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Valentino hummed to himself, taking over for Kitty as he fussed with the table. There were so many dishes sitting under silver cloches to keep warm, he didn’t know if they could possibly eat it all. Ropa Viejo, ceviche, churrasco, fish tacos, and something pretending to be stone crabs. There were tostones, rellenos de papa and conch fritters. He’d ordered guava and cream cheese pastelitos for dessert. Again, he was fairly sure it wasn’t really guava but it tasted like what he remembered his mother giving him when he was a kid.
He bit his lip, surveying the Sinsmas feast, worried what Vox would think. He wasn’t willing to learn Spanish for Val but surely he didn’t draw a line at Latin food. At least he’d found a restaurant that served food Val remembered fondly and they were willing to cater a Caribbean dinner for him fit to send up the sin of gluttony. It was Sinsmas. Vox could give it a try. And if he didn’t like it, well there was a bigger buffet of sex toys in the bedroom to offer up some sins for Asmodeus. Besides, they had already indulged in a few sins for Wrath on the lowest earners. That always put Vox in a good mood.
Hearing the penthouse door opening, Valentino sashayed into the living room and struck a pose next to the fireplace which Kitty had lit for him. His little red velvet skirt and corset were trimmed in a blue to match Vox’s electric blue accents. Vox smiled broadly, pausing to take in the picture Val painted against the mantle.
“You look…edible.” Vox loosened his tie.
“That’s for later.” Valentino scooped up the glasses he’d left on the mantle for affect and sauntered over to the couch. He put the glass next to the decanter of Vox’s favorite whiskey. Val’s pistol rested on the table next to the decanter. “I have plans.”
“Oh?” Vox sat on the couch and Val poured for them both.
Val tucked himself against Vox’s side. “We covered Greed and Wrath this morning with your earners and I have another thought about Greed.”
“I’m listening.”
“That fashionista you’ve had your eye on.”
“Velvette?”
“I think she’d make a good partner. I know you do too.”
Vox quaffed his whiskey. “She’s young, determined and she knows how to work media and how to gather a following. If Velvette’s willing, I agree. We should make her a partner.”
“And she’s already fits the name brand.” Val grinned.
“And she’s already expressed ideas to me about how to run with it,” Vox added.
“Perfect.” Val caressed Vox’s antennae. “I have dinner ready.”
“Really? I was thinking we were going out but it is quiet in here. Did you give the slut a boot?” Vox asked sourly. He looked around for Valentino’s star who was more often than not, passed out somewhere in the penthouse after Val was through with him.
“I’ve sent Angel off with that friend of his, the one who likes bombs. He’ll be gone for days, probably end up on the news doing something stupid.” Val shrugged.
Vox snorted. “That’s his every day.”
Val spread his arms. “That’s what being high all the time gets you.”
“Glad he’s gone. I know he has his own rooms in the tower but he’s up here too often.” A decidedly grumpy look flashed across Vox’s screen.
Val sighed softly. This was not a new discussion. “You know how I am, baby.”
For someone without actual lips, Vox did a good impression of pouting. Val liked him being a little jealous. He picked up Vox’s hand and dropped a kiss against his palm. Vox slipped his arm behind Val’s back and said, “I do. Every day is a good day to offer up homage to Asmodeus for you.”
“True, but we are alone and you have all my attention.” He nipped Vox’s shoulder. “After dinner, you are on the menu. Just wait until you see the buffet of toys.”
Vox let out a throaty laugh. “I’m surprised you didn’t want to start there.”
“We could but dinner doesn’t heat up well. I went a little Caribbean with the feast.”
Vox shot him a curious look. “I haven’t had much of that cuisine.”
“That’s why I wanted you to experiment.” Val slipped off the couch and held out a hand to Vox.
After setting his whiskey on the table, Vox took Val’s hand and let himself be led into the dining room to a table laden with silver cloches. Val was not what anyone would call a domestic goddess but he could follow the caterer’s instructions. The caterer’s staff would be around later to pick everything up and do the cleaning, things Val most definitely did not want to do. He lifted the lids one by one and set them on the sideboard.
Vox whistled. “Damn, Val, you outdid yourself. Where do I even begin?”
“With the ceviche,” he replied, pouring wine for them both. “And the conch fritters.”
“What is that?”
“Taste it and you’ll see,” he said as Vox sat down. It would be better to wait and tell him it was cured, raw fish after Vox had tasted it blind.
Vox eat a forkful and grinned. “I like this!”
A little knot released in Val’s chest. He had so wanted Vox to like the food he’d grown up on, he had worked himself into a lather about it. “Fantastic.”
Val explained ceviche and the other dishes. They ate until Queen B would be proud of them. He was glad he’d arranged a playlist of their favorite movies so they could sack out on the couch together and watch them until they came out of their food comas. Val curled up on his side, his head in Vox’s lap while Vox rubbed Val’s neck and shoulder as they watched Mischief, Mayhem, and Murder, not a bad movie for one where everyone kept their clothes on.
Nearly asleep with his head pillowed on Vox’s thighs, Val startled upright when gunfire erupted outside and some explosions rocked the tower.
“What the actual fuck?” Val growled. He grabbed Money Shot off the table and stalked toward the French doors leading out onto the balcony.
“That better not be your crack whore and his idiot bomber girlfriend!” Vox snapped.
“I’ll end him if it is.” Val stamped out onto the balcony, lighting up a cigarette. Whoever it was, they were going to regret their afterlife choices for screwing up his evening plans.
A fiery arc lit up the night as another bomb flew through the air and hit a lower level. Val braced himself against the concussive shaking of the building. He glared down through the smoke. “I think there are several idiots down there, Voxie.”
Vox raced out and looked down, knowing Val’s eyesight wasn’t worth much. “I see them. At least it’s not your pet idiot. Guess someone wants to see how we celebrate Wrath on Sinsmas.”
“You read my mind, babe.” Val pulled Vox into a deep kiss before launching himself off the balcony. He spread his wings, catching the night breeze.
Valentino took a drag on his cigarette and puffed out smoke, lacing with his power. The red smoke billowed, obscuring his path down. Valentino soared out of the cloud above the idiots’ heads, gun blazing. “You think you can take me on, pendejos?”
Two of them went down immediately. Electricity prickled along Val’s skin, a sure sign his lover was on his way. Vox popped out of a little bolt of electricity, a cool trick Val never tired of seeing. Vox usually liked using his words over his fists but Val wouldn’t want to go up against him in a fight.
“Who’s in charge?” Vox asked, shockingly calm.
Val shot another one when they were slow to answer. His heels clicked off the sidewalk as he landed hard. Vox grabbed the nearest moron with a bomb. It dropped to the ground and Val kicked it down the street as Vox’s wires snaked out. He handed the guy off to Vox who enmeshed the guy in his wires. He zapped the shit out of the guy and Val shot another fool coming up on Vox’s back.
“I’ll ask again, who’s in charge and what do you want?” Vox said, shocking the guy again when he didn’t answer instantly.
“Me!” A wolf-headed man pushed forward, his gun out. “You can call me Big Bad and I’ll be taking your territory.”
Vox and Val both laughed.
“No to all of it,” Vox said and Big Bad pulled his trigger.
Vox was already on the move, zapping himself into the nearby security camera and back out onto the ground behind Big Bad. He stabbed his wires into the man’s back and let him have it. Big Bad convulsed and fell to the dirty street. Val emptied Money Shot into his head. He flipped the cylinder open, dumped the shell casings, and slammed the quick loaders into place before spinning the cylinder home.
“Anyone else or do you want to do it the easy way?” Val asked.
Naturally, no one wanted the easy way, making Valentino’s entire evening. He shot them and probably a few hapless bystanders but who could blame him? His vision was shit. Vox let him have his fun. Afterward, they let the bystanders pick the temporary ‘corpses’ clean of money and weapons and scurry off.
Vox called his security crew, fired a few for not even showing up when it was all going down and then had the rest clear the bodies away. He looked over at Val who was fussing with his clothing. “That was fun,” he said.
Val smiled wickedly. “We’re making all the Deadly Sins happy this Sinsmas, well, except maybe sloth.”
“I think sacking out on the couch counted.” Vox flicked some brain matter off Val’s neck ruff. He traced Val’s lips with his tongue before pulling him into a deep kiss. His erection dug into Val’s side. “But after that work out, I’m ready to pay homage to Asmodeus.”
“I can tell.” Val palmed the front of Vox’s tented trousers.
“You mentioned something about a buffet of toys?”
Val toyed with Vox’s antennae. “I did.”
Vox glanced around Val’s body to their home. “Looks like the fires are out and the crew is already fixing up the damage the morons caused.” He slipped his hand under Val’s skirt, caressing him. “Introduce me to your buffet.”
“Gladly.”
Val scooped Vox up in his arms and launched himself toward the penthouse balcony. This was the best Sinsmas in a long time and it was only just starting. No one had better need them for the next day because it would take that long to sin their way through his collection. Val couldn’t wait. Merry Sinsmas indeed!