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CHAPTER 16
Wynn
JEALOUSY BECAME PIPER. IT wasn't typically something I found attractive in a woman. Most of the time, it was irritating. Now, I found it utterly charming. Even though her jealousy had nothing to do with me.
"And what pray tell, did you expect us to do? " I crossed one leg over the other, leaning back against my headboard. "The sun shines, and we can do nothing until it has set. You, on the other hand, are not bound by our restrictions."
"Yeah, yeah. Human servant and all that jazz." Piper plopped down on the side of my bed and fiddled with my sleeve. I liked that she wanted to be near me without me having to ask. I wrapped my arm around her waist and drew her up the bed beside me. She snuggled into my embrace and played with the buttons of my shirt. Glancing up at me, she cocked her head to the side. "However, I don't even know where to start. Who would want to frame Allister? And what's all this stuff about the businesses having issues?"
I frowned down at her. "And how do you know of our financial issues? We haven't known very long ourselves. You certainly shouldn't have known yet."
"Gretchen told her," Rayne sat on the end of my bed, his brows drawn together as he stared at Piper and then over at Drake. "Someone needs to knock off the pies."
"Hey," Drake called out from the couch. "I have very few things left in this world I can enjoy. Leave me alone about the pies."
Rayne snorted. "Yeah, well, when you are talking about our private business with the help, then it's a problem."
I felt Piper stiffen against me. Stroking my fingers along her bare arm, I leaned my head down to her ear. "I'm sure Rayne doesn't mean it like that, love."
Piper didn't relax at my words. "I know I don't really work for you guys anymore, but I don't like to think you'd talk about Gretchen that way. I mean, she's been with you for longer than I have, and she doesn't deserve that."
"You're right." Rayne placed his hand on Piper's thigh next to him. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to be so abrupt about it. Gretchen has proven her loyalty ten times over."
"I believe what our Rayne is trying to say," I smoothed my hand over her cheek and turned her gaze to mine, "is that we are all on edge right now. None of us expected any of this to happen."
Allister scoffed. "That's for sure. It's getting to be that a vampire can't get a drink anymore without getting brought up for murder."
"Well, if you kept your fangs to yourself and drank from the blood provided, then you wouldn't have that problem, now would you?" Piper snipped back, glowering at Allister, who shifted on the couch to look at her.
"I thought you forgave me?"
Piper crossed her arms over her chest and turned slightly away from all of us. "That was before I heard about the nine other women. I can't believe you!" She stood up and stalked across the room. "And don't tell me that it's because you were feeling neglected. There are six other guys in this house, and you don't see any of them going out and making blood eyes at anyone that will have them?"
"Oh, so we're all supposed to just be monogamous to you, but you can be with all of us?" Allister jumped up and over the couch.
"Careful, brother," I cautioned. Things could quickly spiral out of control if he did not watch his words. Our happy arrangement had been going well without him rocking the boat, so to speak.
"What?" Allister shot a glare my way. "I'm just saying what everyone else is thinking. Can't tell me none of you have thought how unfair this all is?" He gestured at Piper, his lip curling up in a sneer.
Piper glanced around the room, her eyes wide. She licked her lips and cleared her throat. "Is he right? Do you all think that?"
"What?" Rayne came up behind her, placing his hands on her shoulders.
Piper jerked away from him. "No, don't touch me. Do you really think that? Am I being unfair?"
"No, of course not." Rayne tried to follow after her. "There's no one else I want to be with than you."
"Not now, maybe." Piper swallowed and shook her head. "But who knows later, you might find some girl that you want to sink your teeth into and think like Allister. That why shouldn't you get to have her too? I mean, I'm doing the lot of you, what do you owe me?"
Oh, dear. This was what I was afraid of. Allister's misspoken words had sent us down a spiral of what-ifs and maybes. There was only one person who could fix this—the one who started it.
"Pet," I stood from the bed and approached her slowly as one would do a jittery deer, "please do not take Allister's words for what the rest of us are feeling. He speaks from a place of anger and perhaps a bit of guilt." I glanced Allister's way. He simply growled in response.
"Yeah, Piper." Drake threw an arm over the couch and pouted up at her. "Don't let my bone head twin make you feel bad about yourself. He's the one in the wrong, not you. Believe me, we're going to be giving him hell about this for the next century." He shot a glare at his brother.
Allister returned his brother's glare with one of his own. "I have done nothing to earn such ire from you, Draconius."
"And yet, here we are?" Drake snapped, baring his fangs. "We are in this mess because of you. If you'd just unwadded your panties and used your words to tell Piper how you felt, then maybe we wouldn't be trying to keep the hunters from killing you. Do you have any idea what kind of position you've put her in? You could have not only gotten yourself killed but her and the rest of us. Is that worth your hurt feelings?"
