My Soulmates are IDOLS Books 2+3 | 18+ [SoulBond Series]

293:happier

The table went silent and Casper choked on his toast, dropping his bowl and spoon onto the floor. Both were, thankfully, missing the familiar dash of milk and the excessive mountain of cereal. It clattered and spilt, the bitten toast spinning on the marble and Hikaru had to body slam Casper to save his lungs.

It had Amber standing in concern, questions flushed into the drain at his lack of oxygen. But he managed to cough it out and she sat back down as he took long swigs of water, assuring everyone that he was fine. Another beat followed as he cleared his stressed-out throat as she stirred a spoon in her coffee, mixing sweet milk with bitter liquid that steadily kickstarted her brain into pleasant alert.

"So that's why she was mad," Sieon whispered from a corner, annoyingly bad at reading the room as always. "I was wondering why no one said anything. I was going to ask." His fingers twitched to her sides and she slapped them down, irritated that he was trying to make the topic less serious than it actually was.

"We all knew she was mad," Ezra whispered back, awfully talkative that morning. "But she was trying so hard to not be mad, so I didn't say anything."

The metal spoon in her cup clanked a little loudly against the glass and they both shut the fuck up immediately. Damn it, she knew she was a bad actress. They didn't have to rub it in. Hard. The only thing they should be rubbing was her fucking c—

"That was when we were kids!" Casper proclaimed quickly, his voice so loud that it was peaked with a crack at the end. He coughed, clearing his throat, wet with his nerves and near-death experience. "It was some kind of offhand remark that I would end up with her if we were both Lonely, but that can't happen. We're cousins."

"Even twice removed?" She squinted at him, radar desperately detecting any signs of a lie. She wasn't serious about her accusations, and honestly Amber knew him enough to know the truth. But with the word out and his actions strangely reminiscent of tv drama, she was starting to reconsider her trust.

Just a little.

"I'm pretty sure that means we're still mildly related by blood," Casper made a face, nose scrunched, tongue out and eyes absolutely fucking disgusted. "Anyway, I used to hate her gut, she was the sort of kid to steal my lucky money and sweets." He went to her then, drawing her close, arms crushing her body to his like a slug to a warm body. Clean, frosty scent encompassing her in its furnace-like heat. It drew her in, calming her frazzled mind momentarily.

"I'm not cheating on you with my cousin," he stated crisply.

He held her tighter and refusing to let go as he mumbled his words against her neck. They were starting a thing where arguments had to be solved with a body part stuck to the arguer. It did work, ending tons of petty arguments in their household, with Amber's mostly resolved with angry confessions during sex.

"My dick doesn't go anywhere except my own hand." He growled those words out, low and course as his eyes hardened tight into convincing steel. He seemed to grow as he spoke, his head cocked as their eyes locked. His gaze a drilling burn of fire through her soul, digging straight into her fragile heart. It thundered in her chest as her body burned with awareness.

Her lips quirked.

"I can vouch for that," Oliver chimed in, panicky and awfully bright. "I heard him use his hand." Casper flushed at his words, cheeks turning a violent red as he stared, horrified at his best friend. It broke the spell of confident dominance, pushing Casper far towards the territory of an embarrassed, clumsy giant. Ouch.

"I've seen it!" Sieon raised his hand. "He's always in the studio or the office, didn't lock his door once." Casper's expression grew scandalized when Sieon winked at him, gun fingers up. "Sexy piercings bro." They all returned to stare at her as if they were waiting for some kind of explosion. She couldn't help the bubble of laughter that seeped from her throat, but even that was a sad bark.