entire conversation. He was over pretending to face the new release rack by the counter, fingers running just over the corners of books he couldn’t actually touch anymore. “But maybe I should.”
Okay, yeah, it wasn’t likely. I didn’t want to deal with him yelling at me for eternity. But it would be nice to be taken seriously.
He snorted and didn’t even turn to look at me, supremely confident I would never defy him.
I clenched my jaw and glared at him, till a soft hand on my shoulder grabbed my attention. “Oh honey, I’m sorry. I’m being such an asshole. Just because I hated him doesn’t mean he wasn’t your father.” She wrapped her arms around me in a tight hug, and I put my arms around her in return, reflexively.
It took me a moment to realize she’d mistaken my anger for sadness. They weren’t things I’ve ever imagined looking alike, but apparently it was close enough. “I’ll think about it,” I promised her.
My father scoffed, loudly so that I would hear him.
I was still hugging Beez a moment later when he said, in a panicky tone, “What do you think you’re doing, you wretched little beast?”
I let go of Beez and turned in time to see the new release rack tip over onto its front, books spilling everywhere.
There, on top of the rack, stood foxy. He stared at my father, and I swear to the gods, the expression on his face was outright challenge. Then he looked at me and Beez and ducked his head as though embarrassed.
Beez gave a triumphant smile. “See? Your new friend agrees. The shop needs a makeover.”
My father spun to glare at her, or yell at me, or, well . . . I don’t know what he intended, because I ignored him. I went over to the counter, grabbed a length of receipt paper and a sharpie, wrote out, “out for lunch, back at one p.m.” on it, and went to tape it to the door.
“Sage?” she asked, trailing after me and then opening the glass door and staring at the note in astonishment. “You never close for lunch. Your father would have killed you.”
“My new friend needs some stuff from the pet store, and they’ll be closed by the time I’m done for the night.” I motioned foxy over and he came, panting and looking exceptionally pleased with himself. “Besides, it’s like you said. The shop isn’t my father’s anymore. It’s mine.”
I’d be in for the mother of all lectures later on, probably the second I reopened the shop, but for now, I couldn’t make myself care. Beez was right. The shop was mine, not his. He had no legal standing, and dammit, I didn’t even want to change everything. Just enough to make the shop my own.
I left the overturned rack of new releases right where it was as we went to get foxy a dish and food. Okay, fine, I scanned the mess to make sure none of the books were sitting open or bent before dismissing it. It might be a rebellion, but there was only so far aimless rebellion would take a guy.
“We can stop and get lunch at the coffee place when we’re done,” Beez suggested. “My treat.”
I turned to her and raised a brow.
She nodded, answering the question I hadn’t even asked. “Yep, I want something and it’s a bribe.”
For just a second, I thought about asking her if her on-again-off-again significant other, who was a minor dead mage, knew how to banish ghosts. I locked the door behind me, only taking a second to glance up at my father’s mottled red face before turning toward the pet shop.
My father moving on wasn’t my choice, it was his. I could only choose my actions, and I chose to get lunch.
Chapter Four
The coffee place on the corner wasn’t my favorite. Maybe it’s sacrilege for some people, but I’d have preferred if it were a Starbucks.
What?
They make great coffee. It’s what they do, and there’s a reason they’re huge. How many places can claim to make a consistently decent quality product?
Fetch, on the other hand, was perfect. They weren’t just an independent pet store—they specialized in familiars.
The woman manning the counter when we came in looked at foxy first, giving him a huge grin. Her curly hair was dyed in half a dozen shades of blue and purple, and it looked like a halo around her head. “Hey there, friends,” she said, coming around the counter. “What can I get