Dashing Devil Omnibus 2: Books 4-6, page 155
Tinker let out a nervous laugh. “Should we… um… maybe give you three—or is it four— some privacy?” She jutted her chin at Daisy, who was looking appalled.
“Come on guys…” the fairy protested.
Hope wasn’t put off in the least, reaching around Silvie to place her hand gently atop Raev’s. The vixen didn’t try to move her hand out of the way. Instead, she pressed down, amplifying the pressure.
“You are being quite forward tonight, sister,” Hope said to Raev. Her voice was soft and unjudging. “Are the moons full or something?”
“Am I being forward?” Raev shot back, pursing her full lips. “I think it’s just the company.” Her eyes flicked from Hope’s hand to Boyd’s face, as if to say, “Let’s see who gives in first.”
Daisy scowled. “Holy hells, you two! Yep, time for me to go to bed. The movie was great Tinker, but I guess we can talk about it in the morning.”
There was a ripple of laughter around the group—some genuine, some nervous, some clearly fueled by anticipation.
Tinker beamed, not upset that some of them would be too distracted to talk about it after finishing the movie. It was a fairly common occurrence, after all. “Dune is a movie you should think about for a bit before discussing, anyway.”
Daisy floated off towards her room, muttering under her breath about, “needing to shampoo the damn furniture in the morning.”
Silvie giggled, then sidled around to Laura, whispering something that made the other girl blush so hard her neck turned red. “Let’s go see if there’s any ice cream left in the kitchen,” Silvie suggested, half-pulling Laura off the couch. “You guys have fun!”
Tinker, still clutching her sour ribbons, followed Silvie and Laura. Glancing back over her shoulder, she gave Boyd a bright, toothy grin. Mindy stole a lingering kiss before sauntering off after them.
That left Boyd, Raev, and Hope in the suddenly intimate, private darkness of the Great Room to enjoy each other for a while before going to bed. Boyd knew it would be a while before he got to sleep, because he was certain the competitive vixen and subservient angel would keep him up—pun intended—for several hours.
Chapter 45
“You are three minutes late.” Boyd scowled when the elevator doors opened, doing his best impression of Victory Seeker.
The big demon wasn’t proud of the fact that he was so good at it, but since the man had used his signature disapproving glower on the demon so often, he could replicate it better than most. Shelia’s and Daryl’s feline and reptile features faded from happy anticipation to the no-nonsense serious expressions he recognized from their days in the PAC, when one of the Mentors made it clear that play time was over.
He wasn’t so sure about this plan his loves had concocted, but he was willing to play along since they were so excited about it. It had started with the two newest members of the Devoted being ported straight to Glorith—something Director Davis had arranged so his primary Hero team’s response transportation wasn’t out of pocket for twelve hours. Then, the auto pilot on the Osprey had flown them out to their secluded little base. Now, it was his turn to play his part.
Mindy shared his concerns with the plan, literally, but had assured him that it would most likely be well received. They both agreed that, in the worst case, neither would be too offended. And, between the two of them, they could unruffle any feathers put out of place.
That’s why he, dressed in a formless gray sweatshirt and sweatpants that the plan called for, jerked his head to the left and growled, “Leave your personal effects by the door and follow me. Thirteen hundred to fourteen hundred is formation planning and review. In the future, I expect you both to be on time.”
Boyd didn’t give them time to drop their stuff off before turning and striding towards the room the next phase of the plan was set up for. They had selected one of the conference rooms in the same hall as the war-room, the office set aside for Royce, and the press room that was still set up the way Kayla liked it.
While the big demon didn’t turn back to look, he could practically hear the silent conversation that was going on in looks and troubled glances between the couple behind him. For all he knew, they were making use of the tactical sign language they all had learned in training.
Which meant the plan was working.
The goal was to make them worried—for only a few moments—that they had made a terrible mistake. Was the relaxed, charming, and personable version of Dashing Devil they had seen in public and over their calls just a façade? Because now it seemed their new Captain would be the emotionally cold hard-ass he had been raised to be in private.
They reached the conference room in no time at all, the couple walking or slithering quickly to keep up with Boyd’s long and purposeful strides. He let the scowl slip from his face just before entering the dark room, darting forward to join his loves and Daisy who had gathered along the opposite wall. The big demon slid into place between Silvie, who was vibrating with excitement, and Raev’s elated smirk. Even he now had a goofy grin on his face.
Shelia and Daryl each had excellent dark-vision. But Boyd knew from training missions with both of them that standing in the bright hallway and looking into the unlit room would limit that. At best, they could only see a number of shapes gathered at the far side of the room.
His loves’ plan might not be the kindest way to greet their new team members, but Boyd had to admit, it was kind of fun.
The couple paused just outside the door, cautiously leaning forward to look around as they let their eyes adjust. Both wore wary expressions—expressions that said they expected some trick or trap. The moment their eyes adjusted, Shelia’s feline eyes hinted at a hidden smile, likely suspecting a light-hearted trick. Daryl, on the other hand, was more cautious, his slightly serpentine features set in a hard, distrusting line.
In the man’s defense, since he thought Boyd was behaving just like their old tormentor, an ambush that might result in serious injury was not out of the question. Such tests of situational awareness and quick reaction weren’t all that uncommon back in the day.
It was at that moment that Granny turned the lights on, and everyone gathered at the far side of the room chorused, “Welcome home!”
With the cheered words, Granny set off a small pyrotechnic display set up by Tinker. There was no fire, smoke, or sparks, though—just a bunch of colored and sparkly scraps of paper that shot everywhere but over the table that had been pushed against a wall under a banner that read “Welcome to The Devoted!”
Daisy had loaded this table with finger foods and a large cake, something Tink had considered when setting up the confetti poppers.
The room was colorfully decorated, with balloons and streamers all over the place. His loves and Daisy wore their usual relaxed, casual attire—a far cry from the shapeless drab clothing Boyd had put on for their little trick.
“Oh, thank the stars,” Daryl sighed, clutching his hands over the chest of the smart, royal blue dress shirt he was wearing. Given his physiology, pants were a non-starter. His snake half didn’t include external genitalia, though, so it wasn’t much of an issue.
Daryl scowled at Boyd’s grinning face. “When did you become a prankster? You really had me going there.”
Shelia rolled her slitted eyes and tapped a softly closed fist into Daryl’s muscled shoulder in a gentle punch. “Dunce, I tried to tell you it was clearly a prank. Mindy wouldn’t have let Boyd keep that mindset, even if he’d had it when she got to him.” The feline Changed wore black slacks that matched her fur and a blouse that matched Daryl’s shirt.
“Is that what that look meant?” Daryl asked blankly. “I thought you were trying to reassure me that it would be okay, or that we would make it work.”
Boyd chuckled, glad that there was no anger or hard feelings at their little prank. “Welcome to The Devoted,” he rumbled warmly. “I hope you both know that was all in good fun. We like to keep things lively around here.”
Shelia grinned mischievously, her tail swaying behind her as she spoke up, “Oh, don't worry, we can handle a few surprises. Just wait ‘til you get to know us better, Boyd. We’ve had some fun of our own since the PAC.”
Daryl nodded, a smirk tugging at the corner of his lips. "I'm looking forward to ‘lively.’ Thanks for the warm welcome, everyone."
“Of course!” Silvie cheered, blurring forward to give each of them short, friendly hugs. “We missed you guys. You two were always fun team members to have on training missions.”
“Yes, we are truly happy to be reunited,” Hope agreed as she stepped forward and exchanged hugs with Daryl and Shelia.
“Thanks for agreeing to join us.” Mindy smiled from beside Raev. “Sorry about the prank.”
“We missed you all, too!” Shelia beamed, happily accepting the hugs while Daryl watched Boyd carefully as he gently returned the hugs he received, obviously concerned that he might be overstepping.
Boyd gave him a reassuring smile that he hoped sent the message that he wasn’t that jealous or territorial. “And really, don’t worry,” the big demon said. “I only agreed to do it because it was a good set up prank for the surprise party.”
“I thought it would be a hoot, and Silvie jumped right on board.” Raev chuckled as she stepped forward, offering the two handshakes instead of hugs. “We talked the others into it from there. It’s nice to see you again.”
“Um, hello,” Tinker added from Boyd’s side, where she’d tucked in close to him the moment Silvie streaked forward. The little inventor took a deep breath and stepped forward, gift bags she had prepared for their new members in each hand. “It’s a pleasure to meet you again. Welcome to the team. Your clothes look comfortable, but I made you these.”
Daryl was nearly as big as Boyd—much larger if you counted all that tail—so watching him sink lower on it and carefully take the little pink bag from his smallest love was amusing. The snake Changed seemed unsure of himself, obviously worried that if he moved recklessly around Tink, he might break her. Given his strength and her squishiness, outside of her armor at least, the big demon was as grateful for the caution as he was amused by it.
The nervous glace Daryl sent Boyd’s way after taking the bag and thanking her would need to be addressed at some point.
“Oh, wow!” Shelia purred as she felt the black t-shirt she’d extracted from the pink bag between her fingers. The pads of her fingers and palms were furless, allowing her to knead the nearly magical fabric and get a feel for it. “It’s so soft. Like, the softest thing I’ve ever touched.”
“Thanks!” Tinker chirped, smiling shyly. “We weren’t sure if you would arrive in your suits, so I figured it would be nice to have something more comfortable to change into if you did. But don’t worry about changing now, since you arrived in casual clothes.”
“Wow… that is really soft,’ Daryl commented, inspecting his own shirt. “I kind of want to put it on anyway.”
“It’s nice, isn’t it? We all wear Tinker-made clothing most of the time, at least around the base.” Laura laughed as she stepped forward. “We didn’t have a chance to talk at the Gala, but I was there. It’s nice to officially meet you both. I’m Laura… no Hero name yet.”
Like Raev, she stuck with handshakes in lieu of hugs.
“Nice to meet you,” Shelia responded with a smile. “Oh, since our citizenship to Glorith has finalized, we can vote in that poll News2 has going for your Hero name if you would like… although it seems Naiad is ahead by a lot.”
“It has seventy-two percent of the votes, but I wouldn’t say no to two more.” Laura smiled as she stepped back. She shuddered for effect. “Somnus wouldn’t be bad, but even at only three percent, the fact that there is a possibility that I’ll be stuck with the name ‘Sticky’ isn’t a happy thought—prank name or not.”
“Aww, come on, it’s not so bad,” Raev said with a velvet chuckle, six tails swaying in amusement. “At least it would be fitting… you do get all sticky around the Big Guy, after all.”
Laura snorted, then because Raev’s quip must really have tickled her, the snort quickly descended into a belly laugh while giving the vixen a thumbs up and an enthusiastic nod. His loves all grinned or laughed at the off-color joke, with Daryl and Shelia joining them.
The only one who didn’t laugh was Daisy, who made a loud retching sound that drew attention to where she floated off to one side. She was keeping herself separate and out of the festivities, but the noise drew everyone’s attention, and curious glances from the newcomers.
“Hello,” Daryl said with a pleasant smile as Laura’s laughter faded. “I’m Daryl, and this is my wife, Shelia. It’s nice to meet you.”
“Uh… hi… I’m Daisy,” the fairy said somewhat awkwardly. “I do the cooking and cleaning around here.”
“Oh, did you make all this?” Shelia asked as she moved over to the table.
The spread Daisy had set out was a sight to behold—an assortment of colorful and delicious foods that smelled divine.
“Yeah, I did,” Daisy confirmed, her voice somehow blending confidence and uncertainty in a way the big demon hadn’t heard before.
“Wow! Well, it certainly looks and smells amazing. I’m sure it will taste delicious, too.” Shelia smiled at the fairy. “You know, I already thought Boyd was a lucky man, given the six women I knew were with him. But now to discover that he was hiding what just might be the beauty he’s luckiest to have? Between your looks and your cooking, I can’t decide which is more impressive.”
“I’m not with Boyd!” Daisy insisted, her face burning a deep shade of red. The blush that had started with Shelia’s first comment had grown as Shelia continued to heap compliments and assumptions on her. “I just work here, cooking and cleaning.”
Shelia blinked in mild surprise, then realized that she had unintentionally crossed a line. "Oh! I'm so sorry," she said quickly, her expression turning remorseful. "I didn't mean to imply anything, it's just...” The feline Hero found herself at a loss and scanned the other faces in the room for some help.
“Just, what?” Daisy scowled before anyone else could jump in to save Shelia. “Just that he’s a total dream boat that most women throw themselves at?! Well, not me. No thank you. Not interested. Sure, he’s hot, but he’s…”
Now it was the fairy’s turn to trail off, apparently unable to find anything negative she wanted to say about Boyd. She glanced at the big demon, colorful eyes darting away as soon as they made contact with his. Eventually, she added, “He’s a Hero. No offense, but I would never date a Hero.”
“Me thinks the lady doth protest too much,” Laura said with a chuckle. “Daiz sounds a lot like I did a few months ago, and we all know how that turned out.”
“Yeah, you ended up all sticky,” Raev quipped with a velvet chuckle. This triggered another round of laughter that cycled through the room while Daisy scowled at Laura.
As the laughter died down, Shelia turned to Daisy with an apologetic smile. “I apologize for the misunderstanding. After watching the way all the girls in the PAC were with Boyd and his handsome-broodiness, I just assumed that any woman around him would be drawn in. That man has always been a magnet for female attention.”
“Ahem,” Daryl cleared his throat and scowled in a way that didn’t reach his eyes. “Your husband is right here.”
“Any unattached woman would be drawn in,” Shelia corrected herself as she returned to her husband, pressing herself into his side and rubbing her face into his chest and arm.
Daryl arched an eyebrow, but also couldn’t help but grin at his wife’s affectionate reassurance.
“Well, not me,” Daisy huffed.
“Alright, let’s move on from the topic of just how uninterested Daisy is in me,” Boyd rumbled with a smile and shake of his head.
“Yesss,” Daryl said with a hissing laugh. “I can see how you might want to avoid the topic of the one woman who isn’t susceptible to your charms.”
Boyd chuckled and grinned at the man. He was already enjoying having a guy around. It would be good to have another guy to hang out with.
The snake man turned to Tinker. “We forgot to thank you for the clothing. You said you made it yourself?”
“Well, made is a strong word,” Tinker said with a rueful smile. “I designed them based on the data that was sent over for your suits, but the nano-weaver did the actual ‘making’.”
“Thank you,” Shelia and Daryl both said.
“You are welcome. Oh, and at some point during the party, remind me to discuss what you two would like for your suits. We’ve got to get the basic design down before you can go into the field.”
“Oh? Sure!” Shelia perked right up, her ears literally sticking straight up as her cat’s eyes settled on the little inventor. “We didn’t have official suits at the Haven, so that’s pretty exciting. Who did you guys pay off to get to be able to design your own suits?”
“It was part of a deal Mindy and I worked out with Director Davis,” Silvie bubbled. “Along with our amazing base. I’m so looking forward to giving you the tour—you two have to see the baths!”
“They are ever so lovely,” Hope added helpfully.
“I do love me a good bath.” Daryl smiled at Silvie and Hope.
“Speaking of the tour, we have official business to address before we can really get to enjoying the party,” Boyd rumbled. “We are on call, as you know, so if a call comes in, you should just run back to the elevators. The rest of the team will get on them, one at a time, but you two can jump on together after Laura’s turn. We’ll have to configure the individual cars with your suits. We have a rapid equip and unequip system built into them. But until she makes your suits, Tinker can’t set it up.”
“Understood,” Daryl and Shelia said together with firm nods, adopting attentive expressions in response to their team Captain switching to business mode.
