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“I don’t like him like that.” She must have read my concern in my face. “He’s just really cool.”
“You seemed to like him like that plenty not so long ago.”
“I might have been curious about sex with a vampire. Who wouldn’t be? Seriously? It’s so hot when you read about it. But…” She picked at her thumbnail. “Sex isn’t a Band-Aid. There are some types of pain it can’t heal.” She sneaked a glance up at me. “Even if it might be fun trying.”
Her laughter at my sharp intake of breath peeled back the layers, the hardness, revealing the girl she used to be. The one who couldn’t have survived in our world but was determined to hold her own now.
“I miss him,” she confessed softly. “Aedan.”
“I do too.” I didn’t want to have this conversation, but it was happening. “That’s why I worry about you.”
“Camber swears the quickest way to get over a guy is to get under a new one.” She spread her hands. “It seemed like a good idea at the time.”
“All bad ideas do.”
“I’m glad you stopped me from making a mistake with a person who could be a good friend to me.” She exhaled. “He really is fantastic in the ring. I could watch him for hours.” She caught my expression and laughed. “Not in a pervy way. I promise. Though have you seen him without a shirt because?—”
Sticking my fingers into my ears, I plugged them to avoid hearing about pecs or abs or whatever else.
Finally, she tugged my arm until I let her win and faced her head-on.
“I’ll behave.” Her grin said otherwise, but I was glad to see it. “And I’ll go to the farm. To help however I can.” She finally got around to the question I had been expecting from her. “Will you be there?”
“Often if not always.” I couldn’t say yet where the Bureau, therefore I, would land. “But you can visit me whenever you like.” I gave her a stern glare. “As long as you tell everyone where you’re goingbeforeyou arrive at the airport next time.”
“I will, I will.” She studied me. “You look like you’ve got more to say.”
“I wanted to do this when Camber, you, and I could be together.” I rubbed the base of my neck. “That’s not going to happen for a while. We still have to root out anyone else loyal to Luca and patch up the Bureau’s public image.” The time for speeches had finally come.Ugh.I had avoided addressing our allies for long enough. “We also have to rebuild our headquarters and a million other things.”
“You’re scaring me.”
“I want you and Camber to have my house.” I didn’t give her a key. They both already had them. I did, however, buy keychains meant for realtors with tiny houses and even tinier sold signs on them. “I can’t live in Samford full-time, and I don’t want the house to fall into disrepair waiting on a day that might never come.” I pressed the keychains into her palm, but she didn’t so much as blink, so I rushed out, “I also want to give you two the shop.” Along with whatever kept eating those blasted winter rosebuds. Arden, at least, would be equipped to deal with that now. “You’ve been running it yourselves for the past year. You’ve proven you can do it. I don’t know if you want?—”
Arden flung herself at me, wrapping me in a suffocating hug. “This is too much.”
“You’ve earned it.” I hugged her back. “Ten times over.”
Guilt was a part of my reasoning, of course, but mostly I just wanted the girls safe and secure without me. A job where they were their own bosses. A home near their parents without a mortgage. I would even throw in my SUV to give Arden her own ride so she and Camber didn’t have to share anymore. Those were tools that would help them live full and successful lives.
“If you give us your house—yourhouse, Rue—and your shop…” Emotion thickened her voice as she held on tighter.“Will we ever see you?” She hiccupped a sob. “This isn’t a trick, is it? It’s not goodbye?”
“It’s not a trick.” I kissed the top of her head the way I did Colby. “It’s definitely not goodbye.”
“Okay.” She sniffled and withdrew, wiping her cheeks with her palms. “Okay.”
“You can take a minute.” I laughed softly. “You don’t have to decide now.”
“No one needs a minute to decide thatyes, they want a free house.” A manic laugh escaped, and she slapped a hand over her mouth until she could control herself. “You’re setting us up for life. You realize that? We could live in Samford, run your shop, and never want for anything.” She sobered. “You’re sure this isn’t a goodbye? I agree and then never see you again? You’re sure? Youpromise?”
“I’ll give you a blood vow if it makes you rest easier.” I chuckled under my breath. “You’re not getting rid of me that easy.” I angled down my chin. “Especially now that you know our secrets.”
Arms folded across her stomach, she paced from one end of the empty parking slot to the other.
Once, twice, three times.
“You can’t do it like this.” She lurched to a stop. “You can’t dump this in my lap and expect me to explain to Camber… I don’t know what I would even say.” She tossed the keychains back to me. “Come to Samford, take us out for dinner, and break the news then.”
“I don’t know what to say either,” I confessed, voice tight. “I was hoping you would know.”
