“Seriously, Fenris. I don’t want to go there. Please.”
His fingers twitched on the steering wheel, and he glanced at me.
“Nothing bad will happen. I swear, Eliana. Meeting your parents is exactly what we both need. Your mom will see you with a boy. She’ll tell Adira. It’s far better letting Adira hear about us by word-of-mouth than trying to convince her ourselves. It will be more believable. And when we’re done here, we’ll go to my house.”
My chest tightened when I saw Mom’s house ahead.
“Your dad can be the one to tell Adira. He’s part of the Council. That’s good enough. Do not pull into their driveway.” My hands started to shake, and it got harder to breathe.
Fenris completely ignored me and parked the car. Panic didn’t begin to describe what I was feeling when he reached across the seat and unbuckled me. He was going to meet my parents. My mom, who thought anyone and everyone was fair game to her hunger, and my dad, who still hadn’t come to terms with what he’d married, never mind all the other creatures that lived in Uttira.
“Shh. It’ll be okay, Eliana,” Fenris soothed as he pulled me into his lap. His scent and warmth wrapped around me, and I shuddered when he ran a hand over my back.
“Talk to me. Why are you so afraid of this?”
“You weren’t with her, Fenris. You didn’t see what she did to the people she fed from or how she walked away without a backward glance. I did look back. I did see. I don’t want that for you.” I lifted my head. “I won’t have that for you.”
He shivered lightly under me.
“Please, can’t we just go to your dad’s? There’s dry clothes there.”
“He’d ask just as many questions as the Quills.”
Then I understood.
Mom wouldn’t ask why we were wet. She’d think it was due to some kind of sexual play.
I dropped my head to Fenris’s shoulder.
“Maybe she isn’t here. Maybe we’ll get lucky, and she’ll be at the club, and it’ll just be Dad.”
“Yeah, I don’t think that’s the case.”
Lifting my head, I followed his gaze to the front door where Mom stood, beaming at us. At least, she wasn’t wearing something see-through.
Fenris opened the car door and got out with me in his arms.
“Sorry to arrive unannounced, but Eliana and I are looking for a place to change without too many questions involved.”
“Oh, my darling boy, of course. Come in.”
He had us in the living room before I could say a word.
“The guest room is down the hall. First door on the left. The bathroom is stocked. Shower and warm up. If you leave your clothes in the hall, I’ll wash and dry them for you.”
My eyes went wide.
“No, that—”
“That’s perfect. Thank you, Mrs. Howland.” Fenris strode down the hall with me in his arms, not giving me a chance to protest.
I glanced over his shoulder and saw Dad standing a few steps behind Mom.
“We’re not having sex, Dad,” I yelled as Fenris closed the bedroom door.
Fenris made a choked sound and continued to the bathroom.
“Do you want to shower first or would you rather hand our clothes to your mom?” he asked, finally putting me down.
