Page 69 of Demons in My Bed
Sweat was beading on my forehead, but the last thing I needed was to drip-drop into my poor Bun-Bun’s wounds. I had the perfect fix though. I sprinted through the house, heading for the kitchen. Every house I’d ever been in had a junk drawer in the kitchen, and this place was no exception. There was no shortage of treasures hidden in this little hidey-hole.
“Ope. Shit.” I cursed when I pulled the drawer a little too hard, and some batteries and rogue paperclips went flying onto the floor. “Where are you, you absorbent circular contrap— AHA!” I pulled the sweatband out and held it triumphantly in the air. Neon blue was going to look bitchin’ with my eyes and complexion.
I slipped that baby on and was about to reach for my phone to get an ETA from the others when I felt eyes on me.
“What the fuck?” I spun around and came face to face with none other than Viper. The reptile squirrel. His little beady eye slowly looked up and eyed my sweatband. “Look, Scales, this one is mine. There might be a wristband or something in that drawer but that’s up to you, bro.”
He chittered at me and flexed his little creepy fingers.
“I usually draw the line at harming animals, but this was my brilliant idea and I will straight fuck a bitch up if you think you’re getting it.”
The poser snake blinked his one eye. Or at least, I think he would have, if he had an eyelid to go with his eye. But alas, he didn’t, so suddenly I was locked in a staring contest with a woodland creature who probably didn’t even get dry eyes!
“Why do we have to do this right now, Python? I’m a terrible loser. In fact, I refuse to lose.” My eyes were already starting to feel like someone had thrown sand in them, but I stuck it out. “Oh my gods, can you just look away? I feel like this is a challenge or something and I don’t like it.” I threw my hands down on the counter, but the fucker didn’t even flinch. Lowering my voice, I leaned in. “Listen, I don’t want to kill you, but you’re the one making the decisions here. It’s up to you, man. You have three seconds to look away or it’s game over.”
His tail pulsed. What did that mean? Hysteria was rising in my body now, and I didn’t know if Bun-Bun would ever forgive me for killing this insanely alpha squirrel.
“I have a tail too, motherfucker. It’s bigger than yours, just so you know. How about you give up and I’ll show you?”
Nothing. I waited another two seconds for good measure, then launched myself at that arrogant little nut-muncher.
“Talon?”
I was sprawled out on the countertop looking like the snack I was, so I rolled onto my side and propped my head up on my hand. “Oh, hey. Didn’t see you there, big guy. Been here long?” I fluttered my eyelashes and immediately winced. My eyes were now so dry, they felt like pearls that had been lying in the sandy ocean for years.
The sound of little tiny nails, belonging to quite possibly the most entitled creature in all the realms, scurried softly along the tops of the cabinets.I can hear you, motherfucker. This isn’t over.
“Are they here?” Misha demanded, ignoring my sexual posing completely.
Pouting, I sat up and shook my head. “Not yet. Should be anytime. I’ve been waiting for the call. He’ll need help getting them up here, right?”
Misha opened the fridge and pulled out a bottle of water. As he tipped it back, quickly draining it, I noticed his hands.
“Misha!” I gasped, hopping down and rushing over to him. He tried to pull his hands away from me, but that wasn’t happening. “What the hell?” Anger blanketed me completely in the time it took me to see that his knuckles were destroyed. Blood was drying all the way down to his elbows. “Who the fuck am I killing tonight? Give me a name, big guy.”
Misha’s shoulders seemed to drop, which confused me. Clearly, he could handle himself, but I would always have his back.
“Hey, what’s wrong, Mish?”
Usually, fighting got him riled up. Carving someone up was like a bloody Viagra for my big boy. Something was off.
“It was me, Birdie.” He pulled away and turned on the water in the sink. My heart swelled at the nickname; it had been a while since I’d heard it. He always fell back on it when he was feeling vulnerable.
Sliding up behind him, I wrapped my arms around his waist. “What was, Mishy?”
“I did this to myself.”
Oh. Oh fuck.
“Are you okay?”
“I haven’t lost control in years, but tonight, I fucking blacked out in a rage. Maybe I need to be—”
I cut him off, ending that line of thinking right the fuck now. “Absolutely not, and don’t bring that up again. I know it’s hard for you sometimes, because you think you need to be perfect all the damn time. That’s how you grew up and it’s been so hard to break free of those unattainable expectations. Nobody here—and I mean fuckingnobody—expects you to be perfect. Or for you to be in control all the gods damned time, Mishy. It’s not possible.”
He sucked in a deep breath, and I could feel the pounding of his heart. Seeing Mishy sad always hit me like a bullet straight to the heart.
“It’ll be okay. You’re okay now, right?” I asked, rubbing my hands up and down his stomach, trying to distract him.
