Total pages in book: 121
Estimated words: 113319 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 567(@200wpm)___ 453(@250wpm)___ 378(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 113319 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 567(@200wpm)___ 453(@250wpm)___ 378(@300wpm)
“I love you,” she replied in a whisper, and this time her deep, heartfelt gaze lingered on him.
“You guys are gross,” Aurora muttered, fighting a smile again.
“They can be much grosser,” Mimi told her. “Don’t challenge them. We want them to keep their clothes on.”
Aurora furrowed her brow at Mimi, rolled her eyes, and looked away with a shaking head. Her smile shone through, though.
“Why is it you allow yourself to smile with Jess and no one else?” Austin couldn’t help but ask as they wound closer to the house.
Aurora glanced at the review mirror, caught his gaze, and looked away again. She shrugged. “Because it’s her culture. Because she can’t understand my subtle movements, and it hinders conversation. Because she looks down on an expressionless face the way shifters look down on an expressive face—”
“I do no such thing.” Jess twisted in her seat to scowl back at Aurora. “I don’t look down on you ever, even when you’re mean-mugging me.” She turned back. “But I definitely can’t understand your subtle movements. I’m not even convinced you’re making any movements. I think you just think you are, but nothing is actually happening, and you are left wondering why no one answers you.”
Aurora blurted out a laugh. “Maybe so.” She looked out the window, then added, “Because she feels more like a sister than an aunt, and I’ve always wanted a sister. Mac is a dodo. He acts half his age.”
“He actually acts his age, you mean,” Mimi told her. “You act my age. You need to learn to live a little and stop worrying about the job so much.”
“Dad never let me live a little,” Aurora grumbled. “All I’ve been thinking about since I was five years old is gaining strength and learning all I could so that I could have a pack of my own someday.”
Something tightened up inside Austin. “Or gaining strength so that if someone ever came after your dad again, like I did, you’d be able to protect your family.”
Her eyes looked haunted in the mirror. She didn’t comment, and his gut twisted. He’d apologized several times at this point, spoken to her about it one on one a couple times and asked if there was anything more he could do to try to rebuild that bridge. Every time she shrugged it off, telling him he was doing all the right things. She’d forgiven him.
He was having a hard time forgiving himself. He still looked back on that time with dread, though, with this horrible soul-crushing guilt, wanting a redo. Wanting to change it. He could only move forward, determined to always be there for her, always.
“I never had a sister, either.” Jess turned in her seat again and reached back, putting her hand on Aurora’s knee. She waited until Aurora looked at her. “I have a brother, too. He was older, but also a dingus most of the time.”
Aurora smiled, but what Austin had said clearly affected her. She tapped Jess’s hand, very clearly showing warmth and gratitude, before squeezing the band to point the diamond her way.
“It is a pretty ring.”
Jess was beaming when she turned back. “Thank you. Austin has great taste.”
When Aurora met his eyes in the rearview this time, her little smile and posturing said she thought their interactions over the ring were cute.
“At least you’re living a little now, though,” Jess said, and pointed at the house in question. “That one.”
She watched it go by as they looked for a parking place amid the Lexuses, Mercedes, Teslas, and other luxury vehicles parked outside. Not supercars, though. Nothing that screamed crazy wealth. These people were prosperous, but there were no oil tycoons among them.
“My goodness,” Mimi said, twisting a little to continue looking as they went down the street. “Brick facing in this part of the world? No, that doesn’t work, especially with that color brown on the garage and…boards for decoration. That house is in drastic need of an update. At least peel off those boards and give it some paint. New garage doors. It would make the world of difference, even with the brick facing.”
“I hope you mention every single word of that to Lottie,” Jess murmured. To Aurora, she said, “It looked like you had a great time with Ulric and Jasper the other night.”
Aurora laughed. “I’m a little ashamed to say it was the most fun I’ve had in my life. All I did was dance, too. Dance and joke and laugh. They are so much fun to be around. And so…” She gave Austin a puzzled look. “So sex positive. Like… Are all gargoyles that…”
“Loose? Free? Unencumbered?” Jess helped. “Most are. Garhettes, too. They have a very open culture. It’s nice. I prefer it. They are respectful and easygoing and blasé, not at all worried about rejection.”