Page 26 of Lessons with the Mothman (Monster Smash Agency)

CHAPTER 26

Victoria

"You've been focusing on woodsy, earthy flavors and their contrasts. I was thinking perhaps a sort of art deco interpretation of Titania's bower. That would of course be where you, Khell, came in to assist."

I checked the time on my phone as the sound of several voices, rather than simply Elias's, floated through the halls of his house. I'd arrived a little early for our date, but I wasn't expecting him to have company. I paused on the threshold of the dining room, stripped bare of the stage Elias had arranged for my work, curtains thrown back and the soft glow of a cloudy day creeping in toward the small party gathered together at the center of the parquet floor.

Hannah was the first to notice me, and she drifted away as Elias picked up speed again.

"A modest nest erected there in the corner, perhaps a quartet of?—"

Rafe made a small choking noise, and Elias turned to glance at him, finding me hovering at the door instead.

"Victoria!" He pulled his phone from his pocket and glanced down at the screen, blinking. "Forgive me, I lost track of time."

"I'm not in any rush," I said, smiling at the twin baffled expressions Rafe and Khell'ar were wearing.

Elias's head tipped, and his eyelids sank suggestively. "No, you usually aren't."

"This place is…unimaginable," Hannah whispered to me, distracting me from Elias's innuendo.

"He gave you the full tour?" I asked her as Elias turned back to his friends.

She nodded. "He started leading us here, but then Khell was asking about original finials and we had to start over from the front door."

"Believe it or not, I think he's a little shy of showing it off," I answered in a low tone. Elias flashed me a glare.

"He does seem…giddy," Hannah noted.

"Okay, no, I'm drawing the line at a string quartet," Rafe called. "I don't have the budget for that, anyway."

Elias crossed his arms. "One cello. I'll pay."

"We only have a month. I don't think I can really do your vision justice in that amount of time. I do have other ongoing commissions," Khell said, but I caught the way he started eyeing the space.

"I have some pieces in my storage unit we could look at repurposing," Elias said.

"Storage unit?" I echoed.

Rafe held up his hands, stopping Elias before he could continue. There was a tense moment of quiet, where both their wings spread slightly open, their stares challenging one another. Hannah's head tilted where she stood at my side, eyes narrowing speculatively, like she was gauging the threat Elias posed to Rafe.

"I need to see the kitchen," Rafe said, surprisingly imperious. "I won't know if this will work until I've seen what you have to support my culinary skills."

Hannah's lips twitched and she relaxed, twisting back to me. "Did we interrupt your work plans? Elias told us to come by for a quick meeting about the dinner club, but Rafe will keep him in the kitchen for another hour at least," Hannah said.

"Not today," I said, and she didn't press me further.

In fact, I was here because Elias had sent me a cryptic email reminding me it was time for my "annual check-up." I had a sneaking suspicion that somewhere in the house was a staged doctor's office. Which would hopefully be left off any tour he might be offering his friends.

Investigating the kitchen became marveling at the unstocked pantry, which led to an interrogation about Elias's eating habits that resulted in the whole group of us going up to Elias's personal apartment. Elias remained more or less silent as his friends peeked around the comfortable space, but his hand slid into mine behind our backs.

"I made that bench," Khell said, pointing to the beautiful hardwood bench inside the door, where Elias's shoes were lined up below.

"Yes."

"These are some of Sunny's pieces," Rafe mentioned. He pointed up at the wall, and Khell spun and marched over to examine the artwork.

"I ordered some," Elias said, with carefully simple answers.

"I like your style," Hannah said, and Elias straightened with a hint of a smile.

"I can't know if the kitchen downstairs will work unless I try cooking in it," Rafe said at last.

Elias shrugged. "So cook in it."

And so the evening became an impromptu dinner party. Khell called his human mate, Sunny, while Hannah and Rafe pressed Elias to include three others in the invitation—another werewolf named Theo, his human wife, Natalie, and their son, Emmett. My head spun with new names and a web of acquaintanceship. Elias introduced me in relation to my study but was freely touching me when we passed near.

In spite of my previous claim to Elias that our connection wasn't solely about sex, it became clear to me that we'd never spent so long in each other's company before without sex as the topic or activity. He was surprisingly stiff with his friends, like he'd held himself apart from them for so long that he wasn't sure how to invite them closer.

They had no such concerns.

"I could do some amazing portrait work here," Sunny declared as Elias focused on mixing us drinks. He glanced up, nodding for her to continue. "You have great natural light, and all the different styles of rooms…just saying."

"Any time you like," Elias said easily. "I could get you a key made so you can come and go."

"This would be a great event space. Weddings or parties. Even a more upscale vacation rental," Natalie continued. Elias had unearthed a massive set of vintage blocks from a "toy room" that her son was determinedly building a cityscape out of on the checkerboard kitchen floor.

"I've considered it," Elias admitted.

"That's a lot of people coming and going in your space. A lot of insurance. Probably a liquor license somewhere along the line," Hannah mused, perched on a barstool as she watched Rafe cook, accepting small spoonfuls of flavors to test.

Elias only hummed in acknowledgement, then began to shake our drinks. I stepped closer, sliding my hand beneath his wings to rest against his back, noting the tense and then ease of muscle beneath my palm. His gaze was lowered to the ingredients and bottles he'd spread before him.

He's overwhelmed , I realized, although I couldn't guess the exact cause. So many people in his house all at once? The pressure of their suggestions? Or something simpler and sweeter?

He set the cocktail shaker down and leaned against me briefly.

"Ice?" Theo offered.

"Please," Elias answered.

"How many rooms could you use for the supper club?" I asked, catching Elias and Rafe's attention.

"More than just the dining room?" Rafe asked, surprised.

Elias straightened, shoulders lightening as he thought. "The entrance, obviously. Maybe the apéritif and hors d'oeuvres in the library. Time for introductions?"

Rafe brightened and nodded in answer.

"The dining room," Elias continued. "And what would you think of coffee and dessert in the solarium?"

"Can we scale back some of the interior design at dinner?" Rafe asked, arching a brow.

Elias tipped his head in consideration. "Would you be willing to make a spectacle of the kitchen between courses?"

Rafe hesitated, and Hannah nudged his thigh with the tip of her foot. "You love talking flavor. And a quarter of the club will be all of us here, so you can just talk to us."

"Chefs usually go to the table at some point," Rafe allowed. "And I keep a tidy kitchen. All right, but I get final say on anything you do in here. It can't interfere with the cooking."

"Fair enough," Elias said. "Do you have photos of the plating yet? I want to think about lighting."

Elias looked almost sluggish as we entered his room at the end of the night. I watched him stretch, rolling his shoulders, and hovered by the door.

"Do you want me to leave you for the night?" I asked. I knew the signs of an overloaded introvert. To be honest, I was one at the moment too.

"Do you want to leave?" Elias asked, spinning to face me, words a little sharp.

I started to shake my head and then paused, thinking it over properly. "No," I said, more certain of my answer this time. "I want to stay, but I don't think I want to play patient, if that's all right."

Elias blinked and then sagged even further. "Oh, good. I agree. Do you know what I do want?"

"Hmm?"

"I want to lay in bed next to you, reading."

I smiled at that. "Can I borrow a book?"

And so we stripped in silence, Elias down to nothing and me to a camisole and my underwear. I found a battered thriller tucked between autobiographies and poetry collections and travel guides, and Elias held back the covers for me to slide in next to him.

We both sighed. Elias's arm reached to wrap around my shoulders and I settled closer, savoring the tickle of his fur and heat of his body.

"Your friends are fun," I said, opening the book.

"Mmm. I am lucky," he said, so quietly it was almost a private statement. "I don't usually enjoy thrillers, but that one is special. See if you can find my favorite character."

I nodded and parted the cover.

"I'm glad you were here tonight," he whispered.

"Me too."

I rolled the tension out of my shoulders for what felt like the hundredth time this afternoon, then snapped them tight at the first gust of bitter air rushing in from the lake. I paused at the top step of the campus building, my curls getting the best of me as they were tossed and tangled in front of my eyes.

"Here, let me help."

My breath caught at Elias's voice, and a moment later the wind softened, gliding around the shield of Elias's wings. Soft claws rearranged my hair into a knot at the nape of my neck, and I blinked up at the fae.

"Thank you," I murmured.

His brow was furrowed as he stared down at me, no doubt searching my expression for clues to my mood. I wasn't sure what he found. I didn't have the energy to hide anything, but I was feeling especially blank at the moment. Drained.

"How did it go?" Lyle asked, appearing at our sides.

I shrugged, and they exchanged a look over my head. "It was okay, really," I said, before they could start assuming the worst. "Awkward. And I'm not sure what I offered was of any use?—"

Lyle cut in. "It's another example of his pattern."

Elias just found my hand with his, squeezing gently. I sighed, fighting the urge to lean into his chest. A month ago, I would've been utterly spooked to have Elias on campus for my sake, and I'd spent plenty of days leading up to my meeting with the team of HR representatives and investigators waffling on whether or not to ask Elias to come. He couldn't attend the meeting, and the only reason to have him here afterwards was because…I wanted him here. For support.

So why am I resisting? I wondered, the thought striking me suddenly. Tentatively, I gave in. Elias shuffled closer, bracing me as I propped myself up against his chest. There wasn't a logical explanation for it, but some tension bled away. Pheromones , I reasoned, knowing full well that wasn't the real answer.

Lyle glanced between us, his speech on Stanton's predator patterns fading away. "It's done now," he said to me, and I nodded. "Have they assigned your thesis to a new advisor?"

I nodded. "Dr. Weathers. I had her for a class last year."

"Not an obvious choice, but she's open minded," Lyle said, nodding. "I asked them for a transfer, and they gave mine to Professor Jenkins."

Stanton was on probation with the university—barely a slap on the wrist considering—and if he could keep his hands off his students for a few years, it would no doubt pass. But it was on his record now, and an unavoidable reputation was attached to his name. After reporting our past relationship, I was mandatorily reassigned the advisor to my thesis, but the option was quietly available to all of us. Professor Jenkins made perfect sense for the biochemistry angle of Lyle's fear to arousal theory. Dr. Weathers was a less clear choice for me, but I'd already spoken to the woman and she was enthusiastic about stepping in for me, if not entirely sold on the methods of my study.

"Come on, let's go get lunch and we can do crisis planning," Lyle said.

"Are you worried about the study?" Elias asked me in a low tone as we walked down the steps together.

Lyle was ahead of us, leading the way, and Elias kept his wing around my side, his arm slung over my shoulder.

"A little," I admitted. "A new advisor might try to push an angle they're more familiar with, or this far into the work, they might not offer the same level of support," I said.

Elias hummed, and I could see his little inner gears working to solve the situation. He would probably pull an expert out of his rolodex of vague acquaintances with fascinating backgrounds. If things went sideways with Dr. Weathers, I might let him. For now, though…

I turned in step, placing myself in front of Elias, forcing him to stop at once, his eyebrows bouncing higher.

"May I ask a favor?" I asked, dropping my voice lower.

"Of course," he said, straightening expectantly, too familiar with requests.

"Tonight, will you fuck me until I'm so tired I can't even move?" I asked.

Elias froze for a moment and then his head dropped, wings folding closer to envelop us. "Can I use toys?"

I nodded quickly. "I want you to call me a good girl."

"So overused. I can do better," Elias said with a smug tilt to his head that made me fight my laughter. "I'll make you come."

"Until I'm dehydrated," I agreed. Aside from those first couple of times, Elias seemed to like asking permission for this now.

He rumbled, his hands cupping my hips, and I leaned back before he got the idea to spirit us away. I wasn't sure if he could fly while holding me, but now wasn't the time to find out.

"Gladly, my lovely little cock toy," Elias murmured in my ear.

My body throbbed eagerly, but I took one of his hands in mine and turned back to follow Lyle. My incubus friend glanced over his shoulder at us with a knowing curve to his lips but said nothing.