Page 274 of Night's Fall
SpikebackCastlewould have a full contingent of breathing (not bot) staff, so this was my life.
Aleksei had explained this was for two purposes.
The first, it was important for the royals to employ actual beings.
The second, although the time was long gone when bots had glitches and bugs, and as such, could cause unexpected damage or do things in error, these two properties were too significant to take that chance.
The bottom line, as mentioned, this was my life now, it would be when we moved, it would be forever, soIhad to get used to beings in my business.
Twenty realms of them.
I wandered to the sitting room whereAleksei(andNova) was lounged on the sofa.
But onlyAlekseiwas sipping whisky.
He took one look at me, his eyes darkened,Icongratulated myself for the sultry idea, and he set his glass aside and rose to his feet.
He came to me, his gaze devouring me from top to toe to top again (one could say mine were doing the same with him, andI’dalready seen him in his suit before he left the closet), and he rested his hands on my hips.
“That’s quite a dress,” he murmured.
“Hmm,”Ihummed, pleased with the pinprick stars in his eyes.
“I remember those shoes,” he purred.
Of course he did.
He took his gaze off my dress and aimed it at mine.
“Royal testosterone tantrum?” he teased.
I wanted to shout my joy that he was teasing.Thatwe were here, not where we were.Thathe liked my dress, and he had his hands on me, andNovahad her daddy back.
I didn’t.
Because after he left the closet, a few things had occurred to me, and we needed to have them out before we went to pre-dinner drinks.
I arched into him and cupped his jaw in one hand. “Beforewe go,I’dlike to talk about a few things.”
He sighed. “Weneed to talk about a number of things.I’llfill you in with whatIcan after dinner.”
He was referring to political intrigue.
I wanted to talk about something else.
“Real quick, canIget into mine?”
“Of course, darling,” he murmured.
Gods,Iloved this male.
“I thinkImade…not a mistake, butIsaid something which might have made you concerned about something else, and it was right at the time, but now, not so much.”
One side of his lips tipped up. “Laura,I’mnot understanding.”
“I told you how upsetIwas the last time you got angry at me.”
No humor in his face now, and the pads of his fingers dug into my hips.
