Me:Sorry for the late reply! I am open to meeting with Maverick, but before anything like that happens, I would need him to be in contact with Naomi and apologize for his actions. I don’t like the idea of sneaking behind her back, even if it’s well intended.
There. That was fairly diplomatic, and I did mean it. Although I wasopento forgiving Maverick, I didn’t really feel like his shit was mine to forgive. Naomi was the one he’d hurt, basically tormented, for most of her life, so it was her decision. And I would stand by whatevershedecided.
There was one more text message, this one from Carolina.
Carolina:Hey, I know you’re super busy and we’ve got plenty of time, but I wanted to just check birthday presents for Iko so we don’t double up again.
Ah, Carolina, the harpy who had come farther than any of her flock ever thought she could. Not only did she have her OCD and agoraphobia managed for the most part, but her panic attacks were also few and far between. Between her coping mechanisms, therapy, medication, and her support system, she was feeling safer than she ever had in her whole life.
Although I was willing to bet those prosthetic wings of hers helped a whole lot.
She couldn’t fly with them yet, but having the right balance for her spine was doing wonders for a lot of her chronic pain and mobility issues. I hated that it had taken so long for her to get a doctor, witch, and technopath to craft a set for her. They were ridiculously expensive, but thankfully,Mis-Matchedwas doing well enough that we were able to sponsor her and make sure she got the best pair of prosthetic wings that existed. No Icarus experience for her.
Me:Sounds great. I can probably have a list whipped up next week or so?
I didn’t expect an answer, as Carolina’s sleep schedule was still unpredictable, but before I even put my phone down, her reply popped up on the screen.
Carolina:So soon! Are you sure? I know you’re hella busy.
Me:I’m sure. I’ve had some things in mind all year.
Carolina:That’s perf then. Thank you bunches! XOXO
Me:No problem.
There, all of my text messages, which had become my main form of socialization lately, were answered. I’d set up a friend date and was putting polish on plans for Iko’s hundredth birthday. Not bad for someone who wanted to pull their hair out over planning what was supposed to be a joyous occasion.
Now back to work.
I managed another half hour or so, most of that spent on call with our three blood and bloodwine suppliers to make sure everything was copacetic, before my blood began to boil again. Not that Ihadblood, but the metaphor still stood.
Thankfully, before any thermodynamic reaction could happen, a warm hand gently alighted on my shoulder.
“Hey there, handsome,” Naomi’s voice murmured gently from behind me. “Thought you might want this.”
A glass of bloodwine appeared on my other side, and I gratefully took it.
“You are more right than you know.”
“I had a feeling. Especially when I woke up from my nap and could practically smell your stress in the air.”
“I didn’t wake you up, did I?”
Although my love usually only napped during her cycle, she’d had a headache that her healing abilities weren’t helping for. While usually such snoozes were only an hour or two, she’d been knocked out for around at least three hours, so she must have been quite tired. That was my hard-working woman, all right.
“No, I’ve been up for a bit. I was just arranging stuff.”
“Stuff?”
“Oh yeah, ya know. Stuff. Things. Whatchamacallits.”
I chuckled, as I usually did when Naomi was being flippant. Although I wasn’t in a brat-taming mood at the moment, I always appreciated how she kept me on my toes.
“I see. Very important stuff, naturally.”
“Naturally.”
I took a sip of the wine, and it settled me a bit. I hadn’t fed in a while, not because of a lack of enthusiasm on mine or Naomi’s part, but because busy schedules plus her period arriving four days early had thrown things off. While she insisted she would be fine, I wasn’t comfortable with her losing any extra blood at that time. Shifter doctors didn’t have much experience with menstrual cycles, considering almost all shifters had heats instead. And while my girl had pseudo-heats that were very similar to the type of horny that came with ovulation, it lacked most of the other biological aspects.
