Chapter 2
Chapter
Two
MERRI
The scrape of ceramic across wood pulled my focus from the surreal beauty of the lake beyond the window. A mug of cocoa, complete with melting marshmallows, sat in front of me, steam curling from the top.
“Here, drink this. My mom always said hot chocolate could fix almost anything.” Cole’s voice soothed my frayed nerves.
I accepted the cup with a mumbled, “Thanks,” stealing a few surreptitious glances at my new housemate.
He was way more handsome than I had expected, but not in a knock you over way like the horsemen.
Cole was normal guy handsome. He was giving Henry Golding vibes.
Like polished and cultured, but it wouldn’t be weird to see him doing DIY projects around the house.
Business suit in the streets, but he has flannel sheets.
“Are you okay? You looked rattled when I answered the door.” He took the seat across from me but didn’t move to touch me. I probably seemed a lot like a scared stray cat at the moment.
“No. I’m not. Not by a long shot.”
“Do you—”
“I don’t want to talk about it. Not yet.”
He held up both his hands in a placating gesture. “No worries. I’m down to listen whenever you’re ready. In the meantime, why don’t you enjoy the hot chocolate, and I’ll get back to work. When you’re ready, you can come find me, and I’ll give you the nickel tour.”
I cocked a brow. “Nickel tour?”
He smirked, flashing me a heretofore unknown dimple. “I just meant there’s not a whole lot to see. Grand tour felt like it would be misleading.”
A genuine smile graced my lips for the first time since I’d had my heart crushed by Grim. “With a view like this, it's already pretty grand.”
He turned and looked out the window at said view.
The lake water was so still it resembled a mirror, reflecting the fire-streaked sky.
It was as beautiful as it was eerie. Nothing was in bloom, but the evergreens made up for the lack of foliage.
Due to the lake, their roots must have had enough water even with the raised temperature.
Just like at the chateau, there was not a flake of snow to be found. So much for winter.
“You should have seen it a week ago,” he said, still looking out at the lake. “The snow all melted because of the heat, and the whole thing was overflowing.”
I peered out the floor-to-ceiling windows. “Looks normal to me.”
“Yeah, now. All the runoff evaporated. Who knows what it will look like next week.”
“Sounds like par for the course with an apocalypse,” I muttered.
“What was that?”
Shit. The humans had no idea what was happening.
I wasn’t going to burst his bubble. Poor Cole had enough on his plate with me invading his life.
“Nothing.” I flashed him a brighter-than-normal smile before picking up my hot cocoa and bringing it to my lips.
He was right; it was delicious. “Can I bring this on the tour?”
“As long as you don’t dump it on my typewriter,” he teased.
I gasped. “I would never.”
He winked at me before offering his elbow. “Ready?”
“As I’ll ever be,” I said, accepting the proffered arm.
“All right. This, as you can see, is the kitchen-slash-dining room. Where I’ve enjoyed many a TV dinner while writing.”
“Shnazzy.”
“I do love to embody a stereotype.”
An unexpected bubble of laughter escaped me. “And what stereotype is that? Bachelor?”
“Starving artist.”
I snickered. “Fair. Well done, then.”
He gave me a little bow and then pulled me into the living room. “And here is where I sit alone and watch my stories.”
Another giggle escaped me. “Stories? Like soap operas?”
“Reality TV mostly. I’m partial to the real estate shows. The drama. The houses. The backstabbing. It’s really great for plotlines.”
“What exactly do you write?” I glanced at the bookshelf and caught sight of a row of hardbacks with the name C.J. Hardy.
“Political thrillers. No one is more diabolical than a politician. Trust me.”
“Was that a secret? Because I’m pretty sure everyone knows that.”
He laughed. “No, I guess it’s not. It’s why we’re in this mess now. Climate change.”
“Totally,” I said, taking another sip of my drink to avoid giving anything away.
Cole tugged on my arm again, pulling me into a long hallway.
“So this is the”—he paused for dramatic effect—“hallway, where, as you can see, I’ve pulled down every awkward photo of me as a teenager.
I did leave this gem, though.” He stopped beside a picture of what I had to assume was him as a child, dressed up in a devil costume and beaming at the camera with his mother beside him.
“I really like the ’stache.”
He grinned. “I’m partial to the goatee. I drew that on with my mom’s eyeliner.”
“Very professional.”
“I know,” he said with a sigh. “I could’ve been a Lucifer impersonator, but I chose the life of a creative instead.”
“I suppose one could argue they aren’t that far off.”
“Hey now.”
“Do you know how many romance novels I’ve read that made me wonder if the author was secretly the devil? Those cliffhangers can be brutal.”
Waggling his brows, he nudged me with his elbow. “That’s what we’re going for.”
Something about being here with him, pretending everything was normal, made me feel less devastated by what had happened only an hour ago.
I was still missing four pieces of my heart, but Cole’s presence steadied me and distracted me from the pain I knew would come the moment I was alone.
Suddenly, I found myself wishing this tour would never end.
Coming up to the first door, Cole waved a hand.
“This one’s my room.” Instead of opening it up and taking me inside, we avoided the whole awkward I’m in your bedroom and you’ve seen me naked moment and kept walking.
“This one used to be the guestroom, but I converted it into my office a few years ago after my folks died.”
“So you inherited this place?”
“Yeah. My parents bought it before I was born. I’ve been coming here every summer since I can remember.”
I could picture the little devil running on the shore, splashing in the water while his mom watched. “How nice.”
“Yeah. It was. They used it less and less the older they got, so I made it into a writing retreat until recently. Once things went to hell in a handbasket, this seemed like the perfect escape. It’s where all my best memories are.
We even buried my dog under the big tree by the lake.
Charlie was the best. So loyal, but what else can you expect from a border collie? ”
Before I could react to the sad story about his dog, he opened the door at the end of the hall and flipped on the light, revealing a simple but cozy bedroom.
“This can be your room. The bathroom is shared with my office, but I never use that one. I have my own. You’ll have all the privacy you need.”
I couldn’t help but notice that he remained in the doorway, respecting that this was now my space. It shouldn’t have been a surprise. Cole had always been a gentleman with me. I mean, until he wasn’t, but that was different.
“Well, I’ll let you get settled. Give me a holler if you need anything. Or if you get hungry. I don’t have much, but I do make a mean grilled cheese sandwich, and I’m pretty sure there are a few cans of soup floating around in the pantry.”
As soon as he left, I closed the door and sat down on the bed.
Taking a deep breath, I sank into the reality of my situation.
He was the last person I’d be going to when I got hungry.
Feeding was one problem I currently had zero solutions for.
With the grid down, camming was out. And with Cole being human and not supernatural, there was no way I could risk his life.
Not to mention I couldn’t toy with his emotions like that.
He thought he loved me. It would be cruel to play on those feelings.
I was going to have to come up with another solution.
And soon. Maybe I could find someone safe to snack on in a dreamwalk? I guess we’d find out.
Shoving that problem away for now, I took another calming breath.
The human pheromones were strong even though this was just a guest room.
Honestly, it took the sting out of not having my horsemen.
If they’d rejected me, but I’d stayed? Fuck.
Their pheromones would have broken me. Even now, just thinking of them sent pain slicing through my chest. How could they do that to me?
Grim with his words, the rest of them with their silence.
A single tear slid down my cheek, my lip wobbling in its wake. If I gave in, I’d start really crying. Not soft, gentle whimpers either. Great racking sobs. A faint knock had me swiping the offending tear away as Cole pushed open the door. He stood there with a laundry hamper in his hands.
“Sorry. I just thought you’d like some towels and a change of clothes. They’re mine, so they’ll be big, but you can't stay in those forever.”
So much for not crying. Tears burst free, and I let out a keening wail.
“Oh shit, I’m sorry. I was just trying to—”
“I-it’s . . . n-not . . . y-you,” I forced out, though I wasn’t sure how coherent the words were between my sobs.
He dropped the hamper and rushed to my side, pulling me against his warm chest as I continued crying. Gentle hands rubbed my back as he made soothing noises.
“What happened, Merri? Was it that guy? The rock star?”
Again, that pang of deep loss hit me, and I nodded, inhaling a shuddering breath.
“What did he do to you?”
My lip quivered as tears continued spilling down my cheeks. I hadn’t thought this far ahead, but I should have. I was so focused on getting away that I never came up with a human-safe version of events to explain my arrival. Not knowing what else to do, I went with the opening Cole provided.
“I was stupid. I caught feelings, and I thought he did too.”
“Of course you did.”
“Yeah, but he’s a rock star. I should’ve known better. Instead, I was delusional.”
He pulled back and stared into my eyes. “Merri, I need you to listen to me. Any man who doesn’t see what a treasure you are must be blind. He lost you because he was stupid. Not because you were. He doesn’t deserve you.”
I sniffled and Cole reached up, brushing a tear off my face with the pad of his thumb. “Thank you for saying that.”
“I mean it.”
His eyes were so kind. He was so kind. It was such a shame Cole hid himself from society. The world needed men like him.
He tucked a stray lock of hair behind my ear and offered me a shy smile. “Why don’t you get some rest? I’ll be here when you need me. Just say the word.”
I nodded as he stood. Before he left the room, I called, “Cole?”
“Yeah?”
“Thank you.”
Expression serious, he said, “Anything for you, Merri.”