The establishment where their target—his idol—was predicted to be was one Eden came to before with mom. She loved their chicken wraps and specialty drinks. Plus, he didn't think the fries were half bad. He munched on some at the bar while waiting for Sagely to show up. Hunter stood just outside, imposing but mysterious as ever.
Eden could feel women shifting their gazes between him and his brother constantly. No one knew where to look—at the rugged, growly alpha pack leader outside or the delicate, aesthetically pleasing fae prince beside them. He'd worn all his jewelry tonight, a plethora of stunning silver that complimented his skin tone.
At least that's what mom used to say.
Does say, not used to.
He swallowed hard, taking another long sip of his vodka cranberry while wishing it were faerie wine. Nothing human born could get a supernatural drunk. Which was a shame because Eden felt in need of liquid courage to speak to his favorite content creator in real life, not to mention finally, finally seeing her face.
Sagely certainly seemed beautiful. No matter how much she tried to hide her curving body beneath large sweatshirts that hung down to her knees, Eden could guess the truth. Her ass was thick and plump, and the slope of her bare neck made him feral in a way he was ashamed of. And her laugh, goddess, her laugh was mind numbing. Making every little worry over his role or day or life disappear. He may or may not have a crush on a faceless MeTuber, but don't we all?
"Need anything else?"
Eden glanced up from where he'd been staring holes into the ketchup bottle. "Ah, no, thank you. Just the check."
The woman was charming with long raven hair and equally dark eyes which lit up every time she smiled. A human adult who still held their spark, how intriguing. She placed a takeout sack on the counter that Eden zeroed in on before forcing himself to glance away again. Could it be?
"Sure thing," the woman replied, turning toward the register nestled between the many bottles of liquor.
Quickly, Eden finished his order of fries and threw back the rest of the drink, stomach lurching. He didn't know whether it was from nerves or the mixture. There were a great many things Eden was capable of, but flirting with human women was not one of them.
Hunter expected him to be good at it just because of his inherent fae beauty and poise. Well, fat chance of that happening when all he did in his free time was lounge in his skyrise apartment watching MeTube and playing PC games. Some horror, but mostly survival or strategy. He hoped he could talk to her about some of the games they both played.
How cool would that be?
Stop being a nerd, he berated himself, flushing and moving to stand at the same moment the door opened, a fuming, tiny bombshell stomping inside. She was covered in a thin sheen of sweat, ombre hair pulled back from her face with a navy windbreaker zipped to her breasts.
Hot pink, her sports bra was hot pink.
This was, without a doubt, Sagely.
Eden moved to greet her, stars in his eyes, but she breezed right past him. It wasn't until then that the rose colored glasses lifted and he realized how she really looked. Rattled. Shaking fingers a bloody mess of self inflicted wounds, overtly flushed cheeks, and roaming, unfocused eyes… which were two different colors.
Two different colors, Eden's mind sighed, feeling dreamy all over again. He ached to tell her how beautiful she was, but felt weird about it now that he hovered behind her short form standing at the counter as she spoke with the bartender.
If Eden concentrated, he could probably listen in on their conversation, but he didn't bother. Both because he disliked crossing boundaries humans didn't even know existed and his respect for the streamer. Maybe he shouldn't have been the first line of attack. His knees felt weak.
The bartender laughed at something Sagely said, tapping her manicured nails on the counter at the same time a glass of water appeared. It seemed to convince the worn out woman to take a seat for a minute, and with a simple snap of his fingers and a flutter of light, the man beside her got up and left.
Allowing Eden to slip into his place.
Sagely sat forward, round, almost heart-shaped face cute enough to run his thumbs upon again and again. It suited her small build with those hips and that… don't think about it or stare, creep! Focus on the mission. She was still distressed, gripping the cup of water for dear life, eyes foggy and breathing erratic.
What the hell did Hunter say to her? Anger boiled low in Eden's stomach as he chanced a glance over his shoulder only to find the man had conveniently disappeared.
Not good.
Hunter going rogue was a problem for everyone involved, even humans. He'd cleaned up one too many messes for his elder brother using memory altering magic, something their mother would disapprove of if she knew. He really didn't want to be forced to do it again. Eden opened his mouth, about to spew something, anything, when Sagely spoke, almost under her breath.
"Just a little longer."
"Before what?"
The question was out and he couldn't snatch it back.
She gestured to the kitchen doors. "I got takeout."
Her voice was as lilting and commanding as on stream, proving what he already suspected—Sagely was unapologetically herself. She probably didn't know how to be anything else, and that was… it was enthralling. Eden inched closer, running his hands through his hair.
"Ah, I was going to offer to buy you a drink."
"Usually, you ask a girl her name before offering such a thing," Sagely replied, raising a brow.
Oof.
Eden kind of forgot to tell her he knew her from the stream, and maybe that was a good thing? He wasn't sure. Licking his lips, he leaned into her words, trying to emanate his father's raw magnetism.
"Fine," he purred, leaning one arm on the bar, his back to the room, having no interest whatsoever in anyone but the woman in front of him. "May I have the utmost pleasure of knowing such a radiant woman's name? I'd love to hear more about that pretty necklace you have on."
"Sage," she replied curtly.
Double oof.
The pause stretched until the bartender came back with Sage's order. They exchanged a few more soft words before the girls separated. Sage pushed off the counter without looking at him, about to leave when sudden movement caught the corner of Eden's eye.
Flying toward Sage was a man, face constricted in a strange, almost dead look, and visage flickering between ragged robes paired with glowing crimson eyes to modern day businessman. Eden blinked, activating his magical root and trying to tear away the glamor.
Was that a…
Eden moved to step closer, only for Hunter's mace to sore right over his head, heading for the pair about to collide. As if sensing it coming, Sage lept to the left, ducking out of sight as the weapon crunched into the assailant's chest, pinning him to the wall.
Holy shit, Eden thought, glowing eyes glued to the dying, opened mouth creature with rows of serrated teeth, it's a ghoul.