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Of course. I’d seen his face on holos plenty of times, but he’d kept away from the limelight since the Paradise Atlantis incident.

“Nice to meet you,” I said, trying to be polite while wearing no more than a paper hospital gown.

He had a brilliant smile. It felt more genuine than Nicole’s and put me at ease.

“You sure you don’t want to wait until you’re up and dressed?” He looked from me to Austin to Nicole and back.

“We’re good.” Austin slid in next to me on the bed, throwing an arm around my shoulders and crossing his long legs at the ankles.

I had to laugh as I nudged him with my shoulder. “Okay then. I am curious.”

“Mason is in charge of the environmental wing of Bennet Systems,” Nicole said. “When I told him what you specialize in, and how you helped with our situation, he wanted to meet you.”

“Actually,” I said, face burning, “I won’t be returning to my doctoral studies.”

“That’s helpful,” Mason said.

I blinked.

“It’ll be easier to convince you to work for us,” he continued. “Knowing creatures and other beings exist in the small bits of wild we still have left necessitates trying to find, study, and help them as we encroach on their habitats. Or in the case of what happened here, avoid danger for ourselves.”

“I don’t see how—”

“Let him finish, please?” Austin whispered, and I fell quiet, crossing my arms.

“Finding and documenting these creatures will take research, prior knowledge, understanding, and empathy. It will often require physical challenges as well, which is where Austin comes in. Basically, I want the two of you to find, study, report, and field suggestions as to how to handle any cryptids you may find. We will then take the data and act on it in the most environmentally positive way. As you may know, I have considerable resources to put toward these efforts. So equipment, travel, lodging, and basically any needs are a nonissue.”

Trying to digest this information made my head spin. He was offering me a job. Not just a job, but a new life with Austin doing what we both loved. We wouldn’t have to worry about money or really answering to anyone but each other.

“I need some time to think,” I said. “Not that I don’t appreciate the offer.”

Nicole clamped her mouth shut like she was afraid she might blow up if she left it open. But Mason smiled. “No problem. It’s a lot to take in.”

He steered his sister out of the room. Alone at last, I glanced at Austin as I twisted a chunk of hair. I almost put it in my mouth but thought better of it, realizing it hadn’t been washed in far too long.

“You had something to do with this,” I said.

“Maybe.”

“Look, I want to be with you. But do I still love hunting cryptids?”

Austin waited, silent and filled with far too much patience as I worked on the information in my head.

What we’d just been through was horrific, terrifying, and dangerous. But I’d enjoyed every moment of it. I liked the adrenaline rush, working out problems in the moment, and all the amazing information I took in that no one had ever put together before. It excited me.

What did that say about me? That, I’d have to unpack later, but for now, I knew if I spent the rest of my life going from adventure to adventure with Austin and gathering real facts about these fascinating parts of our reality… Well, I was sold. And with Mason’s backing, I’d have the resources, the equipment, and the support I needed to pursue actual documentation. Then whether others believed me or not didn’t matter. It was enough that I knew and could present the truth to the world.

But that was all me. What about Austin? I narrowed my gaze, taking him in as I considered his situation.

“What about the asteroid hike?” I asked. “All of your daredevil adventures and extreme sports?”

Austin grinned. “That’s the beauty of it. I can still do those things but with you, backed by Nicole. And the truth is, I never needed the publicity. That was just a way to fund my lifestyle. Doing this gives me the same thrill. Trust me, I proved that to myself these past couple of weeks.”

I climbed up on my knees and kissed him. It felt like coming home, which was funny because I’d never really felt at home anywhere since I was a kid.

“Austin,” I said, pulling back.

“Yes, babe?” he asked, stroking the small of my back.