Chapter Twenty-Three

Poe

At first, I cobbled together a temporary studio in the big walk-in closet in my bedroom—which was the main bedroom those sweet guys had given me. Of course, I had never slept in it alone, so it really was ours, but they couldn't have known that for sure. They did have their clothes in their former rooms, and I didn't have enough with me to be a problem.

And the studio worked out pretty well. I used a backdrop, so it looked just like my regular studio leaving nobody the wiser. The one change was that I did entirely remote interviews because the closet was a little small for a group. But that didn't matter. To be honest, I didn't want anyone here but us, and of course the guys' families who stopped by every so often for a game night or a meal. Board games! Certainly not the reputation demons had in any kind of urban legend or old wives' tale. Or Netflix series either. The legions from which my mates emerged were ferocious indeed, when the dice did not roll their way. And don't even talk about Dungeons and Dragons. My mates had been dungeon masters since they were teens and could spin a tale. But my interviewees would have to remain in their own spaces until I managed to figure out what to do about a studio. I wasn't going back to the old one, hours away from here. Not even temporarily.

Because I couldn't imagine going home for longer than it took to pack the rest of my stuff. Salem and I were home, here, with our demons. She'd accepted them that first day when we arrived, settling into a basket holding a few throw pillows near enough to the fireplace where her rumbling purr showed her pleasure at the whole situation. And while I adored her, she didn't like just anyone, but she sure loved my mates. She spent more time on their laps than mine.

But while we were both very happy here, I had to figure out a way to do my job efficiently. I really preferred having people right in front of me or next to me when we were talking about such intimate and personal details of their lives. Paranormal folks were private in many ways, and when they agreed to come on my show, to speak with me and even show themselves, they deserved to have me right here in support and not at a distance. At least, that was how I saw it. I made so many notes, drew designs, and shopped for new equipment, but so far, I hadn't had time to implement any of my plans or a place to make that happen.

The closet was closing in around me while I worked. Maybe I could rent an office space or something.

"Ready to go, mate? Hemlock is in the truck."

No, I was not in the closet at this point but standing in my former studio area in my old apartment. My empty former apartment. I had packed up enough of my belongings to fill the truck bed but donated most of the furniture and larger items because the demons had everything already, and I didn't think it was worth the trouble of hauling furniture I'd bought secondhand to start with and then try to figure out how it might fit in their home.

I kept sentimental things and all my tech stuff, and everything that was Salem's, of course. But the rest had left the day before in a box truck headed for a charity shop.

"Ready." I followed him out, leaving the door key on the ledge inside the door.

"You okay, mate?" He took the box of photos I carried. "Sad?"

"Nostalgic, maybe. Not really sad. I liked this apartment, but it's a reminder that I was lonely, even if I didn't know it. Let's go home."

On the drive, I tried again to figure out what I was going to do for a better studio, but I'd run the same ideas over in my mind so many times and gotten nowhere, so I decided to put it aside and just enjoy the drive and the company. We stopped along the way for lunch and sat for two hours just laughing and talking. When I thought of how I'd rushed the last drive on my own without even a bite to eat? My life sure had changed.

As we pulled into the driveway, Grendel's phone chimed, and he pulled it out of his pocket and read it. The two of them exchanged nods over my head and then we got out of the truck and made our way into the house. It felt so good to step inside and know that I was not going to have to leave again. If anyone had asked me if I would stay forever when I went to visit the demons, I'd have laughed.

Even if we hit it off, it wasn't that simple to step away from an established life and start over three hours away, and yet…that was just what I did.

"I suppose we'd better unload the truck before we sit down," I said. "Otherwise, it might get rained on."

"We'll do that." Grendel shooed me toward the living room. "You relax. You'll have to put it all away later, but we'll get it inside where it will be safe."

"You guys spoil me. Is there anything I can do to help?"

"No." Hemlock stood in the doorway then snapped his fingers. "Yes. Can you go down in the basement and see if you can find the handcart? It will make unloading easier."

"You have one of those?" It sure would have been handy to have at the apartment.

"I'm not sure if we still do. We loaned it to my cousin…hopefully she returned it." Grendel shook his head. "Sometimes she forgets."

"Also…there's a basement?" I'd never seen it in all the time since I arrived.

"Yep. It's kind of dusty. You know, storage. The door is right next to the pantry."

"Sure." I waved them off. "I'll go look, but if I get spiders in my hair, I won't be happy. We really need to clean it up down there."

"Agreed." They were still standing there, so I headed for the kitchen wondering how I'd missed the door. But there it was, and I supposed if I'd even thought of it at all, I assumed it was just another kitchen cabinet. I should cook more and then I'd know the kitchen better.

The door opened easily, no creaking or anything to imply it was never used, and I found a light switch right on the wall inside. The fixture mounted over the stairs made it easy to go down, and I didn't see a single spiderweb, to my relief. Basements had always intrigued me, and I wondered if I'd find anything interesting down here. At the bottom of the steps, there was another closed door, and I spotted another light switch, so I flipped it, hoping it wouldn't turn off the fixture in the stairwell. It did not. Light spilled from under the door and I opened it to find not a dusty basement but something entirely different. I closed the door and then turned to go back upstairs. My way was blocked by two sneaky demons grinning their silly, handsome, wonderful faces off.

"What is that?" I pointed behind me. "How do you have a studio in your supposedly dusty basement? Are you two influencers, and you didn't want me to know?" Although if so, why would they have sent me down there? But what other explanation could there be?

Hemlock reached past me and opened the door, gave me a gentle shove inside. "It's your mating gift."

"But how…I don't have anything for you."

"You are our gift," Grendel said. "Do you like it?"

They must have gotten hold of all my plans because it was a dream studio with features I'd only included in case someday I could upgrade hugely. Tears spilled from my eyes and onto the floor in front of the seating area where I could talk with my guests if I didn't want to be at the desk. Everything was top of the line and installed in a way that must have been professional.

"I love you both so much." I hugged Gren then Hemlock. "And you have to be my first guests."