Warrior (Relentless #4)(241)

Averting her eyes, she pushed the tray off her lap and climbed out of bed, holding the muffin. I followed her into the living room, watching how close the bottom of my T-shirt came to her curved behind.

I need to buy smaller shirts.

“Breakfast, boys,” she called as she removed the plastic wrap from the muffin.

I heard a small shuffling sound and a squeak near the large teak chest under the window. The chest used to hold weapons, until Sara had decided it would make the perfect home for the three imps I’d discovered under her bed as we were packing up her old room. As I’d stared at the imps, she’d explained how they’d stowed away in her boxes from Maine and had been living in her room ever since. She’d given me a pleading look I could never refuse, which was why I now lived with a trio of imps.

In our world, imps were considered vermin, but Sara treated them with the same kindness she showed every other creature she encountered. She’d even named them, and unbelievably, the little fiends responded to their new names.

She knelt on the floor as a six-inch, pale, bald demon stepped out from behind the chest. She’d made a small hole in the back for them to get in and out of their new home.

“Verne, why am I not surprised to see you first? I swear you have a hollow leg.”

The imp looked down at the legs showing beneath his loincloth. He shook one leg then the other before he frowned at Sara, who laughed softly.

“Never mind.”

She broke the muffin into three pieces and held one out to him. I watched in wonder as he walked over and took it from her. The first time she’d done that, I’d been worried the little demon would bite her. But he’d seemed as taken with her as everyone else was.

“Where are Eliot and Orwell? Ah, there you are.”

Two faces peeked out from behind the chest. More shy than the first one, they hesitated before creeping forward to get their food. The three of them scurried back into their home with their meal.

Sara went to the kitchen to throw the plastic wrap in the garbage, and I glanced around the apartment that was now full of her things. A drawing of her father hung on one wall, and photos of him, Nate, Roland, and Peter adorned the mantle. A red throw hung from one arm of the couch, and one of her paperbacks lay beside mine on the coffee table where we’d left them when we went to bed last night.

All the years I’d lived here, this had been my private place to unwind and keep my possessions. But I’d never realized what was missing until Sara moved in. Now, it felt like a home.

She came up behind me and slipped her arms around my waist. “You look deep in thought.”

I smiled and turned to wrap my arms around her. “I was thinking about all the books you brought with you. How many classic authors do you like?”

“I don’t know.” She furrowed her brow. “Why?”

“You already have Hugo, Woolf, Oscar, Verne, Eliot, and Orwell. I’m wondering how many more pets you plan to get, and if we’ll need a bigger place.”

She laughed and tugged me over to the couch. “No more for a while, I promise,” she said as she pulled the throw over her bare legs.

I sat beside her and lifted her legs onto my lap. “So what are your plans for today?”

“Jordan and I are getting together with Chris for archery lessons at ten. Then I have lunch with Nate, and I’m spending the afternoon with Emma. We’re going to the lake to paint. Well, she’ll paint. I’m going to draw.”

“How’s Emma doing?”

Emma looked healthier than she’d been when we found her, but she was withdrawn and she had regular anxiety attacks. Not that anyone could blame her after what she’d been through. Sara spent a lot of time with her and was slowly pulling Emma out of her shell.

Sara sighed. “Good, but I’m not sure she’ll ever feel completely at home here. She says she’d like to find some small place to settle in when she’s ready to leave. She seems so lost. I want to help her, but I’m not sure how.”

I rubbed her leg. “You’ve been a great friend to her, and I can see a difference in her since we got home. It’s going to take a while after all she’s been through, but she’s strong.”

“She is.”

I didn’t like the sadness that had crept into her voice, and I had just the thing to cheer her up. I’d planned to give it to her tonight, but now was as good a time as any.

“Wait here.” I lifted her legs and stood.

“What are you up to?” she called when I went into the bedroom.

I opened the top drawer of my dresser and retrieved the brown manila envelope I’d placed there yesterday evening. Thinking of her reaction when she saw what was inside, I smiled as I returned to the living room.

“You’re looking very pleased with yourself,” she said when I joined her on the couch again. Her eyes went to the envelope, and she gave me a questioning look. “What’s that?”

I handed it to her. “Open it.”

Her eyes narrowed suspiciously as she took the envelope and opened it. I watched her face closely when she reached inside and pulled out several sheets of paper.

She stared at the first one for a long moment before her mouth fell open and her gaze flew to mine.

“Is this…?” Her voice cracked as her eyes began to shimmer with tears.