28
Soleil
Somehow, Finn and I make it out of the inn.
Barely. And only because once I get cleaned up and he takes a turn for his own bath, he shoos me out of the room.
“There’s absolutely no way either of us are making it to my mother’s house if you stay here and help me wash up.”
Giggling—goddess, I do more giggling these days than I’ve ever done in my damn life—I head into the bedroom and contemplate the clothes I have with me.
Nothing screams ‘meeting potential future in-laws’, and the longer I look, the heavier the weight in the bottom of my gut becomes.
Meeting the future in-laws.
Meeting Finn’s mother, his sister, when the two of us barely know what we are to each other.
Maybe it’s a bad idea.
An especially bad idea, considering I have nothing to wear.
Though I dig and dig through the options, they’re all pretty much the same.
Practical work clothes, mostly in shades of black because when you work with potions, you never know what color stains you’re going to wind up with on any given day.
Nothing even remotely suitable for meeting Finn’s family.
I’m still standing there, staring forlornly at every piece of clothing I had tucked into my satchel—now spread haphazardly across the bed—when Finn comes out of the bathroom.
All thoughts of clothes are forgotten.
He’s got a towel slung low across his hips. The rest of him is bare, golden skin sill damp and gleaming from the steam. His broad chest, his abs, the deep vee at his waist pointing straight to the bulge beneath the fabric, which stirs and grows larger the longer I look.
Finn clears his throat. “My eyes are up here, sunshine.”
I flush deep crimson, and he smirks before nodding toward the closet.
“If you’re looking for something to wear, you might want to look in there.”
Intrigued, I walk over—still draped in my own towel—and look.
Hanging in a neat row are several lovely, exquisitely made dresses.
Mouth falling open, I turn back to Finn. “Where did these come from?”
He walks over to join me, standing way closer than necessary, hands resting on my hips and reply murmured into my ear. “I arranged for them to be brought over this afternoon. Since I sprung this outing on you, I figured I should also find you something to wear.”
“They’re beautiful.” I run my fingers over the fabrics, luxurious and buttery in several shades of green and mauve and dark blue that I already know would all look incredible on me.
“I hope they work,” he says, a bit abashed. “I had to guess what you might like.”
“You did great.”
He preens at that before heading over to his own bag to pull out what he’s wearing for the evening.
In the end, I choose a dress in emerald green. It hangs to my mid-calf and has light, gossamer sleeves that will be perfect for the brisk autumn evening. The bodice is fitted and nips in at my waist before falling into loose, flowy skirts that make me want to do a little twirl when I put it on.
A quick touch-up of my hair and makeup, and I’m about as ready as I’ll ever be.
I find Finn waiting on the balcony wearing black trousers and a well-tailored black jacket with slats cut into the back to accommodate his wings.
He looks dashing and rakish and all kinds of delicious as he turns to face me, mouth curved into an appreciative grin and little crinkles of pleasure around the corners of his eyes as he takes me in.
He grasps my hand and lifts it. “Let’s see all of it, then.”
Slowly, I give him a twirl. I feel beautiful, and cherished, and completely unlike myself as he spins me into his arms.
“Exquisite, Soleil. Utterly exquisite.”
Another flush, but I make myself blink all the stars and butterflies floating around my head away. “Must be some fancy party we’re going to.”
He laughs as he leads me toward the door. “Not really. Just a small family get-together, but my mother does have a flair for the elegant.”
The shoes I’m wearing have a small heel, and I try not to wince as I look at the streets sloping up into the hills. Feet aside, I can’t imagine all the huffing and puffing up the hill to wherever we’re going is going to make me look like anything other than a mess by the time we get there.
Finn, without missing a beat, sweeps me up into his arms.
“Just a small portal,” he says. “Ready?”
“Ready,” I tell him breathlessly, adjusting my skirt so no one gets an eyeful of me wherever we land.
After how much portal travel we’ve done over the past few days, I’m almost getting the hang of it.
Almost.
It’ll still never feel entirely natural, but as Finn steps us out on the other side, at least I don’t feel like I’m about to hurl.
He sets me back down on my feet at the front door of a large, beautiful estate set into the hills. Made of the same white stone as many of the surrounding buildings, it’s got several terraced stories with fantastic views of the city and the sea.
Finn raises his hand to knock, but the door is already opening.
The demon woman standing on the threshold looks so much like Finn that I don’t even have to guess who she is.
“Ma, this is Soleil,” Finn says, then turns to me. “And Soleil, this is my mother, Lynore.”
“Nice to meet you.” I extend my hand, but find myself pulled into a hug instead.
Finn’s mom smells like sea air and a light, floral perfume. Tall and lean like her son, with a surprisingly firm grip as she gives me a good squeeze.
“It’s so lovely to meet you,” she says as she lets me go. “Finn had such wonderful things to say about you when we spoke earlier today.”
“Did he?” I glance up at Finn.
His cheeks and the tips of his ears turn a little pink, and he scrubs a hand over the back of his neck.
“It’s hard not to sing your praises, sunshine.”
My cheeks heat, too, and Lynore looks absolutely delighted as she ushers us inside.
We’ve barely made it through the door before a new voice calls out from the foyer’s second-floor landing.
“Finn! You’re here!”
Another demon woman—this one younger and even more similar to Finn—bounds down the stairs and throws her arms around him.
“And you brought a guest.” She gives me a long, evaluating look.
“My sister,” Finn says. “Ellery. And Ellery, this is Soleil.”
Immediately, I’m swept into another hug.
All the affection is a bit disorienting, and I wobble back to Finn’s side when she lets me go.
“It’s wonderful to meet you both.”
“Likewise,” Ellery says, then leads the way out of the foyer and into a living space.
The room is set up for indoor-outdoor living, with wide glass windows and a door opening onto a stone patio that overlooks the sea and the sunset.
It’s breathtaking, opulent, and a reminder that Finn is, in fact, from a very, very wealthy family.
It’s been easy to let that fact slip my mind lately, especially considering most of our time together has been spent roughing it in the wilderness.
But now that I’m here, it’s impossible to ignore.
We settle onto the low, comfortable sofas in the living room. A salt-kissed breeze wafts in from outside, temperate and refreshing as Lynore cracks open a bottle of wine and divides it into four glasses.
Even the wine tastes expensive.
A white that’s light and floral, with a sparkling finish, it’s the perfect complement to this incredible place.
“So,” Lynore says when she gets settled into her seat. “I’m dying to know how the two of you met.”
“Uh…” I look at Finn, and amusement tugs his lips into a smirk. “We met… at court.”
“Oh,” Ellery interjects. “You’re one of the witches who came through with the new bargain, then? I’ve heard so much about how you all have been shaking things up at court.”
“Not exactly,” I say with a nervous laugh. “I’m just… just visiting, I guess.”
Finn’s mother and sister share a look I can’t quite decipher, and sweat breaks out on the back of my neck.
“Soleil’s sister is mated to Callum,” Finn helpfully chimes in. “We met when she was here visiting Seren.”
Not quite the truth, but passable, and I toss him a grateful smile.
I doubt I’d win many points with his family if they knew the truth about how I reacted the first time we met.
“A shame, truly,” Ellery sighs, though quickly turns to me and corrects herself.
“Sorry! Not to imply anything negative about you or your sister, but have you seen Callum? I swear I was half in love with him when I was younger. The whole gruff, broody mercenary thing really did it for me, you know?”
I let out a surprised laugh. “I can see why that would be appealing.”
A low rumble echoes in Finn’s chest, and he reaches over to grab my hand. “Careful, sunshine.”
I grin at him, and when I finally extinguish the little hearts from my eyes, I find Lynore looking at me with a thoughtful expression on her face.
Fortunately, I escape from the hot seat for the next few minutes.
The three Nighfalls talk about happenings at court and in Gales Harbor—easy conversation that makes my chest ache a little remembering nights I used to spend with mom, dad, and Seren before everything fell apart.
I’m happy enough just to listen, to hold Finn’s hand and enjoy learning more about their lives, but it turns out I can’t escape the spotlight forever.
After a few more minutes, Lynore stands and nods toward the wide doors leading to the outdoor living space.
“Soleil, will you join me for a chat on the terrace?”
“Ma—” Finn starts, but I cut him off.
“Sure. That would be lovely.”
I can feel his crimson gaze on me as I rise, but if Finn’s mom wants to talk, we can talk.
I’m a guest in her home, and this whole thing is bizarre anyway, so maybe it won’t be that bad.
Maybe.
Probably.
I don’t know.
We leave Finn and Ellery to their own devices, and again, I’m struck by the breathtaking beauty of this place as we walk out into the balmy night air.
It’s almost fully dark now, and the city spreads out all around us. Sparkling with thousands of points of light and sloping all the way down to the night-dark water, I stand at the railing for a few moments and simply admire.
Lynore joins me there. “Tell me about yourself, Soleil.”
“I… uh, what would you like to know?”