Psy & Changelings 01 - Slave to Sensation

almost bruised her own ribs. If her mother told her to keep those daily meetings . . .
    Enrique has overstepped his bounds . Nikita’s mental voice was frigid. I gave him permission to solicit information, not tie you to a schedule .
    Relief threatened to turn her limbs to jelly. Mother, I think it would be preferable if I gave you any pertinent information and you . . . shared it with Enrique . The pause was calculated. Nikita enjoyed being in a position of power. You’re the head of the household—I should be reporting to you first in any case .
    Nikita was silent for a couple of seconds. I’d already considered that. Unfortunately, Enrique is too strong to defy without consequences. And he wants to talk to you .
    Perhaps, Sascha said, thinking desperately, you could imply to him that I find dealing with his powerful presence too much on top of my first independent project .
    Now you’re thinking like a Duncan . Nikita was clearly pleased. He can’t argue with me for trying to protect the deal .
    The deal, Sascha thought, not her daughter. Even though she should’ve been used to the heartlessness of the Psy after a lifetime of living with them, she felt a sharp stab of hurt. Then I’m free to concentrate on the development and keep you up to speed?
    Yes .
    With that, Nikita was gone. Sascha allowed herself a huge sigh of relief and dropped her head into her hands. Something was wrong. It wasn’t paranoia. Why was Enrique suddenly so concerned with a failed cardinal most of the Psy ignored? Doubly troubling was the extent of Nikita’s cooperation with the other Councilor.
    Her gut twisted. She had a feeling she was being used as a pawn in a game for which she didn’t know the rules. What worried her even more was that she didn’t know the consequences of checkmate . . . or how to stop it.
    Suddenly realizing she’d been sitting there staring into nothingness, she stood up and only then did the ridiculousness of her situation strike her. She’d just had conversations with two members of the Council while sitting on the closed lid of a toilet. The thought had her stifling giggles as she lifted the lid and opened the door.
    When she checked her appearance in the mirror above the basin, she was surprised to find that nothing betrayed her slight case of hysteria. Her physical masks were holding, even as the mental ones broke down piece by piece. Glancing at her timepiece, she saw that she’d been in here for almost thirty minutes. The changelings would be full of questions and she’d better have answers for them.
    Before heading out, she ensured that she looked exactly as she should—every hair on her head smoothed into a tight braid, the cuffs of her dark gray suit perfectly aligned, and her face so calm that she almost convinced herself her stomach wasn’t tied up in knots.
    Nobody was in the corridor but heads turned the instant she walked back into the room used by Clay Bennett and the others. One particular pair of green eyes tracked her every move. “I apologize for keeping you waiting,” she said, before anyone could speak. “I was called into conference.”
    Lucas tapped at the side of his head with a finger. “That kind of conference?” His lips curved.
    She wanted to tease him back so badly. “Yes.”
    â€œStrange place for one,” Kit remarked, tongue in cheek. It was a measure of her distraction that it took the comment for her to notice the young male who’d entered the room in her absence.
    She couldn’t help herself. “In what way?”
    Kit stopped looking through some papers on Clay’s desk and stared at her. When she calmly stared back, he started to turn red, looking as young and adorable as the two cubs she’d been allowed to touch. “Um, well . . . d-don’t you . . . I have to get these upstairs.” He grabbed what looked like a random pile of papers and almost ran from the room.
    â€œYou should be more merciful—he’s only recently grown out of being a cub.” Lucas’s chuckle held real amusement.
    She fought not to let her lips twitch. “I was merely asking a question.”
    His eyes narrowed. “Sure you were.”
    â€œWhen do you consider your children full grown?” she asked, trying to get him to stop thinking about her impulsive decision to tease Kit.
    An odd tension seemed to infiltrate the room.
    â€œSugar for sugar,