I look at my love as he meticulously sheds his clothes and places them in our shared laundry, as I asked everyone to. “I think we met some good people—at least, it seemed like it. We’ll see how Jasper handles the Fae prince and what happens from there. I liked that KK seemed to connect with those very confident chicks from each group. It’s good for him to find friends outside of our nonsense.”
Anton snorts, shaking his head. “I’m not sure everyone will be so excited about him consorting with outsiders, even if they're obviously taken by their own families. You know how some of our brothers are.”
“I do, but Kit’s going to do whatever he wants regardless, Annie. That’s not something he’ll make concessions about,” I reply as I peel my shirt off. “If Jasper—or anyone else—gets weird about it, the kid’s gonna lose his marbles.”
My lover makes a face, but shrugs. “Possibly. He did a pretty good job of being good on the surface. Not nearly as many problems as I expected and by the end, Jasper was acting strangely proud of him. Zav was practically wagging his tails in happiness.”
The Kitsuné was giddy as fuck when they headed to the prince’s dorm; Annie’s got that one nailed.
“Did you notice Salem stayed awake withalmost no trouble at all?”
Blinking, I think about the panda for a few moments, scanning my memory of the trip carefully. “You know, I didn’t notice, but now that you mention it… That dude was on it without a second’s hesitation and I didn’t see him chug any extra energy potions. What’s with that?”
“I don’t know, but it was fucking odd.” Anton finishes stripping and I watch, my eyes coasting over his muscles as he walks to the dresser to grab boxers. “He was so awake that I hardly recognized him half the time. And KKlethim guide him with little complaint. Those two are thick as thieves, you know.”
I got that impression, and I know our newest initiate is close to the crow as well. They got to show him their other sides before anyone else, and though I’m not jealous, my cobra was until Kit let Annie and I do the same. We haven’t revealed the full demon form, but his lack of fear when he had to witness the partial forms in the Gemini compound was encouraging. “Well, they live in the same room, Annie. And to be fair, Salem accepted him from the second Jasper shoved him into the second bedroom without a protest. That kind of shit forms a bond, you know?”
It’s definitely how our attraction went from physical to actual relationship as we got older.
The peacock demon grins at me as he tugs on his sweats, and I remember why I fell for him. Walking over, I toss my clothes haphazardly as I approach, not paying a bit of attention to the couture I was worried about earlier. He arches his brow, his expression playful as he tracks my movements. “Aren’t you feeling saucy? I love the look in your eye, especially since we’re alone and Jasper’s going to be late to the party.”
“Anton, making others wait because you look especially delectable standing in nothing but those boxer briefs is rude.”
Laughing softly, he turns, the shimmer of his bird surrounding him as he preens. “I love compliments; it’s in my nature, love.”
I roll my eyes at his blunt statement of the obvious. “Of course you do, baby. Your birdandyour demon eat that shit up. However,myinner beings are more interested in the scent of arousal you’re giving off like perfume. It’s delightful.”
Tilting his head, he waits until I’m pressed against his body before he says, “Speaking of which…”
“What?” I ask as I run my palms over his back. Neither of us looks as strong as we are clothed, but that’s Slash’s training regimen. The shark has been keeping us all in fighting trim since we were kids. “What about the scent?”
“Do you think KK is going to smell it soon? I mean, he’s figuring out species better now. I assume he’ll get the body chemistry changes soon.”
Ah, he’s worried our little newbie will figure out he’s attracted to him before he’s ready to admit it.
“I don’t know, love. Kit’s emergence is a mystery to everyone, even Dr. D. We don’t have a frame of reference for an unemerged, over-age possibletripleska?1who has unknown powers, lineage, and heritage.” Reaching up, I smooth his rainbow hair away from his eyes, smiling softly. “But whatever happens, we’ll work it out together. I mean, the poor guy doesn’t even know what humans smell like when they’re excited, I don’t think. He’s probably repressed it because of the trauma.”
Anton nods, his face full of an unusual emotion for my mate: vulnerable. His family line being pride and his confident bird makes it incredibly uncommon for him to feel this way, much less say it out loud. “If you think so, it must be true. You’re the expert on lust and shit.”
I put my hands on his cheeks, looking into his eyes with a firm gaze. “I know it, and Iaman expert on that subject. But truthfully, I’m fumbling around a little with this, too. Hell, I think we all are. No one expected some random kid to stomp out of the elevator with Jas and flip our entire world upside down within weeks. Give yourself a little credit, babe.”
He darts in and kisses me hungrily, making everything in my body uncoil and stretch. The snake loves when he does that and I love him; it’s a perfect answer to my statement. When our lips part, I suck his lower lip between my teeth, nibbling lightly before I let go. Anton hisses, his hands winding around my neck as our bodies heat. “Am I being graded or something? Because if so, I could definitely use extra credit. I’ve been slacking, it seems.”
“Indeed, you have, darling.” Grinning, I slide my hands down his back to the hem of the sexy briefs, toying with it as I nibble along the line of his jaw. “To get those points, you’re going to have to earn them. Give me the demon, and we’ll see how much you’ve studied.”
Within seconds, Anton’s frame is shimmering with rainbow colors, horns, and the feathered tail that whips back and forth eagerly. “How’s that for skill? Seamlessandquick.”
“Only one of which is important to what we’re doing now,” I rumble teasingly, and he gives me a smirk. I allow my demon to rise, the long golden tail of my cobra trailing up his leg slowly. “You know I enjoy you demonstrating your knowledge of demon anatomy more than anything else.”
Anton drops to his knees, taking the hint without even batting a lash. I look down at his rainbow locks, my eyelids fluttering as his palms settle on my hips. “Tsk, tsk, my love. I can smell how eager you are, yet I don’t see the twins. Whatever shall I do to correct this situation?”
My hands settle on his shoulders, squeezing lightly. “I suppose you should show me how they’re coaxed out if you’re so knowledgeable. You may have to give lessons eventually, you know.”
His eyes widen as he looks up at me, clearly shocked. “Holy fuck, that’s hot.”
“Is it? Then I suppose we’ll just have to imagine how that would work.” Anton groans darkly and I know I’ve hit the jackpot. “What would you do first?”
“I…” He pauses for a moment, then his sparkling eyes meet mine. “I’d show him that when we play, we enjoy switching roles depending on our moods. Right now, he’d need to be kneeling with me in front of you, waiting for instruction. That might be hard for him, but I think he enjoyed seeing you in cobra form and the twins interested him.”
