Chapter 6
Lorne
The evening before winter break starts, we have our annual Paranormal Orphanage and Academy holiday party.
My stomach flips when I look across the room and see Princess Mair speaking with a familiar, curvy, chestnut brown-haired beauty.
There's Alana Fairchild, and seeing her brings back both the disaster of our blind date and the intoxicating chemistry from the masquerade ball.
When we removed our masks and discovered who we'd been spending the evening with, my reaction surprised me.
I was happy it was her, not angry that I'd been kissing a billionaire.
But Alana clearly still thought I was a pompous ass, judging by her reaction when she realized she'd been making out with me.
Tonight, when she finally looks over at me, I can tell that her feelings about my level of pompous assholery remain the same.
In fact, at one point, when we are in the same corner of the room, instead of simply walking by me, I watch the voluptuous beauty shift into a cedar waxwing and fly over my head to the other side of the party.
I hadn't known Alana was a shifter and chuckle to myself.
She definitely has the fiery nature of a shifter, but I would have guessed bobcat or badger.
I chat with Leonardo and other professors I'm friends with, but throughout the entire night, my attention continues to be drawn to the billionaire beauty. I'm feeling more and more like a jerk. She was right. I behaved like a pompous ass on our blind date when I found out how wealthy she was.
The more I learn about the wing that is being built because of Alana's money, the more excited I become.
And I feel like a bigger butthead with every additional detail I learn.
It's become pretty obvious that I projected my assumptions onto her.
And I'd love to apologize, but the woman will not give me the time of day.
Walking over to Murphy and Mair to say goodnight, they have their backs to me and I hear Mair quietly whisper, "They're both here tonight, Murphy. I swear they're meant to be together."
My boss turns to his wife and says, "You need to drop it," in a loving but firm way.
His eyes then snap up at me, and I clear my throat, pretending I hadn't heard what they just said.
"Hey, I'm heading home for the night. Wanted to say good night to you two."
A few minutes after leaving the holiday celebration, I pull over at the local market.
Snow began to fall during the party, and it's beginning to get heavier.
I grab some groceries and one of their Christmas trees wrapped in twine out front.
I toss it into the back of my truck and continue heading home.
I'm barely back on the road when a weather alert interrupts Bob Seger on the radio. As I listen and drive, I notice the snow coming down even heavier. By the time I pull into my driveway, the visibility is minimal.
I drag the tree inside, then rush out to bring in the groceries. Before unpacking them, I start a roaring fire and get everything put away. After removing the twine from the tree, I set it up with water and let it warm by the fire.
Wind howls outside, and snow whips past the windows. I begin preparing my usual storm stew, knowing I'll be snowed in for at least a week based on the forecast and my cabin's remote location. I don't mind though - I've got wood, food, and a generator if needed.
The stew simmers on the stove as I grab a book off my shelf and settle into my recliner. I don't get more than half a chapter in when I suddenly hear tires squealing outside and the crash of metal.