Starlet - Book 2 - Mate Games

3. Baby Elephant

The next morning, Mikey comes over.

"Where were you yesterday?"

"Clearing some stuff out of our castle. You get the crowns and vault?"

"Yea. It's here. I'll split it with you."

"I wasn't worried about that. Just wanted to make sure we have it. What were you doing?"

"Helping Collin get some stuff for his store. He bought a building. He's turning it into an art store."

"You need to end things with him. You're going into the mate games with a boyfriend."

"Someday. I'm not ready to let go yet. We understand. We want our mates and this is the way it has to be. We can love each other a while longer though." I blink a few times, so the tears don't fall.

"Alright, show me this house in the village."

Lindsay is sitting on the balcony with the candle holders. "I made them so I can see. What do you think we should keep?"

"Easy one's for us to keep. The flower. Nothing with a lot of little designs. It would take forever to paint."

She nods. "I like the fancier ones for my shop anyway. But there's over 20 I like for the shop. And there's only 2 that aren't candle holders. But the rose is not a candle holder. The butterfly kind of is. It's a dish to put a candle on."

"Which do you definitely not want for the shop?" I separate them as she says them.

"YOU UP THERE BABY?"

I look over the edge at Collin. "Yea come on up."

Lindsay looks at me. "Oh, Mario was making out with Angela last night. You missed it."

"Sorry, I'll watch better next time."

She nods and Collin comes out on the balcony. "You don't have many left."

"Thora picked 22 of them. Now we only have 8 more."

"I'll take the holders that hold 5 and 3."

"3 left."

"And the dragon."

"2 left."

Lindsay looks at me. "You buy the last 2, and we're done."

I give her a thumbs up. "22k Thora. 6k Collin. 2k me. That was easy."

"SO, WE GOING TO PARIS?"

Collin looks over the rail at Mario. "We're working on it."

"It's already lunch. Let's eat and go."

Then Collins' dad stands in the path. "The 2nd floor is done."

I make us a door and the 4 of us go to the 2nd level of his shop. Mikey spins in a circle. "That was easier than walking."

We drag some chairs into his office. "Go ahead and put the stuff where we had it in the blueprint."

"Yea ma'am."

Paul and Mario get there about the time the brains get done setting up his office. I half lay on the arm of his couch.

"It looks perfect in here."

"What is that?" Lindsay grabs Mario's head and turns it, so she can see something on his neck."

I put an eyebrow up and lay where I can see better.

He hides his neck. "Nothing baby. I must have got some juice on me."

"That is not juice." She yanks his head over. "I don't even f*****g believe you." She storms out.

He chases her. "It's nothing baby."

I feel my eyes closing. Collin puts a finger up. I can't keep them open. I let my muscles relax and I fall asleep.

2 hours later, I wake up alone. He put a big yellow throw on me. It's so comfortable and soft. I fold it and lay it on the back of the couch. Then I put my shoes on and go downstairs.

Collin, Mikey, and Paul are working on the layout for the main level. It's amazing. Lots of big open areas. He's got some art in with the lasers.

He sees me and smiles. "Have a good nap baby?"

"Yes. This is amazing, Collin. It's better than I could even imagine."

"Thank you. I figured I would work down here and let you sleep. I knew you were still tired. You got up too early." He gives me a hug.

I snuggle. "Did you eat?"

"No. We didn't eat. I figured I would wait for you. We were trying to get a good start on this anyway."

"I can go get us some island food. You like that?"

"That would be perfect, baby. Get 4 though. My dad is here somewhere. I don't know where he ran off too."

"Ok." I hug him then run to the main door. I go to the island and get a big bowl of it. Then I get a bunch of regular bowls and forks. Lindsay is there by the time I get back.

I put the food on a table. Then I take a bowl to Collin. He's hyper focused on a wall for some reason. He takes the bowl without looking at me. "Thank you baby."

I stare at the wall for a minute. Then back at him. He's eating, but he's staring at the wall. His dad laughs. "Collin, you are being too picky. If you don't like it, get rid of it and move on."

Lindsay brings me a bowl. "You staring at the wall now too?"

"No. I'm going to let that go. I'm sure he's fine."

She nods and looks at Paul. "Foods over here."

"Thank you girls."

"This is amazing." Mikey is eating as fast as he can.

Collin eats with the boys, and they take out that wall finally. Me and Lindsay each design a section to have something to do. She takes 1 side and I take the other. We have the same amount of space. So we race with the brains. Having them laser everything in. I have no idea how to design an art store. I put a table with a girl painting the candle holders. Then a table with a girl weaving a basket. Then I put a backdrop on the wall with a chair in front of it and the castle painter painting.

"WHAT ARE YOU DOING?" Lindsay is staring at me.

"MAKING MY SIDE."

"THAT'S NOT HOW YOU DO IT."

"I DON'T KNOW HOW TO ART."

"DESIGN A ROOM."

I glare at her and point at my area.

"THAT'S NOT A ROOM. LOOK." She has her area broken down into separate style sitting rooms.

"IT'S TOO ARTY." I lay on the floor.

"IT'S NOT ARTY." She pulls me up. "THINK OF IT LIKE A FURNITURE STORE. YOU CAN THINK UP FURNITURE. WHAT KIND OF ROOM WOULD YOU MAKE AROUND THAT BEAR HE GOT?"

I run to the other side of the room. "DESIGN A ROOM AROUND THE BEAR AND THEY CAN PICK THE WINNER."

"20 MINUTE TIME LIMIT." She divides the area with a wall, so we can't see each other's work.

I make a log cabin sitting room with a fireplace. Then I put a comfy couch and chair with a log-style coffee table. I put a big bear on each side of the couch. Then a couple of little bears on the table. The middle-sized bears by the fireplace. Then I add in some candle holders. I make them look like wood. Then I put his picture in a wood frame and put it over the fireplace. I put a deer head mounted on both sides. Then I put in an antler chandelier. I think I did well.

"Time's up. Step out." Collin, his dad, Mario, Dipak, Marcus, and Mikey are watching us. "The objective was to design an area showcasing the big bear. Lindsay won."

"UGH. I can't art."

Marcus smiles. "You did amazing. But when I look at that, I can't figure out what the main item of the room is. There is so much going on. It's not bad. But I almost want to say you're highlighting the fireplace. That's what my eye goes to first."

Dipak nods. "Or the chandelier. Which is f*****g amazing, woman. How did you think that?"

"I don't know. It popped into my head after I put the deer up."

Mario laughs. "I didn't even see those."

Collin puts his arm around me. "I did. I like them too. Put a big bear skin rug down and I could live there. But yea, it takes awhile before I see the bears."

"Then onto Lindsay's side." She went with the backdrop of a log cabin front porch. Then there's a man sitting in a rocking chair whittling wood in the corner of the area. The bears are set up for sale in the yard. Then there's a little table in front of the man with some whittled animals and toys for sale.

"Yea, this is definitely better. So much easier to understand what you're selling."

"Race again, over there. Plan a room around the treasure chest."

We race and plan out a few different rooms. I think I get better at it. After a few hours, Collin decides we're done with the shop for the day. We need a break. Then Mikey decides we need to go find a treasure.

Marcus and Kane come with me, Mikey, and Collin. Kane shows Mikey how to drive the shuttle, and we get somewhere super fast. "Come here, Whisp. Look."

I run to the front of the shuttle. "What?" I can't even process what I'm seeing. The trees are different. "LOOK!" I point at something with a long neck. "WHAT?" I run into the door. "WHERE?"

"We're not on the ground. You can't get out. That's a giraffe."

I try to yank the door off. "LET ME OUT."

"No. Sit and watch."

I pull on the door and Collin picks me up. I wrap around him and sob. "I want to see the giraffe better."

"And then that thing will eat you, baby." I fling around. He's pointing at a huge cat that hunched down.

Mikey nods. "Oh s**t. I didn't even see that. That's a lion. It will attack."

I glance back and forth between the lion and the giraffe. "BUT NO."

"Everything has to eat to live."

I cover my eyes as the lion takes off. Collin holds me in his lap. I feel the shuttle take off again.

The next animal we find is elephants.

I can't do anything but point.

"Elephants living in the wild. That's called a herd. There's quite a few of them."

I bawl. "BABY ELEPHANTS."

"I need to go up that dune mountain thing." Mikey lands and opens the door. "You can watch the elephants. I'll leave the shuttle here for you. If anything mean shows up, shut yourself in the shuttle. It should only take an hour."

"Ok."

Mikey leaves with Kane, Marcus, and the brains. Collin finds us a blanket, and we sit outside the shuttle watching the elephants.

He lays down and rubs my back.

After a couple of minutes, a baby elephant walks toward us. I point so much.

It gets about halfway to us and stops. I fall over and cry.

"You have to be calm. Sit up and try again."

"What do they eat?"

"I have no idea, baby. Sit still and be calm."

"I am calm."

He laughs. "Your whole little body is shaking. Look, he's coming again." He rubs my back as the baby gets closer.

Eventually, he comes up to us. I reach out and touch his head.

Collin sits up and touches him too. Then the elephant touches me with his nose. I about die. This is the cutest thing I've ever seen. I wiggle. "I touched a baby elephant."

He kisses my head.

Then the elephant sneezes and jumps. He runs all the way back to his herd. Collin rubs his eyes. "He scared himself."

"He was perfect."

He helps me up. "Here they come."

I jump up and down as they load stuff in the shuttle. "I touched a baby elephant."

Mikey smiles. "I'll try to find a zebra on our way out. You'll like that too."