Chapter 6
If anyone were to ask me how you’re supposed to go on with life after discovering magical people exist, as well as entire realms, I’m not sure I’d have an answer for them.
Every day after that adventure with Audrey and Liam felt weird.
Every time I walked to work, or went grocery shopping, or ran errands, I felt like I was in a simulation.
I would find myself staring at everyone walking by.
People were casually going about their day, most likely completely unaware of people like Liam and Audrey. Of the magical realm.
Just like I used to be.
It was unsettling to exist in this world now.
I was constantly glancing over my shoulder while desperately trying to cling to any sense of normalcy I had. Having the unstable childhood I did, I didn’t like a lot of sudden changes. It triggered my fight or flight.
But I was coping. I found peace in getting back into my routines.
Opening and closing the coffee house. Chatting with my employees.
Cleaning the custom live-edge wood countertop I special-ordered from a carpenter I used to date.
Watering the dozens of indoor plants that hung sporadically throughout the open concept space, soaking up all the natural light from the front wall of windows.
Ordering baked goods from the bakery a couple of blocks away.
Audrey was spending more time at the condo, and Liam would only show up half the time.
I wanted to ask Audrey more about her uncomfortably platonic relationship with him, but I refrained because she was so touchy about it.
I did, however, ask him yesterday if he had a job, when he showed up unannounced, and he just rolled his eyes and raided our pantry.
Audrey had started throwing together a casserole for all of us, which meant that she made one for us and one for him.
I was playing music more often and relied on the grounding that instruments brought me.
I couldn’t correctly remember the melody I heard in Hyvenmere, though, and it was irritating me more and more.
No instrument I played compared to the song in the air.
Everything felt off. I wasn’t even sure I was remembering the cadence correctly.
About a week later, I was gently tapping away on the drums set up in the far corner of Sun Bean and part of me considered asking Audrey to go back there, just to walk around.
I was confident I wouldn’t even have to leave my boat, as soon as we traveled through the Mellhawn Gates, I would surely hear the melody again.
Yesterday, when I asked Audrey if she had heard the gentle song in the air whenever she visited Hyvenmere, she gave me a funny look and shook her head. I haven’t brought it up with her again.
I wanted to feel more connected to Audrey, but I didn’t want to concern her with the possibility that learning about Hyvenmere may or may not be driving me insane.
However, I knew her secret now. I couldn’t forget that night I was attacked on my boat. I couldn’t forget the gifts Audrey had. Or the giant fae prince who often lounged on our couch and ate all our food.
No, I couldn’t pretend I didn’t know any of this, but part of me wondered what this meant.
I wanted to support Audrey and this new adventure of hers, but was that just because I wanted to be close to my friend?
Did I want these gates to be open between our realms?
Those men who attacked me were dangerous, and even though I was lucky enough to hold them off until Audrey showed up, who knows how other creatures would react to being here?
The front door opened on the far side of Sun Bean, and I glanced up to smile at the new customer. The man tilted his head forward just enough to fit through the doorway, and part of me remembered how Liam’s large frame barely made it through.
I narrowed my eyes, studying the man.
When he turned his head, and his ears appeared rounded, I relaxed, starting another rhythm on the drums. He turned toward me; the sound of the instrument having caught his attention.
I gave him a half smirk as I continued to play, my thoughts still buzzing with my new reality. This man returned my half smirk as he slowly stepped toward the counter, glancing up at the menu before studying me again.
I studied him back, completely unashamed and refusing to hide it.
He was attractive.
He had dark, thick hair, a sharp jawline coated with a light layer of stubble. He wore a long coat that covered most of his frame, but when he reached into his pocket to pull out bills for his drink, I could see how fit his form was. He wore sunglasses, as most visitors in this beach town did.
Once I finished my set on the drums, I stood, stretching my shoulders. The man watched me with polite curiosity while glancing around the warm, naturally lit space. There were only a handful of other patrons in the shop, used to music randomly playing.
“Hi there,” I waved, waltzing toward the counter.
His dark eyebrows twitched, and I thought I noticed him swallow once before giving me what looked like a shy smile. Frankly, this man was too attractive to be shy about anything.
“Did you want whipped cream on this?” Emma asked the customer.
He didn’t respond to her question. I wasn’t positive he even heard her question. He just stared at me, even when I approached the counter and leaned a hip against it, crossing my arms. I raised my eyebrows as my smile widened.
“Sir?” Emma asked again after giving me a conspiratorial look.
His head jerked toward her then, and the angle revealed dark brown irises behind his sunglasses.
“Huh?”
“Do you want whipped cream on this?” Emma repeated.
“Yes, thank you,” he replied, stepping toward the other end of the counter where she was finishing his order.
The man was polite, too, which was another plus. A quick check on his hand indicated his ring finger was empty, so I squared my shoulders and walked toward him.
Being tall wasn’t a requirement for me to date someone. I learned how to date men who were shorter than me early on, considering my almost six feet of height. He had a couple of inches on me, though, which was nice.
I hadn’t been with a taller man in a long time, now that I thought about it.
“Have you been here before?” I asked the customer.
I leaned forward and made my way around him, letting my eyes rake over him in a blatant pass.
When I flirted, I was obvious. I didn’t want any miscommunication.
Any second-guessing. I liked getting straight to the point, so that if the person I was flirting with wasn’t interested, they could tell me or hint at it as soon as possible.
“Hmm?” he asked as his head turned to follow my path. I bit my lip to hide my smile as I made my way to the entrance hidden in the counter.
“It’s just…” I rested my hand on his bicep, a light touch, to silently ask him to move out of my way. His hip was blocking the hinge that lifted the countertop. “I don’t think I’ve seen you here before.”
He didn’t startle from my touch, which was good. It wasn’t until he stepped to the side and allowed me to get behind the counter that he cleared his throat and gave me another shy grin.
“Only once before,” he replied.
“Oh, yeah?” I smiled at him as I tied an apron around my waist. Emma handed me his drink, sans whipped cream, while she stepped through the door that led to the kitchen. “I’m glad we were worth visiting again.”
He hummed as I grabbed the can of whipped cream and sprayed the top of his drink. He ordered a very sugary one, so I added the sprinkle of cinnamon on top that the recipe called for. I glanced at him out of the side of my eye as I grabbed the cardboard sleeve.
“You were playing then, too,” he said the words in a rush, as if he wasn’t sure how to continue the conversation. “When I came before, I mean.”
“Yeah?” I raised my eyebrow before sliding his cup across the counter to him. “And I didn’t scare you away?” I wanted him to keep talking.
If I played my cards right, I could get him to ask for my number. Going on a date and exchanging orgasms would be a good way for me to feel stable again after the several bombs Audrey dropped on me recently.
“Not at all.” He shook his head as he retrieved his cup. He held it cautiously in his hand, as if he were studying the beverage, before slowly bringing the drink to his lips.
As he took a sip, he seemed surprised. Dark eyebrows rose behind his sunglasses.
“This is delicious,” he said.
“Thank you,” I said, giving him a bright smile as I studied him again. My eyes blatantly dragged over him, before I met his gaze—well, sunglasses. “Maybe you’ll want to come back again, then.”
He was taking another sip when I replied, and when he lowered the cup, he cleared his throat once before giving me a handsome smile of his own.
“Yeah, or maybe I—” He cut himself off when I stiffened and looked over his shoulder.
Another customer had just walked through the door, ringing the bell hung above it. Harmonizing with the bell, however, was the melody. The one I heard in Hyvenmere. As soon as the door shut, though, the melody was gone.
“I’m sorry, I—” It was my turn to cut myself off, because another customer left, opening the door, revealing the melody again.
It was a little louder. I held a finger up to the man and hopped over the counter, startling him as he backed away enough to let me land on my feet.
I scrambled through the tables and chairs, running toward the door before it slammed shut.
But as soon as I stepped outside onto the sidewalk, the melody faded into the distance.
I grumbled, rubbing my head, wondering if I should find a psychiatrist to talk to about this.
I shook my head and turned back toward the Sun Bean, just in time to see the handsome stranger nod politely with a nervous smile as he left with his drink in hand.
Damn. I totally blew that.