“Subtle.”
“Yeah. That’s Mama for you.” I broke the seal and opened the letter. The paper had been dusted with the scent of roses, sweet and sublime. Mama’s immaculate handwriting curled seductively along the page. “She’s just checking in… apologizing for Feng… ah. She says that she’ll make it up to us any way that we desire, be it boys from the Tilted Cross to participate in a gangbang with Ryan at the center—”
“I am so fucking down for that,” Kevin said.
“—or any other favor that our hearts desire,” I finished.
“Mama never offered to let me be the focus of a gangbang,” Gary muttered.
“Me either,” Tiggy said with a pout. Then, “What’s gangbang?”
“Well, kitten, it’s when eight or nine mens love each other very much and want to deposit as much sperm into a single person as possible to—”
“Why’d you ask him about his last name?” I asked Justin, who was staring toward the door the page had disappeared through.
“You seriously can’t be that stupid, Sam.”
“Well, five or six people would probably beg to differ. But why don’t you fill me in anyway.”
He rolled his eyes. “I want to confirm he is who he says he is. You’re not just going to go traipsing off without confirmation. Don’t be foolish, Sam.”
“Oh my gods,” I whispered. “You love me.”
“You’re about to get hugged,” Ryan warned him. “That’s his hugging face.”
“Sam, you stay the fuck away from me, I swear to the—oof!”
“Shh,” I told him. “It’s already happening.”
Justin sighed. But he didn’t push me away.
CALEB WAS waiting for us the next evening, wringing his hands nervously, looking slightly pale. His eyes widened as he saw us approaching.
I’ll admit we were probably going a little bit overboard. Ryan was fully knighted out, wearing some of his best armor, his shield strapped to his back, his sword in its scabbard at his side. His short hair was slicked back, his jaw freshly shaven. He looked every bit the knight I’d known the first time I’d seen him in Castle Lockes.
Not to be outdone, I’d put on my ceremonial robes, the ones Morgan couldn’t ge
t me into no matter how much he begged. They were a bit stifling, given how heavy they were, but the dark greens and golds contrasted with my dark skin, and Gary said they made my eyes glitter.
Morgan had glared at me when he saw us until we told him we were trying to impress a sick eleven-year-old girl. Then he’d softened, just like I knew he would.
“We won’t be gone long,” I told him. “It’s just Midtown.”
“And you know who this is?”
“Justin’s already checked into him. Caleb has been in the page program for almost four months. It’ll be fine.”
“You can’t be too careful these days,” Morgan said.
I grinned at him. “I’m Sam of Wilds. What’s the worst that could happen?”
“You could be abducted by villains who either want to kill you, ransom you, or sleep with you.”
“Sometimes all three,” I agreed.
“I hate those ones,” Ryan mumbled next to me.
“We’ll be fine,” I assured Morgan. “We’ll be back before nightfall.”