Chapter Nine
Dain
Ipulled into the packed parking lot and found a spot all the way in the very back. We got out and began the long and cold trek to the restaurant. I saw Lanche’s hand hanging down at his side, and I had no idea what possessed me to do it, but I reached over and grabbed it.
That same spark I’d felt earlier when we’d touched flared through my gloved hand again.
Damn, Lanche’s magic must be really powerful to keep sending off sparks like that all the time.
Lanche’s footsteps paused for half a beat before he laced our fingers together and sent me a shy, blushing smile.
Well, I supposed holding hands was worth it just for that sweet face.
Good grief, what were these thoughts twirling around in my head today? That was far too sappy for me. Ew. What was Lanche turning me into?
I grumbled under my breath as we walked, but out of the corner of my eye, I saw Lanche’s smile grow.
When we walked inside, my stomach sank because the entrance was overcrowded. The wait was likely to be hours at this point, and my stomach was already trying to eat itself. Apparently, ice skating was hungry work.
I pulled Lanche to a stop. “Hey, the wait’s gonna be too long. Let’s try somewhere else. We can come back here a different time.”
I wasn’t sure what I’d said to make him smile so much, but he aimed that sunshine my way, and my stomach swooped. “Don’t worry.”
“But—”
Before I could get out another protest, the hostess asked, “How can I help you?”
Lanche said, “We have a reservation for two at eight o’clock.”
I checked my phone for the time. It was quarter of. Huh. How had he predicted that so accurately?
The hostess asked, “What name is it under?”
“Avalanche Rudolphus.”
As she searched for his name, I turned to him with wide eyes. “Your first name is Avalanche?”
He grimaced, clearly unhappy with his name. “Yes, but I prefer Lanche.”
“Right. Okay. I just… I didn’t realize your name isn’t really Lanche.”
Avalanche.
Who the hell named their kid Avalanche?
How incredibly odd.
Well… he was a snow yeti. Maybe that was, like, a thing for them. Snow-themed names.
“Do all your siblings have… snow-related names?”
“Yep. Tundra is the oldest. We weren’t very close when I was a kid because she’s so much older than me, but now, she’s one of my favorite people.
Next is Blizzard, and our parents couldn’t have known it, but they picked the perfect name for her because when she’s angry…
woooo, you better look out. Then we have Ice, but we call her Ice Cream, which makes her absolutely mad, and makes us do it even more.
” He chuckled a little, and I couldn’t keep my lips from twitching.
He continued, “Flurry is the closest in age to me out of all my sisters, so we’ve always been close. And my younger brother is Glacier, and he’s probably my best friend in the whole world.”
My eyebrows grew with every name he listed. Wow. His parents really stuck with the theme, didn’t they?
I loved how he’d described his siblings so easily. It was clear that they were all close, which was pretty awesome, especially when they were hundreds of years old.
Before I could figure out how to formulate a response, the hostess interrupted us. “Right this way.”
I sighed in relief as I realized we weren’t going to have to wait with the rest of these people out here. Sweet.
I nudged Lanche in camaraderie.
“Good work on the reservation,” I whispered before I followed behind the hostess.
She sat us at a table for two in the far corner, and as I took in the low lighting, the twinkle lights hanging around the walls, the flowers in the vases, and the tealight candles softly flickering everywhere, I realized that everyone was right.
This place really was romantic as all hell.
We settled into our seats across from one another, and the first thing out of my mouth was, “My first name really is Dain.”
He blinked. “Um… okay.”
“Just… thought you should know. Also… your family seems cool, and I like your name. Well, I like both names—Lanche and Avalanche.”
“Really? Because people used to make fun of me growing up.”
I lifted a brow. “And how long ago was that? Three hundred years?”
His entire face flamed red. “Well… yes. I suppose so.”
“Well, there you go. Also, I wasn’t there three hundred years ago, obviously, but I would’ve kicked those little turd’s asses if they made fun of you for your name.
It’s not like you picked your own name or something.
” My eyes widened. “Wait. You didn’t, did you?
That’s not like a snow yeti tradition or something, is it? ”
He snorted out a small laugh. “Definitely not. My parents named me Avalanche as soon as I was born. They said I cried so much and so loud, they were afraid I’d start an avalanche.” He shrugged, looking embarrassed.
I held back a snort and hid a smile so I didn’t upset him.
To my surprise, he let out a laugh. “You can laugh. I know it’s ridiculous.”
I grinned at that. “I think it’s cute. I would love to see some pictures of a cute little baby Avalanche.”
He rolled his eyes, a blush forming on his cheeks again, but his lips were tilted up in a tiny smile. “I’m sure my parents would love to show you every single baby picture they ever took of me.”
I chuckled and picked up my menu. “What kind of food do you eat?”
“I’m not picky. I eat pretty much everything. What about you?”
“I’m the same. I’ll eat anything, but I think I’m feeling a steak tonight.” Considering it was close to a full moon, that didn’t surprise me. Whenever a shift was coming up, I craved meat more and more.
“That sounds good, but I think I’ll go with some kind of chicken tonight. Do you…”
I glanced up with a raised eyebrow. “Do I what?”
He looked sheepish, and as he spoke, his face turned redder and redder.
“Do you like… sharing? Not like the whole meal, but maybe trying a bite or two of each other’s?
Or do you not like it? I’m fine either way and won’t be offended or anything if you don’t want to trade bites, but I just thought that maybe—”
I cut him off before he gave himself a coronary. “I don’t mind sharing. Actually, that would be pretty great since I’ve never been here before. I’m definitely good with it.”
He blew out a long breath. “Okay, cool. I… uh… I thought I maybe messed up there for a second.”
On instinct, I reached across the table and placed my hand over his.
This time, when we touched, it was without the layers of fabric between our hands, and the jolt my body received was even more intense than it’d been every other time.
It was like a jolt of pleasure fluttered over my skin, starting at my hand and shooting its way up my arm and over my entire body.
I’d never felt anything like it. Ever.
And I… I wasn’t mad about it, either.
In fact, I kind of… liked it.
A lot.
A lot, a lot.
I took a breath and tried to center myself since I was supposed to be comforting him and not worrying about whether or not I’d feel that same sensation all over my body if we touched when we were naked.
Oh, Mother of All, now I was picturing him naked.
For fuck’s sake.
I closed my eyes, took a breath, and looked into Lanche’s eyes.
“You don’t have to worry about messing up with me, okay?
I know you’re nervous, but there’s really no reason to be.
Tonight has been the best date I’ve ever been on.
You could literally just sit there the rest of the night without saying a word, and it’ll still be the best.
“The only thing that could ruin it for me is if you suddenly have a personality replacement and start being mean to the waitstaff—which I know you would never do. You already thanked the hostess like three times since we’ve been here, so I know you’ll treat our waiter well.”
He stared at me for a long time, then flipped his hand over under mine and gave it a squeeze. “Thank you, Dain. And… no, I would never be cruel to the staff.”
I rolled my eyes with a huff. “I know that.”
I was going to pull away out of principle, but after thinking about it for a moment, I decided against it since I was actually enjoying holding his hand.
Perhaps a little too much…
But no one needed to know that.