Theo’s grip tightened a degree on the wooden spoon he held.

“I’m joking, Theo, relax. Grosset won’t bother you?”

Theo diverted his gaze from her face to the dog in question, who sat on the floor near his feeding dish, panting. “No, but I guess we need to buy some Alpo. He can’t live on SPAM.”

“I’ll take care of that tomorrow. I have to run back to my place to pack a bag and run by the office to finalize paperwork for my leave of absence.”

Her vacation had turned into unpaid leave. It was the worst time ever for her to go unpaid, considering her financial problems. Luckily the Coven was helping her make rent and pay her bills. She’d gladly taken the money, though pride dictated she pay them back when she could.

“You’re not going alone.”

“I should be fine.”

“No way.”

“I don’t want to trouble you, Theo.”

“You’re not troubling me. I’ll just be doing my job. That job is you.”

The way he said it, so intensely, so protectively, made her heart miss a beat. She gave him a light smile to cover her reaction. “Wow, so you’ll be doing me. My, what will the neighbors say?”

He ignored her comment. “After we return to the Coven tomorrow, we’ll go straight to the training rooms.”

“Training rooms?”

Theo nodded. “About a year and a half ago the Coven came into some money via Rue, the leader of the Ytrayi. Thomas and the Coven’s advisors used it to make repairs to the buildings that were needed after we had a major battle with the Atrika. When they made the renovations, they added on training rooms for each of the elements.

She shrugged. “Sounds good to me.”

He turned back to his bubbling brew and flipped off the heat. “Who’s Alex?”

She stiffened. “How do you know who Alex is?”

“I don’t. That’s why I’m asking you. Your friend mentioned him at your apartment, said she wondered if you’d cheated on Alex.”

She studied the tabletop. “He’s my ex. We were together for about two years, but the fire was only a flicker at first and then it went out. We stayed together too long. Mostly out of fear of being alone, I think.”

“So you’re not nursing a broken heart on top of everything else?”

She swallowed hard, her eyes suddenly pricking with tears. “I am, but my broken heart is for my foster mother, not Alex. I’m still grieving for her.”

He set the pot to the side and stared down into it for a long moment. “I’m sorry,” he murmured without turning around. “It’s hard losing your parents.” His mother had taken off when he’d been a teenager, but considering her brutal husband, Theo couldn’t really blame her much.