Page 151 of Home to the Hollow

“You don’t say?” he mutters, picking up a mini egg roll.

I look over at Wolfie, my gaze stern as I stare him down. The tips of his ears are pointed and I can feel the change in the air as his emotions escape the hold he’s had on them. Finally, he turns bright pink and throws his cards down.

“Okay, okay! I was reading you.” He gives me a shy grin and shrugs. “It was Prez’ idea.”

I’ll just bet it was.

I frown at him, pretending to be furious. Wolfie shifts, looking up at Prez and I through long lashes, waiting for someone to say something. Honestly, I’m not surprised or upset, but the squirming he’s doing in his seat is too adorable to ignore.

Wait a minute. Where the hell did that come from?

“Listen up, pup,” I drawl, arching a brow as I push a little dominant into my voice. “While that trick is awfully handy if we all choose to go to Vegas, we play square at home. No special abilities.” I pause again, giving them both a wolfish grin. “Unless you want me to cheat as well.”

Wolfie’s eyes fly wide and he looks over at Hamilton, who shrugs in his laidback manner. When his gaze moves back to mine, he flushes again and nods. “I’ll behave.”

Those words smack into my chest like a steel bar and before I can stop myself, I snarl softly. “You most certainly will.”

“Aw, see? We’re all copasetic now. Lucylovesthe growls, and to be fair, yoursarebetter, what with the hound and all. Magpie’s gonna bethrilled,” Hamilton drawls, picking up his beer for a swig.

Thrilled by what?

“Prez…” Wolfie says softly as he watches me struggle. “Don’t push.”

“Push what?” I gather the cards, sweeping all the chips into the middle to re-divvy them out now that we’re playing fair. These two have been speaking in code all night, and if I wasn’t thoroughly amused by their company, I would have told them to fuck off by now. Something about the camaraderie is different, though, than my friendship with Benjy or even my other casual friends.

Despite their secret language, they’re just easy to be around and I feel like I can let my guard down.

Since the only other person I’veeverfelt that around is Jolene, I stayed. Being the town judge and the senator’s son and the head of an interstate gambling ring and the town playboy is… exhausting. I spend more time pretending to be things than actuallybeinganything.

“Ooh, he’s lost in thought again, Lucy. We’ve made the great Edgar Boone brood.”

Scrubbing my hand over my face, I give Hamilton a pointed look. “That isn’t an answer. And yes, everything about the past two weeks has upended my life so thoroughly that I’m not sure which end is up. An unemerged mate who's the target of my teenage idiocy? Finding out she’s also attached to you two? Wrapping my head around this arrangement while you’re both being weird as fuck and our girl is out doing what knows what? Plus some fucking creeper roaming around her house in the night? It’s a lot, dude.”

A warm hand reaches over and covers mine. I look up to find Wolfie bathed in a light blue aura, his blue eyes electric as he murmurs, “You can deal with this, Edgar. Your edges will soften and your fear will ebb, if you breathe deeply and let calm wash over you.”

I pull my hand back, narrowing my eyes. “Magic doesnotfix everything, pup. We have to actuallydealwith emotions, not just fairy dust them away.”

His lips turn down, and he looks at Presley. The doctor glares at me as he holds his arms out for his companion. “Unnecessary, Boone. Lucy was trying to help, not cheat the process.”

Looking over at Wolfie as he perches on Hamilton’s lap, I can see the hurt flickering over his features. I didn’t mean for that to happen, and perhaps I need a little more time to sort out whatever is in my head before I do something else stupid. I suck in a breath and stand. “I’m sorry; I didn’t mean to snap. It’s not an excuse—just a reason—but I’m worried about Tilly. Something doesn’t feel right and it’s messing with my temper. I’m going to head back to my place for the night. Text me when she gets home, okay?”

Wolfie nods quietly, and Presley just glares. I head for the door, rolling my eyes when I find my dogs passed out on giant pet beds with mydrugar’scats. Clearly, they’re staying here until morning, so I stomp out to my car alone.

So much for companions.

Everything is out of sorts, and I don’t know why, but I have a bad feeling about tonight. Hopefully, I’m wrong and Tilly is okay, but if not, I’m going to lose the fucking plot.

That’s a guarantee.

Week Three

Ihave been in this country for almost a full week. Over the centuries, I’ve made many sojourns to what is currently called the United States, and each time is more amusing than the last. For a nation in its infancy compared to others in the world, someone brashly convinced its human inhabitants they are at the top of a food chain they cannot fully comprehend—both literallyandfiguratively. Even the elder supes who have settled here eventually absorb the Americans’ sense of ill-informed superiority, and it amuses me greatly.

Nothing here is as old as the newest colonnade in our palace at home, yet they think they hold the power of the world in their palms.

Of course, humans in other countries are similarly certain that their species is the most apex of predators, but the tales of old still thrive. Superstition and belief in the unknown is far more common in Europe, Asia, and Africa than here. The commercialized versions of our world are so prevalent in the US; many of us could show our true selves in public and they’d be convinced it was some sort of ‘movie magic’.

Alas, there are few of my kind outside of my country, less a few distant family lines that wandered far during the nomadic years. It is both a blessing and curse to live so long and realize your powers would only be corrupted should the ‘ruling species’ learn of your existence.

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