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The grin that takes over my face is totally involuntary. “Yeah.”
A figure appears at the end of the hallway: tall, masculine, looks a lot like Micah. “Are you planning to join us, son?”
Is this Micah’s dad? At least Micah knows what he’ll look like in the future: good.
“We’re coming,” Micah says, giving me a little nudge to start me moving. I’ve noticed he does that—makes me go first so he can keep an eye on me and catch me if I lose my balance. A few times yesterday, while he was showing me around town, he redirected me before I could bump into something. It’s nice having someone watch out for me, and it makes me feel special that he’s choosing to do it. I gave him an extra-good blowjob last night to show my gratitude.
I get to where the older demon is standing and stop. His face is that typical demon mask, but he has kind eyes. Or maybe I’m just projecting because his eyes are like Micah’s. Micah’s are like his? Whatever.
I hold out a hand. “Hi. I’m Cam Torrence. Thanks for your son.”
He blinks twice and looks over my shoulder at Micah. “You’re welcome?”
“He’s been a huge help,” I continue blithely. “But he’s also just a really nice guy. He looks after me, you know? Even stuff he doesn’t have to do.”
Micah’s dad smiles, and it’s not a subtle demon one. It’s wide and warm, and the look he gives Micah this time is affectionate. “He’s a good boy. I’ve always been proud of him. I’m Hal Bailey, by the way.”
“It’s nice to meet you. I gave Isaac a puzzle—I hope that’s okay. Micah said it was.” Too bad if I’ve just thrown him under a bus.
“Micah was right. Although, it’s not going to save you from the millions of questions Isaac has. He’s been excited to meet you ever since he heard you were coming.”
Someone calls his name from the room behind him, and he turns his head, then looks back at me with a smile—smaller, this time. If I wasn’t looking for it, I wouldn’t have seen it. “Come on. Mother’s getting impatient.”
We enter a huge living room. The entire back wall is glass, with the most stupendous view of the mountains, and I stagger to a stop so I can gape at them for a moment.
“Special, isn’t it?” Micah murmurs, stopping beside me. “See that peak there, the closest one?”
“The one that looks like it’s looming over us?”
“That’s the one. The cave’s up there, just above the tree line.”
Wow. Suddenly I’m glad I don’t need to walk there and back every day. I drag my eyes away from the peaks, and they land on Damaris. She’s watching me, her face demon-blank. I can’t read anything in her eyes either.
Gathering all my courage, I cross the room toward her. For once, Micah doesn’t follow, and I really wish he had. After he and his cousins—who are also here—spent all that time making me second-guess my impression of their grandmother, the least he can do is support me while I talk to her.
I come to a stop a few steps away from her and muster a smile. “Thank you for inviting me today. Your home is lovely.” Not that I’ve seen much of it. But these windows are stupendous. “I really like the color you painted the teleport room.”
The lines around her eyes soften a little. She doesn’t do anything as obvious as smile, but she does seem pleased by the compliment. “Just because we don’t spend a lot of time in there doesn’t mean it can’t be attractive,” she says, and I nod.
“Definitely. I hope you don’t mind, but I brought this for you.” I offer her the cotton pouch with a puzzle in it. “Just a small token of my work.”
“How kind of you.” She takes it and opens the pouch. The puzzle is pretty stock-standard, good for a beginner but not so easy that it’s boring. “This will keep me busy, I’m sure.”
She’s not offended—not that I thought she would be. I mean, who doesn’t appreciate a present?—and that’s good enough for me.
“Come and meet the family,” she says, turning me toward them. “I believe you already know my grandsons? And Garrett, of course.”
“They’ve been very welcoming, and have generously fed me,” I assure her. The satisfied vibe I get in return is… weird. She’s glad her family is feeding me?
Not that I think she wants me to starve, but it’s not usually something you take pleasure from… right?
I’m so busy thinking about it that I trip and stumble into poor Zac. He catches me and helps me get my balance back.
“I’m so sorry.” My face gets hot. Micah’s cousins have seen me be my usual clumsy self, but I’ve never nearly knocked one of them over. Plus, this isn’t an ideal introduction to the rest of the family.
“Don’t worry about it,” Zac assures me with a friendly pat on the arm. “There are worse things than having a man practically fall at my feet.”
I laugh along with them all, relieved I haven’t made too big an idiot of myself. Garrett sidles up beside me.
