“They have pictures, you know,” Caleb says, checking his nails. He picks an invisible piece of dirt out from under his thumbnail and flicks it onto the carpet. “Brooks & Lee, I mean. They have pictures of you two last night.”
I glance at him, bristling slightly not only at the thought of someone taking pictures of us without our knowledge, but also the fact that I’ll have to deal with yet another matter now before I can get home. “How do you know that?”
Caleb scoffs. “Arthur, I’m the supreme judge of Ordan, and you’re marrying my sister. Those two morons came straight to me when Iris supposedly turned down their offer of a bribe to keep the pictures from going public.”
I resist the urge to smirk. Of course Iris would refuse to give them money for incriminating photographs. She’s too smart for that. Although, I hope she’s also too smart to pay the fees for their ‘consultations‘, which are really just carefully–constructed shakedowns to try and squeeze every drop of money out of would–be clients without getting caught.
“Anyway,” Caleb goes on with another sigh, this one heavier than the last, “I’ll handle it. If you want. But you have to promise to keep this mess out of the courts.”
“It’s not really up to me if it goes to court or not. If Iris wants to turn this into a legal matter, then that’s her right.”
Caleb blinks at me for a moment, clearly exasperated. But there’s something else there beneath his gaze, an undercurrent of something that I can’t quite put my finger on.
“Why don’t you just let the boy go?” he finally asks. “He’s not even a werewolf, is he? You and Selina could produce a much better heir.”
My jaw feathers. Like hell I would ever sleep with Selina, let alone produce a child with her. “It’s not that simple,” I finally say, refusing to go into more detail.
Caleb’s eyes turn into slits. “There are ways other than sex to produce a
>> –
“Caleb, forgive me,” I say, “but I have a lot of work to do.”
My fiancee’s brother looks at me for a moment longer, his mouth working, before he finally huffs and stands.” Very well. But don’t say I never do anything for you when you wake up in the morning and those pictures haven’t hit the public.”
I nod, offering him a small smile. “I do appreciate your help, Caleb. I hope you know that.”
He doesn’t look convinced, but bobs his head politely and strides out of the room.
A little while later, I’m turning onto my street, eager to get home. There’s a bag on the back seat of my car with a few car toys, a plush cat tree, a collar with a bell, and a whole other assortment of things I picked up for Miles‘ new friend. I picked up takeout food too, sesame chicken from the place down the street that Iris used to love.
When Iris sees the things, she’ll accuse me of trying to butter her up. She would be right in that assumption. Partially.
Tonight, Iris and I need to have a chat. Caleb is right; this can’t go to court. It’ll just make a spectacle of all of us, and won’t be any good for Miles in the long run. If she’s so concerned about keeping his identity secret, then she would understand that.
However, as I’m pulling up to the apartment building, my focus shifts elsewhere.
I glance up at the topmost window, where Iris’s studio window overlooks the street. The light is on, an orange glow emanating from within. There’s movement, and I lean forward, hoping to catch a glimpse of her in her
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Chapter 87
natural habitat–hair thrown back in a messy bun, paint smeared across her nose, that yellow cardigan with the hole in it. She always looks the most beautiful when she works.
But it’s not Iris who I see in the window.
It’s Ezra. My Beta.
Shirtless.
+25 BONUS
Chapter 88
