“Jackson, can I have a word with you in the kitchen?” Ruth asked as soon as he entered the café. He’d been supposed to be there hours ago.

“I’m sorry about coming in late. Carol and I were brainstorming ideas and time flew by.”

“That’s okay. I just wanted to ask if you can cover for me for the rest of the day? I need to leave early.”

“Sure, no problem.” He frowned. “What’s up? Everything okay?”

“I’m going to the village.” She motioned for him to follow her outside the back door and closed it behind them. “One of the Guardians is giving me a lift.”

Jackson glanced left and then right, making sure that the alley behind the café was free of eavesdroppers. “You should get your own modified car. It doesn't matter that you don’t live there yet. Kian will gladly hook you up with one.”

“I know. But the idea of a self-driving car scares me.”

“They are perfectly safe.”

“Yeah, until they aren’t. Computers malfunction, Jackson. It might not happen often, but it’s not such a remote possibility.”

“There are plenty of safety features incorporated into our cars. You have nothing to worry about. If you want, you can stop by William’s, and he will explain everything. Trust me, after you hear him out, you will request a modified car right away.”

She waved a hand. “If I have time after my meeting with Bridget I will.”

“What are you seeing Bridget about?”

This time Ruth glanced both ways to make sure they were alone, then stepped closer to Jackson and whispered, ”It’s about Nick. I want to ask her things about the transition process for guys. I don’t know much about it.”

Jackson grinned. “Congratulations.” He clapped her on the back. “So you’re finally ready for the next step?”

Ruth felt her cheeks getting hot. The next step Jackson was talking about had already been taken, but she wasn’t about to share that information with him. Her relatives were way too nosy for her liking.

“If by the next step you mean that I'm finally sure Nick is the one for me, then yes, I’m ready for the next step.”

An even wider grin split Jackson’s face. “I’m glad. When are you going to break the news to him?”

“That’s what I need to talk to Bridget about. I need her advice on how and when to do it. Especially since we suspect that he might be difficult to thrall. What if he’s an immune, and then we find out that he is not a Dormant? How are we going to erase the memory of the experiment from his mind if we can’t access it?”

The smile evaporated from Jackson’s face. “You’re right.” He pushed his bangs back. “I suspected he would be hard to thrall when I brought him to the wedding. I didn’t even try to do it, getting him drunk instead. Now I regret not testing him to see if it was even possible.”

“You can still do it.” Ruth perked up as an idea started forming in her head. “We can test him. I’m not good enough to thrall someone who is naturally resistant. But maybe you are? How is your thralling, is it strong?”

“I’m okay, but some of the guys are much better than me. Yamanu and Arwel are excellent, and Kian is probably the best at it. You know how it works. The less diluted your blood is, the stronger the abilities.”

It was a misconception, but before Ruth could answer Jackson, Lori opened the back door and poked her head outside.

“Guys? Are you coming in? There is no one manning the register.”

Jackson lifted two fingers. “We’ll be back in two minutes.”

“What do I do with the customers until then?”

“Write down the orders, and they will pay for them when they leave.”

“Oh, why didn’t I think of that?” The girl waved a hand. “Take your time.”

Given the smirk on Lori’s face, she probably thought that there was something going on between Jackson and Ruth, even though it was a ridiculous notion given that both of their partners visited the café often.

The girl had to be clueless not to realize that the two of them were in committed relationships with other people. Even a blind person could see that Jackson was totally in love with Tessa. Ruth wasn’t as extroverted with her feelings toward Nick, but still, they should’ve been obvious as well.

“It’s not true what you said about the abilities being stronger the closer an immortal is to the godly source. As far as I know, Sari has no special abilities aside from being a great businesswoman. And Alena is wonderfully fruitful for an immortal female, but she has no other special talents. I’m not aware of Amanda having any either, does she?”

“Aside from being a freaking neuroscience professor? I don’t think so.”

“You see?” Ruth waved a hand. “That proves it. Annani’s daughters have the least diluted genes of all of us, and they are not more powerful.”

Jackson frowned. “Yeah, I guess you’re right as far as special talents go. Thralling is something every immortal can do to some extent. But males are much better at it than females because we get more practice. Everyone knows Kian is the best at it.”

“True. So what are you trying to say, that I should ask Kian if he is willing to thrall Nick?”

“What I’m saying is that if nothing else works, you can ask Kian as a last resort.”

Ruth sighed. “I’ll keep it in mind. First, I want to see what Bridget has to say. She has a lot of experience with transitioning Dormants.”

“We should get back inside.”

“Yeah.” Ruth glanced at her watch. “Rick is picking me up in ten minutes.”