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REZ
I read a story about pig anatomy.
It was all straightforward until I found a twist in the tale.
* * *
Iwatched my beautiful female walk to the door, her body stiff. Anxiety flowed from her. She was nearly terrified. How had she faced the destruction of the museum, coming face to face with two long extinct dinosaurs, without any sign of fear? And yet the two older humans had her shaking like a naughty child?
She opened the door, revealing her parents. Hard lines were carved into their faces, and the weight of their disapproval hung in the air. I had to fight every instinct to resist the urge to slam the door in their sour faces and kiss the hurt away from my Arizona’s heart.
Arizona stepped to the side, allowing them to enter. They moved to the couch, her mother purposely avoiding eye contact while her father tried to shoot knives from his eyes at Zon and me. I was getting the distinct feeling he didn’t like us. Not at all.
With a long sigh, Arizona closed the door before moving to the chair across from her parents. Her shoulders sagged as she settled in the chair, trying to make herself as small as possible. Annoyance flared through me. She was a queen. They should be the ones cowering in front of her.
Zonkut caught my eye, and I jerked my head. With a nod of understanding, he followed me to Arizona’s side. I took up a position behind her chair, ready to spring to her defense if necessary.
Zonkut settled himself on the floor at her right side. I tried to hide my shock. No one in this room other than myself would understand the symbolism of his action. By lowering himself to the floor, he had taken the position of servant or pet.
Predators were proud creatures, and this was almost unheard of as a predator would only take such a stance for one they deemed powerful and worthy. Arizona was worthy, but her power seemed lacking… hence why I’d chosen a position from where I could defend her more easily.
I watched as Zon leaned his head against the arm of her chair and Arizona absently played with his long hair. Her breathing slowed, and she relaxed visibly. He had let her pet him. I barely contained my laughter at the thought of his brothers seeing him now. Once a prized member of the most prestigious court on earth, he now sat on the floor as a pet.
Instead of disdain, I was shocked to realize I was jealous. I wanted to be in his position, with her slender fingers brushing through my hair. How had she wrapped me around her finger so quickly? Giving myself a mental shake, I focused my attention on her parents.
“What do you have to say for yourself, young lady?”
Arizona flinched at the disgust in her father’s every word.
Before Arizona could answer, her mother burst into tears. “We heard about the museum on the news this morning and how they thought it was probably some type of bombing. When you didn’t answer your phone, we got so worried and rushed here to check on you! And then we found you, you—with them!” she wailed.
“Mom, please don’t cry,” Arizona begged, her own lip quivering.
“Of course she is going to be upset! You didn’t think about how this would affect her. Were you so caught up with your boy toys that you couldn’t even stop to call and let us know you were okay?” Her dad’s voice had risen until he was almost yelling.
My body tensed, and I took a step forward, ready to launch between the two. How dare he yell at her like this?! Perhaps I should shift and eat him. I smiled at the thought, and it wasn’t a nice smile.
Calm down, Rez. He isn’t normally like this. They are scared.
Arizona’s voice was sweet in my mind. I didn’t care what reason he had to behave this way. It was unacceptable.
“Mom, Dad, my phone must have been destroyed in whatever happened. I couldn’t find it anywhere in my apartment this morning. I didn’t even know what had happened until two detectives showed up at my first thing.” Arizona leaned toward them as she spoke.
I could feel her distress. She didn’t enjoy lying to them, and the memories of what we’d spent the night doing were causing guilt to blossom inside her.
“How is that possible, Ari? We saw the footage of the museum storage area. It is a miracle you survived!” Arizona’s mother spoke through her sobs.
“I don’t remember what happened last night,” Arizona repeated what she had told the detectives.
Her mother rushed forward, grabbing Arizona in her arms. “Oh, baby! I’m so sorry I was angry with you. I’m just thankful you made it out alive.”
While her mother seemed to have bought the story, her father still looked suspicious. “And these two men? How do you know them? Did they take advantage of you during our lapse of judgment?”
“I had a lapse of memory, Dad. Not a lapse of judgment.” Arizona patted her mom’s back as she spoke to her father. “I just hadn’t had the chance to introduce them to you both yet.”
So she wanted to pretend we’d known each other longer than a day?
“Are you dating him, sweetheart?” Arizona’s mother looked between Zon and her daughter. Dropping her voice to a whisper, she added, “And isn’t it a little strange having them both here when you are having private time?”
