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“What? Have we got to entertain them? Ain’t they old enough to keep themselves busy?” Chill sounded horrified.

I spun around, ready to blast him, and caught the gleam in his eye. “No problem. Don’t blame me when they blow something up.”

“Funny,” Chill quipped.

“Nope. Poet turned on the gas on the stove because she wanted to see what colour it was. Then flipped a switch. Little boom!” Cassian interrupted.

That hadn’t happened, but Chill’s expression made the white lie worth it. Poet was more likely to stick her fingers in a socket. Simply because we told her not to.

Chill got slowly to his feet, looking sick. “I’ll check the kids. They’ve been a while.”

“Yeah, probably flooding the bathroom,” Cassian said casually. Chill was gone in the blink of an eye. Cassian caught mine, and we both began laughing hard, burying our heads so Chill wouldn’t hear us.

“Oh, this is gonna be fun,” Cassian muttered. I couldn’t help but agree.

Chill

“Bear!” Poet screamed.

I shot upright in bed and blinked. What the hell?

“Brother Bear!” Poet yelled, and I planted my feet on the floorboards.

“Poet, is there a bear outside?” I demanded as Meadow sat up.

“Play!” Poet shrieked, and I heard the door open.

“Fuck!” I roared. “Poet!” I jammed my feet into my boots and leapt over the mezzanine balcony. Meadow sat up and screamed as I jumped, but I was off and running.

I flew through the entrance and searched for Poet. She raced toward the treeline, and I chased after her.

“Poet! Stop!” I yelled, and she skidded to a halt. She turned to face me, and her bottom lip wobbled. The bush shook, and I doubled my pace. I snatched her up just as a fuckin’ badger appeared. Its fur was ruffled, and it was hissing. Not as bad as a bear, but dangerous, nonetheless. I didn’t hesitate and swung around and ran.

The badger gave chase, and Poet shouted in delight.

“He wants to come home with us.”

“The fuck he is,” I snorted and leapt up the steps. The damn thing was on my heels, and I slipped inside and slammed the door shut. With a whack, the badger hit it, making it shake, and I kept my back to it.

“Let it in!” Poet demanded and slapped my bare chest.

“Hell no! That ain’t no bear. That’s a pissed-off mama badger!”

“She wants to play!”

“Poet, it wants to fuckin’ eat you!” I shouted, my hands shaking. The badger would have seriously injured Poet if it had caught her.

“No, it doesn’t,” she argued. “You made it mad because you’re so big and mean.”

Yeah, I was the nasty one. Nobody wanted to tangle with an angry badger.

I leaned against the wooden door and breathed deeply. Holy crap. Poet slapped my chest as she scrambled up and placed her hands on her hips. She threw her head back and spotted Meadow.

“Mommy—”

“Tell me you didn’t go outside without waiting for an adult!” Meadow spat.

Whatever grievance was on Poet’s lips died in the face of her mother’s fury. Yup, I’m with Meadow on this one. I heard snuffling through the door, and the damn badger was trying to get in.