The Cat and Bird Are All Alone

One minute I'm buzzing around my room getting dressed; the next, I'm in Taurus-land.

Even though I was just there six hours ago, there's been an upgrade. The recessed doors I saw before are open and one leads to a walk-in closet. The other is definitely a bathroom, and the doorway he likes to hang in looks like it leads somewhere now. Every time I come back, he's added something new. It almost feels like as we get more serious, the space gets more defined. It's odd yet endearing.

How the fuck is he doing this?

I walk over to the closet, curious about what's in there. I don't have time to explore before my kitty senses tingle. Turning back to the doorway that I assume leads to a hallway, I see him. He takes a deep drag of his smoke as he leans against the doorframe. The light casts half his face in shadows. Dressed in form-fitting, bespoke pants and a silk shirt the color of the sky before sunrise, he strikes an impressive figure.

"Rumor has it there's a feline in here that's off her bird for me. I thought I'd drop by and see if it's true."

My eyes dance. Playing, are we? I can do that.

I drop onto the couch, clad in satin pajamas and smelling of jasmine. I didn't know when he'd call, but I spent a long time making certain that I wouldn't look like a hobo when he did. "I am fond of this annoying, knuckle-dragging clone who shows up occasionally."

Taking another drag, he acts like he's pondering my response. "That's a shame. I'm sure I don't fit that bill, so you must not be the kitty that's all squishy towards me. Guess I'll go find the right room." He pushes off the doorframe and turns to go, calling over his shoulder. "That's unfortunate, though, as you're the one in my heart."

Crap. He's going to make me say things—things I can't take back, things that blur the muddied lines we've been crossing for weeks. What do I do? I press my lips together and sigh, warring with myself before blurting, "Wait! You fit the bill. In a lot of ways."

Taurus pauses in the doorway. He looks over his shoulder, arching an eyebrow. His eyes practically glow as he studies me. "Do I? Isn't that interesting? Maybe you're the right puss, after all?" Turning slowly, a warm smile tugs at his features as he takes a step into the room.

Damn him. I settling back on my haunches and he rounds the end of the couch. I give him a shy smile. "I think I might be."

Oh, please. Please let that be the end of the tests tonight.

"It would do my heart good to hear that, as it's quite fallen for you." He grins boyishly and winks, crouching down in front of me. "I'm not copping to the annoying and knuckle-dragging part."

When he grins like that, I swear to hell and everything evil; I feel like I'm going to melt. It's oh-so-very-dangerous, and I'm slowly sinking into the pit of no return. "Of course not. It would shatter that image of yours." My hand comes up to cup his cheek and I rub my thumb over the prominent bone structure. "That's okay, though, because it's endearing when you're big and bad."

Taurus presses his cheek into my hand and closes his eyes. "Good thing I'm that way by nature." His eyes open and he pins me with a sincere look. "I missed you."

I beam—no way to stop it. Damn, I'm in so goddamned much trouble. "I missed you, too, baby."

Moving to sit on a free cushion of the couch, he runs a hand down my leg. "Sorry I'm late. My dinner was harder to corner than I thought he'd be."

"I can keep myself occupied occasionally." He does not know I flitted around my house like a teenager, swapping clothes, hair, and makeup until I almost collapsed. I ended up crossing the portal to hunt so I could calm my nerves. Of course, the added benefit to that was I could ensure that she doesn't cross a line when we do this if I'm fed.

"I killed two birds with one stone—dinner and one of Talia's targets. Bastard was one of those magnate types that buy zoo animals, starve them near to death, and let rich ‘hunter' types shoot them for sport."

I growl, the Beast affronted. "I don't like hunters, and I sure as fuck don't like people that abuse animals. Unless the hunter is me and the prey is entirely different."

He shakes his head as if discarding the ill effects of his work. "I put him in one of his own cages and used the cattle prod on him for a while. Then I had a couple of Company chums teach him what real animals can do—the long, bloody, hard way. It took longer than I expected, especially with my other errands. But you're here now and my world is right again."

I scoot over to lay my head on his shoulder. "It's better when I'm here with you." I kick up a purr, wanting to soothe the distaste radiating from him.

He relaxes into the purr, smiling again. I think he's smiled more in the past ten minutes than ever before. Stroking my hair, he looks down at me with a mischievous glint in his eye. "How was your day after you went home, Sandwich? Anything interesting happen?"

The subject change whizzes past me and I scramble to catch up. "Not bad. I came home to an empty house, which is unusual. The notes informed me where they'd all gone, including that Sari and Rhea went to an event on the other side of the portal. I ate and relaxed for a bit, but then Sari started texting me. I guess Rhea's being… interesting. I got annoyed afterwards and took my new bike to the other side for a hunt. Then you texted, and I got dressed for when you called."

"You and the gnome theorizing scares the fashionable pants right off me. I'm glad it was nothing traumatic, though."

"All I can say is ‘godspeed' to Talia. Although, the pants part isn't necessarily a bad thing."

Chuckling, he kisses my forehead. "There's that one-track mind of yours." He pauses. "I wondered about Blondie today. She didn't chat me up—despite being with the ladies—so I figured she conned some other hapless victim into giving her a fix."

"I didn't hear from her and I figure it was their trip. I'm glad to have those two out of my hair for a bit, honestly. It explains why Alistair asked Rafe if he could come stay with us while Rhea sorts things out last week. Rafe was a surprised by that."

"He's staying with you for a while?" Taurus' expression darkens and I wonder if we're about to have the talk about his ‘brother'.

"Not right now. Rafe's not home and the rest of my family are off having some sort of party night. He stays with us a lot, though, so it seemed like a silly ass question. No one's ever asked before. They just show up."

"Blondie must have gotten her bi-yearly fill-up of Taurus because she's not knocking my door down. Good thing, too, as I was feeling like a used tissue." He shakes his head, making a face.

I sigh. No way to avoid this shit now.

"Sari's theory is that she's jealous. All her shit started after I blogged about you meeting with me. Sari and Talia will probably get an earful this weekend."

"She got jealous when I agreed to help you out?"

I scoff. "You don't pay attention, buddy. I thought you caught up on the blog."

He exhales slowly, rolling his eyes back in his head. "Haven't you figured it out yet, Sandwich? I'm only interested in you. The rest can go hang. If I see something on that blog that doesn't have your name on it, I don't bother with it."

I rub my cheek on his shoulder. "This didn't have my name on it, but it was about my household. Rhea said even responded to it, so I thought you'd pay attention."

"Things were so much simpler when I was off on my own with my woman," he mumbles.

I blink, suddenly feeling very uneasy. This shit is why the concept of marking him is scary. I smack his arm playfully, trying to combat my fear. "You're a big boy. You can fend off the masses."

"The problem is that I don't want to fend them off—I want to annihilate."

"That's no skin off my ass."

His smirk is evil. "Do I have to tell you why I'm falling for you again?"

"You're a dangerous influence, Mister."

"I rarely annihilate the people I love." His chest puffs out and he huffs. "Correction: evil influence."

"There go the feathers." I tickle his tummy, feeling lighter. I'm semi-ignoring the love comment. It was flip, right? He meant that like—oh hell, I don't know what he meant and I'm too chicken to ask.

He grabs my hand and brings it to his lips, nipping my knuckles. I wiggle, and he sucks a finger into his mouth. "Mmm…tasty."

His phone vibrates, and he pauses for a moment, snarling when he looks at it. "There goes thinking Blondie won't try to chat me up today. She's on the other side with the gnome and my goddess. She's supposed to be having fun with her friends, but she's texting me."

I can only imagine how angry he is that she's giving a longtime friend like Talia half of her attention so she can text him. They must have gone drinking. Rhea gets very flirty when she drinks. Since she doesn't do it often, she loses her judgment pretty early on.

He snorts, looking at the phone as texts continue to come in. "Apparently, I need Viagra to keep it up." Grinning wickedly, he deadpans, "Remind me to turn you over and see if that's what's stamped on your ass."

I giggle. "Last I checked, they stamp Viagra on a lot of things, but not my ass."

His lips curve before he glares at the phone again. "If you hadn't specifically told me you were keeping this quiet, I'd let her know what I find."

Snickering, I pretend to turn so he can look, hoping to calm him down. His arms wrap around me as he tucks me back into his lap, smiling fondly. "You're all the incentive I need to stand to attention, pet. That wild streak is better than chemical substitutes by a good bit."

I grin, my nose wrinkling as I feel a flush creeping up my neck. I squeeze him hard. "The bonus for you is that I don't have any weird side effects like male PMS."

Arching a brow, he shakes his head. "I wouldn't be so sure about that, kitty. You should have seen the blow out with that portal popping prat I live with."

"It turned out alright, though, didn't it?"

"That it did, baby."

I kiss his nose. I'm a little disappointed that it seems like we won't get to do the marking, but I enjoy spending time with him. Having this weekend to come and go as I please with him is amazing. I'm going to cherish every second, no matter what we're doing.

"Speaking of not telling anyone, I was reading your blog while I waited for my dinner to be alone. You told the gnome about us? I didn't expect that."

"I told her because she was in a snit. Rhea acting weird at the get together and she couldn't understand why. Sari got paranoid, which is what started the texting. I probably shouldn't have." I shift, realizing something and feeling guilty. "Rhea was being bitchy and Sari wanted to slap her around. She might have told her about us to hurt her. That's probably why you just got hit with that Viagra crap."

"What exactly does the little snot know? I hope it doesn't open a can of worms for the golden one. Talia won't take any shit about us, that I can promise you."

"Only that we slept together." I shrug, picking at the non-existent lint on his shirt. Keeping these secrets was draining and Sari caught me in a hyper moment after I fed. The truth popped out. But I'd have to explain this after his mark, anyway.

Best to get them ready now. Right?

"I don't recall the sleeping part. So you weren't large with the ‘I like him' bit." His expression shifts and I can't read what he's thinking.

I snort. "Sari knows I wouldn't be sleeping with you if I didn't like you. I may get around, but I don't just let everyone have a ride. I have too many crazies as it is."

"She didn't give you shit about me? I worry about that, Sandwich."

Ha. You and me both. My admission alone is likely to put Rafe in some tricky situations, especially since she left him home alone with Wilde. He hasn't answered since I asked if he was okay with the marking earlier today. That worries me. Neither Sari nor Wilde has tried to chastise me since and that is fucking sus, bitches.

"She teased me, but it's good natured so far." I'm minimizing the impact because I'm certain more serious repercussions are yet to come. "She did the same thing when I started seeing Wilde and Alistair. It's one of the few times she acts girly."

That part is true. She's weirdly girly about Rafe, too, but I don't know if that's an affect. Sari is a hotbed of tiny neuroses are not at all hard to manipulate if need be, so I'm not sending up the flag yet.

"Thank Hell that it's not me. Blondie's bad enough, but I'd never fuck that therapist's wet dream."

I giggle. "I'm sure Sari feels the same way, darling. She's definitely not angling for you."

Yet. Give it a chance.