“This used to be where we kept the washer and dryer, but when Gray’s folks modernized the kitchen, they made a dedicated laundry room on the other side of the house.” She paused when she noticed him rubbing his arm. “You need more ice?” Simon shook his head, and she frowned at him a bit before continuing. “You should have seen the mess when they were doing all that construction. The kitchen was torn to bits, and Gray’s mom couldn’t cook for months while the remodeling was going on.”
Simon thought the kitchen was amazing, so he figured the end result was worth a few months of hassle. It made him consider doing some work on his cabin, which hadn’t been updated in years.
Since the remodel, Aunt Maggie explained, the mudroom had gone unused. It was too long and narrow for furniture, and when Gray added on the deck along the entire back of the house, they didn’t really need it as a mudroom anymore. Everyone came and went through the back door into the kitchen.
They were finishing up the cleaning when Gray and the other pack members arrived with the first load of boxes. It didn’t take long for them to get everything unloaded. They stacked everything along onewall so Simon could decide what he wanted to unpack. It narrowed the path that led from the side entrance of the house to the door that went into the kitchen. Otherwise the room was bare, save for an empty table that sat under the bank of windows.
“You’ll have to let me know if there’s anything else you need,” Aunt Maggie said as she added the last box to the stack.
“I’ll be fine,” Simon replied, looking around the room. “Actually,” he added, “a bookcase would probably be helpful.”
“I think we can find one. There used to be one in here. I’ll have to ask Gray where we stored it. I’m going to go on out there and check on everyone instead of using the—” She paused and tapped the side of her head with a smile. “Will you be okay for a few?”
“Of course. I’ll get some unpacking done.”
She left to go hunt Gray down, and Simon began looking through the topmost boxes. Now that he stared at them, he realized it was really crazy to have brought so much to the compound when he would be there for such a short period of time.
Gray came in a few minutes later, carrying an old bookcase from somewhere, and put it next to the kitchen door. Tall and thin, it looked like it was made for the space. “Mom used to put her laundry soap and stuff on here. It’s not fancy, but I can buy you something else if you want.”
“You don’t have to do that, Gray. This is just for a little while, remember? I’ll make do.” Simon kept reminding himself that, for a short-term solution, the small space suited his needs perfectly.
Gray looked over Simon’s shoulder into the boxes. With a smirk, he again offered to buy another bookcase for the room. Simon rolled his eyes and ignored the joking. “I didn’t bring that many.”
“You can bring as much as you want.” Gray wrapped his arms around Simon from behind. He nuzzled that spot, the one behind Simon’s right ear. Simon shivered when Gray’s soft whiskers and softer lips moved as he spoke. “I wouldn’t mind if you wanted to hang around for longer than a little while.”
“You know I can’t,” Simon replied. He couldn’t seem to force hisactions to match his words, though, and stepped farther back into Gray, arching his neck a little to give him better access.
“Hmm,” Gray groaned against Simon’s neck. “Okay, but I want you to remember that you have options.” He licked and kissed one last time before lifting his head. “You need any help with this?”
“No, I think I’ve got it. Thank you, Gray.”
When Gray left, Simon turned his attention to organizing the stacks. He needed the distraction from his whirling thoughts.
Simon hadn’t made much progress when Garon arrived home and offered to help. Garon was so excited that Simon didn’t have the heart to turn him away. They worked as a team, Garon pulling the books out of the boxes and handing them to Simon, who placed them on the shelves.
After a little while, Garon started asking questions as he removed the books. “What’s this mean, Simon?” He pointed to a stylized picture of a plant on the cover of a book.
“That’s a book on apothecary medicine. That particular plant is used to help people who have a cut or burn on their skin. It’s called aloe.”
“Oh yeah, like the stuff you put on when you get sunburn.”
“Exactly.”
“I didn’t know that came from a plant.”
“It sure does. When it grows, the leaves get really pointy and when you cut off a piece it’s full of this gooey stuff that you put on the burn, and it helps it get better.”
Garon seemed satisfied with that explanation and handed the book over to Simon. “You sure do know a lot about plants. Do all mages study plants?”
“Not all of them. My grandfather loved plants and used them to make his own medicine, and he taught me how to do it too. I can teach you, if you like.”
“That’s cool. I bet they taste just as gross as regular medicine, though.”
Simon chuckled and opened his satchel. He pulled out a containerof dried rosemary and held it up to Garon, who sniffed it cautiously. “Hey, that smells like Mimi’s pork chops!”
“This is rosemary, and it’s great on pork chops. But it’s also good for treating sore muscles when you use the oil from the leaves. Herbs and plants are used for lots of things. You just have to learn how to use them the right way.”
By the time they finished unloading the books, Aunt Maggie was calling them in to dinner. Garon asked question after question about plants and herbs, then switched to asking about mage magic. When Aunt Maggie placed a large bowl of spaghetti on the table, Garon wanted to know what herbs and spices were in it.
