Page 72 of Bargains with Benefits
“Wonderful,” I said with more confidence than I felt. “Now, I need to finish cleaning the last room and prepare for more customers.” I stood, and Darius stood with me. “Thank you for coming by. I’d love to come for a meal again soon.”
“Anytime,” he said and smiled as he left the library.
I watched him go, but another familiar face walked in before I could hurry up the stairs.
“Eloise, you just missed Darius,” I said. The names felt strange on my tongue. MaybeFatherandGrandmotherwould work better eventually.
She gave me a wicked grin. “I waited for him to leave. I couldn’t stop him from warning you about Vincent, but I did realize that as soon as he told you, you’d need to run off and see if everything was alright with the boy.”
“You don’t think I’m foolish for not assuming the worst?” I asked, tilting my head.
“Your father was blindsided by everything last night…Today”—she gestured around the inn—“he didn’t really look at Vincent in the study yesterday. I admit I had doubts when I sat down, but before you left, it was clear that boy would do anything for you.”
My heart warmed at her words. “Thank you.”
“You can thank me by finishing whatever you were about to do and going after him. I assume you have guests checking in now that you have unleashed your magic on the place? I’ll mind the inn while you’re gone.”
Tears pricked in my eyes, and I swallowed.
“No time for tears, dear.” She shooed me along up the stairs.
I paused halfway up and turned. “What should I call you?”
“Eloise is fine.” She swallowed, showing some emotion deep in the blue eyes that matched my own. “Maybe Gram, when you’re comfortable.”
I swallowed down a swell of emotion and took off up the stairs. I needed to clean up my mess in the recently opened room before I could chase after Vincent—especially if more guests might be arriving. I, like my gram, didn’t believe for a second he was publishing that article, but I was sure something had gone terribly wrong to lead to this.
33
Vincent
Everything made sense in the worst possible way. Darius’s distrust for me and my father’s words that night at the restaurant that I’d been far too distracted to focus on. He’d said they’d stopped by the paper to talk to me about my feature piece—a piece they shouldn’t have known about. They hadn’t stopped by the paper before…ever. I couldn’t believe it had taken so long for everything to come together in my mind. I’d been trying so hard to get Luna away from them that night that nothing else had sunk in. Patricia’s phrase was the last clue:this is simply the way of things.My father said that phrase more often than talking about the benefits of magic. It had been a staple my entire childhood in Andiveron House.
“Why don’t we see the fae from other courts?”
“That is simply the way of things.”
Or my personal favorite. “Why don’t we follow the human laws?”
“That is simply the way of things.”
I was at Andiveron House before I realized where my feet were taking me. The picture hadn’t fully formed yet, but I knew they were involved, and I’d get to the bottom of it.
I knocked. This was no longer my home, though I could count those aware of the fact on my fingers. It struck me how easily I’d given Luna that information. I’d wanted her to see me as separate from my parents. To know that, though we shared a family name, we shared no other beliefs.
Jeffrey, the butler, answered. “Vincent, I didn’t know you had an appointment today.” He smiled warmly.
“I don’t.”
His smile turned to a frown. Even though Jeffrey had always liked me, he was never one to allow the disruption ofthe process. “I’m not sure your parents have time today.”
“They’ll see me,” I said.
He sighed and opened the door, granting me entry to the home that would presumably be mine someday—unless my parents finally disinherited me, favoring Skye. Eventually, I hoped they would do it, but whatever their part in the paper fiasco, I saw it for what it was: interference in my independent life. It must have angered them so much that I got away and could have made something of myself without Andiveron finances.
I wondered how true that was.
If my suspicions were correct, my parents pulled Patricia’s strings. I could only imagine this being possible if they bought their way in, financing the paper or bribing Patricia directly. I wanted to believe they hadn’t always controlled the paper. They would have never approved my hire if they had. How long had they been meddling, though?
