The Inner Circle (Return of the Ancients Book 3) by Carmen Caine, Madison Adler

she’d been ignoring while chatting on the phone.
    “I’ll get you a nice, fresh one,” I volunteered with a smile as a plan formulated in my head. “Just come this way.”
    Sending Jareth a dark glare, the woman followed me across the shop.
    I chose the empty table next to Samantha.
    After all, if the rest of us were afraid of her, the toddler probably would be, too.
    It worked like a charm.
    The instant the little boy took one step away from his mother, Samantha looked up at him from her pastry orders, and he stopped dead in his tracks. This repeated several times before he resorted to hanging onto his mother’s leg and staring up at Samantha with a finger jammed up his nose.
    The situation had stabilized, so I decided to return to the pastry counter.
    With a loud yawn, Jareth stretched and getting up, joined me to lean against the glass in a creak of leather. “Well done, Sydney,” he said.
    I scowled at him. “You’re hardly any better than that kid,” I warned testily. “Go sit down before I put you next to Samantha, too.”
    He drew back at that and gave a hiss.
    The baristas smothered giggles.
    “More Jareth antics?” Samantha questioned from her table. She must have heard the exchange, but I could tell she wasn’t too displeased.
    “Go sit down,” I ordered Jareth again.
    He returned to his seat.
    I watched him, concerned. Underneath it all, I could tell that he wasn’t his usual smug cocky self. When no one was looking, he appeared downright miserable. And I could understand why, but I didn’t really know how to help him.
    And I wasn’t the only one who had noticed his depression.
    With a keen eye of appraisal and a slight reproving smile, Samantha watched him for a time, tapping her pencil on the table. At his third heaving sigh, she took that as her cue, and putting on a professional smile, clapped her pastry book shut and walked over to him.
    “Dragon,” he greeted her with a mocking lift of the brow
    “You’re such a charmer, Jareth,” she observed in reply and then asked in her no-nonsense voice, “And why the long face today?”
    “You should leave, dragon,” he said darkly. “I’m not in a good mood.”
    Samantha took that as an invitation. Sitting opposite him, she crossed her legs and laced her fingers around her knee. “Everyone has a time of trial,” she said.
    “A time?” Jareth rolled his eyes. “I see only trial upon trial.”
    His tone was so genuine that even Samantha took note, and for a brief moment, a flash of sympathy crossed her angular face. But only for a moment.
    “Pish!” She clucked, shaking her head. “It can’t be that hopeless. Keep on moving, that’s my motto. Look up from any hole you’ve fallen into and pick a star in the dark sky above. As long as you keep climbing one foot and then another, you’ll soon find yourself out.”
    “And then you’ll just fall into another hole,” Jareth responded acidly. “And then again. Failures are assured.”
    Samantha huffed. “Failures?” she seized the word. “Then I’d say don’t judge yourself by failures but by how quickly you get up to try again. Your story isn’t over yet, Jareth. You’re too young to have failed. You’re a talented kid.”
    “Yes, you have to be born with talent like mine,” he replied sarcastically.
    I knew that he was referring to his possible lizard DNA. And while everyone else probably thought he was being arrogant, Samantha apparently sensed his despondency, too.
    Moving to the pastry case, she put a fresh blueberry muffin onto a plate and returned to him. “When all else fails, a good muffin usually helps,” she said. “Here, eat one of these, you’re always dying for one.”
    Jareth stared at it.
    We all held our breath, wondering what Samantha would do if he insulted her.
    But I guess even Jareth knew better than to do that. Taking the plate, he replied, “I wouldn’t die for it … but it might be worth fainting for.”
    Samantha smiled. A real