I look up at her in surprise.
She gives me a small smile. “I’m also an empath. I can feel the age of emotional wounds as well as physical ones. I’m just glad the Big Bad Wolf here was smart enough to give the best of the best a call.” Kiki shoots a steely glance at Brexley who rubs the back of his neck, clearly uncomfortable.
“How do you know each other?” I ask.
“Oh, well . . . ” Kiki pauses, casting Brexley a look as if asking permission. He nods, and she goes on. “A while back, my family tried to, let’s just say, erase me from the family tree.”
“They wanted to kill you?”
“You can’t choose the family you are born into, a pity for all parties involved. So I hired the big bad over here to watch over me and handle myproblems. And if I do say so myself, the big sexy lug is worth every penny. Even if at heart he is a crotchety old man with more emotional issues than Hamlet and Liza Minelli. Not to mention, when I knew him, he wasn’t even house trained yet.”
“Kiki,” Brexley warns.
Dame Kiki shoots me a saucy wink. I can’t help but laugh.
Brexley shifts even more uncomfortably, watching me with a frown.
Tears spill from my eyes though I feel numb inside. I must be doing better, normally I don’t have the capacity for tears after Hansel is done with me. I don’t even care who changed me into Brexley’s shirt and boxers. Being able to lay out on the couch in comfort and safety gives my emotions space I desperately need.
Dame Kiki suddenly straightens before looking back and forth between us. “Oh, I see.” A smile twitches at the corner of her mouth.
Before I can ask what she sees, she jumps up. “Well, I must be going. I have to grace the stage of the Pumpkin Coach Club with all my fabulosity in forty minutes and as lovely as y’all are, I can’t deprive the masses of the Fairy Godmother.”
“Fairy Godmother?”
“Oh yes, dear, it’s the nickname everyone has given me. Something about how people’s dreams come true when I’m around. But honestly, I’m just not afraid to give people a good kick in the rump when they need it. That’s all most people usually need.” She shoots an indiscernible look at Brexley. He frowns.
“Listen,” she crosses over to poke Brexley in the chest. “You give that little girl over there whatever she wants. Whether it be a truckload of cheeseburgers or a whole chocolate cake. I helped her, but the soul and body need the immediate hit of sugar and antioxidants to recover and soothe from a thing like that.”
Brexley nods and pulls out a thick wad of bills from his back pocket.
“Don’t even think about it, wolf boy,” she warns, while waving a long nail in his face.
“Please let me pay you, Kiki,” Brexley nearly grits his teeth. I get the impression this is not the first time they’ve had this fight.
“Absolutely not, sugar buns.”
“Kiki, I’m serious, you know how I feel about—”
“Yes, yes,” she waves her boa in his face impatiently. “You can’t abide favors or ties. I get it.” She grabs the wad of money and tucks it in her bosom.
Then Dame Kiki swoops back over to land a big kiss on my forehead. “Don’t worry, honey. You’ll be alright,” she whispers.
“Thank you,” I say in a scratchy voice. Part of me doesn’t want her to go, but I lean back, exhausted.
“The best thank you is to just be fabulous,” she casts over her shoulder while walking away as if she were on a runway. The door slams behind her.
Chapter36
The Pack of the Past
BREXLEY
Ihand Red a large bottle with a plastic straw filled with cold water. Then I sit on the coffee table so my knees almost touch the couch.
“I’m so sorry, I’m sorry I wasn’t there.” I plead for her forgiveness, knowing I can’t give it to myself.
“I sent you away,” she says before sipping some water. I allow a beat of silence while she takes a sip of water before asking what I need to know.
