Page 40 of Pixie Problems
“See you soon,” Draven said, then hung up.
I hurried into my townhouse, said hello to Doom, and then hurried to shower and change. I was still bloody from the fight. When I grabbed my keys and tried to leave, Doom protested with loud squeaking. I picked him up. “What’s up, buddy?” I checked his water—witha singlelemon wedge—and checked the dish with his food. Both were full. I eyed the swix. “Do you want to come with me?”
Doom purred and I sighed. Ofcoursehe wanted to come with me. “The master vampire and gargoyle will laugh at me, though,” I protested in a near whiny voice.
Doom nipped my finger, and then cuddled into my chest. I groaned. “Okay,you can come!” I started mumbling under my breath as I put Doom in my jacket pocket, and palmed my keys, locking up quickly. “I don’t know why I let you talk me into these things. Nobody will take me seriously after this.”
Doom jabbered at me, and it sounded like he disagreed. “Of course you don’t believe me. Just wait.”
I hopped in my convertible but kept the top up. It was mid October now and the weather was getting nippy. As I drove to the Leto mansion, I noticed the trees had already changed colors. Gold and red leaves showered the sidewalks, and raindrops spattered on my windshield. I flicked the wipers on and gave a quick glance down at Doom who was purring in my pocket. “You okay in there?”
He squeaked and I laughed. “You sound like a chipmunk, you know that?”
He squawked in outrage, and I grinned. “I call it like I see ‘em, Doominator.”
I pulled into the circular drive of the mansion and parked on the other side of the fountain, closest to the front door. I was feeling lazy tonight, not to mention a little bruised and beat up from the coyotes.
Aiwin answered the door, and I stopped cold in surprise. I was torn between laying on the floor and dying laughing, or possibly being concerned that the coyotes had poison fangs and I was hallucinating. Aiwin was in footsie pajamas. Purple footsie pajamas with a cartoon tiger on the front. My eyes bulged, but I said nothing as Aiwin turned up his nose at my incredulous expression and led me into the study where Draven and Mia worked during the day.
I stopped again just inside the doorway to the study. Draven was sitting on the couch. He had one knee crossed over the other, and he was sipping something out of a mug. But it was what he was wearing that caught my eye. He was in a black, sueded onesie that was made to look like a tuxedo. It opened showing a white shirt and bowtie that was attached to the black fuzzy material that ended in jogger elastic on his ankles.
I turned my eyes to Mesmer who was sitting in a chair before the fire. He was in a pair of blue and black cotton, flannel, plaid pajama bottoms and a pajama tee-shirt that saidSay no to drugs. Say yes to tacos.
I slumped against the door jam andlostit. I laughed so hard and for so long I think I pulled something in my abdomen. Draven and Mesmer didn’t even glare at me, they just suffered my amusement with silence and dignity. Well, Draven did. Mes looked like he wanted to pound me.
I moved into the room and plopped down on another couch that faced them. “Whatare you guys wearing?” I said, still chortling. I had to wipe tears from my eyes because I couldn’t see.
“It’s Friday,” Mes said stiffly. I noticed he had a gun belt on that was loaded with some throwing knives as well as two different handguns.
“And that means?”
“It’s pajama day today,” Draven said with a fond smile on his face. “Mia instituted it a few months back.” He shrugged. “We have them every Friday.”
I leaned my head back against the back of the couch, still chuckling quietly. “I really need to come by more often.”
“Every Friday or so?” Draven said with an amused drawl.
“Of course!”
“Only if you wear pajamas as well. The whole staff is wearing them,” Mesmer said. I could tell he really wanted to turn his lip up in disgust, but because Mia was his friend, he was trying—and probably failing—to be a good sport about it.
“Tacos are a good look on you, my friend,” I told him.
“Thank you,” he said with severe dignity.
My lips twitched, fighting another smile, but it was at that moment that I found Draven watching my coat pocket with a certain amount of fascination, as though he could see Doom’s heartbeat through my jacket. “Whatdid you bring into my home?”
I sat up instinctively and put a hand over my pocket. Like I was protecting Doom from the big bad vampire. I rolled my eyes, disgusted with myself, and pulled Doom out.
He looked especially fetching since I’d just given him a lukewarm bath a day or so ago. His white and pink fur was glossy and full. His adorable bat-like ears were twitching around, but mostly pricked up into cute little triangles with the top folded over. And he was as round as a ball. I think I was feeding him too much, because he’d gained weight.
Mesmer cleared his throat suspiciously and I glared at him. He was focusing on the window along the far wall as though it held all the secrets of the universe. I ignored him and set Doom down. I didn’t want him to get too far away from me, because I had no idea how Zian would handle having another magical animal in his territory around Mia.
The door behind me opened, and I craned my neck around and then almost had a heart attack when Zian pawed in. He looked like he had filled out more since I’d seen him last. He looked sleek and deadly as he stalked closer to me, and put his big furry head on the back of the couch as he eyed the Doominator who was quietly sitting on my lap. Zian snuffed a bit, getting a good whiff of the swix that had invaded his home, and then he jumped the back of the couch in a move that looked completely agile and effortless, andlungedfor Doom.
I threw up a hard starlight shield that covered Doom like a protective dome, and Zian smacked into it. He gave me side-eye and chuffed at me. “You can’t eat him,” I told the tiger in a firm voice.
Zian chuffed again, and I watched as he backed up a step before I removed the dome. Zian, carefully this time, moved slowly in and sniffed Doom delicately. Doom stayed perfectly still and he didn’t seem like he was scared out of his little Doomy mind, so I let the encounter continue.
