James is trying to become one with the couch. His head is lowered, and he's fiddling with his fingers. The shadow of his true form allows me to peek at pointy ears that are also down. Well, he looks like a kid who's getting scolded by his father, which, to be fair, is not too far from the truth.
Anyway, James doesn't dare to lift his eyes to meet Jordan's. I can't blame him. My husband's cold smile and stern gaze are sending shivers down my spine, and they're not even directed at me. He's standing before James, arms crossed before his chest. To begin with, even when James is up on his feet, Jordan towers over him like a skyscraper. Never mind when he's sitting on the couch.
"So?" Jordan narrows his eyes. "When were you planning to tell me you have some difficulties adjusting to your current body? Hm?"
"Well, erm…"
The words trail off, and James doesn't finish his sentence. Instead, he peers at Jonathan, who is sitting beside him, leisurely drinking his tea. He's acting like the conversation doesn't concern him, even though he's the one who told James to keep quiet for whatever reason. It's most likely 'cause he knew Jordan wouldn't allow them to play bait had he been told about James's adaptation problem. The sensible thing to do, if anything.
I'm pretty sure James knows it, too. He's well aware he screwed up royally, and now, he gotta face Jordan.
…Glad I'm not in his shoes. Dealing with two patriarchs is bound to be headache-inducing. Thank goodness, Jordan is overly partial to me, so I'm safe. Can't say the same for James and Jonathan.
"Dad, dad!" Talking of headache… "Come help us! We want to bake an apple pie for Bryan!"
Kids, you're banned from the kitchen.
But it's not like either of them cares, and both Ellena and Elois look at me with their big, round eyes. They won't take a no for an answer, will they? And honestly, it's going to be a lot less stressful trying not to make the kitchen explode with the kids than watching James and Jonathan getting scolded.
One last glance at the vampires, and I spin on my heel toward the kitchen.
I pretend not to notice the gaze of betrayal and disbelief James throws me. Pal, you deserve that scolding, so live with it.
***
I'm stumped. I swear, these kids have no talent whatsoever for cooking, even though their father is a surprisingly great cook. Looks like that's one thing he hasn't passed down to his children.
"Ellena, no!" I grab the soy sauce before she can pour it into the mixture for the apple pie. She purses her lips in discontentment. "That's not going to help with the taste. You can add brown sugar instead, but moderately."
"Eh?" She pouts and stomps her feet. "But Mom said soy sauce makes everything taste better!"
I'm pretty sure she was talking about a limited range of food, and certainly not apple pies. Only, I fear the tantrum she'd throw if I try to explain it to her, so I go for a white lie instead.
"My brother doesn't like soy sauce much."
The next instant, Ellena pushes the bottle of soy sauce aside, looking at it as if it's her worst enemy. She's just about to throw it in the garbage bin when I steal it from her hands and put it back where it belongs.
"Can I add jalapeños?" Elois asks, his tone hopeful. "We have a lot of them!"
"No! Absolutely not!" That's not going to be an apple pie if he had those taste-bud-killer things. Oh, kids, for the love of God, think of my poor brother's throat and tongue, thank you! "Just… Let me just handle the ingredients, ok?"
Although Elois is hanging his head low, he doesn't insist and puts the jalapeños back into their jar, 'cause he wanted to use pickled jalapeños on top of everything. I know Eve also enjoys these as snacks, as apparently, demons taste human food a bit differently. It needs to have a lot of spice to be tasty, or so she says.
I've got a hunch it has more to do with her personal taste than her species, but whatever.
Since the kids haven't eaten human food yet, they don't know what these things taste like and can only make do with what they've heard from others. They don't understand that putting good things together doesn't necessarily mean it's going to taste good as a whole, and it's hell preventing them from messing up the filling. It almost makes me grateful that the pie they had baked for me ended up in flames.
Damn, I escaped the food poisoning by a hair's breadth that day, didn't I?
"Do you think Uncle will like it?" Ellena wonders as she watches me cut the apples. "Uncle Elias said that the best way to a man's heart is through his stomach. If you want him to like you, you gotta give him a lot of good food!"
Well, looks like Eve's brother gives even shittier advice than hers. It must be a family thing.
Although that explains why the kids try to feed me an apple pie on my first day in this house, and why they want to feed one to Bryan. Fortunately for them, my brother does have a sweet tooth. Maybe I could give him all the pastries Eve brings me… I mean, he's the twin who likes sugary things, not me.
"I'm sure he's going to like it." I smile at Ellena, albeit stiffly. I've been trying not to think too much about my brother since I woke up. Spoiler alert, it hasn't been very successful thus far. "Elois, would you mind washing another apple and giving it to me?"
He happily nods and bolts to the sink with an apple. This kid is always eager to help me, a little too much, even.
"Do you think Uncle will sleep over?"
Ellena's eyes are sparkling with stars at the thought. She's standing on her tiptoes and leaning against the kitchen island, propping her chin on the counter. The little girl is staring at me like a kitten ready to pounce on its prey. She clearly wants a yes as an answer, but that's not something I can give her.
"I don't know." I throw a few slices of apple in a bowl. "We'll need to ask him later."
But I sure as hell hope he won't sleep over. Knowing the kids, they'll drag him to my bed, and there's no more space left in it for another adult. It's already cramped enough as it is, and I kind of don't want to sleep on top of Jordan, just to make it clear.
I might not be as alert as I was before, but we're still not close enough for me to view him as a potential mattress.
Using his thighs as pillows during the night is just a little slip-up. I'm not going to purposefully lie on top of him just so my brother gets enough space to climb into the bed with us.
Nuh-huh. Not happening.
Anyway, Bryan is only coming over for dinner. At first, he wanted to visit in the evening to chat about what happened yesterday, but that plan didn't make it past the council.
The kids demanded to eat with my brother.
Neither Eve nor Jordan opposed it, even though they'll most likely be a little late. It's Oliver's trial today, and both of them need to be present. They're the prosecutor and the investigator in charge, after all. Needless to say, they're also dragging Jonathan with them. Anthony will serve as the main witness, but it's better to keep Jonathan by their side to ensure his servant won't misbehave.
They wanted to bring James along, too, but considering his current appearance, it's better not to. It's not like his attendance is necessary, anyway, considering how compelling the case is. A miracle would be needed for Oliver to escape scot-free from the hell he's raised.
Long story short, we get to have the house to ourselves tonight. Whether Bryan likes it or not, he's going to have to babysit the kids with me for a bit.