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There were certain big moves he could make, like having the place completely renovated from the inside out, but he couldn’t bankroll that without revealing his true financial situation. If he dumped big money on the problem to make it go away, Iris would probably feel upset and betrayed.
“You worry about her a lot,” Henry Dale observed.
For once, the older man hadn’t retreated to his room after eating, a fair measure of how concerned he must be. Though Henry Dale wouldn’t admit it, he wanted to hear what went down just as much as Eli did. At first, Eli nodded without comment, then he added, “Do you think relationships are worth it?”
“You’re talking to the wrong person. But…for most, they seem to be. Why?”
“Never mind,” Eli said, wiping the countertops.
Happily, they didn’t wait long.
Soon, three of their housemates returned, but there was an odd energy between them. Rowan looked tentative and sympathetic while Mira kept stealing glances at Iris, as if something had changed in the time they’d been gone. Sally must have opted to stay over at Ethel’s when everyone else left.
Henry Dale wasn’t great at reading people, so he asked outright. “Well? What happened? Are you working with the witches, or…?”
“They need to discuss it,” Mira said. “But I’m hopeful.”
Rowan sighed. “I wish I had as much faith as you do.”
“Hmph. Well, tell me if there’s anything I can do. You know, other than move out. I was here first.I’mnot going.” Henry Dale headed to his room, evidently not noticing how Rowan flinched and hunched their shoulders.
Eli wanted to comfort them, but honestly, Iris looked so shell-shocked that she was his first priority. She always would be, even if she wanted nothing more to do with him after she found out why he was really here. The others seemed to sense that they needed privacy and went upstairs while Iris just stood in the middle of the kitchen, lost as a person could be in her own home.
“What happened?” he asked.
“I’m fae,” she answered in a bewildered tone. “That’s what Gladys meant at the community center, why she called me ‘Lady’ like it was a title. The older witchknew,apparently, just from the way my energy looks or something. How is that possible?”
Eli took a moment, stunned by what she was saying. Then he gathered himself and reviewed what he’d read about the fae. “Maybe changelings aren’t just stories. There are legends about the fae doing that, though the accounts differ on the details.”
Her expression cleared slightly, and she focused on him, appearing to take interest in what he knew. “Like how?”
“Well, I’ve read stories where it was done for revenge. One house steals another’s child and banishes them to the human realmwhere the real fae parents can’t find them. In other versions, fae children are sent to the mortal world to protect them from their enemies. Maybe you’re a lost fae princess,” Eli suggested with a faint smile.
Iris scoffed. “Wouldn’tthatbe wild?”
But at least she didn’t look so broken or stunned anymore, so he risked sharing something else, trusting she could handle it. “I should say, in hawk form, Ididnotice that your energy shines differently than anyone I’d ever seen.”
“Why didn’t you tell me before?” she demanded.
“Because other than that, I didn’t have anything concrete to tell you. And I thought you were a psychic vampire until discovering otherwise.” Best not to linger over how hurt she’d been by what Lily had said. “On the bright side, maybe this means your real family is desperately searching for you as we speak.”
She inhaled softly, swiftly. “Do you…think so?”
Maybe he shouldn’t get her hopes up. It was also possible that she’d been swapped because her fae bio-family didn’t give a damn and they’d desperately wanted a human baby for some unknown and likely nefarious reason. Eli tried not to even hint at that train of thought. “Hmm. Could be.”
She paced the kitchen, waving her hands wildly. “Doesn’t matter. Unless they show up at my door, I have other aspects to consider.”
“Like what?” he asked.
“Like, what should I be able todoif I’m fae?” She ticked the questions off on her fingers, one by one. “Do I have magic? Can I shape-shift? Spin straw into gold? Wait, was Rumpelstiltskin one of the fae? I think I’m mixing up my fairy tales.”
“In some versions, he was a hobgoblin, which makes him fae.” Eli wasn’t sure why he remembered that. “In other renditions, he was a lesser demon.”
“Interesting. I haven’t tried to turn straw into gold, so let’s put a pin in that.” Iris drooped visibly, like a daisy about to drop its petals. “More likely, I’m a dud, and I won’t be able to do what other fae folk can anyway.”
“You’re perfect,” Eli said at once.
“Pfft. You’re my boyfriend; youhaveto say that.” As soon as she said that, she pressed both hands to her mouth, eyes wide.
