Chapter 26Gabe shut off the engine in the driveway. He hustled around the car to open the door for me in case anyone watched. I forced myself to smile like I wanted him. Pretending Claire offered me her arm helped. She didn’t smell like the Willamette, but she did have strong arms, and she did stand several inches taller than me.
I couldn’t muster a giggle, but I could keep smiling. Gabe took my hand and opened the door. We stepped inside. The house’s aura pressed against me, which felt like walking into plastic wrap. Unlike Mom’s warding, this didn’t constrain me. It struck me as more of a warning system than a protection system.
An attractive woman with dark hair and pearls sat in the room to the left. Her aura glimmered green. She stopped tapping on a laptop to look up at us.
“Hi, Mo
