Chapter 16

Chapter

Sixteen

Ruune

I followed Griff up the tight staircase, the scent of something spicy and sweet wafting through the air. The building was a far cry from the hotel, but the aroma wasn’t unpleasant, and at least we were protected from the cold outside air. “This is where your mate resides?”

“Yes, but the party is not in her apartment. It is being held at her neighbor Carl’s place.”

We reached the third landing, and a head appeared from a crack in a door. “Ho ho ho!” The deep, masculine voice echoed off the low ceiling. “Welcome, boys. The party's in here!"

“Hi, Carl.” Griff shook his hand. “This is my cousin, Ruune.”

I blinked, taken aback by the human's incongruous appearance. Carl had white ringlets that brushed his shoulders and wore a matching red dress with fur around the hem. A red pointed hat sat askew on his head, a small bell jingling at its tip.

Carl looked me up and down. “Aren’t you a tall drink of blue water?” He winked. “Call me Sandy Claus”

Was this one of the royals Caroline had mentioned? That would explain the ornate attire.

I followed Griff inside and was hit with a cacophony of sounds and smells. The cramped space room was filled with people, most of whom seemed to be wearing outfits as extravagant as Carl's. Snowflakes that looked like they were made from shimmery paper hung from the ceiling and strings of light were draped along the walls.

I spotted a tall creature in a spangled, green jumpsuit with a tower of pink hair that nearly brushed the ceiling and another with long, black hair that hung past the waist and almost beyond the hem of her silver dress.

My gaze quickly found Olivia, the only female not wearing glittery fabric from head to toe. Instead, she wore black pants that hugged her legs and a fluffy white sweater that unfortunately covered her ass. My heart did a strange flip in my chest at the sight of her.

"Ruune!" Caroline's voice cut through my thoughts as she bounded over, pulling me into a hug. "I'm so glad you could make it to game night!”

I returned her embrace, still a bit overwhelmed by the scene before me. She was also dressed more casually in denim pants and a cropped top the color of the sand on Vedrion III. “Thank you for inviting me. I have been looking forward to meeting human royalty.”

Caroline blinked at me a few times in rapid succession. “That’s right. Drag queens.” She swept an arm wide. “Well, here they are, some of New York’s finest drag queens.”

I studied the odd assemblage, curious that Earth royalty would be gathered in such a modest abode.

She elbowed me in the side. “They’re not real queens. They’re drag queens.”

Carl sidled up to her and hooked an arm through hers. “Which is, of course, the best kind of queen.”

Olivia joined us, shaking her head. “Are you trying to confuse him?” She turned her gaze to me. “Drag queens are men who dress as women and usually perform. They aren’t actual royalty.”

“We’re way more fun than actual royals,” one of the queens with sky-blue hair said as she flounced past. “And we dress better.”

As the room dissolved into laughter and loud hoots of agreement, I bent down to whisper in Olivia’s ear. “Thank you for explaining.”

“You’re welcome.” She gave me a warm smile that made me think of being in the back of the carriage with her. “I think you and Griff are the only real royalty here, but don’t tell the queens I said that.”

I put a hand to my chest. “I will take your secret with me to the pits of Zendor.”

She giggled. “That sounds intense but thank you.”

My chest constricted at the sound of her laughter, but before I could make her laugh again, Carl—or Sandy—clapped his hands together. "All right, ladies and aliens! It's time for the first game of the night.” He took a dramatic breath. “Drumroll please!”

Everyone but me slapped their hands back and forth on their legs. Olivia nudged me, and I quickly copied what everyone else was doing.

Carl turned and grabbed what looked like a folded piece of heavy fabric. He unfurled it on the floor, causing everyone to jump back as he announced, “Drag Queen Twister!"

A cheer went up from the assembled crowd as the large mat fell to the floor. It was covered in large circles in a variety of patterns and textures.

“What in the galaxy is this?" I muttered to Griff.

He shrugged, looking as bewildered as I felt. "I have no idea, but I think we're about to find out."

“Are the circles leopard print and sequins?” Olivia asked as her eyes grew wide.

“And fur and glitter,” Caroline said as she pointed to some of the circles.

“To make it even more fun,” Carl announced as he reached for a pitcher on the counter that separated the small kitchen and the main room, “Every time someone falls, they drink.”

He began pouring drinks for everyone—a chilled concoction he claimed was mulled, iced cider with "just a hint" of rum.

A statuesque queen with towering blonde hair sidled up to me, her eyes roving appreciatively over my form. “You look confused, handsome. I'm Rhoda Dendron. Consider me your personal guide to all things Twister.”

Before I could turn to Olivia for help, Rhoda was pulling me toward the mat. "It's simple, really. Just follow what Ida Slapter calls and try not to fall.”

“Left hand on leopard print!" A drag queen in the silver dress and bright-blue painted eyelids bellowed.

Rhoda nudged me toward the mat. “Come on, sugar. Let’s see what you big blues can do.”

I followed Rhoda’s lead as we twisted and contorted ourselves on the mat, finding myself in increasingly compromising positions with both the queens and even once with Griff.

“We will never speak of this again,” he muttered, as I peered up at him through his splayed legs.

More than once, I found myself almost nose-to-nose with Olivia, her eyes twinkling with mirth as I wobbled and huffed.

“You know,” the queen with pink hair named Robyn Banks said as I curled one arm around her waist to put my left hand on black sequins, “I rarely feel petite, but I do now.”

“Right hand on red glitter!” Ida called, after taking a sip of her cider and hiccupping.

I pivoted to find Olivia's body pressed against mine as she reached for a red glittery circle. The contact sent a jolt through me, and I had to fight the urge to abandon the game and kiss her right there on the mat.

Our eyes locked and she drew in a quick breath. Then she lost her balance, tumbling backwards with a squeal. I reached out to catch her, but she was already on the floor, giggling uncontrollably and I collapsed on top of her, only catching myself from crushing her by bracing myself on my elbow at the last minute.

"This game must be a violation of the rules,” I said as we laughed and struggled to stand.

Her cheeks were flushed, and I wasn’t sure if it was from Carl’s cider or the game. "It definitely is. But maybe I was wrong about the rules. Maybe we should revise them."

My heart lurched at this. Before I could respond, she added, "Also, there's no way there's just a hint of booze in this cider."

I laughed, pulling her closer under the guise of helping her stand and regain her balance. "I think you might be right about that."

We were standing so close our breath was mingling, and I realized that my hand was pressed to the small of her back. I felt the chatter and laughter around us quiet as multiple gazes swiveled to us.

Olivia took a step back. “It’s hot in here. I’m going to grab some air.”

She darted out a back door, and I let her go as I tried to remember how to breathe normally. It’s just a game, I told myself. None of this is real.