If only things could have been different. If only the woman in question had chosen him, the way Carly had chosen Niklas. The way Kyanna had chosen Xander.
If Maggie had been given a choice, would she have chosen him? Willingly?
“See? Didn’t I tell you?” Niklas asked, drawing Gideon out of his musings. What were they talking about? He’d lost track of the conversation he’d walked in on.
Xander nodded sagely, taking a long draw of Pepsi.
“What?” Gideon asked.
“She’s got you twisted up in knots.” Niklas set his beer aside and laced his fingers over his middle, settling back in his chair more comfortably.
Gideon had watched Niklas twist in the wind over Carly. He’d seen the way Xander behaved around Kyanna. He’d even teased them about their predicaments. And here he was, in the same damned boat.
A boat that leaked like a sieve, smack in the middle of Shit Creek, and he with neither bucket nor paddle.
He wasn’t fool enough to even try to deny it.
“You know, Slayer,” Niklas remarked, a sly grin on his lips, his ice blue gaze dancing merrily. “I seem to recall some less-than-sympathetic comments someone made not that long ago about our own woman troubles.”
“True,” Xander said, nodding. He took another long gulp of Pepsi and vanished the can. “Demons of lesser restraint might be tempted to rub his nose in his current situation.”
“They might,” Niklas agreed. “It’s a good thing demons of our fine, upstanding stature would never stoop to such deplorable behavior.”
A deep chuckle rumbled through the room. “At least I don’t have to worry about Kyanna frying my ass with Angelfire the next time she gets pissed off at me.”
“No, you only have to worry about her locking you in your room and binding your abilities with angelic enchantments,” Niklas crowed, earning himself a narrow-eyed glower from the now sober Xander.
Gideon snorted aloud. He was just petty enough to take a moment’s enjoyment from his brothers’ banter despite his own less than ideal circumstances.
“I wouldn’t be laughing so hard over there. I didn’t get my woman knocked up with the Chosen One,” Xander snarked, shooting Gideon a gimlet stare.
“Only by sheer dumb luck,” Niklas jeered. “At least Kyanna’s friend had you, er, covered.”
Gideon chuckled. He’d overheard Kyanna telling Carly the story not so very long ago. Kyanna’s friend Summer had the finesse of a hammer. When Kyanna had captured a wounded Xander, his clothing had been in a sad, sad state, having just come from a demon battle. Once he was inside the enchantments that had surrounded her antique shop and apartment, he had been unable to conjure fresh duds.
So, being the gracious hostess that she was—cough cough—Kyanna had phoned a friend. Summer, upon hearing Kyanna’s request for replacement male attire, had promptly assumed Kyanna was having an out-of-character illicit affair and had sagely decided to look out for her best friend’s interests, slipping a rather large box of condoms in amongst the clothing she delivered. Kyanna had been so mortified, she’d snatched the box from the palm of his hand and thrust it into the first cabinet she could reach. Her version of out of sight, out of mind.
Red actually stole into Xander’s cheeks. “How did you find out about that?”
“Kyanna told Carly,” Niklas said.
“And I overheard the telling,” Gideon said, jumping in helpfully.
Xander harrumphed. “Yeah, well, you’re not any better, Seer. You’re rolling the dice here too.” Xander grinned. “I can already see five or six little Carlys running around, wrapping you around their tiny little fingers just as their mother already has.”
Expecting a snide comment, Gideon looked to Niklas. He was startled to find the Seer sitting there with a goofy grin plastered on his face and a faraway look of longing in his eyes.
And it got Gideon to thinking.
“I wonder what he’ll look like. Suppose he’ll have Maggie’s smile?” Where’d that come from? Great, now he was getting all gooey too.
“Won’t it be pleasant if he gets his mother’s termagant…excuse me”—Xander cleared his throat at Gideon’s warning growl—“determined attitude along with that pretty smile?”
Niklas snickered.
A long stretch of silence filled the room. In the stillness, he became aware of the soft approach of familiar power. So subtle, so familiar now, he almost didn’t pay any attention. Maggie was nearby. Just outside the den door, if he didn’t miss his mark.
“Part demon, part angel, part human. Can you imagine what those midnight craving runs are going to be like?” Xander hitched a thumb in Gideon’s direction. Niklas burst out laughing.
Hey! Wait a second.
“I’m sitting right here, you know?” Gideon growled.
But his mind shot ahead. He imagined Maggie, swollen with his child. He shifted in his chair to alleviate some of the tightness in his pants. Had it been the image that had shot lust straight to his gut? Or her mere presence, just on the other side of that mass of solid oak standing between them?