Chapter 2 #2
Alric shook his head, a smile playing faintly on his lips.
He deftly positioned Cameron on his left side while directing him away from the crowd and onto a quieter street, moving away from the heart of the festival.
This wasn’t the first time Alric had done that.
It was clear something was wrong with his left arm.
He rarely used it and actually kept it tucked away behind his back, even when he gestured.
Cameron wanted to ask, but he was sure anything out of his mouth would sound rude or make Alric uncomfortable.
But how he positioned Cameron was incredibly sweet and protective. He was keeping his stronger arm free to hold off the crowds and defend Cameron as needed.
They walked four blocks away from the main thoroughfare of the festival, the sounds of music and people growing fainter with each step.
Streetlamps were starting to pop on to hold back the growing darkness.
Cameron knew he should feel nervous about being in a city he didn’t know after dark, but he couldn’t summon up the logical fear. Not with Alric.
In the middle of a block, Alric started down what looked to be a dark alley, and Cameron’s self-preservations finally kicked in. Thank God.
“The restaurant is down this alley?” Cameron asked, hesitating on the sidewalk.
Alric flashed him a reassuring smile and motioned toward a set of stairs leading down into what looked like a basement for the building. “This place is a little more true to your description of hole-in-the-wall.”
“You do know that most horror movies include a part where the hero idiotically goes down into a basement,” Cameron muttered, still warring with himself over whether to continue or turn back. He refused to be too stupid to live.
“True. But most basements don’t lead to an ancient cave system that includes one of the best wine lists in the city.”
Fuck it. Call him stupid.
“The restaurant is in a cave?” Cameron asked, taking a small step forward.
“Yes. I think you’ll like it.” Alric extended his left hand to Cameron, beckoning him forward.
Cameron couldn’t stop from locking his eyes on it, taking in the hint of old scars along the side of his hand.
As if realizing what he’d done too late, Alric balled his hand into a fist and dropped it back to his side.
A scowl marred his handsome face as he looked down at the ground.
“But if you’d rather not…I can take you—”
“No, I want to see it,” Cameron said, quickly cutting him off.
Alric had made himself vulnerable for Cameron.
He’d done nothing all day to make Cameron question whether he was trustworthy.
He’d protected him from the crowds, filled him with interesting information, and made him laugh.
He gently placed his hand on Alric’s left shoulder and lightly squeezed. “I’ve never had dinner in a cave.”
The light returned to Alric’s eyes and he smiled. Cameron’s heart stupidly flipped over in his chest and he ignored it. He was not going to think about why he enjoyed making Alric smile.
“You will love this. I know it.”
Cameron followed him through and almost instantly felt better.
The alley was narrow, certainly, but there was beautiful, rich murals painted on the walls.
Some of it was breathtakingly stunning dragons in flight.
Narrow alley, yes. Dark, crime-ridden alley?
Obviously not. Maybe it was just his American instincts at play, here.
Germany was, after all, one of the secure countries in the world.
Alric led the way down the stairs and into the building.
There were more winding stairs and some enormous oak barrels that looked as if they stored wine or beer or maybe even whiskey.
At the end were a few more stairs and then an arched entrance that led into what was clearly a cave, its rough-hewn stone walls alight with dancing candlelight.
The air was several degrees cooler, chilling the sweat still coating his skin.
Cameron was in awe of the place. The ceiling was higher than he’d expected, disappearing into darkness, while the floor plan was largely open with a scattering of tables covered in pristine white cloths.
More candles in hurricane glasses glowed on the tables.
In the center of the room was a large bar made of hefty rough timbers and a sparkling rainbow of hundreds of bottles of alcohol.
But the true color came from the banners—dozens of colorful old banners emblazoned with images of dragons.
There were more with strange symbols and images he felt sure were linked to mages, but he didn’t know what any of them meant.
Just things he remembered from his childhood thanks to his grandmother’s crazy stories.
“What do you think?” Alric asked in a low voice.
“I’m expecting to see a dragon wander through blowing fire because these people are too close to his hoard,” Cameron said with a grin. The entire cave had a feeling of stepping back in time.
Alric snorted softly. “No self-respecting dragon would keep his hoard where humans could stumble across it.”
Cameron laughed and started to ask how Alric could be so confident when a short man in a smart suit hurried over to them, sidestepping a couple servers and a woman who looked to be the hostess.
He immediately fell on Alric, fawning over him in a flurry of German like he was a prince visiting from his royal castle.
Alric greeted him with his usual easy charm, his expression stoic but mildly friendly.
Not quite the same smile he’d been flashing Cameron all day.
Not that Cameron cared.
Not really.
Cameron shivered, and Alric stopped the man mid-sentence, turning his full attention to Cameron. “Are you alright? Is it too cold in here?”
“Oh no! This is fine,” he quickly countered. He did not want to miss out on eating in a cave.
Alric nodded once. “I’ll have a Kuscheldecke brought for you.”
Before Cameron could even ask what that was, Alric was turning back and issuing quick orders to the man watching them.
The man waved them on, snatching up two menus before leading them on a weaving path through the tables to a secluded booth near the back of the restaurant.
The table afforded them a view of the entire place while partially shielding them from the view of the other diners.
This was starting to feel like a date.
But it wasn’t a date.
Couldn’t be a date.
Alric was just showing him around the city.
Cameron was leaving Sonthofen in a couple days. He’d never see Alric again.
He needed to get his head on straight.
“Um…restroom?” Cameron asked and then winced. “To clean up, after all the walking.”
Alric smiled at him and gave succinct directions to the bathrooms not too far from where they were seated. Cameron quickly darted away, a sigh of relief escaping him when he was finally inside the room.
After the sight of the old bar and stone walls, he’d not been sure what to expect for the bathroom, but he was relieved to find it completely modern with sensor-activated faucets, plush hand towels, and fine decorations.
Best of all, he was completely alone. Snagging his phone out of his pocket, he pulled up the messaging app. He didn’t have a single damn bar, which wasn’t surprising considering how far underground he was. However, the restaurant was providing free Wi-Fi.
Met hot guy in Sonthofen. Took me to dinner in an old dragon cave. Tell me not to be stupid. Really want to be stupid , Cameron quickly texted.
Cassie’s response was immediate and not at all helpful.
dragons didn’t live in caves
they built castles
Cameron rolled his eyes at his sister. Of course she focused on the dragon part of his story.
But she sent a second text a couple heartbeats later.
pic or it didn’t happen
Growling softly, Cameron pulled up his photo gallery and quickly flipped through it.
He’d been snapping pictures on his phone all day.
He was stunned he had any battery life left, but he thought he’d caught one that accidentally included Alric.
Yep, there. The cathedral they’d stopped at.
Cameron had grabbed a picture of it, but he’d also caught Alric smiling softly at him at the same time.
He hesitated. A part of him didn’t want to send it. Didn’t want to share Alric with anyone, not even his twin sister. And he shared everything with her.
That thought alone had him attaching the picture and sending it to her. He was being crazy. Setting the phone down on the counter, he quickly washed his hands and splashed some water on his face.
His phone started to ring. He looked down to find his sister was attempting to Facetime him instead of texting him back. Grabbing a hand towel, he quickly dried his hands so he could answer her call.
“ Oh my GAWD, Cam !” she immediately shouted at him, her face filling his screen as if she were holding her phone incredibly close.
“ Are you shitting me ? I’m ordering you to be stupid .
” His sister had no filter. Everything just fell out of her mouth.
Most of it at the exact wrong time. The bathroom door opened just as she loudly said, “ You let that sexy man pin you to the nearest wall and you call him daddy or papa or whatever the fuck the Germans call their sugar daddies !”
Cameron’s cheeks blazed, and he punched the end call button over and over again until his sister’s screeching commands were at last silenced. He glanced up only long enough to confirm it wasn’t Alric who’d walked in on that. Luckily, it wasn’t.
Before tucking his phone away, he quickly shot off a text of shut up. I’ll report later, perv . He splashed more water on his face to help chase away the heat blazing in his cheeks before returning to the restaurant.