She pushes herself up in bed and rests her back against the wall. “You don’t get it, do you?” She wipes under her eyes. “This is why I was worried about telling you. You hate it here and you think I should too.”
“That’s not true! I just want you to know you have options.”
“But I don’t. Not really!” She spreads her hands, her tears coming faster.
I shake my head. “Has something happened?” All my organs clench, and a desperate whisper in my head says, Please don’t be pregnant.
She tips her head and looks at me. “Yes, something happened. I found out that I have a family. I have a father I hardly know and I desperately want to change that. I have a mother and grandparents and even a great-grandmother. I have a home. And the best part is that I belong here because I am fae. I know you wanted me to be a doctor in the human world—”
“You wanted that. You’ve wanted that since you were twelve—”
“I’m not twelve anymore!” She scoffs. “I don’t want to go back to pretending. I don’t miss it. I want to be part of a family. I want to be surrounded by people who know exactly who and what I am and love me anyway. I don’t want to worry about disguises or identities ever again. I’m fae. That’s what I am. And here, people will love me for it. I’ll have you and Grandma and Grandpa and Great-Grandma and all my new friends at school. And I’ll have Seven.” A wistful smile lights up her features. “I have roots. Do you have any idea how good that feels? How loved I feel here?”
“But what about your friends in Nevada? What about Jayden?”
She sighs. “We were already going our separate ways. She got into a college on the West Coast. We’d likely never see each other anyway.”
Everything about her—the bright clarity in her eyes, the square of her shoulders, the way she leans slightly toward me—tells me she genuinely believes every word of what she said to me. Arden wants to remain in Dragonfly. My heart does a little leap. “You want to stay.”
“I do.” She laughs.
“So why were you crying?”
“Honestly?”
I nod.
“I was afraid how you would react to this. I was afraid you’d be angry.” She plays with the ribbon on her wrist.
“Why?”
She looks away as she admits, “I know what happened between you and Seven, Mom. The Yule ball? I know it probably bothers you that I’m going with a leprechaun. It must be hard enough for you, being forced to spend all this time with Seven after what he did to you. This is what I want, but I am truly sorry if it makes you unhappy.”
I shake my head vigorously. “No, Arden. Things between Seven and me are better now. We’re… friends. Really, really good friends.” Our eyes meet, and I see the moment she suspects there may be something more. “I’m not unhappy at all. Just surprised. In fact, if this is your choice, I’m ecstatic.”
“Mom, is something going on between you and Seven?”
My cheeks feel hot. I made a vow when Arden was a baby to always try to tell her the truth. I want her to trust me, and that means I want to be a good source of information for her. And I can tell by her face she knows. “It’s supposed to be a secret.”
A long gasp fills the room. “I thought I sensed something between you, but I thought I must be seeing things. Before, when we first came here, you seemed to hate him.”
“I was wrong. About many things. I love him, but we want to wait to reveal our relationship until the right time.”
“The Gilded Gala!” she says excitedly. “Seven can announce you as his girlfriend at the same time he announces me as his daughter.”
I smile sheepishly. “If that’s what you want. I don’t want to steal your thunder.”
“You wouldn’t be stealing anything from me. Just making more thunder.”
“So when do I get to meet this Edmund?” I ask. “Do I know his parents? Please tell me they don’t own Grandma and Grandpa’s store or something. That would be awkward.”
“No!” She rolls her eyes. “His dad died when he was younger, so it’s just his mom, and she works with her parents at some car place. I wasn’t really listening.” Maybe his family are drivers like Saul or work at the dealership selling cars. Grandma knows all the leprechaun families, but I don’t. “Anyway, he wants to meet you too. I was thinking of inviting him to dinner.”
“That sounds like an excellent idea.”
She lets out a deep breath. “I’m relieved you’re taking this so well. I thought you were going to explode. You’ve been talking about my leaving since I got here.”
“Only because I thought it’s what you wanted.” I can feel tears pricking my eyes as it all settles in. When Seven gets back, we can talk about going public. We can move forward as a family. My lips twitch into a smile. “I’m glad you’re staying, Arden. The only thing I care about is that you’re sure, because there’s no going back on this one.”
