Chapter 33 #3
“No, he wasn’t, and he’s very good. He cooks for me all the time.”
“Well, I’ll be. Maybe I’ll talk to him. He could at least taste-test a few things for me.”
“Sure, and you could practice at the manse if you wanted. That way he’s not bothering anyone here.” He glanced around. “You can just imagine the chaos. The complaining, the wailing, the arguing. It would be brutal.”
“That’s a great idea, Rhaz. Thanks,” Kathy said. “Give me his number before you leave.”
“He doesn’t have a cell phone, I’m afraid. Neither does Rhaz,” Phin said, giving him the eye.
“I am working on it.” He raised both hands. “Promise.”
“That’s what I keep hearing. And no phone?” She sat back in her chair, pulled out her own phone, and began looking at it.
“What are you looking for?” he asked curiously.
“I want to see if there are any specials through my carrier. My carrier just ended one.”
“All right, I’ll get those coffees for you,” Kathy said. She left their table and disappeared into the kitchen.
Menus were already waiting for them, so Rhaz opened his while Phin continued to look at her phone.
“Anon is getting my phone for me. You don’t have to worry about that,” he said.
“Anon is getting your phone?” She looked up. “What is he, your dad?”
Rhaz tried not to smile. She didn’t know how close she was.
When Kathy returned to take their orders, Phin had put her phone away, and the conversation naturally grew a little awkward.
She was still nervous, and he was certain she had been using her phone to keep herself occupied so she wouldn’t have to converse with him.
Which, now that he thought about it, was okay so long as it helped her feel more comfortable around him.
“So, are you going to talk to the chief anytime soon?” she asked, following up with a smile.
“Oh, that. I am still not sure what’s happening, but I can talk to him. Maybe I can volunteer. Do you think that would be something that could happen?”
“I don’t know,” she said. “You’ll have to speak to him, and of course he’ll need to see all of your qualifications and training. You know, the usual.”
He nodded. “Very well. I’ll see what I can do.”
Her eyes brightened. “So you really are staying?”
“For the time being. Phin, it’s hard to explain.”
“Try me.” She folded her hands on the table, sat up a little straighter, and looked him directly in the eyes. “What brought you here in the first place?”
He sat back. This was new. Or maybe she was simply being brave. “Interesting circumstances. Through no fault of my own, I wound up here.”
“What kind of circumstances?” she asked, refusing to give up.
“The kind I can’t talk about just yet,” he said. “Things have to be worked out.”
She gasped. “You’re here looking for work, and your department doesn’t know it. Is that it?”
“I didn’t say that.”
“You didn’t have to. What else could it be?” She rolled her eyes and breathed a sigh of relief. “Why didn’t you just say so? Gosh, and here I’ve been so worried.”
“Worried?” he asked, arching an eyebrow. “Worried I would leave?”
“Well, yes, to be honest. If you’re going to leave, then there is no sense me being here.”
“Not even to have breakfast with a friend?”
“Oh, well, when you put it that way. Breakfast with a friend is good, but I just can’t get involved with someone who’s not going to stick around. You understand that don’t you?” She gave him a hopeful look.
“Of course I do, Phin.” He reached across the table and took her hand in his.
“And I’m not going anywhere for a while. And even if the opportunity arises, I may stay here until I know that when I return, I can take you with me.”
Her breath hitched. “What? You mean out of the country?”
If going to another realm counted as going out of the country, then yes. He nodded.
“Wow!” She sat back, eyes wide. “Oh, I don’t know about this,” she stammered. “But we could take it slow, right?”
Rhaz gave her the warmest smile he could muster. “Of course. We’ll take all the time we need. I want to get to know you, Phin. I want to spend time with you. Do you feel the same?”
Phin nodded. “I... well, yes.” She smiled at him, and his chest swelled. She was so innocent and adorable, and he was falling fast.
“So,” he said, giving her hand a squeeze, “what would you like to do today?”
“You really ought to talk to Chief Morrison. He’s trying to step up his campaign. My aunt is coming to town. She’s a lawyer. She said she’d give him a few pointers.”
“I thought no one was running against him.”
“Well, no one is, but in case there are any last-minute candidates, one can’t be too careful.”
“Who would do that?” he asked. “Your chief made it sound as if he would be the next mayor, and that was that.”
“Oh, I know, but Chief Morrison gets ahead of himself sometimes. If somebody like, say, Anon ran, it would change the race completely.”
“Anon?” Rhaz said laughing. Then a thought struck him. “What exactly does a mayor do?”
“Oh, well...” Phin said, then launched into a list of duties that would basically put Anon in charge of Moon Creek Falls.
Rhaz listened intently until the food arrived, then started asking questions.