Thano nodded.He'd pay for gas.
"You forgot your bag."Romeo held up Eli's bag with the strawberry slicer.Fuck.He'd forgotten all about it in his focus on the cupcakes and his worry about Eli starving.He should return it.There had been more than one bag in Eli's cleaning closet, but maybe he needed this one.Grabbing the bag from Romeo, he almost shadow walked off the terrace and toward Last Hope, but he needed to get baking powder.
He'd give the bag to Eli tomorrow.He could send one of the crows to tell him he hadn't stolen it, only forgotten to hand it back.
Romeo cleared his throat."Why did you bring him?"
"To check the books for the surprise."
"You can read.I believe you and Kerrin are the best readers here."
"No, you are."
"Apart from me.Among the breed living here, you and Kerrin can read books and take in the information without problem, so why bring Eli?You could've read up on the surprise yourself."
Thano glared at him.He wanted Eli to be part of the process, and he wanted to show him The Moonlight Ranch, and Eli knew food a lot better than Thano did.
"Why Eli?You've been in Last Hope for years, and from what I've understood, you've never made any friends, so why are you suddenly spending all your free time with Eli?"
"Suddenly?"And what did he mean byall his free time?
Romeo shrugged."Maybe suddenly is a weird word to use, but you had no interest in the shop before, and now you're hanging out there."
"Hanging out?"
Snorting a laugh, Romeo shook his head."He's a good guy."
"I know."He did.Eli cared about the people in Last Hope.
"Don't eat him."
Thano slowly turned to face Romeo."Excuse me?"
"If you're looking for a meal, pick someone else.Eli is...a friend, and I don't want anything to mess up the relationship we have."
Thano had always known humans were stupid, but he'd believed Romeo was an exception.
"Oh, don't look at me like that!I only meant be careful with him.I don't want him...hurt."
"I'm not gonna hurt him."Maybe Romeo didn't deserve cupcakes if he believed Thano would hurt him."He's helping me."
"Don't bite him."
Thano straightened his back, and Romeo flinched.
"Don't tell me what to do, Romeo Gallo.I'm still the leader of The Moonlight Ranch, and while I'll honor the--"
"I know!"Romeo threw his hands in the air."I'm not telling you what to do."
"It sounds as if you're telling me what to do."Thano raised his lip to show off a little bit of fang."Who I feed from is none of your business."
Romeo's eyes widened."You're feeding from him?As in...regularly?"
"It's none of your business."
Swallowing, Romeo nodded."If you do, though, you should make sure he eats better.He's lost weight since I moved here, and he was too thin to begin with.He'll need better nutrition if he's regularly losing blood."
Heat washed through Thano.He liked the sound of that.He should take care of Eli, make sure he ate as he should.He should've gone with him and made sure he ate more than only a couple of eggs."What food has good nutrition?"
