He leaned a bit back and threw up a hand. “I don’t know. Go try to zap some shit. See if you got some ability like Leah and Sonia.”

I blinked.

Then I glared.

Then I fought back slapping him upside the head.

When I got that under control, I hissed, “You didn’t just say that.”

“Right,” he clipped, his patience gone. “A day, Lilah, for me to work with Callum and see what I gotta do to get my shit sorted, fighting as wolf. A day where Lucien works with Xun and Wei to see where they’re at and what they need. After that, we take you on.”

Compromise. And a good one.

It was also an annoying one precisely because it was good.

“A day,” I snapped, and he grinned.

More annoying.

Then he leaned into me and ran his temple along mine.

That was not annoying, but I decided to pretend it was by turning away in a huff when he was done.

“Good call, not weighing in on that,” Sonia noted, and I looked to her and Callum.

Callum just grinned at his empty plate and murmured, “Mm.”

“Next time I’ll let one of you go a few rounds with your bitches so I can avoid gettin’ shit from mine,” Abel remarked, and my angry eyes shot back to him.

“What you did was avoid the doghouse. Don’t court a permanent stay,” I warned.

“Like you’d send me there for eternity,” he retorted.

“Don’t try me.”

Abel burst out laughing.

I again fought back the urge to slap him upside the head.

I did this by pushing my chair back, throwing my napkin on the table, and announcing, “Time for me to go and try zapping something. Any of you girls with me?”

“I’m in,” Leah stated immediately.

“After you’re done zapping things, we’ll all go out so I can talk to bunnies,” Sonia added.

“We’ve got a plan,” I decreed and turned to go but didn’t get very far when Abel caught my hand.

I looked down at him.

“Thanks, bao bei,” he said softly.

“Just so you know, you being sweet totally works. I’m still gonna pretend it doesn’t and bust your chops,” I informed him and got another grin.

“Have a feeling I draw from you again later, I’ll get tangy Lilah, seein’ as you’re in the mood to be sassy,” he replied.

“And just so you know, you being hot totally works too. I’m still gonna bust your chops.”

That got me a full-blown smile.

It also got me a tug on my hand that forced me to bend to him. When I got close, his other hand shot up in a blur and caught me at the back of the head so he could pull me to him and give me a short, but hot and wet, kiss.