“I can’t,” he said, shifting his feet. “It’d take too long.”
“I can probably make your costume but not any weapons your champion uses. Those are insane,” Sara said. “Why don’t we go inside and you can show me which one we’re talking about?”
They left the workroom, and Sara locked the door. Ezreal was walking ahead with the children. All three were talking at once and laughing. What kind of champion would he go as? One of the brutish Alpha-male ones? Or one of the nonhuman ones?
Her breath caught. She’d just agreed to make the costume for hisbusinessevent. Her stomach knotted. As one of the founders, he’d have a lot of attention on him which meant everyone would be scrutinizing his outfit. What if her workmanship embarrassed him? She hoped she hadn’t gotten herself in too deep.
Inside the house, she sat at her computer desk and entered her password. She rose and let Ezreal take her seat. He went to the REKD Gaming website and brought up the image of a handsome blonde man.
“You look like him,” Janna said.
“You mean he looks likeme. The art team thought it’d be funny.” Ezreal sounded disgusted, and Sara liked him the better for it.
“Why does he have so many different looks?” she asked.
“Those are called skins, Janna.” Ezreal sent her a sympathetic glance when she frowned at a response obviously meant for her mother. “It’s more than different clothes. Their skills look different in the game as well, even the sound effects.”
“Fitting a particular theme?” Sara asked.
Ezreal nodded and glanced back at Janna. “See, it’s free to play the game online, but we have to pay people to keep it going. Players have the option to buy the skins, and that pays the people who maintain it and those of us who create new champions.”
“I’ve never played it,” Sara said, curious now. “Do you write new music for each champion?”
He nodded again. “I c-c-c-c—” It was his turn to give a frustrated eye roll, and Janna giggled.
“It’s okay, Ezreal.” Her daughter took his hand. “You can say it to me.”
“Thank you. If your mother would like to learn how to play, I can teach her.”
“But only if you can tellmefirst, right?” The little girl wore a doubtful expression.
Ezreal scowled but then looked chagrined. He shrugged his shoulder.
“I’d like to learn something I can play with my kids,” Sara said. “How old do they have to be?”
“Lessa asked Rafe, and he said it was thirteen.” Janna pulled a face. “I’ll be a teenager.”
“Why so old?” Sara asked, concerned. “Is it that violent?”
“Itisa battle arena.” He watched Janna. “It’s true that you have to be thirteen to have an account without parental consent. But that’s due to specific rules we have to follow for people under thirteen because of the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act, or COPPA as we call it.”
“To protect their privacy?”
Ezreal nodded. “But that doesn’t mean your mom can’t play with you when they’re online.”
Sara wasn’t sure. Could Landon find the children if they were online, even if she were with them? She’d rather wait until they were older.
“Which costume do you want Mama to make for you?” Janna asked.
“Darius recommended this one, but I don’t know.”
“Oh, I like that one.” Janna clapped her hands. “It’s pretty.”
At Ezreal’s flat look, Sara laughed. She thought if someone added a top hat and cravat, the dapper white suit with blue and turquoise accents would have had an almost Regency look to it.
“Now I know why Darius suggested it,” he said.
Sara glanced from the image on the screen to Ezreal and back again. She pointed to an Indiana Jones type outfit. “I think you’d look good in this one. I could make it for you, but you’ll have to be responsible to get that gauntlet thing on his hand.”
“I can do that.”
“But I like the Stellar Guardian one.” Janna pointed to a picture of six champions all dressed in Stellar Guardian outfits. “I’m going to be her. We’d match.”
His expression softened and turned resigned, like he couldn’t bring himself to disappoint her daughter. Sara’s heart gave a funny little lurch, one she hadn’t felt in a long time. And one she knew better than to trust. She couldn’t let her children get too attached to him.
“It’s all right, Janna. I think Ezreal would represent his company better in the rugged outfit.”
He straightened, his eyes grateful as he met Sara’s gaze. Something warm and sweet seemed to pass between them, something she’d never experienced before.
