“It’s okay, Mylo,” he said. “Nobody here is judging you.”
The honesty and confidence in his voice soothed me. My tension eased.
“Do you trust me?” Aurum asked.
“Of course!”
A grin tugged at the corners of his lips. “Then let me do this for you. And hell, if you don’t love the final product, I’ll burn that, too.”
I chuckled in relief—and the mental image. “Okay.”
Meanwhile, Crimson scoffed. “You will not burn the clothes my mate labors over, so get that through your thick skull.”
On the other hand, Taylor looked curious and amused. “You’ve burned Mylo’s clothes?”
“Believe me, they had to go,” I insisted.
Crimson put a hand on his chest, as if overcome with feeling. “My younger brother, invested in fashion...” He sniffed and wiped a fake tear from his eye. “I never thought I’d see the day.”
I rolled my eyes. “Can you get back to work? We have a deadline, remember? If we’re not in front of the cameras by evening, Jade’s going to kill all of us.”
“True. I’d forgotten about that wily snake,” Crimson said. “All right, darling. Let’s get to work.”
Taylor nodded, then asked, “Can you lift your shirt, Mylo?”
I hesitated. Lifting my shirt meant revealing my big belly for all to see. Aurum had already seen it, but everyone else...
“Hey,” Aurum said sharply, seizing my attention. “You’re hot as fuck.”
A volcano of heat erupted within me. I tried to say something, but all that came out was a pitifully confused squeak.
Aurum grinned. He rubbed my shoulders, forming languid circles with his thumbs. In the background, I was vaguely aware of Taylor wrapping the measuring tape around my waist, but Aurum’s touch stole all my focus.
“That’s right, Mylo,” Aurum murmured, like an act of hypnosis. “You just think about how sexy you are.”
A strangled noise piped in my throat, unable to evolve into actual words. It was impossible to thinkorspeak when Aurum stared hungrily at me and showered me with compliments.
“There,” Taylor stated, drawing away. “All done.”
“Huh?” I said, dazed. Had he already taken all the measurements? That was fast.
Aurum looked proud of himself. “Told you. It’s painless, and look, it’s already over.”
“Entertain yourselves for half an hour,” Crimson said, already walking off as he waved a hand dismissively. “We’ll be finished soon.”
He and Taylor set up their station nearby on a large table with a metal sewing machine on it. The pair got to work designing, cutting, and stitching clothes.
All for me.
My heart fluttered with different kinds of affection. I loved Aurum, of course, but that Crimson and Taylor would do something so kind for me when they barely knew me...
Tears welled up in my eyes.
“What’s wrong?” Aurum asked, concerned. “Are you okay?”
I smiled, wiping the tears. “Yeah. I’m happy.”
Aurum relaxed. “Oh, good.”
