“I’m not sure I like being that predictable.”
“Yes, you do. Just like I know you’re going to take my shop so I can go sit on the beach and drink fruity cocktails and scare kids.”
“You tyrant, you.”
She snorts.
I am lost in my wonderment because I have never seen this old woman smile, let alone laugh. She appears almost human.
“Come in and have a drink with me,” Marla says.
“Oh, we don’t want to impose-” Devon says.
“Did any of that sentence sound like a suggestion?”
“Sorry, Beta.”
“Good boy. Now, go sit in the chairs; Sofia will bring us drinks.”
I reluctantly let Sofia go and follow Marla to the back of the store, where she’s got a couple of couches for people to come sit and read.
“All right, let’s do this before she gets back. I’m not overly impressed by the three of you, but I don’t know you very well yet either.”
She’s blunt to the point of bordering on impolite.
“Sorry about that, Beta,” Elijah says respectfully.
She humphs and sits down, her back straight and shoulders pulled back. “I knew of you, of course. The alpha who was dating her and vanished. The vacation alpha who kissed her senseless and went back to his own life, and the alpha she loved forever. When I heard you’d come back, I was surprised.”
Devon sits back quickly. His unease is thrumming through our bonds, but he doesn’t show it.
“What are your intentions?” Marla just throws out like a javelin.
“Our intentions are to make her ours and make her happy.”
“That simple, is it?”
“And that difficult.”
Marla sniffs.
I turn in my seat, getting a look at the rows and rows of bookcases. The store is small and warm; the wood and colours of all the books seem to go together perfectly. There’s just something that screams ‘safe’ into thisspace. It even smells of books and coffee, and the low, warm yellow lighting and air conditioning make it so cozy.
“And your verdict?”
“Me?” I ask before I can stop myself.
“No, the ghost of Saint Martin, the Spender.”
I chuckle. “Well, I think you are very generous, but I can also see how Sofia would love a place like this. I think she would do a good job. Being here obviously makes her happy, and that’s all I care about.”
“Of course, she would be brilliant. I trained her.”
She hums and then nods.
“You three will do. I can feel how much you care. But if you hurt her again, I will personally make sure your stay in Sunshine ends promptly.”
Sofia brings back a tray of drinks and sits down with us. “So, what were you talking about?”
