They were intimidating as hell. He couldn’t imagine having to face all four of them when they were pissed off and together.
If their mother was anything like them, he would be a little afraid of her himself.
The three women approached the porch.
Claudia spoke first. “Hi, Rune. The last few pieces are going to be delivered in a bit and I wanted to make sure everything was ready for them.”
“Good morning, Claudia. That’s fine.”
She squeezed by him into the house, but the other two women remained on the porch, their postures straight and tense and their expressions hard.
“Hello, Devorah,” he said, greeting her first. He turned to the blonde woman. “You must be Sirena. It’s nice to meet you.”
The sisters shared a look that made his testicles draw up. He and his brother used to look at each other like that when they went looking for trouble and found it.
Finally, Sirena looked at him and said, “I suppose I won’t kill you.”
He swallowed hard.
“You shouldn’t,” Devorah agreed. “If Astra thinks he needs killing, she’s fully capable of doing it herself. In fact, she’d probably be pissed if you did it for her.”
The two women stared him down for a long, tense moment, before Devorah relaxed and smiled. “You should see your face, vampire.”
Sirena laughed a little. “It is pretty damn funny.”
Rune didn’t relax completely, but he did step further into the house. “Come in. I’ll make some coffee.”
The two women followed him, both grinning when he never put his back completely to them.
“We’re not going to hurt you,” Devorah reassured him. “I just wanted to see if you were upset about what happened Monday night.” Her eyes moved over his face. “I can tell you are.”
He nodded as he went to the coffeepot. “I shouldn’t have walked away.”
Devorah was silent for a moment. “I don’t blame you. My sister can be stubborn as hell, and it was the only way to get her to make a move. She would have waited and waited until it became a much larger issue than it already is.”
Rune nodded. “I understand but I know I hurt her, and I didn’t want that.” He paused. “I haven’t heard from Astra. Have you seen her?”
Devorah nodded but didn’t say anything.
He desperately wanted to ask if she was okay, but Sirena interrupted. “You were right, Devorah, and I was wrong. He should come on Saturday.”
He blinked at her.
Devorah didn’t actually sayI told you soout loud, but her body language definitely got the point across. She leaned back in the dining room chair and crossed her arms over her chest.
“No need to gloat,” Sirena grumbled. “I can admit when I’m wrong.”
Her older sister smirked and raised an eyebrow.
“I can!” Sirena insisted. The woman turned to him. “I really can. They just hate it because I’m almost always right.”
“Sure, you are,” Devorah replied, her voice soothing.
Sirena didn’t reply, just rolled her eyes.
Rune really liked these women. It was clear that the sisters were all close. He suddenly missed his brother with an intensity that nearly made his eyes tear.
If he and Astra managed to work this out, he would have that with her sisters. It wouldn’t be quite the same, but it would be a treasure, nonetheless.
