I reach out to shake his hand, but he wiggles his large green fingers.
“Let me scrub up,” Halvard says. “I’ve been tending to Tamar’s stall and feeding your stallion.” He washes his hands at the pump sink. “Betilda was here an hour ago,” he says to no one in particular.
I don’t know who that is.
“I ran into her at the market,” Rychell says, glancing at me again.
She definitely heard something.
Halvard dries his hands on a linen towel hanging from the cabinet’s handle. “Betilda’s the town gossip, and she had quite a story to tell about you, Archer.”
And here it is.
I wince. “I can guess that the tale involved the book faire, some cookies, and an encounter.”
Mischief gleams in Halvard’s eyes. “I wouldn’t call a kiss anencounter.”
“Well, it was decidedly different from your basic kiss,” I said.
Rychell’s shoulders fall and she stops wipingdown the countertop. “I heard about it too. But I told Betilda that it isn’t good manners to gossip. I didn’t realize you had met Colette before today.”
I spread my hands wide. “I hadn’t. I tripped, and she thought I was leaning in to kiss her, so she went ahead and did so.”
Halvard laughs and Rychell slaps his arm lightly. “Archer isn’t laughing, dear.”
“Oh, I’m sorry, Archer,” Halvard says, between chuckles. “But why are you so glum about a pretty gal giving you a kiss?”
“How do you know I’m glum about it?”
Rychell winces. “Your face. Right now.”
I blow air out of my nose. “It wasn’t exactly a comfortable situation. There was a crowd and it was awkward and I don’t even know the woman. She’s your kin by marriage, right, Halvard?”
“She is.”
“Is she always so…” I take a seat at the table as I search for the right word.Cheerfulwould be an understatement. I want to know if she’s legitimately that happy about everything. If she is, that’s great, but I seriously doubt it.
Halvard pours himself a cup of water and drinks it down before taking thechair next to me. “Yes, yes, she is.”
Rychell, Nate, and Halvard talk about the upcoming holiday while my mind sticks on Colette’s sunny behavior. Is she truly that happy or is she always acting for the benefit of others? Or avoiding some dark emotion that hides inside her? I know better than to ask these types of questions out loud. My brothers and father taught me long ago that it was better if vampires stayed quiet so as not to make others uncomfortable. Most folks don’t think like me anyway, so troubling them would be a waste of time.
I realize Halvard, Rychell, and Nate are all working on fixing a meal, and I’m just sitting here like a lump on a log. I stand and push my chair under the table.
“How can I help with dinner?”
Halvard nods and pops his knuckles. “Maybe you can season the steak while I build up the outdoor fire.”
I nod. “Perfect.”
Rychell opens a pair of double cabinet doors to show a dizzying array of spice jars. Every color in the world is represented here, and the scents are powerful.
“Have a good time,” she says, leaving me to it.
Halvard cooks thesteak over the outdoor fire while Rychell, Nate, and I munch on Leafshire Cheddar and the baguette Nate cut into four neat pieces. The meal is wonderful—hot, salty, and filling. The cold air is a perfect pairing to the fire, just as the wine Rychell serves is to the food. After a story from Nate about his day at Ivydowns school and a song strummed on the lyre by Halvard, I’m off to sleep on the couch in the front room.
I keep the fire stoked until the sounds of the others die down and they’re asleep. I bank the fire to keep the coals hot for tomorrow, don my cloak and boots, then head out for my usual nightly stroll.
Leafshire Cove is quiet. Only a few folks dot the roads, their conversations too low for me to hear. I do get a few stares, but that’s nothing new. Vampires aren’t as common as most Veil creatures. Most don’t know the details of how we live, and many people are wary of us. I don’t really blame them. We can be dangerous.Ican be dangerous. I wish I could cut that part out of myself. I don’t indulge in blood unless my body demands it, but I know from experience that I can’t ignore the Hunger when it comes. The longer I do, the more animal I become.
