Page 51 of Oracles Always Win

Gagesnorted. “Bestnot to say that to him.Hemay not look it, but he can be a bit sensitive.”

“Wait…Didhe run by here the other night?”

“Hedid,”Gagesaid with a nod. “Thefirst night we arrived.”

Ifthat had really happened, what else hadIseen and tried to dismiss?Ithought back over all the bizarre thingsI’dseen or heard over the last year.Therewere a lot of them.Isuspected magic had a lot to do with it. “Areyou sureI’mnot dreaming this whole conversation?”

“I’msure,”Gagesaid, taking my hand in his and rubbing gentle circles over my palm. “Butthat’s enough for now.”

“Iget the sense there is more you want to tell me,”Isaid.

“Thereis, but it can wait.Idon’t want to overwhelm you with everything all at once.”

Ha!Great.Thatdidn’t sound ominous at all.

Chapter Nineteen

JAKE

Icouldn’t help but stare at people as they arrived for the potluck.

Itwas amazing howHenriettaJenning’sbody seemed to undulate under her dress as the tip of a tentacle peeked out from under her hem before disappearing again.Thenthere was the wayVan’seyes flickered like fire.Andthose weird lines onWeston’sneck, were those gills?

I’dseen all of that before, obviously, but nowIallowed myself the freedom to stare at those quirky things and acknowledge they weren’t created by my imagination.Iwasn’t going crazy.Itwas a heady experience.

Andeveryone else was watching me just as closely.

Ifound it equally strange how many people arrived with a gift forGage.They’dshuffle up to him with their heads bowed and hold up a gift basket or an expensive bottle of whiskey or some other generic but attractive gift.Whenhe accepted them, they flashed a relieved smile, then scurried off to their friends again.Thenhe’d carefully carry it into the foyer where he set it behind the registration desk with other similar gifts.Hewas getting quite the collection.

Jeremy, wearing an infectiously friendly smile, was tugging his boyfriend over to whereIwas standing withGage.

“Thanksagain for the help last night,”Isaid, trying to casually studyJeremyandAdrianfor signs of their magic.

“Happyto help,”Jeremysaid to me, then he turned toGage. “DidIjust see someone offer you a present,Mr.Dimples?”

Gage’seye twitched at the nickname, but he didn’t complain. “Yes.”

“Why?OhmyGod, is it your birthday?Howdid they know whenIdidn’t?”Heturned to his boyfriend.Thelight coming in through the dining room windows vividly showed the strange tattooJeremyhad at his temple and the colorful patch of hair beside it.Hisboyfriend had the same markings.Mygrandfather had had a colorful lock of hair in nearly the same place.Andcome to think of it, otherWillowLakecouples wore matching marks too.Wasit a supernatural thing?Werethey significant? “Adrian, you’re supposed to tell me shit like that.”Heelbowed his boyfriend before turning toGage. “So, how many candles shouldIput on the cake?Ahundred?Fivehundred?”Thenhe covered his mouth and eyed me, like he’d said something he shouldn’t.

“Heknows,”Gagewhispered very quietly toJeremy.

Jeremylet out a relieved sigh. “ThankGod.Pawswould skin me alive ifI’dbeen the one to spill the beans.”Thenhe turned to me.Hiseyes were gleaming, and he had a wide, excited smile on his face. “Wehave so much to talk about.Somany questions to ask you.Like, how do you feel about snakes?InDelphi?—”

“Andit isn’t my birthday,”GageinterruptedJeremy, drawing his attention off me.

Butnow that the question had been raised,Iwas curious too.AndIreally didn’t want to be interrogated byJeremy.So, just how old was he?Peoplecouldn’t live to five hundred, could they?YesterdayIwould have thought the answer to that question was obvious.TodayIwasn’t so sure.

“Howold are you?”Iasked.

Jeremy’sface lit up with excitement.Heleaned close.

“Olderthan you,” wasGage’sonly answer.

“Hmm…”Jeremytapped his lip. “Wereyou around during the construction of those massive abbeys in medieval times?Withyour wings,Ibet you’d have been popular when they had to do stuff up three hundred feet in the air.”

“Didyou really just ask me if humans hired a demon to build a cathedral?”

“Well, when you put it like that…”Jeremymuttered.