Page 63 of Hexed
He turns to look at me now, his face void of humor. “Your uncle seeseverything, V. Never forget that.”
“I won’t.” I give him a funny look because why is he saying it like that?
Truthfully, I don’t even know why I’m debating walking in there. It’s just…things have felt different these past few days, is all.
I’ve felt more like an afterthought that gets brought out from time to time when it suits his fancy instead of an essential part of his team.
It’s probably just because Aria’s back and she’s sucking up all his time and attention. As soon as she and Enzo are gone, things will go back to normal.
Theyhaveto.
“Come on, V,” Bastien says. “Just get it over with.”
I follow Bastien into the building, and as soon as we make it through the doors, the smell of vanilla and freshly brewed coffee hits me in the face. There aren’t many people here, but there’s a receptionist behind a large U-shaped desk,Seven Seas Constructionwritten in metallic lettering on the wall behind her that has water cascading from the bottom and rushing down into a small basin.
The woman smiles at me as we walk by…or maybe she’s smiling at Bastien. I glance at him and see him studiously ignoring her, the way he does with everyone.
He’s really quite the enigma, and even though we’ve been around each other for years, I still find him quite mysterious. I look up to him in a way because I wish I could shield myself from everyone, even the ones I’m closest to, as well as he does.
Neither of us talk as we enter the elevator and head to the top floor, and it’s something I’ve always appreciated about Bastien: his quiet demeanor. So many people feel the need to fill the airwith noise because they’re uncomfortable in the silence, but not Bastien. If you ask him why he is the way he is, he’ll either grunt and ignore the question or weave an elaborate tale, but you’ll never know if what he tells you is fiction or fact.
But somehow, despite all that, he’s the one I’d trust with my life. He’s been around since the day my uncle took me in, and when I was trying with everything inside me to figure out where I belonged and how to navigate my momma’s death, he was there. Sitting next to me. Picking me up from the seedy areas I’d sneak off to just to get away. Reminding me that things didn’t have to be as shitty as I was making them. I owe Bastien a lot for that time in my life.
I glance at him again, my chest filling with warmth.
“What?” he asks, looking at me with a brow raised.
“Can’t I just look at you?”
He blinks at me. “No.”
I scoff. “You can’t control where someone looks.”
“I can control whatever I want to.”
My mouth pops open. “You’re so arrogant. What are you gonna do, dig out my eyes?”
He smirks. “Maybe if I did, you’d stop being such a judgmental bitch.”
“Oh, that’srichcoming from you.”
The elevator dings, and Bastien heads straight to Uncle T’s office. I follow him.
Just like at home, there’s an oversize desk, and Uncle T is perched behind it, his hands resting on his stomach while he leans back in his throne-like chair. Bastien and I step in front of him and sit down in the two seats facing his direction.
Uncle T raises a brow as he looks at me.
“You didn’t have to send Bas out to get me.” I break the silence. “I was about to come up.”
“You were standing out there for ten minutes, staring at the door like it was about to bite you,” he replies.
“So? Maybe I was lost in thought.”
“About?”
“Life.”
It’s as honest an answer as he’s going to get, because I don’t knowwhyI was just standing out there other than I didn’t want to see him. Didn’t feel like walking inside. Not when he’s doing a 180 on inviting me places he never has and is sending me on babysitting missions instead of having me do important things. If I think about it for too long, I’ll start to spiral, worry that things are changing and I’m being shut out or that maybe it’smewho’s changing.
