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“Don’t fret, Mom,” Gabriel said, sounding weary indeed. “I can go now and—”
“Absolutely not,” GF interrupted, clapping his son on the shoulder. “Acting now won’t bring back what’s lost. Tomorrow is soon enough. Enjoy your party. Let your mother feed and fuss over you.”
“Yes.” Daisy rounded on Nic with enthusiasm. “Your new wife must be introduced to everyone. Where is Lexia? Itoldthat girl to be here and do her brother the honor of a proper welcome, but she can’t be bothered.”
“She’ll be around,” Gabriel said soothingly, running light fingers over Nic’s hair and giving her a questioning look. She nodded that she was fine. Homesick and lonely, wishing she could bolt, but fine.Notafraid.It would’ve been like this with any house you went to, she told herself.Likely worse.Gabriel gave her a reassuring smile. “And I think there are plenty of other people waiting to greet Nic.” He glanced pointedly at the line of people.
“Oh!” Daisy threw up her hands as if she’d forgotten. “The receiving line. What you must think of us, Lady Veronica.”
Gabriel’s parents whisked her into a seemingly never-ending parade of faces, names, and complicated familial connections to Gabriel—all explained in detail and immediately lost in the next introduction. True to his word, Gabriel shadowed Nic without fail, though GF and Daisy flanked her, taking over the actual introductions. The members of his extended family were all so proud of Gabriel—he was clearly the center of their universe—and they greeted her with varying degrees of apprehension and curiosity. A real life Convocation familiar! A couple of people declined to touch her, opting to bow instead. More than one person asked her to perform a magic trick, demonstrating that none of them understood much about familiars and wizards.
Nic began to understand the lacunae in Gabriel’s understanding more and more. She also marveled at the apparent complete lack of rank within the family. Other than the respect accorded to Gabriel and his parents, nobody seemed concerned with status—hers or theirs.
Finally, they made it through the—many!—adults and were working their way through the teenagers when Daisy darted off, returning with a young woman who was all gangly legs and sharp elbows. She blushed shyly, pulling her dark hair around her face to hide a complexion scarred by acne.
“Selly, don’t slouch,” Daisy tsked. “Shoulders back and head high, please.”
The young woman lifted her face obediently, her taciturn smile one Nic recognized as identical to one of Gabriel’s pained expressions. “My daughter, Seliah,” Daisy declared.
Nic fought the urge to look over her shoulder at Gabriel, to see if he had the experience now to recognize the obvious in Seliah. High-potential magic, probably water and moon also, given the way she felt similarly silvery cool to Nic. And she had to be in her midtwenties, which made her a familiar. One who’d been struggling with the ravages of her untapped magic, too, by the look of her.
“It’s lovely to meet you, Seliah,” Nic said, offering a hand. “I have a sister back at House Elal, so I’m so glad to know I’ll have one here, too.” Nic swallowed the impulse to mention her grooming imp could help with the acne scars—the little devils at least loved to take care of blemishes without direction—as she knew it would only make the girl more self-conscious.
Seliah shook her hand without meeting her gaze, or saying anything.
“Be polite, Selly,” her mother warned, and her daughter mumbled something—then turned and literally ran away, her gait disjointed and awkward.
“I despair of that girl,” Daisy said, throwing up her hands in dismay. “Here she is, twenty-four years old with the manners of a child, and a poorly raised one at that. I don’t knowwhatis wrong with her.”
“She’ll find her way,” GF said staunchly, and with such firm affection that Nic’s heart warmed for the man. “I’ll go talk to her.”
“Oh, don’t bother.” Daisy waved her difficult daughter away. “We’re here to celebrate Gabriel coming home. And getting to know our new daughter, of course. You have such lovely skin, dear. And your hair!” She reached out to touch it, testing the texture between her fingers, and Nic had to fight not to pull back. “Maybe you can teach Seliah some of your tricks for prettifying. At this rate, she’ll never find a husband.” She patted Nic’s belly. “It’s a good thingyouare providing us with a grandchild. Otherwise, I’d despair of ever being a grandmother!”
Nic managed a smile and stepped out of reach. “I’m so thirsty,” she said to Gabriel.
Taking his cue—with a knowingly sympathetic lift of his brows—he offered his arm.
“Let’s take care of that.”
~20~
Gabriel steered Nicto a small table under a blossoming tree, some distance from the main hubbub of his family. With only a pair of chairs, that should fend off visitors for a bit. Nic had her chin high and face impassive, all cool lady of the Convocation, which meant she felt overwhelmed. He couldn’t really blame her. After the formal grandeur of House Elal, his family seemed as ramshackle and graceless as the mostly ruined house.
He sent one of the kids running for refreshments and sat, grateful for a moment of peace for himself also. Nic was quiet, gazing out over the gathering. She looked so tempting in that gown, softer than usual, her skin creamy enough to lap up. If he’d realized the gown would show so much of her full breasts, he might’ve rethought. As it was, it was all he could do not to stare—and fantasize. Nic seemed oblivious, possibly brooding about something. He imagined he could sense smoke burning hot through her wine-and-roses magic.
“I apologize for my mother,” he said. When Nic glanced at him with a raised brow, he added, “I know she can be a bit much.”
“She’s fine, Gabriel. I imagine she’s been through a lot of changes also these last few years.”
“Insightful of you. She’s been fretting about what you’ll think of the house and the family. We all feel like a bunch of farmers playing dress-up still.” He offered her a smile, but she didn’t return it, her eyes smoldering dark green.Ah.She wasn’t overwhelmed or brooding about his mother’s ways: She was pissed off. And he could guess why.Shit.
“Tell me, Lord Phel,” she said softly, “what other Convocation rules have you broken?”
Internally, he cursed his mother’s loose lips, but he kept the smile on his face, hoping against hope that Nic was thinking of something else. “Are you going to tell me that House Fruits and Vegetables owns a monopoly on orchards?” he teased.
Her eyes flashed with fire, the gold flecks burning through the green. “What happened to not lying to me?”
He opened his mouth, afraid to his very soul, not at all certain what he was going to say. Just then, two boys and a girl ran up, giggling and staring at Nic so hard they barely managed to deposit the pitcher of lemonade and platters of food on the table.
