“I had such fun! Your new earrings are so pretty on you, Riley.”
With a shrug, Riley accepted her own weakness. “In a fight, all the opponent has to do is grab one and pull.”
“They look pretty. So do Sasha’s, and Sasha will look beautiful in her new dress and the sandals. You should have bought the new dress I showed you, Riley.”
“I don’t have a man to seduce.”
“You have a very good body. It’s small and strong and agile, and your breasts are lovely.”
“Well, that doesn’t get me laid, but thanks.”
“In my world both male and female would very much wish to bang you.”
So they walked into the house laughing, and drew Bran in from where he’d tried not to worry.
“Successful shopping, it seems.”
“Excellent shopping, and pizza as promised.” Sasha lifted her face for a kiss.
“I’ll take the pizza into the kitchen. Doyle’s in the grove, or was. Sawyer’s outside, working on the plans for whatever you brought for him.”
“Riley can take that out.” Subtly Sasha gave Annika a nudge. “We’ll just go up, put away our shopping extravaganza.”
“This is strategy?” Annika asked as they started up.
“Give him a little time to miss you, to wonder where you are. Don’t wear the heeled sandals yet. Save those for impact.”
“It’s like a game.”
“A little bit, but one where you both get to win.”
At the door to her room, Annika put down her bags to hug Sasha tight. “Thank you. You and Riley are my sisters in this world, and in mine.”
“I’ve learned what family is from you, from all of you. When this is done, I’m going to try to use everything I’ve learned with my own mother. I’ll see you downstairs.”
“You should wear your new dress.”
At the door to her room, Sasha paused, smiled. “You know, you’re right. I’ll put on my new dress.”
Annika understood games, and she understood rituals. She’d watched three of her sisters execute mating rituals. It involved flirtation, pretending disinterest, then flirtation.
Though she knew Sawyer couldn’t be her life mate, she loved, would always love, so the ritual could be allowed on her part.
She changed—not into her new dress because Sasha should shine in hers. But she used the lip color and the brush with color on her lashes as she knew women did to look even prettier.
After she went down, she made—as Sasha had taught her—a pitcher of sparkling fruit juice. On a tray she arranged the pitcher, glasses, and the bowl that held ice if needed.
Sawyer sat at the table under the pergola, with the things Riley found for him, a drawing he’d made, a kind of tool that reminded her a little of a gun.
Since Doyle sat across, watching Sawyer work, she smiled, carried the tray over.
“I made cold drinks because you’ll want beer with the pizza in a little while. Bran will make it hot again for dinner. Is this the bug?” she asked while she poured the drinks.
“It will be. I need to attach this capacitor—”
“Is that a flux capacitor?” Riley called down from her terrace.
“Hah. Just need a DeLorean. Got enough here to build three room transmitters, so we’ll need to figure out where they’ll do the most good.”