Page 12 of Bonded to The Boo Hag

I couldn’t tell if they were haints or humans, but they each gave me a quick wave before hustling out the serving cart.

“Well, Palmer should be down in a bit; sometimes she forgets when she is working, so I’ll text her,” he offered, slipping a hand into his pocket.

“No need. I am here!” she called, sweeping into the room in a shapeless boxy dress that somehow clung to certain parts of her body in a way that had me appreciating the drape of the mauve fabric. She wore gold jewelry, and I saw a few gold rings on her toes winking from under the hem of the dress as she walked our way.

“Oh, it smells divine, Cook, thank you!” she praised, going to the table and uncovering the meal. “You all will have to join us tomorrow, as long as there are no objections?”

She looked at me, and I realized she was asking my permission. I remembered the vows we made: “From this day forward, a year and a day, will you revere Gatlin and esteem him as an equal in this bond?”

I felt the heat rise to my ears. “I am not here to change your way of life, Palmer,” I said quietly, joining her at the table. “If everyone would rather eat with us tonight, I’m fine with that.”

“Nah, not tonight, my man.” He waved my concern off. “You need to start your monster education, and it’s better if you get it from her instead of all of us trying to butt in with our tidbits. But if you ever want to hear about Hell, I lived in Dis a few thousand years ago. I left you a book outside your room that I hope you’ll read and––”

“I will. I’m a big reader, actually; I just have a gym habit.” I chuckled, and so did he. “I appreciate the help navigating.”

“Yup, well, eat up and let me know what you think,” he said before walking out of the room.

That left Palmer and I alone in the room. We looked at each other awkwardly for a moment.

“Well, we should eat before it gets cold, correct?” She gestured, moving towards her seat.

I stopped her. “I know we aren’t married in the traditional sense, but I will pull out your chair, Palmer. I can get used to the driver because he has a job to do, but I get the doors, and I pull out the chairs.”

She blinked at me like I’d said something shocking, and I cleared my throat. “Unless that’s not equal?”

“No, no, you can do those things, but it’s been a long time since I’ve experienced that. I don’t see it on television anymore, so I assumed it was out of fashion.” She stepped back, allowing me to pull her chair out. She gracefully sank down into the egg-shaped seat as I slid it under her and into the table.

I pulled out my own chair, sitting in its surprisingly comfortable cradle.

We quietly served ourselves, but I noticed that Palmer’s portions were ridiculously small: a chicken wing, a single scoop of everything, and the smallest bit of lace cornbread I’ve ever seen. Cook must have made it that small on purpose, because I’ve never seen one that tiny.

“Do you… say grace?” she asked, clasping her hands together.

“I don’t really anymore, not since…” I trailed off, thinking of the angels I met from the Aetherian Council.

“Meeting them in the flesh does put a damper on things. I’d like to think the ones directly serving the higher powers are less jaded, but I don’t know. My father was Catholic, and I attend mass on holidays. Do you want to eat first or talk and eat?” she asked with an awkwardness that was endearing.

“I thought you had all this figured out,” I chuckled, taking a bite of the cornbread.

“Oh what, this?” She gestured between us. “No, sir. I’ve never bonded with anyone before. This will be a learning process for us both.”

We ate a few bites in silence.

“Cook mentioned books?” I asked, sipping the lemonade from my pilsner glass.

“Yes, we have an extensive library on folktales and monster history. I’m sure…” She trailed off. “I’ve seen what is online about my people. Thousands of years of history reduced to two stories. At least the Gullah people remember us, even if it’s not in the most flattering light.”

I set my glass down. “If you want, I can read about it, or…”

I was curious about my Boo Hag bride. Sitting like this and sharing a meal did a lot to alleviate my nerves. Maybe seeing her eat, even if they were small portions, made me realize she was more like me than not. Or it could be that in spite of everything, even as overwhelmed as I was, she had always been kind. Either way, I needed to know more if we were to get through the next year with good feelings.

And any woman, monster or not, deserves to live in her home comfortably.

5

Palmer

Iwas taken aback. I knew he was inquisitive––he had asked my lawyer copious questions about all parts of the bonding contract––but this…

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