Total pages in book: 104
Estimated words: 104141 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 521(@200wpm)___ 417(@250wpm)___ 347(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 104141 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 521(@200wpm)___ 417(@250wpm)___ 347(@300wpm)
Yeah. I’ll get my artist flown to the island to make that happen.
I imagined myself licking the tattoo once it healed on her thigh.
“We are going to our next surprise.” Nyomi reached for the slave's leash.
I was across the space before my brain caught up with my body. I wrapped my hand around hers and lifted the leash out of her grip. "Leave him here, Tora. They'll watch him."
Her brow furrowed. "Kenji, he'll want to come with—"
"They will watch him." I passed the leash to the woman in emerald green.
Smiling, she took it and wrapped the chain around her palm.
The slave's head stayed down and his view remained on the ground.
Nyomi scowled at me, but remained silent.
I slid my hand to the small of her back.
Sighing, she walked with me, guiding us away.
Everyone followed.
We set off toward the left side of the ballroom, toward the first draped section, Claws trailing behind us with their tray remnants and a collective sense of increasing giddiness.
My hand stayed firm against her spine, possessive and warm through the fabric.
She turned her head slightly toward me and dropped her voice. "What did you do to my slave?"
I kept my expression pleasant. "Correction. Hiroko's slave."
"Kenji—"
"I'm the only man who kneels for you." I leaned in and nipped her ear. “The only one that crawls. He’s lucky to be alive.”
She shivered and her breath caught.
I felt it travel all the way down her spine under my palm.
“Fuck, Tora.” I licked my lip and let my mouth stay close to her ear. "Only me. Do you understand?"
"Yes."
"Good talk."
The blush crept up her neck in a slow warm tide.
I watched it climb. Watched it bloom along her jawline. Watched her throat work as she swallowed against it. When we made it to the huge draping, Nyomi stopped us, turned around, and clapped her hands once.
Two new women entered the ballroom. Each carried a small black tray.
I smiled.
Aww. Here we go. Now I’ll never hear the end of this.
On each tray sat oversized lollipops.
They were about five inches in diameter, mounted on thick white sticks that could have passed for wands. The shells were clear sugar with the faintest red tint, like pale rose glass. Inside each sugar shell, a liquid swirled visibly— red and white twining around each other and moving in slow hypnotic loops.
"Oh shit!" Hiro stabbed his cane at the floor for emphasis. "This is mine!"
"Actually.” Nyomi raised her finger. “This is the Roar’s lollipop.”
All laughed except Hiro, who was now sneering her way.
She chuckled. “I figured we're all due a nice lollipop, while I show you to the next space."
The women spread out and began handing the lollipops over.
Hiro received his like a child receiving a new toy. He stared at the lollipop for a moment, tilted it, watched the liquid shift inside the shell, and grinned.
Then he licked it.
His face changed.
"Oh!" He licked it again. "Oh, baby!"
Nyomi called out, "Bite it, Hiro."
"But, I'm savoring."
"No. Bite the top. You'll see."
“Fine.” Hiro examined the lollipop more carefully, saw the hollow center under the glassy shell, grinned wider, and opened his mouth.
Those diamond fangs closed over the top of the sugar dome.
The crack was sharp and clean.
Liquid poured into his mouth.
Nyomi grabbed her lollipop. “In these we have cherry sake, vodka, grenadine, and cream. All the perfect combination for a man who never needs to be introduced, only respected and feared.”
Hiro groaned loud enough that two of the serving women giggled. There, my brother stood with some of the liquid running down his chin, the shattered sugar shell still in his hand, and eyes rolled half back in his head. "Fucking. Hell."
He gathered up the liquid off his chin and licked his fingers. "This is the best thing anyone has ever made for me."
Nyomi gestured to one of the women. “Get some napkins, please.”
“He’ll need wet wipes.” Toma cracked his own lollipop next. His purple mohawk bobbed as he chewed through sugar with enthusiastic disregard for his mouth.
Kaede simply licked his lollipop, never biting. Eventually a small hole appeared and he sipped from the side. "Interesting. The cream is balancing the cherry."
Daisuke snickered. "Kaede puts on a suit and now thinks he’s a critic."
Kaede frowned. "Shut up before I spill some of this onto your dress."
“It’s not a dress. It’s a deconstructed suit.” Daisuke bit and the sugar dome shattered across his lips. Liquid ran everywhere. He did not wipe it. He just closed his eyes again and drank the remnants directly from the broken shell.
“Uh yeah.” Nyomi licked hers and looked at another woman. “We will need damp cloths.”
The twins mirrored each other. Both cracking their lollipops at the same moment. Both of them looked down at the liquid pooling in their broken shells, then up at each other, then back down. They tipped them into their mouths in perfect unison and swallowed at the same second.