Page 70 of The Magic of Revenge
The perimeter of my vision darkened just as Tom slid the needle through and I think I would've thrown up, but everything went black.
Bram and Faris had really surprised me with how possessive alpha they went over Frank and Arlo. At first, I didn't appreciate it, because I can be friends with whoever I damn well want. Then I realized it was more a matter of them wanting to be the ones to do things for me, and damn the moon if that didn't turn me to mush. I was a weak ass witch for them.
I gave Frank and Arlo a quick hello before they headed to the park for the rest of the afternoon. It was good to see them. I was so used to seeing them daily that it felt like it'd been a lifetime since I just got to stand around and catch up with them. I was disappointed that I hadn’t found Matilda and Roberta, but maybe they’d show up while I was here. There were questions I needed answered.
When I entered my shop, I noticed two things. One, the place was really clean. Cleaner than I’d ever kept it. Two, my father had his back to me as he rested his forearms on the counter, clearly speaking with someone that I couldn’t make out around his large frame. He didn't bother to greet me though, just kept doing whatever he was doing. Great customer service skills.
I slid to the right and stepped behind a bookshelf so I could peek at what he was up to. His deep voice met my ears.
"You want to shade a little lighter along here, light strokes. It's easy to get a little heavy-handed, but patience really pays off. There, that's much better. Look at you, you're such a natural," he praised whoever he was talking to and he sounded so proud. My heart twisted a little, wondering once again how he would've been with me when I was just a child. All signs pointed to pretty fucking great.
"Thanks, Scruffy. Sometimes I just get so excited because the pictures in my head flash so fast that I don't want to miss something. I tried doing those deep breaths just like you said and counted to ten. It sounded dumb at first, but it worked!" Annie squealed with happiness and my jaw dropped when he shifted back, revealing Annie and Miranda sitting side by side on a couple of barstools, art supplies scattered on the counter.
Khol roared with laughter, and Miranda scolded Annie for being too blunt. He waved her off with a smile and my eyes nearly bugged out when I saw my best friend blushing and averting her gaze. So this is why he was so eager to pick up the shifts here. I'd be lying if I said I wasn't feeling a rush of mixed emotions and as a twenty-eight year old woman, admitting that jealousy was one of them wasn't an easy pill to swallow. But I guess I was, just a little bit.
That probably made me a total asshole. Fuck. I mean, Khol deserved to have a life. For the most part, I was with six guys all the time and it was hard to get a moment alone to spend time together. No, I wasn't going to be selfish about him making friends.
I deliberately stepped on a creaky floorboard so I wouldn't startle them when I showed myself, but Miranda still paled and dropped the pencil in her hand.
"Saige, hey. Didn't see you come in," she said, smiling at me, but not quite meeting my eyes. She knew I knew what was going on here.
"Yay! Saige!" Annie hopped off her stool and launched herself into my arms.
"Hey, Annie girl, I missed you," I told her as I hugged her tightly until she squirmed with laughter.
"Is Maven here?" she asked excitedly, looking behind me for the grumpy fox.
"No, not today. He's home getting more beauty sleep." I winked at her and she nodded seriously.
"Mom says beauty sleep is one of the most important things in life. That's why I let her sleep in on Saturday mornings these days. Now that I'm eight, I can get my own cereal in the mornings," she told me, bragging about this new development.
"Your mom is lucky to have such a smart and thoughtful daughter," I said, glancing up at Miranda who was watching our interaction with a soft smile. I chanced a look at Khol and he was looking at Miranda with the same damn expression.Oh Jesus.
"So what are you guys up to?" I hopped onto an empty stool and Khol grabbed me a cold Diet Dr. Pepper. Damn, he was good.
"Well, your friend came by the shop a few days ago. We got to talking about Miss Annie and her drawing skills. I'm a bit of an artist myself, I don't think I told you that yet..." His eyes widened a little in panic, probably wondering if I was going to be offended. I wasn't, it just solidified the fact that my dad and I needed some more quality time together. I wanted to know him.
"Wish that would've passed to me, I can't draw to save my life," I chuckled and Khol's shoulders dropped, the tension leaving him as he realized I wasn't upset.
"I offered to help her hone her skills. Turns out Annie draws the things she sees in her mind," Khol explained.
"It's true! Isn't that so cool, Saige? Remember I made you that picture at the lake? I saw that, too." Annie bounced in her seat, continuing to sketch on her pad.
"I do remember. That was a great drawing, honey. Thank you," I said, emotion making my voice thicker than normal. She'd drawn the burning pentagram. The night Fischer had been murdered and my men kidnapped.
"Hey, Annie, how about you sit here with Khol for a few minutes so I can talk to Saige?" Miranda stood and Khol nodded, letting us know he had it handled. The two of them were laughing as we walked to the tarot room.
She flopped, literally, into a chair and released a deep breath.
"What is it?" I questioned as Kai's words swirled in my head about what he'd discovered during his time with Asrael. I needed to tell Khol first and see what he thought. It seemed cruel to put more on Miranda’s plate when there wasn't yet a threat. Plus, Khol knew more about this kind of thing so I really wanted to speak with him first. Maybe we could have a few more Radical agents come and watch their house...
"I didn't plan it. You have to believe me. He pisses me off most of the time. But he's so fucking sweet with Annie. Did you see them? He may as well scoop my heart out of my chest with his bare hands, Saige!" Miranda whisper-shouted at me and I had to smile. I had seen it. It was... precious.
"I know. I saw..." I trailed off and Miranda read me perfectly.
"God, babe. I'm sorry. That was probably hard for you to see. Shit, I'm the worst friend." She was babbling rapidly and I held up a hand.
"No, I mean... Yes, it stirred some emotions, but he's a great man and he should get to have a life. Kind of strange though... You and my dad?" I grimaced and she laughed.
