Page 94 of Death Makes the Heart Grow Fonder

“I am attracted to him,” I admitted, voice low. “Happy.”

Faith’s mouth curved. “Yeah. Everyone is attracted to Cal. He is hot.”

I nearly choked on my coffee. “Faith.”

“What?” she said, unbothered. “He is. Everyone likes him. Except me.”

Nishi lifted an eyebrow. “Except you.”

Faith shrugged. “He has always been my uncle.”

I blinked. “Uncle.”

Faith rolled her eyes. “Not by blood. My weird supernatural family. You know how it is. He has always been just Cal, the overprotective ancient gargoyle who shows up when you need a friend and disappears at dawn.”

Tegan snorted quietly.

Faith continued, voice casual in a way that made it worse. “He takes few lovers, but almost everyone wants him anyway.”

My stomach dropped. “Really?”

Nishi leaned in slightly, voice calm. “Faith, that is not helping.”

Faith shrugged again. “It’s true. And he has always been careful to make sure the women know where he stands.”

My cheeks warmed, and I hated it. “Can we stop?”

Faith smiled, a flash of something softer. “No. Because you need to hear this. You are not the first woman to look at him and think you stand a chance. He is immortal.”

“I am not thinking like that,” I lied.

Faith’s eyebrows rose. “Sure.”

Nishi sipped coffee, gaze steady. “Is the egg bond amplifying what you sense from him?”

That was the part that made my stomach twist. “Yes.”

Faith leaned forward, elbows on the table. “So do you actually like him, or do you like the bond?”

I stared at my plate, then at my hands. “I have always found him attractive. The bond made it louder. That is all.”

Faith nodded slowly, as if filing that away for later teasing. “Okay. Good. Because if you start acting weird, I will smack you.”

“That is supportive,” I muttered.

“It is,” Faith said. “It is my love language.”

I forced a few more bites down, then finally felt my body accept that it needed food. The heaviness in my limbs eased slightly.

Eve’s phone buzzed. She glanced down, and her shoulders loosened a fraction. “Cal is spending the day at Scorchwood.”

Relief hit me, quick and immediate. Not because I wanted him alone with undead. Because it meant he was still alive and safe.

After breakfast, we split.

Nishi and Tegan went to work on the relic problem, already strategizing how to break through whatever new shield Dagna had layered around it.

Faith offered to drive me home, and I did not argue. The egg bond tugged steadily and my body felt like it had run a marathon while carrying a small furnace inside my ribs.