Page 57 of Accidentally Vacationed with an Incubus

She hesitated, her unfocused gaze drifting once more, as though searching for something beyond her reach. Ms. Cadmus gave a slow nod, but as her gaze drifted to Jen, something in her expression shifted—an edge of accusation creeping into herotherwise distant stare. “You need to find that boy and talk some sense into him, Diane,” she said, her voice sharper than before. “Tell him that if I catch him on my territory again...” She trailed off, shaking her head as though the thought had slipped through her fingers like sand. Her voice softened, almost wistful. “And, Diane... thank you for coming to visit me in here. It really means a lot to me.”

“How about you go rest, my love?” Mr. Cadmus said.

Ms. Cadmus’s features went slack. She turned and, with slow, unsteady steps, made her way out of the kitchen.

No one spoke. The silence stretched between us, thick and heavy, only broken by the soft creak of a bedroom door closing somewhere down the hall.

Mr. Cadmus let out a weary sigh. “I’m so sorry, Jen. Your mother was such a dear friend to Sylvia... she often forgets that she’s no longer with us.” His gaze flickered over her, his voice tinged with something that sounded almost like regret. “And you look so very much like your mother.”

“That’s okay, Mr. Cadmus,” Jen murmured, swiping a stray tear from her cheek. Her voice was steady, but her eyes shone with the weight of too many emotions.

Mr. Cadmus tucked the vial back into his pocket, his movements slow, almost mechanical.

Carefully, I said, “That was a large dose of venom for her to take in one sitting.”

He gave me a weary nod. “When the dementia first started, just a drop was enough to settle her when she became confused, to keep her calm and coax her back to the house when she’d wandered and got lost. But now...” His voice faltered. He sniffed, the whites of his eyes red and raw. “I can’t produce what she needs quickly enough,” he continued, his voice cracking, “but I so badly wanted to keep her at home—to keep herwithme. And now she’s suffering because of it. She’s completely dependenton my venom, and I can’t make enough for her.” His breath shuddered. “I can’t afford to buy more in the quantity she needs from another basilisk. She’s immune to her own, and mine is the only thing keeping her lucid. I haven’t been able to keep up with the house in years, and she thinks I’veimprisonedher.” His fingers clenched into fists at his sides. “And... and...”

His knees buckled.

Jen lunged forward, catching him just in time before he collapsed under the weight of his own exhaustion.

“I’ve messed it all up, Jennifer,” he whispered. “And now my mate—mySylvia—will spend what little time she has left suffering because of me.”

***

“Let’s forget about the date,” I said as we walked down the lane, putting distance between ourselves and the Cadmuses’ house. “We’ll just head back to the cabin.”

“No,” Jen said firmly, her fingers tightening around my arm. “You’ve put so much effort into it, and, really, I’m fine.”

I studied her carefully. “Are you sure?” I asked. I barely knew the Cadmuses, yet their situation weighed heavily on me. The thought of what they were going through was unbearable.

Jen lifted her gaze toward me, though her eyes never quite met mine—her inability to see in the dark keeping her focus just off-center. The whites of her eyes were still faintly red, her lips pressed tight in an effort to keep from frowning.

“There’s nothing we can do,” she said softly. “Not unless you’ve got a secret stash of cash somewhere to buy the amount of venom she needs.”

I thought about the wad of cash Jasper had given me. It was the most money I’d ever held at once, yet I doubted it wasenough to cover even half a dose of the venom Ms. Cadmus needed.

“Unfortunately not,” I admitted, kicking some stray debris out of Jen’s path. Then a lightbulb went off in my head. “But Idohave an idea of how we can help.”

Jen’s eyes widened with eager curiosity. “What?”

“Well... if you don’t mind giving up a day of writing—and a date night—we could spend tomorrow cleaning their house.” I glanced at her, gauging her reaction. “It’s not the medicine she needs, but if we can at least make their home more livable, maybe she can spend her final days in comfort instead of... that.”

Jen came to an abrupt stop, turning fully toward me. She lifted her free hand, searching blindly in the darkness. I leaned in, guiding her touch until her fingertips brushed my cheek, then curled gently around my jaw.

She smiled up at me, her warmth unmistakable even in the cool night air. “I think that’s a perfect idea,” she whispered.

Chapter 17. Jen

Devlin might just be the best person on the planet.

After seeing the Cadmuses, all I had wanted to do was run home, crawl into bed, and cry. But his suggestion—that we spend the next day cleaning their house—had lifted some of the weight pressing on my chest. It gave me a sense of purpose.

And it made me even more eager for our date.

As we walked through the darkness, heading wherever he was leading me, it struck me just how little I actually knew about the demon I was sharing my home with—the demon I was nowdating.

That he was kind was obvious. Thoughtful, too—I hadn’t missed the tiny ghost figurine BooDini had been cradling after Devlin returned from making preparations for tonight. He was compassionate, always attuned to my feelings, even with his senses dampened. And, even now, after hours of effort, still willing to take a rain check if I wasn’t up for it.

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