AllFreeNovel
Share Us
With my belly full of food and a nap under my belt, I decided I might as well indulge in the bath I’d promised myself earlier. Sawyer seemed to be out cold, and I doubted the sound of running water would bug her. Plus, my muscles felt tense and sore, something that would only get worse if I didn’t take care of it now. The bath would probably go a long way to making me a less horrible person in the morning.
I started the long process of filling the big soaker tub, and paced around the room to make sure everything was in its right place.
Fen, who had stayed out of the way for much of the evening, was sniffing at the remains of my dinner on the table and giving me big, shiny brown please eyes.
I was in a pretty giving mood at the moment, so I took some sweet and sour chicken and put it in his food dish. I added some scraps of beef from the beef and broccoli. The whole platter was topped off with a piece of fried shrimp.
“There you go. Don’t say I never gave you anything.”
He pipped with appreciation then dove on
the pile of meat like I’d never fed him in his whole life. He made funny little scarfing sounds, and I worried he might forget to breathe and I’d have killed my fennec by literally spoiling him to death.
At least he’d die happy.
An hour later I had thoroughly spoiled myself with a long bubble bath, my playlist was finished, and I’d just slipped into my rattiest Metallica T-shirt and sweatpants when a knock came at the door.
My heartbeat jumped, and I wondered for one brief, glorious moment if it might be Cade. Forgetting I was wearing possibly the ugliest pajamas in history, I skipped quietly over to the door and pulled it open, saying, “Miss me already?”
A familiar but almost forgotten face blinked back at me in surprise.
“Constantly,” she announced. “Although in my head I don’t usually picture you like that.”
I stared at her, and it was like looking into a funhouse mirror, if funhouse mirrors made you more attractive.
“Sunny?”
My sister beamed at me. She was the absolute definition of beauty. Her skin was a rich, sun-kissed tan, her hair the kind of effortless blonde that women paid a fortune to imitate. Her cheeks were flecked with freckles, and her smile was so intense she could have been a billboard for a dental clinic.
My breath caught in my throat. I could barely comprehend she was here, standing mere feet from me.
I shook off my stupor and grabbed hold of her, wrapping her in the tightest, most crushing embrace imaginable. I wanted to squeeze the life out of her so I could absorb every particle of her into my skin.
She laughed merrily and returned the hug, smoothing her hands over my hair, kissing my cheeks and forehead with furious delight.
“Gods I’ve missed you.” She held me back to get a better look at me.
“I can’t believe you’re here.” I’d known she’d be at the convention of course, but I had assumed I’d see her during orientation or milling around the event center. This was so unexpected.
“I told you I was coming.” She gave me a perplexed look.
“No you didn’t.”
“Sure I did. Didn’t you get my text?”
Chapter Twenty-Seven
All the air vanished from the world with those five words.
Didn’t you get my text?
“Your…your text?”
She nudged me out of the doorway and came into the room, and I let the door close behind us. She immediately made a beeline for Fen, cooing his name like he was her nephew and not just my familiar. “How’s my favorite little guy? Come see your Auntie Sunny.”
He complied without hesitation, running into her open arms and letting her scoop him up. If he were a cat, he would have been purring like a motorboat. Instead he made squeaky noises of delight while she rubbed his exposed belly, then playfully nipped at her fingers.
“Sunny, your text?” I was whispering, hoping she’d get the hint and keep her voice low so she wouldn’t wake Sawyer.
