expression making him look even younger.
Speaking of which, I still hadn’t asked how old he was. Oh well.
“That sounds kinky.” I crossed my arms.
“I just haven’t been able to stretch my legs. I get antsy when I can’t shift.” He waited, but I only shrugged. Not my problem you’re a Werewolf.
His face fell.
“You’re right. I shouldn’t have asked. The timing was bad too and—”
I darted around the island in the middle of the room. His gaze snapped after me, and the growl that followed made heat pool low in my stomach.
The misshapen loaf of bread-dough-thing was a masterpiece—only a little burnt on the sides, and I’m realizing now, I probably should've cut off some of the stems from the herbs.
No matter!
The soup…er…. stew—we’ll go with a fancier name: the veloute was steaming.
Not sure I remember anything being so brown and dirty.
Maybe we should've peeled the potatoes’ skins.
I tsked, looking at the stack I’d pulled from.
Thaddeus should really get a new cook. I’m starting to think these weren’t even washed.
Still no sign of that cook, speaking of. I’ll have to give him a piece of my mind when he gets back.
Brax gave me a lopsided smile as he attempted to clean up our mess. I rolled my eyes. These mini hunts of his will be a nuisance. Maybe next time I could just give him a good scratch behind the ears—
“What the hell have you done to my kitchen!”
The angry little cook braced his arms in the doorway, his face almost as red as Brax’s eyes. Shirt untucked, breeches sagging, and a stench wafting from him that could fend off a skur.
“I should be asking you what’s happened to this kitchen,” I scowled, pointing the wooden spoon at him. “How can anyone cook anything in these conditions? I’ll be reporting you to Thaddeus.”
“What?!” He screeched, then launched for me.
Brax was there in an instant, snarling like a mutt with rabies.
He threw the sad creature into the oil we’d spilled, where the remaining flour fell off the counter, coating him.
A broken sound left his mouth as he turned red as a pepper, thrashing about like a child.
Sad really. All that fancy gold, and Thaddeus couldn’t even afford good help.
Bells clanged on deck.
“What’s that?” I looked to Brax, but he only shrugged.
We left the angry little man behind, slipping around in the oil and cursing us as we made our way to the main deck.
Sailors ran around shouting, their accents too thick to understand. So I looked for Captain Gideon. I ran into the brute instead.
He raised a dark brow as he looked Brax and me over.
“Do I even want to know what you two have been up to?”
“We were on a mission for Evanee,” I said through a narrowed glare.
“What’s going on, Malachai?” Brax asked, attempting to dust off the flour and whatever else had gotten on us from that unclean, excuse of a cooking space.
“They say there’s a sea beast trailing us.”
“Seriously?!” I squealed.
Malachai smirked, “Surely after facing skurs, you’re not afraid of a little sea monster, are you?”
“No,” I gulped. “Course not. But I’d better go warn Evanee about it. Where is she?”
“She’s below deck.”
With the big bastard, no doubt.
“Lyra, give them a minute—” Malachai started.
“No time!” I shouted over my shoulder as I’d already shuffled off.
The shouting above was distant as I walked the hall below. Tip-toed, more like. I didn’t know which door was his, so I put my ear to each one until—
“—to be friends. If we can.”
Oh no. Not that bullshit. After the sizzling peppers I'd seen in his eyes when he looks at her? That big bastard wouldn’t know how to be her friend even if her life depended on it.
The door creaked with more of my weight pressed against it. Honestly, Thaddeus was a cheapskate. Embarrassing for him, really.
My breath caught in my throat as I strained to hear…
“Evanee…”
My jaw went slack, my brows furrowing like two caterpillars about to rumble.
Oh, hell no. He dropped the whole “let’s be friends” bit, then says her name like that? In that oh-so-not-subtle let’s go roll around in the pig pen sort of way?
I never liked him.
I raised my fist:
Bang, bang, bang.
“Sorry to disturb!” Not. “The captain said you need to see something, Evanee!”
I pressed my ear to the door. Silence.
Huh.
“Sounds pretty serious!” I insisted. A growl answered me from beyond, and I shot the door a nasty look. That’s it. I’m going in—
The door swung open, and I fell into Evanee, but not before I saw her eyes shining. The asshole looked pained and was bleeding. Good, I hope she caused that. Friends my ass…
She pushed past me, but I didn’t move until Ryker made eye contact with me. I shook my head at him, my gaze narrowed, plastering on that same disapproving look Mama used to give me when I played ‘hide the stinky cheese in the house’.
Those bright eyes bore down on me, flashing silver. Lucky for Evanee, I’m immune to his stupid eyes and brawn.
I almost let him be. I was just going to turn around and mind my own business. This was between them after all, and Mama always said if two beings were in a kerfuffle, be like the dandelion seeds blowing in a breeze, and move along.
But the big bastard just had to open his mouth.
“Watch over her, Lyra. Please.”
Like I wasn’t already doing that?
The over-ripened banana I’d palmed in my hand upon seeing Evanee’s tear-streaked face just so happened to fly across the room, smacking him right in the face with a splat, the blackened peel hitting the floor with a wet thwack.
I ran before he could clear the mush from his devastatingly chiseled face.