Page 64 of Embraced

“More?” Aly asks.

“Nothing to worry about,” Anna cuts in. “Killian is gone. Let’s focus on that and enjoy this moment all together.”

And we do. We order waffles and laugh when Aksel looks awkward as fuck eating them. It’s glorious.

Twenty One

Griffyn

We wake up the next morning and I feel unbelievable. I’m high on life and our success and by the time we finish dinner I’m dying to celebrate again. The waffles were fun but we need something just the six of us.

“Let’s do something fun!” I say, bouncing on my toes.

“What do you mean?” Anna asks.

“I mean it’s been all doom and gloom around here all the time. We just killed Killian and freed Anna. We need to celebrate.”

“There’s a million things on our plate right now!” Aksel reminds us.

“We can’t only focus on the negative. We need to celebrate our wins and this was a huge win for us!” Felix counters.

“Exactly. Maybe we need a break to refresh our minds and open the door for new ideas,” I say.

“What did you have in mind?” Anna wraps her arms around my stomach.

“A drinking game!” I know my grin is too big.

“Can’t we play poker instead? We haven’t played since before we met Anna,” Blaze asks.

“Sure as long as it’s strip poker!” I say.

Aksel groans.

“Anna?” Felix asks her.

“You know what? Sure. I could use some more fun.”

“I mean I could take you upstairs and provide stress relief right now if you want,” I offer.

Maybe that’s a better idea. I take a step toward the exit to do just that.

“Nope! It’s game time,” Felix says, grabbing my arm and pulling me to the table.

Anna follows us and sits next to Felix. Blaze grabs the seat on her other side before anyone else can. Aksel sits right across from her with Rion and I on either side.

Felix grabs a deck of cards and starts dealing them out.

“So, how do you play poker?” Anna asks.

Felix groans and looks at her in pity. The rest of us have predatory faces as we stare at her.

“Well, first lesson, you probably don’t want to let a table of predators know you can’t play but it isn’t too hard to learn.” I give her a reassuring smile. “Do you know how to play, Rion?”

“Yes.”

I almost roll my eyes. How does he learn this stuff? I think he secretly has a super brain that just absorbs information. How else could you explain him being so well-adjusted in life?

Felix explains the normal rules of poker and the different hands. As soon as he finishes, I explain the stripping part of it.

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