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“Because that would be a loss of pay and a few shifts doing something he hates. Disrespecting you will mean one hundred and forty-four lashes of a whip and some enjoyable — for me and those I allow to watch — cock and ball torture.”
She tensed again, and then took two deep breaths to relax before she spoke. “I won’t tell you how to manage your people. It seems like overkill, but I understand vampires are different than humans, and you know your people better than I do.”
Gavin once again was surprised by the tiny human, and he should probably stop underestimating her. “I value the trust you put in me. I will never knowingly do something to make you doubt me.”
“I’m still uncomfortable that you put my hawk to sleep without checking in with me first, and without explaining what you did and how. Fair warning, that kind of thing risks breaking the trust between us.” When he didn’t respond, she continued. “I’m going to call Sophia tomorrow and see if she has some time to see me, and then get my mom to zap me to her. She knows how to shield the mind of a bird, and she has the best shielding techniques of nearly anyone I know.”
“If anyone will know of the specific details of the huàsheng, I’d lay odds Aaron will be the one to ask.”
“Yeah, I kind of figured that, too. He doesn’t keep secrets from Sophia, so asking for her help won’t add another person who knows.”
“You’d rather ask her for help than Aaron?”
“Aaron is better at showing me how to fight, and how to be aware of my surroundings, but Sophia knows shields.”
And, as Lauren had pointed out, Sophia particularly knows bird shielding.
Gavin thought back to what he knew of the current Swan Queen. She’d been raised in seclusion, in her father’s mansion, when her mother had died before the eggs had hatched. Her father had done his best with the eggs, but Sophia was the only hatchling to live, and her father had taken over-protection to extreme levels. Young Sophia had likely needed to find a way to shield her thoughts from an early age.
“Once again, you impress me with your problem solving and strategy skills,” Gavin told her.
She walked away from him, pulled a silver knife from her waist, inside her leggings, and put it away. She often did this when she was with him, though he hadn’t asked her to. She kept her other knives on her though, he noted.
“I have no idea what to do with Nick. He was completely out of line. If I talk to him now, I’ll kill what’s left of our friendship, and I don’t want that.”
Rather than point out Nick was correct in his assessment and possibly get Lauren pissed at him as well, Gavin merely told her, “I’d like to see you repair your relationship with our Rex. He’s been in your life a long time.”
She met his gaze, and Gavin could feel her emotional pain without the need to delve into her mind.
“Can we go back up and talk to the bears? And Ambrose, if he’s still here. I don’t think I’m up for sex this evening.”
“As long as I can hold you while we talk, Shortstuff.”
“I’m not big on PDA.”
“PDA?”
“I forget how old you are, sometimes. Public displays of affection.” Her smile told him she was joking with him, but she had a valid point.
“I make an effort to keep up with the changing language. Thanks for giving me the definition.”
Gavin telepathed the bears with an order to be hanging on each other when Gavin and Lauren arrived upstairs. If they were all over each other, perhaps Lauren would be less self-conscious.
Chapter 3
Lauren rolled over, shut the alarm on her phone off, and sat up so she wouldn’t fall back to sleep.
Ying was awake this morning, and she was shirtless, which meant his vision was layered over hers again. With his single eye, her human-based peripheral vision was better, so the edge of her field of view was still her own, but the items directly in front of her were in ultra-focus. She could read the ingredients on a tube of chapstick fifteen feet away.
Gavin had stayed with her until she was asleep, but he hadn’t initiated sex, which irritated her even though she’d told him she wasn’t up for it.
Yes, it was irrational, and she’d probably be more irritated with him if he’d tried, so she stopped thinking about it and checked the weather. It was supposed to be clear, and she considered what she had with her to wear.
Nothing she wanted to wear to the theater. Not in her luggage, anyway. She remembered Gavin had stocked the closet here, so she went to look.
A few sexy dresses, some jeans and shirts, leggings and t-shirts. Two business suits, but with skirts rather than pants, and she wasn’t in the mood to wear a skirt.
Which meant she needed to either go to Nick’s and pack more clothes, or go shopping.
