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Again, I found myself impressed by Hera. She was young—especially when compared to me—but she was smart and capable. She’d faced down so much and never lost herself in it all. She’d been the right choice to take this place over, to direct Larkwood and change it into what it should have been.
She saw the world differently than I did, and when she came up with ideas like this one, it reminded me of it. Only Hera would consider hosting large family gatherings to make the shades here feel they were not alone. No matter how much time passed, I suspected she would never stop astounding me.
Something about my expression seemed to affect her, because she turned away as if to hide her face.
Which immediately set off that possessive wendigo side of me, the one who cherished my bond with her, who wanted her to hide nothing from me.
I walked up behind her, pressing in tight, trapping her between me and the counter. I brushed my lips against her ear. “Haven’t I told you before not to run from me? My control only lasts so far, and as it turns out, you fray it considerably.”
I recalled when she’d run from me in the forest, when I had entirely lost myself, when I had taken her for the first time. I could still feel the softness of her skin, the way she had pressed into the dirt from our combined weight, the way she’d given herself to me entirely.
She shuddered as I teased her ear, but didn’t fight at all. Instead, she tilted her head as if in surrender, exposing her neck to me.
I hesitated, then pressed my lips to the skin above her racing pulse. “You trust me even when it isn’t smart to do so. Even when everything inside you should scream for you to run from me, you don’t. You humble me by accepting me fully, in a way no other person has ever done. I hide nothing from you, and even then, you don’t reject me.” I traced along her throat with my tongue as she leaned more against me.
“You should lock doors,” came a new voice that made me yank away. Then again, who wanted their daughter to catch them in such a position?
“Itwaslocked,” I told her.
“Not well enough.” Lilianna looked toward the clock above the stove. “I am on time.”
The way she spoke reminded me that she was every bit my daughter. Even though we had grown up very differently, it seemed that some things must have passed to her in her DNA. She was blunt and honest to a fault. Hopefully, in time, she learned some amount of tact.
“Sorry,”Hera signed, then glanced at me to translate.“I was running late.”
“And everyone else?”
“Probably caught up with security measures and work. I told everyone we would sit down at six, but they could arrive at five-thirty.”
“You should have been clearer.” The strange thing was that Lilianna’s words, while clearly pointing out where she felt we had failed, held no real censure. She said them as if the obvious solution that we should have seen for ourselves.
It made me nervous, as it always did. I had not spent as much time with her as I would have liked, trying to not push my presence on her and giving her the space to come to me. She would have to fit into society, to learn to work with humans and other shades, but she struggled to understand anyone else or value their opinions or views. She had to find her own way, but I hadn’t ever realized how painful parenthood was when I could not step in and fix everything for her.
“I’ll make it more clear next time,”Hera signed to end the fight before it could go very far. No doubt she did so for me, so Lilianna and I didn’t argue or cause tension.
Instead, Hera moved around behind Lilianna to take a stack of plates to the table. When she glanced back over, she met my gaze from where I stood behind Lilianna.
I didn’t have to say a word—she could easily read my expression.You got lucky. I’ll have you later, once everyone leaves.
Her breath caught, and I had no doubt that the redness on her cheeks was due to excitement.
Lilianna moved her gaze between the two of us then narrowed her eyes until just black slits watched us. No doubt she understood the relationship between Hera and I, but she’d never addressed it. I wasn’t sure if she cared at all—she rarely spoke about her personal thoughts or feelings.
At the very least, she didn’t seem bothered by it.
The sound of the door opening broke Lilianna’s scrutiny. In walked Knox and Brax. They were both well dressed, though wore similar nervous expressions.
“Wait!” Wade shouted, rushing in behind them, not that either other man even slowed let alone acknowledged him. He panted, then hit Knox on the back as they were best friends. “You didn’t hear me, but I was trying to catch up.”
“We heard you,” Brax said with a glare when it seemed Wade would slap him on the back as well.
Wade must have taken the threat seriously because he slid his fingers through his hair instead of trying to touch Brax at all. Wade had also dressed up, though he’d forgone the full suit, going for slacks and a long-sleeved button-up shirt instead. It probably fit better, since a suit might have made him look like a teenager wearing his father’s clothing.
He looked at Hera, then smirked. “You haven’t gotten ready yet.”
Knox let out a laugh. “You were late this morning, too.”
“She needs a keeper,” Deacon said as he walked in from the hallway, pulling at the cuff of his shirt to straighten it beneath his suit jacket. “She’s been running behind all day.”
