“Oh dear,” Diana said, looking at Paige’s face. She swept the rest of the group with a stern glare. “All of you, stop talking about that ridiculous prophecy. You’re making poor Paige uncomfortable. From now on, the topic of mates is strictly forbidden.”
“I apologize for my brother, Paige,” Moira said, shooting Joe a very sisterly glare. “Something which I have to do a great deal, alas. He will be on his best behavior from now on.”
Joe mimed zipping his lips.
“This isn’t some kind of intervention, I promise.” Leonie took a seat, settling Otis on her lap. “I just really wanted you to meet everyone. Speaking of which, no Fenrir or Blaise tonight?”
“Fenrir’s babysitting for us,” Wystan replied, holding a seat for his mate to sit. He cast a wry glance at Otis, now happily playing with the end of Leonie’s long braid. “Sadly, we don’t all have model toddlers who will sit through an entire meal without screaming the place down.”
“Your toddler sleeps,” Callum murmured. “For more than thirty minutes at a time.”
“And as for our glorious leader,” Joe said, “Blaise declined to join us tonight. Says it’s too depressing to go out when she can’t drink.”
Leonie made an amused sound. “She’s still cranky about being pregnant?”
Rory’s mouth quirked. “Let’s just say we’re all counting the days until she can rejoin us in the field rather than having to run the crew remotely. And not just because it’s a lot harder to fight wildfires without her special talents.”
Joe sighed wistfully. “I never thought I’d say this, but sometimes I really miss Buck. Compared to Blaise, he was a nice, fluffy pussycat.”
“Call Buck that to his face,” Candice said. “I dare you.”
Joe shrugged. “Seren would defend me. Wouldn’t you, my Champion?”
“From sea monsters and assassins, yes,” Seren said, not looking up from her menu. “Against Buck? Absolutely not.”
“Blaise will be sorry to have missed you, Paige,” Edith said. “We didn’t know you were coming tonight until Leonie texted us just now.”
“We barely had time to hide,” Joe said, grinning. “And speaking of eavesdropping, what’s this about Conleth getting repeatedly dragged through mud?”
Leonie did not need any more encouragement. She was soon deep into an enthusiastic andmostlyaccurate recounting of the Great Toga Honk Saga, calling on Moira and Ragvald to provide eyewitness details (all of which, Paige suspected, Conleth would not have appreciated).
Apart from offering the occasional half-hearted correction, Paige let the others relate the tale. She was still finding it difficult not to simply gape at Callum. He really was completely identical to Conleth.
Except he also… wasn’t. Over the course of the meal, Paige found herself studying him, trying to figure out the difference about the two men.
He was definitely quieter than his twin. Where Conleth would have taken charge of the conversation, Callum mostly just sat back and listened, letting the banter flow around him. He seemed more self-contained, too, with none of Conleth’s blazing drive or restless fidgeting.
But that wasn’t it either. Paige didn’t put her finger on the true difference until Diana got up to go to the bathroom. Callum had to pull in his chair to let his mate out from the corner, and Diana trailed her fingers across his back as she squeezed past. Just for a moment, their eyes met.
Thatwas the difference. That look. She’d never seen those green eyes go soft and still, or that mouth curve in a way that spoke of deep, private joy. She’d never seen Conleth content.
“It’s been a long time since Rufus was this small,” Rory said ruefully as he bounced Otis on his knee, trying to settle the fussing toddler. “I’m losing my touch.”
Wystan raised his eyebrows. “Watch out, Edith. That sounded like a hint.”
Edith shook her head, smiling. “One’s enough for us.”
“And much as I enjoy babies, I enjoy being able to hand them back even more,” Rory said, hoisting Otis up. “Here, Paige, it’s your turn.”
Before she could protest, Paige found herself with an armful of Otis. It was hard to tell which of them was more startled by this development. The toddler’s grumbles cut off, possibly out of sheer indignation.
“Uh, hi,” she told him. “I’m Paige. I work with your uncle.”
Otis blinked up at her. “Uncaleth?”
“That’s right. Uncle Conleth. He’s my…” She stalled.Matewas right out, andco-counselorwas a heck of a tongue-twister for a toddler. “Well, he’s your uncle, anyway.”
Otis considered this.
