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“There are better things coming your way,” I advise him. I don’t know why. I just feel like he deserves all the best things, and a cold, dark cave is not the pinnacle of his life.
Well, maybe his professional life.
He looks at me like I’m insane. “That’s sweet, Micah, but there’s nothing better than this. A twenty-foot complex mechanical puzzle designed by a dragon and forgotten for thousands of years? It’s like a dream come true.”
“Yeah, Micah,” Asher goads. “It’s a dream come true.” He smirks at me. Dammit, he’s guessed that I’m attracted to Cam. Not that it would be unusual—Cam’s very attractive. But I was hoping my cousins wouldn’t notice.
“It’s a dream come true for me too,” Garrett says in a quelling tone, glaring at his husband, and it’s my turn to smirk at Asher. “I’m a social anthropologist,” he explains to Cam. “Just thinking about what we can learn from whatever’s behind that door…” He gives a little shiver. “The dragon wing leader said he doesn’t think it’s a personal hoard, so I have high hopes that it’s some kind of archive.”
“A magically preserved archive from all those years ago?” Cam lets out a low whistle. “It really is treasure.”
Garrett seems thrilled to have someone to geek out with, and he pushes his empty bowl away and leans forward. “Right? And we’ve been promised that a dragon will come and help us go through the contents. We’ll probably need some community historians too, but I’m excited to talk to a dragon. Talk properly, I mean, and ask them questions. The kids are excited too.”
Cam blinks. “You have kids? Are they in bed already?” He turns to frown at me. “You should have said so I could bring them puzzles.”
My brows pull together as I try to work out how I’m at fault for not telling him about the kids Garrett doesn’t have. On the plus side, he’s not pulling away from me even though I’m frowning. I like that.
“Oh no, we don’t have kids,” Garrett says, clearing things up. “I meant the village children. I’m running the school this year, and they’re all very excited about the idea of meeting a dragon.” He hesitates just a little, and Zac snickers. We all know that Garrett has plans for Cam to meet the kids and talk about puzzles… he just hasn’t told Cam that yet.
“Actually, I was wondering… would you be interested in speaking to the kids? They’ve heard about the door now, of course, and they’re all fascinated by the idea of a giant puzzle with moving parts.”
Cam lights up. “Sure! Maybe they could do a field trip to the cave and see it for themselves?”
“No,” Zac says immediately. “Sorry. You’d need too many adults to teleport them in, and the cave isn’t big enough.”
Cam squints one eye closed. “Really? It seemed pretty big.”
“There’s seventy children at that school. Right, Garrett?”
“Seventy-four,” Garrett corrects, looking crushed.
“That means more than thirty adults to teleport them, and over a hundred people in the cave at one time. With all those crates…” He shakes his head. “I’m really sorry, but I just don’t think it would be safe.”
“What if they do it in shifts?” I suggest impulsively. Cam’s downcast expression is spurring a hitherto unknown fixer instinct in me. “Different groups on different days.”
Cam and Garrett both turn hopeful eyes to Zac, who sighs. “Maybe. Put together a plan and I’ll think about it. But Cam, won’t that many sessions interfere with your work?”
“Yes.” Cam nods solemnly. “But this is important. Mechanical puzzles teach fine motor skills, spatial reasoning and logic, and also allow processing time for people suffering from PTSD and other mental health challenges. These kinds of puzzles made a huge difference to my life when I was a kid, and I think all children should be introduced to them.” He turns to Garrett. “If the kids can’t come to the cave, I’ll come to the school and show them some cool puzzles.”
Garrett smiles gratefully at him. “Thank you. That’s so kind. If there’s anything you need while you’re here, please call me. I’ll give you my number. And you should eat with us whenever you like.”
“I like to eat.” Cam nods emphatically. “I’m not a good cook, though. Or any kind of cook.”
“What do you do for food?” Asher asks.
Cam shrugs. “Takeout. Sometimes I get those instant meal things from the grocery store, the ones you just have to heat up? But if I’ve forgotten to shop, they don’t just magically appear in my house.” He seems put out by that.
“Definitely eat with us,” I say. It’s not like he’s going to have many other options, if he doesn’t cook. The pub is the only place open at dinnertime, and they don’t deliver, so on a bad night, he’d have to slog through the snow to get there.
Which reminds me… I clear my throat. “On the topic of food… well, sustenance… Alistair mentioned that since you’ll be spending so much time in the cave, away from the village, it might be necessary to take extra steps to keep you sustained.”
Cam gazes at me blankly. “Extra steps?”
I feel my face getting hot as I remember what Alistair actually said, which was that I should wank in the cave. “Uh, he meant… you’re an incubus.” Hopefully that will make everything clear.
“Yes. I’m aware.”
Okay, so maybe not. I shoot Garrett a pleading look. He has more experience dealing with other species socially than I do.
