“So we’re, like, destined to be together?” I asked hoarsely.
Ego’s gaze shot to mine. “No,” he growled. “Absolutely not.” Feeling slightly offended, my hackles rose until he continued. “I’m not subjugating Scotty to this hell. He didn’t sign up to live in this prison, and I won’t make him.”
“You didn’t sign up for this either,” Sky said immediately, coming to his cousin’s defense. “This is no one’s fault.”
“Indeed,” Lysandro said. “And honestly, it’s not a punishment.”
“It is!” Ego slammed to his feet. “I will not?—”
“You will,” I cut in softly. All three of them looked at me, but I only had eyes for Ego. “You will let me be this anchor or whatever it is.” He opened his mouth to argue, and I held up my hand. “At least until you’ve had some training. For fuck’s sake, Ego. You need to at least be able to leave the house without worrying you’re going to hurt someone.”
He crossed his arms over his chest and pouted. “I don’t plan to ever leave again.”
Sky gasped. “What about your career?”
“It’s over.” He licked his lips. “I told Delaney to shut all my stuff down. Break all contracts or whatever she has to do, and find herself a new breadwinner. The popstar known as Ego is gone.”
I rolled my eyes. “So dramatic.”
Sky looked about one second from bursting into tears. “I know you’re worried about losing your sound magic, but I don’t think that means you have to…throw your whole life away.”
“Seriously, Dead Air,” I said. Confusion crossed Sky’s face. “Go toYouTubeand search for Dead Air. You’ll see what I mean.”
While he did that, I got up and crossed to Ego, yanking on his elbows until he dropped his arms. Grabbing his hands in mine, I said, “Let’s hear Lysandro out. I’m not abandoning you here if I can help in some way.”
Both he and Sky gasped. When I glanced between them, I saw Ego give Sky a slight shake of his head. I didn’t know exactly what that was about…but they’d alluded to enough that I had a suspicion. I turned back to Lysandro.
“What would I need to do for him?”
He shrugged. “Nothing really. Your presence will do most of the heavy lifting. From there, follow your gut.”
“My…presence?” I asked slowly, wondering if this was why I’d felt drawn here tonight.
Lysandro nodded. “Mhm. It would be best if you moved into the mini-castle. Do you think Chance will be okay with that?”
“But I have a job,” I said, trying to remain calm for Ego’s sake more than my own.
“I can help out at the manor,” Sky volunteered. “And isn’t Archie there a few afternoons a week, anyway? The kid would live there if we let him, so we’ll get you covered.”
“Um.” I felt heat gather at the base of my neck and in my cheeks. “You said the first twenty years. I can’tnotwork for that long.”
Lysandro laughed. “Of course not, Scotty. The sooner he embraces more of his nature, the less he’ll need you. But the longer you can be available to him over the next twenty years, the better.”
I didn’t want to be a dick, but that sounded a lot like the fated-mate romances I read, and I wasn’t sure I was ready to be linked for the next twenty years to someone I couldn’t even stand three weeks ago.
Hell, I doubted he wanted to be chained to me. I’d been so mean to him for as long as I’d known him. Plus, he hadn’t tried to like…I don’t know, talk privately or anything since we had our little one-night stand. For all I knew, he was a one-and-done kinda guy, which meant, me lurking around would drive him nuts.
Ego cleared his throat. “I can, uh, pay you for babysitting, if you want. I don’t want you to be out of money on my account.”
I dropped my head back and took a deep breath. I’d told him enough that I was pretty sure he understood how important a steady income was for me. The room Chance gave me at the manor as part of my salary saved me a lot, but it was the funds deposited into my account twice a month that let me breathe. I moved seventy-five percent to my savings each pay period to build my little nest egg.
To guarantee that I’d never be close to unhoused again.
“You shouldn’t have to do that,” I murmured.
Lysandro clucked his tongue. “No, he really shouldn’t.”
Ego said, “But I have the money.”
