Page 61 of Tattle Tail
She glanced over her shoulder like she expected a medic to pop up out of nowhere and scold her. “That is probably inadvisable.”
“I bet it breaks like a dozen hospital rules. Come on. You know you wanna,” he coaxed.
“You are a bad influence,” she said, her tail dancing behind her. Still, the mattress dipped under her as she climbed in, so he’d count this bit of corruption as a victory.
“And you are a terrible liar. Seriously, it’s insulting how bad you are.” He lifted the arm hooked up to drip lines and she curled up next to him.
She touched him carefully.
“I’m not fragile,” he said, his voice low and quiet.
“You are, Joseph. You are so fragile and precious.” Her voice whispered back. “You smelled of death.” Then, in a voice so small he barely heard, “I was so scared.”
He could make a joke to lighten the mood, but that would insult all she had gone through and done. For him.
“Thank you,” he said. “For saving me. Caring for me. Blackmailing Lord Fancy Pants. Braving my family.”
She sniffed, and he realized she had been crying. He wanted to kiss the top of her head, maybe one of her ears, but realized that his entire body was stiff and sore. Moving wasn’t an option. Instead, he moved his hand back and forth on her back.
“As it turns out, I am a selfish creature,” she said. “I am too selfish to go on without you.”
“Okay.”
“We will go to Earth and visit those places you described, and we will see the Thirteen Towers. You will not be my fake fiancé, but my very real mate.” She paused. “If you want.”
“I want. I want that so, so much. I told you, I want this to be real.”
“Good.” She huffed, as if amused by a joke only she got.
“Where’s Nettle?”
“Sulking in a hotel room. You are apparently the light of her life, and she cries for you.”
That touched him more than he expected. “I like her too.” Then, his thoughts sluggish, “What about the piano?”
“Lord Fancy Pants can move it himself,” she said in a tone so sour that he laughed.
Peaceable
New Year’s Eve
Peaceable foundJoseph hiding on the back patio. His coat hung open, placed over his shoulders, half-hiding the arm in a sling, and his scarf draped across his shoulders uselessly, not covering his neck or throat. “Are you well? My mother has been rude,” she said, already arriving at the worst conclusion.
Relations between Peaceable and her parents, particularly her mother, had been tense all evening. She saw no point in picking at old hurts with a house full of family and her parents’ friends. They had much to discuss, but the eve of the new year was not that time. Soon, though. For the time being, if her mother kept the peace, then Peaceable would do the same.
If she insulted Joseph, however, that was an entirely different situation. All attempts at diplomacy would be off.
“Tolerance has barely spoken a word to me. I just needed some air,” he said.
Peaceable studied his face. “Very well.”
Laughter and music spilled out of the house. Small lanterns dotted the patio, giving the space an ethereal glow.
Peaceable joined Joseph at the railing, looking over the dark garden. Shadows gave the garden a dramatic flair while light caught on patches of snow.
So much had changed since the first time she and Joseph stood outside her parents’ home. She no longer felt the weight of her parents’ expectations. Well, perhaps she no longer cared as much. She wanted them to accept Joseph. To accept her. If they could not, well…
“It’s nearly midnight. Mother will be looking for us,” she eventually said. “We should go back in and put in an appearance.”
