My eyes widened with excitement at that idea and I honest to shit squealed like Geraldine at a bagel buffet.
“Really?” I asked, feeling kinda like a naughty kid about to skip class.
“Really,” he said firmly, taking my hand and leading me towards our room. “You’re gonna have to take that crown off though, princess, because where we’re going, you’ll require a helmet.”
“And where’s that?” I asked, grinning at the thought of it even though I knew the others might be kinda pissed at us for sneaking off. But it had been so long since I’d spent any time with my Dragon and we were overdue this date, so I wasn’t going to argue against the idea.
“The mortal realm,” he said firmly. “I’m gonna take you out for fast food and a day of racing that beautiful beast of yours to your heart’s content. Then I’m going to pay for us to spend the night in the fanciest fucking hotel in New York City and spend the entire night bending your body to my will and making up for all the time we’ve missed out on during the last four months.”
“Okay,” I agreed, licking my lips because that sounded like fucking heaven. “Can we start off by getting pancakes?”
“Baby, if you want pancakes then I’ll happily buy you a whole damn pancake house. I’m spending the day in the company of that smile on your face and the night bathing in the sound of your screams. Your every desire is my command and I’m making sure they’re all fulfilled today.” Darius tugged on my hand to make me move faster and I bit my lip at the mere thought of that.
“Well in that case, I’m all yours.”
“D on’t you wanna stay and hang out with your new friend?” I asked Orion as he walked beside me out of the dining hall, pointing at Seth with my coffee mug who was chatting with Rosalie Oscura.
He glanced back at him then gave me a dry look. “He’s not my friend, Noxy.”
“Right,” I said knowingly, seeing a whole different kind of future for them in my mind. “And I’m not your Nebula Ally.”
He groaned. “Please tell me the mutt isn’t destined to win me over?”
I laughed. “Not necessarily, but there’s definitely a chance.”
“I’ll work harder to crush that chance,” he said with a smirk. “Apparently I don’t do friends unless they’re forced on me like you and Darius, and now Caleb too.”
“I wasn’t forced on you,” I said.
“I could argue the stars forced you on me,” he tossed back.
“I could argue they forced you on me.” I gave him a look as I remembered the night he’d been slipped a lust potion back when I’d met him at Zodiac Academy, and he’d fallen for me hard until I could get him an antidote.
He barked a laugh. “Yeah, well we’re taking that night to the grave, aren’t we?”
“So long as we take the proballs incident to the grave too,” I muttered and he nodded seriously at me. I never wanted to think about that again. It still gave me nightmares. My dick had PTSD.
“For someone who has no friends, you seem to have an awful lot of them,” I taunted and he shoved his shoulder against mine.
“No I don’t.”
“I think you’ve gone well over your quota of wanting ‘no more friends than you have fingers’， if I remember correctly.”
“Whatever. Seth Capella isn’t joining the ranks,” he said firmly.
“Then why did I have a vision of you cuddling him all night long while Darcy was away?”
“Oh fuck off,” he muttered. “I said he could have one hug and we both fell asleep, that’s all. Anyway, what are you, the friend police now?”
“I’m actually quite enjoying watching you fall in love with all the Heirs,” I teased and he growled in warning.
“Watch it, Noxy. Cal and Darius are the only ones I have time for.”
“You laughed for five whole minutes after Max told you about the Vampire who went to the mortal realm and made everyone believe he was the real Edward Cullen by covering himself in Pegasus glitter.”
“That shit was funny,” he said defensively. “It’s not him I like, I liked the story.”
“Then why do you always laugh at his jokes?”
“Jokes are funny, Gabriel,” he growled. “That’s why they’re called jokes.”
“Orio, I was just like you once, unable to let people in and working so hard to pretend I didn’t care about anyone who tried to get under my defences,” I said seriously and he looked to me with a frown. “I just don’t want you to lose out on the best friendships of your life because you’re a stubborn asshole, or worse, something awful happens and you lose the chance to form them forever.”