Page 116 of Infernal Secrets

Her mouth dropped open. “What? Why?”

“It’s a long story.”

“But—” She paused. “Have they been there long?”

I appreciated that she redirected and didn’t push for an explanation. “Since I found out about Grandma.”

“So you’ve not been alone. I guess that’s good.” She handed me rings for the trays.

“It’s made things easier.” And harder. “They’ve been helpful.” I braced myself for her reaction to the next bit of information. “They aren’t the only ones there, though.”

She squinted at me.

“A close friend of theirs and his cousin.”

She screeched, “His? More men? Oh my god, are you serious? Is the cousin also a dude?”

I turned to see if anyone overheard Maya’s outburst, bracing myself not to react or vomit, but found no one there.

“Shhh. Keep it down. Yes, I’m serious. And yes, his cousin is a man.”

“You have four men staying in your home and you didn’t tell me? Bitch, you have lost the plot. I knew there was something more going on.”

I put my elbows on the counter, burying my face in my hands. “I knooow,” I said, groaning.

“Yeah, I’m coming over tonight. We’ll grab Chinese food for everyone, and then you can introduce me to these men.”

“No hitting on them,” I said, lowering my hands.

“Nah. I wanna see if they are worthy of you, not me.” She bent, scribbling on the paper as Shane came out of the back.

I tucked a ring into the tray and mumbled, “They aren’t for me either.”

“Never know. People are more open to that shit nowadays.”

I wasn’t ready to unpack the meaning of her words.

29

SLEEPOVER

RAE

This was a terrible idea.

After dinner, Maya sat on the sofa between Zeke and Ash discussing authentic Chinese and Mexican dishes versus American Chinese and Tex-Mex dishes.

Zeke laughed, but I noticed he kept his distance from her, ensuring they didn’t touch. He never did that with me. With me, he didn’t seem to understand the concept of personal space. Ash nodded and smiled politely, but his posture was rigid. Cyn’s restlessness showed in his repeated trips to the kitchen and bathroom.

I met Ezra’s eyes, and the coldness there sliced through me. He didn’t like Maya’s presence. I didn’t know how, but I sensed it, even without his icy gaze.

I wondered if he thought I’d told their secret. Did he not understand that other humans didn't react the way I did to infernals?

Maya sat forward, drawing my attention. “Oh yeah, I forgot to tell you! Ma called when you were grabbing the food. Leo’s supposed to come by tomorrow to cut her grass. Want me to talk to him?”

“Tomorrow?” I glanced at Ash, and he gave me a questioning look. “I know I said I’d think about it, but… I really don’t know.”

Maya followed my gaze and smiled. “Come on. One date.”