Page 238 of Bliss & Her Idols

The two dumbasses will work it out in their own time.

Soon, I hope.

The yearning in the air, when they’re together could be cut with a knife.

“Then Lion scolded Zero for being reckless and risking his life again for a case,” Piper is still talking about Immortal because of course he is. “And Zero dared Lion that he didn’t have the knot to go out on a mission himself. And he took the dare! Lion is joining us on our next undercover mission to the Omega Hotel. You should have seen it, sis. I can’t work out if those two are more obsessed with the BPU or fighting each other. But seriously, their hate sex is going to be spectacular.”

My eyes widen. “I love both Lion and Zero. But they’re a total personality clash. Zero crashed into the BPU with all his bad boy swagger, and Lion is…”

“Our best friend who needs everything organized, in its place,and being shaken out of the strict rules that his Alphahole dad beat into him. Zero is good for Lion. He just doesn’t realize it.”

“Hmm. Are you sure that it’sLionwho is obsessed with Zero?”

“I’m Zero’s friend. Plus, I’ve always been his fan.”

“Stan,” I tease, remembering what Piper said to me about Jin, before I’d met him, let alone won him in the Pack Bonds contest.

Piper chuckles. “Follower. Stalker, possibly. I fancy the fuck out of the man. And I know that Chase and you have found your pack bonds. I’m happy for both of you. But I’m finding it hard to trust that this is real. As much as I can see that Zero has been courting me for six months — the nests that he’s built me have been the best in my life — I wanted to give him some time by himself, before I commit.”

My brow furrows.

That’s thoughtful.

“You mean, after he was freed from his contract?”

“Yeah, sis, it was hard for him. He suffered a lot in the camp. Shit that you don’t know about as well. You must see it with Jin. The Idols don’t understand about free time or making their own choices, even boundaries. I wanted to give him these six months as his friend to help him find what he likes, from movies to dealing with the world without a supervisor at his shoulder, even if he does drive Lion wild with his impulsivity. Chase has been supporting him too. Zero has decided to continue working with Jin as a singer but also, dedicating most of his efforts to the BPU. He’s a good guy.”

I smile.

I knew that my brothers would look after Immortal.

“Does that mean you’ll let him properly take you on a date soon…?” I ask.

“Maybe…” Piper laughs. “Stop fishing. Is bug with you?”

“Crick.” I don’t know why I’m still trying to correct him.

“Say happy Christmas for me.”

“Pip says happy Christmas,” I call to Cricket.

Cricket’s expression brightens. He rushes to the bed and crawls onto it. He lies down, laying his head in my lap.

I stroke my fingers through his hair, pushing his curls off his forehead.

“Merry Christmas, Pip,” Cricket calls. “Don’t forget to send me the new target for the hack.”

Of course, Cricket is also working for the BPU.

“Tell bug it can wait until after Christmas, when I get back from my mission.” Piper replies. “Your insect works too fucking hard. Your pack all do. I’ll take you out to a bar and let Zero show you somerealfun. Even I can’t keep up with him.”

Cricket is looking up at me with a gentle, adoring expression.

This shy but brave man has changed a lot since I first met him.

He’s found ways to cope with meeting strangers. Methods to cope with being in rooms with crowds.

I admire him so fucking much for that.

---