It’s a crystal-clear day—I take that to be a meaningful sign—and as I sit on the top deck of the three-story houseboat sipping a cup of coffee, I can see Mount Rainier in all its glory. I’m lounging on a chaise with custom made cushions in navy and white while enjoying the late afternoon sun on my face.
“Mind if I join you?” Myles says from the sliding glass door that leads out onto this upper deck.
Tipping my head back and to the side, I give him a smile. “Of course not.”
I mean, how could I mind his company? It’s because of Myles that I have this luxury houseboat to hide out on until I can figure out how to cut myself completely free of this prophecy. The Fantasia belongs to Myles’ aunt and uncle, who are both top-level executives at Google. While they mainly work from the Mountain View, California headquarters, they also spend a few months a year working in the Seattle office, which is in Freemont. I think it speaks for itself they are so incredibly well paid they have a five-million-dollar houseboat in Seattle to stay just a few months a year.
Myles settles into a lounge chair beside me. He has a beer in hand and while I might be tempted to just sit out here and get drunk, I need to keep my head clear.
“Thank you so much for letting me stay here,” I say for what might be the tenth time.
“Enough,” he growls in response, indicating I need to stop with the gratitude.
This morning after I had my vague-as-hell talk with my friends, to my surprise, they accepted my need to hide for a while. They rallied together to brainstorm ideas, but it was Myles who immediately suggested the Fantasia. He has complete access to it as his aunt and uncle don’t mind him staying here at all. In fact, they sort of wish he’d stay here full time to keep an eye on it, but as it is, he checks on it weekly for them.
I’ve been here a few times with Myles when he’s been doing his weekly walk through to make sure everything is okay, and I had asked him why in the world would he rent a room from me when he could have all this luxury.
His answer was simple. “But I’d be alone, and I’d rather live in a hovel with you and Rainey than here.”
Of course, that was “pre-Adira” coming to live with us, but I’m sure she’d be included in that sentiment now.
“You can stay here for quite a while,” Myles says before taking a sip of beer. Both our gazes are pinned on Mount Rainier in the distance. “I talked to Aunt Mary and she said they’re not coming until early November.”
“I really appreciate that,” I say, a little worried we’re doing this on the sly. Poor Aunt Mary and Uncle Tony don’t know I’m a vagrant guest staying here.
But in a way, I’m sure it’s technically okay since Myles is staying here with me, too, as well as Rainey and Adira. Myles has unfettered access and an open invitation to stay here anytime he wants, so we’re all just quietly assuming his aunt and uncle don’t mind if he has guests.
“I’m really glad all of you decided to come with me,” I say to Myles. When I was thinking about running somewhere to hide out, I had originally thought it would be on my own. But the more I thought about it, the more I wondered if my friends could be in danger by staying behind. I’m thinking Carrick put a protection spell on my house last night, but I don’t know if it was just to protect me or all inhabitants. I don’t know from what he was warding either. Was it to keep Fallon away or all fae?
Moreover, maybe he wasn’t putting a protection spell on my house at all. Maybe he was doing something sinister instead, although I can’t think what that would be. He needs me to further his purposes, so it wouldn’t make sense for him to hurt me.
Regardless, I wasn’t sure how to ask my friends to come with me. The only thing I could think of was to play a lonely-sympathy card with them, but before I could even do so, Myles announced on everyone’s behalf that they were not letting me stay on the Fantasia alone.
It took us all about two hours this morning to pack our belongings and move from my house to the houseboat under the Aurora Bridge.
It’s a Saturday, and Myles is off. Rainey was scheduled to work, but she called in sick because she was worried and didn’t want to leave me on my first day of hiding out. Adira is at work right now doing the middle shift at One Bean. I gave her the key to my office, and she’s going to bring me my laptop as well as some paper files I need to be able to work from here.
As for One Bean, I sent a message to my managers that I had the flu and was working from home. I guess it’s a testament to the good people I have in place I have no concerns that things will be just fine without me for a while. At a minimum, I’m hoping I can figure things out within a week and start making a reappearance at my job. What I want to make sure is that Carrick is going to let me go with all this prophecy nonsense, but we’re going to have to play that day by day.
The sliding glass door whooshes and Myles and I both turn our heads that way, knowing it’s Rainey. She steps out with a chilled martini in her hand, with three large olives. She takes a sip before closing the door, leveling a grin at Myles. “Your aunt and uncle have a very well-stocked bar.”
Myles holds his beer up in salute. “That they do.”
Rainey sashays our way. Myles pretends not to notice, and Rainey doesn’t notice him pretending to not notice. Even in a pair of stretch leggings and a long tunic sweater, she still cuts a very sexy figure, and more than ever, Myles is hopelessly in love with her. I sure wish someone else would come his way and turn his eye, because he’s just setting himself up for failure and heartbreak because Rainey doesn’t feel that same way.
Choosing a chair at a nearby table set, Rainey sets her martini glass on the wooden top and plops down. It has the same custom-sewn navy and white cushions that are over the top sumptuous for an outdoor set of furniture.
“Want to invite Fallon over to eat with us tonight?” Rainey asks and I try hard to keep a horrified look off my face at such a suggestion. “I mean… if she’s feeling better from last night, that is. Bet she’d totally get a kick out of this place, and you two didn’t really get to celebrate your birthdays together.”
When Fallon changed into a Dark Fae before my eyes, she was whisked off to her bedroom by her fiancé, Blain. I made an exit quickly thereafter, but Rainey, Myles, and Adira stayed for about another half hour. They said Fallon never made a reappearance and after they had another round of food, they left as well.
Of course, I can’t ever tell them what Fallon has become.
Or rather, what she isn’t, because she’s not my sister. A wave of grief washes through me, causing my lower lip to tremble a bit.
Luckily, before I can even think of a reasonable excuse not to extend the invitation, Rainey reverses her idea. “On second thought, she’d want to bring Blain and I sure as hell don’t want to have to suffer his presence. No offense, Finley.”
“None taken,” I reply airily, thankful that was averted.
Clearly, Carrick isn’t my only problem. I have to figure out what to do about Fallon, who isn’t really Fallon. That’s going to require finesse and I’m not feeling that right now. Since Fallon and I don’t normally talk every day, I’ve got some time I can get away with being silent on my end while I figure things out.