A Whole Latte Sass

by Marguerite Labbe

  As much as he wanted to continue kissing every inch of Felipe, he had a long drive ahead of him. Trask could be a gentleman and at least offer him a place to crash. But asking Felipe to stay the night was not a step he was prepared to take yet. He shot Felipe an apologetic smile. “I think we’re confusing Sophie.”

  “Sure, blame the puppy.” Felipe rolled his eyes at the lame attempt to back off. He gave the dog a doting smile and ran a hand through his mussed hair. “Do you have everything you need for her? We can run by the store.”

  Trask slipped his shirt back on, trying to will his body to calm down, but it was impossible with Felipe’s voice, his scent, his presence. He rescued a fallen game miniature from Sophie’s attention, trying to distract himself. “No,” he said firmly as he pocketed it and rerolled the ball for her. “Go get that instead.”

  He met Felipe’s gaze as he hopped down from the table and straightened his shirt. He’d half expected Felipe to pursue the idea of making out back here until they were both too horny to think. He hadn’t fought it at all. Not even a seductive glance. Either Felipe was not as turned on as Trask, or he was thinking up some mischief. And damned if he didn’t have Trask thinking he ought to lay his hands all over the imp until he was in the same state as he was, which just might be his plan. “I think I’m good for the night. We can hit the pet store in the morning. Get stuff for home and here.”

  Trask crouched by the puppy and gave her belly a good rub as she rolled onto her back, her paws waving in ecstasy. He was going to be a dog owner again. The idea still bemused him, but the sweet little mutt had caught him from the moment Felipe had shown him a picture, if he was going to be honest. In another month he wouldn’t be able to pick her up. She wasn’t going to stay small long.

  “I’ll leave her harness.” Felipe gave the two of them a wistful look. “I have extra newspapers in my car just in case.”

  “We’ll be okay.” Trask fetched her harness. It was long past time she went out and did her thing. “Send me the stuff from her vet. Call me when you get home so I know you’re there safe.”

  “I can’t believe you’re sending me home with blue balls,” Felipe grumbled as he stuffed his game paraphernalia into a bag. “There ought to be a law against that.”

  “Consider yourself properly thanked. And think of it this way: it’ll keep you awake on the drive home.” Trask hid a smile as Felipe shot him the bird. The man turned him upside down in a good way, amused the fuck out of him, and had him thinking thoughts he hadn’t had in a long time. Trask grabbed his keys and jacket to walk Felipe out the door.

  “At least I know you’re as turned on as me.” Felipe boldly patted Trask’s cock through his jeans as they walked outside. “It’s going to take a while for that bad boy to die down. Any other piercings you want to show off before I go?”

  “No, and you are a troublemaker.” Trask caught Felipe’s hand before he became even more wound up than he already was. It was going to take him a long time to get to sleep. He gave Sophie an encouraging smile. “Come on, I know it’s been a while since you’ve been out.” She looked up at him, squatted, and promptly peed all over his sneakers.

  Felipe lost it. He had to lean against the building, he was laughing so hard. Trask looked down at Sophie, who wandered off to explore, her tail wagging, and at Felipe, who had his arms wrapped around his stomach as he snickered until he couldn’t catch his breath.

  “I can see that this is going to be the start of a beautiful relationship.” Trask wasn’t sure if he meant Felipe or the puppy.

  “You’re not mad, are you?” Felipe asked, wiping the back of his hand across his eyes. “She’s just a baby.”

  “No, I should’ve taken her out when she first woke up. I’m sure this won’t be her last accident.” He dropped a kiss on Felipe’s lips and thought longingly of asking Felipe to come back to his place. “Go home. Text me. I’ll send you pictures of your baby in the morning.”

  “I will.” Felipe opened his car door and shot Trask a look that sent an excited tingle through him. “Sophie saved your ass this time. She won’t be able to next time. Fair warning. I’m getting you naked and keeping you that way all night.”

  Trask watched Felipe drive away, his body aching even more. He was in trouble. He had no doubt that after a whole night naked together, Felipe would make even more of an impression than he already had. And Trask was having a hard enough time keeping Felipe from occupying so much of his thoughts. A few dates and this had gone from zero to hot and heavy. But Felipe had engaged much more than Trask’s hormones, and that’s what really had his attention.

  Chapter Eleven

  “SUERO, I need your help.”

  Those words coming from Brenden Wade’s lips almost made Felipe drop his plate of nachos. He set them down on the corner of a half-empty table and met the promoter’s irritated gaze. “Did I hear you right?”

  Brenden’s eyes tightened. “Don’t be a smartass. You heard me. I need your help. Are you happy?”

  “Delighted.” Felipe smirked. This was a first he wanted to milk. “I always love it when you ask instead of demand. What can I do for you?”

  The set of Brenden’s shoulders relaxed, which was about all the thanks Felipe was likely to get, but he enjoyed the idea of the promoter owing him. “We have a no-show for one of the panels.” The look in Brenden’s eyes was of quiet, contained anger. “This is the second time this person has done this to me.”

  There wasn’t likely to be a third. Brenden wasn’t a complete tight-ass, though Felipe would never tell him that. He’d give someone a second chance, especially if they’d given warning about having to miss an obligation, but that was his limit unless there was a very compelling reason.

  “I don’t normally accept assassination requests in public, but I might consider it if you make it worth my while.” Felipe sat down and tucked in a napkin so he wouldn’t get cheese all over his Slytherin robes. He’d invested too much time in sewing them and gathering his accessories to screw it up before the contest.

  “I’ll keep that in mind,” Brenden said drily. “Look, I have a panel at two—”

  “The one on cosplaying on a budget?” Felipe interrupted. “I was planning on going.”

  “Yeah, well, I need you to help comoderate, and I need you to behave yourself. No drama for the sake of a good show. Not today.” Brenden gave him a stern look. “If it all works out, both of you come see me later. I might have a proposition for you for my big con.”

  “Have you been drinking?” Felipe asked, suddenly wary. “Why are you so mellow toward me?”

  “Do you want me to go back to biting your head off?” An edge crept into Brenden’s voice. “Because I can. If you don’t want to be involved, just say so. I have other guppies to fry.”

  “Don’t get your panties in a twist.” Felipe held up his hand. “I’d love to do it, for real, thank you, man.” If Brenden could back down enough to ask for his help, then Felipe could show his appreciation. It was seriously weird that once Felipe stopped banging Dakota, Brenden decided to act human instead of like an ice-cold marionette. Though, if Felipe were being honest, he’d have to admit that he’d instigated half their encounters. Brenden just made himself into a giant target. “I’m going to have to moderate this one with Abby Albion, aren’t I?”

  “How do you know she wasn’t the no-show?” Brenden asked.

  “Because as annoying as she is, she’d never pull a stunt like that.” Felipe grimaced. “She’d have to be dying in a hospital before she’d not send at least an email.” He was going to need more than nachos to deal with her for an hour. This called for a double chocolate brownie.

  “Thanks again.” Brenden rose from the table. “I’ve got to go check on lunch, make sure it’s going to be in the green room on time. Don’t forget to look for me after the panel.”

  Felipe watched Brenden walk away and shook his head. He guessed the guy had finally realized Felipe was not interested in hooking back up with Dakota,
though why he should care, Felipe never understood. It wasn’t like Felipe had made Dakota’s life miserable. They certainly never argued as much as Brenden and Dakota did. He’d never get the two of them.

  Felipe continued to eat the nachos as he pulled out his phone. Trask had been sending him pictures or videos of himself and Sophie every morning. As much as it had ached to give her up, he couldn’t deny the obvious joy the two of them took in each other. The video from this morning was especially cute. Sophie’s head was cocked, her heart-shaped dog tag hanging from a pink skull-printed collar. Trask was a sap. Felipe never would’ve guessed. Her face was all in the picture, half blocking Trask as she attempted to lick the phone during their selfie while Trask laughed. The sound gave Felipe all the warm fuzzies.

  She’d grown in the last couple of weeks, even more than Waldo had. When he’d stopped by the Karlins’ booth, they’d been full of stories of Jaydon and his new dog. Jaydon had even given up the joy of being at the con to stay at home with a babysitter and his new best buddy. Felipe loved hearing stories like that about his puppies and their new homes.

  He pulled up another picture of Trask. He really had it bad. He’d had crushes, infatuations, relationships up and down, but he’d never pined before, and he was pining to see Trask again. Dahlgren wasn’t that far from Richmond. He’d expected Trask to be here, but he’d been disappointed when he went by the tables for the Magick Den and only saw Ryan. He’d expressed that disappointment too, in a series of sad-faced picture texts. All Trask would say was that he had a prior commitment. It sucked. And Trask wouldn’t say what the commitment was, either.

  Felipe shoved his phone back in the leather pouch at his waist. He’d better go look for Abby and find out what she had planned for this panel. He did not want to go in cold. He waved to Morris as he passed by his friend’s table and searched the crowd for the leggy blonde in a Scarlet Witch costume. She was hard to miss when she was six feet in heels.

  There she was, posing for the cameras at the photography studio some enterprising soul had set up. Felipe had considered doing it because they promised to put whatever background you wanted on it. He could have a real Draco Malfoy photograph, looking like he was roaming the halls of Hogwarts, for his website. Yeah, he totally had to do that before the day was over.

  Felipe made his way over to the booth and stood off to the side with his arms crossed as she finished her shoot. She spotted him, and her dimples deepened for a moment before she assumed that expression of lofty disdain. “What do you want, Short Round? Slytherin, huh, I might have guessed. No wonder we never get along.”

  She stopped beside him and leaned down to look at his leather Death Eater mask with an envious expression. Felipe was rather proud of how it turned out. Just like how he’d finally managed to make elf ears so that you had to know where to look to see where the fake ear began. “How do you do it?” she muttered under her breath as she turned the mask slowly over in her hands.

  “Talent, Duchess. Some of us got it.” Felipe tipped his head back to look up at her. Abby made him feel short. Morris, for all his size, never did that, maybe because he was an overgrown Pooh bear. Abby was an evil Amazon woman. Now that he thought about it, she should totally do a Wonder Woman. She would kick ass. She had the bearing. “I hear I need to bail you out again.”

  “Whatever, I told Captain Tightpants I can do it all on my own, but Brenden wants things run his own way.” She lifted her eyes heavenward with a sigh. “I’m not sure what insights you can offer.”

  “I’ve got more money-saving tips up my sleeve than a realtor’s royal whelp. You’ve got your family’s cash to fall back on whenever you want it,” Felipe retorted as a dangerous smile crossed Abby’s lips. Dammit. He knew better than to jump on her heir-apparent status. There were few things that pushed Abby’s buttons more than that, but she totally started it. And as always, his mouth continued it.

  “Screw you,” Abby said pleasantly, that smile still on her face as her eyes flashed. “Why don’t you go hang around the Magick Den’s booth some more, sulking because your eye candy isn’t there? You worried that he’s dodging you already?”

  Ouch, that hurt and played into some lingering Dakota-fueled insecurities. “Ugh.” Felipe threw up his hands. He had to rein this in or this would be the shortest panel ever. However, that dig called for at least one more swipe. “You’re so fucking annoying.”

  “You’re infuriating,” Abby retorted, her dimples disappearing.

  “You think you’re right all the time. There’s no talking to you with your nose so high up in the air,” Felipe continued. “As for me, I’m fucking lovable.”

  “You’re all mouth and nothing to back it up,” Abby sneered. “I have dimples, and they’re adorable.”

  A family passing by did a double take at that exchange. Felipe paused with another comeback on his lips as his sense of the ridiculousness broke through his irritation. He laughed. “In the rank of all arguments we’ve had since kindergarten, this has got to be one of the stupidest.”

  Abby tried to hold on to her annoyance, but after a moment, a smile tugged at her lips. “I guess it’s a good thing we got it out early and not in front of everyone at the panel.”

  Felipe was sure there would be more incidents. This was him and Abby; neither one of them could hold back with a good crack if the opportunity presented itself. If Felipe was straight, he probably would’ve married her so they could send themselves off to early graves. It would’ve been entertaining. Bickering was the cornerstone of their relationship, bolstered by their mutual keen interest in being creative with their crafts.

  “I’m sorry for the dig about your family.” Felipe’s sense of justice nagged at him.

  For a moment, true unhappiness glittered in Abby’s eyes, and then she shrugged it off, leaving Felipe to wonder if he’d imagined it. “I barely felt the sting.” Abby looked away with a nonchalant flip of her hand. “I shouldn’t have ragged on you about Trask. Trust you to latch on to the sexiest guy at the cons.”

  He glanced at his watch. “We have about an hour until the panel. Want to see if we can find a quiet spot in this crush to talk it over and plot our mutual demises?”

  “Yeah, I suppose we should.” As Abby turned around to search for an empty corner, Felipe admired the job she’d done on the Scarlet Witch jacket. It was expertly tailored and showed off every bit of Abby’s skill and creativity. Damn her, why couldn’t she just suck?

  “Why the hell aren’t we working together?” Felipe blurted out. He wanted to smack himself in the head as soon as the words left his lips. He wasn’t supposed to be the one to bend first. Abby was. That was the unwritten code he’d gone by for over fifteen years.

  Abby turned and regarded him in surprise. “Because there would be blood in the water, both of ours, within a month.”

  “And no one would believe any of our alibis if one of our bodies showed up in the morgue,” Felipe agreed. She was right, it was a disaster waiting to happen, but damn, they would totally kick ass together right up until the double homicide.

  “Still….” Abby’s brows drew together in thought. “As much as I don’t want to give you the credit, your rep is as good as mine.”

  Better really, but Felipe kept his mouth shut. She needed to stick to her deadlines. And if he were honest with himself, he’d do better if he was less of a diva. They could balance each other out, maybe. “We both get good hits on our websites, and my YouTube videos are really starting to get a following.”

  “I prefer Twitch. Too many trolls on YouTube.” Abby eyed Felipe with growing interest. “Though having the word out on multiple platforms isn’t a bad thing.”

  Even though Felipe had proposed the idea, he didn’t want either of them jumping in over their heads. “Let’s see how the panel goes and then meet with Brenden to hear his proposal first.”

  “And if we’re both alive and scratch-free afterward…. Maybe we can discuss it,” Abby agreed. “I think you should talk about y
our do-it-yourself tips during the panel. Those seem to be your most popular hits on your channel, and it’s pertinent to the topic.”

  Pertinent. Well, no one said that a geek/nerd couldn’t be gorgeous too. Some people had all the luck. If Felipe had her dimples, he could conquer the world. “And you should talk about what shops to hit and when. People always overlook the thrift stores and Army Surplus.” Abby had clued him in on that little tidbit. It got to be expensive to make or buy everything from scratch. He’d found that modifying finds could be just as satisfying.

  “Okay, all this congeniality is getting weird.” Abby flapped her hand at him in a shooing motion. “Go bug someone else. I brought some tools and supplies to show off. You can help me lay them out thirty minutes before our panel. I’d just better have them all back at the end of it.”

  “Hey.” Felipe pointed a finger at her as she started to saunter away. “I’m not the thief in this relationship. Crayon swiper.”

  She looked over her shoulder at him as those dimples flashed to life again. “Hey, learn how to become a better sharer if this is going to work.”

  Felipe had to be out of his mind to suggest it, but already the thoughts and plans he’d poked at in the back of his mind started to spill over. They could have a booth at some shows with a book of costumes and props they’d made. Unless there was a big project, they wouldn’t have to work side by side unless they were at an event. And they interacted at those times anyway. They could call themselves Creatures & Cosplay.

  He needed to talk to someone about this. Someone with common sense who wouldn’t be afraid to tell him he was crazy. He walked by the Magick Den’s table and suppressed a sigh of disappointment when Trask had not made a miraculous appearance. Ryan, however, caught his eye with a glare. He had not stopped at the table since the morning when he’d asked if Trask was coming and gotten a snarl in response. Felipe didn’t know what had crawled up his ass to gnaw on his spleen, but he didn’t feel like tracking it down either. Too bad if the man had to see him. It was a smaller con, and the same faces got recycled. Two feuds had been sort of mended today, first Brenden, then Abby. Ryan could bite him. Felipe had filled his be-nice quota.