“It’s simply that…I have not heard of grown adults showing up to stay at a house with their own food and drinks, as though suspicious of the food and drinks they are liable to be given. Do they assume I will poison them?”
“There’s just certain stuff they prefer. My mom didn’t know I have a butler who shops and makes food.”
Austin bent to pull out a plastic bag of dried cranberries. He arched an eyebrow at me.
“It’s for salads. Seriously, you guys, this isn’t that weird. I mean…it’s a little weird that they would bring a cooler instead of just getting here and going shopping as needed, but…” I shrugged.
Austin put the cranberries on the island. “What is…clam dip?”
I couldn’t help but laugh. “It sounds gross, but it’s actually good.”
“That cannot possibly be true,” Mr. Tom said, removing items from the cooler as if they might explode at any moment.
“It’s cream cheese and, yes, canned clams, and other stuff. It’s good, seriously. Anything with cream cheese is good.”
“Cream cheese and seafood. Hmm, can’t wait.” Austin laughed, heading for the door. “I’ll grab the other cooler.”
“Yes. Because they brought two,” Mr. Tom murmured, lifting a roast and looking at me. “An entire roast? She is planning to cook dinner for everyone, I presume, since my cooking is so lacking?”
“Oh my God, Mr. Tom, stop making this about you, would you? I thought you were happy to meet the people who made me.”
“That was before they attempted to replace me.”
I stared at him for a solid beat. It hadn’t occurred to me that my mother might try to wrest the control of the kitchen, cleaning, and laundry away from Mr. Tom. Nor had it dawned on me that Mr. Tom would be affronted by this very standard behavior of hers. I tended to like when she did dinners and cleaned for me. That meant I had less to do. But the inevitable friction between Mr. Tom and my mom added a whole new layer of tension to my parents’ visit.
When Austin came in with the second cooler, I grabbed his arm in desperation. “Can I borrow your cabin for a couple weeks? Please?”
He laughed softly. “This is going to be a lot more fun for me than it will be for you.”
Four
I awoke, as I always did, to Mr. Tom’s face looming over me, his hands up to ward off an attack should I startle and react. I hadn’t in months, but he still hadn’t forgotten those early magical days when I’d accidentally flung him across the room. Using his hands as a shield hadn’t helped then, either, but you couldn’t fault the guy for trying.
“What are you going to do if I ever bring someone home?” I asked, the smell of bacon wafting through the air. My stomach growled.
“One can only hope I will eventually be faced with that conundrum, miss.” He straightened up to give me more space now that I was awake. A steaming cup of coffee waited on my nightstand.
I picked it up and took a sip. “What are the parents doing?”
I struggled to sitting and glanced at the clock. Nine in the morning, early for him to be in here. Magical people tended to move around more at night and sleep in late. It was a schedule I’d grown used to, although my parents adhered to a very different norm. Case in point—after their travels, a few beers, and a large snack that Mr. Tom had made before my mother could get into the kitchen, my dad had fallen asleep in his new chair, seemingly oblivious to all the other people in the room. My mom had insisted on ushering him to bed in embarrassment. I’d helped get them situated in their room, and that had been the end of it. They hadn’t come back down, opting instead for an early bedtime.
“The parents are currently filling downstairs with either smell or noise, that is what the parents are doing.” He sniffed. “Your mother commandeered the kitchen. She had the gall to try to rip my wings off so she could give them a fresh wash!”
I couldn’t help chuckling. “She doesn’t know they’re wings, Mr. Tom. She probably thinks you never wash your cape.”
“I took a shower this morning, I’ll have you know.”
“Right but…” I let it go. “She’s making breakfast?”
“Yes. We’ll need to let the others wander freely today. You’ll have to make those introductions.” He moved toward the door. “And