Chapter 59
Amir
“No World Series?” Remi confirmed. He had frown on his face, which was cuter than it should have been.
“Not this time, no.”
“Damn. I was hoping you’d at least get that as some sort of dope send-off.”
“It was always a slim chance, especially two years in a row.”
“Still. The gods have failed me this time.”
“What would Odin do to get me to the World Series, huh?”
He scoffed. “Don’t underestimate him. Maybe a violent tragedy would befall all the other teams’ batters.”
“He must know that I don’t condone violence.”
“Yeah, yeah. We’re all aware that you’re boring.”
“Speaking of boring, this venue you sent me seems . . .”
“What?” he asked.
“Plain.”
The word clearly offended him. When I reached for him, he evaded me and grabbed a piece of Halloween candy from the bowl on the counter.
“It’s in the woods,” he pointed out.
“Woods can be plain.”
“That chapel is gorgeous. Did you see all the glass?”
“It’s small.”
“We’re not having a big wedding.”
“Why not?”
His eyes narrowed. “I have a total of, like, ten people to invite. You haven’t mentioned having a huge family.”
“I don’t, but there’s the team, then Avery’s family, my friends.”
“You have no friends.” He held up his hand before I could respond. “You already counted the team.”
With a thoughtful hum, I took a caramel from the bowl. His nose wrinkled as he watched me pop it into my mouth.
“So, like, a hundred people,” I said.
“More like fifty.”
“We could open it up to the public. The fans. Oooh.” I smiled as I chewed the caramel. “The press.”
“If Clara’s fugly face shows up, I will find a chainsaw and cut it off of her.”
My lips pursed as I glanced over at Mal, who was doing homework at the table. Grabbing Remi around the waist, I dragged him to the other side of the kitchen, then leaned against the counter without letting him go.
“The season’s over for us,” I said softly. “I want you to know how much I appreciate you sticking it out.”
“Of course I stuck it out. I promised.” He held up his left hand.
I kissed the ring, then pressed his fingers against my chest. “I know it’s affected you, though. You’ve been stressed.”
“Just because the vultures spotted my ring and want to invade my personal space. It’ll die down soon enough.”
“It might spike for a bit since they’re curious about my departure.”
He shrugged, and a soft smile settled on his lips. “I’m allowed to be an asshole to them now, so it’s fine. You might be worth it.”
“You might not be saying that when I’m working with you every night.”
“Every night? Absolutely not.”
“Don’t you want to see me as often as you can?”
“I love you, but that’s a bit of a stretch. You get in my way.”
“Well, that’s rude.”
He booped my nose, then slipped out of my arms. Moving to the dining room table, he picked up Mal’s mask.
She tried to grab it from him, but he danced out of the way and held it up to his face.
Even though it wasn’t finished, it was terrifying.
Of course, the draugr had been Remi’s idea, and since the strange kid liked to freak out the other children when she opened the door and stood there silently, it was a no-brainer.
“Will it be ready for tomorrow?” I asked.
She nodded. “Perfect.”
“I know it will be.”
“And yours.”
“Mine?”
She went to the hutch and threw open one of the doors. My brows rose when she pulled out an umpire mask. Taking it from her, I checked out the splatters of red paint across the front and the cracks in the casing.
Remi had put on a different one. It had the face of a raven, which reminded me a bit of a plague mask. One of the eyes was hanging out of the socket, secured by a spring that bounced when he moved.
“These are fantastic,” I said. “You must’ve spent a long time on them.”
“Remi helped,” she replied.
“Good. Can’t have him slacking off while we work hard.”
“Careful,” he warned. “I’m the breadwinner in the house now.”
“Sure you are, baby.”
With a glare, he put his mask back on the shelf. Mal turned her nose up at me too, and together they walked out of the room, whispering to each other. Apparently, I’d become the enemy, although I knew that he’d be back before long. Regardless of what he said, he couldn’t stay away.
I looked at the mask with a smile. It still needed something—a finishing touch of sorts.
Heading into the garage, I laid eyes on my wooden bat. I picked it up and twirled it a couple of times, then set off to steal some of Mal’s paint. Might as well go all in. And if I knew Remi at all, he was going to love it.