Chapter 3
Cass
Today is going to suck.
Maybe she would ask Grayson to take her to the funeral home first. Afterward, she could catch a rideshare to her parents’ place.
That way, he wouldn’t be obligated to stick around.
Thanks to their road-trip-sharing sessions, she figured he was the type who would make that kind of offer, and that wasn’t something she wanted to take advantage of, no matter how tempting.
A ding and whoosh floated through the air. She turned to see Grayson walk out of the store, a doughnut clenched in his teeth as he snapped a lid on a coffee cup. He caught her watching as he grabbed his doughnut and shot her a charming grin.
Being on the receiving end of it ignited a warm combination of attraction and appreciation that inched back the cold, deep press of sorrow that had settled since she’d answered the phone at work.
During the hours-long car ride, that strangely hopeful feeling had gained strength, and despite the timing, she found she really liked him.
When they first hit the road, they’d asked the typical getting-to-know-you questions, which morphed into lists of favorites before moving on to the more entertaining versions of two truths and a lie.
Then somewhere along the line, they meandered off into more personal conversational gambits that bumped between stories of the past, observations of the present, and wishes for the future.
She learned that he worked with the Western Arcane Guild as a Key, and although he didn’t say much, she got the impression his skills with curse breaking were in high demand—so much so that Locke was nudging him to work with the Cordova Family.
As one of the premier Arcane Families in Phoenix, the Cordovas had access to the best, so if they were offering to bring Grayson aboard, he had to be a top-tier mage.
When she asked if he was considering the offer, he gently brushed her off with a noncommittal “It’s something to think about.”
Though her curiosity was a pesky bitch, she allowed him to shift their conversation to swapping amusing anecdotes of slinging drinks.
His tales predated his mage career when he worked the Vegas nightclub scene.
She matched him story for story, with her vast collection earned from a variety of southwest venues from a time before she’d put bar owner on her résumé.
Despite the initial reason for their car trip, it was one of the best first dates she’d ever had.
“I left the doors unlocked,” he said as he approached the car.
“It’s cool. I wasn’t in a rush to get back in.”
He stopped next to her, leaving a couple of inches between them as they enjoyed their coffee and watched the passing traffic. The next minute or so passed in relaxed quiet. As loath as she was to break it, there was no rest for the wicked.
“I was thinking…”
“Sounds dangerous,” he murmured.
She shot him a look and caught the amused curl of his lips. “It could be,” she teased. “You mind dropping me off at the funeral home?” Her voice cracked on that last bit.
He angled closer, his shoulder brushing hers. “I can do that,” he said gently.
Whether he intended it or not, she took comfort from the brief touch, leaning in a little when he didn’t move away. She scrounged up a small smile. “You don’t have to stick around. Especially if you’ve got things to do.”
She made the mistake of looking at him, and since he was maybe five or six inches taller than her five foot six, he was close enough that she could see the striations of gold that flared into a thin dark ring that bled into a tiger brown.
Flustered, she looked back at the road, feeling heat wash under her skin.
“Got nothing going on. So I’m happy to play your driver.” When he paused, she looked back to find him watching her. “Besides, I made Des and Isa a promise.”
There was no mistaking his concern, and it threatened to weaken her white-knuckle grip on her grief. She tried to clear her throat, where a lump had taken up residence, and looked away. “I’ll be fine.”
“Mm-hm.” There was a hefty amount of disbelief in his response, but he only said, “You’ve got good friends.”
“The best,” she agreed before taking another sip from her cup.
“Makes me think if they’re worried enough that they asked someone they don’t know to have your back, maybe I should stick around.”
“They’re worrywarts.” And they have reasons for that worry.
His silence was loud with unvoiced opinions.
She sighed. “My family… they’re complicated.”
“Most are.”
That was true, but hers took the cake and threw it out the window. “Isa and Des don’t like my parents, which isn’t a surprise considering my parents are difficult to like.” Or love.
He cautiously stepped through the door she’d opened. “You mentioned you left home at sixteen.”
“Yeah.”
“Your choice or theirs?” There was no judgment in his voice, just curiosity.
“Depends on who you ask.” She didn’t try to mask her bitterness because it was an old wound and had left a scar. From the corner of her eye, she caught him turning to her. When he didn’t push for more, she added, “I’d say both of our choices. But if you ask them, they’ll tell you it was all me.”
“And your grandmother?”
Memories assaulted her, wrapping phantom arms around her heart in a painful embrace.
“She’s the reason I was able to get out when I did.
” The urge to hold that connection close spurred her to share more than she normally would.
“My parents have very strong opinions on how their daughters’ lives should go, and they ensured that we didn’t think of deviating from the set path.
My yaya, on the other hand, believed her granddaughters should walk their own roads, even if it meant collecting skinned knees and bruised hearts or taking an unintended path.
The difference of opinions created a crack in our family that widened, especially after—” She stopped short, realizing what she was about to reveal.
“After…?” Grayson asked.
Cass shook her head and changed tracks. “After I got older. Mainly because I inherited my yaya’s stubborn independent streak, except stronger.
This did not go over well with my parents, so when things came to a head and that crack turned into uncrossable divide, me and my yaya ended up on one side, my parents on the other. ”
“Isa mentioned a sister. Where did she land?”
His question twisted the knife of well-worn guilt and sorrow.
Cass had to swallow hard before answering.
“Sofia got caught straddling the middle. She’d barely turned twelve when everything went down, so she didn’t really understand what was happening.
” Honestly, neither had Cass. Not until later, when she finally confronted her mother.
“What sucked worse was that I had my own damage to deal with, and by the time I had my shit together, it was too late to try and make amends. Whatever chance there was to salvage our relationship was long gone.” Which had left her with the second biggest regret of her life—failing her baby sister.
The first regret… well, that was a hell she wasn’t revisiting.
“Yaya tried to help. She’d take us both out to lunch, to shop, whatever, and did her best to mediate, but…
” Her shoulders rose and fell in an uncomfortable shrug.
“Sofia and I, we’re not close, but at least we’re cordial now. ”
A car playing music with a heavy bass line drove past. Grayson waited until the thudding beats had faded then said, “I’m sorry.”
She managed a strained smile and did her best to nudge the familiar sorrow back into its box. “So am I, but that’s life, right?”
“Maybe, but doesn’t make it hurt any less.” Something in his tone told her he got it.
“What about your family? Do you have siblings?”
She caught a fleeting shadow that dimmed his normally sharp gaze before he looked down to his coffee cup. “Yeah, younger brother, older sister.” He brought the cup up, blew across the top, then took a sip.
She tucked away the fact that he didn’t mention parents. “Middle child, huh?” That earned her a chuckle. “Are you close?”
There was a wry twist to his lips. “Some days, yes. Others, I wish we weren’t.”
His dry tone made her laugh and dispelled the lingering traces of their earlier conversation. “I get that. When Isa and Des clash, I’ve learned to duck and cover.”
“I just get the hell out of the way.”
Cass huffed out a chuckle. “Smart.” She straightened, taking a moment to roll up to her toes and lift her arms—and cup—high as she arched her back. The knots that had set up shop in her lower back unwound, and she sighed in relief before releasing her stretch. “We should probably get going.”
She sucked back the rest of her coffee and then went to step around him.
She didn’t get far because he caught her wrist gently, holding her in place.
“Cass, I know things are…” He grimaced, shook his head, and tried again.
“You’ve got a lot going on, but I just wanted to make sure you were okay with me sticking around. ”
“Why?”
“Why?” he echoed.
She nodded, an unexpected anxiety skating along her nerves as she waited for his answer.
“Because I like you, or at least what I’ve gotten to know so far, and I wouldn’t mind a chance to get to know you more.” His thumb brushed the inside of her wrist, igniting an internal swarm of butterflies.
Ignoring the delicate shiver that ran down her spine, she twisted her wrist until she could take his hand and thread their fingers together.
“I like you, too, Grayson.” When his eyes darkened at her admission, a thrill shot through her, making her voice rough.
“So yes, I’m okay with you sticking around. ”
“Good.” Without letting go of her hand, he tugged her closer until mere inches separated them. “So, your grandmother first, then your parents?”
She managed a nod despite being caught in a disconcerting state of anticipation. Part of her wanted to get lost in his magnetic pull, but the unrelenting grip of her looming reality refused to loosen. “Can you promise me something?”
“What?”
“Let me know if it gets to be too much.” When it came to her family, that was an inevitable outcome.
He didn’t answer right away. Instead he searched her face. She had no idea what he was looking for, but after a few tense moments, he must have found it, because he said, “I can do that.”
“Good.” Sweet relief rushed through her, and she leaned in to press a quick kiss against his jaw. She pulled back quickly, her face heating. “Sorry.”
His grin was downright wicked as he let her go. “Don’t be. I’m not.” He stepped back until he could open the passenger door and, with his cup in hand, motioned toward the car. “After you.”
She couldn’t help but grin as she settled into the seat. “Thank you.”
“You want me to take that?” He indicated her almost empty coffee cup.
“Sure.” She handed it over.
He took it, shot her another grin, then closed the door.
Cass watched him round the hood and head to the trash bin, only to be blinded when the glass door to the store opened, reflecting the early-morning sunlight directly into her eyes.
She turned away and blinked, clearing the white starbursts, until the parking lot reassembled itself.
A dark smudge on the roof of a nearby car caught her attention.
She blinked twice until it took the shape of an overly large raven, its inky eyes focused on her.
Those dark orbs held her captive as it opened its beak to give a harsh trill that mimicked chuckling.
Its call joined a rush of whispered warnings that deafened her with a wave of confused noise and trepidation.
Wincing, she closed her eyes and rubbed her forehead. “Not now.” It was stupid to ignore the signs, but she never claimed to be smart when her magic was involved.
The driver’s-side door opened then closed as Grayson’s weight settled in the car. “You okay?”
She opened her eyes, dropped her hand, and managed to fake a reassuring smile. “Yep, just tired.”
He paused. She had no idea if he was buying her excuse until he said, “Why don’t you input the address for the funeral home then try to rest?” He started up the car.
She did as he suggested, but once she sat back and closed her eyes, it wasn’t rest that found her but a murky knot of worries.