“All right, all right.” She climbed out of bed, laughing as she combed her fingers through her hair. “You silly little thing. You don’t even have a stomach anymore.”
But that didn’t seem to bother Algernon in the slightest. She watched as the undead rat hopped from the bed and scurried out the door through a small gap where Gideon had left it ajar. Probably so the critters could come in and out. He did seem to love his strange pets.
Well, Harry notwithstanding.
She snickered as she got dressed, pulling on a pair of black jeans and a red tank top from the dresser in the room. She found a small assortment of hoodies in another drawer. Am I that predictable? I guess I am. Instead, she picked out a dark gray sweater and pulled it on, enjoying how soft the fabric was.
Brushing her hair, she finally headed downstairs. Algernon was waiting for her at the top of the stairs and ran down ahead of her, eagerly skidding into the dining room. When she walked in, she saw the table already set for three. She half expected Gideon to have punted Harry out of the house now that they had slept together, but she was happy to see her friend was already at the table, eating from a bowl of popcorn that clashed with the fancy china bowl it was in. There was sliced garlic bread on a silver tray in the center of the table. An open bottle of red wine reflected the amber light of lit candlesticks that dotted the table.
She heard rustling from the kitchen and assumed Gideon was still preparing food.
A romantic dinner. For three.
This is gonna go just great.
“Sleep well?” Harry asked.
“Honestly, yeah. I needed it.” She sat down and reached out to steal a handful of Harry’s popcorn. “And before you make that face at me—quit it—running around a cemetery dodging bullets and crashing on a cold stone floor in the rain wasn’t exactly a cozy night at a bed and breakfast.”
He snorted. “And I bet he wouldn’t stop humping you.”
“Well, that too.” He made a face. She slapped his arm playfully. “I told you not to.”
“Can’t help it. I won’t stop you from making your own choices, Mags, but I don’t like this. You don’t know what he’s done, and you can’t just let yourself fall for him.”
“I’m not letting myself do shit. Sex isn’t love. And love isn’t forgiveness.” She handed Algernon a piece of popcorn as the little rat scrambled up onto the table. He eagerly began chewing it into oblivion. “I’m attracted to Gideon. Besides, it’s what you assholes keep saying. It’s ‘complicated.’”
Harry grumbled and shrugged. “Whatever. Just don’t trust him, please. Not until you get the whole story out of him.”
“Promise.”
“Oh.” Harry fished around in his pocket and handed her a phone. “Here you go. You have like…twenty messages.”
“What?” She blinked and picked it up. “Who’d be messaging me? You’re both here.” Pressing her thumb onto the button, she entered her passcode. He was exaggerating—she had six messages. All texts.
Rinnie: You okay?
Rinnie: Hope you made it out all right.
Rinnie: Any leads on the phylactery?
Rinnie: We’re still working together, right?
Rinnie: Unless you’re dead.
Rinnie: Then that’d be a little awkward. Or not. Necromancer. Whatever.
She laughed.
“Who is it?”
“Rinaldo.” She began typing a response to the priest and then hit send.
Maggie: I’m alive. As alive as I was two days ago. Thanks for trying to shoot me, jackass.
“Wait. You two are talking?” Harry blinked. “I thought…I thought they were trying to kill you, and I thought you and the asshole were…y’know.”
She sighed. “I told you. I don’t know why this is so hard to understand. Just because I’m fucking Gideon doesn’t mean I trust him.”