Kairhyse
It’s day four of this never-ending drive, and Xera is behind the wheel. She claims she drove when she was sixteen and was terrible at it. Now, at thirty, she’s still pretty bad. I needed an hour break—my legs were starting to stiffen—but, honestly, I’m starting to think this wasn’t my best idea.
“Why are you so fucking nervous? It isn’t like we will die!” The way she taps on the brakes so roughly doesn’t surprise me. She’s not gentle in anything that she does, and that includes coming to a stop.
I laugh nervously. “I can still be decapitated.”
The moment her hand leaves the steering wheel to swat me, I immediately grab it and keep it attached. “Please, little demon, I don’t want to crash. At the next exit, just pull over and I’ll stretch for a little.”
“You saidit was fine that I try!” she shouts, causing Sydni to burst out laughing in the back seat. “And you! Passenger princess, why aren’t you driving?!”
Brice grumbles.
“You too, asshole!”
The two of them had recently joined us, and while I’m thrilled to have my butterfly in the car, I’m far less enthusiastic about Brice. His presence was a condition—a near-bloody battle—for Sydni to swap cars. Apparently they’re worried the three of us might ditch them. While the thought has crossed my mind, I won’t make a move until Xera gives me the go-ahead.
Both of them offered to drive, but my little demon was determined to at least try. And while it’s undeniably adorablehow much effort she puts in, it’s also utterly terrifying.
“I said I’d drive,” Brice says with a gruff undertone. “You two could’ve sat in the back. Sydni and I would’ve taken the front.”
I don’t like that Xera takes her eyes off the road to look back at the Werewolf. Her upturned lips all-telling how she feels about him.
“Baby, the road,” I say gently.
She jerks the wheel and swerves onto the shoulder, ignoring the fact that this isn’t an exit. Now, we’re parked on the side of a busy highway. Without a glance at the oncoming traffic, she throws open the driver’s side door and stomps off toward the ravine.
“Come this way,” Brice says to Sydni as he opens his door. She scurries across, and I’m relieved to see her starting to come back into herself. The weeks without Xera and not feeding had taken their toll, but now her bright smile is returning, and her long lashes are back to their fluttering ways.
Alaric and Niyla stop behind us, but don’t exit their vehicle.
My eyes follow Xera as she picks something up and tosses it into the stream at the bottom of the bank. I hesitate to call this a tantrum—she isn’t a child, she’s overwhelmed and overstimulated. This isn’t her element, and I suppose I need to be more sensitive to that.
Maybe.
Moving down the pathway, I make my way to her.
“Stupid fucking Mundane bullshit,” she grumbles. “I hear you. Stop trying to be quiet.”
I chuckle. “I’m not. Just simply walking to you.”
Her head snaps to the side as she glances over her shoulder at me. I’m braced for my usual psychotic little demon to unleash that sharp tongue of hers, but instead, she surprises me.
“I knew I’d be no good at this.”
Narrowing my eyes, I tilt my head. “At?”
“Normal.” She looks away and kicks a loose rock, sending it skittering across the water’s surface. “Cooking. Driving. I’m—” She throws her head back and runs her hands up, drawing her fingers through her thick, black waves. “I shouldn’t let it get to me, but it’s just another stupid reminder of the shit that was taken from me. I barely learned to drive when I graduated high school. It was a big reason I worked so many hours. I wanted to buy a car and keep trying.”
I release a sigh through my nose. “I know, and I’m not patronizing you. Your driving is bad, but you’ll learn.”
Turning to me, she rolls her eyes. “That’s the thing, Kairhyse, I don’t want to learn. Not because I don’t think I’m capable—because I am—it’s just… it will make me complacent. Pretending that I’m somenormalgirl with a driver’s license. Can you see me standing at the MVD, taking a godsdamn photo, registering my fingerprints? I can’t.”
“Your license photo would probably be the sexiest one this world has ever seen,” I tease.
“Fuck my life, Kai.” She closes her eyes and drops her head back.
“When I learned to drive, I was a natural. You know what I wasn’t a natural at?” I close the small distance between us and wrap an arm around her neck. “Having patience. It took me a long time to get here, and learning that when you’ve got a diagnosed attention disorder? It’s… challenging.” Her eyes open as she leans her head forward, meeting my gaze. “You don’t have to drive. You don’t have to cook. Baby, you don’t even have to walk if you don’t want to.”
