He didn’t want to “look poor,” so naturally, Violet responded by going online and finding the most absurdly overpriced, hand-embroidered bunny she could possibly locate. Normally, she carried around the $400 monstrosity, but right now it guarded her clothing and glasses case.
If we looked around longer, we’d probably find a few more things out of place, but we didn’t have time, because the second we fully stepped into the room, a low, unmistakable hum came from the closet.
Skye and I exchanged a look as a breathy whimper joined the sound.
His hand shot to my arm, fingers digging in as his eyes went wide.
“Can I sneak up on her first?” he whispered, practically bouncing with excitement.
I bit back a laugh. If there was one thing Skye wasn’t, it was sneaky. But who was I to stop him? Especially because he was already halfway across the room.
He reached out a hand, hesitating only slightly before curling his fingers around the doorknob and hesitating.
And that was where Skye’s stealth ended.
Because the door yanked inward, causing him to lose his balance and fall forward just as two small hands shot out of the darkness and grabbed him by the waistband of his pajama pants.
“Vi–!?”
Before he could finish her name, Violet dragged him into the closet with surprising strength for someone built like a fairy.
The door slammed shut inches from my face, leaving me to stare at the white panel just ahead.
Then the noises started.
A startled, breathless gasp from Skye, a mischievous giggle from Violet.
Vinny had pulled together just about every resource he could find—a speech therapist, an ASL tutor—all in the hopes of getting Violet to communicate. She’d yet to say a word, but between her little sounds and her signing, sheknewhow to get her point across.
A thump sounded against the door, followed by Skye whining and Violet laughing again.
I closed my eyes and counted to three as I pressed my palm to the door.
“Princess,” I said, trying to hide the amusement in my voice. “You can’t just steal Skye. He’s mine.”
Another soft giggle filtered through the wood—high, breathy, and absolutely unrepentant.
Of course she wasn’t sorry.
Just behind the door, the blankets rustled, and the hum of whatever toy she’d been using filled the air.
“Serena!Help!” Skye squeaked. “She’s going to fuck me!”
That was enough for my alpha instincts to kick in.
“All right, Princess,” I murmured, curling my fingers around the knob. “Game’s over.”
I pushed the door open.
A golden glow radiated from the fairy lights strung across the ceiling in loops and clusters of warm star-shaped bulbs, pinned up with washi tape like Violet had built her own private sky.
And beneath that sky?
Soft, pastel, chaos.
Paper stars dangled from fishing line. A small army of stuffed animals circled the nest. A jar of dried roses and salt sat in the corner beside a stack of yellowed notebooks. And in the center of it all, Violet straddled Skye.
Her long lavender nightgown had ridden up her thighs, and what she called her “night glasses” rested crooked on her button nose. One papery star had gotten tangled in her hair, moving with her as she struggled to keep Skye pinned to the nest.
