Page 36 of Prey It Ain't So

The others turn their attention to me and I think about what I want to say in this very not-secure vehicle. “The town is quite lovely—there’s a lot of old-style towers and open-air spaces that are popular with tourists, I imagine. Lots of room for visitors to mill around and really absorb the history, you know? You can see everything around you because it’s not a crowded, skyscraper filled big city.”

Dolly snaps her fingers, her eyes dancing as she looks at me. “Nowhere to hide and lots of places to get lost at the same time, yes?”

“Exactly,” I reply with a proud smile. “I think I’ll enjoy exploring such an unusual slice of history once we’ve settled in, obviously. I just didn’t want to be caught unawares and miss something.”

Whew. What I’d really like is not to be in this cab anymore, so I don’t have to translate my every word.

“You know, I really would like to see the sights at some point,” Dolly says as she looks out the window. “It’s a little kitsch, obviously, but I bet we’d have fun.”

“We will,” Aubrey rumbles from his spot next to the stonily silent gargoyle. “On the way back, if we have time, we will visit anything you want, lunchable.”

Our excited bunny beams at him, and I chuckle softly. She really doesn’t ask for much and it’s incredibly easy to give it all to her. “Good. Travel isdefinitelygoing on our bucket list for later, even if I’m scared as fuck about certain kinds. Once it’s all over, I’m gonna conquer that dumb fear, anyway.”

“Of course you will,” Felix says smoothly. “We’ll be there to help you, Princess.”

“Duh,” she says. “But I want to do itmyself. I like to stand on my two thumpers first, okay?”

Fitz leans into her, sniffing her neck like a weirdo before he says, “Baby Girl, you can thump anything your heart desires. I’ll hold big bro back if he’s being a super dick again. Failure is how we learn, right?”

She snorts as her hand buries in his messy locks, tugging it up to look into his eyes. “It is, baby. But also, be nice to your brother. He’s just doing the ‘aggressive protector guy’ thing. In the end, we always meet in the middle because he loves me. Though it might be kind of fun to see…”

“Though… what?” I ask curiously. “I’d like to hear the end of that sentence.”

“Me, too,” Felix says wryly.

“Ew, don’t beweird,” she practically shrieks. Aubrey and even Ren snickers across from us, and the tigers keep their eyes trained on her as she makes a face. “ImeantI’d enjoy someone getting Mr. Dominant tied down soIcan have my wicked way with him, notyou, Fitzy!”

Our crazy mate bursts into growly guffaws that eventually tip his elder twin into similar ones. They are definitely playing her, and I haven’t seen the two of them prank someone like that in a long time. It makes my heart swell to see them getting along without needing copious amounts of alcohol and drugs to dull the memories of the past.

It’s about time they allowed themselves to let go of Felix’s error and move on with life—especially together.

The hotel issmall and definitely a ‘boutique’ experience—everything is rustic yet obviously restored to give the experience of old world charm. Lots of exposed wooden beams and stone, with information in our check-in packet about the wine cellar and terrace. If we actually come back through here on the wayhome, I think we’d have a great time doing tastings and shopping in the markets in town. It’s the kind of experience the academic in me—and certainly the older mythicals—would bask in. I’ll have to make sure I mention it to Felix for consideration.

Why can’t vacation be funanda learning experience, after all?

As we follow the hostess to our rooms, I sigh in relief when they are next to one another. Most places we’re going to stay throughout this journey aren’t made for a large group like us, but that’s fine as long as we can remain close together. For safety and access sake, adjoining rooms or suites are the best way for us to feel like we will not be separated and exposed. I wish that wasn’t such a big fucking deal, but honestly? The more enemies we pick up, the worse that fear gets in my gut and I’m sure it’s occurred to the others.

“Okay, last night was you guys, so I’ll be with the brothers tonight,” Dolly says as we face the doors. “That feels fair, and it means I don’t really have to choose as much asalternate.”

Felix nods, looking at the ancients for confirmation. Aubrey and Renard pause to give her kisses on either cheek before they step back. “That’s very true, Princess. You’re being quite balanced.”

“If only everything wasn’t damn small,” the dragon grumbles. “It’s all made for fucking tiny ass humans, it seems.”

“We didn’t look for shifter lodgings because we wanted to get to the settlement faster,” I remind him. “Doing this another way might have yielded better accommodations, but it would have made the trip take a lot longer.”

“I know; I know.”

Renard gives him the ghost of a smile as he claps his hand on Aubrey's shoulder. “You’ll have to make do with onlymoi, my love. Hopefully, that won’t be too onerous.”

“Don’t be ridiculous,” Aubrey grumbles as he picks up their things. “You miss her as much as I do, and that doesn’t have a damn thing to do with us.”

“Guys,” my angel says as she puts her hand on the handle to our door with a pout. “You’ll make me sad, and I hate being sad. If I thought we’d all fit, that’s what we’d be doing. Plus, we’re going to have dinner and get the travel arranged for tomorrow, then hit the sack. It will be a boring as fuck night, anyway. We have to get up early as hell to head into the mountains.”

“That’s true,” Ren chimes in. “In fact, once I put my stuff down, you and I are headed down to do the arranging.”

Aubrey sighs dramatically—his attitude more playful than I’ve ever seen—as he yanks their door open. “Fine.But it goes on record that I am most definitely the bigger person.”

“In every way,” Dolly says with a wicked smirk. “Now, shoo. I want to get settled, so we can go back to surfing the web for posts. Your intuition on the train has me really freaked out, big guy.”

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