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“Amen to that,” Sunny muttered.
“The fae will bring clothes, food, and other supplies for you over the next few weeks. They usually drag it out so they have an excuse for us to let them in, so more of the men can meet us. Although none of us have ever been claimed by one of them, so I’m not sure how that will affect it…” Dots trailed off, her expression contemplative.
“How do they convince you to let them in?” I asked, curiosity getting the better of me again.
“The bastards aren’t stupid. They know we’re suckers for good foods, new movies, new books, new clothes… anything we don’t have access to in here already. We’re well-stocked with the basics, this world’s version of beans, rice, and enough spices to make it taste good. But I’ll be damned if their chocolate cake doesn’t make my mouth water just thinking about it,” Sunny said with a grin. “It’s been a few weeks since the last fae bribed us for a meeting. Ana made them wait outside for a month before she’d let any of us talk to them. Now that she’s gone, and you’ve got a fae on your ass, hopefully we’ll have more of their desserts.”
I could definitely see where she was coming from with that. Hell, maybe I agreed.
For a whole fucking chocolate cake, I could put up with a hell of a lot.
Then again, accepting a chocolate cake from Calian would probably give him an idea I didn’t want him to have. So, I’d have to think hard before I accepted anything from him.
“So how did all of you make it here without one of them catching you?” I wondered as I walked around the room. None of them seemed like they were in a hurry to leave, or like they were judging me for checking for anything that might resemble a weapon or a hidden camera.
“Oh, the hunt is just a big theatrical thing. They need you to move fast for it to work the way it should. Assuming you jog for most of the time before the sun sets, you’ll reach the Stronghold before any of them can make your scent out. The ocean washes it away well enough that only a fae who’s a compatible mate will be able to smell you well enough to track you.”
Fucking hell?
Calian has said it was because I picked up the scale—not because he could smell me.
Which was another damned lie.
That bastard could take a fucking hike.
No way in hell was I going to let him make me his mate.
“Well, I’m going to start on dinner. Go ahead and make yourself at home, even though you don’t have much yet. I’m sure Lian will be back with some stuff for you soon enough,” Mare said cheerfully.
She and the others left me to my room.
It was pretty much bare—no clothes in the square, walk-in closet. No blankets on the mattress, though it still looked a hell of a lot more comfortable than the back seat of my car, which was where I had been sleeping for nearly a year. No toiletries in the bathroom, no shampoo in the shower, no comb in the drawers, which seemed to be styled to look like the ones we’d had back on earth.
It was still the best place I’d lived in almost a decade.
For a couple of minutes, I sat on the bed—which was ridiculously fucking comfortable—mentally going over everything that had happened.
Then my stomach growled, and with a sigh, I stood.
It was time to eat, and then face the fae who thought I was his whenever he showed up with stuff that I would probably want.
Dinner was fun,to be honest. The girls were chatty, but not annoyingly so. North didn’t make an appearance, but Sunny got her to open the door long enough to take her portion of the food—and there was plenty of food.
It wasn’t awkward.
I even found myself looking forward to the next meal when it was over.
Mare turned on a movie while we all cleaned up, and we were done in time to get cozy on the couch when it started. The action was so foreign to me, but a happy warmth spread in my chest that I hoped would never leave.
And there I was, hoping again even though I knew I shouldn’t.
Oh fucking well.
I could enjoy the fun while it lasted.
Partway into the movie—anaction film I had never seen—there was a loud knock on our massive door.
Four grins turned my way.
