Page 91 of Rattle the Cage

As I gave myself another look over, it was hard to imagine how the survey worked. If Cyrus was telling the truth, every preference I’d checked off was reflected in my outfit. Even thinking about the menu of choices was enough to make me dizzy, though. I could hardly believe that anyone knew it well enough to read me at a glance.

There were a few things I remembered for sure though. The high-neckline meant I wanted to play with people I knew — Blade had checked that off before the survey ever made it into my hands. The open back marked me as a brat: probably a safe choice, since I wasn’t one to take the Freaks’ needling quietly. And the purple denoted my preference as a switch.

It felt weird to codify it. Cyrus had laughed when I first chose the color before realizing I was serious. If I had to choose, it was the most accurate option I could see.

The more I got to know the Freaks, the more surprised I was by how much of my submissive side they brought out. But when it came down to it, I liked a bit of everything now and then.

“Damn….” A low whistle drew my eye to something I liked very much.

Nash leaned against the doorway in a white button down and a blue suit jacket, adjusting the buttons at her wrist. Her slicked curls shone even in the dim light, and the delicate gold piercings at her lip and nose gave the polished outfit the perfect edge.

It was odd seeing her all dressed up: the designer suit was a far cry from the casual workwear she usually wore around Feverpoint. And from the way she was picking at the buttons, I could tell that it felt out of the norm for her too.

But even out of her comfort zone, Nash could make anything look good.

“I like it.” I smirked before holding out my arms. “What do you think about mine?”

“You look… incredible,” Nash sauntered across the room, lifting my hand to give me a twirl. “Though it’s not too late to change into the red…”

I could tell from the lilt in her voice that she was just teasing, but I fixed her with a glare anyway. “Maybe you should be in purple too. We could match.”

“The colors don’t work that way for suits.” She pulled me in by the small of my back, letting my palm rest flat against her lapel. “But that’s for the best. I’d look like shit compared to you. Purple was made for you.”

Looking up into her shimmering gray eyes, it was impossible not to crack a smile. “You say that about every color, Nash.”

“You look beautiful in every color.”

“Good answer.” With a giggle, I rocked forward on my toes to peck her lips and was surprised by a jolt of pain.

“Static,” she breathed, lifting a thumb to my lips to neaten up the edge of my lipstick before caressing my chin. “You ready?”

I nodded, lifting fingers to my lips as she led me by the hand to the hallway.

Out in the living room, Cyrus stood by a window, her broad shoulders blocking the starlight beyond. Even from a distance, I could see how well-tailored her suit was: how perfectly it hugged her broad shoulders, tapering in gently at the waist.

Nice to see all that money going to good use.

It was the same navy blue and white, tieless situation as Nash had chosen. They’d all gone for it, actually. A part of me was surprised by it when Cyrus first set us on shopping — the way each of them fucked me certainly felt quite different. But the dress code tonight didn’t leave much wiggle room for that nuance.

As Cyrus turned to face us, I tore my eyes away before she could clock my staring. But shifting my gaze to Blade only made my heart catch in my throat.

Unlike Nash and Cyrus, who looked almost human in their suits, Blade couldn’t have looked more uncomfortable. We hadn’t even made it out the door yet, and her collar was already all sorts of fucked up. She’d eased open the buttons of her dress shirt to reveal the inked skin of her chest.

That isn’t helping.

It was weirdly hot seeing my feral little freaks all cleaned up. Even hotter, realizing how much they hated being constrained.

Easy girl.

I ran a hand over one of the delicate braids that framed my face. “You ready to go?”

“Ready to take this off…” Blade muttered under her breath before looking up at me. “Holy shit. Ready to take that off too.”

I rolled my eyes, though the compliment made heat rise to my cheeks. Turning back to Cyrus, I held my chin high. “Where is the sorority queen sending us?”

As I set my gaze on her, I could have sworn a hint of hunger glinted behind her dark eyes. But the ping of her phone drew them away too quickly for me to tell for certain. “‘The Station,’ whatever that is. Coordinates coming through now.”

Blade’s lip was already curling. “See, this is why I don’t fuck with university types. What the fuck is that supposed to mean?”