Page 35 of Scars Like Wings

“That sucks! At least you get to travel, though. Where have you all been?”

“Honestly, all over. I’ve been to every state in the US and most provinces in Canada. I’ve also been to Mexico, the Caribbean, Europe, France, Italy, Russia, Spain, China, Japan—pretty much every continent and most countries around the world at least twice or so.”

“Wow, that’s some kind of job. How cool!”

Quinn’s eyes darkened. She downed the rest of her drink and shrugged as she tossed the ice into the sink and the cup into thetrash. “It pays the bills. Plus, I do get to work with my cousins. It could be worse.”

My brows furrowed. There was something more that she wasn’t talking about again. Before I could find a way for her to expand, Quinn changed the subject. “How about you? What do you do for work?”

“Oh.” I filed asking about her job for another time—hoping therewould beanother time. “I’m a Library Manager at the Archive in Blackbell.”

Her eyebrows shot up. “The library at the supernatural university?”

I nodded, remembering that Simone had said that the cousins sold real estate or something to humans and supernaturals alike. That would explain why she would know about Everlore.

“That’sinsanelyimpressive, sweets. I heard that place is massive. I couldn’t imagine having to manage something like that.”

Sweets. My breath caught as I was taken aback, my face feeling hot. She had called mesweets. Something about that nickname made me want to forget my name entirely. I took a long sip of my drink before I stuttered, “T-thank you.”

Quinn’s brows furrowed. “Did I say something wrong?”

“You called me ’sweets.’ I wasn’t expecting that.”

Quinn slowly smirked, melting me at the same speed. “I’m trying to win you over, remember? Is ‘sweets’ a nickname you aren’t a fan of?”

“Oh, no, no, no. ‘Sweets’ is perfectly fine. I love a good nickname. I read romance novels, so a good nickname is… cute. And great. And perfect. Fantastic, actually.”

I took another sip from my drink, looking away from Quinn for as long as I could. When my eyes returned to hers, her golden eyes remained on me, amused and freaking adorable. Her smirkwas still alive and well. If anything, it had grown wider and more vibrant.

“I’m so sorry. I ramble a lot.”

“No, it’s cute. Don’t apologize,sweets.” How Quinn said it felt like a caress against my skin. Impossibly, it made me like it even more. “I was honestly worried you wouldn’t like it since it’s a bit on the nose with you being as adorable and, well, sweet, as you are.”

She winked at me. When I remained a blushing, frazzled, speechless mess, she continued, “Now, we are about to get to one of my favorite spots in the mansion that I really want to show you.”

I really want to show you. The butterflies in my stomach fluttered and grew into birds.

I nodded with a smile so big my lip caught on my smiley piercing.

Forest Fire

Quinn took my hand again and led us outside, locking the door with her keys. The chill did nothing to cool the heat from her hand around mine.

Outside, there was a spacious back patio area. Stone columns led up to a ceiling made of the same oak from inside withtwoceiling fans. There wasanotherfireplace on the wall to the right withanothertelevision mounted above. A huge and expensive charcoal grill sat on the other side of the patio, and some very welcoming lounge seats sat in between.

Quinn directed us through a gate she held open but stopped me before I could step from the patio’s concrete floor. “Careful there, sweetness. I would hate for you to twist your ankles on this cobblestone path in those gorgeous heels. We aren’t going to be on it long, but watch where you step and make sure it’s in the center of the rocks, okay?”

Quinn shined her phone light on the ground. Sure enough, beyond the concrete was a path of cobblestones with grass growing in between. It was an obvious danger zone for me and my heels, but I knew this.Herknowing this was what made it special. This girl was really working hard to impress me.

And it wasmadworking.

Quinn took such care of me, holding my hands and keeping me steady until we reached the spiral staircase next to the cobblestone path. I’m as clumsy as a female main character in a scary movie or a romance novel. I was honestly a hazard to myself and everyone around me when I was in heels, but I couldn’t ruin my look just for the sake of safety. Fashion over function, always and forever. But as silly as that was—as Everett always reminded me—Quinn made me feel perfectly rational.

Could I be any more of a stereotype right now?Everett would never let me live this down if he knew how much of a U-Haul lesbian I was being.

The spiral staircase was narrow but solid with a railing, so Quinn let go of my hand for us to carefully make our way up. It took everything in me to not stare at Quinn’s beautiful ass. Even in the darkness of the night, her ass was large and more than a handful for me and my petite hands. I felt my face heat at the idea.Okay, seriously, what was wrong with me?

Thankfully, we soon reached the landing. It was a terrace with painted columns and waist-high iron railings in between as well as a ceiling fan above. Up here, the furniture was somehow even fancier and comfier with light blues and navy accents to match the exterior of the house. Another charcoal grill sat in the far corner, and a door led to a sunroom. Windows took up the wall across from the railing, but they were closed and I was unable to orient where this place was in relation to the rest of the house. The music inside was faint, but if I focused, I could almost make out a bass beat.

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