I shake my head, not the least bit surprised. Anytime I’ve ever had a boy come by, whether I was thirteen or twenty-eight, my daddy always makes sure to have an excuse to have his shotgun with him so he can make some non-verbal threats of the paternal kind. It’s real sweet.
“Gentleman,” my daddy says as he makes his way over to us. “I don’t believe we’ve been introduced.” The words may be polite, but his glare is anythin’ but.
“Daddy, this is Alder and Flint. They’re the owners of the bar I delivered to last night,” I say. “This is my daddy, Teddy Bell.”
Alder and Flint both shake my daddy’s hand, and then he settles beside me, shotgun poised at his side. “I sure hope there wasn’t anythin’ untoward happenin’ at that bar last night to my baby girl,” he says, and my heart swells a bit. Flint and Alder are incredibly strong and intimidatin’, but that doesn’t stop my daddy from standin’ up to them on my behalf.
“No, sir,” Flint says. “We stopped by today to introduce ourselves and to let you know that everything was on the up and up.”
My daddy stares at him hard, takin’ his measure. His eyes shift from one to the other, his mouth in a firm line behind his bushy beard. “Well, alright then,” he says finally.
“Y’all still out here talkin’ in the heat?” Mama calls from behind the screen door to the trailer. I didn’t even hear her open the door. “You’re gonna melt into a puddle out there!”
“They’re not comin’ back in,” I call back to her before anyone else can say otherwise.
I swear I can see Mama poutin’ behind the screen. “Medley, manners!”
“It’s alright,” Alder says with a cool smile. “We do need to head back. But we just wanted to talk to Medley about taking the job down at the bar. We feel partially responsible for her termination, and we feel that she would be a great addition to our place of business.”
“Medley, I think you should consider it!” Mama calls, her voice carryin’ across the yard.
I shoot Alder a glare for tryin’ to get my mama on his side. “Yeah, well, thank you for the offer, but I’m gonna politely decline,” I say.
“Why?” All four of them ask.
“Well, aside from the fact that it would be an annoyin’ commute, these two just told me that I’m some kind of demon spawn from Hell,” I deadpan. “So I’m gonna have to pass, but thank y’all for stoppin’ by,” I end with a cheerfully fake smile.
Flint and Alder gape at me. Silence reigns for a beat. Two beats.
“What’s that, Heavenly Bell?” Mama calls. “You say somethin’ about demons?”
Alder and Flint are still too shocked at me blurtin’ out the truth, so they just continue to blink at me. I guess they expected me to hide this from my parents. Probably thought I’d lie about the fact that they’re demons and I may or may not be one too. Well, they’ve just had a rude awakenin’, because while I may try to protect my parents, I wouldn’t keep somethin’ like this from them.
“Yes, ma’am,” I call back. “They claim to be demons too, so I’m gonna have to decline their terms of employment. I think I’d rather have a job at the corner market instead of Hell,” I snark.
“Oh...well. Alright then. Come in for lunch. I made gumbo.”
I don’t know how it’s possible, but Flint and Alder just look even more bewildered at my mama’s response.
“You want me to shoot ’em, honey girl?” Daddy offers.
“No, that’s alright, Daddy. I’m not sure buckshot would do much to a demon, but thank you,” I say sweetly.
He turns his gaze on the gawkers. “Well, you heard her. She says no to the job. You two best head out now.”
Flint shakes his head in bewilderment, runnin’ a hand through his black hair as he looks over at Alder.
“That’s it?” Alder asks me with confusion. “We tell you you’re a demon and you just...send us on our way?”
“Yep,” I reply. I need to process this on my own. “You two drive safe now. I got somewhere to be later.”
I turn and start walkin’ back to the trailer, Daddy right beside me. I hear Alder curse out a disbelievin’What the fuck?behind me.
“That didn’t go the way you said it was gonna go,” Flint mutters to him.
“Shut up,” the yellow-haired demon mutters.
My lip twitches as I make my way up the porch, and I’m almost to the screen door when a lavender hand stops me, fingers gently graspin’ my wrist. I gasp and look up, because damn he moved quick, and his touch...it sends tingles all up and down my spine.
