Haven’s mouth pops open.
Titus barks out a laugh as I scrub a hand down my face.
“Imogen,” Kade warns, giving her a stern glare. “Stop embarrassing her. Her business is her own.”
Imogen peeks over her shoulder, an innocent smile on her face. “I wasn’t asking for her. From what I hear, this place is short on rooms for the six of us,” she says, her smile turning sly. “I was asking for us. Since we’re the odd ones out, we’re going to be roomies.”
I snort a laugh, but Kade doesn’t so much as crack a smile. He just shakes his head, his expression as stony as ever, and moves past the girls to the front door.
“I call the couch,” he says before entering the cabin.
“We’ll see about that,” Imogen calls after him.
“No, we won’t,” Kade yells back.
Imogen grins at Haven and Ensley. “That yummy male is so in denial.”
Ensley laughs. “He doesn’t stand a chance.”
“No, he does not,” Imogen says, and then bounds up the steps after her prey.
I catch Haven’s profile and she’s smiling.
At first, I hesitated to bring everyone back with us, worried we might draw unwanted attention. It would be easier for Haven and me to blend in on our own, but I gave in, knowing that if something went wrong, we could use the extra backup.
Kade’s the fiercest human I know, and the others are strong magic users, and battle-tested. Now, watching Haven smile as she chats easily with Ensley as they enter the cabin, I realize it was the right call. For more reasons than just protection.
I make sure Haven gets her old room, wanting her to feel as comfortable as possible. She stands in the middle, looking a little lost.
“Everything okay?” I ask, and her gaze flicks up to where I stand in the doorway.
She musters a small smile for me and nods. “I’m good.”
“You sure?” I ask, stepping into the room and shutting the door behind me to give us privacy.
Even with the door shut, I can hear Imogen arguing with Kade down the hall, and Ensley laughing at the pair.
Haven shrugs one shoulder. “It’s just a lot.”
“It is,” I agree, wrapping her in my arms and pulling her tight against my chest. “But I’m not going to let anything else happen to you.”
When she doesn’t respond, I pull back enough so I can look down into her eyes. “You believe that, right?”
She nods, but tucks her lower lip into her mouth, biting down on it, a telltale sign that she’s nervous, and also a move that drives me wild. Whenever I see her bite her lip, it makes me want to as well.
I drag my gaze from her mouth, knowing that’s not what she needs right now.
“This is going to work,” I say for probably the tenth time. “We’ll get through tonight, and then figure out how to unlock those superpowers inside you so the demon doesn’t stand a chance during the next blood moon.”
“You’re right. I know. It’s just what Cassian told me . . . I just can’t get it out of my head.”
Her gaze goes hollow, like she’s imagining what it would be like to be trapped in the demon for eternity.
“If it finds me, death would be a kindness.”
“Not while I’m breathing,” I say. “Not while I’m standing between you and it.”
The thought of Haven’s death sparks something hot and dangerous in my chest, and I shove it down hard.
