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“What about you?” Cain asks me.
“I was always big into science fiction,” I reply. The truth is, I haven’t sat down and relaxed with a good book in ages. It’s one of those things where I always mean to get into it but then I never have the time. There’s always something else to do.
“Well, if you want to borrow anything,” Cain says, “feel free.”
“Thanks.” They’re just… offering their home up to me so easily? Who does that?
There are some more books piled on the coffee table in the middle of the room, all apparently in French. There are knights on the covers, though, so I’m pretty sure these are Cain’s. On the opposite wall is a large television, flanked on either side with a Van Gogh print. Below it is another set of shelves, these all filled with a record collection.
I point. “Whose are these?”
“Mine,” North says.
“Nice.” Looks like a mix of blues, jazz, and classic rock.
These three obviously have wildly different personalities. How do they all get along so well? And how am I wildly attracted to all three of them when they’re so different?
None of them stop me as I continue to wander around the space. There’s a lot more room there than at my apartment, obviously, since I have a studio, but that’s not what’s tripping me up. It’s the strong sense ofhomethat this place has.
“We’ve done a lot of modifications over the years,” Cain says. “Put in magical security measures, reinforced some things… knocked out a wall…”
“Did your landlord let you?”
Cain grins. “He was persuaded.”
“Cain’s very persuasive,” North mumbles.
I don’t keep a whole lot of stuff in my own apartment. You never know when you might have to pack up because of the police or getting on the wrong side of a supernatural being. And I couldn’t let anything show that revealed my true fae nature. Just in case someone like Jason came over. After losing everything when my parents were killed and then being on the streets, the idea of having a lot of stuff around that I might have to then carry with me or abandon made me panic.
But these three… I like what they’ve done. I like this place. It feels like a home and it’s only now that I’m looking around inside one that I realize how much I crave one of my own. That I want to walk into a place and think,oh, yes, I belong here.
“You like pancakes?” Raven asks, getting ingredients out of the cupboards and fridge. He startles me out of my reverie, and I jump a little, turning around to look back toward the kitchen.
“Um, sure?” I can’t remember the last time I had pancakes.
Raven’s going all out, too. He’s not grabbing the quick pancake mix, he’s actually getting out eggs and flour, the whole shebang. I look over at North and Cain.
“He likes to cook,” North says, as if this explains everything.
Maybe it does, for them. I’ve never had a one-night stand make me breakfast before. Although, to be fair, the main reason for that is because I’ve never had a one-night stand at all until now, so I don’t really know what the breakfast expectations are. But Jason sure as hell never made me breakfast.
As I watch, Raven goes to the fridge and pulls out eggs and bacon, then gets some coffee brewing. Wow.
“What do you want to know about us?” Cain asks, sitting down at the table and gesturing for me to join him. The apartment’s an open floor plan—there’s the front door, with the kitchen area immediately to the right, and then immediately to the left is the bathroom and bedroom. Ahead is the open area that’s divided into the living room with the books and TV, and then a dining area with a large oak table.
I sit down gingerly, taking the seat diagonal to Cain. “What do you mean?”
I don’t know what mate rituals or whatever usually entail, but I’m not going to care what their astrological sign is or if they have enough cows to be worthy of being my mates.
“Well, you’ll want to know about what kind of people your mates are,” Cain says, his tone playful but patient. Probably more patient than I would be in this situation, if I was in his shoes.
“Um… sure.” I try not to sound too eager. I want to know more about them. There’s a kind of burning curiosity in my chest that I can’t recall ever feeling before. But I’m not going to let them know about that.
“We’re all hybrids,” Cain explains. He gestures at himself. “Half fae, half demon.”
Well, that explains the charm and charisma. Most people think of demons as these big disgusting hellish monsters and they’re right about some of them, but the job of demons is also to tempt people into sinning, and you can’t do that if you’re slobbering lava all over someone. There are demons that are incredibly charming and seductive, and Cain’s demon parent must have been one of those.
“North here is half shifter.” Cain pauses. “Wolf, to be exact.”
