Blood and Blade (Goddess with a Blade #6) - Lauren Dane Page 0,94
fries instead of floppy ones. I’ll still take the malt vinegar over catsup.”
“You’re not entirely full of terrible preferences,” he said, making her laugh anew.
This was the calm before the battle to come so she took it. Made use of it. Because later that day she’d be fighting for her life and the lives of everyone she cared about.
“Any word from Genevieve today?” she asked David.
“She texted Vanessa earlier with some more information and said she was working on her version of the siphon spell and to leave her alone until she was ready to deal with people.”
“I love that woman more each day,” Rowan said.
Elisabeth came in, her arms full of groceries, so Rowan and David moved to help her, despite her protests that she was just fine to do it herself.
Betchamp joined them as well, making very short work of the unloading. Rowan waved to the human guard manning the gates to the front of the house and he waved back.
This was her life. A big house with a pool in the suburbs with her husband, their household staff and her fur daughter and pseudo son.
A pang hit her gut as she wished so much that Carey was there to share this with them. He’d joke and poke fun about how she was going all middle class, but he’d have loved the pool and Star. He’d have loved lots of things if he’d had the chance.
Somehow all the good things were even better and yet utterly worse without Carey. He’d have told her to suck it up and live her best life on his behalf. And she’d have told him life wouldn’t have been the same without him.
And she’d have been right. He was such an important part of her life. Such a big personality. Goddess, she missed him so much.
Star came over, leaning against her leg, letting her know she wasn’t alone.
“Carl actually referred to you as his dog last night,” Rowan told Star as she knelt to get face-to-face. “I corrected him right away. But I also told him he was welcome to come visit you any time he liked. He’s a weirdo, but he certainly seems to like you. And me too. So.”
Star seemed to like that, giving Rowan a lopsided grin, her tongue lolling out the side of her mouth.
“I was thinking you should stay home tonight when we go to take this Faerie bastard down. What do you say?”
Star snorted, getting gross dog snot on Rowan’s arm. “Ew!”
“I think that’s a no from Star on staying home,” David said.
“She could have said it without the snot.”
“But you’ll listen better with the snot,” he told her. Being utterly right. Ugh.
“Fine. But if I tell you to stay in the car or to get back, you have to obey me,” Rowan told Star.
Star didn’t sneeze this time; she licked Rowan’s nose instead.
“Is that your way of agreeing or of saying you’ll do what you want like the rest of the people surrounding me?”
Star grinned again, licked Rowan’s nose again and then scampered off to go bark at birds.
“She told you,” Elisabeth said, sounding very pleased with herself.
“Good thing there aren’t nearby neighbors to hear her tell everyone with all the barking. The birds are fucking with her but I think she loves it anyway. I can’t tell.”
Elisabeth patted her shoulder. “She’ll let you know if she needs you to.”
Bossy. The whole lot of them were bossy as fuck.
Rowan took them in, Elisabeth and Betchamp dealing with some stuff in their front yard area. David on his phone dealing with something or other and Star at the fence line, running and barking at birds like there was nothing she’d rather be doing.
What a lucky person she was. Despite the losses. Despite the pain. These people were her family.
* * *
Clive woke up just before the sun dipped below the horizon. He reached out with the bond and found Rowan, bright and steady. She was home, which he rather liked. Especially as that meant she hadn’t gone out to deal with the Faerie without him.
He was just stepping out of the bathroom, freshly showered, when Rowan came into his bedchamber.
“Good evening,” she said with a smile before kissing him. “Sorry I was asleep when you got home. Thanks for the note.”
“It was nearly dawn when I got back anyway so I saw you, covered you up, wrote a note and went to sleep myself. You look well so I take it sleep was necessary and restful?”