I was texting Seth about the dream, asking if it could be related to the ghouls since it had happened the night before. My mouth was full of pancakes when Mateo spoke.
“So you and Meera, huh?” he prodded.
I shrugged.
“I thought you said you’re never going to cave to a woman ever again.”
“I’m not.”
He nodded sagely, like finding his mate somehow made him that much wiser than me. “Well, if you’re not interested in her, I have a friend—”
I knew he was baiting me, but I couldn’t stop the growl that rumbled from my throat.
He laughed. “You’re a goner. The last Redrock brother has found his match.”
Before I could reach over and strangle him, something I usually reserved for Seth and not Mateo, my phone buzzed from the table with a message from Seth. Judging by how horribly far gone the ghouls had been, he doubted the same people could’ve dreamwalked into the mind of someone protected inside the penthouse. Phantasmal intrusion was an advanced branch of magic. He was sure it was a coincidence, and most likely just a dream.
The phone was still in my hand when it vibrated again, and a photo of Meera holding the egg with a motherly look on her face—as if she were about to tell it a bedtime story—popped up on my screen. I thought of all the troubles she’d gone through to make sure it was safe. Meera would be a wonderful mother.
I paused mid-bite as I realized where my brain was taking this. I put my phone face down on the table, but it was too late, the seed was already planted. What would a life with her be like? Not just her, but a family.
Until Griff found his mate, my brothers and Eamon were the only family I had. I recalled how fast my brother had fallen for Emily. And the way Grayson considered showing up at the address on the dress box Shelby had used to deliver a cloak just to see her. The only reason he hadn’t was that he didn’t want to come off as stalkerish. And Gunnar was originally only going to marry Lilian temporarily, but he just couldn’t stay away from her because they’d been mates.
Was Meera my mate? Was that why I couldn’t stay away from her even if I tried? Was that why every moment with her made the time I’d spent with Sara seem so much… less?
I pushed my plate away, no longer hungry. The old insecurities, the ones that had been gnawing at me for years, slithered back into my psyche like they had never left.
Mateo reached over and yoinked the last fluffy pancake off my plate and stuffed it into his mouth, completely oblivious to the turmoil in my head.
Shortly after Seraphina’s marriage to the younger wizard she wanted, and not the older one she’d asked me to save her from, she was murdered by her husband when the baby was born clearly inhuman. At first I’d thought it was mine. It wasn’t until years later, when I’d found out that gargoyle babies carried by human women came out fully human and only developed theirgargoyle side as they grew, that I realized it hadn’t been mine at all.
Also, so far, all Gargoyle babies recorded had been boys. The baby had been a girl. That much I knew.
If I’d been honest with myself, I’d have figured out that the math had never matched anyway. The timing had been all wrong.
I was terrified of making the same mistake again ever since. Terrified to hand someone my whole heart just so they could use it as a stepping stone to something better.
That was a hard thing to admit to myself. Even if I’d magically broken the bonds holding me captive and whisked her away, it would’ve changed nothing. She only wanted me for what I could do for her and not the gargoyle underneath.
The sound of Meera’s voice pierced through the heavy cloud that had settled over me, bringing me back to the present. The ladies were back. I realized something was off the moment I saw her face. She had a smile, but it looked pasted on.
“How’s Omelet?” I asked.
“I think it’s happier here than it was before,” she said. But I could tell there was something she wasn’t saying. “I’m glad I made that snap decision to call the museum.” She turned to Mateo. “I forgive you for being a jerk and hanging up on me.”
“You’re never going to let that go, are you?”
“Nope! I’m petty, deal with it.”
Petty, sure. But perfect. And exactly what I hadn’t known I was looking for.
“Yeah,Matty, deal with it,” I added, getting him back for his digging into my life and stealing my last pancake. He really did hate that nickname.
We said goodbye to everyone, Elana promised to visit soon, and we were on our way back to the penthouse, our day of exploring the city cut short.
“I owe you a trip to the Starving Aardvark,” I said as we turned out of Desmon’s roundabout and down his long driveway toward the front gate. That was where I’d originally planned to take her today after the market.
“Next time,” she said. “Since it looks like I’ll be here in Darlington a little longer. And the aquarium too. I really want to meet Fin Diesel!”
