"It's the effort that counts."
He snorted."One can hope."
"Enjoy the endless meetings."
"Have fun with Scorch. Make sure he knows that I'll have to kill him if you smell like him when I get to the girls' night."
"He'll hug me just to piss you off if I share that warning."
Grayson chuckled."Alright, keep it to yourself then. Should I bring anything? Beer from one of my breweries?"
"None of us really drink. We usually sip this enchanted cider that puts us to sleep, but I can't say it's that enjoyable."
"Our beer is laced with demon magic, barely has any alcohol in it. You'll like the effects a lot more than a sleeping potion."
I bit back a grin at his label of the cider. It was accurate."Laced how?"
"You'll see. I'll stop and grab some."
"Alright. See you tonight. If you don't make it, it's not a big deal."
"I'm making it."
When Darius didn't showafter a few more minutes, I texted him. He didn't answer, so I tracked his phone. Grayson's location was indeed connected to my account.
After I was sure Dare was still inside the coffee shop, I went in to see if something was happening.
I couldn't have gone in, before. Without Grayson's shadows. They didn't erase my constant overstimulation, but they eased it enough that I could manage a few minutes in a coffee shop without having a panic attack.
Stepping inside the cafe, I took in a deep breath of the coffee smell. Quiet, calm music played in the background, and the conversations going on were all laid-back.
The place was packed. Every seat was taken, and some people were standing. Three particularly brave immortals were sitting on the floor near the door, with their backs to the window-wall and their gazes glued to Darius, who stood behind the counter.
The line leading up to him was pretty long, and he was chatting easily with whoever was nearby as he handed over six different drinks to six different people. He didn't have to repeat their names or look down at the drinks.
He winked at me over someone's shoulder, and that person glanced behind themselves, looking straight at me.
Their eyes widened when they saw me.
I didn't look down at myself. I knew what I was wearing was abnormal for me. I had put a bra on, but decided to pair one of my sleep tank tops with my usual long, wide-legged pants. Now that I had Grayson's shadows, I didn't need to keep my skin fully covered all the time to avoid a meltdown.
The tank top left my arms, shoulders, and neck on display, revealing the many bargain marks I had. I had more than Callum did, but nowhere near as many as Dare.
I released all of my bargains every handful of years, to prevent the soul connections from irritating me, but there was no hiding them in this shirt.
There was no hiding my scars, either.
I expected the woman who was currently looking at me to go pale or step away when she saw me. People did that fairly often.
Instead, she gave me a small smile and turned back to Darius.
Whoever she was, I hoped he had made a bargain with her.
He paid her no attention outside of his usual surface-level charm, and his gaze didn't follow her as she walked away.
I made my way slowly through the coffee shop, fighting the overwhelm that flared slightly as I went further into the building. I continued breathing evenly, keeping it under control as well as possible.
"Sorry, I'll be done in a few," Dare told me.
