Page 76 of Havoc's Fox

“Okay.”

“And let’s not listen to any more grownup conversations while we pretend we’re asleep. It’s not polite!” Analise called as she took the first couple of steps away from Maverik’s home.

“If I’m not really sleeping, I can’t help it!” Harley said, exasperatedly.

“Be good,” Analise said.

“I’ll try,” Harley called back to her, trying to get in a last wave before Valerie closed the door.

Analise took her time getting back home, knowing that every step she took was shadowed - by Havoc - as he made sure she got home safe.

As she went up onto her parents’ porch, she didn’t look around, but she paused momentarily. “Thank you for walking me home, Havoc.”

She heard a soft whine from the shadows at the tree line and knew that was his way of confirming for her that he was there.

Chapter 17

Havoc trotted back to his parents’ home, shifted back to his human form, pulled on jeans and a shirt, and walked in the back door. “Well, looky there. The prodigal daughter has returned.”

Harley grinned at him from her place at the table enjoying her hot chocolate and tiny marshmallows. “You knowed where I was.”

“Yes, I did. But not until Emmalyn called me. Do not go off without telling me. Understand?”

“Yes, sir.”

“How much hot chocolate you have left over there?” he asked.

“Just a little. Want some?” she asked, holding her mug out toward him.

“No, I just thought that when you’re done, maybe you’d like to go see our new house.”

She was happily gulping down as much chocolate as she could, but when his words sank in, she stopped and looked up.

“I decided that you like it so much down here, maybe we’d have a house down here, too.”

“We’re gonna live here?” Harley asked, sliding down from her chair to jump up and down while squealing.

“Damn! Whatever you said, don’t say it again,” Maverik said, walking into the kitchen, scratching his fingers through his mohawk.

Havoc started laughing. “Thought you were all up for helping with the younguns!”

“I am, I am, but when you’re trying to get a little rest, that’ll go straight through to your spine and have you on high alert quick!”

“Yes, it will,” Havoc said, still chuckling.

“We’re going to live here!” Harley screeched.

“Well, we’re going to see. But we can come down here any time we want to because we’ll have our own house.”

Harley quit jumping. She looked at her father with a perturbed expression on her little face. “Why can’t we just live here? We got a house. We got Poppy and Val. We got Analise. We got a whole clan. We’ll just stay here!”

“I’m not sure that’s a good idea. We’ll have to see, but we will be here more.”

“When are we going to decide if we can live here?”

“We’ll just have to wait and see.”

“We should stay here.”