Page 65 of Hollyhocks

“Yes. Right here. Wherever Demi is.”

“You can leave her side. She won’t blow up or anything.”

Creed sneers, inching closer to Caden. “No, she fucking won’t. Because I’m here.” He points at me, narrowing his eyes. “I don’t know if I like you. You do stink. Deal with it.” Creed marches to his usual booth, snarling at a customer who is simply trying to eat their breakfast.

“He makes my head hurt,” I grumble, only to see Creed flick me the middle finger while he drinks his own cup of coffee.

Damn, I forget he has advanced hearing.

“He makes all of our heads hurt. Don’t worry. It isn’t only you,” Caden explains, not paying attention to Creed’s murderous glare. “You okay? You seem…I don’t know. Different. Youusually come in happy and chipper. All life is good and shit. Today, you have a cloud hanging over your head.”

“Maybe the cloud is from all the damn storms you keep here, Caden.” I take a sip of my coffee, and I can feel my morning demon slipping back into his slumber.

That’s better.

“Why don’t you say it louder for the customers in the back?” he whispers through a fake smile and clenched teeth since the bell rings from the door opening behind. “Hi, thank you for coming to Demi’s Diner. Please pick a seat and I’ll be with you shortly.”

The new customers take the booth in front of Creed and Caden points a finger at me. “Listen, Fitz,” he hisses a-matter-of-factly. “I know you think us monsters are happy all the time and you think we have no worries—”

“—I don’t—”

He lifts a finger to silence me. “—But we do. I’m a storm kitsune. I need the rain, the thunder, and lightning to power myself. Some days when it rains, it means I’m sad. I’m fucking sad, Fitz. I’m allowed to be sad. I can’t always control the rain when I get in these moods. So why don’t you stop thinking we are invincible and start seeing us as beings with actual feelings.”

“I’m sorry, Caden. Mostly my points of reference are Creed and Rhett. I do need to be more thoughtful. You’re right.” I take a longer swig of coffee so I can hide the embarrassment on my face. “Why are you sad? What’s going on?”

He waves my concern away. “I’m fine and it’s okay, Fitz. Rhett and Creed are your first experiences with the paranormal. I can understand why you think feelings work differently with us, especially with Creed.”

“He can hear us, you know.” I lower my voice in hopes Creed doesn’t come over and snap my neck. I just know he has been waiting to kill me.

“I know. I don’t care. I have this safety net called Demi, and you have a safety net called Rhett. It’s all the other people who need to be concerned. Granted, Rhett has more humanity. I think it varies from monster to monster. Kind of like humans, you know? They are varied. Some feel more deeply than others and some only have the capacity to only love one person. Demi is Creed’s one person. That’s it. That is who he has space for in the new form he was given. We—” he gestures a finger from me to him. “—Have the ability to care for others. “

“I’m an asshole,” I reply.

Shame is all I am drinking from this cup of coffee.

He shakes his head. “No, you aren’t. Creed is a dick, but we love him anyway.”

“You know I can hear you,” Creed shouts from his booth.

“Yeah, yeah,” Caden ignores him, leaning forward. “And he is right. You stink.”

“I don’t smell anything.” Milo comes out of nowhere, sniffing my shoulder.

I’m so tired of being sniffed.

“You smell fine to me. Like sandalwood.” Milo pats me on the back, heading to the booth filled with new customers.

“Just a hint,” Caden whispers. “The last time this happened was when Mickey got marked by Rhett. No one else could smell his scent but paranormals. If we are the only ones who can smell it, you have a paranormal in your life, my friend.”

“I don’t know who it is. Only Rhett, Creed, and you.”

“It isn’t us, obviously. Be on the lookout. You don’t know their plans for you.”

Oh, I have an idea what her plan is. The only thing I want is to be awake so I can enjoy all the fucking things she will do to me.

“Please,” she begs with tears pouring down her face. “Please, take whatever you want. Don’t hurt me.”

I’m standing in front of Fitz’s doctor. I might have found out where she lived because I smelled her scent all over my mate. All I had to do was follow her rancid trail through town to find out where she lived.

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