“I mean, you can’tsoakin my books,” I say.
“Hmm, but you can enjoy them again and again, anywhere,” Jade says.
“That’s true…”
“See? Stop comparing,” Sylvia says with a compassionate hand on my shoulder.
Bastian pulls me away and I tsk at him.
“Really?”
He frowns. “I wouldn’t if you weren’t upset.”
I shouldn’t be upset. Sylvia has a very different business. It’s thriving, but because she’s been working at it for years.
“I’m not upset,” I say. “Just a little envious.”
Sylvia approaches again, giving Bastian a placating stare. “You’ve just started. There’s so much to come.”
She grabs my hand and leads me out of the room into a reception hall. “You boys do your thing; I’m giving her a tour.”
Bastian looks like he’d rather peel his own skin off than let me go without him. Rhazan grabs his shoulder as Jade leaves them behind.
“Let the women do what women do,” he grumbles in his low baritone.
A hot retort is on my tongue but Apollo closes the door behind Jade before I can get it out.
“You haven’t lived until you’ve been submerged in 111 degrees of mineral rich healing water,” Sylvia says, looping her arm in mine.
“Seriously,” Jade says. “I’m twenty-five going on fifteen because of these waters.”
We all laugh and it’s so natural. It feels strange to suddenly have two friends that I know nothing about but feel so inexplicably connected to. Is it Bastian and his brothers that knit us together, or something else?
We pass by a station full of merchandise and my brain is sparked with ideas. There are so many cool designs, mostly puns about ghosts and hauntings, and everything looks comfortable.
“Want a hoodie?” Sylvia asks.
“I am pretty lacking in winter attire,” I say. “My own fault for living in California for so long and just not being prepared for what sub zero plus humidity feels like.”
She sucks air through her teeth. “Yikes.”
She helps me find a 3XL of the “Guaranteed to Raise Your Spirits” hoodie with little ghosties coming out of the hot spring steam. It’s spacious, fluffy, and so comfortable I think I want to live inside it.
Sylvia tells me about how she came to own the hot spring, and her first experience with Apollo, as she gives me a tour of her business. There are several private indoor pools, but the real magic is the snowy patio pool on the third floor. The steam is so thick on the glass we have to open the door to enjoy it. And enjoy it we do.
Sylvia throws her arms forward and a huge gust of wind sweeps the snow off the patio, sending it flying on little whirlwinds through the trees.
“You’re like, an airbender?” I ask.
Jade grins. “Yes! Another Avatar fan!”
Sylvia rolls her eyes as she walks toward the spring. “It’s not going to make me want to watch a cartoon just because you outnumber me.”
“Oh, come on,” Jade pleads. “Plus, your little tyke needs wholesome shows to watch that will help explain her powers!”
I look at Sylvia curiously. “You guys…have a kid?”
“And one more on the way.” She smiles brightly as she touches her stomach.
