Heart's Price (MxM)

Chapter 40

With nothing more to be said on the subject of Thom—for the moment, at least—Ambrose and Dane take turns filling Freya in on the situation with the thefts. She asks a few keen questions, but for the most part she just listens. I know that, besides being the best tracker in our Pack, she has something like a photographic memory, and will remember everything she's told with no need to take notes.

When at last we've caught her up, the talk turns to other, lighter fare.

Grace tells us about her plans for the farm, and Freya entertains us with stories of some of the more unusual jobs she'd been hired for, which sound like a recap of a wild season of some crazy tv show.

When she tells us how she cleared out a nest of feral ghouls that had taken up residence in an abandoned subway tunnel, I try to catch her in a lie—or at the very least an exaggeration.

"Yeah, I've done that, too," I laugh, "in a video game. 'Feral ghouls' aren't real."

She shoots me a look that says 'challenge accepted,' and pulls out her phone. She has pictures. They certainly look real.

They also look kinda like normal people, except for the dead gray skin, black eyes and black, needle-like teeth.

"Ghouls feed on the dead," Freya explains matter-of-factly. "The real ones, that is. Most are pretty well-behaved, really, and keep to themselves. It's when they get together in larger numbers that things get messy."

"Oh wow," Grace breathes, having taken Freya's phone to look for herself. She scrolls to the next picture, and the next, and Freya happily details her thrilling encounters with a number of unusual beings. I guess it explains why she'd barely bat an eye when I announced I was dating a dragon, and I feel a twinge of uncalled-for jealousy as I realize that her life is about a thousand times more interesting than mine.

"What's this guy?" Grace asks, holding the phone towards Freya. I catch a glimpse of a handsome dark face and a cheeky grin. "He looks hot. Is he an incubus or something?"

"Oh... no," Freya says, taking her phone back and quickly returning it to her pocket. "That's just Darius."

Grace narrows her eyes with a slight smile. "'Just Darius,' huh?"

Freya sips her drink with studied nonchalance. "Yeah, we've been, uh, working together for a bit. I left the RV with him when I flew out here."

She turns the conversation to another topic, and Grace lets it go, but when Freya's not looking she casts me a wink and mouths just Darius, while trying to hide a grin. I file the name away for future use.

~ ☾ ~

Eventually, our little party winds down. Ambrose, Freya, and Dane turn back to discussing the case, while Grace and I compare some of our favorite books. Chloe leans against Grace, content to listen, while Julian has slowly inched closer to Dane. He lies curled with his head in his lap, seemingly asleep, while Dane absently strokes his soft, dark chocolate-colored hair.

The pair of them might have hit a rough patch, I reflect, but they're still on the same road.

It's late when Ambrose and I depart, Freya giving me a final rib-cracking squeeze and a playful pretend punch to the side of my face on our way out.

"Weasel," she says, shaking her head. "I'm happy for you, though, you know that right?"

I nod, eyes stinging a little. "Yeah, I do."

She hugs Ambrose next, and I see her whispering something in his ear that makes his eyebrows lift. In the car, I ask him what she'd said.

"Let's just say that if I take your brother's threats to my person seriously, it is your sister whom I'd truly fear to cross."