Whoopsie Daisy

by C. Sunrise

  “Kitten, aren’t you going to introduce me to your little friend here?” He asks. He maintains eye contact with Percy as he slowly slides his hand from my shoulder, down my back, and slinking it around my waist causing jolts of electricity to course through my body. This is clearly an attempt at marking his territory.

  Holy fudge, I may need to go take a cold shower before dinner. I wonder if Kace would join me. Damn it, woman! Get your mind out of the gutter! What is wrong with you? Someone obviously ate their Horny-Ohs for breakfast today. Quit talking to yourself too!

  “Kitten?” Percy says with a chuckle. “How cute. Isn’t that what Momma calls you, Pussy-cat?”

  “Yes, but I call her Kitten because I make her purr every time I-” Kace fires back before I have a chance to say anything. Luckily, I manage to cut him off before he finishes his sentence.

  “Kace, this is Percy,” I reply to Kace’s initial question. “We’ve been friends since we were kids.” I smile at Kace and then at Percy, hoping that my sweet, innocent smile will be enough to douse their fires a bit. Just enough to drop them down from the level of sharing intimate details to the shirtless flirting and glaring level. Unfortunately, I’m not that lucky.

  “Oh, we are way more than just friends, Pussy-cat,” he says, winking at me before smirking at Kace. I can see the look on Kace’s face out of the corner of my eye, it’s a what-the-hell-does-that-mean kind of look.

  “If I recall correctly, I was even your first kiss,” he continues, clearly enjoying tormenting Kace. “In fact, I was several of your firsts.” He plunges the knife deeper. I don’t know why I don’t say anything. I mean it’s true, we did share a lot of firsts, but nothing as bad as what Kace is probably thinking right now. “I see you still enjoy bringing home strays, Pussy-cat. I hope this one won’t need to be put down.”

  “Percy, why are you being like this?” I ask Percy with a reprimanding tone. “This is not how you talk to people, especially people I care about.”

  I don’t mind a little playful jealousy, but this is getting a bit too intense and immature for my liking. I don’t know if I’m flattered anymore, or if I want to throat punch both of them and go enjoy a nice quiet dinner alone with my parents.

  I blush, realising I just admitted my feelings for Kace. He relaxes behind me, letting out a low, content growl. His body relaxes against me as he smiles and winks at Percy, silently gloating about my revelation. A strange feeling waves through my body as if Kace is projecting his feelings of happiness onto me.

  “I’m sorry, Pussy-cat, I just know you deserve to be with a real man,” he says with a concerned look on his face. “A man like me, who can take care of you in every... possible... way.” He raises an eyebrow as his lip curls up into a smirk as he slowly looks me up and down.

  “Unlike this mangy mutt you found on the streets,” he continues, his attention now on Kace.

  Kace’s body immediately tenses up again. I don’t know what is up with these two, but there seems to be some unspoken rivalry between them, something beyond just competing for my affection.

  “Listen here, you arrogant piece of sh-” Kace says, ready to put Percy in his place before a loud booming voice cuts him off.

  “Enough! You boys are acting like my daughter is a piece of meat!” Papa shouts, his voice filling the room. As he speaks, I notice his eyes getting lighter. “My daughter does not belong in the same category as the dinner my beautiful wife has prepared for us.” He points angrily at Kace and Percy. “No offence, Tiger!” he turns and shouts towards the kitchen.

  “No offence taken,” Momma calls out from the kitchen. She doesn’t seem even slightly bothered by the commotion in here. “But you might want to take a deep breath, dear. You know what happens when you get too excited,” she adds with her usual sweet but commanding voice.

  Papa turns back towards us and I watch his eyes darken back to their original blue colour as he takes a few deep breaths. Now there is no denying that his eyes did indeed change colour—just like mine.

  It turns out that Kace also noticed his eye colour changing, and this was the moment Kace knew Papa was like him.

  “Do I make myself clear boys?” he asks, slightly squinting his eyes at us. “You will treat my daughter with respect from now on,” he commands, to which Kace responds by bowing his head. Apparently, this is an automatic behaviour when a high-ranking individual commands you to do something, but I didn’t know that at the time. Why would I?

  “Did you just bow to Papa?” I ask with a confused look on my face. “Who does that?” I ask before going into a fit of laughter, thinking I’ve been magically transported several centuries into the past. Kace squirms behind me.

  “Good to see you, Sie,” Papa says, redirecting the conversation once I catch my breath from laughing. “How’s my favourite pup doing?”

  “I’m your only pup,” I reply, rolling my eyes. “I’m good, Papa.”

  I introduce Kace. Percy watches me talk to Papa with a look of admiration on his face. He has told me many times in the past he loves watching my eyes light up when I talk to Papa. My family has been like family to him. Hell, I’m sure he spent more time here than at his home growing up. He said that the bond between me and my parents is unlike anything he has ever seen and that he hopes one day to have someone look at him that way.

  We continue catching up, discussing Papa’s work and how the workplace drama will force him into early retirement. After a few minutes, Momma orders our “cute butts” out to the backyard for dinner. Papa cautions us to not make her wait or she will show us how she earned the nickname—Tiger. So, with a chuckle, we all quickly make our way out to the yard.

  I guide everyone to a beautiful tree-lined garden area, where my parents have filled a huge table with delicious looking foods, water, and of course, wine. It only makes sense that a family who owns a winery would have wine with dinner. Kace tells us he’s had our wine before, and it is good—really good.

  “Everyone take a seat and eat while the food is hot and fresh,” Momma says as we all find a place to sit around the table. My parents sit together at one end of the table. I take one of the middle seats, and Kace sits beside me. Percy takes the seat on the other side of me—turning me into a hot Whoopsie sandwich.

  “This looks amazing, Momma.” I say excitedly as I look across the table full of food. The rest of us nod in agreement.

  “Tiger makes the best food on the planet,” Papa boasts. “She grew most of this food right here in our own garden.”

  “Yes, I do make the best food,” Momma says confidently. “And yes, we were fortunate to get a lot of great stuff from our garden this year too. Now quit talking and dig in everyone.” No one keeps Momma waiting for food, unless you have a death wish.

  We all sit peacefully and eat our dinner, which is quite a surprise with these two knuckleheads beside me. Papa continues to tell us all about his recent work adventures—all the work trips and the usual workplace drama.

  Momma tells us she joined a new book club and they meet once a month. She is really enjoying it. Especially when they read “naughty” books. She says it makes her feel like a rebellious teenager again. Papa says he is enjoying Mama’s book club too, because she’s always in “the mood”. I glare in response, and everyone laughs.

  Percy tells us he has just come back from university. He went to school overseas, which is why we haven’t seen each other for a few years. We get to hear a few stories about how life is different over there and how everyone loved his Canadian accent. It’s strange to hear that people think we have an accent because we don’t hear our accent. It’s not like the accents you hear in Eastern Canada—the ones that everyone imitates when they try to act Canadian. We sound plain and accent-less, or so I thought.

  Kace gives everyone a brief, and by brief I mean very brief, introduction and family history. He’s always so guarded and mysterious. My parents seem to like him though, and that makes me happy. I look over at him and smile. Even a blind person
could see our connection and chemistry. Kace reaches under the table and intertwines his fingers with mine, resting our hands on my leg. The blood rushes to my cheeks. Suddenly, I feel a hand on my other leg, and I jump, bumping my knee on the underside of the table. Kace and Percy don’t take their hands away from my legs.

  I have a feeling these men will be the death of me.

  I take turns glancing at the men sitting beside me, taking in all of their features as they eat. The way their jaw muscles flex as they chew and how the sleeves of their shirts tighten on their arms as they bring their food to their mouths.

  Dear diary, I’m sitting at a family dinner beside two of the hottest men on Earth. One of them literally makes me purr like a kitten with every touch... and I like it. Scratch that, I love it! Heck, sometimes just looking at him makes my blood flow to certain areas of my body. Who wouldn’t be turned on by this man? Mr. Tall, Dark, and Handsome. Just look at those muscles. No matter what he wears, they are just BAM in your face! But let’s not be superficial here, I mean, he has a good personality too. He’s smart, funny, caring, and so hot.

  I catch myself gawking at his muscular arms again. They seem to be quite pumped up considering they are only lifting a fork right now. It’s almost like he’s flexing while eating.

  For fudge sakes, Sie lay off his body... or should I lay on it? Wink, wink. Ugh, I’m hopeless.

  The other man has been one of my best friends since childhood. This could either be a bad thing, or a great thing. There was always chemistry between us, but we both went away to university before we explored our relationship further. And wow, this boy is no longer the boy I knew—he is a man now. He isn’t as muscular as Kace, but his muscles are nothing to scoff at.

  This man definitely takes care of his body. I kind of want to touch him. Ugh, there I go again. Cold shower for one over here, please.

  While I’m distracted by my dirty thoughts and food, Papa looks at Momma and sees her gawking at us kids.

  “Tiger?” he says while waving his hand in front of her face. “Earth to Tiger. Come in Tiger.”

  She rolls her eyes before responding to him. “Do you see them over there?” She asks, nudging her head towards us. “Do you remember when we used to look at each other like that?”

  “What are you talking about, woman?” he asks, surprised. “I still look at you like that every day, my love. Especially after you’ve been out with the ladies, drinking wine, and reading your naughty little books. Because I know what kind of mood that puts you in. Daddy likey.” He looks her in the eye and bites his lip seductively.

  “Shh, Shasta,” she says, putting her finger to her lips. “Don’t let the kids hear you talking like that, you naughty, naughty boy,” she says playfully and they both laugh. The advantage of having a large table like this is that you can usually have a private conversation with the person beside you. Unfortunately, my unusually sensitive hearing of late has made me privy to their adorable yet gag-worthy conversation.

  “Don’t you see what is going on over there though?” He asks.

  She thinks for a second before shrugging. “Young love,” she says matter-of-factly. “Isn’t it beautiful?”

  “I think it’s more than that, Tiger,” he replies, not wanting to burst her romantic bubble with the truth. “Kace isn’t what he seems. He’s like me.” He says hesitantly.

  At first, I thought he meant his personality or the fact that they are both large, burly men; however, I now know there was much more to it than that.

  “Now that you mention it, his eyes seemed to get lighter in the house when Percy first walked into the room,” she says while nodding slightly.

  “He also bowed his head to me in the living room,” Papa adds, knowing what’s coming next.

  “So, he knows what you are too.” She comments raising her eyebrow. There’s a hint of concern in her voice.

  Papa nods while slightly scrunching his nose. “I was a little upset when I heard them fighting in there and lost control for a minute. We have tried so hard to keep our secret. So far, we have been successful, only a handful of people know what we are, but no one knows who we are. We have done everything we could to make sure of it—for Sie’s sake. I want to do some digging into his background and his family; see if there is anything we need to be worried about.”

  I pretend I’m not listening to my parent’s conversation but cannot resist eavesdropping.

  What secrets could they be talking about? They’re starting to sound like a couple of spies or secret agents or something. Could that be it? Is that their huge secret? And they think Kace is a spy too? Papa does travel lots for work.

  “Good idea,” she replies. “But I’m pretty sure you were going to do that anyway, even if he wasn’t like you.”

  Papa nods and chuckles. “You know me too well, Tiger.”

  “I know you would burn down the world if it meant it would keep Sie safe,” she says knowingly.

  She’s right. Papa would do anything and everything to keep me safe.

  “That’s what I’m worried about,” he says as he looks over at me for a minute. I tilt my head to the side, pretending to be focussed on the butterfly fluttering around the table. After a few moments, he turns back to Momma. “Something is going on with Sie. Something is happening to our pup.”

  “Oh, you mean like her hair and eyes changing colours?” She asks. “I don’t believe for one second that she dyed her hair that colour. She loved her natural hair colour.”

  At least I didn’t have to spend any of my hard-earned money to change my hair colour. I guess that’s a silver lining to this whole situation.

  “Yes, but I think there’s more,” Papa says with a pained look on his face. “Look at how she has those boys wrapped around her finger. Both boys.” He pauses, and I take the cue to focus on Percy’s story about how his soccer team won some championship just as they both look over at us again. “It seems a little odd to me. Don’t you think?”

  They stare at us for a few more seconds before Momma nods. “She is twenty-five,” she reminds Papa. “Do you think that has something to do with it? I remember what it was like when I turned twenty-five.”

  Papa smiles, obviously fond of the memories of twenty-five-year-old Momma. “It took all my energy just to keep my hands off you.”

  “I also remember giving birth to Sie soon after,” Momma says while cocking her head to the side and raising her eyebrow. “So, you clearly didn’t do a good job at keeping your hands off.” They both laugh and I internally gag.

  “It looks like we’ll have to talk to her,” Papa says. “It might be time to tell her everything.”

  “I just hope we didn’t wait too long and that she can forgive us for lying and keeping secrets,” she adds. They both look down at their plates and I internally panic at what they are insinuating.

  “What the hell did you just say?!” Kace roars followed by a deep guttural growl causing my parents and I to jump. I have to give it to him; his voice and his body language are very intimidating. Papa also seems to admire Kace’s power.

  “Get your dirty ass paws off her!” Kace demands. “Do you not have any respect for anyone?!”

  He had tried so hard to ignore Percy’s continuous flirting with me and the verbal jabs he kept throwing at him, but he must have finally reached his limit. “I’m not proud of what happens when I lose my temper, but I will never apologise for defending the people in my life. I’m going to rip your arms off of your body and beat you with them!” He threatens as he stands and takes a fighter’s stance with his body turned sideways to make it a smaller target and his fists balled at his sides, ready to go.

  “I’d like to see you try,” Percy replies, mimicking Kace’s stance. They stand there staring at each other. Percy still has that same smirk on his face, while Kace grits his teeth.

  “God damn pompous douche and his stupid bloody smirk. I will make sure you can never smirk again.” Kace is seething.

  Everyone is startled by my
sudden scream as I stand between the two raging males. The fear on my face replaced with fury.

  “I’ve had enough of this bullshit!” I shout loud enough to be heard two towns over. “You two are acting like a couple of douchecanoes!”

  Suddenly, my eyes change colours—or so I was told. They rapidly switch between my normal blue, icy blue, and green, he colours so vibrant they appear to glow.

  “You two can fuck off and leave me the hell alone!” I spit. Then the unexpected happens as I continue my verbal lashing, my hair changes colours too. It switches between my natural colour, a very light, almost white, platinum blonde, and the same dark charcoal colour from my trip. Apparently, it was quite mesmerising to watch.

  Oblivious to the changes happening to me, I continue my rant, “Do you fucking understand what I am fucking sa-” Everything goes dark, my eyes shut, and I drop to the ground before I can finish my sentence.

  “Kitten! Kitten!” I hear a muffled voice calling to me. The faint feeling of something brushing across my cheeks is the last thing I feel before my entire body tingles. “Kitten, can you hear me?”

  “Is she breathing?” Another concerned and panicked voice asks.

  “Yes, she is.”

  “Quick, carry her to her room.” Another voice says. Or maybe it was the same voice. I can’t tell the difference anymore.

  “She needs to rest.”

  Darkness consumes me. I can’t see or feel anything. I can still hear, but only muffled sounds that are hard to discern.

  Someone lays me down on the bed and covers me with what feels like a blanket and then bends over and places a kiss on my forehead and whispers, “I am so sorry, Kitten. I never meant for this to happen to you.”

  “Thank you for being here for her Kace. It means a lot and I know Kitten would be happy to know you are here, but you can go home now, she just needs her rest.”

  No, I don’t want Kace to leave. I panic, not knowing what is wrong with me and upset that I can’t tell them what I need.