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I put my half-eaten cookie on the counter. “So, you came here when you were eight?” I verified. “Weren’t you scared of all this?”
Ace grinned. “Shitless.”
That made me return the smile, but only for a moment as he elaborated.
“Seeing everything that goes on here at night really,reallyscared me at first. But Mr. and Mrs. Attila kept telling me and Mel that the spirits were harmless, they couldn’t hurt us, things like that. They would sit with me whenever I got scared. They were parents first, and they took that role very seriously.”
My heart pattered at the thought of Ace and Mel as young kids, scared by all their new surroundings, constantly given comfort whenever they needed it.
“Even Cai would try to make Mel and me feel better. He would go out during the night, stand out in the path while we watched from the window, all to show us there was nothing to beafraid of. And it worked. After a while, we became used to it, and now it’s normal to us.”
I rested my elbow on the counter as I listened, propping my chin in the palm of my hand.
“I’m thankful for him. He’s our brother.”
My heart doubled in size at Ace’s words, and my pulse made it feel like it was about to burst from behind my ribcage. There were no words to explain how I felt for Caius, and hearing Ace’s story simply verified my feelings. Caius was honest, he was comforting, and he was supportive. He was strong, he was firm, and he had his head on straight.
Every part of my body warmed in a tingle that felt never-ending.
Ace sighed. “Which is why it’s so fucked that Dey is the way he is. It’s one thing to not believe in this, but it’s another to actively try to take it down. His family, Mel and I included, did nothing butbe a family.He’s lucky he had good parents and siblings who always loved him.”
“Were you close with him?”
He nodded. “Yeah. Until he left.”
His statement was so short and so abrupt that I knew he didn’t want to talk about it. He had no desire to relive the memory, so I didn’t press any further.
I broke off a piece of cookie and popped it in my mouth, savoring the sweet, rich flavor. Ace reached into the box for another one.
“You know,” he started after taking another bite. “I’ve never seen Caius like this.”
“Like what?”
Ace stopped his chewing to send me a knowing look. The corners of his mouth lifted slightly, and he tilted his head toward me. “You know.”
A set of butterflies released in the pit of my stomach. Ididknow, but having someone else notice it, too, had me floating.
“I’ve known him for most of my life. I grew up with him. I’ve been there with him through everything.”
I picked at the last piece of cookie that rested on the counter, my eyes falling to the unpigmented spots on the back of my hand.
“He’s different now, in a good way.Youbrought that out of him.”
My eyes met Ace’s, and his kindness and affection practically spilled out of him.
“He brought that out of me, too.”
Footsteps sounded in the hall outside of the kitchen, and soon enough, Caius stepped through the open frame. My heart skipped at the sight of him, with his usual white button down, unbuttoned at the top to show his inked chest, and the sleeves rolled to the elbows, presenting thick, tattooed arms. With his heated, grey-eyed stare on me, he slowly wandered over, his steps easy and his stride smooth. Approaching me, I found myself silently holding my breath as his body leaned in close, his eyes never breaking his gaze with mine. Without saying a word, his body brushed against my knees as he angled himself forward and grabbed a cookie from the box beside me.
Celeste
Plopping down in the sand, I pushed my bare toes under the cool, smooth surface. Caius did the same, with his legs bent and his inked forearms draped over his knees. I loved seeing him in a natural setting, since he hardly ever stepped off the grounds of Purgatory. Even though his body remained tense, I could see a subtle relaxation forming in his posture.
“So, an offer, huh?” I asked as we settled, my white zip-up sweatshirt slipping off one of my shoulders.
Caius brushed some sand off the backs of his khaki pants. “A shitty one,” he replied.
“What do you mean?”
