Her compliments made me squirm, but Brit already had a royal-purple scrawl in my face. I read it twice before framing my response.
Dear Hiring Director,
What a lucky family! Well-endowed twins who share everything! They even come with an estate in the country and a townhome in London. My Barbie didn’t even come with those extras. I had to purchase them.
It sounds like you already have everything you need and more than you could possibly want. I’m unsure what I could add to your family to improve it.
If we find ourselves in a similar location, I would be happy to get a coffee and learn more about your life.
All the best,
Quinn Question
Brit cackled. “The Windsor family, who sent you that, were the royalty of England in BT. The world doesn’t work that way anymore, but they’re still stuffy as fuck. I’d pay gold to see their response.” She pointed at my paper. “What’s a Barbie?”
“It’s a toy.” I waved my hand. “They won’t know it either.”
Her brow arched. “You’ve got more teeth than I thought. Good.”
With genuine excitement this time, I found the next Intention and started reading.
The door to the main room opened and thunked closed, making me jump. Tall, thin windows on the left swirled with night as Brit’s moss green lit the table. I’d lost track of time answering my Intentions.
More lights winked into existence in pale pastels, along with murmurs of conversation as Ravana’s family gathered. Silas appeared around the heat cone. He lifted Ravana out of her seat and spun her in his arms before planting a massive kiss on her lips. Despite their rough edges, I melted a little.
“I know that look,” Silas said. “I’m not accepting contracts right now.”
I blushed. “No. Ah. I was just…”
The man smirked and dropped Ravana back into her seat before snagging Joe and exiting the room again. The area around the heat cone came alive. My stomach growled, and the chopping of food and banging pots became music to my ears.
“I built that man.” Ravana flicked an orange Intention, making it spark before it settled. “He was already tied up in a contract. When I had my second son, my damn uterus came out with him. Westwaters said I was done. Useless.” She bared her gold fangs in a grin. “Silas won Lacy in a pit fight. Didn’t know she couldn’t breed till after he signed. Dropped her the second he found out.”
I wrinkled my nose, suddenly not liking Silas as much as I had.
Ravana snorted. “He dumped her freedom in her lap because he couldn’t be bothered. Cruel, careless, call it what you will. But it was still more than she’d ever had.” For once, her grin turned warm. “She was my best friend. That’s how I met Silas. Love at first sight, even if the world called it impossible, him bound to her, me a ‘waste.’ Took a year to break through that shit. But he learned.”
“He gave you a contract?” I asked.
“Fuck yes!” Ravana held her hand up, and Brit gave her a high five.
“And what happened to Lacy?” I asked.
Ravana barked a laugh. “Once Silas stopped measuring women by their wombs, he got real enlightened, had himself a whole damn parade of epiphanies. Lacy’s stunning, a genius with illusions, and she keeps The Pit running like clockwork. I don’t mind sharing. She’s proof not everything has to be ugly in this world.”
My platonic appreciation for Silas returned.
Ravana smirked, fingers rapping a steady beat. “No man’s born perfect. But you can train ’em with time, and the right oil.”
I blushed. “I’m not sure, um, meeting someone to change them is, ah, healthy.”
She smirked. “Hell no, it’s not healthy. But people change whether you like it or not. If the spark’s real, might as well see if you can grow the mess into something solid together.”
My heart fluttered. I liked that concept a lot. The ‘spark’ was not an issue.
The central door opening and closing again filled our thoughtful moment. Joe and Silas returned with a third set of footsteps. Rowan’s solid frame, dressed in simple trousers and a gray zip sweatshirt, came around the heat cone.
I bolted up, chair clattering, and threw myself into his arms. He didn’t sweep me up, just folded me into his chest and hugged me like it had been years, not a day. He brushed the collar, and my magic burst to life. The slightest bit of my focus split to heat myself.
