Her gaze flickered downward briefly.
The man beside her smiled wider. “How precious,” he murmured.
I wanted to punch him, but I stepped aside mechanically. “Come in.”
The second he stepped into our foyer, the entire house felt wrong. I know that sounds insane, but suddenly my home no longer felt fully like my home. Like something ancient and predatory had entered it.
The kids were waiting in the living room. The second they saw the man, all three froze.
Billie actually stopped mid-breath.
CJ lowered his notebook slowly.
Bianca’s eyes widened so much I thought they might stay that way permanently.
For once in their lives, my children had absolutely nothing to say.
The man seemed thrilled by this. “Children,” he said warmly, though warmth had absolutely nothing to do with the sound. “How lovely you all are.”
Nope.
Absolutely not.
Every survival instinct I possessed recoiled violently.
Winnie stood beside him silently.
I hated it.
“This is Bogdan,” Winnie said quietly.
The man inclined his head slightly.
Billie blinked.
“Bogan?” she repeated. “Like a redneck?”
Bianca groaned immediately. “Why are you so obsessed with Australian things?”
Billie shrugged. “Because… kangaroos.”
Under any other circumstances, I would’ve laughed.
CJ looked between them thoughtfully. “Bogan? Like the start of a book?”
Bogdan frowned. “What?”
“Begin,” CJ explained. “Bo-gan.”
The man’s smile tightened visibly. “No,” he said. “It is BOG-DAN.”
“Like bog?” Billie asked.
“No.”
“Like booger?”
“Billie,” Bianca hissed.
