Page 6 of Bonding Beasts (Bonding: The Ultimate Guide #3)

I pick up my plate and take it to the sink to slowly wash as if my life depended on how thorough I could be.Then I work on the pan and utensils, despite Ben having a perfect dishwasher that intimidates me.

I start brewing coffee and watch it slowly sputter until the carafe is full. Turning towards the cabinets where the mugs are, I bump into Mitri and silently brush past him to get a cup. I know Ben has rules involving food and drinks for his vehicle, but surely he wouldn’t begrudge me some coffee.

“Wrong cabinet,” Ben says as he reenters the room, showered, and dressed.

I turn to face him and shrug my shoulders.

He tilts his head and smiles at me.“Next one over.I got you some travel mugs.”

My eyes widen, and I push Mitri out of the way to open the cabinet.There are three travel mugs that I take down reverently.

The first one says, “You see the look on my face, yet you’re still talking.” The next says, “F*ck it. All of it. And all of you”. And the third, my favorite, says, “I’m not insulting you. I’m describing you”.

As I read, I make a whining noise and then run over to him, hugging him hard enough that he grunts.

“Food, a toaster, and now this ? You’re the best, Ben!”

He laughs and kisses my head, whispering, “You’re welcome, baby.”

Please, let me keep this male.His pedestal might be missing a few pieces to hold him up properly, but I am putting him up there.I can be good enough to keep him.I’ll fake it until I make it.

Mitri clears his throat, and I ignore him entirely, basking in the sunshiny warmth of Ben.Ok, the slightly cool body temperature of Ben, whatever.

“She may be giving you the silent treatment,” Ben growls in his dual tone, “but I can tell you to fuck off any time I like, immortal.”

Damn right, he can.He can now do anything he wants in my book.

He enjoys my company. He buys me useful stuff that I love.

He feeds me. He doesn’t tell me I talk too much.

I’ll even let him call me baby. For some reason, it sounds right coming from his rasping tones instead of a childish pet name.

He does cuddle a lot, but I’m used to it by now. He’s worth it.

“My home, my rules,” Ben says flatly to whatever look Mitri is giving him.

I let him go to pick one of the mugs and fill it with coffee.My first sip makes me sigh in pure bliss.

“You got my favorite coffee too. Are you ready to go?” I ask Ben with a sweet smile.

He laughs so hard he bends at the waist to hold his stomach.“Give me a second.I’m enjoying the look on his face. ”

I wiggle my eyebrows and head to the front door before pausing.

“I’ll go first,” Ben cautions and moves ahead, which inadvertently makes me back into Mitri.

I refuse to move forward as Ben opens the door and approaches his car.

I stand with Mitri pressed to my back and sip my coffee like he isn’t there.

Once I’m sure he gets the fact that he’s getting ignored, I move towards the car, where Ben has the door held open for me and is stifling his laughter by chewing on his lip. Some people just get you; you know?

I try to signal Ben to shut the door behind me, but Mitri catches it and slides in right next to me, forcing me into the middle of the seat.

Ben glares at him the entire walk around the front of the vehicle before settling in at my left.

I notice that Mitri’s car is parked where it was last night, with no sign of Mal or Kimi.

If Mitri wanted to stalk me, he could do it at a distance like any other weirdo. Instead, he has to make his presence annoyingly apparent.

Ben pulls up the address on a GPS app, and we’re off.It says we have twenty minutes until we get there.

Twenty very quiet minutes.Filled with light breathing and the silent struggle I have to gain my own space in the middle.

I try leaning further into Ben, but he can’t steer and lean comfortably on the driver’s door the whole way.

I sit primly with my knees pressed together, and my hands clasped around my mug.

Mitri has his legs spread wide enough to press against me from hip to knee.

I bet he has at least four inches of open space on his other side. His gun is digging into my thigh.

“How did you come to be in the Bowels, dorogoya ?”

Aw, look at that. He wants to ask me questions. I’m so shocked. Too bad he isn’t here and I can’t hear him.

“An answer would be best for you,” he says silkily when my silence reigns. “Or do you require your usual payment?”

Ben starts chewing on the piercing in his lip. I can see his lips twitching with humor.

“If you do not respond soon, I would be within my rights to rearrest you.”

That’s just dirty tactics. Asshole. I’m trying to keep my elbows to myself, but the temptation to whack him a few times is eating at me.

“Any attention would be favorable to him.Don’t give in.”

I know, but damn, he’s right there!

“The silent treatment is working. He’s getting frustrated.”

Well, good.He torments me every chance he gets.I know he does it on purpose.The whole blank mask thing is a sham!

It isn’t until the masculine voice begins laughing that I realize I wasn’t internally talking to myself.I’ve heard that voice before.

My body stiffens, and I glance left and right warily. Neither Ben nor Mitri are paying me any attention, one gazing at the road, the other staring out the window with his arms crossed, having a mini hissy fit.

My mental seesaw seems stable. Have I lost touch with my sanity again?

Um, hello?

“Hi.”

I startle in my seat, which brings attention to me.

“Don’t say anything!” The voice warns me sharply, and I nod without thinking.

“Bees?” Ben places a hand on my knee and squeezes lightly. “Everything okay?”

Mitri’s eyes are narrowed, and I might be paranoid, but he looks suspicious.

“I’m good,” I squeak out and take a long drink of coffee. I stare out the windshield and hope I look passive. After a few glances from Ben and Mitri turns away from my ignoring him, the voice returns.

“That was close. We need to work on your acting.”

Who are you?

“Peacemaker. I’m pressed against you. Hi, well met.”

I blink uncontrollably as that rolls around and processes. I glance down where my thigh touches Ben’s. Then I look over to Mitri’s and see his gun holster.

He’s a gun. A talking gun.

“I am currently in the shape of a gun,” He replies with a bit of snark.

The Artificer was wrong. His work is impeccable and I’m never questioning it again. Sentient weapons. I don’t even know what to say.

“You say, ‘Well met’ and be pleasant.” The amount of sarcasm in his tone makes my eyes narrow.

I’m not pleasant. Ben thinks I am, but he may be mentally compromised due to his parental influence. Not that I’m complaining.

“Yeah, the mug says it all,” he relents with a chuckle.

I look down at the cup in my hand to reread it. It’s the ‘I’m not insulting you’ one. He can see?

“I see what he does. He read them all and found them fitting for you.”

Huh. Oh shit, can he read my mind?

I try not to look at Mitri as sweat beads across my forehead. If I don’t look, I can pretend this isn’t happening.

Peacemaker: “ No! Stop panicking. I’m not supposed to be talking to you, and I don’t know what will happen if we get busted. Just act calm.”

Okay, take deep breaths, Beatrice. Fake it ‘til you make it.

Peacemaker: “ Good girl.”

I’m not a dog.

Peacemaker: “ You don’t have to be a pet to be sweet.” He laughs.

At first I’m irritated but it fades pretty quickly. If you were your only company, you’d have to laugh at your own jokes or lose your mind. I know. I’ve been there for years. I can’t imagine how long the gun has done it.

“So, tell me about yourself.”

I’m internally cringing at the awkward thought. I can’t even have small talk with a gun. What’s wrong with my social skills?

Peacemaker: “ You’re doing great. Don’t be so hard on yourself.”

Okay, that’s just sweet.Or he’s desperate.

“Why can’t he just give me to you already?” He makes a sound similar to a sigh.

“ He needs you ,” I respond without considering it.

Peacemaker: “ Doesn’t feel like it.”

“ Because you’re inside the situation, I bet you filter out a lot of his stabby tendencies, don’t you?”

Peacemaker: “ Well, yes? It’s a lot of work.”

“I bet. Then you’re right where you need to be. Besides, if you stayed with me twenty-four-seven, we’d end up strangling each other.”

Peacemaker: “Why do you say that?”

“Well, I’ve lost my mind for one. And also…”

“Anyone you end up with would eventually kill you in self-defense.” I can hear the Old Man’s voice clearly and picture him rubbing his hand over his face before glaring at me. The image is so clear it’s like I’m reliving it.

Peacemaker: “ What did you do?”

“I may have told him I was running away with a boy that doesn’t exist because he loved my lousy attitude. Damn, I was an even bigger asshole during puberty.” I remember the weight of the backpack and my righteous indignation and smile a little.

He laughs uproariously at that, and my smile gets a little bigger.

Ben pulls out a cigarette, and I reach to push in the lighter, wait for it to pop, and light it for him. He rolls down his window and winks at me with a smile.

Is it me, or is this twenty minutes going at a snail’s pace?

Peacemaker: “ Time is relative.”

“ I bet. Don’t you get bored? Oh! Can you take over his body, and we can talk face-to-face?”

Peacemaker: “ I wish. Not in my skill set.”

“ What’s your skill set, then? Is there any chance you’ll help me harass your owner into submission?”

Peacemaker: “ Yes. All of the yeses. I’m at one hundred on a scale of one to ten.”

His vicious delight makes me giggle, then I quickly clear my throat and drink.

I glance at Mitri from the corner of my eye, but he hasn’t turned away from the window.

Did he really kill his wife?

The thought pops up before I can catch it, and I wince at my lack of tact.