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“Okay.”

“Okay,” he echoes. “You’re all right to drive?”

I push tears from my eyes. “I’m pretending to be.”

“I’ll stay on with you until you’re safe.”

Apparently, what he meant was I’ll stay on with you until you’re in my arms, because the second after we both pull into the same driveway, Wynnter meets me, scoops me in close, and hangs up the phone.

Chapter 9

◼

My wife and I.

Wynnter

She’s here. Home. With me.

I can hardly believe this is happening.

I hate how it’s happened, but…

Here she is.

“I told them I’m okay and that I’m with the man I love.” December shifts in the corner of the couch, tucking her legs up under her skirt. “They probably think I ran away with Forrest.”

“Talk about an instalove.” I offer her a mug of hot cocoa, and she offers me a feeble smile as she takes it. No dimples. My poor baby… I ask, “Is everything all good with Forrest and the…schemes you two were planning?”

“Yeah. I told him things exploded a little bit, but I’m still game to be his excuse, so he’ll be sticking around in town for the time being.” Shoulders sagging, she sets her phone down beside her and closes her eyes. “I feel so stupid.”

“Dece, they locked you in your bedroom for a week. You’re almost a quarter of a century old. That’s not normal or okay. At all.”

“I know.” Steam puffs from her cup. “I just… I can’t shake the feeling that they’re woefully misguided, but still mean well.”

“If that’s the case, time apart won’t be a bad thing.” Bending, I kiss the top of her head, then I settle in on the couch across from her with my own mug of hot cocoa. “We’ll work toward building you the life you want, then we’ll reintroduce them and see how they handle it. If they want to control you, we’ll talk to Alister and make sure we’re on an equal power ground financially. If they don’t try to control you, hopefully they’ll see that there are more ways to live fulfilling and happy lives.”

“That’s right,” she whispers. “I forgot. We have friends with power who can keep us safe.”

“We do.”

A frail laugh leaves her. “I completely forgot Alister was a millionaire. He doesn’t act like one. That’s reassuring.” She wipes her eye. “That makes me feel a little more secure. I should probably update August on all this.” December’s attention falls on her phone when it starts ringing. Elegant as an empress, she frees a breath, reaches, and lifts the device to her ear.

Whatever’s said, she’s too far away for me to hear, but it makes her wince. “I’m not coming home, Mom.” She wets her lips. “No. I’m okay.” Leaning forward, hand shaking, she puts her hot cocoa on the coffee table between us. “The truth is—” Her words die on parted lips. She waits. “I—” Her eyes close. Time passes. She finally says, “We can talk about this later, if you’re ever open to having a conversation. Until that point in time, I am an adult, and I am making a choice, and if it’s a mistake, I will handle the consequences on my own. I love you. I’ll miss you. Please don’t call back if you’re only going to lecture me again.” Lowering her phone, she turns off the ringer and sags. Moments pass, then a defeated murmur exits her weakly, “I forgot. I was going to try and pull funds from the bank before I moved in.”

“You may still be able to.”

Her head turns, gaze fixing out the sliding glass door at the moonlit yard. “Maybe I won’t. It’s not like I earned that money myself anyway. How quickly do you think I’ll be able to get a job? I don’t want to impose on you if you need me to help cover the extra expenses I’m accruing by being here.”

My brow arches. “Uh. No. You can be a housewife if you want. I can handle us financially.”

Her hollow gaze shifts back to me. “I packed a lot of my jewelry. I don’t really like most of it but thought that maybe I could sell it.”

“Dece,” I state. “I don’t need money.”

Her brow knits. “I’m not completely sheltered. Taking on another person costs a lot of money.”

“You brought most everything you’ll need. Clothes. Laptop. Books. My guest room is already furnished, and it’s not that much more expensive to feed one more person. Depending on where you keep the thermostat, it’s maybe an extra couple hundred bucks a month.”