Page 37 of The King

“Yeah, yeah, yeah,” she teased, trying with all her might to hide the smile on her perfect lips.

Crossing the room as Bridgette added cream to her favorite drink, he walked behind her, wrapped his arm around her waist, and kissed her neck.“Are you complaining about the treatment you received, mi Reina?”He asked directly into her mind, too busy marking her, renewing his scent on her silken skin to be bothered with speaking aloud.

"Absolutely not, Catman Do," she breathed. "Absolutely not." Turning in his embrace, the woman who would always own him – body, heart, and soul put her hands on his face and stopped him from resuming his seduction. "And I am not stopping you now, however…"

“However, it seems like you are,” he teased with a raised eyebrow.

Laughing out loud, she swatted his arm and pretended to growl. “Don’t even try it. I know you can’t be mad at me.”

"Can't is a powerful word,Amada.”

“Strong, but true,” she giggled like a schoolgirl, the sound music to his ears and so out of character that he knew his Mate reserved it for him and him alone. Once again, her soft hands and elegant fingers kept his lips from reaching hers, and this time, he relented.

Holding her tight, Max gently lifted Bridgette until her feet left the floor. Putting his arm behind her knees, he held her close to his chest, kissed the tip of her nose when she gasped, then said, “Get your coffee, love. If we’re going to talk, we’re going to do it in comfort.”

“Okay, cool.”

His beautiful Queen started as soon as he reached the couch and had her comfortable on his lap. "Can you believe Greer got out of that fuckin' bunker without anyone seeing her? And she took Pandora. That’s just wrong – really wrong. I can’t believe we all missed that damned tunnel."

“Yes,mi amor, but only because it was nowhere on any of the plans we had, and Dr. O'Baoill kept it hidden within her mind. I know how unhappy you are that you missed it, but Declan is still inconsolable. He is so upset that Julian and Rory must reassure him that I am not angry when the subject arises."

"Well, shit, we need to send him something or go see him. What do you get a dude who wears the same color T-shirt with the same brand of jeans and the same boots every day, only likes to deal in facts, and whose favorite color is white?"

“How do you know Declan’s favorite color is white?”

“Well, I don’t, really. Besides, white isn’t a color, but it was just a guess. I mean, he is pretty one note and no-nonsense.”

“I believe that is only on the surface, Corazón. Where our Declan is concerned, the saying, ‘still waters run deep’ seems apropos.”

“Yeah, you’re probably right,” Ettie sighed. “But we still need to send the boy something. Maybe a tie-dyed T-shirt.”

“As you wish, my love. As you wish.”

“Okay, I know that is code for hurry up. So, has Sophia figured out if Pandora was after me or if she was after you and if Dr. Crazy Pants knows we are Mates?”

“Sadly, no. But she, Brannoc, Declan, and Julian are all working to break the encryption on the O’Baoill files. They will call as soon as they know anything.”

“Mhm," Bridgette hummed as she drank her iced coffee through a straw. With her brow furrowed and her eyes narrowed, Max knew she was thinking. So, he sat quietly, letting the silken strands of her hair slide through his fingers.

“And all of Pandora’s victims are wither back home or at one of the Dragon Lairs being taken care of?”

“But of course,” he reassured. “As you know from speaking to your cousins.”

"Right." Taking another sip of iced coffee, she kept going. "Dr. Jane Lawrence is here. I mean on the Pride Lands. She and her staff are caring for the Big Cats, who can't go home yet. And no one has found the blind Dragon. Maggie, Bonnie, and the MacAllens and their Mates are pretty sure he is the Berserker that was trapped in an ice cave also deep under the Chihuahuan Desert but on the Texas side really close to the MacAllens' Ranch who got out and ran away when Tree's Mate was trapped down there."

"Again, you are correct," Max chuckled. "But you already knew that."

Trying not to laugh out loud when she slid her eyes to the side and gave him a pointed look, Max couldn't help but chuckle when she sighed, "Look, I can't help it. I mean, when we rescued others who had to deal with some bad guy's bullshit, I always wondered why they were so invested in what happened to everyone involved if there were others involved." Inhaling deeply, then pushing it right back out, she added, "But now I get it. They felt responsible for those people.Ifeel responsible for all those people who Pandora kidnapped and tortured.”

“Butmi amor…”

“No, wait,” she interrupted. “Not responsible, like it was my fault. Responsible in the way that Ineedto know they are being taken care of and helped back to some semblance of normal.”

“I understand, Corazón. And that is just one of the things that I love about you.”

Looking him in the eye, she kissed the tip of his nose and then winked. "And I love you, Catman Do." After another sip of her drink, she added, "On another subject, I still want to know which of my Goddess Aunts talked to me when I was trying to wake up. It was nice and all. She was upfront about the fact that she couldn't help me but gave me a little rah-rah speech before leaving." Brushing the bangs off her forehead, she added, "I asked Dad, and he had no clue."

“I am sure you will find out when the time is right.”

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