I folded my arms over my chest and tried to defend myself. “I didn’t run off on anyone. I told you why I couldn’t stay in the big house with you. You understand why, I know you do, and you aren’t even really mad that I’m staying here. You wanted me to get to know the rest of them, so much so, you even encouraged me to stay here. With Dash. So, don’t even try to whine about that. It’s your jealous insecurities coming out to play. Get over it. Now,” I put my hand out to my side, gesturing to Tyson, “Ty promised me he’d hang up my dreamcatcher for me and we are going to have to go to the store to buy some kind of hook or something to use to hang it from the ceiling with. I don’t know, that’s not my area of expertise. I’m sure Tyson can handle it. Then we are going downstairs to see the twins because I miss them and if they really did come here to see me then I want to spend some time with them.”
Quinton looked past me, to his nephew, and grinned. “I love it when the real Ariel comes out to play,” he said, sounding pleased as all get out.
I stood at the foot of the bed, in between them, awkwardly.
Enough was enough.
“Perhaps you should go downstairs and wait for us to join you,” I rudely suggested.
Quinton aimed his grin at me. “It won’t take you long to hang up your dreamcatcher,” he told me knowingly. “Ty already put a hook in the ceiling for it two days ago.”
“What?” I whispered. I whirled around and pointed my finger rudely at Tyson. “You,” I screeched. “You tricked me into kissing you!”
Unrepentant, he shrugged and said, “Yeah. Can you really blame me, though? I had to try. And, to be fair, I’m still going to hang up your dreamcatcher for you. And, I did go out of my way to put that hook in the ceiling for it. That’s got to count for something.”
“He also put the protection spell into the thing,” Quinton said softly, defending his nephew. “That took work, energy and blood to make for you.”
I loved my dreamcatcher and knowing what Tyson did to it for me, to make it into some form of protection for me, made it all the more special.
I turned to Ty and found him watching me with a serious expression on his face. His brows were drawn, his eyes guarded, and his lips were pursed into a tight, thin line.
“Thank you, Tyson,” I said softly with a small smile on my face. “I already told you I loved it and I meant it. Thank you for making it so it really will keep out the bad things while I’m sleeping.”
I held my right hand out to him and waited. I needed his touch, the heat that came with the touch of his skin.
He walked over to me and grabbed ahold of my hand, pulling me into him. I collided with his side and he let my hand go. He wrapped an arm around my shoulders and pulled my front into his side. My boobs were smooshed into his ribs, but I didn’t care. It was a little too up close and personal for me with Quint standing not five feet away, too close for comfort with an audience. I didn’t think I was a big fan of PDA.
“Now,” Quinton said blandly, making my eyes shoot to his face. “How about we talk about what I want to talk about now? I want to hear more about this kiss.”
All air left my lungs and I almost hyperventilated. When I managed to draw in a shaky breath, my eyes were all for Quinton. Was he mad? He had kissed me first. Logically, I knew he had nothing to be mad about, he wanted this, he wanted me to be with all of them. That’s why he encouraged me to come to Dash’s house in the first place.
I got what he wanted from me. How could I not when it had been spelled out for me on several occasions?
I got it.
I did.
But standing here in the same room with Nephew and Uncle, both whom I had kissed. That didn’t seem right to me because neither of them acted like they cared.
I cared.
I cared a whole lot more than I probably should.
“You aren’t mad?” I asked Quinton cautiously.
Tyson pulled me in tighter to his side. If I got any closer, we would fuse together.
Quinton smiled at me and it was a new one, a smile I hadn’t seen from him before. This smile was soft, sweet, and, scarily, very loving.
I didn’t know what to do with that smile or the love I saw in it.
Frankly, it freaked me out. If I didn’t have magic, then he wouldn’t feel anything for me. I would simply be some unfortunate girl who moved in next door to them. The one who wasn’t a witch and didn’t have magic inside of her. They wouldn’t have given me a second glance then, I was that girl. Was that it? Did they only like me because I was a girl and had magic? I knew that was the truth of it, which is why I wondered… why did I like them so much? Not all of them, of course. But, some of them I liked a great deal. Did I like them and feel drawn to them simply because they were male and had magic? Why would Quinton look at me with love shining in his eyes if it weren’t for magic? He couldn’t love me, he didn’t even know me.
I wanted him to be mad. I didn’t want him to be mad at Tyson and I didn’t want him to be mad at me. I simply wanted him to be mad at the situation.
But that was stupid.