Whose Bed Have Your Claws Been Under: Chapter 10

There wasn’t anything I enjoyed more than having fun—except having fun with Paige. All teasing and princess jokes aside, I couldn’t wait to spend every waking moment with her.

We ate, and she enjoyed her tea. The tea lady and another staffer whispered in the corner, their gazes shooting our way. I figured it wouldn’t be long before my princess tease was revealed.

Grannie Vi and Uncle Bub strolled into the room, filled their plates, and sat with us, making our small party complete.

“Where’s Josh this weekend?” Grannie Vi asked.

“My mom has him for the weekend,” Rylee said, leaning against Gunner. “We love our son to pieces, but it’s nice to be alone every now and then.”

Gunner kissed her, his lips lingering on hers, and I envied my friend. He’d crushed on Rylee for months before they finally connected at Grannie Vi’s eightieth birthday party. They’d married not long after that and Josh was soon on the way.

“Before you all take off,” Monica said, rising, then clinking her spoon on her water glass. “We have some activities planned for the day.” While excited chatter broke out in the room, she grinned, urging Bart to step forward.

“Exactly,” he said, smoothing his white mane off his shoulders. Tufts of fur the exact same color stuck up from the collar of his shirt and from the ends of his sleeves.

Like Poppy, he’d embraced the new form he received after he was kidnapped along with me. He told me his hooves were much better than feet because he could trot outside without getting cold or putting on shoes. And he thought his horns were majestic.

Seeing some of my friends easily accept their monster shapes helped me feel the same about turning into a gorgon, despite my rocky start.

At least the scientist was captured, and we were freed—even if it was too late to change us back.

“First up is a snow sculpture contest out back,” Bart said.

Monica clapped and jumped around. “Who’s up for that?”

“It sounds fun,” Paige said, her eyes gleaming. “We might have to postpone making a snowman, though, Darrow.”

“Later?” I placed my hand over hers. She’d left it on my knee, and I’d been totally distracted since.

“I believe you’ll have an advantage being a stone sculptor.”

“You were the artsy one growing up.”

“To make it a bit competitive,” Trevor said, rising to stand with his new wife. He put his arm around her and kissed the top of her head. “We’re dividing you into teams. There are only six of us here for the weekend festivities, but I’ve convinced Elisa and Raze to participate in all the activities. Elisa coordinated Monica’s part of the wedding, and she’s like family. I wouldn’t want my cousin, Raze, to miss out.”

Raze dipped his head forward, though his attention never left Elisa’s face.

Elisa huffed but didn’t say anything, which made Raze scowl.

“The only one without a partner is Poppy,” Bart said. “So, if you don’t mind, I’ll join in as well to stand with her.”

Poppy grinned. Monica jumped around some more, squealing.

“Five couples competing as teams,” Monica said, turning to give Trevor a quick kiss. She eased back, beaming at us. “Doesn’t this sound amazing?”

I grinned, liking where this was going. Paige’s sunny expression told me she felt the same.

Elisa scowled at Raze and crossed her arms on her ample chest. His face flushed, and he looked down at his empty plate.

I’d sensed tension between them from the moment I arrived. Maybe they didn’t like being forced to share wedding planning duties.

“My castle staff has mounded snow behind the castle,” Bart said. “Each couple will have a set of tools to work with. Please take care with them. We wouldn’t want anyone to get hurt.”

“And they’ve included liquid color to paint our creations,” Monica said.

“We have a great prize for the winning team,” Trevor said, wiggling his thick unibrow. Monica snickered.

Grannie Vi cackled and leaned over Paige to whisper to me. “I might’ve tucked a treat into the prize package when they weren’t looking.”

“No,” Rylee groaned, covering her face.

Gunner grinned; his eyes gleaming. “We should win, don’t you think, love?” he said softly to Rylee.

Grannie Vi’s laugh grew louder.

“That’s so sweet of you,” Paige told Grannie Vi. When I snorted, she turned a frown my way, lowering her voice. “It’ll be cookies or something like that, right?”

“Do you know much about Grannie Vi?” I asked, whispering by Paige’s ear so the elderly lady wouldn’t overhear.

Paige shook her head. “I’ve only chatted with her a few times in town. She’s a kind old lady and everyone loves her.”

That was true.

“Gunner and Rylee connected during Grannie Vi’s birthday bash. She held games, and Rylee and Gunner won the big prize.”

Paige smiled. “That sounds cute. I bet it was a lot of fun.”

“I’m never going to ask.” At her frown, I winked. “Grannie’s a retired sex therapist.”

Paige’s jaw dropped, and her giggle burst out. “Oh, I get it.” She laughed harder, tears streaming down her cheeks.

When everyone looked our way, she slapped her hand over her mouth, which did nothing to hide the twinkle in her pretty eyes.

I leaned closer to her, stroking her nape with my fingertips. “Let’s just say Rylee blushed while Gunner told me the story. They took the box full of prizes to their room, and when they emerged in the morning . . .”

“Whoa,” Paige said, shooting Rylee and Gunner a grin.

“Everyone finish up and get dressed in your warmest clothing,” Monica said. “Meet us behind the castle. This is going to be so much fun!” Holding hands, she and Trevor left the room.

Gunner stood and when Rylee walked around the back of her chair, he swooped her up, tossed her over his shoulder while she squealed, and stomped from the room.

“They might be a bit delayed,” Grannie Vi told me with a wink. “But that means you and Paige have a better chance of winning the prize.” She stood and tightened her grip on her cane. “I think we should supervise from an upper level, don’t you, Bub? There might be a few party favors left in the ballroom, and we can raid them. We can drag chairs over to the window and have a sit.”

The older gentleman rose and grabbed his own cane, pointing it toward the open doorway. “Lead away, sweetheart. Lead away.”

They hobbled from the room.

Raze looked at Elisa one more time, but she studiously stared at her plate. As if he’d come to a decision, he rose and stalked from the room. “Join me out back,” he bit out in her direction as he left.

Elisa’s face twisted. She got up and, with a sigh, hurried after him.

“My lady?” Bart said to Poppy. He extended his hoof to help her from her chair. Blushing, she took it, standing. “What do you think we should create from our mound of snow?” They walked together toward the open doorway.

“A minotaur,” she said, her long gown swishing around her legs. “Minotaurs are amazing.”

“Well, that just leaves us,” Paige told me. “Are you done eating?”

At my nod, we stood.

Paige worried her lower lip as we left the room. “I’m not sure if I want to win or not.”

Oh, we wanted to win a steamy prize.

I was going to make sure that we did.