I thought about it for a moment, then shook my head. "I trust your judgment," I said, and tried to ignore the look of surprise on his face. "If our paths cross, I'll be sure to greet her, but you don't need to bring her here."
Nolan nodded, then smiled, making the piercings on the corners of his lower lip glint as they caught the light. He ran his fingers through his orange-tipped blond hair, then dropped his hand to his lap.
"All right, then. I'll go call her," he said, then stood up.
I waited until he'd left before exhaling, my fingers flexing in and out of fists. Why did I still feel guarded around Nolan? I'd forgiven him, I'd accepted his help, I'd shared my most precious creation with him. And yet I couldn't bring myself to relax completely around him, and I knew he could tell. It wasn't fair to him, but I didn't know how to change that.
Blowing out a breath, I woke my computer and forced my attention back to the calendar I'd been working on.
Keoni
Michelle was a sweetheart. She had amber eyes, long red hair, a beautiful French accent, and she was tall, but not in an annoying way.
Sofia, on the other hand, was loud. I wondered if it was a side effect of working in a bar every night, or if she was just naturally like that. She was a sweet woman, though, with a round face, dark brown hair, and kind brown eyes. She was also my height, which I liked. There were very few people around here with whom I could talk without bending my neck in some way.
Zamir had told me Michelle and Sofia had just met a few weeks ago, but they looked like they'd been together forever. They had an easy familiarity between them that I envied. I wanted to be that close to Zeph someday.
"Where's my patient?" Michelle asked once the introductions and chitchat was over, and Nolan led her to Khush and Dustin's place, with Sofia and Zamir trailing after her.
I couldn't follow them, of course, so I stayed back, and Silas found me a moment later. He shifted back to his human form, probably for the sake of my neck since he was eight feet tall as a troll, and beamed at me.
"You and the headmaster looked pretty cozy last night," he teased, waggling his thick brows, and I grinned, pleased.
"We did, didn't we? We had a really great first date," I confessed, and his smile softened as it lost the teasing edge.
"I'm glad. You deserve it, both of you."
We chatted about Zephyr, about our chores for the rest of the week, and whatever came to mind, until Zamir and the others came out of Khush and Dustin's place about an hour later.
"I think it would be a good idea for me to stay here until the baby arrives," Michelle was saying as they walked toward us, "but like Khush said, it would make more sense to stay at their place. They have enough space downstairs, and their house is already equipped for a human."
"I still can't believe you guys don't have to poop. That's so unfair!" Sofia grumbled to Zamir behind them, and I snickered. I remembered Dustin saying something similar to me once, when he first found out.
"Okay, that works too. Will you need help moving your stuff?"
"Nah, we'll just pack a couple of bags. I would need some medical equipment though, just in case."
I stepped closer at that, giving her a smile. "Can you make me a list? Zephyr will get whatever you need."
"Of course. Give me your number, and I'll send you the list."
We exchanged numbers, and then they left with a promise to be back first thing tomorrow morning. Michelle worked at the local hospital, but she'd had vacation days saved up which she'd used so she could stay here, though I heard Nolan say he intended to pay her for the duration she stayed.
Michelle sent me the list just before dinner, so I made my way to Zephyr's office.
"Ah, some of these things are only sold to hospitals, I believe," Zephyr murmured as he read through the list. "But it doesn't matter. I'll get them."
"Are you planning to steal them?" I asked, and he shook his head, his blue eyes sparkling.
"I thought I'd borrow them, probably from the seller, though. I don't want to put any hospitals at risk," he murmured, and I shook my head.
"It's not like we'll need them once the baby's here, so I suppose it's okay as long as we return them."
"Exactly," he agreed with a smile, and I chuckled. He looked way too excited at the idea of stealing—forgive me,borrowingthings.
"Come on, let's go have dinner first. You can plan your heist later."
I took his hand as soon as he walked around the desk, and he glanced down at me, looking pleased.
