Page 31 of Distinctly Daray
“Chand, that’s not nice,” Baxter said, aghast. “You fired Victor because of a misunderstanding, and we forgave you. So did he. But you have no reason to be so mean to him now.”
“I hope you let him find somewhere to live instead of kicking him out immediately,” Benton commented as he tossed his napkin onto the table and crossed his arms.
“I didn’t say he’d be moving out,” Chander snapped. “This is his home, and he’s a Daray. There are plenty of jobs Victor can do if he wants. He’s intelligent, thoughtful, creative, and talented. Do you really think he has to wake up every morning and deal with your shit? No, he doesn’t. So, stop pestering him and let him make his own decisions. If he wants to work Monday through Friday, stop bitching about it. He runs the fucking household. You listen to him, not the other way around.”
“We shouldn’t have this discussion while Keegan and Phillip are here,” Brynnius remarked softly. “Victor wants to spend time with his mates.”
“Nice try,” Teverild said. “You’re trying to postpone it so you can keep fighting about how you think Victor is overworking himself. You guys do this shit constantly. I know it hurts your sentinel egos to hear it, but you don’t always get to have things your way.”
“Wow, Cass, what did you do to Teverild?” Arvandus asked.
“This is why Alaric complains about fallen knights,” Cassius muttered. “I didn’t do anything to Tev. He isn’t mad at me. He’s pissed at everyone else.”
“Babe, don’t rewrite history,” Teverild told his other half. “I’m annoyed with you too. You’re just as intent on irritating Victor by making his decisions for him as everyone else.”
Cassius’s mouth dropped open. A heartbeat later, he snapped his jaw shut. “I agree with Chand and Tev. Either leave Victor alone or we fire him.”
“Alaric, you better agree too or Chand’s going to make you sleep on the couch,” Eduard suggested.
“You can be his cuddle buddy because I doubt Hex is happy with you either,” Teverild pointed out.
The ruler of the demons, Imperator Hexaniys Xattanas-Daray, fixed a flat blue stare on Eduard. “Teverild is correct. This is absurd. Victor can make his own choices, and he is far wiser about his fatigue or lack thereof than anyone else in this condo.”
“All I have asked is for Victor to consider his priorities, and cleaning and cooking for us should not be one of them,” Alaric stated.
With what Keegan could only describe as an adorable grunt, one of the two goblins Chander had summoned for his mate used a spell to create a piece of pizza. To the stunned disbelief of everyone, the goblin—fittingly named Pizza—teleported to the table surface and threw the slice in his hand. It landed with a splat on the Lich Sentinel’s dark gray T-shirt.
Chander immediately responded with a loud guffaw as Alaric frowned deeply and peeled the greasy slice off his shirt. Keegan didn’t want to laugh, but when Phillip snickered next to him, he lost his ability to keep his cool. He’d arrived that night unsure how he’d ever relax around the many titled Darays, but his tension was quickly bleeding away.
They were normal people with issues, just like everyone else. Some of them also happened to be chosen by Fate. Keegan wanted to be part of the household someday, so he had to calm down.
“Pizza, that was unkind,” Alaric told the goblin. Pizza’s little earrings jingled as the goblin went into a series of chirps and growls. He crossed his tiny arms, and Keegan idly wondered if his scaly black skin was smooth or rough to the touch. Pizza’s other half, Rogue, teleported to his side and added his own commentary. Keegan wasn’t sure how Alaric withstood the two angry pewter gazes of the goblins for so long, but he eventually lifted his hands and shushed them gently. “Okay. Victor, Iapologize. You know what is best for you and your mates. But please remember that we understand if you need to cut your hours, either temporarily or permanently.”
“I know that, Alaric,” Victor replied. “Apology accepted. Now, can we go back to being a happy family and not arguing over silly stuff, please?”
There was a chorus of affirmative responses from suddenly sheepish sentinels.
“One question,” Phillip said. “Why was Victor fired the first time?”
“Because Chand thought I was having sex with Alaric,” Victor responded dryly.
Keegan’s eyes bugged.
“But Alaric is a sentinel. He is incapable of cheating,” Phillip said.
“And Victor would never go after someone else’s man,” Chander added. “I know. I was an idiot. They won’t let me apologize anymore, otherwise I would.”
“I’ll explain the whole thing to you and Keegan privately if you want, otherwise Chand will break the rules and sneak in a sorry or two,” Victor teased. It was a relief to Keegan that he wasn’t the lone person offering occasionally overzealous apologies. “But basically, he was sent some fake photos that showed Alaric and I in a compromising position. He fired me and kicked Alaric out. Thankfully, he has wonderful friends, and the Reverent Knights proved to him that the photos were indeed faked. It was all the work of his dreadful former elders.”
“They really were dreadful,” Baxter added.
“Speaking of pictures, I’m bummed no one got one of Alaric’s face when that pizza landed on his shirt,” Teverild remarked with a chuckle.
“No worries, we can have Dra’Kaedan lift the memory and give us a picture,” Chander assured the honorary sentinel who’d been born an elf.
“Good, I suggest we hang it in a prominent spot in the living room,” Vellerynd suggested.
“I’ll pick out a beautiful frame,” Victor promised.
