Page 46 of Wanted: A Roommate Who Isn't Evil

Lily paused. “I thoughtyouwould have told them.”

“That’s nonsense. You’re at the café more than me. I only work there part time now,” Dranian countered.

“I only work there part time, too. Seriously Dranian, I’ve always been part time.”

Another pause.

“Right.” Dranian nodded.

“And to be honest,” Lily’s fidgeting was practically comingthrough the phone, “I didn’t want to say anything until I knew why Shayne lied to us.”

Dranian tapped his chin in thought. “You think we shouldn’t tell the others?” He hated the thought of hiding somethingelsefrom his High Court. One secret was enough for him—two would be positively torturous.

“I think they’ll find out as soon as Kate has a conversation with Greyson. But for now, I just want to figure out what’s going on. I’ve texted Shayne like thirty times, and he hasn’t replied,” she said.

“His phone is with me. He didn’t take it,” Dranian told her. He stood from the couch to pace, wondering if he should make more coffee to keep himself awake. “Why don’t we give Shayne three days?” Dranian had to save Dog-Shayne in the next three days anyway. “If he doesn’t turn up, then we’ll hunt for him,” he finished.

Lily’s heavy sigh came through the phone. “I hate keeping secrets from Kate.”

“I hate keeping secrets from Cress and Mor,” Dranian returned. He glanced at the floor. “But if it was me, and Shayne found out I had lied, he wouldn’t dare oust me before the others until he knew why I did it.”

“Yeah.”

A third pause went by.

“We’ll reconvene in three days’ time,” Dranian mumbled in decision. “Hopefully Shayne comes back on hisown before then.”

“I can live with that,” Lily said. “Talk to you later. Watch your back.”

Dranian hung up the phone and went to the kitchen for more cookies. He’d just stuffed a large one into his mouth when his phone rang again. He answered horribly with his mouth full. “Heh-wow?”

“Are you sneaking night snacks?” Mor’s voice filled his ear. Dranian forced himself to swallow the cookie, his throat suddenly feeling dry. “Yes,” he confessed. It was one thing hecouldconfess.

“Cress just woke me from a deep sleep with aphone calland told me you haven’t been sleeping. That you can’t even come into work. He’s asking me to fill in for you,” Mor said.

Dranian swatted crumbs off his lips. “My apologies,” he said, glancing at the clock. How typical of Cress to call Mor at such an hour over a shift placement.

“That’s not why I’m calling. I don’t mind working at the café. I’m wondering why you can’t sleep.”

A creak sounded in the background, and Dranian pictured Mor walking around his big, ugly, creaky cathedral.

Dranian found himself pacing again.

“I… I accidentally replied to a dreamslipper,” Dranian admitted, reaching the end of the living space. When he turned around, he froze in place.

Luc stood there. Staring at him.

“Queensbane, Dranian. What would possess you to speak to afaeborn dreamslipper?” Mor asked. “Do you want me to mix you a sleep remedy to keep it out?”

Dranian nearly threw the phone out the window. “Mor,” he said, “I’ll have to call you back.” Dranian slammed the “end call” button. He dropped his phone to the couch like it was a hot coal. Then he eyed Luc. “Did you hear all that?” he asked, balling his fists at his sides.

“Unfortunately.” Luc sounded uninterested, but he couldn’t hide a teensy tiny smirk that tugged at the corner of his mouth. He turned around, but not before Dranian saw it. “I once responded to a dreamslipper in my childling years. It took me six days to kick her out of my head,” he said.

“Six days?” Dranian gaped. He’d never heard of someone escaping the clutches of a dreamslipper so fast. “One of my allies in the Brotherhood tried for six months to get his dreams back.”

Luc glanced over at him. “What do you mean,tried?”

Dranian closed his mouth, deciding not to explain that the fairy had gone mad and tossed himself into the Jade Ocean after never succeeding. But by the look on Luc’s face, it seemed the fox could figure out the end of the story on his own.

---