Daemon grabbed the back of his brother’s neck and pressed his forehead against his. “You idiot,” he said, letting out a choked laugh. “You should know better. I’ve always got things covered.”
“Yeah, and wait—I’m pissed at you!” Dee pulled back and hit Daemon in the chest hard. “You could’ve gotten yourself killed doing what you did! You jerk-face, douchebag, imbecile.” She hit him again.
Archer winced and muttered, “Damn, that girl…that girl can hit.”
“Hey!” Laughing, Daemon grabbed her hand. “Knock it off. I obviously didn’t get myself killed.”
“I worried, you ass!” Dee pushed her curls out of her face and inhaled deeply. “But I forgive you, because you’re in one piece and apparently no worse for wear, and you’re here, but if you ever do anything that—”
“Okay,” Dawson said, dropping an arm around his sister’s neck, spinning her. “I think he gets the point. We’ve all got the point.”
Dee broke free as her eyes skipped over Paris and Luc. She didn’t pay them much attention, but her gaze bounced over Archer, then went right back before moving on. I had stayed out of the reunion, remaining by one of the pillars. I didn’t think Dee even noticed me until that moment.
In the blink of an eye, she practically knocked me over. I’d forgotten what her hugs were like. For someone who had a ballet dancer’s body, she was ridiculously strong. And her hugs…well, it had been so long since I’d been on the receiving end of one of her bear squeezes.
I was slow to respond, more taken off guard than anything else, but then I dropped the tote and threw my arms around her. Tears welled up, and I squeezed my eyes shut. The part of my being that had felt achy over what happened with Dee warmed, and that warmth spilled over.
“I’m so sorry,” she said, tears clogging her voice. “I’m so, so sorry.”
“For what?”
She still hadn’t let go, and I didn’t mind. “For everything—for not seeing your side of things, for being so caught up in my grief and anger that I totally abandoned you. For never telling you that I missed you before…”
Before it was too late was what she was going to say.
Blinking back tears, I smiled against her shoulder. “You have nothing to apologize for, Dee. I mean it. None of that…” Well, it did matter. Adam’s death mattered. “It’s okay now.”
She held me tighter and whispered, “Is it? Because I’ve been so worried about you and Daemon and what could’ve…”
My body roiled into nervous knots, and I willed the sudden rise of dread to go away. It wasn’t welcome here, not in this happy moment. “It’s okay.”
“I’ve missed you.”
A few tears snuck out. “I’ve missed you, too.”
“Okay. Okay. I think you’re starting to cut off her air supply.” Dawson tugged on Dee’s arm. “And I think Daemon is starting to get jealous.”
“Pfft. It’s my turn with Katy,” she replied, but she let go.
And then Dawson replaced his sister. He hugged me, nothing as fierce as Dee’s but still powerful. “Thank you,” he said quietly, and I knew those two words encompassed so much. “I hope you know how thankful I am for everything you’ve done.”
Unsure if I could speak, I nodded.
“Okay. Now I am getting jealous,” Daemon said, and Paris laughed.
Dawson gave me a quick squeeze. “I’m forever in your debt.”
I wanted to tell him that wasn’t necessary. Helping him get Bethany was something I’d do all over again, even knowing that Blake had set us up. After being in Daedalus’s grips, now more than ever I understood how important it had been to get her out. The only thing I would’ve changed was where I was standing in that damn tunnel in Mount Weather.
He stepped aside as his brother swooped in, picking up the tote and circling his arm around my waist. Dawson cocked his head to the side. “What is up with the alien doll?”
“Daemon thought it would remind me of him,” I told Dawson.
“Tell him what you named it,” Daemon said, and then he dropped a kiss atop my head.
My heart jumped, and my cheeks flushed. “I named it DB.”
Dee peered at the alien toy over Dawson’s shoulder. “It kind of does look like you, Daemon.”
“Ha. Ha.” I tugged the doll out of the bag and held it close. For some reason, I loved the stupid thing.
“Everyone want to head in?” Luc rocked back on the heels of his Converse sneakers. “I’m starving.”
Dee spun around so that she was on my other side as we headed in. She stole a peek at Archer, who walked in behind us. If I noticed that, so did Daemon. And whatever Dee was thinking right now, most likely Archer was eavesdropping in on.
I so needed to give her a heads-up on that.
Plus the fact that Archer was, well, he was really different from all of us.
The temperature was a good thirty degrees cooler inside the brightly lit foyer, even with the glass sky dome allowing the sunlight inside. Quartz was embedded in the tile floor, making everything so sparkly. There were large, leafy plants positioned at the corners, which made my fingers itchy to dig into soil.
Sinking my fingers into soil…wow, how long had it been since I’d done that? The day we’d left for Mount Weather? Too long.
“You doing okay?”
“Huh?” I glanced up at Daemon, and I realized that I must’ve stopped walking, because everyone else was already in the hall beyond the foyer. “Yeah, I was just thinking about gardens.”
An emotion crossed his face. Before I could decipher what it was, he looked away. I reached over and tugged on the hem of his shirt. “How about you? Seeing Dawson and Dee?”
He thrust his fingers through his hair. “I don’t know what to think.” He kept his voice low. “I’m happy to see them, but…dammit.”
I nodded in understanding. “You don’t want them anywhere near this?”
“No. Not at all.”
I wanted to somehow lessen his concern, but I knew there was nothing I could say that would do so. I stretched up and kissed his cheek. That was the best I had.
He grinned down at me once I settled back on my feet. He opened his mouth to say something, but Dee popped back into the foyer.
Expression exasperated, she put her hands on her hips. “All right, you two, come in a little farther. There are people here in the great room who would like to say hi. Whatever a ‘great room’ is I really have no idea, but it is pretty great.”
God, I missed her so much.
Daemon lifted his head, smiling at his sister. “Yeah, I think I know who’s waiting.”
The people waiting to say hello were none other than Matthew, plus Ash and Andrew Thompson. I shouldn’t have been surprised to see them. All of them—Matthew, the Thompsons—were like a family. They converged on Daemon at once, and they swallowed him, Dawson and Dee included.
I hung back again, because this was his reunion—a well-deserved one. And the room was rather distracting. Oriental carpet. More statues of dolphins. Quartz-trimmed furniture. A couch big enough for the Duggar family.
Luc plopped down on a chaise longue and started texting away on his cell phone. Paris hung near him, like a grinning shadow. Archer was like me, on the outskirts, probably unsure of what to do as Dee started crying again.
Even Ash was crying.
I expected to feel the hot wave of jealousy when Daemon hugged her, but I didn’t. Other than the fact Ash still managed to make crying look glamorous, I was so over that useless emotion. If there was one thing I knew and understood in this world, it was that Daemon loved me.
Matthew stepped forward, grabbing Daemon’s shoulders. “It’s good…it’s good to see you.”