I very pointedly folded my napkin. “It’s fine, Cian. I can make my own choices, thank you.”
“I’ll tell you,” Merric offered kindly. “It’s nothing to be ashamed of, George. We’re all friends here.”
I was beginning to see that he enjoyed making my life difficult.
“George agreed to owe me a debt.” I heard Indra groan at Merric’s words, and his elbow landed hard on the wooden table. The kitsune was positively beaming now.
“What kind of debt?” Cian pressed.
“Any kind I want.” Could he be any happier?
Cian looked at me, but I held my hand up between us. “No. Nope. Not tonight, Cian.”
“Tomorrow,” Akiva agreed. “When she regrets the decision more.”
I elbowed Akiva hard. He didn’t seem to mind, and jerked hard at where our legs were tangled together, nearly pulling me into his lap.
Yuna was the one to pull me back upright.
“I could give you something to cover her debt,” the cecaelia offered casually.
“I already have a Memento,” Merric told her. “But if I didn’t, I’d take you up on that.”
“What’s a Memento?” I asked Yuna.
“It’s the last remnant of one of those drowned by cecaelia,” she explained. “It holds the power of their deaths.”
Well I wasn’t sure why anyone would want that, frankly. I didn’t press it.
“So!” Merric clapped his hands together and grinned around the table. “This is a great day for me. But I gotta know. How’d you get a hellhound and a lich in your bed, Cian? Isn’t that a lot to handle?”
Even I was curious about that one.
Chapter 20
After a lengthy dinner that became more enjoyable over time, Yuna excused herself. She said the restaurant was close enough to where she lived that it was an easy walk, and that she’d enjoy the night.
Before leaving she’d reminded me that I owed her another date and to call her if I had any plans to make bad decisions.
Merric simply vanished. One minute he was at the table, the next he was gone without any kind of goodbye.
The guys asked if I wanted to walk with them, and I’d agreed. Most likely they wanted to make a new battle plan, or tell me again how stupid I was for agreeing to owing Merric a debt.
As such, I trailed behind them as they walked, sure they’d be content to enjoy each other’s company much more than mine.
“What are you doing?” Akiva barked, stopping suddenly and looking over his shoulder.
“Staring at your flawless ass,” I quipped, a half smile finding my face.
“Well come walk with us. Then you can touch it,” the lich pointed out.
I scoffed but lengthened my steps until I caught up to them. Akiva linked his arm with mine, earning a curious look from me.
“What are you doing?” I asked, shaking my arm pointedly.
“Making sure you don’t fall behind. Who knows what you’ll find in the dark if I’m not watching you.” He matched his steps to mine as Indra let Cian draw him into his embrace.
They were an adorable group.
“Are you going home?” Indra asked as we walked. I didn’t know this part of New Orleans, though the businesses were becoming sprinkled with homes.
“Yeah, I guess,” I shrugged. “Sorry I ruined our strategy meeting for tonight.”
Akiva looked at me, perplexed.
“What strategy meeting?” Cian asked.
“That’s why you came over, right? I know you said you were going to invite me out, but I figured that was just something to tell Merric.”
“No.” Cian said slowly. “We were there to invite you out. Like we said. So you didn’t ruin anything.”
“Oh. I’m sorry, were you guys going to Portal again? It’s not too late if you still want to…“ Akiva turned, hand sliding from my arm and both hands reaching up to cup my face.
He kissed me suddenly, sweetly, while standing in the middle of the sidewalk. My eyes widened slightly, but before I could think to reciprocate, he pulled back, ignoring or unaware of how my feet seemed glued to the sidewalk and my heart seemed determined to pound out of my chest.
“I’m looking for creative ways to get you to stop misunderstanding us,” he explained, smiling. “We wanted to spend time with you. Were we going to take you to Portal? Yes. But this didn’t ruin anything, silly witch.”
Oh.
I looked from him to the others. Cian was grinning and I had the decency to blush. My fingers twisted in the hem of my shirt and my stomach clenched, though not unpleasantly.
“Come home with us,” he went on, voice low and frankly, a little wicked. “Don’t you want to? I want you to.” He reached out, fingers pressed lightly to my waist. I absolutely wanted to. I swallowed, my mouth very dry.
“Well…I’d have to go get my car. And I don’t know my way around that well–“
“We parked on a residential street,” Cian informed me. “Two blocks from here. And you’re standing in front of our house.”
What?
I leaned back, craning my head back to look above me. All I could see was the front of a porch, an overhang, and the sky.
“That seems mysterious.” I looked back to Akiva. “Did you bring me here on purpose?”
“Yes,” the lich informed me, thumbs pressed to my hips. It was incredibly distracting. “But it is your choice. I’ll walk you back to your car, if you’d rather.”
“But–“ My mind reeled. Hadn’t they said they were fine with me going out with Yuna? Didn’t that mean we were not dating? I wasn’t sure I would be able to spend a night and dismiss it.
“You want to go home?” Indra assumed.
“No! It’s not that. You told Yuna you didn’t mind me being with her.”
“Yes,” Cian agreed. “And?”
“And? I’m not sure I can do a one night only with you guys and wow, yeah, I realize how that sounds but I’m sticking by it.”
“Why would it be one night because of Yuna? Unless she drowns you,” Akiva mused.
“Because she wants to go on a date.”
“Ah.” A smile spread over Cian’s lips. “I
