Privately, Maya was glad to have Chaos by her side right now. She wasn’t sure if she’d survive this heartbreak otherwise.
She took another long glug of her wine. She hadn’t even bothered to water it down like she usually did. Was that super irresponsible? Sure, but she wanted to fast-track her way to numbness ASAP.
At least her heartbreak was enough to have her completely ignore the fact that she’d returned home to find her room broken into and her things left out in the hallway. Vi, it turned out, had moved her new man into Maya’s room. Apparently, she’d beenacting like the roommate from hell to try to get Maya to leave this whole time so he could move in.
Whatever. She hated it there anyway. But it meant that Maya was now staying in the kennels.
Faith had suggested showing up with Commander Chaos’s parents and forcing the asshole out, but Maya was done. So her friend had dragged Maya down to the rental office to explain her situation and to have her name removed from the agreement. The nice Tallean lady at the front desk apologized for not being able to reimburse her, but she did say that the building would be forced to kick Viv out if they could prove she’d broken into Maya’s room. That was easy enough; the hallway cameras had plenty of footage of Viv and her man carrying Maya’s stuff out of the apartment.
Then Faith had told Maya she could stay in the kennel for as long as she needed. There was plenty of extra room. She didn’t mind. She needed the company right now anyway.
Tipsy from the wine, it took several rings for Maya to realize that Faith was trying to call her. She picked it up, trying her best not to slur her words.
“Hey, I think Grant and I might have found a special home for Commander Chaos.”
“You did?” Maya wasn’t sure if she wanted to be happy for Commander Chaos or cry because she was going to lose him too.
“Yup. And this guy already understands that Chaos is technically just a prototype, and he’d technically be adopting him, not buying him. And he’s spent time with dragus before. But there’s a catch. He’s actually on his way to the kennel now.”
“Now?”
“I know it’s late and we are closed. But can you do me a favor and let him in if I don’t get in on time? I’m rushing over now.”
“Um, ah, sure.” Like there was anything else she could say.
“Okay, thanks. You’re a lifesaver. See you soon.”
Maya stared at her comm. Damn it! She was too drunk for this. She made her way over to the hallway, with Commander Chaos following behind, and looked at her red eyes and messy hair in the mirror. Maybe drinking the amberberry wine straight out of the bottle like a lush hadn’t been the best idea.
Capping the bottle, she corralled the two dragus pups back through the door into the room with their enclosure. Butterball stepped in almost immediately with the promise of a treat, but Chaos, as usual, decided to make a run for it the moment he realized it was time to go home.
She grumbled. She didn’t have time for this. Not with how much of a mess she looked right now. She needed to make herself presentable before whoever it was arrived. She quickly gave Butterball her treat, then closed the door and gave her tons of exaggerated love, pretending not to notice Chaos at all. She’d learned that Chaos hated being ignored.
Jealous, Commander Chaos barreled into the enclosure to demand pets from her too.
Ha! Gotcha now!
She gave him a few pats of the head and some scritches under the chin so the pup wouldn’t feel like he’d been tricked, and then when he was good and distracted, she closed the door.
Freed from her furry friends, Maya went to the facilities to freshen up. The mirror was less than friendly. Her eyes were all red, and her hair a frizzy mess. She did what she could, rinsedher mouth, and hoped she didn’t smell like she’d been drinking since Faith and Grant left for the day. She’d pulled on some pants and a spare Dragus R Us shirt when the chime rang out through the building.
Wow, that was fast.
She tried to smooth her wayward hair down one more time before she opened the heavy metal doors and gawked. Ranek stood in front of the door, looking sexy as hell.Hewas the one Grant and Faith had convinced to take Commander Chaos in? The moment he saw her, he stepped in and pulled her into his arms.
“Maya.” There was a desperate sound in his voice, like he’d thought he would never see her again. “My love.”
But she remembered how much it fucking hurt to hear him call the dead woman’s name instead of hers. Maya was not going to settle for second fiddle. She tried to shove him away.
“Ranek, I’m not your...”
He didn’t let her finish. “You are!” he growled vehemently.
“I heard what I heard, Ranek.” She pushed him harder, but she was trapped in his embrace.
“I wasn’t calling Channa’s name. I was trying to tell my brother that Channa wasn’t my mate, you are. Please believe me.”
Her head spun from the wine, and she wasn’t sure what she dared believe.
