Page 31 of Moonlit Alexandrite

I almost tripped over Rusty as I opened the front door, and had to wait while he waddled his cute butt inside, chewing on something fluorescent green. Ever the responsible pet owner, Ren fished it out of his mouth and found himself holding a twelve-inch dildo.

“Please tell me this is yours, Red,” he begged, so frozen in disgust he seemed incapable of dropping it.

“Sorry, I don’t have one, and Colbie’s is pink, so that is an unknown masturbator.”

That did the trick. He recoiled violently and rushed to the kitchen sink to wash his hands. Twice.

“You don’t even know that it was used,” I tried to reason over the exaggerated sounds of horror he was making.

“You big baby, it’s not like you chewed on it.”

Ren returned, wiping his hands on his pants with a dark glower.

“Your shop. Let’s go, and never, ever tell the others about this. Got it?” he said.

“Scout’s honor,” I swore, holding up three fingers and omitting the minor detail that I had never been a scout, so couldn’t be held to any oath made under the guise of one. Ren grunted and held the way open for our second attempt at vacating the apartment.

* * *

A small crowdmilled around the front of Crafty Seductions, murmuring to each other and pointing at my store. I spotted Colbie and Newt amongst the onlookers and made my way over, whilst Ren flagged down Officer Stone. Newt threw himself at me as soon as I was close enough. I caught the gorgeous boy and held him to me as I noticed the gaping holes in my new front windows. Glass littered the flower boxes Agate had so carefully planted, and the cute trimming looked cracked and bent.

“Why...?” The rest of the question remained trapped, my throat thick with emotion as Stone made it over to me with Ren in tow. At the sight of his father, Newt shifted into his salamander form and crawled down my arm. I placed my hand on Ren’s shoulder and had to smile as the boy bridged the gap and snuggled into Ren’s neck, amongst the multitudes of braids. I picked Newt’s clothing up and followed Stone a little way away from the crowd.

“Lex, thanks for coming. Do you think I could ask you some questions?” Stone said. I imagined he was trying to make his voice gentle, but it just came out as this kind of growl, which told me he didn’t like malicious crimes being committed in his jurisdiction. He was used to the prank war and the frequent flouting of the rules, but there was an unspoken agreement that no one would take the war too far. This? This was too far.

“When was the last time you were on the premises?” Stone asked, eyes focused on his notebook.

“Um, maybe five hours ago? Colbie and I were here most of the day doing renovations.”

Did you notice anything suspicious?

Do you know who could have done this?

Do you know of anyone who may have a grudge against you?

Do you know of anyone who would want to sabotage your business?

“No!” I almost yelled. I didn’t know anything, had no idea why anyone would do this. I had only been in town for a few months and had no reason to think I’d managed to piss someone off enough to drive them to this.

“One last question. Is there a chance your mating may have upset anyone enough to act out against you?”

“My....” I looked to Ren where he stood, rubbing a finger over his son’s head and talking soothingly while watching me as though worried I might disappear... or break.

I wasn’t about to break though; I was angry. How dare they come to my business and destroy what I was building!

“If it has to do with my mates, whoever this is, is going to have to get over it. Do you think this is the same person who vandalized my door?” If they wanted a fight, they would get one. I wouldn’t give up my mates for anyone. A strong thread of warmth wove through my body, and I could practically hear my succubus growling territorially.

I had experienced a shift with her lately. She was bolder. It made me realize how little I trusted anyone before I met my mates. Whether it was the way Tase and Ren made me feel, or just exposure because neither of them could stay away from me for very long, I trusted them. So did my succubus. I wanted to try a blowjob again. I wanted to try more.

The only dark cloud was Dion. Ren and Tase insisted he would come around, but I didn’t wish to force him into something he didn’t want. Regardless of what fate had planned, it had to be his choice.

Getting an answer out of him would be nice.

Getting anything out of him would be nice.

He had continued to avoid me, and if I were honest, maybe I was avoiding him too? This stalemate couldn’t continue though, so I decided I would have to pull up my big girl panties and have an adult conversation. I wasn’t Tammilyn. I hated seeing the guys divided, and I knew it was weighing on the others too.

“Yes, I think they may be connected. We found building bricks on the floor beneath the damaged windows. There was a note tied to one with writing that seems to match what we saw on the front door.”

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