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“Nah, they just took a long time to realise they wanted to fuck each other,” Holt said conversationally, just as Taylor walked into the room. “Hi, babe.”
“Hi, honey.” He glanced at us nervously, giving us a tiny smile. “Um, honey, you probably shouldn’t talk about your employees’… personal relations like that.”
Holt snorted. “They know I’m right.” His expression sobered as he focused on me, shooting me a small smile. “You okay? We were worried about you.”
I willed my cheeks not to heat. “I’m fine. But I appreciate the… concern.”
He nodded, straightening and nodding at his office behind him. “Shall we go talk about everything?”
“What?” Larkin whined as Vince and I stood. “Why can’t you just talk about it here? Corey always says we’re like a family, right? Family shouldn’t have secrets.”
“Says the biggest fucking blabbermouth in the entire fucking company,” Holt said dryly. “Who was secretly hooking up with my bodyguard for weeks before he told me.”
“That’s different!” Larkin protested, his cheeks flaming dark blue.
“How?” Corey asked, sounding genuinely curious.
“Because… because Seb and I love each other! We’re in love.” He wrapped his arms around Seb’s neck and peppered kisses all over the side of the stoic werewolf’s face. “So it’s different. We didn’t tell anyone at first because we were falling in love. That shit’s private.”
“We’re in love too.” Vince slipped an arm around my waist and tugged me into his side. “I love the fucking shit out of him. So our shit’s private too.”
“Oh my god,” Corey murmured, his eyes growing glassy with tears as he rested a hand on his chest and gazed at us. “Have you ever heard anything so romantic?”
“Ever the poet, Vince,” Holt said dryly, then gestured at his office again. “So. Shall we? I’m particularly interested in hearing about the cake-throwing incident.”
“Cake-throwing?” Larkin immediately asked, perking up in Seb’s lap. “Who threw a cake? At what? Where?”
I followed Holt and Vince into the office, pausing at the door to glance over at the young fae.
“Vince threw a cake at my mother’s face,” I told him, then closed the door behind me.
Epilogue
Meet and Greet
Crossbody
THREE WEEKS LATER
“This is bullshit,” Vince muttered to me through his teeth, making sure to keep the smile fixed on his face.
“It’s not for long,” I murmured back through my own fake smile, mine far more demure and aloof than Vince’s, because that was what the fans expected of High Lord Crossbody.
We were about to take part in a Goliaths meet and greet, and the rabble of fans waiting to meet us were already peering into the room from the corridor outside and waving frantically, trying to get our attention.
Beside me stood Brian, in his werewolf form like always, and on the other side of Vince were Heidi and Dan. Holt had stressed to us that these fans had paid for the experience, so we couldn’t let them down. We had to be on our best game, friendly and welcoming but still in character.
That didn’t mean Vince was happy about it, though. For one reason in particular.
“I’m not a fucking shill,” he gritted out. “Especially not for those turds.”
His disdainful gaze darted to the colourful display of new merch at the side of the room. Larkin and Seb were supposed to be manning the table, but Larkin was distracted making baby faces at Cora while Seb frowned down at his crossword, deep in thought.
My mouth twitched as I glanced at the merch we were supposed to spend this meet and greet promoting—Holt’s new range, designed around the storyline he’d created for Frank and Beans’ abrupt departure a while back. Vince was particularly affronted by that fact.
“It’s not like they’ll be profiting,” I murmured. “You knew Holt would try and capitalise off the endless questions from fans about Frank and Beans’ sudden and mysterious departure from Goliaths. He can’t help himself.”
“Yeah, but that doesn’t mean I should have to play a part in it,” he muttered, shuddering lightly. “Every time I think about those dicks, I get phantom ball pain in my left nut.”
