He considers arguing for a moment, but doesn’t, so I turn… and manage not to look at Kilo.
Riann doesn’t acknowledge him, so I know he doesn’t know he’s there.
If Drift had sent Kilo with us, he would have told me about it. He’s here on his own, but he brought his drone, so I’m not going to try to leave him behind.
Riann is oblivious.
I don’t even know if he’s aware of Kilo’s mutation.
It should be fun to see how that revelation goes.
Kilo gets in the backseat, and even though I don’t lookathim, I can see the smug smile on his face.
He likesthispart of his mutation. Even if he hates how easy it is for others to forget him, he loves making them jump out of their skin.
Riann punches in the coordinates, and once we’re out of the city, he seems to relax. I wonder why?
His thoughts are firmly on the task in front of us, and he’s not thinking about whatever made him tense before.
Kilo, on the other hand…
If he wasn’t thinking so loudly, it would be easier to pretend.
Thank the saints I’m the one driving. I have no doubt he’ll try to jump scare us when he decides to make himself known and when that happens—if he was in the driver’s seat—Riann might’ve run us off the road.
Until Riann acknowledges him, I’ll act like I don’t know he’s there.
Even if it does mean hearing the lyrics to his favorite song on repeat, broken by the occasional excitement at a bird out the window, or a piece of fruit he forgot he put in his pocket for the trip.
“Calisan is supposed to be one of the small-town options for Agency sign-ups, right?” I ask, trying to break the mental trap Kilo’s thoughts try to coil around me.
Making a noise that probably means yes, Riann pulls up a display and sets it on his lap. “The Agency has cleared just over two dozen women to the town… no complaints, no rejections.”
“Rejections?”
“Sometimes bondmates don’t work out.”
“Like Echo and Ion’s first match?” Kilo asks, leaning forward between us and taking a bite out of the glion fruit.
As predicted, Riann nearly jumps out of his skin.
“What in the saints’ name are you doing here?” he asks, pulled as far back from Kilo as he can get within the confines of the car’s safety structures.
“Providing backup? Duh.”
That is one of his favorite Earth words, and I have to force myself to scowl as he laughs in his head about it.
Riann looks up at him and before he can say the ugly thing he’d like to, I ask, “When did Echo and Ion get bondmates?”
Oh…
Riann’s thoughts tell me before he actually speaks them. “They have a single bondmate who did not work out with her first Agency match.”
“I thought it was one bang and that’s it,” Kilo says with a shrug, “but Ion told me she actually consummated the first mating, and theydidn’tbond.”
I file through memories and others’ thoughts to pull out… “Jess thinks you have to want it to make it happen. Maybe she’s right.”
“We are getting off topic. Other people’s bondmate arrangements arenotour business.” Riann turns back to his screen.
