Free The Hob by Dana Marie Bell

laughter. “Hey, you made it!” She was unable to contain her smile. Somehow, the day seemed just a little bit brighter.
    Good-bye, Robin. Hello, Ringo.
    “I did indeed.” Ringo took her hand and led her back to the smiling redhead. A tall, dark and handsome man stood next to Moira, his arm wrapped securely around her waist. “I’d like to introduce you to Jaden Blackthorn. Jaden, this is Michaela.”
    “Charmed.” Jaden bowed, his movements eerily similar to Ringo’s.
    In fact, Jaden was sporting a grin very similar to Ringo’s. Despite his obvious American Indian heritage and Ringo’s more mixed, Eurasian looks, she couldn’t help asking the obvious question. “Are you two related?”
    Moira jolted as if stung, but Jaden answered easily. “Cousins.” He frowned through his smile. “Most people don’t pick up on it that quickly.”
    “You move the same.” She turned to Ringo and placed her hand on his arm. “Hey, I need to get going if I’m going to catch the fairy gardening workshop.” She ignored Jaden’s muffled laugh and concentrated on Ringo. “Want to grab lunch later?” She could sleep tomorrow, right?
    Ringo took her hand and kissed her wrist. It took everything in her not to shiver. “I would love to.”
    “Cool. There’s this little hole-in-the-wall that has the best pizza just a block or two away.” She frowned. “You do like pizza, right?” Because a man who didn’t love pizza was not the man for her.
    “I adore it.”
    Michaela relaxed. “Excellent.” She turned to Moira and her husband. “Do you three want to join us?”
    “Ah.” Moira exchanged a quick look with Jaden. “We’ll have to talk to Duncan, but if Ringo has no objection, we’d love to.”
    Michaela heard the odd emphasis Moira put on Ringo’s name but decided to let it pass, at least for now. He’d explain it when he was ready. Why he would lie about his name she didn’t know, but his vibe hadn’t changed. Ringo was no danger to her. If anything, she felt a hundred times safer when he was nearby.
    Speaking of feeling safe… “Hey, do you have any idea what happened earlier? All the bulbs blew out.”
    Moira nodded, looking suddenly pale. “It was freaky.”
    “I swear I’m going to be brushing bulb glass out of my hair for weeks.”
    Moira eyed Michaela’s long brown hair and nodded in sympathy, absently fingering her curls. “I know what you mean.”
    “Didn’t you need to hit the ladies?”
    Moira nodded furiously. “Like babies need boobies.”
    Jaden doubled over, laughter erupting from him.
    Moira merely rolled her eyes at him. “I’ll be right back, a ghra .”
    “That sounds sweet. What does it mean?” Michaela followed Moira toward the ladies’ room. She was going to miss the flower gardening workshop, but that was okay. Her new friend was married to Ringo’s cousin and seemed to know some of his secrets.
    Moira blew Jaden a kiss, which he returned despite his continuing laughter. “It means ‘my love’.”
    Michaela couldn’t help it. She risked a glance at Ringo only to find him watching her, an odd expression on his face. She nearly tripped over her own feet when she realized what it was.
    Longing.
     
    Robin waited until Jaden was done laughing before gently placing his hand on the nape of his Blade’s neck. “What were you thinking?”
    Jaden gulped, his laughter suddenly gone. Good. Despite his affection for the boy, it wouldn’t do to let him think he could get away with something as vital as mucking about in the Hob’s plans. “That she’d trust us more if she knew we were associated with you, since you mentioned you’d already met her.”
    Robin paused a beat, letting Jaden’s fear ramp up. Had he mentioned that? He couldn’t remember. While he was not entirely displeased by Jaden’s actions or logic, openly making friends with Michaela right where the delegation sat had not been in his game plan. It was not the best way to keep her safe, but it was too late