Page 19 of Gaming with the Gargoyle in Hallow's Cove

“Yep. I’m totally fucked.” I run a hand over my bald head and push him forward with my elbow.

My thoughts swirl, because already I can feel myself yearning to be back with Gwen. My body is compelling me to be close to her. If things continued on as they are, there really wouldn’t be a huge problem… I spend most of my time with her anyhow. Then again, if she ever started seeing someone else… or hell if anyone ever tried to pick her up around me—

“Sssssh, dude, you’re growling.”

“Oh, sorry.” I hang my head and lean against the wall of the hallway. “Do you think Sydney could tell us what to do? About Gwen?”

“Are you stupid? I’m not waking up a pregnant woman when she’s sleeping.” He starts down the hallway toward the kitchen and outside. “Plus…” he mumbles. “She’ll think the answer is obvious and I can’t have her thinking I didn’t know it.”

“Oh.” I guess I have a lot to learn about pregnant ladies. “What do you think will happen if I tell her? She could freak… and I could lose my best friend… and just be alone and miserable for the rest of my life.”

“Or, you could tell her and she could do the Gwen thing. You know where she thinks of other people’s feelings first? Take a seat, I’ll pull the trailer around.”

After patting me on the shoulder, Brooks heads outside and I slump into my chair. Shit. He’s right. A more probable outcome would be that I’d tell Gwen and she’d gladly get into a relationship with me. I mean, she’s seemed more than satisfied during sex, but I don’t know if she wants a relationship. If she knows I’m bonded to her, it will influence how she feels about me, period.

The rumble of Brooks’s truck tells me it’s time to go, and with a deep breath, I step outside. The sun isn’t quite coming up, but I can see that it will be soon. I step onto the flatbed of the trailer and sit down. Brooks hops out of the truck and comes to join me.

“What do you think will happen?”

“I think—” I have to stop and clear my throat because even though the rest of this could be disastrous, I think Gwen has brought me the day. “I think I’ll be riding up front to Jake’s.”

He nods, and we sit in silence as we wait for the sun to come up. He’s antsy, his hoof is shaking because I know it’s hard for him to sit in silence like this.

“I think it’s gonna be ok.” He claps me on the back as the first sliver of the sun peeks over the horizon. “I think it’s gonna work out.”

“Thanks.” The sun washes over me, and while I feel a tug to shift to my stone form, it doesn’t feel urgent. It’s the very first signs of hunger rather than pangs.

“Well. That solves that.” I say, standing and dusting off my gym shorts. “Let’s go piss off a raccoon.”

It’s weird enough riding through town in a truck. Neither Gwen nor I have cars anymore, and I’m usually on Brooks’s trailer rather than in the cab. My wings are a little smushed, but that’s pretty normal for mid-size vehicles that are made for folks roughly human sized.

What is super weird is seeing more than the view across my street in the early morning light. I’ve never really thought about how the sun might hit a field of hay or reflect off the surface of the water. Of course it would… but it never occurred to me. Brooks must sense it, because he allows me some quiet to watch out the window. As we approach main street—it’s a short drive after all—he finally pipes up.

“Do we need to go around back? So Gwen doesn’t see us?”

“Nah, it’s like six am, she’s still asleep.” He parks the car in front of Jake’s and we hop out and ring the bell.

It takes a long while, but our friend finally opens it, rubbing his hand through his hair and looking pissed as hell. In true Jake fashion, he’s got some crazy ass loud patterned pants on, with a silk robe that doesn’t seem to share a single color with the pants, and bunny slippers that have seen better days.

“What?” he barks, and then blinks when he sees me. “Wait…what?”

“We need advice.” Brooks says.

After a few minutes, we’ve explained the situation and Jake is nodding sagely. “I see the conundrum. It sounds like you’re fucked.”

“Yeah, no shit. So should I tell her?”

He considers it for a moment and shakes his head. “I didn’t tell Hayley until later and look how that worked out? Plus, when we were first dating, she said some stuff about not being compelled to love someone. And while she said later that it was really to help her feel better, I think there was a bit of truth to it. Humans… this shit isn’t normal for them. Gwen cares about you, man. If she knew? She’d try to make it work. Do you want to spend the rest of your life wondering if she really loves you?”

I lean forward, hanging my head with my arms propped on my thighs. “You’re right. Fuck. I’ll tell her, eventually, but she deserves time to work out how she feels about me first, without all this pressure.”

The weight of it is practically tangible as it settles on me. I need to let her feel how she really feels, without external influence.

“But…” Brooks starts. “You’ve got a damn good opportunity to show her how lucky she’d be to have you…”

Chapter nine

Gwen