Unfortunately, it was Flo who appeared a moment later. She stopped and lifted a questioning brow at the assembled men. “Do I even want to know what you four have been up to?” Flo grumbled.
“Baer brought home a surprise,” Grey drawled with a smirk.
“Screw you!” Baer snapped. He gave Grey’s shoulder a shove before he stepped over to where Wiley was perched on the edge of a couch cushion. The poor guy looked torn between hope and despair. “I met Wiley Stuart while I was at the bakery. Pestilents attacked, and I think he’s a Weaver.”
Flo was a short, skinny woman with a web of wrinkles crisscrossing her stern face. Her steely gray hair was pulled into its usual bun on the back of her head. She propped her fists on her narrow hips and frowned. “So, they’re back at it, huh? I’ll check in with my sisters. Make sure the protective barrier is still up to snuff. We were hoping it would take them a few more months to pull their act together.”
“Aunt Flo,” Dane said gently. “What about Wiley?”
Flo glared at the young man, and he seemed to sink further into himself. Flo wasn’t the most pleasant to be around, but her expression softened when Wiley looked up at her with his big brown eyes.
Unfortunately, she turned her glare on Baer, and her voice was full of exasperation. “Really, Baer? Every cute boy you meet isn’t going to be a Weaver.”
Baer’s mouth fell open, but anything he was going to say was lost under the thunder of laughter that erupted from Clay, Dane, and Grey.
“Wait! No! He talked to an old lady!” Baer looked over at Wiley, who had his hand over his mouth like he was fighting not to laugh with the others. At least he didn’t look like someone had just kicked him.
“And we’re not the only old ladies running around this city,” Flo pointed out.
Baer dropped his arms to his sides in defeat. This wasn’t working out how he’d thought it would at all. He’d been sure that he’d successfully brought them one step closer to being complete. The Circle needed all six Weavers safely gathered at the plantation house and with their powers if they were ever going to defeat the pestilents.
Flo walked over to his side and patted his cheek with her soft, wrinkled hand. “I appreciate your enthusiasm, kid, but it didn’t work out this time.” Baer groaned and closed his eyes. What was worse than Grey’s teasing? Flo’s pity.
Clearing her throat, Flo straightened. “I was just passing through, but I’ll give the news of the pestilents stirring up trouble to my sisters. Stick close to the plantation whenever possible, and watch your backs.”
“Thanks, Aunt Flo,” Dane said easily. She gripped the healer in a quick hug before continuing to the kitchen. It was becoming clear that Dane was her favorite, and that drove Clay a little crazy.
Baer shrugged off Flo’s strange appearance. All the goddesses were prone to passing through the plantation whenever it fit their mood. Sometimes they stopped in for a big dinner as if they were all one happy family and other times, weeks would pass before any of them appeared again.
Feeling like a total ass, Baer dragged himself over to the sofa and flopped down next to Wiley. The smaller man smiled sweetly at him, and that only made the feeling worse. It had been clear on the drive to the plantation that Baer had gotten his hopes up against being a part of this unique brotherhood. And now it was all being ripped away.
“Wiley…I am so sorry. I don’t even know how I managed to make such a mistake. When you said that a crazy old lady told you to go to the bakery, I was sure that was one of the aunts directing you to us.” Baer dropped his head into both of his hands. “I’m sorry. I—”
“Baer, it’s okay.” Wiley placed a hand on his shoulder and squeezed. “I mean, sure it’s disappointing that I’m not a Weaver and I don’t get magic. That would have been so awesome and amazing! I love superheroes and magic. But, this is almost as good. I got to meet you, right?”
Baer turned his head enough to peek at Wiley’s smiling face through strands of his hair. The guy really was too sweet for his own good.
“And I got to meet the other Weavers, right?” Wiley looked over at Clay, Grey, and Dane, waiting for them to confirm.
“They’re the Weavers,” Dane explained, pointing to Clay and Grey. “I’m just a soul mate.”
Clay snorted and pulled Dane tightly against him. “You’re also our resident healer and sexy handyman.”
“Tone it down, Clay. You make it sound like we’re filming porn here,” Grey muttered.
“Fuck off,” Clay snapped.
“And was that one of the goddesses you mentioned?” Wiley asked, not bothered by Clay and Grey’s bickering.
“Yep,” Baer confirmed.
Wiley squealed and bounced on the couch. “That’s so awesome! I saw an actual goddess! Do they all look like that? Do you think I’ve actually met one of the others?”
“Maybe. I don’t know.”
“Wow,” he breathed. “I wonder why they look like old women. In all the books and comics, they’re always these radiant beings in the bodies of beautiful young women with beams of golden light shining out of them. So unexpected.” He made another excited noise and shivered. “This has been one of the best days of my life. I mean, other than the whole insanity and blood at the bakery. You changing into a mountain lion was mind-blowing! Does that hurt?”
“Go ahead, Baer. Show him how you turn into a peacock,” Grey teased.
Baer flipped him off, but there was the smallest hint of a smile pulling at his lips. When he’d tried to convince Grey of Weavers and magic, he’d attempted to turn into a peacock. Unfortunately, they’d killed a bottle of whiskey first, so Baer’s peacock actually ended up an ostrich, and he destroyed the coffee table in the process. The important lesson there had been not to shift while drinking.
“But we can’t let you leave here with this information. It’s too dangerous,” Baer said in a rough voice.
“Really?” Wiley swallowed hard, his wide brown eyes capturing him. “Do you have to kill me to protect your secret?”
“No!” Baer shouted, jerking at the very idea of ever laying a hand on the young man. The others joined in a chorus of emphatic denials as well.
Wiley released a loud sigh of relief and slouched on the couch enough that his arm brushed against Baer’s, sending the most wonderful tingle along his skin.
“Oh good,” Wiley breathed. “I swear I won’t tell anyone. You can completely trust me. I’d never reveal your secret identities,” Wiley continued quickly. He grabbed one of Baer’s arms with both of his hands. “I promise, I won’t tell anyone. It’s not like anyone would believe me in the first place. But even if they did, I still wouldn’t tell anyone.”
“I’m sorry, but Grey will have to wipe your memory. It’s for the best. We don’t want to put you in danger, and knowing us is definitely dangerous.” Baer looked up at the Soul Weaver, and Grey’s eyes suddenly widened. He looked from Wiley and then over to Clay for a moment, as if in a panic, before he cleared his throat.
“Yeah…um…I can’t.”
“What?” Baer gaped.