with my athame again, but I had dreamed of Gideon. Not in the garden. In my bedroom. And definitely not with my athame.
Like a game of sexy Clue: Gideon, in the bedroom, with the exceptionally impressive, er, tool.
He and Fluke took a seat on the couch as I ran through the morning routine, both of them content to be silent and soak up the morning sun.
David approached the door just as I was heading to the front of the shop to flip the open sign on, and he flashed me his bright grin and waved. “Morning,” he said cheerfully when I let him in. “How are you feeling?”
He headed straight for the front counter and the new release rack, as always. It was a tiny bit of mundane normalcy in the middle of a week that had been like a tornado through my life, and I couldn’t help a smile at his predictability.
“I’ve had worse weeks,” I hedged. It felt wrong to admit that my life was looking up when I’d both lost my father and watched a man die in the last two weeks.
He nodded sympathetically. “You look a little tired. Not sleeping well?”
Behind him, Gideon scowled, arms crossed over his chest and shoulders looking broader than ever. He looked like a bouncer at a bar who was preparing to kick someone out.
I must have stared at him a second too long, because David turned to glance over his shoulder, self-consciously. “Sage?”
“Yeah, sorry, no, I haven’t been sleeping the best.” I shook my head as though that would clear the fog, but found my eyes drawn almost immediately back to Gideon, so I slammed them shut and rubbed them with my palms.
Fluke came over and leaned on my leg, whining in concern.
“Ah, your friend’s still here.” David’s tone was flat, and it set my teeth on edge. Anyone who didn’t understand that Fluke was with me, and for keeps, needed to just stop.
I reached down one hand to pet Fluke consolingly and put the other over my heart. “I promise, David, I have not stolen someone’s familiar.”
“Sage! I would never think you had. I’m just concerned. He does seem to be a familiar, but he came out of nowhere.” He knelt down next to Fluke and looked him over.
I tried to keep from overreacting. It wasn’t as though David put his hands on Fluke, but it made my stomach twist to have him invade my familiar’s space like that. Gideon, on the other hand, put his hand to his gun. I glared at him, but Fluke took it as a cue. He gave a tiny growl and turned his back to David, tail swishing, and then hid behind my legs.
I would never admit that it was kinda cute.
David chuckled self-deprecatingly and stood, dusting his knees off. “Well, he knows which side of his bread is buttered.”
“Peanut buttered,” I corrected, but didn’t explain when he looked confused. Instead, I turned to the new release rack. “Let me guess what monstrosity of anti-literature you’re looking for today . . .” I grabbed a page turner that wasn’t exactly his usual fare, but it was simple and addictive enough that I knew he’d like it. “Here we go. This author is the next Dan Brown.”
He looked the book over with interest. “Not what I came for, but it looks good. Do you really hate the others so much?”
I snorted. “Are you kidding? I read more than half the new books we get in. How would I know they’re unevenly written if I didn’t read them all?” I wouldn’t buy them, but it didn’t mean I couldn’t see their value as a distraction.
At that, the million-watt smile was back. He pulled another book off the rack, and then after a moment’s thought, a third.
“Lots of free time this week?”
He rolled his eyes. “Stakeouts. Boring as hell.”
“You’ll forgive me, but isn’t the purpose of a stakeout to, you know, watch for things? Hard to do if your nose is in a book.” Oh boy, now I sounded like I was the one judging him. Apparently this morning wasn’t a good morning for David and me. Might have something to do with the annoyed gunslinger still glaring at his back and the bristling fox curling around my legs.
David gave a “what can you do” shrug. “I don’t even know the guy we’re looking for, I’m just the muscle. Sitting around waiting to take down the bad guy when the higher ups spot him, you know?”