Total pages in book: 142
Estimated words: 134725 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 674(@200wpm)___ 539(@250wpm)___ 449(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 134725 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 674(@200wpm)___ 539(@250wpm)___ 449(@300wpm)
“Of course,” I replied with a snicker.
“He hasn’t gotten his translator yet, regrettably,” Lunaris said. “But I’ll translate today.”
“I’m having it put in next week, lovely Earth girls,” Orvand said, smiling at us as he opened up what looked like a folding massage table and set it up by the fireplace.
“Oh, beverages!” Treya exclaimed. “Forgive my lack of hostess skills. My mother, if she hadn’t been murdered by Earth, she’d have skinned me alive for not offering my guests beverages. I’ll be right back.”
Elaina’s back went rod straight. I bit my lip.
“Here we go,” she muttered.
“Yikes,” I whispered.
Jeffeny scoffed. Lunaris gave Treya’s back a disapproving shake of her head.
The tall tuxedo-wearing man returned for two babies as Orvand, dressed head-to-toe in skintight lilac leather, flounced out, telling us he was getting the rest of his gear.
Treya returned with the tuxedo-wearing baby guy who was back to set down a tall multi-tiered platter of what appeared to be delicate and beautiful pastries before he fetched the last baby and left.
Treya returned with a tray of beverages that she carefully set on the table and handed out.
“Ooh, what’s this fabulousness?” Elaina asked.
The tray held five martini-style glasses (though larger). Four were filled with yellow liquid, one with purple, and the rims were all crusted with sparkly pink sugar.
“The purple one is pomberry for Elaina, due to her condition. No alcohol for you, girl. The others are for us. Just a little afternoon cocktail.” Treya winked and lifted a glass. We all followed suit. I lifted the device Zane gave me from my pocket and dipped the probe into the liquid. The tip immediately turned black.
“Oh! Darn. I can’t drink this,” I said.
Treya’s eyes seared me with an ugly expression.
“It’s got something I’m allergic to in it.” I pulled the probe out of the glass and wiped it on a napkin that I’d fetched from a stack beside the tray of treats.
“What is that?” Lunaris asked.
“My husband invented it for me to make sure I don’t accidentally contaminate myself. Sorry, Treya. Is there razzleberry in this?”
She tilted her head, confused. “No. I don’t think so.”
“Well, whatever it is, it looks like I can’t drink it, sorry. It looks fabulous, though.”
“That’s okay. I’ll get you something else. Pomberry?” she asked.
“Sure.”
“Fabulous.” She breezed out of the room.
Elaina gave me a pointed look and took a sip of her drink. “Yikes,” she said under her breath.
Lunaris looked at us with concern. Jeffeny’s face had my Spidey senses on alert.
Did Treya try to intentionally poison me?
“Can we start, girls? Where is Mrs. Blackstar?” Orvand asked exasperated. He had a rack of dresses and a wide table filled with swatches of fabric as well as jewelry and shoes.
Treya returned with another glass of juice, this one like Elaina’s but missing the sparkling sugar rim. I dipped the probe in again and the tip turned green, the color I had Zane program as a ‘green light’ color, meaning I would be allowed to drink it.
Treya raised a brow at me. “Don’t trust me?”
“Oh no. Not that. Just can’t be too careful,” I said. “Highly allergic.”
She and Jeffeny exchanged looks.
“Beautiful girls, can we please, please begin?” Orvand exclaimed.
“Absolutely. Dazzle us, Orvand,” Treya said, putting her glass to her mouth.
***
I went home after being measured and choosing to have three dresses made and with a plan for Orvand to bring them to me when they were ready, at our home. Zane had already told me to buy whatever I wanted and said Orvand would know to invoice him. He said he wanted to show me another set of fabrics that he couldn’t bring that day.
He was excited about getting fitted for his translator when he arrived as Treya told him Zane would do it if he visited my home.
Quid picked us up and I was charmed half to death by baby Hope who was perched in a baby seat secured in Quid’s car and clapping her hands excitedly when she saw me, and her momma enter the vehicle.
Quid was charming, too, extremely affectionate with his wife and seemed totally smitten with her.
All the way to drop me off at Zane’s office, Elaina went on about how horrible Treya was, what a rude bitch Jeffeny was, how adorable all their babies were, and that she actually liked Lunaris. I liked Lunaris too. Elaina decided Lunaris was in our girl posse. She told me she got her number. Jeffeny was not and Treya was absolutely not in our girl posse.
Zane greeted us on the roof of his office building, ready to take me home from there and we had a mini meeting on the roof where Elaina and I filled him in (mostly Elaina) on the afternoon before we parted ways. Elaina was very colorful when she was angry. And she was angry!
Zane was furious. And when I say furious, I mean…absolutely livid. Upon finding out that Treya had served me something that could’ve hurt me, he deduced she did it intentionally after hearing Ollie talk about my razzleberry allergy at Daxx and Jetta’s wedding. It was even worse when I described that the second drink didn’t have the same sparkled rim as everyone else, suggesting that Treya knew that the substance she’d had the glasses rimmed with was the culprit rather than whatever beverage it contained.