Samael stood and laid his iPad on the table. He signed something I didn’t understand, and then he grabbed his notepad again. Guilt boiled low in my stomach. I couldn’t imagine how frustrating it was to try to talk to someone with sign language and they didn’t understand.
Go get dressed in something more farm appropriate. Dalton will put you to work as soon as we get there.
He grinned at me when I raised my curious gaze to him, and I smiled back. I could handle work.
The drive to Dalton’s farm was a good hour. He lived outside of New Gothenburg and the roads were winding and long. I was pretty sure I fell asleep at some point because when I woke up again, we were heading down a dirt driveway and past some animal pens. The ground was covered in a layer of fresh snow which glowed in midmorning sun.
“I’ve never been to a farm,” I said to break the silence, which wasn’t uncomfortable, but I felt the need to speak anyway. I’d lived with mostly silence for six years, and while I’d enjoyed it on the streets, it felt different in a car. Glancing from the wandering cows I’d been staring at to Samael, I smiled. “Mom told me once that my great grandparents owned a farm out in Ohio before she was born, but they sold and moved to New Gothenburg. Theynever liked the farm life. It was too much work and they were getting older. Sometimes I wonder what it would’ve been like if they kept it. Maybe I’d have been one of those sexy cowboys who wore plaid and boots. I’d tilt my hat at every person I met while saying howdy, darlin’.”
Samael’s mouth stretched in a wide grin that looked like a laugh and he shook his head.
“It’s true. I’d be tall and handsome, with lots of muscles that I got from farm work.” I patted my soft and skinny belly. “The girls would swoon and the boys would stare at me in envy.”
He raised his eyebrows at me, and I nodded.
“You’re right, I want the boys to swoon, too.”
Samael made a noise that was definitely a chuckle, and I grinned in triumph.
Once upon a time, in a world I’d forgotten about, I liked to make people laugh. I was a regular jokester who spoke far too much until reality stole that away from me. Now, I hated people—well, nearly everyone. I’d seen the bad side of humanity, and I didn’t want to like anyone. Samael was a different story. I barely knew him, but I didn’t despise him. He gave people the punishment they deserved.
We rolled up toward a cute little white farmhouse with dormer windows, a large welcoming porch, and a multilevel gable roof. It was two stories tall and looked older.
A tall man stood on the porch, his arms crossed as he stared at us until Samael pulled the car up on the dirt path right in front of the three steps that led up to the house.
I stared past the house toward a frozen lake slightly to the left. Frowning, I pointed at it. “That doesn’t have ducks, does it?”
Samael cocked his head at me as he turned off the ignition.
“Ducks are dangerous. Have you seen their beaks?” I folded my hand in front of my lips, hoping it looked like a bill from a duck. Not beaks, but whatever. All birds had beaks as far as I wasconcerned. “They chase you and try to kill you.” I snapped my fingers against my thumb in a biting gesture.
His eyes narrowed thoughtfully. I could almost read the thoughts processing through his mind: Ducks don’t bite. More than one person had told me that exact thing. But they were wrong and most of them had never met the kind of duck that did.
“Geese?” he mouthed.
“No, ducks! It’s ducks.” I shook my head. “I have scars to prove it. Well, maybe not anymore, but one of those bastards shredded my finger when I was six. And they fly at you and try to take off your face.”
He got this line between his forehead as though he couldn’t decide whether he believed me or not.
“It’s true. My cousin owned ducks. They aren’t friendly. They go for everything. Ankles, face, hands, arms, feet. They’re horrible animals.Neverhave one as a pet. Ever.” I slumped back into the seat once I’d finished my rant and snorted when Samael laughed again.
No one would understand my extreme dislike of the animals, but they wouldn’t need to because he pointed at the wide pond. “Frozen,” he mouthed.
“Thank God.”
Samael scrunched his face up at me like he didn’t believe a word about the ducks and opened his door, stepping out of his car. I followed him and watched as the two cousins hugged each other. Dalton thumped Samael on the back, and when they broke apart, he turned a curious gaze on me.
I made it around to the front of the car before I stopped under the scrutiny, not quite sure what I was supposed to do. I thought about curtseying, but then decided my bad humor wasn’t needed right now. It felt like I was meeting the family of a potential romantic partner, which wasn’t the case becauseSamael had made it clear he wasn’t gay. Hand jobs said otherwise though, right? No, they didn’t. Who was I kidding?
“Nice to meet you in person, Ezra.” Dalton stepped in closer and held out his hand, and I slipped mine into his, shaking it. He had overly coarse palms, the kind you’d expect a farmer to have, and I didn’t like it much. Just imagining that on my dick had me wincing. “I’m Dalton, Samael’s cousin.”
“No shit, Sherlock. Already met you over video chat,” I said, glancing over his shoulder at Samael, who watched us carefully. “Nice to meet you. I wasn’t brought out here so you could feed me to the animals, right?”
“Not yet, but that could change.” He stared at me casually for a few long moments before a grin broke out on his face. Laughing, he patted my hand before releasing it. “No, I’m not that type of guy.”
I raised my eyebrows.
Samael signed to Dalton, who laughed.
