The moment I step into the bedroom, there’s a scratching at the door. Princess Buttercup! I hurry over to open it.
“I was worried!” She twines around my legs as I stagger back toward the bed, then vaults onto my lap the moment I lie down. She kneads my tummy, her paws working frantically, purring her loudest purr.
“What’s this all about?” Her automatic feeder is set up in Luke’s kitchen—it seemed a good idea now that I don’t know when the book might take me away—so she had access to her dinner.
“I’m making you feel better!”
I scratch her little cheeks. “That’s so sweet.”
“I wasn’t very good when I woke up back in the library.” She kneads faster. “So I’m making up for it.”
“What do you mean you weren’t good?”
“I was upset about being locked in the bedroom without chicken! You know how much I love chicken!” Her voicehits a high note of indignation. “But Luke let me know book-you did that, notyou-you.”
He did? It’s so sweet of him to defend me like that, as if he cares. Or did he explain it to her in order to be factual? God knows the man loves his facts. My teeth dig into my lower lip as I try to figure him out.
Luke seemed so into the sex while we were having it. Fudge, the way he licked me, his needy groans and filthy words. The way his hands held me just a little too tightly, all possessive and strong and hot. My thighs clench at the memory. The sex was earth shattering, each of my orgasms easily in the top three of my life. And three! Hoo, boy! I never knew I could have more than one.
But all of that must have been the book character instead of the real Luke, because why else would he act so fudging clinical the moment we got back to the real world?
I groan and cover my face with a pillow as fresh embarrassment sweeps through me.
“What are you doing under there? I can’t see you.” A little face pokes under the edge of the pillow, nose wiggling against my cheek in little tickles. She headbutts the pillow off me. Then Princess Buttercup lies down on my chest, tucking her legs underneath in a perfect catloaf. She starts purring again, the sound vibrating through my body.
And I do feel better. It turns out kitty snuggles really can help everything, even squishy hearts as easily bruised as mine.
I take the coward’s way out the next morning, lingering in my room well past the time Luke always goes to his library. My tummy flutters with nerves as I tiptoe down to the kitchen, leave a note, and rush out the front door.
A quiet Princess Buttercup trots along beside me, the tip of her raised tail curled into a jaunty question mark, as if we’re playing a game. I’m glad someone’s having fun.
Naomi pops into the castle courtyard, right on time. Her pretty face breaks into a smile. “Skye!”
“Shhh,” I whisper-hiss, scooping Princess Buttercup into my arms. “Fae hearing.”
My friend’s eyes flick past me to the castle door, and she wraps an arm around my shoulder. In a blink, we stand in the middle of I Touch My Shelf, the familiar surroundings easing the tight knot in my stomach.
“This is the place you go to a lot!” Princess Buttercup says.
“How can you know that?” I look down at her in surprise.
“You smell like this sometimes.”
Naomi levels a finger at me. “Okay, spill. What’s going on?”
“Can we wait for the others? I don’t think I can say it twice.” As soon as I woke up this morning, I texted my closest friends, seeing who was free. We have our weeklyWitch Bitch Spicy Book Club meeting this evening, but I didn’t want to wait that long. Plus, I’m not sure I can say what I need to say in front of everyone.
She pulls out her phone and sends a quick text, nodding when she gets an immediate response. “They’re almost here.”
Princess Buttercup wiggles, and the second I loosen my arms, she jumps down to run around the room, little nose sniffing as she goes. “Other animals have been here!”
“Other familiars,” I correct.
“If they get to come here, then I do, too!”
“Snickerdoodle,” I mutter. At Naomi’s soft laugh, I explain, “Witch Bitch Spicy Book Club meetings just got a new member. What happens when you mix a cat, a fox, and a mini-goat?”
“Nothing boring. Just make sure they don’t hurt any of the books. Although, with these huge mystery orders I’ve been getting lately, the shop’s doing well enough we can stand a little loss.”
