Chapter 21: The Terrifying Ordeal of Being Loved

Alice

Alice watched Gwendolyn happily lick a lollipop as if the last forty-five minutes of screaming had never happened. The attempt at getting her height was a nightmare. The ear exam was miserable, and when the pediatrician tried to draw her plasma, she cried for her “Monster.”

“I’m sorry,” Alice whispered, patting her toddler’s head. “Next time, he’ll be here, I promise.”

She had a long list of reasons not to invite Vlad, largely inspired by Penny’s lack of enthusiasm. Her best friend was great, but she had a tendency to make Alice doubt herself. It was a weird part of their dynamic where Penny gave judgy advice because she had her shit together, and Alice took it because she was a hot mess.

Ugh, just thinking those words made her cringe. Why was she so mean to herself?

Sighing, she tried to turn her attention back to the doctor, but it was hard. Alice’s head was spinning. Why was Penny being so cagey? All Alice wanted to do was pass on the damn ticket Vlad bought her so she could come for a visit. tell her what was happening. “Hey, I might be a witch, and my boyfriend is a vampire” was not something you said over the phone.

“Sorry to interrupt your daydream,” Dr. Annis cleared her throat, “But we really do need to continue the check-up.”

Fuck. Alice hadn’t been paying attention. What else did they have to do? Did they already discuss the next appointment? This was why she needed Vlad; he was detail-oriented. “There’s more?” she managed to croak out.

“Yes.” Dr. Annis set out a large needle and a few small vials on a metal tray.

One look at Gwendolyn’s trembling lip, and Alice knew what she had to do. “Can we save that for next time? I think she’s done for the day.” 

“Done? But we don’t even have a record of her phenotype! I can’t believe you’d let a toddler shut this exam down with a tantrum.”

Alice stood, lifting the Tiny Terror onto her hip. Maybe this woman didn’t have kids. Or maybe she went to the same parenting school as Cyrus Martin, but torturing your kid in the name of “propriety” wasn’t Alice’s style. She was Gwendolyn’s advocate. Sometimes, that meant ignoring a crying fit because it was bedtime and two-year-olds weren’t great at prioritizing sleep. Other times, it meant tuning in and taking her kid’s reactions seriously. “You don’t have to pretend you want to spend more time with my screaming kid,” Alice replied brightly, “I won’t tell the medical board.”

The joke fell flat. Dr. Annis pursed her lips, “When children are allowed to run the household, it speaks to a parent’s failure to establish proper regulations. Did your mother let you run roughshod over her?”

No, but only because Valeria Martin wasn’t around. She had her momentum conversion research, fights with Alice’s dad, and a classroom full of students—all who came before her eldest daughter. And it was fine because it helped Alice know what to do with her own kid, which was not that. And besides, who wouldn’t want to get the hell out of Cyrus Martin’s house? It was all good. Alice wasn’t bitter, she just wasn’t in the mood to discuss her family trauma with a stranger.

Yeah, that was it.

Dr. Annis’s expression softened. “If you didn’t have a good role model, it’s understandable that you wouldn’t know how to control your child.”

“Control my kid? I don’t have a problem with taking care of Gwendolyn!”

She continued as if Alice hadn’t spoken, her tone shifting to one of disapproval. “I mean, based on the skill tests we did earlier, you’ve got a gifted child. Without the right kind of care and attention, she’s liable to languish. Have you even thought about preschool?”

“Excuse me?”

“It’s clear you’re alone, and you need support. Why not let someone capable help you? You won’t be able to do this yourself.”

Alice almost laughed. Now the “advice” she was getting was coming from both ends of the spectrum. There was Penny, who thought accepting help was cheating and that Alice would be happier doing everything herself, which was wrong. Alice did everything alone because Salim was an asshole, but it wasn’t better, and it didn’t make her feel more capable. It was hard as shit.

And now this woman. Thinking Alice was alone when she wasn’t. Vlad loved her kid and treated Alice’s affection like this precious thing he needed to breathe. He made her laugh and swoon and narrow her eyes in equal measure. Along with Latimer, they were a family.

“You think you have something on me?” Alice arched a brow. “Because I trust my kid? Because I know her limits? Because I don’t want to scar her in the name of pleasing some smug bitch in a white lab coat?”

“Smug?”

“You heard me.” Alice scowled, “I don’t have to take shit from you. I’m capable, I’m a good mom, and I’m in love with Vlad.”

“Who?” 

Shit! When did her inner monologue get so external?

“Love Monster?” Gwendolyn asked. “My Monster?”

“Uhh, she doesn’t know what she’s saying,” Alice cast about her diaper bag. “I’m just dating someone who’s really into cosplay, so I’m fine, we’re fine. Both happy. Really happy and…uh…now we’re gonna go.”

Without sparing Dr. Annis another glance, she sped out of the office, snatching the parking ticket off her truck and tossing it aside before buckling Gwendolyn into her car seat. 

“Love Monster!” she squealed, doing a happy little dance. 

“Yeah,” Alice couldn’t help but laugh, “Mommy loves Monster. And also, we are never gonna be allowed back into that office.”

CALEB

The Queen of the Fae could have written an entire treatise on dressing for investigations. Today’s outfit included cut-off jeans, cowboy boots, a blazer, and a scarf.

Caleb frowned. “Why are you dressed like a rancher?”

“You said I should wear better attire for blending in with mortals. Don’t they ride llamas, tip their hats, and say things like ‘hello lil’ lady’?” 

She knew they didn’t, but the glimmer in Titania’s eye told Caleb it would be dangerous to disagree. What he meant by “dress like a mortal” was “wear underwear,” but he couldn’t say that because the distraction was his problem. “You’re fine,” he mumbled.

“Good,” she popped her hip and gave him a sweet smile, “Because I am wearing underwear this time. I want to avoid chafing.”

“P-pardon?”

“My lack of underwear unnerves you, vampire; you can just say it.”

“It’s not your lack of underwear that unnerves me!” Caleb exclaimed, thrusting his hands out in front of him. “It’s that your lack of underwear has me thinking about your—” A tiny sliver of good sense forced him to snap his mouth shut before he finished the sentence.

“Thinking about my what?” Titania raised an eyebrow, pointing at him playfully. 

“Nothing,” Caleb took a step back, mortifyingly breathless. “W-we should go if we’re going to get to campus before lunch.”