“That’s creepy.” She smacked me between the eyes. “Stop being weird.”
A yawn stretched my jaw, and I lifted my arms overhead, arching my back on the seat.
Oh.
Not the seat.
Heat prickled in my cheeks when I glanced up at Asa. “Um.”
He cocked an eyebrow. “Yes?”
“Thank you for the use of your lap.” I clutched Colby to my chest as I sat upright. “Home already?”
“I gave you thirty minutes.” Colby tucked her wings in tight. “You didn’t wake up, so I came out.”
Magically induced exhaustion had done a number on my brain. I hadn’t put together how she was here.
“You know the rules.” I lifted her to my face level. “Never leave the wards.”
Puffing her fur, she crossed four arms over her chest. “Clay and Asa…”
“You don’t know Clay or Asa.” I put us nose to proboscis. “You can’t trust people you just met.”
The stubborn moth had chosen her hill. “You trust them.”
Aware both agents were watching me, one more intently than the other, I sighed. “Promise me.”
“I promise,” she said dutifully. “I will stay inside the wards where it’s boring and nothing ever happens.”
Her sass was nothing new, but I could guess why the rules chafed now when they never had before.
“Good.” I kissed the top of her head. “That’s what I like to hear.”
Heaving a dramatic sigh, she wriggled free and glided to the house in the next best thing to slow motion.
“That kid.” I wiped my mouth to check for drool. “I’m not sure this is wise.”
“The paperwork came through while you were resting.” Asa cut the legs out from under my argument. “The director is willing to work with you on a case-by-case basis. He’s willing to permit you to live here, if you touch base with your team once a week during times when you’re not on an active case.”
For him to agree to such big concessions, he wanted me back for more than this copycat case.
That might change once he heard about my new dietary restrictions.
But I doubted it.
Something else Asa said struck a belated chord with me. “My team?”
“You have to be on call twenty-four-seven to rate a partner.” Clay chuckled. “Part-timers get a team.”
I could see where this was headed from a mile away, but I still asked, “Do I get to pick them?”
A preternatural stillness swept over Asa. “Yes.”
“Hmm.” I tapped a finger against my bottom lip. “Can I interview candidates or…?”
“Yes.” Asa angled his face away from me. “That can be arranged.”
“She’s pulling your leg, Ace.” Clay snorted. “She wants us.”