Total pages in book: 84
Estimated words: 81808 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 409(@200wpm)___ 327(@250wpm)___ 273(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 81808 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 409(@200wpm)___ 327(@250wpm)___ 273(@300wpm)
“A bit more than that.” I refused to have him delve any deeper.
“I can’t even grasp that number, but I also find myself not caring as much as I thought I would,” he murmured. “The important thing is that I get to spend this lifetime of mine with you.”
I scoffed.
Slowly, he scowled at me. “What was that?”
“That was cheesy is what that was.”
“Could you please pretend to be madly in love with me?”
“Maybe I will be,” I replied softly. “Which would make this lifetime my last, as how could I ever be without you?”
His breath caught. “I want you to live forever.”
“We’ll see,” I replied, checking to see if Evan and Ondine had reached a lull in their conversation, which they had. I stood up then, and three sets of eyes were on me. “First, I wanted to say I like the freckles,” I told Ondine. She made a good redhead.
“Oh, thank you.”
“Second, I’m going to whip up some quick breakfast, just eggs, fake bacon, and toast, and then, I was thinking, after we eat, we could all take a walk together, because I’d like to show you both some beautiful areas of your new home.”
“I would love to walk with you,” Cole assured me. I could get used to how I was being looked at right then. Possessively, like I was absolutely his.
“I want to go too,” Evan said, then turned to Ondine. “Will you come?”
“Walking? Through grass and dirt?” She made a face. “I’ll pass. I’ve seen this parcel many, many times. But I will wait here. I might even bake.”
I froze, staring at her.
“Stop that. I can bake.”
“Everything is always perfect, but somehow it always comes out lethal,” I reminded her. “It’s the most amazing lemon meringue ever, but then you’re dead because it’s poison.”
“I know. Old habits and all that,” she said, going back to her coffee, drinking it and closing her eyes in pure bliss.
Cole went and brushed his teeth, and was back to watch me scramble eggs with cheese, and Evan fry bacon that he said smelled weird.
“That’s because it’s not really bacon,” Cole muttered.
Evan enjoyed his brother’s complaining.
After breakfast, Ondine yawned loudly and then got up to go to the front door, carrying more coffee. “I will attempt to make cookies while you’re gone. We’ll see what happens.”
“What’re you doing?” Cole asked her.
“I’m going to let all my puppies out in a minute.”
“What puppies?”
She cackled evilly.
Cole turned to me. “Not only is she calling me a dog, but she also didn’t take her dishes to the sink. What kind of manners are those?”
“She doesn’t bus dishes,” Evan told his brother. “Weren’t you listening to the rules last night? Drying is her thing. That’s it.”
“Yeah,” I said playfully. “Keep up, man.”
Cole held his hands up in mock surrender, and the three of us stacked everything in the sink before I had both of them put on their coats. Even though I’d explained to Cole that I couldn’t get cold, I put on my parka just to make him happy.
“Why do you have one if you don’t need one?”
“So people don’t look at me oddly when it’s below freezing outside,” I answered flatly. “That just makes good sense, don’t you think?”
“Come here. I wanna kiss you.”
I wasn’t about to say no to that.
I so enjoyed walking with them through the woods, and I was glad to do it in human form so we could all talk. It got dark early, and I pointed out the fairies who lit our way that to them only looked like fireflies.
“Fireflies in the fall are weird,” Cole said with a grin. “So thank you, fairies.”
They appreciated his words.
I explained about the dryads in the grove, and then something more simple, like the fox family that lived safely in a den not far from where a small cliff overlooked a meadow.
“This is so much better than the city,” Evan told me, picking up a hawk feather he found.
Cole put his arm around my shoulders, leaned me into him, and kissed my temple. “It really is. Thank you for sharing your home with us, Mere.”
I couldn’t remember being happier.
When we got back, wonder of wonder, the dishes had been rinsed. Evan still had to wash, and Cole had to put everything away, but Ondine dried, and she had baked. There were two dozen delicious-looking oatmeal chocolate chip cookies cooling on a rack.
“Are they okay?” Cole asked me as I tried one.
After chewing and swallowing, I said, “Yes. My stomach didn’t clench at all.”
She smiled at me.
“Wait, you couldn’t tell before you tasted them?” Cole appeared concerned.
I squinted at him. “How would I know before?”
“I thought you could just tell or—you check by maybe ingesting poison?” He seemed flabbergasted over this newest development.
“Yeah, and I have to tell you, many a time Ondine, Teague, and I eat them anyway. It hurts a little, but they’re so good, you really don’t mind.”