“When you know you know,” Jackie says and swipes her credit card. “I’ve been happily married for twenty-nine years and married my husband after three and a half months of dating. Is he from around here?”
“No, Chicago.” I debate slipping and he’s a vampire into the conversation. I’m not ashamed to be with a vampire, not at all, but is it weird to drop that in? “But he’s moving here. We’re restoring that old white estate by the woods.”
“The girls in my club and I were wondering who was brave enough to take on that project.”
“It’s definitely a lot of work, but it’s progressing fast.” Thanks to the crew of vampires and humans Lucas has hired. Once the structural work is done, the vampires will be able to come in and work through the night, and the humans will work during the day.
“I’m glad someone is saving that old place.” She takes the bag of books from the counter. “Congrats again, honey!”
“Thanks.” I take another drink of coffee and bag the books Betty rings up for the next customer. Not long after, Kristy comes up. We chat for a few minutes, and I hope to get her alone for a few more so I can tell her about the blood samples.
But the store is too busy, and I can’t risk being overheard. I hug her goodbye and go to the grocery store, which is busy too. It’s a good thing, having people out and about in our little town, but annoying nonetheless. There’s a reason I live in a house in the woods.
About an hour later, I’m finally home. Since my house is over a century old, I don’t have a garage. Over the years, I debated adding one on close to the house but couldn’t afford it. Lucas suggested I rent this place out once we move into the new house, and I know he has more than enough money to add a garage here. It might be a good way to entice renters. Not having a covered garage in the winter sucks.
I go off the driveway, going around to the back of my house. The backdoor opens into the kitchen, and it’s easier to unload all my groceries onto the porch and then park my Jeep back on the gravel later.
I can see Lucas inside, sitting at the small island counter. He’s wearing only silky pajama pants and looks so fucking good. He looks up before I’m even on the porch and smiles when our eyes meet.
“I’m gonna put everything on the porch and then bring them in,” I say, not bothering to raise my voice. I know he can hear me just fine through the closed door.
He moves into another room as I bring the bags inside, needing to get away from the sunlight. Once the door slams shut behind me, he comes back into the kitchen. We kiss and then he helps me unload the groceries. It’s adorable, really, how he has no idea where any of the food goes. Or even what needs to go into the fridge instead of the pantry.
I stick a plate of frozen sausage in the microwave and then go back outside to move my car. There’s a chance of rain later and I don’t want to get tire tracks in the grass.
Callie.
The screen door snaps shut behind me and I whirl around, looking into the house. Lucas isn’t in the kitchen anymore, having moved away from the sunlight again.
It was the same voice that I heard earlier, and like the other time, the voice was spoken more in my head than anywhere else.
“Julian?” I whisper and look out into the woods behind the house. “Is that you?”
No one answers, but right as I’m getting in my car, I realize I’m not alone.
6
I whirl around, throwing my hand out. But the shadowy figure of a man is gone.
“Fuck,” I mutter and look around the car. I swear something was here. I heard my name and then I saw…I don’t know, something, in the rearview mirror. I wait a beat, and when nothing jumps out at me, I start the Jeep. Clouds are covering the blue sky, and it won’t be long until fat raindrops fall from them.
I park in the driveway close to the front door and then run around back. Stopping on the bottom step of the porch, I survey my yard once more. Nothing can get through the circles of protection and if anything tried, we’d be alerted.
I think.
Though I don’t know if my wardings against evil work the same way on angels as they do on demons.
“The contractors called,” Lucas tells me when I get back into the house. He motions to the barstool next to him. “There was an issue with a load-bearing wall in the kitchen. They sent over a few options on how to remedy it to see if you like them.”
I take my sausage from the microwave, give my familiars each one piece and stick bread in the toaster. Lucas shows me the different sketches, and once I have a plate of food in front of me, I sit down with him to look everything over.
It’s fun, sitting here with Lucas, talking about our house. We agree on the same new layout, which isn’t all that different than what we first wanted, and Lucas emails it back over.
“We need to pick out our cabinets and countertops soon,” he tells me, pulling up a list of everything we have to do.
I clap my hands together, getting way too excited. “Easy. I already know what I want. White cabinets with light gray quartz counters and a white backsplash. Though there are several quartz options that will work. When do we need to make our final selection?”
“The end of next week. By the time everything comes in, it should be ready to be installed. We can have a hot date at the hardware store tonight.”
“Mmmm, I love when you talk dirty.”
“I cannot wait to fuck you in our new kitchen.”
“There will be a lot of counter space to lay me down on.” I take a bite of my toast. “Do you care if I throw a housewarming party? I could do it like open-house style, and invite a bunch of people. It would be fun and a way for me to kinda, sorta show off our new house.”
“Kinda, sorta?” he laughs. “There’s nothing wrong with wanting to show off the house.”
“Well, it’s frowned upon to admit it, at least.”
“You know how I feel about that.”
I roll my eyes but smile. Lucas has said many times before that he doesn’t get the point in bullshitting anyone. He says what’s on his mind and is never ashamed of how he feels.
“On the topic of parties, who would you invite to the wedding?” I pick the crust off my toast. “You’re not a very big fan of people.”
“No, I am not. I love you and Eliza, and everyone else mildly annoys me.”
I laugh even though he’s being serious. “I don’t have a lot of people to invite either, which makes this easy. I’m sure I can come up with a list of fifty easily, but they’re all witches from my coven and we…” I trail off with a sigh.
“We’ll figure it out.”
“Right,” I say, forcing a smile and wish I could believe it to be true. “We need to figure out a date before the Grand Coven tries to crash our wedding day.” I get my phone from the counter and start looking up nearby venues.
Even if I had the Grand Coven’s blessing, the Covenstead isn’t an option.
“There are lots of really pretty places in Chicago,” I muse, scrolling through a list of the Top Ten Places to Get Married in the Windy City. “Pretty and expensive.”
Lucas turns his head and arches an eyebrow. “I’d think you’d know by now that money is no issue. When it comes to you, I spare no expense.”
“Oh, I know. But it goes against my moral fibers to spend eighty thousand dollars on the venue alone. That’s just insane.”
Lucas laughs. “It is insane. Though if people are spending that kind of money on weddings, I should buy a reception hall. Eliza would love it.” He smiles endearingly when he thinks of her.
“So, once we’re married, where’s Eliza going to be?” I ask slowly. They’ve been together for over three hundred years, and while she has her own apartment in the city, I get the feeling it’s a rather new development. Lucas is extremely overprotective of those he loves.
“She wants to take my house in Lincoln Park.”