Page 60 of Charmed

"Fiona!" Tristan's frantically irritated gaze darted between Ceara, Fiona, and back again. "Whatever you're doing to her, stop. Now!"

Shoot. "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry." Fiona closed her eyes and took a calming breath. "I didn't mean to blast you." In. Out. She counted to ten, scratched that number, and went up to twenty, willing her mood to deflate.

"Okay. I'm okay," Ceara mumbled. She straightened and eased out of Tristan's embrace.

He obviously wasn't appeased by her claim. "Explain."

"It's her empath gift. I blindsided her with my angry mood." Fiona crossed the room and hugged her sister. "I'm sorry."

"Are you kidding me?" He bared his teeth at Ceara. "I know you can sense other's emotions, but that nearly knocked you on your ass."

"I'm fine." She smiled at Fiona, pulling away, and nodded for his benefit. "I can usually control it better. She just caught me off guard."

His irate features downgraded to concern, then went completely blank. He tossed a small duffle bag at Fiona's feet. "Change. Meeting in the dining room in ten minutes."

Once he was gone, Ceara shook her head. "Wow, you were in quite the state. I thought sex was supposed to release tension. You were with Riley last night, correct?"

"Yeah. My issue is the morning after." Fiona rolled her head to stretch her neck. "Come on. I can get dressed in Kaida's room and fill you in."

Upstairs, Kaida chased Brady from their suite with a promise to make it up to him. Fiona's sisters sat on the bed while she changed into skinny jeans and a red swoop-neck shirt.

"All right, dish." Kaida bent her knees and wrapped her arms around her calves. "Did the sex suck? Because I have a hard time believing Riley Meath didn't blow your mind. You two are combustible."

Fiona chewed the inside of her lip and tapped her foot, unable to remain still. "No, it was orgasmic. We mated like rabbits, talked, mated some more, then fell asleep. It was...great."

"Why were you doing a wrath of God impression when I got here?" Ceara asked. "Orgasms don't typically make a woman homicidal."

Fiona paced by the foot of the bed. "This morning, he came downstairs and insisted we were a couple. Said last night meant something to him and so did I. He kissed me and claimed we weren't just physical chemistry and dubbed the whole thing a relationship, whether I liked it or not."

Her sisters exchanged a look that Fiona interpreted as:

Do you get it?

No, do you?

"Let me summarize." Kaida drummed her finger on her chin. "He gave you multiple orgasms and talked afterward instead of rolling over to fall asleep. He kissed you good morning and told you his feelings. Then, he committed himself to you and a relationship. Do I have that right?"

"Yes!" Fiona threw her hands in the air. "Now you understand."

Another sisterly, nonverbal swap of confused glares filled the silence.

She crossed her arms, pouting. "He also took my coffee away."

"Well, that's punishable by death," Kaida heartily confirmed before switching to sarcasm. "But the rest of it? You're absolutely spot on. He needs to be tortured."

"String him up by his toes," Ceara drolled.

"Water-boarding?" Kaida supplied.

"Flogging!"

"Nah, he'd enjoy that. He does want a relationship with Fiona, so he must like a certain amount of pain. Caning?"

"Good choice. Follow it up with spikes under his fingernails."

"Oh, and electro-shock treatment. It would correct his desire to randomly spout his feelings. Can't do that if you're a vegetable."

"Great. Just great." Fiona tapped her foot harder. "I'm falling down Alice's rabbit hole and you two clowns are cracking jokes."

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