By the time we returned to Momma R’s, I was beyond exhausted. The events of the last couple of days were finally creeping up on me, the stress of attempted assassinations coupled with the “Sam Drama Llama” had me running on fumes. I was ready to crumble and all I craved at this point was a bed. Not even a full bed. A pile of random blankets would work.

Quiet reigned during our drive from the bar to Momma R’s place. For me, it was because I was rolling the encounter with the human through my mind. On Sam’s… I was sure it was something along the lines of “what the fucking fuck?”

I couldn’t exactly blame him.

The car rolled to a gentle stop in front of the house and I blindly reached for the handle. “Thanks for tonight, Sam. It was…” I glanced at him, fighting for a smile that refused to appear. “It was interesting.”

“Caith…”

I ignored him and stepped from the vehicle, bending down to peer at him through the open doorway. “I’ll see you when I see you, right?”

I couldn’t make promises. My wolf howled at me for walking away, but my heart couldn’t take any more battering and bruising. If it happened, it happened. But after the encounter with the human, I didn’t have high hopes.

I stepped back and nudged the door closed before turning toward the house. Shower, sleep. Hell, the shower was negotiable.

The scents of sweetness and sulfur filled my nose a split-second before Sam appeared. He was all blazing eyes, midnight hair, and muscular male and it had my body yearning for his touch.

“Dammit. Wait a second,” he growled.

“It’s fine. Tonight obviously wasn’t our night and if you want to try again later, we can. If not,” I swallowed past the lump in my throat. If not, it’ll kill me. “Then we won’t. Simple as that.”

Sam cupped my face, holding my head steady as he glared at me. “Nothing with you is simple.”

I wrapped my fingers around his wrist, fingers pressed against his pulse point. “Nothing worth having is simple.”

The world was so basic and yet confusing at the same time.

“So, what? You’re just gonna walk away now?”

I let my eyes drift closed, shutting him out of my mind. “I’m not walking away. I’m crawling on hands and knees, and begging my wolf to understand. You were disgusted when you heard my plans, Sam. Don’t pretend you weren’t. And that’s fine.” I pressed my lips together and took a soothing breath. “It’s fine. You’re a gel. You have one job for On High with strict instructions and rules and… you’re a good guy. In the tween, things are more fluid. My word is law in this town and I… I am not always a good person.”

I begged my beast to play along. “So, I’m gonna go inside, strip down and step into the shower and pray the noise blocks out the sound of you leaving. If that doesn’t work, I’ll shift and go for a run.” Forcing my eyes open, I met his intent gaze. “But regardless of what I do in the next five minutes, your action remains the same. You’re gonna go and maybe you’ll think about tonight and decide if you still wanna come by the bar sometime and have a drink or talk or… something.” I shook my head. “It doesn’t matter. I’ll see you when I see you, Sam.”

His voice was hoarse and rough when he finally spoke. “I don’t want this to be goodbye, Caith.”

“It’s not. It’s a see ya when I see ya. Maybe that’s tomorrow. Maybe it’s two weeks from now.” I shrugged. “You know how I feel. You just need to figure out if you can deal with all parts of me.”

I couldn’t resist one last touch, one caress of skin on skin that’d last me until Sam made some decisions of his own. I reached for him, fingers hovering over his mouth before I finally rubbed the pad of a single digit along the soft, smooth flesh. “Goodnight, Sam.”

He didn’t try to stop me when I padded around him and toward the house. No, he didn’t stop me, but he didn’t leave either. There was no telltale crunch of feet on gravel or the roar of the car’s engine. Nope, the only sound that reached me was the rustle of the wind in the trees. There was a soft splash from behind the house, more than the flow of the river, and it told me Francois was hanging around with his ladies.

At least Franky would have a good night.

Momma R’s magic flowed over me with a gentle stroke, but I knew any visitors—attackers—would be fried the moment they touched the invisible barrier. When Jezebeth finally convinced me to stay with them, it’d been with the clear understanding that Momma R would pull out all the stops. There would be no warning shot across the bow. If it wasn’t meant to be on her land, it was dead. The only current exceptions were Sam and my fathers.

My heels clicked and clacked over the worn wood of the porch and the screen door squealed when I tugged it open. Hell, even the front door taunted me with a low, mournful grind.

Sam still hadn’t left.

I carefully closed the panel with a low thud, trying to minimize the sound that echoed through the house. I shouldn’t have bothered, trying to keep quiet. The entryway had a straight line of sight to the kitchen and it was easy to see Jezebeth cradling a cup of coffee as she sat at the counter. Beside her was another steaming cup of the bitter brew.

Not bothering to strip off my shoes and get comfortable, I clomped down the hall toward my best friend. The moment I was within range, Jezze held out a hot mug and I gave her a grateful smile. I sank onto a barstool and propped my elbows on the table, staring at the random pattern of the granite countertop.

Seconds ticked past, neither of us saying a word and simply sipping our drinks. One minute turned into two which turned into five and finally Jezze spoke.

“Wanna tell me about it?”

I snorted. “Not much to tell. Wanna tell me about that human?”

“Not much to tell. Yet. Manon and Drek are doing their things. Secretly, I think they’re also doing each other on the down low, but not my bidness.”

I tipped the cup back and swallowed some of the burning liquid, enjoying the scorching heat. “You always make it your business.”

“True. In the spirit of nosiness, what happened?”

“The human, mostly.” I shrugged and took another hot mouthful, swallowing it down and letting the scalding warmth soothe my hellfire. “We didn’t talk about it, but essentially, I’m me and he’s him. Devil horns versus wings and he’s still enjoying the ability to fly, huh?” I gave her a rueful grin and then drained the mug, thumping it down on the counter once it was drained. “See you in the morning. I gotta go in early and call in some new brownies since Dead Nettle and his crew aren’t keen on working right now. I want my house cleaned and the bar spotless and I’ve got a shit ton of paperwork to get through.”

“What about Sam?”

“Sam is gonna do what he’s gonna do, but life doesn’t stop for cocky, demanding, overpowering, sexy as fuck…” I cleared my throat and ignored the sudden warmth in my cheeks. “Life doesn’t stop just because someone has a bad day.”

I left my friend to her late night caffeine and headed toward the stairs. Now that the steaming drink had calmed my frayed nerves, I was careful as I headed upstairs and toward my room. Momma R was sleeping and no one wanted to wake that wicked witch.

“I heard that,” the words were teasing, but they were also Momma R’s which had me jumping with a squeak and spinning toward the source.

My surrogate mother was framed in her open doorway, the moonlight bathing her in an ethereal glow. She looked sweet as pie, but I knew the woman would destroy a city block because of a paper cut. That had been a fun experience in the 1700s.

Momma R sniffed. “It wasn’t just a paper cut.”

I grinned. “Sorry I woke you. I’m just gonna shower and head to bed.”

The witch padded toward me, bare feet silent on the polished wood. She wrapped her arms around me, urging me to rest my head on Momma R’s shoulder. “I didn’t expect you to return. Want to talk about it?”

“No,” I mumbled and returned the witch’s hug.

Delicate hands stroked my back and Momma R released a low, haunting hum that always relaxed me. It was a song older than time, she said. One that could calm even the angriest demon. Including my Uncle Luc. I didn’t wanna know how Momma R knew that fact.

“It’ll all look better in the morning, little demon.”

I snorted. “Right. Because I will suddenly have my brownies back and green-eyed monsters are going on a vacay and then the human asshole will cease to be a problem. Wait, then the pics of me getting my flame on will disappear from the cloud.” I sighed and eased away from Momma R. “Sorry, I’m a little ragefire-y right now. I’ll shower—”

“Take a bath. The new tub can endure a bit of your hellfire. You know it would relax you.”

I nodded. “Okay, bathe and then tomorrow figure out what else could possibly go wrong.”

“Well, I have solved one of your issues.” Momma R smiled.

“You murdered the human?” I was hopeful.

That had the witch laughing. “No, your father, Percival made me promise to cut back on killing.” That had her releasing a longsuffering sigh. “But I have obtained brownies for your home and bar. Blooming Aster and her family are already in residence and putting things to rights. You can return home tomorrow.”

I wrinkled my nose. “I overstayed my welcome, huh?”

“No, little demon.” Momma R cupped my cheeks. “Never. But you are an independent soul, much like your family. You require your own space or else you lose your temper and I like this house. Now, go relax and I will see you in the morning. I am making you pancakes.”

“Angel ones?”

Momma R rolled her eyes. “Yes, angels so you can pluck off their wings. Now, go.”

Momma R nudged me toward the end of the hallway and I went. At least some of my problems were resolved. A long bath, a good night’s sleep, and all would be better in the morning.

Or I’d turn the whole town to ash and start over.