Carefully she added some more, stirred, then took another sip. This time she could appreciate the flavor without the bitterness taking over. “I’ll have to remember how to do this. It’s wonderful.”
“Ramsey converted another,” Carson grumbled.
“Converted?” she asked.
Jace laughed. “We have two teams in the morning, Team Black Coffee and Team Cream. Carson not only loves black coffee, but Izzy has him adding espresso shots to his now. I don’t think his tongue has bitter receptors.”
“Sorry, Carson, but I think black coffee in the morning would do me in,” she admitted.
He grunted.
She turned to Gage, who shook his head. “Carson isn’t a morning person. It’s a testament to how excited he was to eat breakfast with you that he’s downstairs and his eyes mostly open.”
Carson yawned. “I promised to help.”
“So, what are you two up to today?” Bastien asked.
“Maybe some shopping? Then I’d like to check some of the spell centers before reporting back to the queen,” she looked to Gage to see if he was okay with that.
He took her hand and kissed it. “I am ever your most humble servant.”
She eyed her mate. “How come you and Bastien’s formal talk slips sometimes?”
Both men stared. “Huh?” Gage asked.
Aeson laughed. “I told you.”
Leon pointed. “They don’t acknowledge that their formal speech from Noctem Falls disappears when they’ve been around us too long.”
Both Gage and Bastien grunted.
“I like hearing both. I think it makes the times they say something formally that much more dramatic,” she observed.
“Really?” Gage asked, brightening.
She nodded. “It makes it more special. Then again, I don’t have much to base it on. Your flowery speech is normally directed at me.”
Gage poured his own cup of coffee. “I like the sentiment that our formal speech highlights our words instead of thinking that the casual way of speaking is lazy on our part.”
“Cousin, let us roll with that explanation,” Bastien said.
“Phi and Chi are on rest rotation for the day, so if you need anything, let us know,” Nerius offered.
“Could…” she hesitated.
Gage, Bastien, Nerius, and Aeson responded. “What?”
“Could maybe some of the guys, if they want to, that is, maybe check some of the city’s spell centers? If they could just do a preliminary check to see if there’s any visible damage, that could save me some time,” she said, rushing her words in an effort to explain.
Aeson and Nerius both nodded before Aeson spoke. “That won’t be a problem at all. It shouldn’t take us more than an hour or so. I’ll send either Leon or Carson to Baba’s to advise you before you get started.”
“How’d you know we were going to Baba’s?”
Aeson’s smile turned frosty. “After the way the other tailors treated Prince Oron. That’s the only place the warriors have been going.”
“Why would they mistreat him, isn’t he a prince?”
Nerius looked to Gage. “Maybe you can explain on the way over to Baba’s?”