by Kali Harper
“You don’t want to use the front?” I asked him.
“I have a special table for us. Ladies first.”
With a tiny nudge from him, I stepped into the back of Carol’s and immediately froze.
“Surprise!” Lance cried out, accompanied by almost the entire town who had gathered around a simple table with a tiny votive in the center.
“W-what is this?” I asked, stumbling back into Lance.
“Your birthday of course. Sort of,” he explained, smiling when I looked at him.
“But my birthday isn’t—”
“We never got to celebrate your awakening,” he told me. “Earning your magic is as much a reason to celebrate as any.”
Keeping my voice low so only he could hear, I said, “But I thought we were on a date?” I tried to look grateful, but it had been days since I got to talk to him face-to-face and weeks since I’d been out of the house.
“They’re here to thank you for everything you did. When they asked to see you, I told them you’d be overwhelmed, so I invited them here. Please don’t be mad.” His shy smile reminded me of a little boy trying to impress his favorite girl. It made me stupidly happy, and as I looked around the room, my smile grew. Maggie, Ronan, and Sammy were there.
“How’d he get here before—”
“Portal,” Sammy cut in, padding over to me. “You didn’t think I’d actually let you out of the house without me, did you?”
“I kinda hoped you would,” I admitted. “You can’t always be around.”
“I can and will. Yes, even when it’s private. Yes, I can hear your thoughts. Yes. Yes. Astrid, knock it off!”
Lance and I both laughed.
“Fine, I’m going,” Sammy said, clearly tired of my thoughts invading his own. “Morpheus should do something about that.”
“He already did,” I told him. “He reversed it.” Meaning the lock he’d placed on my mind. Once Sammy left and everyone else had walked off to their respective tables, I turned to Lance and said, “Can you hear my thoughts?”
“Not a word,” he said, pulling out my chair so I could sit down. “If I could hear them, what would they say?”
I gave his question some thought and took my seat once I’d removed my jacket and purse, thanking him when he pushed me back in. “How nervous I am,” I admitted, playing with the corner of a napkin. “It’s been a really, really long time since I’ve done anything like this.”
“Dated?” he asked, reaching across the table for my hand.
“Or anything remotely close to dating,” I said, placing my hand in his and smiling when he ran his thumb over the back of it. It was a calm gesture and sent cool tingles all over my body.
“It’s been forever,” he agreed. “It’s hard having a relationship with my line of work.”
“Some folks manage okay,” I said.
“My mother told me what she said to you when I wasn’t around. I’m really sorry you had to listen to that.”
“It’s been so long, I honestly can’t remember.”
“She’s looking out for me, you know? I guess she expects every woman I meet to leave when things get tough. I can understand her concern since my dad did the same thing.”
My heart skipped at the mention of lance’s dad. “Oh, I’m sorry.”
He waved my comment away. “It’s fine, now. In the beginning, it tore her apart. He didn’t like she was a Seer and hated how she knew his intentions.”
“That must be hard,” I agreed.
“Try playing hooky with her as your mom.”
I burst out laughing, covering my mouth when a few heads looked in our direction. “Sorry. That sounds mortifying.”
“It wasn’t pretty, that’s for sure. I never could get a lie past her.”
“Hard to, considering what she is.”
He nodded. “In any case, Dad split because he couldn’t take her questioning him all the time. He’s in law enforcement, same as me, so a lot of things she questioned, he couldn’t tell her about.”
“But you do.”
“It’s easier than her thinking I’m hiding something,” he said with a shrug. “He’s still around, and I meet with him from time to time, but we don’t talk much. He left us, not the other way around. How about you? I’ve met your aunt, but is there anyone else?”
I got quiet for a long moment, petting Sammy with my free hand who’d quietly taken his place beside me.
“Sorry,” Lance apologized. “I know the answer, I was only trying to make conversation.”
“It’s okay,” I assured him, “it isn’t something I really talk about. I… can I ask you something? As a detective?”
Lance frowned. “Sure.”
“Do you think their accident was…”
“Accidental?” He offered me a reassuring smile. “I do, and get those thoughts out of your mind. They’ll only lead you down a dark road. You having magic didn’t influence your parents’ passing. It wasn’t your fault.”
“How can you be so sure?” I asked, swallowing around the lump in my throat.
“I can’t, but I also know it’s better if we don’t question these things. I mean, look at me. After the death of my packmate, I threw part of my life away. I’ve blamed myself for years. I should’ve been the one who got shot, not him.”
“It looks like you still blame yourself,” I said, squeezing his hand.
“I do. It’s also a burden I’ll probably carry for the rest of my life, but it isn’t one I want you to share. Their death wasn’t your fault. You did nothing wrong. Nothing.” He emphasized every word.
I nodded and let the subject drop, smiling when Carol came over to take our order. For the rest of the evening, we fell into easy conversation with one another, mostly discussing my newfound magic and Lance’s upcoming trip to see Ivan and his pack.
“So I’ll be gone the week after next, but it shouldn’t be too long,” he finished, waving Carol over to refill our drinks and take our plates away.
“You’ll have to introduce me to them someday,” I said once there was a pause in our conversation. “I’ve never seen an entire pack of wolves in person. It must be lovely.”
“It really is. Sadly, packs aren’t big on visitors. Much like Emberdale, every pack has a territory and a veil shielding them from outsiders. Those who cross under it are pack or are stripped of their magic while in the presence of wolves.” He forced a smile. “As much as I’d love for you to see what a true pack looks like, removing your powers, even for a moment, isn’t wise. I’m sorry.”
I nodded my understanding and tried not to look as disappointed as I felt. It was a nice thought, anyway. “What’s it like?”
“What part?”
“Running with them.” Ivan and Lance looked beautiful when they ran. I couldn’t imagine what a whole pack of wolves looked like on a hunt.
Lance’s eyes glazed over and he released a contented sigh. “Like nothing you’ve ever seen before. It’s like a dance where everyone moves at the perfect time, weaving in and out of the trees as the moon shines off their backs.” Lance paused so he could ask for our check, then continued. “I’m sorry I can’t share it with you.”
“It’s okay. Boundaries are important.” The one around Emberdale hid us from human eyes. The one Lance’s pack used was for a very similar reason. Granted, the way he spoke about his pack, the wolves, and their run… it was almost as though…
“You’re accepting your wolf, aren’t you?” I asked him.
“I guess I am, and I have you to thank. When you saw me in the woods the other day, why didn’t you run?”
“I wasn’t afraid,” I told him. “You’d never hurt me.” That much I was sure of.
“But how could you know?”
Shrugging, I said, “I guess I couldn’t, but I also couldn’t stand the thought of turning my back on you. You were injured. How’s your arm, by the way?” It wasn’t in a sling anymore and hadn’t been in one since a week after Marcy’s arrest.
He lifted his arm to test its strength. “It was a nasty sprain, but I’m good now.”
“I guess being a wolf helps.”
“The healing process does, yes.” He averted his gaze and when he looked at me again, there was a shine of fire in his eyes. “This may be a bit forward, and I apologize if it is, but I… I’d really like to kiss you now.”
My heart skipped a beat, and as he leaned in, I met him halfway, releasing a breath when he lifted my chin with his hand.
“Look at me.” When I did, he said, “Does my being a wolf or what I do scare you?”
“No.”
“Good.”
Before I could formulate a reply, he pressed his lips to mine, lightly and barely there, but enough to send my blood pressure through the roof. A clamor of voices spoke around the room, no doubt watching the entire moment (our moment) unfold. We’d be the talk of the town tomorrow, but for now, I couldn’t be bothered.
I couldn’t think, I could barely breathe, and when we finally separated, Lance’s cheeks were as red as mine felt.
“It’s been a long time,” Lance said, caressing my face.
“A very long time,” I agreed, leaning into his touch as I never wanted it to end.
“I don’t know why I waited so long.”
“I wasn’t awakened,” I said, thankful when Sammy kept whatever thoughts he had to himself.
“Even then, before you knew anything about our town, I wanted to ask you out.”
“So why didn’t you?”
“Because eventually dreams end.” He looked almost sad as he spoke.
“Not this one,” I said, taking his hand in mine as I leaned in for another tentative kiss. “Not if I have anything to say about it.”
Thank you so much for reading.
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Find out what happens next in Trial and Terror.
Coming September 28th.
