Page 220 of Librarian

The Arcanaeum perks up, and two bottles of lube appear on the cart alongside several energy drinks, the latter still dripping with condensation from the fridge. I give it an exasperated sigh, but Dakari just smirks.

“Hey! I wasn’t begging for anything!” Lambert objects. “And I wanted it to be Kyrith’s birthday surprise.”

“Sure, sure.” Jasper pats him on the back.

“I have no idea when I was born,” I point out. “Only the day that I arrived on the steps of the orphanage.”

“Then it’s sorted. Tomorrow is your birthday,” Lambert announces.

I open my mouth to point out that we’re at least a month away from my best guess at the actual date, then shut it again.

He’s offering me a day in bed with the men I love after weeks and weeks of being unable to touch them. Why in magic’s name would Ievertalk my way out of that?

“If you’re not ready,” Leo continues. “We can wait, but as I understand it, the cure for a long stretch of being stuck as a ghost is pizza, sex, and travel?”

My smile can’t possibly get any brighter as I release Eddy and launch myself at him.

I definitely fellasleep on the sofa, watching some awful dating show with Eddy by my side. I can only assume that waking up in my bed, alone, is either my men’s doing, or the Arcanaeum’s.

Given the huge gift bag hanging on the closet door, and the breakfast tray balanced on the bedside table, I have to suspectthe former. Add in the card sitting innocently beside the pastries with instructions to eat up, and then dress in what’s been provided, and I’m shivering with anticipation before I’ve even left my sheets.

My nails are a glossy, vibrant ultramarine-blue, thanks to Eddy, and Pierce must’ve taken note, because the expensive lingerie in the bag matches it exactly. It’s a pile of silken lace with tiny pearls across the underwire.

I’ll forgive it for not being a corset, if only because the top is a bustier, giving me a little more support than most bras. It fits more comfortably, at least…

Not that I plan to be wearing it, or the thong that came with it, for long. It’s the kind of decadent garment one wears with the expectation that it’ll be removed posthaste. The fit is perfect, the fabric divine, and I hum happily to myself as I shrug on the matching robe, fingers glossing over the pearls around the hem and sleeves. It’s made entirely of lace, save for the satin belt, allowing teasing glimpses at what lies beneath.

No shoes.

The chill of the floor sinks into my toes as I head down the stairs, listening intently for some clue as to what they’re up to.

The mess from Pierce’s pizzas last night has been cleared away. In fact, all of the surfaces are clear of clutter for the first time in weeks. The blankets we snuggled up in while watching the dating show have been folded neatly on the sofa.

Leo is the only one here, sitting at the kitchen island, reading.

That’s odd. I thought…

He must hear me, because he swivels on his stool, searching me out.

Those icy eyes melt, turning to blue flames as he takes in my outfit, lingering on the ring at my finger, the bracelet on my wrist, my earrings, and finally the necklace resting at the hollow of my throat.

“Where is everyone?” I play with the satin belt, wondering if they’ve changed their minds.

He clears his throat, his gaze dropping to my feet. “They’re getting things ready. I asked them to give us a moment. I, err…I wanted to make sure you want me there.”

I blink at him, confused. “Why wouldn’t I?”

He glances up. “It seemed like a celebration of surviving something I caused. So much has happened since we last?—”

“A lothashappened.” I cut him off, keeping my expression carefully neutral. “I watched you spend weeks developing a master level spell using forbidden magic to save me. When you weren’t working on that, you organised the complete restoration of the Arcanaeum and started creating an entirely new system of governance for all six families. You reformed enforcementandtore down all of the rubbish that Mathias and Isidora put in place to keep liminals as second-class citizens.”

He huffs out a breath and shakes his head, like those things are barely worth mentioning.

I only know because I was invisible and watching him was my only entertainment on late, lonely nights.

“I wasn’t talking about that. I meant?—”

“The new UAA scholarships that will disproportionately allow more liminals access to the best education money can buy?”