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If I ever thought about things like that…
“Yeah. It’s pretty perfect, isn’t it,” he commented, a wistful note in his voice that I didn’t point out.
He pulled up to the front of a red brick house with white shutters and turned off the car, sitting in the sudden silence for a long moment. My gaze kept flicking to the rear view mirror, like the Demon was going to pull up at any minute.
But of course he was nowhere to be found.
It would be much easier if he did things like operate out in the open.
“Ready to go?” I asked, when Remington still hadn’t made any move to open the door.
“I’m nervous. Why am I nervous to go to a little kid’s birthday party.”
“I believe it’s because this is called being normal. Something neither of us have ever been.”
“Being normal. Right.”
“First Target. And now this. Look at us,” I teased as we finally got out of the car. Remy opened the trunk and we pulled out the bags. We’d gotten so much that it required both of us to carry everything.
“We may have overdone it,” I laughed as we carried everything to the front door. I could hear children’s laughter from within and I took a deep breath.
Normal. We could definitely do this.
The door opened and there was Remington’s aunt, Tamara. It was hard not to think about what Remington would have been like if he could have grown up with someone as warm and nurturing as she seemed to be. She had a softness about her, both in her gentle smile and the way she carried herself. Her eyes were kind and twinkling. She gave Jenna a run for her money for the most friendly person I’d ever met.
Tamara greeted us with open arms, sweeping Remy up in a tight hug that was clearly very uncomfortable for him based on the tenseness of his features. My gaze flicked over her while she was distracted, studying her for anything that looked amiss. She may look like a nanny out of Peter Pan, and Remington may have done every background check known to man—both legal and illegal—but I wasn’t sure that I could ever trust anyone outside of my circle.
She certainly looked innocent enough though.
She was wearing a flowing floral dress that embraced her curves, its vibrant colors mirroring the blossoms of a well-tended garden. Her hair was up in a soft sweeping bun, and she was literally tearing up as she hugged Remington. Everything about her seemed to be the antithesis of what I’d seen in Remington’s father.
Thank fuck.
She sniffed when she finally released him, but Remington looked all out of sorts as he stepped out of her grasp, like he was afraid she was going to lunge at him and dare to give him another hug.
She went to give me a hug, but I held the bags in front of me like a wall and she stepped back.
“I’m so glad that you’re here,” she said warmly…as we just hovered in the entrance. Her gaze finally widened when she realized we’d been standing there for quite some time. “Oh. Come in, come in!” She stepped aside, revealing a home that had been transformed into a dazzling space fit for a superhero birthday celebration. Balloons in vibrant colors adorned every corner, swaying gently as the soft breeze from the open windows danced through the room. The walls were plastered with larger-than-life posters of superheroes, Spiderman and Batman evidently joining forces for the day.
We walked further into the house where a dining table held a superhero-themed buffet, with a bright red tablecloth featuring comic book-style illustrations. Colorful plates, cups, and napkins with superhero emblems included. There was a stack of superhero-themed cupcakes and cookies all over the table.
“Wow,” I whispered softly. “This is quite the party.”
A weird pang hit my gut. It was weird when things hit you. Like the reminder you’d never had your own birthday party growing up.
Through the living room was a madhouse. Children clad in capes and masks scurried around, their laughter echoing with pure joy, all busily engaged in some kind of imaginary battle. Tamara had made the room into a superhero training ground complete with obstacle courses and a makeshift stage.
“Remy!” a little voice screamed, and a much healthier, happier little boy than I’d seen all those months ago, sprung at Remington, wrapping his whole body around one of his legs.
“Hey there, buddy!” Remy growled happily, sweeping up his brother into his arms and swinging him around, his sweet laughter filling the air.
“I knew you would come. I knew it!” he squealed.
“Of course. I wasn’t going to miss it.”
“Do you like my costume?” His brother was dressed as Spiderman, a mask hanging around his neck.
“Yep. You’re the scariest Spiderman I’ve ever seen.”
