Her lips trembles and I shake off my own anxiety to pull her close. “But you’re not fine. What’s wrong, princess? Did something happen?”
As we’ve been doing for the last three months, she quickly runs down the day, ending with the news that her uncle was, surprise, surprise, a heartless piece of shit.
“I’m sorry, princess.”
She laughs, but it’s humorless while a tear streams down her cheek. “Kiss me, please. I’ve missed you.”
I give in to her demand and kiss her senseless before picking her up and wrapping her legs around my waist as I walk us back to the cabin. Khalil and Thorin are lounging around the living room, pretending they aren’t tense and waiting for our return, but I see the collective sigh they release when they see us unharmed.
“How did it go?” Khalil asks as he sets aside one of the many magazines spread around the living room floor. “All good?”
“Yup. So how was Meera?” I ask as I take a seat in the recliner with Aurelia in my lap.
“She seemed happy. Healthy. The pups arehuge.”
“Yeah, so big it doesn’t really feel right calling them pups anymore,” Thorin points out.
Aurelia gives him a withering look. “Khalil, be a dear and hand me that apple so I can throw it at Thorin’s head.”
Khalil hands it to her and as promised, she tosses it at Thorin, who raises a hand at the last minute and catches it in midair. He then leans back with a cocky grin and takes a bite out of the apple.
“Thanks, songbird. I was starving.”
Aurelia fidgets in my lap. I can tell she wants to go to him, so I sigh and unwind my arms from around her waist. Aurelia smiles softly at me over her shoulder and then crawls from my lap and into his. Thorin grips her thigh possessively, and she rolls her eyes at him.
I don’t get those two and probably never will.
“You ever thought about cutting your hair?” she asks him after examining the unbound strands falling around his face.
“You don’t like my hair?”
“I love your hair. I’m just thinking about how much hotter Brad Pitt was with shorter hair inMr. & Mrs. Smithafter seeing him with long hair inTroy.”
“Yeah, but I’m a lot fucking hotter than Brad fucking Pitt.”
Aurelia groans and tips her head back. “Yes, of course you are, but that wasn’t the point.”
Thorin sighs and leans his head back on the couch to stare at Aurelia from under his lashes. “If you want me to cut my hair, then I’ll cut it.”
Aurelia doesn’t miss a beat, swiveling her head toward Khalil. “What about you, handsome?”
Khalil pauses, looking like a deer caught in headlights with a beer frozen halfway to his lips. Clearing his throat, he sets the bottle down. “Actually, I was thinking about loc’ing my hair. I should have done it years ago.”
Aurelia’s expression becomes thoughtful as she taps her chin. “You know, that’s such an interesting thought. Let me see…yeah,no.”
Khalil sucks his teeth while Thorin and I snicker.
“You really want them to cut their hair?” I ask, noticing she hadn’t asked me about mine. She’s already seen me both ways since Seth doesn’t do well with haircuts.
“No. But I was thinking we should probably consider disguises. By now, my uncle will have done background checks on all of you, and we shouldn’t underestimate him. You’ll all be a lot less easily recognized if you alter your appearance. Just a little.”
“What about you?”
Aurelia plucks one of her longer curls from her shoulder and studies the gold giving way to her natural brown before eyeing Khalil. “I hope you’re not too attached to calling me Goldilocks.”
“Your hair wasn’t the only reason I called you that, so changing it won’t change who you are to me.”
Aurelia leaves Thorin, who looks like he was nodding off before being jarred awake by the loss of her warmth. He scowls at Khalil when he finds Aurelia curled in his lap now and then scrubs a hand over his face as he leans forward.
