“Starting the meeting would be a good idea,” King grumbled from his seat.
Axel stepped back dramatically, winking at me.He enjoyed pushing King’s buttons, especially where our mate bond was concerned.King’s protective instincts demanded that men keep their distance from me, and I couldn’t entirely fault him for it.Axel, due to his sexual preference, got away with more than the other men.That didn’t mean King’s beast didn’t object, it just wasn’t as much.Sometimes I think King grumbled because it made Axel feel good.It was always hard to tell with King, and I kept the suspicion to myself.
While King glared daggers at Axel, we took our seats.I sat at the head of the table with King on my left and Beck beside him, followed by Labyrinth.On my right was Axel, then Nokita, Cabel, and finally Alden opposite me.
For the first time, since taking the chair at the head of the table, it felt exactly right.
I was about to speak when the door pushed open a few inches.That never happened.Eight pairs of Warrior eyes shifted to the door in unison.
“Sorry,” Ruth said, her tone utterly devoid of remorse.She was dressed as usual, which was halfway between a homeless child and a ninja in training, her red hair pulled back and plastered with some kind of oil to make it lay flat.
“Have one of your limbs been amputated?”I demanded, narrowing my eyes at her.
She dropped her gaze, and I could already tell this was going to be good.“Oh, wise one,” she began with exaggerated reverence.“I wanted but a minute of your time.”She scuffed the floor with the toe of her shoe, putting on her best “aw shucks” performance.None of us bought it.
“So, all your limbs are still attached?”I asked again, my tone flat.
She looked at her hands, splaying her fingers before giving her entire body a once over.“Yes, wise one,” she admitted, her voice dripping with sarcasm.
I made a mental note to order torture devices and start building a proper dungeon.“When you’re finished with one thousand push-ups in the training room, wait for me.I’ll be there after my meeting to hand out your punishment.”
Her eyes narrowed into evil little slits.“A thousand push-ups isn’t punishment enough?”
“Not by a long shot.I’ll make it two thousand if you keep defying me.”
“But—”
I held up one finger, then added a second for emphasis.Ruth snapped her mouth shut, her glare practically burning a hole through me, and then the door closed with a resounding click.
Seven pairs of Shadow Warrior eyes turned toward me this time, their expressions hovering somewhere between amusement and judgmental.
“A thousand push-ups for a young human is a little overkill, don’t you think?”Axel grumbled.
“She’ll have them done within an hour,” I said with a shrug.“Her arms will feel like they’re falling off, so we’ll work heavy swords later.I doubt she’ll interrupt another meeting.”I glanced at Beck, who shared a home with the devil child.He just shrugged, offering no sympathy or objection.
Finally, we got started.
“Now that I have your full attention,” I told them, scanning the room.“As I said before, the striking of knives into the table is over.From here on out, we will begin each meeting with five minutes of meditation.”
Jaws fell open in disbelief.They stared at me, forgetting to drop their eyes until Ms.Beast grumbled.Their faces turned quickly to belligerence when I didn’t back down and say it was a joke.As a whole, their expressions were almost comical.
“This is an order, not a suggestion,” I added firmly.“Once you have the hang of it, we’ll increase the time to ten minutes.”
Their expressions shifted to something resembling disgust, like they’d just stepped in fresh horse muck.
“Close your eyes,” I commanded, demonstrating by shutting mine.
The room went silent, and after about twenty seconds, I peeked through my lashes.All but King was staring at me with their eyes wide open, defiance practically radiating off them.King simply looked amused.
I sighed.This was going to be harder than I thought.I let a touch more of Ms.Beast disgruntlement out.
“Do I need to explain how to close your eyes?”I growled.
“I think you need to explain what hippie chick did to you,” Beck muttered under his breath.
Ms.Beast let out a louder growl, the sound vibrating more forcefully into the room.“I’d think the last thing you’d want is for the men to rescue you again from the big, bad, scary woman who just happens to be your alpha,” I mocked, my tone dripping sarcasm.
I let my gaze drift over each man in the room, saving King for last.He looked like he might burst out laughing any second.The idea of eating his face off flashed through my mind, but it wouldn’t do much for the calm I was trying to project.Inhaling deeply, I forced myself to ignore the urge to bare my teeth.
